CUMBRIA COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN, CARLISLE SUMMARY OF PHASE 2A ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATION AND PHASE 2B WATCHING BRIEF

An excavation and watching brief were carried out in May 1999 at Cumbria College, Carlisle.
Excavation to the south-west of the main College building revealed only twentieth century features, and suggested that modern disturbance had been heavy. However, a watching brief at the main gate revealed a dump containing Roman pottery, the butt-ends of two possible beam slots, a larger linear feature, a pit, a posthole, and a possible kiln. The brief provided only for the recording of features that would be affected by the proposed development. As the putative kiln
was below this depth it was agreed that it should not be excavated, and thus an origin as a tree bole cannot be discounted. The evidence suggests Roman occupation close to Brampton Road, probably ending by the late third century AD. No evidence for the Hadrian’s Wall Vallum was present in this area.