Watching Brief at St. Mary's Church, Lower Dunsforth

The watching brief initially comprised the monitoring of three small percolation test pits (Trenches 1 - 3) along the route of the proposed new trench arch drainage system. This was followed later by excavation of the trench arch (Trench 4) and its linking drainage trench (Trench 5) from the church (Figure 7). The watching brief was carried out in accordance with the methodology detailed in the approved Written Scheme of Investigation (OSA, September 2023. St. Mary's Church, Lower Dunsforth, North Yorkshire. Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Watching Brief). Standard On-Site Archaeology techniques were followed throughout the investigation, and a photographic record was also maintained. A full catalogue of context descriptions and photographs is provided in Appendix 1. Archaeologically the most significant feature recorded during the investigation is foundation (502). Unfortunately, very little of foundation (502) was exposed to get a clear understanding of its relationship with the extant church structure. The outer edge of the foundation was at 0.75m away from the extant wall. If the foundation is interpreted at being simply related to the standing wall then it would be very wide. Once the thickness of the wall itself is also taken into consideration, and if the foundation extends for a similar distance to the interior of the wall, then it would be c.2m wide. A medieval brick fragment recovered from the foundation matrix may suggest a medieval construction, or reuse of medieval material within the Victorian rebuild. If the foundation is part of the medieval chapel, then it is later than the possible Anglo-Saxon and early Norman origins of the church, as the wide use and production of medieval brick started during the 13th century. Whilst the investigation was of insufficient depth to allow a full understanding of the foundation, this meant it has limited the impact of the groundworks upon the archaeology, which has been preserved in-situ. No features or finds were detected within Trenches 1 - 4 where natural deposits were encountered sealed by a subsoil. A thin layer of construction or demolition debris was recorded above the subsoil that may represent activity associated with the demolition of the earlier chapel and construction of the 1860 church.