EDO5922 - Milton Abbey School, Milton Abbas; watching brief 2015

A watching brief was carried out during ground work for services associated with the installation of a heating facility at Milton Abbey School. Mechanical excavation of a service trench of approximately 100m was monitored along its length. The depth was 1m and width 0.5m. Previous disturbance throughout of relatively modern date was found and deposits of modern debris including brick rubble, sand, ceramic drain pipe, glass and animal bone. Natural deposits were not seen with any certainty at any point along the trench apart from a small area of possible natural chalk at the east end, the rest being 're-deposited clayey deposit,possibly dirtied natural clay'. A wall was revealed at the western end running north-south consisting of two courses, upper and lower. The upper was mainly mortared flint rubble and included one dressed sandstone block and the lower was larger coarser flint with sandier mortar. The date of the wall was unclear and assumed to be late Medieval and may represent a building forming part of medieval Milton Abbey. Two fragments of decorated floor tile were found in the arisings from the trench, both thought to be 13th-14th century and to derive from Milton Abbey.