|
|
Post by UKarchaeology on Nov 27, 2015 13:20:25 GMT
 A view of New Place looking north-east after 159Glimpses of Shakespeare the playwright and country-town gentleman as archaeologists excavate kitchen of grand houseBeer brewing, pickling and salting took place in William Shakespeare’s kitchen, say archaeologists creating the most accurate version yet of the huge Stratford-upon-Avon house he bought more than 400 years ago. An oven-style fire hearth, a cold storage pit used as a fridge and fragments of plates, cups and cookware have been found by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust at New Place, which Shakespeare bought in 1597 for £120 – six times the annual salary of a Stratford schoolteacher at the time. “Once we had uncovered the family's oven we were able to understand how the rest of the house fitted around it,” says Dr Paul Edmondson, the Head of Research and Knowledge for the trust, which is carrying out a £5.25 million project to open the house to the public next year. “The discovery of the cooking areas, brew house, pantry and cold storage pit, combined with the scale of the house, all point to New Place as a working home as well as a house of high social status. “A much richer picture of Shakespeare has emerged through the course of our excavations. At New Place we can catch glimpses of Shakespeare the playwright and country-town gentleman. “His main task was to write and a house as impressive as New Place would have played an important part in the rhythm of his working life.” The largest single residence in the borough, Shakespeare’s home for two decades had an imposing frontage, more than 20 rooms, ten fireplaces and a Great Chamber and Gallery. But experts say it has felt like a “missing piece” in Shakespeare’s story. “The trust knows just how powerful this site is, not just because of what will be seen above the ground, but also because of the history which lies underneath – layers of earth and foundations which have been untouched for hundreds of years,” says Julie Crawshaw, the manager of a project which has also uncovered medieval foundations and Iron Age archaeology. “Meticulous work is not fast work, and we have had to reconfigure our original plans to accommodate the rich findings in previously unexplored ground. “This has resulted in an unavoidable delay in starting groundworks, which will have a knock-on effect on our original schedule, particularly as we will now be building through the winter weather. “It is thanks to the passion and skill of our team of designers, architects, engineers and conservation specialists that we are on track to open in summer 2016.” Facsimiles of the cookware will be available for visitors to handle in the neighbouring Nash’s House, a Grade I-listed Tudor building where specially-commissioned artworks and accompanying exhibitions will be displayed. Full story (& lots more pics): www.culture24.org.uk/history-and-heritage/archaeology/art542139-shakespeare-new-place-kitchen-archaeology-stratford |
|
|
|
Post by UKarchaeology on Nov 27, 2015 13:47:24 GMT
Another article on the matter;  Important discovery unearthed at Shakespeare’s final Stratford homeSHAKESPEARE’S kitchen has been unearthed by archaeologists working at the playwright’s final home in Stratford. The discovery, including the playwright’s ‘oven’ and ‘fridge’, at New Place has prompted much excitement among Shakespearean scholars. The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT), which cares for the Chapel Street property, has been able to commission new evidence-based drawings of New Place showing how it would have looked when it was the Shakespeare family home for nearly two decades. The dig has also helped establish the size of the property bought by the bard for the then considerable sum of £120 in 1597. The ‘kitchen’ not only had the ‘oven’ (or fire hearth) and ‘fridge’ (or cold storage pit), but the team also found evidence of the brew house where small beer was made (drunk instead of unsafe water) and where pickling and salting took place. Fragments of plates, cups and other cookware were also found. Copies of the cookware will be available for visitors to handle, and will be on display in the neighbouring Nash’s House, which is currently undergoing a major refurbishment as part of the project. Full story: stratfordobserver.co.uk/news/important-discovery-unearthed-shakespeares-final-stratford-home/ |
|
|
|
Post by thejollybard on Apr 5, 2016 13:10:08 GMT
This article is kinda old (but relevant)... New Findings at Final Home of Shakespeare, Where he Wrote at the Height of his Career William Shakespeare owned the biggest, most lavish residence in the borough of Stratford-Upon-Avon, a home fitting his high status in the world. Archaeologists excavating the ruins of the 20-room mansion have found the kitchen with a hearth for cooking food and a brew house. The home, called New Place, was the great playwright’s final home, and he and his family lived in it for almost 20 years at the height of his career, says a press release from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Researchers and experts are preparing to open the home to the public in 2016, 400 years after he died. www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/new-findings-final-home-shakespeare-where-he-wrote-height-his-career-004743But this one is more recent (March 2016)...  Site of Shakespeare's grand Stratford home to open to the public
In July a grand bronze-studded oak door will swing open on the main street of Stratford-upon-Avon, inviting visitors into a house that was demolished more than 250 years ago – the mansion which Shakespeare bought in his home town when he had made his fortune on the London stage. The reopening of the site of New Place, with a new garden tracing the lines of the lost house, rediscovered in a major archaeological excavation which also found the playwright’s kitchen, complete with the foundations of the oven and cold store, will be a highlight of the celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of his death. Julie Crawshaw, project manager, said it was the most complex venture anywhere in the world marking the anniversary, and the biggest in more than half a century for the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, which owns the site and a string of beautiful historic buildings in and around Stratford associated with the playwright.
www.theguardian.com/culture/2016/mar/02/william-shakespeare-stratford-home-new-place-site-open
|
|
