Christ Church’s skeletons in the quad discovered
Archaeologists say the seven skeletons uncovered in Christ Church’s main quad are over 500 years old
The skeletons of two adults and five children were uncovered from the depths of Christ Church’s Tom Quad last Wednesday. Oxford historians have long been aware that something lurked beneath the surface at Christ Church, but it was not until renovation work began several months ago that they were able to find out exactly what it was. Archeologists were called to the college by the Clerk of Works, Tony Morris, while the college was undergoing some routine gas and electrical works.
“We needed to have good reason to disturb the listed building, and we thought we should take advantage of the renovations to conduct the excavations,” said Morris. Head archeologist John Moore and his team discovered the remains of the wall from a medieval Augustinian Priory in another site at the college over the summer, but it was not until Wednesday that the skeletons themselves were found.
“The remains have been sent to the archaeological offices in Oxford to be aged, sexed and analysed for potential disease to prove the cause of death,” Moore explained. Before Oxford’s most famous college was founded by Henry VIII in 1525, St. Aldates was dominated by the Abbey of St Frideswide. The college’s main quad appears to have been built upon the old abbey’s graveyard.
Findings from the Christ Church skeletons will be used alongside data from the so called ‘Cloister Skeletons’, which were discovered in Oxford in 1985, in an attempt to understand the lives of the Oxford community in the medieval period. The exact age of the skeletons is yet to be determined, but Moore suggested they were most likely to be from the 14th or 15th century. This would make them among the last to have been buried in the graveyard which once occupied Christ Church’s land.
Archaeological digs have become almost commonplace within the grounds of Christ Church. Moore and his team uncovered medieval remains under the basement of the Peckwater Quad during digs this summer. “Ideally, I’d like to dig up the whole of Oxford,” said Moore, who is certain that the seven skeletons which have been uncovered from that one trench are just a few of many buried across the grounds of Christ Church.
“Everyone in college is interested in what we’re finding, and the college is being very helpful in making sure the work we do goes smoothly.” Christ Church has also stated that it will foot the bill for the excavation costs. The archaeologists plan to finish their excavations sometime later this week, and Morris said the college would warmly welcome further digs in the event of any future renovation works. “We all want to know about our past,” he said.
“If the archaeologists can fill in the gaps then I believe that is a benefit not only for the college but to the nation as well.”.
2nd Feb 2006