Exploring Kent's Past

It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.

Monument details

Summary

Works associated with the consolidation of the upstanding remains of the Church of St. Martin-Le-Grand undertaken by Canterbury Archaeological Trust in the early 1990’s revealed a Medieval tomb located against the southern wall of the south chapel. (location accurate top the nearest 2m based on available information)

Monument Types

• HUMAN REMAINS (Medieval - 1401 AD to 1499 AD)
• TOMB (Medieval - 1401 AD? to 1499 AD?)

Associated Finds

• HUMAN REMAINS (Medieval - 1400 AD? to 1499 AD?)
• NAIL (Medieval - 1400 AD? to 1499 AD?)

Full description

If you do not understand anything on this page please contact us.

Works associated with the consolidation of the upstanding remains of the Church of St. Martin-Le-Grand undertaken by Canterbury Archaeological Trust in the early 1990’s revealed a Medieval tomb located against the southern wall of the south chapel.

The tomb was built within a construction pit 4.4m by 1.35m cut 0.7m below the foundation of the chapels south wall. The construction of the tomb would have involved the removal of the face of the chapel wall up to a level of 1.1m above the wall offset with in-tact face surviving above this. The southern and northern tomb walls of four 0.2m to 0.3m thick courses of roughly hewn chalk blocks were raised off the relatively flat base of the cut to a maximum height of 0.5m. The eastern and western ends of the tomb were closed by dingle large blocks of chalk forming walls approximately 0.35m thick. All four walls were bonded with pale brown-grey mortar with sea shell inclusions. The southern and eastern walls were internally rendered with plaster. The tomb vault was fashioned from chalk blocks on average 0.6m long and 0.3m wide and 0.2m thick. The blocks were curved on the underside and the vault formed by leaning adjacent blocks one against the other from the north and south tomb walls to create an arched triangular shape. Gaps in the tomb covering were filled with mortar identical to that used in the walls. The east and west ends of the vault were filled with a mortared packing of chalk and ragstone rubble. The internal height of the tomb to the apex of the vault measured 0.75m. Internally the tomb was 1.9m long and 0.65m wide.

Following the clearance of weather damaged collapsed vaulting, the poorly preserved remains of an adult skeleton were recorded. Although badly damaged by the tomb collapse the burial had been laid centrally within the tomb in a fully extended position. Iron nails located at regular intervals on the north and south sides suggest the presence of a coffin. (taken from source)(1)

Three other tombs have allso been located within the footprint of the Church of St. Martin-Le-Grand, one was uncovered and investigated in 1956 (2) the other two were located during excavations at the site undertaken by Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit in 1974 (3)

<1> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1991-1992, Canterbury's Archaeology, Sites Outside Canterbury 1991-1992 (Article in serial). SKE31645.

<2> Philip A. Rahtz, 1958, Archaeologia Cantiana, Dover: Stembrook and St. Martin Le Grand. Vol. 72 (Article in serial). SKE31641.

<3> Philp, B. J., 2002, Archaeology in the Front Line: 50 Years of Kent Rescue 1952 - 2002 (Monograph). SKE11928.

Sources and further reading

Related records