Archaeological monitoring and recording at St Peter's Church, Oakford, Devon

Archaeological monitoring and recording was carried out by Oakford Archaeology between May and September 2025 at St Peter's Church, Oakford, Devon. The works comprised two areas inside the western part of church. The ground reductions inside the tower measured 3.7m long, 3m wide and extended to a maximum depth of 0.6m, while the excavations at the western end of the south aisle an area measured 2.4m long, 2.35m wide and extended to a maximum depth of 0.5m. Within the churchyard the works comprised the excavation of a new drainage trench roughly 72m long, 0.35m wide and up to 0.6m deep. The work was required by the Diocese Advisory Committee (DAC), as advised by the Diocesan Archaeological Advisor (DAA), Andy Crabb. The works inside the church tower exposed the remains of earlier steps leading down from the west doorway and an earlier cobbled floor. Although undated it is not uncommon for church towers to have either tiled floors or cobbled surfaces and the cobbles. In addition, they were overlain by the remains of a former stair arrangement leading up to the 15th century tower stair, its threshold standing half a metre above the medieval floor level, and it is therefore on balance likely that the cobbles are 15th century in date. Furthermore, the remains of worn edging stones were also exposed, delineating the flooring within the tower from the nave to the east and suggesting the flooring within the main body of the church was different to that in the tower at this period. Finally, the cobbles were sealed underneath a mortar bedding for a later floor, suggesting that the tower was subsequently either tiled or had a stone floor. The church was extensively rebuilt in 1838-9, with the interior floor level substantially raised above the late medieval and post-medieval levels. Evidence from the two excavations inside the church showed that a large amount of imported soil and building debris from the medieval structure, including the beer stone architectural fragment and green glazed floor tile, was used to make up the levels. As part of these extensive works the former stair arrangement underneath the tower stair was removed, while new steps were inserted in the west doorway above the level of the medieval steps and later post-medieval repairs. Within the south aisle the imported soils were consolidated with lime mortar and a set of low sleeper walls constructed to support the new stone flooring, while a small culvert provided drainage for the cavity below. The external works exposed largely redeposited soils rather than the charnel soils that would be expected considering the date of the church. Although a very small quantity of disarticulated human remains were recovered from the redeposited subsoil, it is possible that, as part of the 19th century works, some of the material used in levelling the interior floor was taken from the graveyard. Significantly, finds recovered included a late medieval Beer stone architectural fragment with evidence of three phases of use. Beer stone is not a common stone type in small Devon churches, and it is unclear how this fragment came to be at St Peter's Church. In addition, a single sherd of late medieval floor tile represents the only fragment associated with the earlier medieval church. Other finds include post-medieval pot sherds, CBM fragments, architecture fragments, glass and clay pipes. The works inside the church tower exposed the remains of earlier steps leading down from the west doorway and an earlier cobbled floor. Although undated it is not uncommon for church towers to have either tiled floors or cobbled surfaces and the cobbles. In addition, they were overlain by the remains of a former stair arrangement leading up to the 15th century tower stair, its threshold standing half a metre above the medieval floor level, and it is therefore on balance likely that the cobbles are 15th century in date.