Wessex Archaeology was commissioned by William Anelay Ltd, on behalf of the Dean and Chapter of Wakefield Cathedral to carry out archaeological works within the Cathedral and a watching brief on the erection of a replica Anglo-Saxon cross within the Cathedral Precinct as part of the Phase 2 refurbishment works. The internal works comprised excavation within the Quire Aisles and a Structural Watching Brief. Excavation took place in two discrete areas in the north and south Quire Aisles. Individual lead-lined coffins, unlined wooden coffins and brick vaults with coffins were located in both areas. A series of mason's marks were recorded and a revised phasing plan for this part of the Cathedral was produced. A watching brief was maintained on groundworks within the Cathedral precinct. Trench 1 was excavated to facilitate the reinternment of disarticulated human bone recovered from recent archaeological works associated with the internal Phase 2 refurbishment of the Cathedral. Trench 2 was excavated as a foundation trench for the erection of a newly-carved replica of the 10th century Wakefield Cross. The watching brief revealed a small quantity of disarticulated human skeletal material from the two trenches as well as the presence of in-situ graves The osteological assemblage from the Phase 2 works demonstrated a mixed demographic as would be expected from this burial context.
Swann et al. (Fri,) studied this question.