Page 76 - John Barber's Oakham Castle and its archaeology
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JOHN BARBER’S OAKHAM CASTLE AND ITS ARCHAEOLOGY
Rutland Local History & Record Society Occasional Publication No 11
In the 1950s, John Barber carried out excavations adjacent to the
Great Hall of Oakham Castle with the assistance of boys from
Oakham School, where he was a master. Circumstances
conspired against his being able to produce a detailed
excavation report at the time, but he subsequently wrote
extensive notes about the Great Hall and the castle site. These
have remained unpublished until now, but in view of renewed
interest in the history and archaeology of the Castle – one of
England’s most important Romanesque vernacular buildings –
and in the context of plans to safeguard and develop the site
with the aid of a substantial grant from the Heritage Lottery
Fund, the Rutland Local History & Record Society has decided
to publish John Barber’s notes in its Occasional Publications
series. The opportunity has also been taken to include an up-to-
date assessment of the pottery from his excavations by Deborah
John Lewis Barber MA FSA Sawday, and to republish Peter Gathercole’s rescue excavation
(Oakham School Archives)
report relating to the adjacent Oakham Post Office site and
summary reports of John Barber’s excavations which appeared
at the time. Although more recent research undertaken with the
benefit of modern techniques has amplified our knowledge and
understanding of the Castle, sometimes challenging John
Barber’s ideas in the process, his work is by no means
diminished as a result, and these notes and reports remain
important and informative background material for any study
of Oakham Castle, Rutland’s most important ancient
monument.
Time Team’s re-excavation of one of John
Barber’s trenches at Oakham Castle in 2012
(photo: Robert Ovens)
