With just under three weeks of excavation on Lossenham Friary under our belts, we have already amassed a sizeable assemblage of finds. Many of these are still to be washed, and all need to be categorised, sorted, packaged, recorded and then seen by relevant specialists. There is thus lots of work ahead to be done on the finds, a task that will only grow as we excavate more of the site. But this doesn’t stop us taking an informal look at some of the finds, to see what they can tell us about England’s most recently discovered monastic site. I thought we’d start with some of the most evocative finds made so far, the glazed floor tiles.
A diverse range of decorated glazed floor tiles are known from Aylesford friary, founded by the Carmelites in 1242, less than five years before Lossenham. It is believed that most of the tiles at Aylesford came from tile kilns along the Thames. So far, no decorated glazed tiles have been found at Lossenham; all those seen to-date are plain, and none have been found in situ. These might prove to be from kilns nearer to Lossenham, perhaps at Rye, but determining that will be the job of a specialist in medieval ceramic building material (CBM). What we can say is that we now have several complete, and many fragments of, medieval glazed tiles at Lossenham, recovered from all four trenches. The tiles are of several sizes. Most are just over an inch thick (25-30mm). The most common type seems to be tiles with a yellow (or very light brown) glaze, measuring just over 5 inches (127-133mm) square. This type has been recovered from trenches 2 and 4. From trench 4 a very similar, but slightly smaller (4.5 inches, 116-118mm) tile has been recovered, whilst trench 2 produced part of a larger version, measuring just under 6 inches (150mm) square. Multiple fragments of inch thick, yellow-glazed, tiles from all four trenches indicate that these types are found across the site.
A smaller number of tiles have a dark green glaze, which can appear almost black when worn. An example from trench 2 measures 5 inches square, and thus may have been laid in combination with similarly sized yellow tiles to form a chequerboard pattern. A ditch in trench 3, however, produced part of a much larger, green-glazed tile, this measuring at least 8.5 inches by 6.5 inches (minimum 218x166mm), though still being only a little over an inch thick. Fragments of tiles with similar dark green glaze were also found in trench 2, as well as being recovered as general surface finds.
Finally, in trench 1, which has exposed the corner of a large masonry building that may be the refectory, in addition to multiple fragments of yellow-glazed tiles, two fragments of a much thinner tile, just over half an inch thick (15mm) were found. These have a light green glaze and do not appear to have been found anywhere else on the site so far. However, these thinner tiles might be easily mistaken for peg tiles (roof tiles), and more may yet emerge from amongst the finds that are still to be washed. In any case, we can expect more medieval floor tiles to be found as the excavation progresses. If we are lucky some will be found in situ, and some decorated examples may yet turn up. Ultimately, they will have a lot to tell us when reported on by a specialist. For now, it is fascinating to handle them and imagine those who walked across them when they formed the floors of the friary.
As many of you will know, common reed (Phragmites australis) is a common and widespread species in Britain, and is one of our largest native grass species, growing to 3-4m tall. It occurs naturally throughout the Rother valley, and you will have seen that it is rapidly able to expand its coverage in suitable habitat such as drainage channels and low-lying areas of land.
At Lossenham we were recently very fortunate to receive a visit from Richard Starling, an expert on the subject of reedbed management. Richard has worked as a reed and sedge cutter in the Norfolk Broads for most of his life, managing reedbeds in some of the most important wetland conservation sites in the country. Through carefully tending and harvesting this crop of grass, the reedbeds he manages have been providing thatching materials to the industry for decades.
Richard’s visit and his associated advice has significantly expanded our knowledge of the properties required to create and manage a healthy reedbed for both reed production and for wildlife. Water is not required year-round, and contrary to what I had thought, significant periods of deep water can in fact have an unhealthy impact on the root system. Clean, flowing water is preferable, and shallow inundation in the height of the growing season (Apr-Jun) is key to a successful crop.
Not only have we learnt about reedbed management for the production of thatching reed, but also the prized features of the reed itself - a straightness of stem as well as a thick stem-wall define the quality of the reed for thatching. Early indications from existing reed at Lossenham suggests that we already have reed of good quality (wall thickness) and that ‘straightness’ will be enhanced by rotational cutting. This winter we will cut and store a few bundles of existing reed for local thatchers to come and view and assess, as we wish to invite their interest in our plans for some of the farmland at Lossenham…
Looking ahead, we will be ‘reeding’(!) the lie of the land to assess the most suitable areas on which we can produce reed for thatching, making use of existing drainage channels and low-lying areas to create the right hydrological regime for reed growth. We will trial several areas, ‘seeding’ them with our endemic reed from elsewhere on the farm, and then wait patiently for reed to further colonise before management can be introduced.
And you may well ask “why on earth are you going to have a crack at growing reeds?!”. The reasons are several-fold; all are valid and in combination are somewhat compelling! Firstly, the financial return from reed production (once established) are likely be better than existing use as grazing marsh. Secondly, it represents a productive use of low-lying land in an environment where water levels are challenging. Thirdly, the root system (rhizomes) of reed helps to create soils (peat), raising the level of the land whilst also locking up carbon in the process. And finally, managed reedbeds support a range of wildlife including iconic species such as water vole, otter and bittern.
We wish to trial reed production to assess the merits of this change in farming practice. Whilst we will be doing so under our own steam, it is highly likely that such changes in ‘crop’ in the Rother valley would attract significant positive attention from both the existing and upcoming agri-environment grant schemes. If others have already made the leap and are trialling reed production in the area, we would be delighted to hear from you and hope you will share your experiences.
And remember - this is nothing new! For thousands of years people have harvested materials from the marshes. Unfortunately we have very limited historical information about the harvesting of reed in the Rother valley, and would keenly invite anyone who has any information about past reed cutting (or perhaps sedge cutting) to please get in touch.
Did you know… that an estimated 98% of all thatching reed is imported to the UK, some of it from as far afield as China! And much of what is imported is of inferior quality to that which can be grown locally here.
