A number of Medieval features were uncovered during an archaeological evaluation undertaken at the former site of the Post Office at Biggin Street, Dover. The features include, pits, a possible ditch or linear feature, a robber trench, possible wall and a well. Cultivation soils of a probable Medieval date were also located across the site.

(summarised from source) In detail: trench 1 three archaeological features were found cutting the natural brick-earth at 5.25m OD, approximately 2.2m below the ground level. The earliest of these was a large roughly circular pit; it was 1.35m wide and excavated to a maximum depth of 1.4m. It had been deliberately back filled with a series of light coloured sandy clays, two of which produced pottery dating to the 11th -12th centuries. The two further pits also cut the natural but these were shallow and devoid of finds. The remains of a two course deep brick wall was also located in trench 1, the brick were of a type typical of the 16th century.

In trench 2 a substantial flint wall was uncovered and is also of a possible Medieval date. The was on a set of chalk block foundations which varied in size between 0.24m long by 0.14m wide and 0.44m long by 0.24m wide and were laid in both single and double courses. This provided an initial foundation depth of between 0.3m and 0.4m. The blocks were loosely bonded with a light brown clay silt. Overlying this chalk was an additional foundation of un-coursed knapped and un-knapped flint together with roughly hewn Kentish ragstone bonded with a light grey sandy mortar, this constituted a further 0.4m of foundation. The wall itself consisted of six uneven courses of knapped flint bonded with a greyish white mortar. The wall was battered slightly to the NW and had an overall depth of 0.7m. A possible single rebuild or repair to the wall was apparent at the south western end of the section. Two contexts were discovered in association with this wall, one wall a layer of construction debris, this was overlain by a mid-brown clay silt with brick and tile fragments; this possibly constitutes the original ground surface relating to the wall. It is possible that these features relate to a farmhouse thought to have occupied the north west corner of the site in the later Medieval period, though this cannot be confirmed due to the lack of any underlying dating evidence.

In trench 4 a deposit dating to the Roman period was cut by a NW-SE construction trench running across the NE end of the trench. This feature had a maximum width of 0.7m and was 0.55m deep. It was filled with a greyish brown silty clay containing lumps of mortar. The presence of mortar suggests the feature was a robber trench probably dating to the late Medieval period. The disturbed remains of a chalk and flint surface overlay this robber trench which was also possibly of a later Medieval date.

In trench 5 the natural brick-earth had been cut by a circular well which consisted of weathered flint pieces in a clay matrix internally faced with hew curved chalk blocks. The blocks measured between 0.3m by 0.15m by 0.1m and 0.38m by 0.2m by 0.1m and were bonded with a grey brown silty clay. The well had an overall circumference of 1.12m with an inner void circumference of 0.78m, this was filled with a dark grey silty clay containing flint pieces and organic debris. A single sherd of 17thcentury pottery was recovered from within this fill. This well is possibly associated with the possible late Medieval ragstone wall located in trench two.

Alongside these features a layer of soil possible representing Medieval cultivation soil consisting of a clay silt was located in trenches 1, 2, 3 and 4. (1)

<1> Oxford Archaeological Unit, 1998, Former Post Office, Biggin St/Priory St, Dover, Kent: Archaeological Evaluation Report (Unpublished document). SKE6592.