St Clement's churchyard, The Plain, Oxford

Between the 3rd and 5th September 2007, Oxford Archaeology (OA) carried out an archaeological watching brief on The Plain roundabout, Oxford (NGR SP 523 059). The work was commissioned by Jacobs on behalf of Oxfordshire Highways, and was carried out during roadworks on the south- eastern area of the roundabout.
The watching brief revealed part of the churchyard of the old St Clement’s Church, which stood on the site until 1828. Sixteen earth- cut graves and one brick shaft grave were revealed. A small assemblage of human bone was also recovered as charnel and from graves truncated by Trench 1. The burials, all roughly west- east aligned, are thought to date to the later 18th- early 19th centuries. The quality of the coffin remains and coffin fittings are consistent with the historical information that described the population of St Clement’s parish as poor and of low status.
The distribution and density of burials revealed during the watching brief was greatest in the western half of the site closest to the site of the church, but the absence of graves in the eastern half suggested that the eastern limit of the churchyard was encompassed within the study area.