Earlier this year I had the great privilege to meet one of the greatest archaeologists of the modern era, Professor Sir Barry Cunliffe, during my work with Cotswold Archaeology, who were working with Bath and Counties Archaeological Society (BACAS) and The Roman Baths Museum on the Archway Project. The project aims to create a new Learning Centre and a World Heritage Centre by revealing parts of the bathing complex that were hitherto inaccessible by the public. The area, which currently lies immediately to the south of the area open to the public (specifically the Kings Bath and Circular Bath) was originally excavated by the Victorians, who created a warren of cellars in the spaces below York Street and Swallow Street. The Roman archaeology, which includes a dry sweat room (Laconicum), plunge pools and a possible running track or exercise area in the southern part of the bathing complex, was exposed and noted at the time, but not recorded to modern standards. Since then a number of small archaeological excavations have been carried out, the most notable by Professor Sir Cunliffe from 1963 onwards. Cotswold Archaeology were commissioned by the Roman Baths Museum to work with volunteers from BACAS to make the first comprehensive record of all of the structures and archaeological deposits within the space. The working included re-opening some of the earlier archaeological trenches, and removing some intrusive modern deposits, to check the accuracy of some of the earlier records and to answer a number of questions regarding the layout and use of this part of the baths. Laser scanning and 3D photography (photogrammetry) techniques were also used to make highly accurate 3D models of the space as it was found in 2018. I was lucky enough to be managing the project for Cotswold Archaeology, and during the course of the work invited Professor Sir Cunliffe back to the site to discuss the context of his earlier work, and his thoughts on the new discoveries we had made, including a fragment of a previously unseen mosaic adjacent to one of the early plunge pools, and a series of compact sand layers that may represent evidence for a covered running track or exercise area. The Roman Baths Museum followed the progress of the work keenly, and commissioned a film crew to record Professor Cunliffe’s visit for posterity. Here’s what happened when we talked to him: https://youtu.be/vBOArQ_lRSg The Roman Baths Museum also commissioned a series of educational films documenting the archaeological process, which will be used in the new Learning Centre. The brick cones once synonymous with the glass industry that thrived in Bristol from the late 17th century have now all but disappeared. In fact, this example from Prewett Street, near St Mary Redcliffe Church, represents the only remnant of the historic industry that survives above ground, and yet extraordinarily is the site which we know least about. Now a restaurant, attached to a hotel, by 1812 it was used as part of H and T Proctor's fertilizer factory. However, its origins, ownership, and what types of glass were made here are not known. The cone structure itself, which first appears on a map of 1780, was reduced to the tops of the annealing arches in its conversion to a restaurant in the 1960s - the form which you can see it in now. Numerous factors brought the glass industry to Bristol in the 17th century, including the ready availability of coal to fire the furnaces, raw materials such as sand, limestone, red lead and kelp either locally sourced or imported (the latter already coming in from Ireland for soap making), and the strong established trade links from the port. Trade in glass bottles and window glass was established before the end of the 17th century with New England, Virginia, Portugal, Spain and northern Europe. The importation of sugar, on which Bristol came to depend, led to a growth in liquor distilling and this, together with existing trades in wine and locally produced beers and ciders, provided ready markets for glass bottle manufacturers. The deepening and widening of the River Avon to make it navigable to Bath by 1727 also stimulated further interest in glass making in Bristol, enabling the manufacturers to supply bottles, drinking vessels and window glass safely to ready markets in Bath. By the 1720s there were at least twelve glasshouses in the City, and before the end of the century at least sixteen had been established. However, the impact of wars with France and America, and the eventual declaration of independence by the latter, saw the Bristol glass industry contract to about a quarter of its previous size by the end of the century, and the consolidation of much of it by Jacob Wilcox Ricketts, who brought together a number of the Bristol glasshouses and continued manufacturing glass into the 19th century. In this context, the reasons for the demise of the Prewett Street site for glassmaking by 1812 seem clear, and make its survival all the more remarkable. However, its origins and history remain, for now, shrouded in mystery. References: Bristol Know Your Place website; Witt, Weeden & Schwind 1984: Bristol Glass. Published by Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. |
AuthorSimon Cox is Director of Bristol & Bath Heritage Consultancy Ltd, and has been an archaeology and heritage specialist for over 27 years CategoriesArchives |