Pre-Construct Archaeology were commissioned to undertake an archaeological investigation prior to development of the former Norris House site, on land adjacent to Crawhall Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear.

Two planning consents for the development had been granted that had conditions of a programme of archaeological excavation as the area was located across the line of Hadrian’s Wall. Although the site was not scheduled it did lie within the UNESCO designated World Heritage Site core area (ref. 1000098).

Eight broad archaeological phases were identified, which included the remains of Hadrian’s Wall (Turret 3a, obstacles pits on the berm and the wall ditch), undated collapse from Hadrian’s Wall, medieval developed soil, undated robber cuts and a post-medieval sawmill, pits, and a well. Early 20th century activity comprised the construction of Norris House.

The works uncovered the remains of Turret 3a as well as the northern defensive ditch. The north wall of the turret/curtain wall was exposed for a maximum length of around 12m, with foundations between 2.36m to 2.46m wide. The turret is one of the largest yet discovered and the only known example uncovered east of Newcastle. The wall ditch was exposed for a distance of around 9m, being 8m wide and over 2m deep.

Six pits were noted within the berm (the area between the wall and wall ditch). The features are presumed to be berm obstacle pits (potentially cippi pits) due to their location and their collective form in plan. The system of pits would have been arranged in three rows parallel to the Wall, although variance in the pattern of pits varies across sites.
The ditch deposits were sampled and are potentially highly environmentally significant.

The results of the investigation were of national and international significance and demonstrated the potential for significant archaeological remains relating to Hadrian’s Wall surviving in the more built-up areas of urban Tyneside. The results have been presented in talks for Current Archaeology, the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne and at the Hadrian’s Wall Archaeology Forum. The project was also nominated for Rescue Project of the year at the Current Archaeology Awards. Several articles have been published on the excavations, including the academic journal Britannia, Current Archaeology magazine, the newsletter of the Architectural and Archaeological Society of Durham and Northumberland, and Current Archaeology and Hadrian’s Wall Archaeology magazines. A full paper will be published in the Newcastle Antiquaries’ journal Archaeologia Aeliana.