E15

Excavation was carried out by Aberdeen City Council Archaeological Unit in 1979 on the site of a bonded warehouse prior to the widening of Virginia Street. Extensive archaeological deposits were found, including a midden area dating from the medieval to post-medieval period. Gravel and sand layers at this site contained pottery of the late 12th to 14th centuries. The remains of wooden posts within these layers may represent traces of mooring posts or jettying, while a group of clench bolts may have been the fragmentary remnants of a boat. Later midden deposits included a wider range of imported pottery than is known from previous Aberdeen sites, perhaps reflecting 'high-status' rubbish from the Castlegate area to the north of the excavation trench. Garden soil containing 15th- and 16th-century pottery reflected the beginnings of land reclamation in the harbour area. A substantial warehouse and other dockland buildings were constructed in the 18th and 19th centuries. The finds from this site are in the collections of Aberdeen Art Gallery and Museums.