Document record MAB57638 - ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY

A watching brief, and subsequent excavation, carried out by Cameron Archaeology in 2015 during groundworks for an electricity substation and underground cable recorded 29 burials.

A watching brief, and subsequent excavation, carried out by Cameron Archaeology in 2015 during groundworks for an electricity substation and underground cable recorded 29 burials. Two trenches were excavated, Trench 1 within the court, and Trench 2 along the Schoolhill frontage. A robber trench within Trench 1 may indicate the location of the east wall of the Blackfriars Church. The burials were found in two areas in Trench 1, east and southwest of the robber trench. Twenty-five of the burials were fully excavated. Those to the east were discrete, not cutting one another whilst those to the southwest were intercutting with multiple layers of burials. All of the burials were orientated (E-W or ENE-WSW), and were prone. Two had pillow stones beside the head. Ten of the burials were within coffins and wood-covered nails were recovered. One copper alloy pin was recovered from the mortar in the robber trench, No other objects were found in the graves and very little pottery and bone was recovered from the fills. There were few finds in the grave soil suggesting the area occupied by the Blackfriars (see also NJ90NW0041) had not been intensively occupied prior to their arrival. One burial was recorded in Trench 2 alongside the south side of the Art Gallery. Cut into the garden soil around this burial were two parallel wall foundations, 5m apart and constructed of large fieldstones bonded with lime mortar. These are thought to be post-medieval in date, the remains of the Old Grammar School (NJ90NW0226) recorded on the OS 1st edition map.

Period Notes
Radiocarbon date SUERC-68306 (GU41205) - human bone (site ref CA228): 1051+/-34 BP, calibrated to 928 - 1030 AD at 2 sigma

HALL, D, , ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY, SCHOOLHILL: ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATION AND WATCHING BRIEF, THE CERAMICS (Bibliographic reference). SAB5802.

HUGHES, MJ, , PLASMA SPECTROMETRY ANALYSIS (ICP) OF POTTERY FROM ABERDEEN BLACKFRIARS (Bibliographic reference). SAB5804.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 25/07/15 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 27/07/27 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 28/07/15 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.

THE SCOTSMAN, 0000, THE SCOTSMAN, 01/10/15 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1819.

CAMERON ARCHAEOLOGY, 2015, ADMINISTRATION BULDING, RGU, SCHOOLHILL : REPORT ON ARCHAEOLOGICAL WATCHING BRIEF AND EXCAVATION, AND DATA STRUCTURE REPORT, WB/Excav report/DSR (Bibliographic reference). SAB6926.

CAMERON ARCHAEOLOGY, 2015, ADMINISTRATION BULDING, ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY, SCHOOLHILL ABERDEEN: WRITTEN SCHEME OF INVESTIGATION, WSI (Bibliographic reference). SAB7014.

DUFFY, PRJ, 2016, ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY, SCHOOLHILL: REPORT ON THE HUMAN SKELETAL ASSEMBLAGE (Bibliographic reference). SAB4058.

AOC ARCHAEOLOGY, 2016, CA228; COFFIN NAILS WOOD ANALYSIS (Bibliographic reference). SAB6436.

ARCHAEOLOGY SCOTLAND, 2016, DISCOVERY AND EXCAVATION IN SCOTLAND, NEW SERIES, VOLUME 16, 2015, pp. 8-9 (Bibliographic reference). SAB6502.

Jul 3 2015 , AAS-GR-15-07-161 - 166, AAS-GR-15-07-161 - 166 (Ground Photograph). SAB34285.

Jul 10 2015 , AAS-GR-15-07-167 - 173, AAS-GR-15-07-167 - 173 (Ground Photograph). SAB34286.

Jul 13 2015 , AAS-GR-15-07-174, AAS-GR-15-07-174 (Ground Photograph). SAB34287.

Jul 14 2015 , AAS-GR-15-07-175 - 176, AAS-GR-15-07-175 - 176 (Ground Photograph). SAB34288.

Record last edited

Jun 19 2023 12:32PM