During an archaeological watching brief carried out on the installation of drainage at St Mildreds Priory in Minster, Thanet the right angled remnant of wall foundations of rammed chalk were revealed. The lower courses of the wall were probably constructed from blocks or slabs of fine grained local Thanet Dogger sandstone held together with shelly mortar. The inner angle of the structure may have been faced with the same stone. Any evidence of the treatment of the outer face has been lost by truncation by later activity, probably related to levelling of the area prior to another phase of construction. The structure appears to be the corner of a building whose orientation is inconsistent with the standing buildings of the Priory complex. The building appears to have been demolished or perhaps robbed so the facing stones could be reused elsewhere. The interior angle between the two walls was filled with smaller and degraded fragments of sandstone; remnants of a deposit of demolition debris. The precise date of the structure could not be established, its building stones and shelly mortar suggest that it could be contemporary with the construction of the west wing part of which was constructed before 1085. The fresh pottery fragments found in the deposit abutting the foundations suggest a date around 1150-1225. contemporary with the construction work carried out to enlarge the Manor House in the 12th century when the west block was converted into kitchens and living quarters and the remains of the old monastic church and tower left on the south side. It is not clear whether the building foundations encountered relate to a new structure built at this time, or to the demolition of an even older structure to make way for the 12th century rebuilding. (information summarised from source) (1)

<1> Trust for Thanet Archaeology, 2010, Repair and Relaying of Drainage, St Mildred's Priory, Minster-in-Thanet, Kent: Archaeological Watching Brief Report (Unpublished document). SKE16973.