Site Event/Activity record ECH5169 - Excavations at the Infirmary Fields: Bedward Row site, Chester 1912-1917

North of Bedward Row a 'furnace' 1-1.06m in diameter had a floor and sides of burnt clay was found (1). The entrance on the east was paved with blocks of sandstone and fragments of tiles, and its fill consisted of the caved-in roof, with sherds of Roman pottery and fragments of tile. The structure was sealed by a burnt layer which pre-dated two Roman inhumation burials. The hearth may have been used for metalworking; the burnt layer was perhaps produced by nearby industrial activity.