Maybe that’s where Shakespeare cooked up

Almost 420 years since Shakespeare’s lavish and magnificent house was raised to the ground, archaeologists have discovered what they believe to be the Bard’s demolished kitchen.

Uncovered in the remains of New Place in Stratford-upon-Avon – the site of his family home – the experts found a well hearth and cold storage pit, which was used like a fridge to store cheese.

Historians are still trying to piece together clues to build a picture of what the impressive home would have been like and this discovery has been described as ‘vital’ to this effort.

Archaeologists also found fragments of cookware in the ‘highly significant’ discovery.

The Bard was an established playwright when he bought what was reportedly a magnificent house in 1597 and lived there for the last 19 years of his life.

He wrote 26 of his plays, including The Tempest, while living at the property with his wife Anne Hathaway and their three children.

It was demolished in 1759 by its then owner, Reverend Francis Gastrell, who was annoyed by visiting Shakespeare enthusiasts.

Archaeologists began their investigations in May and The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, which owns the site, has now revealed they found several vital artefacts which would have made up the kitchen.

The walls surrounding the hearth would have held an oven in place, while the cold storage pit would have been below ground level and used to store cheese, for example.

The finds are both part of the medieval foundations of New Place, which was built in 1483 by the Clopton family.

Source :Daily mail

N.H.Kh