Excavations at Glasgow Cathedral: A Preliminary Report on the Archaeological Discoveries made in 1992-93

Summary Extensive archaeological excavations were conducted in advance of the installation of a new healing and electrical system for the Cathedral. Trenches were located where new ducts were to be installed below the floor in the Nave, the Choir, the Crypt and the Session Room. These trenches produced evidence for both of the documented 12th century cathedrals which preceded the existing building. The early cathedrals were represented by in situ masonry and decorated fragments of masonry which had been re-used in the thirteenth century works. Traces of activity pre-dating the 13th century were discovered in the west end of the Nave and structural evidence for the internal divisions of the post-Reformation use of the Nave was also recovered. Burials and stray human bones were found in the trenches dug in the Crypt and the Nave. In total 77 burials were excavated, most of which can be reasonably well dated. In the Nave, evidence for burial pre-dating the 12th century cathedral was recovered and it could be seen thai burials were made at sporadic intervals until the 19th century. Apart from the architectural fragments and coffin fittings, finds were scarce. The most significant artefactual discovery consisted of two massive medieval bronze mortars and an iron pestle which had been deposited in a pit in the Crypt, probably during the Reformation.