FURTHER PLANT REMAINS FROM THE MEDIEVAL SITE AT CLOSEGATE, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE: CG90

The CG90 excavations at Newcastle upon Tyne investigated the medieval quayside with its periods of reclamation and later domestic use. Carbonised plant material gave evidence of the usage of wheat, barley, oats and rye as well as grape pips and peas. Although much of the identified wheat was bread wheat, internodes of the tetraploid Triticum durum or T. turgidum were recovered- extending its occurrence much further north than before. Material preserved through waterlogging was abundant in some contexts and represented plants of mixed habitats. Ruderals and weeds with grassland species were the most common as were some woodland or scrubland taxa and those characteristic of wet ground. Few exotic taxa were present but important ones included olives, figs and dill, all of which were probably imported. Many samples contained little or no plant remains. They may have been the remains of ballast brought in with ships or material deliberately brought and dumped from inland in order to reclaim the quayside land.