Daily life inside Het Steen, the late medieval prison of Malines (Mechelen, Belgium)

Excavations at the Grote Markt (the ‘Main Square’) of Malines (Belgium) have unearthened the building remains of a tower, identified as the former town prison: Het Steen. The contents of the fills of two cesspits dug out in the cellars of the building illustrate daily life within the early 14th-century prison. An integrated approach of all finds categories, together with the historical context available, illuminates aspects of the material culture of the inmates, their consumption patterns and the living conditions within the prison rooms.