Monument record 8487 - Possible Roman Well and Clay Surface, South of Amphitheatre, Trident House

During the excavation of an extensive series of trial trenches carried out in advance of proposed redevelopment of the Dee House in 1993, evidence of a number of features of Roman date, located to the south of the amphitheatre, was recorded (1). Trench 10, at the southeast corner of Trident House, was one only location where natural red sandstone was reached, and at this location it was found to be cut by a vertically sided pit, filled with a sandy clay sediment containing sandstone fragments (1). Surrounding and seemingly contemporary with the rock-cut pit, overlying the bedrock, was a strong brown layer of clay which appeared to be a deliberately made surface rather than a natural deposit, and patches of charcoal were visible on it (1). The function and the depth of the pit are unknown (due to the limited size of the trench), but the excavators suggested that it may have been a well (but note these were usually stone-lined) or a cess pit, and tentatively, that the charcoal deposits might represent structures on the clay surface associated with the original use of the pit (1). A second, later cut, was seen in a very small exposure to be cutting both the surface and part of this pit (1).

<1> Lancaster University Archaeological Unit, 1993, Dee House Chester, Cheshire (Client Report). SCH6185.