Number 1 Poultry (ONE 94)

Abstract

• The site of 1 Poultry is located near the Bank of England, in the heart of the City of London. During the 1990s, one of the largest excavations in the City recovered a remarkable archaeological sequence from the 1st to the 20th century AD. This was augmented by findings from nearby sites at Bucklersbury, Lothbury, Lombard Street, 72-75 Cheapside, 76-80 Cheapside, 36-37 King Street and Mansion House. 1 Poultry lies immediately west of the point where the main east-west road through Roman London bridged the Walbrook stream and uncovered an unparalleled sequence of buildings, roads, and open spaces. A timber drain of AD 47 beneath the main road is the earliest, securely dated structure yet known from Londinium, and a pottery shop, destroyed in the Boudican revolt, gives a snapshot of life in AD 60/61. A 2nd-century AD writing tablet preserves the only evidence for the sale of a slave found in Britain to date, while the 3rd- and 4th-century AD buildings on the site provide a rare demonstration of the continuities and changes that occurred in Roman urban life.