The Fleury Building, Winchester Cathedral

In January 2010, Oxford Archaeology (OA) undertook archaeological recording at the site of the proposed Fleury Building at Winchester Cathedral, immediately to the
east of the north transept. This was followed by a watching brief during the installation of new drainage between May-July 2010. The archaeological work
followed on from an earlier evaluation carried out by OA in December 2008. The evaluation partially revealed at least nine supine inhumations, represented by
simple earth-cut graves, a number of which were lined with chalk block cists. The site was excavated to the foundation levels of the new building with minimal or no
impact on the archaeological remains. Additionally, a trench to incorporate a foul water pumping station was excavated immediately adjacent to the east wall of the
north transept. This entailed the re-excavation of an early 20th century underpinning trench that exposed the offset brick footing of the same date which enabled
archaeological remains exposed by the cut of the original trench to be recorded to a depth of c 3.1 m below the present ground level (b.g.l).
The trench for the pumping station revealed a series of deposits which appeared to represent late Roman and early medieval alluviation. These were found to overlie a
possible tufa deposit, possibly part of a floodplain island that is believed to partially underlie the cathedral. A post-Roman gravel surface was identified, possibly
corresponding to similar surfaces found that potentially pre-dated the Old Minster to the west. This sequence was overlain by make-up layers and graveyard soils, within
which at least two graves were discernible, both of which had a chalk block lining. The chalk lined cists were similar to those excavated on the site of the 13th century
St Swithun's chapel in the 1960s, which were thought to be contemporary with the
chapel.
Three of the burials revealed within the evaluation were re-excavated in order for
samples of bone to be taken for C14 dating. The femurs of the three individuals, one from within a chalk lined cist, but the remaining two from earth cut graves were
sampled. Whilst the burial within the cist and one of the skeletons from the earth cut graves were dated to the 13th-14th centuries, the third sample appeared to date to
the 11th-12th century. This would suggest that the area was in use as a burial ground prior to the construction of St Swithun's chapel.
Further evidence for features and structures associated with the underpinning of the cathedral in the early 20th century was also revealed, including evidence for
concrete blocks that may have served as thrust blocks to support raking timbers that would have been propped against the buttresses. The concrete skirt between the
buttresses of the east arm of the cathedral was also broken out and revealed the Romanesque plinth. This appeared to have been re-used for the construction of the
existing presbytery aisle walls during the early 16th century. In places, the footings of the buttresses of the presbytery aisle