Watching Brief at 'Silver Lining', The Cloud, Wotton-under-Edge

Standard WB methodology as laid down in relevant CIfA Standard and Guidance Avon Archaeology Limited were commissioned by Mr and Mrs Graham to undertake an archaeological watching brief during groundworks related to the construction of a new dwelling and detached garage on the site of a modern house which had been demolished for the purposes of the development. The site lies on the southern side, and towards the eastern end of a cul-de-sac known as The Cloud, at Wotton-under-Edge. The site had previously been occupied by what had probably been earlier cottages, which had been removed at some point between the time of the First and Second Editions of the large scale OS maps. The groundworks involved the prior demolition of an existing house on the site, constructed in the 1950s or 1960s. The new building was so designed as to be constructed off a concrete slab heavily terraced back into the site's very steep, south-facing slope. The monitoring project centred upon the creation of this terrace, which necessitated the excavation and removal of a large amount of material, with the deepest part of the excavation, as might be expected, at the northern side of the site, on the southern side of The Cloud. Before that main part of the work, however, a concrete revetment had to be inserted along the northern frontage of the property, to support the southern side of the road surface along The Cloud. In terms of the main phase of the work, terracing for the insertion of the concrete slab, upon which the new house was to be constructed, revealed that the hillside had previously been quarried, with two short tunnels still existing in the southfacing quarry face. Buildings had been constructed at the base of this probable quarried area, at a similar level to that proposed for the new development. Partial walls, floors and a fireplace were recorded, which correspond with two out of three buildings shown on the First Edition OS map within the area of the site.