The first structure of the second oldest university in the US was recently Rediscovered by archaeologists – And that’s not necessarily what you expect in school.
William and Mary of Williamsburg, Virginia was originally chartered in 1693. An idyllic Southern university is home to Wren Building, the oldest university building in the United States.
However, the Wren building was not recently discovered. Rather, it was discovered that a 17th century brick ki was hidden in the soil not too far from the colonial hall.
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Elizabeth Monroe, Archaeological Research Manager and co-director of the William & Mary Center for Archaeological Research (WMCAR), told Fox News Digital in an interview that Kiln was first discovered by archaeologists in the 1930s, documented it and covered it with dirt. (See the video at the top of this article.)
School employees didn’t try to waterproof the Ren Building Foundation, for example, as ki was rediscovered earlier this year, until school employees began restorative efforts. The photo shows an excavator that delves into the skeleton of a brick ki that has miraculously survived over the centuries.
The 17th century brick ki used to build William & Mary’s most iconic building has recently been rediscovered. (Getty Images; Wmcar/William & Mary)
Archaeology carried out in [the 1930s] It’s not like archaeology today,” Monroe said.
“They were careful about their time, but not as careful as we liked them to be. But even so, they revealed a lot of architectural features.”
According to an archaeological report on the structure in 1993, the brick ki was used to make clay bricks used to construct the wren buildings.
“We use Ren [during] A course in everyday life… Just as Thomas Jefferson had classes in this building in the early 1760s. ”
“These kilns represent the first buildings of all kinds on the site,” the report read. “The Earth from the basement probably supplied the material for the bricks.”
The document states that “The kiln was left there upon completion of the repair. [and] They were recovered on Earth. ”
Monroe described it as “probably the oldest building on this site.”
The 17th century brick ki was used to produce bricks that helped build William & Mary. (WMCAR/WILLIAM & MARY)
“They would have built it before they built wren,” she said. “They would have had to make a lot of bricks to build this building.”
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“It has a 3-foot thickness basis. [Wren] building. ‘Well, the building wasn’t there yet. There is a hole in the ground in the basement, and they probably pull the clay out of that hole, creating a brick that now functions as a structure. ”
“It’s so lovely to have this brick kiln discovery moment to make this age come true.”
Charles Fulcher, director of William & Mary’s Ren Operations and Events, told Fox News Digital that Wren Building has been “doing the same thing for about 325 years.”
He added: [during the] Just as students come and leave classes in the course of their daily lives. Thomas Jefferson There was a class in this building in the early 1760s. ”
He also said, “It’s a place where universities have traditions and rituals, important events for all students, and it’s really neat to have this brick discovery moment to make that age come true.”
A mid-19th century tower, once adjacent to the south side of Renville’s main entrance, was found (left), in addition to Brickki (right). (WMCAR/WILLIAM & MARY)
Despite the novelty of rediscovering the oldest structure ever at a university, a group of historians said archaeological discoveries are very common in Williamsburg.
“The buildings have come since 1693,” Monroe said. “Tennis courts were coming and going. There were students, gardens and landscaping, and there were a variety of things that changed the way.”
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“Most of the time, you’ll come up with something that can help you stick a shovel anywhere on campus and tell the story of the university.”
Renville was built between 1695 and 1699 and has housed academic activities for centuries. (Getty Images)
Tom Higgins, an archaeologist with the WMCAR project, reflected the sentiment and told Fox News Digital that he had encountered an artifact from centuries ago.
“The Great Hall Basement [in the Wren Building] There was a kitchen that was intensively used for generations…we ended up with a lot of rejections, broken plates and bottles, etc,” he said.
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“a lot 18th and 19th centuries Rejection from everyday life at university manifests in such work. ”
Fulcher reported that the rediscovery has proven meaningful to the university community as a whole, especially the group of students he oversees to offer tours of Renville.
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“When ki was discovered and I could see the black mark on the soil indicating where the fire was burning and the bricks were burning… I sent a word to all of them,” he said.
“A lot of them came in the middle of school day to make sure they could see it.”
The brick ki was originally discovered in the 1930s, but was later covered in dirt. (WMCAR/WILLIAM & MARY)
For now, archaeologists have covered the ki to make room for future scaffolding in Renville, and are planning to meet ki again in the future.
“I’ll resume at some point in the future [the ground] Around the foundation, do the waterproofing that is actually necessary and replace some drains,” Monroe said.
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“But the goal is to identify and record where these types of delicate archaeological features are.
Kyle Schmidbauer of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
