Rich refuse: a rare find of late 17th-century and mid-18th-century glass and tin-glazed wares from an excavation at the National Gallery, London

Abstract

Fieldwork undertaken at the National Gallery in 2001–02 revealed Middle-Saxon pits and 17th- and 18th-century construction phases. The latter sequence comprised the remains of two builds of cellars associated with tenements at Duke's Court, a former street on the northern side of the Royal Mews. An exceptional collection of glassware and tin-glazed plates was recovered from these cellars. It must have come from prosperous households and documents an early and significant stage in the development of English glass manufacture. The paper examines the glass and associated finds from the post-medieval features.