The excavation of three trial pits was undertaken between 20th and 22nd July 2020 by BAM under the supervision of the MM archaeologist, in accordance with Condition 3 of the SMC. HE were informed on 12th June 2020 of the commencement of the GI works, in accordance with Condition 1 of the SMC. The work adhered to the detailed methodology set out in the Archaeological Written Scheme of Investigation produced by BMMJV in April 2020 and approved by the EA and HE as part of the SMC application, (see Appendix C). All work was undertaken in line with the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (CIfA) Standard and Guidance for an Archaeological Watching Brief (2014b) and the Environment Agency's Minimum Technical Requirements: 801₁4SD01 Cultural Heritage and Archaeological Standards (2015). The CIfA Code of Conduct (2014b) was followed at all times. The coring of the Old Packhorse Bridge was not monitored as part of the archaeological watching brief. The results of this work are reported separately in the Old Packhorse Bridge Assessment Report (ENVIMNE790483-BMM-00-HB-RP-C-B1500₅7). A summary of the coring is discussed in Section 5. 2 of this report. The GI works were undertaken in accordance with the methodology specified within the SMC. The watching brief revealed some evidence for archaeological activity relating to the Bridge. Trial Pit A exposed the intersection of the bridges eastern arch and south eastern abutment. No evidence of the Bridge's footings was exposed within this pit and it is likely that these features lie below the base of the raised flower bed. Trial Pits B and C revealed no archaeological remains associated with the Bridge. There are several possibilities about why this is the case; either the pits lie beyond the presumed extent of the Bridge's abutments/footings; if present the remains lie at a depth greater than the 1. 20m limit of the trenches; the trial pits may lie outside of the line of the original bridge deck: or it is possible that the Bridge deck did extend this far but has been impacted by later interventions (excavations for service runs, surface treatment works, works to the wavy steps etc. ). The results of the trial pit do suggest that impacts extend down to at least 0. 70m below current ground level. A review of the engineering cores did not reveal any archaeologically significant information but did confirm that the Bridge is constructed from a solid stone masonry exterior with an internal rubble core. The foundations of the Bridge vary greatly in depth possibly reflecting the differential scouring and erosion of the riverbed over time.
Carty et al. (Wed,) studied this question.