Paisley Abbey Drain 2011 Season

GUARD Archaeology Ltd, in partnership with the Renfrewshire Local History Forum, Renfrewshire Council, and Paisley Museum, will be undertaking a third season of archaeological investigation at Paisley Abbey Drain to coincide with the Doors Open Day weekend of 10-11 September 2011. The work will be similar to last year's excavation, and will be carried out by volunteers from the Renfrewshire Local History Forum and other local organisations under supervision by GUARD Archaeology staff and students. The excavation will run from Friday 2 September, when de-turfing will take place, with the excavation beginning on the weekend, and will finish on Monday 12 September.

This year, the trial excavations will take place at two locations. The trench opened during 2010 will be re-excavated and extended to the south, and another trench will be excavated to the north, away from the line of the medieval drain. The excavation will have three main aims

• to re-excavate and extend the trench opened in 2010 to investigate the exterior of the drain, to determine its extent, and to examine its condition.
• the drain does not follow a straight course, but instead has a curving route, which may have been determined by the need to avoid a contemporary structure. The trench that will be excavated off the line of the drain will look for any surviving elements of this.
• to investigate archaeological deposits that may relate to the monastic precinct and later use of the site in terms of the development of the town of Paisley.

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