Roman Occupation in the Extramural Settlement South-west of the colonia: Archaeological investigations at York Station Gateway, Queen Street, York

Two trenches were excavated on Queen Street for the installation of telecommunication maintenance chambers. The two trenches were positioned approximately 200m apart; Trench 1 was south-west of the medieval city wall close to the junction of Queen Street, Micklegate, Nunnery Lane and Blossom Street, while Trench 2 was located north-west of the medieval defences opposite York Railway Station. The archaeological sequences encountered in each trench were very different. Trench 1 revealed deposits containing artefacts indicative of high-status activity on or near the site during the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE, and which may have continued into the 4th century CE. The earliest features investigated were 2nd century CE pits, later sealed below dumps that may have been linked with the disposal of material generated as a result of development in the colonia during the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE. The dumping also served to raise ground level to a point where ground conditions were drier. Following the elevation of ground level, pit digging and rubbish disposal returned to the site, hinting at occupation close by in the mid-3rd to 4th century CE. In the late 3rd to 4th century CE a fairly crude surface was laid down, which largely consisted of cobbles but also incorporated other hard-wearing material such as brick, roofing tile and fragments of amphora. A significant change in the character of activity at the site then occurred in the 4th century CE, with what appears to be an accumulation of agricultural soil. Pit digging for refuse disposal resumed in the 11th/13th century, hinting at a return to activity of a more urban character at the site. Trench 2 was situated on the south-eastern periphery of the Railway Station cemetery. Some evidence for Roman period funerary activity was found, including disarticulated human bone and Roman pottery. However, the remains appear disturbed or redeposited during construction of the railway station in the 19th century.