More information : SE 7923 7163. Site of mosaic and apsidal building (`town house' of
some importance) laying E-W, with workshops to S and oven building
(bakery ?) to N. main Roman Road, 7 layers of metal 6 ft in thickness
to w side. Shops and workrooms to NW and latrine building to SW of
road. Area dug by M.O.W - D Smith and P Holman 1949-52. (Unpublished
report - photos by R.H.H.)". (1)
Excavation prior to building in Orchard Field, SE of the fort,
resulted in the discovery of the road from the SE gate to the ford
across the R Derwent. West of the road a series of rectangular
buildings of an average size of 25 by 40 ft stood hardly a foot
apart and appeared to be workshops or store-houses; most of the
pottery, including much local ware, and coins are of the second half
of the third and the first half of the fourth century.
On the east of the road the floors and walls of buildings extended
along the fort's SE rampart, but the most elaborate structure,
found some 150ft south of the fort, measured 90 by 30 ft,
from SW to NE, and consisted of a courtyard (50 by 20 ft.) on the
SW with two stokeholes for the hypocausts heating the three
adjoining rooms on the NE, the most westerly of which ended
in a wide apse 15ft. in diameter provided with six wall flues.
The central room had a good, but much damaged, mosaic floor.
The courtyard had an 8 ft. entrance on the south and a massive
portico in non-local stone on the street frontage. Towards the end
of the fourth century the larger stokehole had been blocked and
the portico replaced by meaner work.
Continued trenching the following year (1950) in Orchard Field
showed that the buildings of the Vicus did not extend more than 200
feet east of the main road and that the greater part of the remains
were of the fourth century, though successive stone re-building
could be traced back to the early second century, Hadrianic and
Antonine material being relatively more common than in the fort
itself, which at this period was lightly garrisoned.
One mid-second century structure contained circular baking ovens.
The impressive portico of the house facing the main road found
in 1949 proved to be merely a facade, the entrance being through
two 6ft. doorways which opened on to a narrow alleyway on the SE
and opposite another house of similar style. The pottery showed
that the house was occupied in the first three-quarters of the
fourth century only.
A late or post-Roman ditch from the south-east fort gate towards
the ford had disturbed all levels, especially near the street
frontage of the houses. Quantities of Flavian pottery from the
pre-fort camp were found everywhere and extend beyond the limits
of the vicus. (2-3)
Excavations at SE 792 716, south of Orchard Field, revealed two
roads (partly exposed in 1949-52) fronted by early 4th century
stone buildings, running down to the river bank (4). Below, a
complex of superimposed wood and stone buildings extended from
1st-4th century (5); overlaying the corner of the rampart and ditch
of a military camp pre-dating Malton fort (SE 77 SE 5)(4). A
late 4th century defensive ditch was also traced cutting through
the easterly road and buildings (5). (4-5) |