Three Saxo-Norman Tenements in Durham City

Abstract

A WELL-PRESERVED SEQUENCE of craftsmen's premises and their associated refuse was found in three tenements off Saddler Street in Durham City. The earliest occupation took place in the second half of the 10th century and a tenement area had been defined within a few decades. The destruction of the occupied tenement by fire took place sometime in the second half of the 11th century and was contemporary with the collapse of the local late Saxon pottery trade. This was followed by the development of the two adjacent properties and the fencing of the boundaries between them. The tenements were occupied by shoemakers and cobblers from their earliest days and their economic interdependence with the community is shown to be high. There was no special evidence for Scandinavian influence in a culture that otherwise resembled in many respects that of Anglo-Scandinavian York. The recorded sequence ended in the early 13th century.