Leather and leather working in Anglo-Scandinavian and Medieval York

Quita Mould and Ian Carlisle

York Archaeological Trust

Introduction

The original proposal for the research and publication of the large assemblage of leather artefacts and leatherworking evidence from four sites in Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval York specified that the work be undertaken in two distinct stages:

Stage 1: completion of the archive and preparation of a detailed publication synopsis.

Stage 2: analysis, research and publication.

The initial data gathering and quantification has been successfully completed and this document represents the detailed publication synopsis, work programme and timetable necessary for the completion of stage 2.

Factual data

The sites

The assemblages derive from four sites in the city of York: 16-22 Coppergate, the adjacent site at 22 Piccadilly, The Bedern Foundry and The Bedern College of the Vicars Choral.

16-22 Coppergate (SE 60445168): The site of 16-22 Coppergate occupied an area of c.1000m² and was excavated between 1976-81. The site produced material of Roman to post-medieval date, but by far the greatest part derived from contexts of the Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval periods. A subsequent watching brief during redevelopment and excavation on the contiguous area at 22 Piccadilly revealed further evidence for developments in both periods.

During the Anglo-Scandinavian period (from c. 925AD) the site was divided into four properties in which dwellings and workshops were located along the street frontage while pits, wells and animal pens occupied the backyards. The final Anglo-Scandinavian phase is dated to the mid to late 11^th century and is characterised by the earliest of a series of extensive dumps in the backyard areas. The dating of each Anglo-Scandinavian phase has been accurately established by dendrochronology.

During the medieval period the site continued to be divided into four properties with much the same boundaries as before. Each property was occupied by a series of structures which are believed to be essentially domestic in character, although there was some industrial evidence in the form of hearths.

All traces of medieval buildings on the street frontage had been destroyed by modern cellars. The excavation revealed, however, that the central and rear parts of the plots were increasingly built up from the 12^th century onwards so that areas which, in the Anglo-Scandinavian period had been intensively disturbed by pits, were occupied by structures or by passages with stone floors giving access to them. The area available for pits and wells was much less than hitherto, as was, therefore, the amount of redeposition of earlier material.

During the late 11^th to 13^th centuries there was a continuation of the rapid build-up of organic-rich deposits which had characterised the Anglo-Scandinavian era. In the undisturbed areas these strata have allowed a clearer view of the typological development of ceramic and artefactual material than is normal on an urban site. The unusual depth (up to c.2m) of these deposits also means that later intrusions disturbed relatively little of the stratification.

The adoption of increasingly durable building materials (e.g. tile rather than thatch and timber frames based on stone sills rather than post-and-wattle) meant that the organic content of the deposits, and, therefore, quality of organic preservation, diminished in contexts dated to the later 13^th century onwards. By the time the latest surviving deposits were laid down in the 15^th - 16^th centuries, organic preservation was limited to a few deeply-cut features.

The degree to which construction, use and abandonment levels survived within and around individual medieval buildings varied considerably. Some structures presented intact sequences while others were so severely disturbed by later features that little survived. In spite of the variability of survival on the 16-22 Coppergate site, it remains the case that it has produced one of the most important archaeological insights into a town of the 10^th - 15th centuries in England.

The Bedern (SE 60555216): The Bedern site occupied c.2500m² and was excavated in a series of trenches between 1973 and 1980. Except in a few restricted areas, the site was not excavated below contexts associated with the medieval College of the Vicar's Choral of York Minster (founded 1248) which formed the principal focus of research. Adjacent to the college a well-preserved 13^th –15^th century bronze foundry was excavated which has been published by J D Richards (1993).

A substantial proportion (c.60%) of the former college precinct was fully examined and the remainder is thought to have been open land, orchards and gardens. Virtually all the major college buildings were excavated and the structural sequence was traced from the 13^th to the 17^th century. Although analysis has shown that there was considerable disturbance of earlier layers by later activities throughout the sequence, the artefactual material still has potential for providing evidence for the range of activities which took place on the site and for the changing status of the college residents.

Dating

This corpus includes material with a broad chronological span from c. AD 850 to c. AD 1550. Roman and post-medieval material has been recorded for the site archives, but falls outside the remit of this project and will not be included in the final publication.

Leather-bearing contexts have been dated by stratigraphic analysis of the phased sequence of archaeological deposits, by pottery seriation, dendrochronology, C14 dating, archaeomagnetic dating and numismatic evidence. This has been supplemented by typological evidence from the classification of the leather artefacts themselves.

At 16-22 Coppergate, from which the bulk of the material derives, dendrochronology provides close dating of the contexts, thirty-six samples having been taken for the medieval period alone. At the Bedern, independent dating evidence is more limited but in some cases is augmented by re-used architectural fragments which provide a terminus post quem for the contexts in which they were discovered. Supporting evidence is provided by historically attested building episodes, by coin dates and by overall material culture typologies.

Quantification

The basic recording undertaken in Stage 1 has allowed the material to be accurately quantified by period into relevant functional categories. This information is presented in tables 1 – 5 below. The quantities given are numbers of finds where a find may be a fragment, a complete object, or, particularly in the case of waste, a group of items. These have been broken down further as part of the assessment, but it would not be any more informative to break them down further e.g. to cite the number of components for each shoe. Similarly, although footwear may be divided into sub-categories such as boots or ankle-shoes, the generic term ‘shoes’ is used here for simplicity.

Table 1: Chronological periodisation and leather items from Anglo-Scandinavian Coppergate

The medieval period (Period 6) does not have site-wide phasing, each of the four tenements having their own chronologies. This makes it difficult to present the information as for the Anglo-Scandinavian periods above, so a manual count has been taken and the results broken down by centuries (with overlaps).

Table 2: Medieval Coppergate

There are in addition two shoes and two waste finds from 11^th – 13^th century contexts. Unstratified material consists of single items (a disc, a pouch, a strap, a washer, an unidentified object, a fragment and a piece of sheet), five scabbards, forty-five shoes and thirty-four pieces of waste leather.

The Bedern

Table 3: Bedern Foundry

Bedern Vicars Choral

Table 4: Bedern Vicars Choral

There are, in addition, one shoe and four fragments of Anglo-Scandinavian date from contexts pre-dating Period 1a.

ABC Cinema, 22 Piccadilly

Table 5: ABC Cinema, 22 Piccadilly

A summary of the data

The shoes

The footwear assemblage covers a broad range of styles and constructions. Preservation is generally good, with a low incidence of biodeterioration. Many complete examples are present and several have been reconstructed and are on display in the Jorvik Viking Centre and the Yorkshire Museum. At least twenty-five items preserved traces of the stitching media used in their construction or decoration. Six types of shoe construction were identified. Eleven basic shoe styles were recognised, of which six could be further sub-divided, producing thirty different styles of shoe. The sole shapes could be classified into five general types, which could be further sub-divided into thirteen distinct shapes.

16-22 Coppergate

It is estimated that the 1667 shoe finds recovered from 16 – 22 Coppergate represent a minimum of 438 complete shoes, although the actual figure is certainly much higher. 480 shoe components were classifiable into recognised shoe styles; 344 were classifiable from Anglo-Scandinavian contexts and 136 from medieval contexts (period 6). This makes the Coppergate material the largest and best preserved collection of Anglo-Scandinavian shoes to be recovered from Britain to date.

Bedern Foundry

Of the forty-nine shoe finds from the Bedern foundry, five were classifiable by style.

Bedern Vicar's Choral

Of the eighty-two shoe finds from Bedern Vicar’s Choral, six were classifiable by style.

22 Piccadilly

Of the sixty-seven shoe finds from 22 Piccadilly, fifteen were classifiable by style.

Although the number of classifiable finds may seem low in relation to the total number, this is because many finds are fragments, which, although recognisable as shoe components, lack further diagnostic features and cannot be ascribed to a particular type at present. The proportion of diagnostic material is relevant to the interpretation of the nature of the deposits represented, indicating the incidence of recycling of leather and the extent of the reworking of deposits.

Decoration on the shoes included scraping away of the grain surface, decorative thonging and the use of decorative thread, either embroidered (vamp stripes), or threaded through slits in the top bands etc.

The sheaths and scabbards

Some 113 sheaths and scabbards were examined, making this the largest collection of sheaths and scabbards recovered from Britain. The vast majority came from 16-22 Coppergate, deposited during the mid-10^th –mid-11^th centuries in what appears likely to be the dumping of workshop debris.

Three methods of sheath construction and six styles could be recognised. One type of scabbard construction was found, with at least four styles of mouth opening and six types of strap slide to suspend it from the belt.

Six types of decoration were used on sheaths and scabbards including four types of impressed decoration (including stamping from the 12^th century onwards), incising (employing shallow cuts to the surface) and slashing (cutting through the whole thickness of the leather).

The waste leather

A large quantity of waste leather was recovered from all sites, with the majority coming from 16-22 Coppergate. The study of workshop waste is crucial to an understanding of the range and nature of leathercrafts carried out on a site, as diagnostic offcut types are produced during each process, from tanning the raw hides, through currying, manufacture of leather items and repair.

Primary waste derives from the initial trimming of hides, during and following tanning and currying (finishing). This typically removes orifices, blemishes, irregular lobes and sometimes the original hide edge. Deposits of such offcuts indicate the presence of these leather-processing trades.

Secondary waste is produced during pattern-cutting of objects, such as shoes or sheaths and is often diagnostic, providing negative evidence of the shape and type of object from which it was cut e.g. two shoe soles cut out next to each other have a small, cigar-shaped offcut removed from between their waists.

Tertiary waste is produced by the final trimming of objects during and subsequent to, manufacture. These offcuts are typically long and narrow. Secondary and tertiary offcuts indicate the presence of trades concerned with artefact production generally, while particularly diagnostic examples may identify specific types of artefacts and therefore the exact nature of the craft practised.

All three offcut types were recovered in quantity, as were other types of waste deriving from crafts involved with artefacts during their useful life:

Cobblers traditionally repaired footwear, but the trade was also concerned with refurbishment of old shoes for resale, while a related craft, translation, cannibalised second-hand footwear, also for resale. These trades produced quantities of footwear components which have been cut up to salvage used leather for use in repairs and refurbishment and worn shoes which have been cut-down to fit others. Both of these waste types are present in substantial quantities, suggesting the presence of these secondary trades.

Other categories of leather

A small quantity of possible garment fragments, spur-leathers, slings, perforated discs, purses, a pouch, a fragment of painted girdle, a sword belt fastening and a possible fragment of book binding were recognised. A minimum of sixty-eight strap fragments were recovered which may be further categorised into belts and harness components during analysis. An unusual object, apparently a pad used by a craftsman to protect the palm of the hand, made from old shoe components, was also found.

Physical evidence for leather working

At the time of writing a possible tanning pit on Tenement C, at the River Foss end of the Coppergate site has been provisionally identified. Further work will be needed to support or refute this identification and to investigate any other features which may be related to hide processing. Oak and birch bark have also been noted at 16-22 Coppergate (Carole Morris in prep.) which may be related to tanning activities.

Structural evidence for leatherworking in York has been summarised by MacGregor (1978:51-56) and possible tanning pits identified at 25-7 High Ousegate (Radley 1971: 51) while hide drying frames at have been noted at 6-8 Pavement (Addyman and Hall 1991: 221). Recently a strong argument has been put forward for a reinterpretation of the tanning pits at 25-7 High Ousegate as sunken-featured-buildings (Hall in Addyman and Hall 1991: 238-250).

Anglo-Scandinavian leatherworking tools from 16-22 Coppergate have been published previously (Ottaway 1992) and include twenty-two awls and four creasers (ibid. 552-555). Knives of types C1, C3 and D (ibid. 583) may have been used to work leather, as could certain needles recovered.

Medieval leatherworking tools identified include:

A wooden shoe last of willow is recorded as coming from 16th-19th century backfill of a well in Tenement C at 16-22 Coppergate. This will be examined to confirm that it is not a medieval type occurring residually.

The nature of the leather assemblages and their relationships to the sites

As has been mentioned, more detailed site information will be required in order to interpret the sites fully. Some preliminary work has been done in order to set the assemblages in context and relate them to the three sites. Anglo-Scandinavian Coppergate has been covered in the greatest detail, due to the accessibility and availability of the data, but similar analyses will be carried out for all sites during stage 2.

Anglo-Scandinavian Coppergate

The most significant periods at Coppergate are 4B (c.930 – c.975), when the tenement plots had first been laid out and post-and-wattle buildings constructed at street frontage and 5B (c.975 – early to mid 11^th century), when these had been demolished and replaced by completely new sunken-featured buildings. These periods are important due to both the quantity and range of finds recovered and the character of the contexts from which they derived. Analysis of the spatial distributions have been carried out for these periods, based on the four tenement divisions, which are, in turn, divided into four zones, corresponding to the street frontage (Zone 1), backyards (Zone 2), central area (Zone 3) and River Foss end (Zone 4). The footwear, the sheaths/scabbards and the waste are presented here (Tables 6 and 7), as these categories contain the bulk of the finds and therefore provide the majority of the evidence for leathercrafts and leather use during these periods. Following the tables, the assemblages have been interpreted and summarised for all periods, with reference to the site. Quantities refer to finds (not items/components) as above, though actual numbers of waste offcuts are presented in the site summary to emphasise the scale of activity.

Table 6 Period 4B

Table 7 Period 5B

Site Summaries and preliminary interpretation

Period 1/3

Tenement B only: A single scoop cut with a few footwear fragments and a small amount of waste.

Period 3

Tenement A: Small amounts of footwear and waste, mainly secondary, in build-up and pit-fill deposits at the front of the site, stretching back to mid-site.

Tenement B: A moderate amount of waste, mainly secondary, plus some discarded footwear in layers (probably build-up) and pits over the full length of the tenement, the footwear mainly at the rear and the majority of the waste at the front.

Tenement C: A small quantity of secondary and tertiary waste, some footwear and one sheath recovered from a layers and a pit fill, mainly at the front of the site, but extending over the full length of the tenement.

Tenement D: A very small quantity of waste in pits at street frontage.

Interpretation: The level and character of occupation is obscure at this date and site conditions prevailing for this period were not conducive to organic preservation. As a result, it is difficult to make any assertions based on the leather assemblage, though Tenement B has relatively more waste than the other three, a feature seen later in Period 4B.

Period 4A

Tenement A: A single shoe and a very small quantity of waste together with a very small number of other objects including a pouch in pit-fills at front- to mid-site.

Tenement B: A very small amount of waste in a single pit on the street frontage.

Tenement C: Slightly more waste, also on the street frontage in pits and unspecified layers.

Tenement D: A moderate quantity of mainly secondary and tertiary waste plus a small number of shoes and 3 scabbards in layers probably representing build-up or dumping at street frontage.

Interpretation: Again, conditions on site were not favourable for organic preservation and although tenement boundaries were laid out at this time, no coherent structures with associated activity are identifiable. Thus it would be unsafe to make any assumptions based on the limited leather assemblage of this period.

Period 4B

Tenement A: A moderate quantity of waste (approximately 300 pieces), mostly secondary and tertiary, thirty-three shoes and two sheaths/scabbards, concentrated in build-up and pit-fills in immediate backyard of street front structure.

Tenement B: A substantial quantity (c.3700) of waste, predominantly secondary and tertiary offcuts plus 147 shoes and a small number of other object types, including thirteen scabbards in pits and layers which probably represent occupation build-up, around and mainly in, the immediate backyard of the structure on the street-frontage. Some lesser activity of a similar nature is attested to at the rear of the site.

Tenement C: c.1800 waste items, of which over 1000 are secondary and tertiary offcuts, plus 152 shoes, twenty-five scabbards and a few other objects. These are concentrated in layers probably build-up associated with occupation in and around the street-front structure, predominantly in the immediate backyard.

Tenement D: A moderate quantity (c.600 pieces) of waste, the majority of which are again secondary and tertiary offcuts, together with seventy-three shoes and nine scabbards, but very few other artefact types. These were once again recovered from layers and a few pits and cuts associated with a street-front structure, mainly in the immediate backyard area, with lesser activity of a similar nature extending towards the rear of the site.

Interpretation: This period is characterised by intensive occupation and is therefore much richer in organic content than those preceding. Tenement B in particular and to a lesser extent Tenement C, produced large quantities of leatherworking waste, the majority of which was secondary or tertiary in nature. This, together with the substantial numbers of shoes and scabbards from these tenements and the nature of their contexts, i.e. deposits associated with street-front structures, strongly suggests that leatherworking activity was being carried out on these tenements at this date. Further, the predominance of shoes and scabbards over other artefact types may cautiously be taken as evidence of manufacture and refurbishment of these items, rather than hide processing. This is supported by the relatively low numbers of primary offcuts, which therefore probably derive from the trimming of tanned hides by the shoemaker/sheather prior to use in manufacture, rather than from cutting-down during the tanning or currying process.

The relative paucity of leather from tenements A and D does not necessarily preclude similar activity on these properties as both are, to an extent, truncated by the limits of the excavation area.

Period 5A

Tenement A: A very small quantity of waste (c.sixty fragments) and nine shoes from layers (upcast from sunken structures in 5B and/or levelling dumps) and pit-fills in the immediate backyard area.

Tenement B: c.875 waste items, thirty-eight shoes and two scabbards, mainly concentrated in layers (as above) and pit-fills in the area between the two succeeding (Period 5B) buildings and behind the second rank building.

Tenement C: A small amount of waste (c.eighty pieces) together with only eight shoes and one scabbard from a single pit and several cuts at street frontage, i.e. in front of the succeeding (Period 5B) building which was set back from the street.

Tenement D: A small amount of waste (c.200 pieces), mainly secondary, with forty-one shoes and ten scabbards from layers (as above) and pit-fills at street-frontage.

Interpretation: This period was of short duration and the majority of contexts are interpreted as upcast from digging of the succeeding Period 5B sunken-featured-buildings and dumped levelling material. As a result, artefacts are likely to be jumbled earlier objects from the digging, mixed with other items brought in with the levelling material, which may or may not have originated on-site.

Period 5B

Tenement A: A very small quantity of waste (c.fifty-five) plus fourteen shoes, one of which is clearly an intrusive 12^th/13^th century type, from layers and a few features located within the street-frontage structure.

Tenement B: A large quantity of waste (c.2000 items) of which half were scraps and most of the remainder was secondary and tertiary offcuts. There were twenty-nine shoes and three scabbards. Finds were in two main concentrations; in layers within the street-front building and in pits and layers behind the second-rank building.

Tenement C: A large amount of waste (c.2500 items), almost half being tertiary, but including c.400 secondary offcuts, diagnostic of manufacture, the rest almost all scraps. One hundred and seventy shoes and seventeen scabbards were also recovered. Finds were in layers, pit- and cut-fills in front, within and behind the single structure which was set back from the street at this period.

Tenement D: A moderate amount of waste (c.850 items), almost half of which were scraps, with the remainder mostly tertiary and secondary offcuts. Fifty-four shoes and five scabbards were also present. The two-room structure yielded finds from both and from its backyard, in layers and pit-fills extending back to mid site.

Interpretation: As with Period 4B, Tenements B and C produced the majority of the waste, which was of a similar character to that in the earlier period. Whilst it is tempting to interpret this as continuation of use as leatherworkers’ workshops, there is the caveat that much Period 5B material was deposited as backfill of the sunken-featured-buildings at the end of their lives. More detailed analysis of the relevant contexts will therefore be required, before a more confident assessment can be made.

Period 5CF

Tenement D: Six pieces of waste from layers at the front of the site.

Interpretation: As very little leather was present and from only a single tenement, any interpretation is impossible.

Period 5CR

Tenement A: Eleven waste items and four shoes from layers and pit-fills, mid-site.

Tenement B: Two items of waste and one sheet leather fragment from layers at mid- to rear of site.

Tenement C: c.170 waste items, predominantly secondary and tertiary offcuts, sixteen shoes and three scabbards from pit-fills and layers towards the rear of the site.

Tenement D: Two hundred and twenty-five waste items, mainly tertiary scraps, plus twelve shoes, two sheaths and one scabbard from layers and pit-fills towards the rear of the site.

Interpretation: Leather-bearing contexts at this period are associated with a structure at the rear end of Tenements C and D but conditions led to poor preservation of their organic component. There is, however, a concentration of leather finds in this area, perhaps suggesting that leatherworking was carried out in this structure at this date. Again, detailed analysis of contexts and the nature of the leather finds recovered from them may enable a more positive interpretation.

Conclusions: At this stage, it is difficult to make confident assertions as to activity on-site during the Anglo-Scandinavian period, but the data do allow some observations to be made.

Whilst leather finds were recovered from all four tenements, it is clear that, generally, the majority were concentrated in Tenements B and C during the 10^th and early 11^th centuries. As already mentioned, the evidence suggests manufacture on these tenements during Period 4B, possibly continuing into Period 5B. Footwear and sheaths/scabbards would seem to be the most common items, with perhaps a slightly higher proportion of sheaths/scabbards in Tenement C.

At the Coppergate street frontage, no buildings survive following Period 5CF (mid-11^th century) and evidence of leatherworking is non-existent, though there are small concentrations associated with a contemporaneous (Period 5CR) structure at the rear of Tenements C and D. These are of a similar character to the earlier groups in B and C, suggesting that the same type of manufacturing activity may have continued on this part of the site into this period.

Medieval Coppergate

The medieval street-front deposits were largely removed by modern disturbances. The medieval deposits are characterised by several episodes of dumping activity on the rear part of the site to raise the general ground level followed by pit digging and/or construction phases on the newly created surfaces. As most of the leather, including a substantial amount of manufacturing waste, derives from phases of dumping activity, it is difficult to determine whether any of it originated on site or was brought in as part of the levelling process from other areas of the city. The possible tanning pit at the Foss end of Tenement C, does, however suggest the possibility of leather production on site during the medieval period and further research may elucidate this. A small quantity of leather appears to be associated with individual structures and probably represents domestic rubbish disposal. The main value of the medieval assemblage is that it adds to the corpus of artefact types and provides evidence for the status of the inhabitants of the wider locality of York and crafts being undertaken in the city. It also allows secular comparison with the ecclesiastical Bedern sites. Further, datable items provide supporting evidence in the interpretation of the frequency and duration of the dumping episodes which were continuing defensive measures against the encroaching River Foss.

22 Piccadilly

This site is adjacent to that at 16-22 Coppergate and as such provides complementary data. The assemblage is similar in range to that from Coppergate, with a predominance of footwear and craftworking waste, over half of which dates from the end of the 10^th to the end of the 12th century. A Level 3 report now exists which will be consulted during Stage 2 together with specialist input, in order to obtain detailed contextual information. A preliminary review has revealed, however, that much of the material derives from contexts associated with Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval structures adjacent to the River Foss.

The Bedern

Both The Foundry and Vicars Choral sites are complex and require considerable input from the Field Officer involved with the site, in order to obtain meaningful contextual information and interpretation. Some preliminary interpretations have, however, been made.

College of the Vicars Choral

The assemblage from the College of the Vicars Choral site consists in the main of shoe finds, predominantly soles and sole fragments.

Period 1a: Six finds in total from a robber trench backfill and feature fill.

Interpretation: In this pre-college period, a series of clay loam deposits were cut by a small number of features, which contain the few finds. Little can be drawn from the data.

Period 1: Twenty-nine shoe finds from pits, predominantly soles, together with a small quantity of waste.

Interpretation: During this period, the ground was being cleared for construction of college buildings, so was open. The predominance of shoe soles and the waste suggest the possibility of cobbling in the surrounding properties.

Periods 2-5: Five finds in total were recovered from these periods.

Interpretation: The college was founded during period 2 and substantial buildings constructed. The paucity of finds is confusing, as at least a minimal level of domestic disposal would be expected. It can only be assumed that this took place outside the excavated area.

Period 6: Thirteen shoe finds and a small amount of waste from pits in the college close.

Interpretation: This is almost certainly domestic refuse disposal by the college community.

Period 7: Nineteen shoe finds, predominantly soles, together with a small amount of waste and a few other items, including a set of joined straps with wheel-shaped mounts, possibly a harness. All of this derives from pits in the close, almost of it from a single area (the southwest courtyard)

Interpretation: As before, this material probably represents refuse disposal by the college, although the predominance of soles may suggest resoling, perhaps by an on-site cobbler. It also suggests the possibility of textile uppers which have not survived. The high quality of the harness hints at the wealth and status of the college.

Period 8: Seventeen shoe finds, mainly 15^th century soles almost entirely from a single pit in the close.

Interpretation: The predominance of soles again suggests the presence of a cobbler.

Conclusions: Following initial analysis, this assemblage appears to represent domestic refuse disposal over a period of time, firstly by the inhabitants of surrounding properties and subsequently by the members of the college following its establishment in the 13^th century. The predominance of soles suggests the possibility of an on-site cobbler and further analysis and documentary evidence may elucidate this. The lack of finds for a half century or so from the end of the 13^th to the middle of the 14^th centuries is interesting, but may be explained by the disposal of refuse off-site, or at least outside the excavation area.

Bedern Foundry

It should be noted that the Foundry periods are different to those for the Vicars Choral.

Period 0 : A single shoe and a small amount of waste from a single pit fill.

Interpretation: This material was recovered from a wattle-lined pit, cutting clay loam levelling deposits. As the excavation only reached these deposits in trial areas, little can be said, although the material probably represents domestic refuse.

Period 1: Eleven shoe finds, mainly soles and a small amount of waste, almost entirely deriving from a single pit fill within the boundary of the precinct of the Vicars Choral at the northeast edge of the site.

Interpretation: As the excavation only reached levels representing the end of this period, an overall picture cannot be gained. The character of the material available, however, i.e. the soles in a single context, suggests cobbling in the vicinity.

Period 2: Eleven shoe finds, mainly small sole fragments, a knife sheath and a small quantity of waste, again recovered almost entirely from a single context within the college precinct.

Interpretation: The nature of this context is currently uncertain, so interpretation is difficult,

though the character of the material is similar to, but more fragmentary than, period 1.

Period 3: The majority of the material from this period comes from phase 2 (early-mid 14^th century). It was recovered from basal fills of a barrel-lined well and consists of twenty-six shoe finds (soles and uppers), a fine girdle fragment with impressed decoration painted red with cinnabar and a strap fragment with baluster-shaped copper alloy mounts. There is also a small quantity of waste.

Interpretation: The well was within a substantial structure, part of the foundry buildings and constructed in the early 14^th century. Most of the finds were recovered from basal fills in the bottom barrel and as such are likely to represent both casual loss and deliberate disposal. The fine quality of the girdle and the strap fragment seem incongruous in an industrial area.

Period 4: Finds from this period consist of a single strap and a small amount of waste from inside the precinct and two nondescript fragments and waste from a workshop in the south-eastern part of the site.

Interpretation: The finds from this period are too few to allow for interpretation.

Conclusions: Material from the early periods derives solely from contexts within the college precinct, just prior to and following its foundation (mid-late 13^th century). It is of similar character to the Vicars Choral assemblage from that date i.e. predominantly shoe soles from pits and it too is likely to derive from domestic disposal and nearby cobbling activity. The later, 14^th century, material was almost entirely recovered from a barrel-lined well within the foundry buildings and is of a different character, with footwear finds now consisting of uppers components as well as soles, in addition to two high status finds, a painted girdle and a strap with mounts. It is difficult to understand how such items found their way into a well in a working foundry.

Academic aims and objectives

The original aims and objectives of the project are restated below but have been developed and expanded following data gathering and preliminary study. This study has also raised a number of new research questions which will be addressed during the research and analysis phase.

Broad academic aims

This project constitutes one part of a broad-based research programme into post-Roman material culture, which has been undertaken by York Archaeological Trust over a number of years. Several themes have been explored, using a variety of different classes of materials (Archaeology of York series, particularly volumes AY16/5, 17/6 and 17/7)

These research questions can be summarised as follows:

What evidence do these three sites provide for the character of York in the Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval periods in terms of function, wealth and contacts and how did this develop through the mid 9^th to late 15^th century?

What evidence is there for external cultural influences in the city brought by trading contacts throughout the period and the settlement of ethnic, Scandinavian, groups from the mid 9^th to 11^th centuries? Does the Norman Conquest have a recognisable effect?

How does York compare with other medieval English cities in terms of wealth, function and contacts?

What was the relationship between city and hinterland over this period, i.e. the supply of raw materials, regional contacts?

What evidence exists for the organisation of crafts, industries and manufacturing processes in this urban context?

Specific aims

These broad academic aims can be related to specific research questions which the study of these assemblages has the ability to address:

What evidence exists for industrial leatherworking on the named sites and the city in general during the Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval periods? What artefactual, physical, environmental, street name and documentary evidence relates to the periods under investigation? Can industrial zoning be recognised?

What is the range of leatherworking crafts represented? Can any organisation be discerned?

What is the range of leather objects which were manufactured, used and repaired?

What technological and stylistic changes occurred over time? Are the reasons for changes identifiable and if so, what are they e.g. external cultural influences or economic influences (alterations to the supply of materials and the availability of new ones)?

Can the leatherworking tools recovered from the named sites be related to the leather assemblages?

Can knife blades be related to the sheaths and scabbards recovered?

What species of leather were being used and do they vary through time? Can the replacement of calfskin by Spanish cordwain, followed by return to calfskin, as the most popular material for shoemaking, be identified in the archaeological record? How does this relate to the changes in relative numbers of species represented in faunal assemblages from York? Does this have implications for the local economy, both urban and in the hinterland?

What evidence is preserved of types of media used in constructional and decorative sewing? Can the change from leather thonging, through animal fibre to vegetable fibre thread be attributed to technological, stylistic or economic causes? Did flax, for example, become more easily available? What materials were used to stuff the pointed toes of late medieval poulaines?

What decorative techniques and designs were used on the leatherwork recovered? What cultural influences can be inferred, particularly in the Anglo-Scandinavian decorative sheaths?

Do these assemblages parallel those from other sites in York, from other urban centres in England, Britain and the continent, both stylistically and technologically? What are the differences? Can technological, cultural, sociological or economic influences be identified? In the Anglo-Scandinavian period, are the influences recognisably Scandinavian, Anglo-Saxon, or continental? How does this change during the medieval period?

Can differences be recognised between the secular medieval assemblages recovered from Coppergate (and Piccadilly) and the ecclesiastical site at The Bedern?

Can particular shoe styles be associated with gender, age, or occupation?

Is the wealth and status of the citizens of York in the Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval period reflected in the leatherwork recovered? Does this change over time?

Can any foot pathologies be recognised in the wear patterns seen on the shoe parts recovered? What do they imply with regard to the podiatric health of York’s past populations?

What are the long term effects on the leather of the conservation methods used, can any improvements be suggested for future treatment?

New research questions

Does the extent of wear and the proportion of repairs decline with time? Is this a reflection of increasing affluence amongst the population or of the increasing availability of leather?

Are the human bite marks observed on a small quantity of leather waste the result of a manufacturing process or subsequent use?

Is the occurrence of shoes below the hearths at 16-22 Coppergate the result of deliberate deposition and, therefore, very early examples of the folklore phenomenon of concealment of shoes in the fabric of buildings?

Statement of potential

Initial analysis of the corpus during the first stage of the project has confirmed both its importance and its potential to address a number of specific questions thus contributing to the broader research aims described above.

It is apparent that leatherworking activity was undertaken on the properties at 16-22 Coppergate in the Anglo-Scandinavian period, possibly continuing into the medieval period. Cordwaining (shoemaking) is indicated by the large quantities of waste offcuts of new leather, very many of which are secondary offcuts of diagnostic shapes deriving from shoe clicking (cutting-out) and tertiary trimmings from finishing. Cobbling (and translation) is indicated by the numbers of cut-down items of footwear (for salvage) present and the high incidence of repairs (specifically sole repairs or ‘clumping’). Sheath/scabbard manufacture or refurbishment is also suggested. Hide tanning and finishing (currying) are hinted at by the presence of flesh side shavings and primary offcuts, both of which are by-products of these activities. It is hoped that further analyses in the light of more detailed contextual interpretations provided by the appropriate specialists will establish the exact nature and scale of these industries. It already appears that Tenements B and C provide the strongest evidence for leathercrafts and it may be possible to establish a link between these adjacent properties which will hint at a level of organisation, particularly in Period 5B when all of the earlier properties had been cleared and replaced at the same time, suggesting a single controlling hand.

Data-collection has revealed a range of leather artefacts from all three sites and, although footwear predominates both in quantity and variation of types, sufficient numbers of other object types are present to represent a cross-section of artefacts used.

A wide range of construction methods were observed, particularly in the footwear and sheaths/scabbards. Further analysis on a period by period basis, will allow a chronology to be developed for these changes and enable the possible causes to be assessed e.g. technological (changes in materials, methods and tools), outside influences, gradual evolution. This is also true of stylistic changes and a working typology has already been formulated, which will be built upon in phase 2 in order to track trends over time. The long timespan and large size of the assemblage are of particular importance here.

Leather species identifications were carried out as part of the data-gathering phase and a range of leather types were noted. Artefacts were made from cattle (and calf), sheep, goat and pigskin amongst the domestic species, whilst the possible use of deerskin was also observed. During stage 2 of the project, further study will allow changes in the relative popularity of various skin types over time to be tracked. This will also contribute toward the understanding of broader areas such as the local economy (e.g. a move from one leather type to another may indicate difficulties in obtaining local supplies of certain species) and trade contacts (e.g. the introduction of fashionable new materials such as Spanish cordwain). Comparison with the substantial quantities of contemporaneous faunal material from York will be employed to support any assertions made here. Similar analyses will be carried out for the various stitching media observed.

Good leatherworking tool assemblages were recovered from all sites and further analysis will determine whether these can be matched to the leather assemblages.

A range of decorative techniques was identified in this group of material, e.g. impressed, scraped and stitched designs. Further study during phase 2 will determine the popularity of specific methods at particular times. A number of decorative motifs have been recognised, particularly among the knife sheaths and specialists will be consulted in order to identify Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian influences in the earlier periods and to identify and interpret heraldic symbology on later examples.

Initial analysis during data collection has identified stylistic and technological parallels with other urban leather assemblages both in Britain and on the continent. Further study alongside a detailed literature review and a review of new, unpublished material from Dublin and The Poultry, London, will establish similarities and differences between these and the York assemblages. This will allow technological, cultural and economic influences on design and construction to be examined and will provide information on trading and other links with these British and continental urban centres.

As 16-22 Coppergate (including 22 Piccadilly) was a secular site during the middle ages, while The Bedern was a religious house, the character of the assemblages from these respective areas may differ. Further analysis in the light of additional site information will determine whether or not this is the case.

A wide variance in footwear sizes was noted during stage 1, from juveniles’ through to large adults’ sizes. Further study will be aimed at attributing particular shoe types to specific gender or age groups and possibly occupations. The large size of the present corpus, particularly that from 16-22 Coppergate will make any results drawn from such a study more significant. A small pilot study carried out on the footwear from Coppergate Period 4B established clear trends between type, age and gender. This will be expanded during phase 2.

Both Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval societies were stratified and hierarchical and this is reflected in the artefactual evidence. Data collection has identified a number of items which display quite poor standards of workmanship, while others, the painted girdle from the Bedern for example, are clearly of very high quality. The relative quality of artefacts suggests the wealth and status of their owners, this being particularly true of highly decorative or complicated items such as sheaths and certain types of footwear (decoration and complication add to time and materials costs and therefore make the finished product more expensive). Certain classes of object are also likely to have been restricted to those of a particular social status. The sword scabbards for example would only have been used by those who owned swords, which were themselves a high status item, particularly during the Anglo-Scandinavian period. These assemblages thus offer the potential to recognise varying social status and perhaps to identify changes in society over a long period of time. It may also be possible to identify differences between Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval societies.

Foot problems leave their mark on footwear and a range of podiatric conditions has been noted during data collection. A more detailed study of these in consultation with a qualified chiropractor will elucidate the type, frequency and range of foot pathologies, e.g. bunions, hammer-toe, pigeon-toe, suffered by York’s past populations and allow inferences to be made with regard to the general standards of health prevailing during these periods.

As these assemblages were excavated from 1973 to 1987, they were conserved using different methods as they became available. Earlier assemblages were soaked in PEG wax, while later ones were conserved by freeze-drying. This means that a relative assessment can be made of the different methods and of their long-term effectiveness, now that some time has passed since the artefacts were conserved.

It is thought that changing social conditions may be reflected in the frequency of footwear repair. Increasing affluence may mean that a pair of shoes is discarded and replaced, rather than repaired. As these assemblages are extensive, further study may support or refute this assertion.

Human bite marks have been observed on a quantity of waste offcuts and also on a small number of finished objects. Further study of these objects, together with detailed contextual and other artefactual information, may establish whether the marks were part of a manufacturing process.

At least two footwear finds were recovered from contexts below hearths at 16-22 Coppergate and may therefore be early examples of deliberate concealment. Further analysis of the relevant contexts may determine the circumstances of deposition and a comparative literature search will reveal parallels.

Publication and presentation

Publication is planned as a report in the series entitled Craft, industry and everyday life in Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval York within Volume 17 of the series The archaeology of York.

Methodology

The nature of the assemblages

As outlined above, further work is needed in order to establish the nature of the leather assemblages recovered in each period and from each of the sites investigated. This will be accomplished by determining the character of leather-bearing contexts, alongside analysis of the artefacts recovered from them. An occupation floor containing secondary and tertiary offcuts, for example, may indicate a shoemaker’s workshop. Specialist input will be required in order to interpret the contextual data, so YAT Field Officers familiar with each site will be consulted. Information will be taken from original site plans and records, data stored on databases and the work carried out to date on this material.

Consultation of the Trust’s pottery database will provide details of the residual pottery found in contexts containing leather. Any leather items obviously residual or intrusive to a context will be noted and compared with the ceramic information available. The likely extent of residuality in a context will inform later work on changes through time exhibited in constructions and styles.

The quantity and character of manufactured items deliberately cut up to salvage reusable leather present in each context, period, phase will be assessed and reported upon with information tabulated. The main tool employed for this task will be the YAT leather database, with reference made to the existing paper archive to ascertain the nature of the finds.

The use of different leather species through time with reference to bone evidence will be summarised and the results tabulated. Leather species have already been identified using light microscopy, with reference to such diagnostic features as the hair follicle pattern on the outer (grain) surface and the thickness of the various layers which make up the skin.

The various types of leatherworking tools found on the three sites will be briefly outlined and manufacturing marks found on the leather will be discussed.

The miscellaneous category of objects will be studied early in the project to confirm identifications where possible and add to other functional categories where necessary. They will be briefly discussed and an example of each type illustrated and catalogued. The other functional categories of leather object (garments, girdle, purses and pouch, wrist/palm guard, straps, slings, book binding) will be researched with reference to the published literature and unpublished assemblages and reported upon.

The shoes

The six different methods of shoe construction will be described and sketch figures produced for illustration. The changes through time will be described. The changes in shape of shoe soles over time will be described and a sketch figure produced to summarise results. The styles of shoe will be described and illustrated by sketches and changes through time described and illustrated by a ‘time-line’. The best preserved example of each shoe style and variation will be illustrated and fully catalogued. The different decorative methods will be described and illustrated. The estimated equivalent modern shoe sizes of complete examples will be calculated and any correlation between male, female and children's shoe sizes and particular styles will be discussed. The relative status of the wearer implied by the shoes will be assessed and discussed. The nature and extent of repair to the shoe soles and uppers will be described. Foot abnormalities indicated by unusual wear patterns will be described and illustrated.

The sheaths and scabbards

The methods of sheath and scabbard construction, different styles and methods of suspension will be summarised and illustrated by diagrams which will be sketched for illustration. An example of each type, style and variation will be catalogued and illustrated. The methods of decoration used will be described and illustrated. The Anglo/Scandinavian motifs (four items), heraldic motifs and an inscription (eight items) will be discussed in detail. The evidence for sheath and scabbard repairs and refurbishment will be presented and details concerning the various types of knives and the scabbard chap from 16 – 22 Coppergate will be included.

Specialist identifications

Microscopy will be used to identify fibres from sewing thread (twenty-five in situ in shoe components, one in a sheath) and attempts will be made to identify the dyes used on coloured decorative embroidery threads and the pigment decorating a fragment of girdle. This will involve solvent extraction followed by absorption spectrophotometer and thin-layer chromatography. Light microscopy will be used to identify the moss used to six examples of pointed-toed shoes. X-ray fluorescence will be used to identify the metal rivets on one of the sheaths.

Specialists in related disciplines (faunal studies, environmental studies) will be consulted regarding evidence related to leather and leather working, including patterns of butchery and deposits with possible connections with leather working such as the deposit of oak bark found near Layerthorpe Bridge.

Archive deposition

Once the work is complete the archive will be deposited in the Yorkshire Museum.

Bibliography

Addyman, P.V. and Hall, R.A 1991 Urban Structures and Defences Addyman, P.V. (ed.). The Archaeology of York CBA / YAT.

Hall, R. A. 1991 Structures at 5-7 Coppergate, with a Reassessment of Benson's Observations of 1902’, in P.V. Addyman and R.A. Hall Urban Structures and Defences, The Archaeology of York 8/3, 238-250

MacGregor, A. 1978 Industry and commerce in Anglo-Scandinavian York in R A Hall (ed.), Viking Age York and the North, Council for British Archaeology Research Report 27, 37-57

Morris, C. A. in prep. Craft, Industry and Everyday Life in Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval York: Wood and Woodworking

Radley, J. 1971 Economical aspects of Anglo-Danish York’ Medieval Archaeology 15, 37-57