NHER 428 (Monument record) - Second Precinct of Dominican Friary, Blackfriars, St Andrew's Hall

Description and detailed plan of complex in file. Second precinct acquired by the Dominican Friars in 1307. The first was north of the river at NHER 381.
This precinct includes NHER 176, NHER 194, NHER 827.

October-November 1991. Trial Trench.
Evaluation excavation within cloister.
Revealed redeposited Late Saxon pottery and medieval areas of levelling.
See report (S1) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S16).
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2022.78).
E. Rose (NLA), 17 December 1991. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 6 December 2022.

July 1992. Trial Trench.
Evaluation prior to remedial work to foundations of 19th century staircase turret on west side of Cloister Garth.
Hand excavation of medieval and post medieval deposits.
See report (S17) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S18).
P. Emery (NAU), 4 December 1992.

August-September 1992. Watching Brief/Excavation.
Revealed cobbled surface of original route of Elm Hill with traces of burning.
See report (S2) and press cutting (S3) for further details.
E. Rose (NLA), 4 September 1992.

21 December 1993. Field Observation.
Observation of sewerage pipe trench.
No further recording as trench cut through modern rubble make up layer.
No artefacts recovered. Plan in file.
M. Smith (NAU), 21 December 1993.

April 1995. Watching Brief.
NAU watching brief during excavation by contractors of a test pit adjacent to west wall of St Andrews Hall, immediately south of door to south cloister walk.
Foundations planned and photographed, also the mortared flint core and limestone facing of a north-south wall.
P. Emery (NAU), 13 August 1996.

4 September 1998. Watching brief.
Monitoring of work in south cloister range. Context 34 used.
19th-century patterned tile pavement exposed to east of entrance, beneath 20th century concrete.
See (S4) for further details.
The archive associated with this work has been deposited with the Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2018.204).
E. Rose (NLA), 24 November 1999 and S. Tremlett (NAU), 9 March 2000.
Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 19 October 2015 and 27 April 2019.

January-February 2007. Watching Brief.
Two wall foundations were revealed; one on the same orientation as the frontage of Prince's street, some 4m to the south, constructed from brick and flint cobbles bound by a lime mortar. The other, orientated NE-SW, was constructed from brick bound by a lime mortar.
See NHER 194 and report (S15) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S19).
D. Holburn (HES), 21 September 2011. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 27 May 2019.

May 2007. Excavation. Contexts 50-65.
Ten small 'slots' were excavated prior to the installation of two bicycle stands, one located next to the Monastery Court car park and the other on the western side of the eastern range of St. Andrew's Hall. Although Cycle Stand 1 was believed to be located beyond the northern range of the demolished Friary, a masonry structure was recorded at the base of three of the excavated slots. This may have been either a wall or a floor of one of the post medieval buildings depicted on several 19th century maps (S6-S8). Alternatively, it may have been part of the monastic reredorter which Sutermeister (S9) suggested was located immediately north of the east wing of the Friary. The structure was overlain by a layer of rubble, likely derived from the destruction of a masonry structure. Cycle Stand 2 was located only a few meters from the 1991 excavation trenches and revealed similar levelling deposits to those recorded in 1991. Finds included two sherds of medieval to post medieval pottery, one post medieval pottery sherd, one oyster shell and a single goose bone.
See report (S5) for further details. See also (S10) and (S11).
The archive associated with this work has been deposited with the Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.59).
H. Hamilton (NLA), 26 February 2008. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 27 April 2019.

October-November 2008. Trial Trenching.
Two trenches excavated. Contexts 100-262 used.
Trench 1 was located to the north of the complex, in the car park. The earliest feature present was a large pit or cluster of pits which appeared to cover the entire base of the trench. Burnt clay flecks, animal bone and pottery sherds dating from the 12th century were recovered from the fill, suggesting some type of industrial origin. The pit/ pits were cut to the south by a large, well defined pit with a depth of at least 3.30m. small numbers of animal bones and pottery sherds were recovered from the fill.
Trench 2 was also located in the north. A number of pits were identified in the base of this trench, and produced medieval pottery and two 15th-16th century jettons.
Trenches 3 and 4 were located in the garden to the south of St. Andrews hall. A pit was identified and a sherd of 12th-13th century pottery was recovered from its fill. A larger pit covered most of the western half of the evaluation trench. It was interpreted as a quarry pit. A brick wall of probable post- eighteenth century date was aligned north- south along the centre of the trench.
Trench 4 recovered fragments of brick and tile, and a copper alloy bell were recovered from a layer of sand clay. A small circular pit produced 16 sherds of 16th-18th century pottery. The north western corner of a cellar was present within the trench. It was built from flint with a small proportion of brick and limestone and bonded with lime mortar. A modern brick wall was noted in the eastern section of the trench.
See report (S12) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S14).
An archive has been deposited with the Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2017.78 and NWHCM : 2025.168).
H. White (NLA), 20 February 2009. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 27 April 2019 and 31 August 2025.

November 2008. Geophysical Survey.
Ground penetrating radar survey.
Several masonary footings were interpreted from the data, at approximately 600mm below the surface and were 800mm in width. Based on excavation findings in trench one (see S12) these featured have been dated to the medieval or early post- medieval period. Narrower foundations may be more recent, which is again reflected in the excavation report. A shallow drainage network and soakaway in the south- west corner of the survey were also identified.
See report (S13) for further details.
H. White (NLA), 2 March 2009.