The Exeter Inn and the Potters of Litchdon Street, Barnstaple: North Devon Pottery in the 16th Century

This paper presents the discovery and excavation of a 16th-century pottery production site at the Exeter Inn, Litchdon Street, Barnstaple, and the analysis of this material, which represents a major step forward in our understanding of the products and working practices of the north Devon potteries, prior to their development as a major industry in the 17th century. The artefact assemblage consists of over 50,000 sherds of pottery as well as a considerable volume of ridge and floor tile, recovered from a complex series of very large intercutting pits, broadly divisible into earlier 16th-century and later 16th-century features. Analysis of the material has identified changing trends in the scale of production, the types of pottery produced, the clay used, and the level of clay processing undertaken. No kilns were located during the work, but analysis of fragments of kiln structure and slate separators has highlighted the potential of this material for exploring how pottery was fired and stacked. The assemblage included a small number of inlaid floor tiles very similar to examples in several west Somerset churches, re-dating those tiles to the late 15th or early 16th century. Lastly, the small number of stamped or scored sherds points to apotropaic practices with distinct religious overtones.