Freshney Place development – archaeological finds update

More information is coming to light, thanks to the archaeology work at the Freshney Place development

Over the last winter, a team from York Archaeology spent just over three months at Grimsby’s Freshney Place redevelopment, near the historical Flottergate area.

During the dig, lots of artefacts were uncovered, from scraps of leather shoes to fish bones – building a unique picture of how the town built itself up and what life was like for residents over 500 years ago in Grimsby.

The York Archaeology team have spent the last few months stabilising lots of the finds, and have now been able to share more information about them, and what they show.

Leather

One of the largest group of finds was leather – both full shoe soles, and remnants. It was thanks to the wet nature of the site that organic material had been preserved.

So far, 91 shoe parts have been identified, with styles covering around 200 years, ranging from the late 12^th to early 14^th centuries. These finds support that knowledge, that Grimsby by then was a bustling town. We know that Grimsby had the borough’s first ever Royal Charter document from 1201, signed by King John a full 14 years before the Magna Carta document. This Charter paved the way for Grimsby to govern itself and set its own taxes, raising money from the people of the town.

The shoe soles that were found in the dig show evidence of repair, indicating that there was a leatherworker in the town to cater for that. It’s possible, given the amount of offcuts found on the site, that the dig uncovered a leather-worker’s business or home.

Lead seal matrix

One of the most exciting finds on the site was a lead seal matrix featuring a tall tree in the centre. A lead seal is an engraved tool cast from lead or lead alloy used mainly during the medieval period (predominantly the 13th and 14th centuries) to stamp impressions into hot wax to authenticate documents. These functioned like a modern signature, allowing both those who could read and write, and illiterate individuals across all social classes, from merchants to clergy and farmers, to legalise everything from letters to legal transactions. It often has a loop at the top, as this one seems to have, so that it could be worn around the user’s neck. The inscription along the edge normally refers to the individual’s name, and in this case, is currently thought to read “HVGON”. Could the person have been called “Hugo”?

Pottery

Similarly, pottery from the site has now been identified as Beverley-type ware, dating from late 12^th to middle 14^th century. Green glazed handles from jugs or ewers have been found and cleaned, but unfortunately no full jugs.

Other finds

Copper alloy fittings have been found – these could have been used to fix items like wood together.

Lots of wood stakes were found on the site, possibly indicating fence boundaries.

A large quantity of fish bones was also, unsurprisingly, found at the site – a key part of the diet of local people. We’ll find out soon what sort of fish they were eating!

These finds give some insight into the area. A once bustling market place, the area hasn’t changed all that much, but simply update and altered itself according to the world around it.

Cllr Tanya Brasted, Cabinet member for heritage, said, “These are really interesting finds for our town centre, and in time, I hope to be able to bring them back to the town and put them on display for everyone to see.”