Maudslay Park, Great Alne, Warwickshire. Archaeological Strip, Map and Sample Excavation (OASIS ID: cotswold2-316330)

In February 2013, Cotswold Archaeology carried out an archaeological strip, map and sample excavation on the site of Great Alne Hall, Warwickshire, a late 19th-century house, designed and built by the architect Mr G. H. Hunt for Mr Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff. The house was demolished in the late 1930s and offices were eventually built over the site, with the grounds being developed for a motor-manufacturing factory. This industrial complex, Maudslay Park, is now being demolished in turn and the site is being redeveloped for housing. The work was commissioned by CgMs Consulting and forms part of a programme of archaeological investigation being carried out at the site. Excavation revealed the substantial stone and brick foundations of the Victorian house. The remains of the southern part of the house comprised a basement, divided into four cells, which would have occupied the area below the principal rooms on the south side of the house. This area was entirely backfilled with demolition rubble to a depth of c. 0.6m and its removal revealed a rammed brick rubble floor. On the northern side of the house were the remains of the cellar, which consisted of five brick-lined rooms with white-washed walls, linked by a passage from the steps. The walls survived to a height of up to c. 1.8m and the floor was laid with purple-grey setts, which were continuous throughout the cellar. Internal features included a coal chute, part of a metal-framed window, door pins, drains, a gutter and the imprint on the larder walls of brick 'lockers'. Ridge tiles, coloured floor tiles, decorative ironwork, the twisted remains of leadlight windows, decorative wall tiles and fragments of marble from fireplace surrounds were recovered from the demolition deposits, giving an indication of the splendid interior decoration that once adorned the house. Other than agricultural land drains, there was no evidence for any activity or structures on the site prior to the construction of the 19th-century house.

2013年2月，科茨沃尔德考古公司（Cotswold Archaeology）对沃里克郡（Warwickshire）大阿尔恩庄园（Great Alne Hall）遗址开展了考古剥离、测绘与取样发掘工作。该宅邸为19世纪晚期建筑，由建筑师G·H·亨特为丹尼尔·罗林森·拉特克利夫先生设计建造。宅邸于20世纪30年代晚期被拆除，原址先后建起办公楼，其场地随后被开发为汽车制造工厂。这座名为莫兹利园区（Maudslay Park）的工业综合体如今也正被拆除，遗址正被重新开发为住宅用地。本次发掘工作由CgMs咨询公司（CgMs Consulting）委托开展，属于该遗址系列考古调查项目的一部分。发掘揭露了这座维多利亚式宅邸的大型石砖混合地基遗存。宅邸南部遗迹包含一处被划分为四个隔间的地下室，其空间对应宅邸南侧主用房下方区域，该区域被厚度约0.6米的拆除建筑垃圾完全回填，清理后发现一处夯实砖渣地面。宅邸北侧则保留有地窖遗迹，由五间砖砌内衬、墙面涂白的房间组成，通过台阶旁的通道相互连通，墙体残存最高可达约1.8米，地面整体铺设紫灰色方形铺路石块。遗迹内部包含煤槽、金属框架窗户残件、门销、排水设施、排水沟，以及食品储藏室墙壁上砖砌“储物格”的印痕。本次发掘还从拆除堆积中清理出脊瓦、彩釉地砖、装饰性铁艺构件、扭曲变形的铅条玻璃窗残件、装饰墙面瓷砖，以及壁炉围板大理石碎片，这些遗物可佐证该宅邸曾拥有富丽堂皇的室内装饰。除农业用地排水渠外，该遗址在19世纪宅邸建造之前，未发现任何人类活动或建筑遗存的相关证据。