Archaeological excavation at St Mary’s Church, High Street, Wivenhoe, Essex, CO7 9BD: January and May 2021

An archaeological excavation was carried out at St Mary’s Church, Wivenhoe, Essex in advance of the construction of an extension to house a meeting room and ancillary facilities. During the excavation 24 inhumation burials were uncovered, along with a large amount of disarticulated human bone, representing the remains of at least another 45 individuals. Finds of a 17th-20th century date, including substantial amounts of coffin furniture, were retrieved from the inhumations. As the site has been a burial ground since the 14th century, however, it seems likely that some of the disarticulated remains could be of an earlier date.