Exeter Cathedral Cloister

Excavations on the site of the former cloister at Exeter Cathedral revealed information about the Roman, early-medieval and medieval history of Exeter. The composition of the flooring inside the medieval cloister, based on mortar impressions and displaced decorated floor tiles, was identified, while a series of high-status stone lined graves were shown to have been set within both walks.  Where deeper excavations were undertaken, fragments of the Roman legionary fortress were revealed, including a street surface and timber barrack buildings, beneath various building and floor surfaces of the later Roman town. A group of burials dated to the 7th to 8th centuries provided evidence of early-medieval occupation alongside the degraded remains of the former Roman town, while stone quarrying of these buildings was shown to be the precursor to the construction of the Norman cathedral.