GORINCHEM – Excavations behind the Gorcum Museum show that the old cemetery around the Grote Kerk was larger than expected. When digging a pit for placing underground waste containers right behind the Gorcums Museum, skeletons in coffins were found.
Remains of burials on the Groenmarkt
Ton Wijkamp (58) from Gorcum shuffles his metal detector over the piles of soil that were removed from the pit. The amateur archaeologist has not yet made any spectacular finds there. “Occasionally a coin or a piece of pottery.” Wijkamp has been active as an amateur archaeologist for about thirty years. “That's when I bought my first metal detector. I went into the field, looking for coins and old pennies. Over time, your interest increases. After a while, you are also called in when digging is going to take place somewhere.”
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Wijkamp reached its peak in 1996. “They were busy reinforcing the dike at the time. At the foot of the Dalemsedijk I found old monastery bricks. There appeared to be remains of the castle of the Lords of Arkel from the end of the thirteenth century. That was a really important excavation. A coat of mail was found, but also cannonballs and arrowheads. People who see us working here think that the important work is done here. But after finding material, the most important thing happens in the archaeological depot. Everything is cleaned there, the pieces are glued together and there are restorations.”
Cemetery
The professional supervision of the excavation work on the Groenmarkt is carried out by the archaeological agency Hollandia. Two years ago, the agency was also involved in the excavation of skeletons that had been found under the stone floor of the Grote Toren. Later, skeletons were also retrieved from the ground around the tower. Archaeologist Tim Hoogendijk of Hollandia: “It was known that the area around the Grote Toren had been used as a cemetery. After 1830, that was no longer allowed. It is quite surprising that the cemetery extended all the way to this spot at the Gorcums Museum.”
The skeletons of the past few days were found in three burial pits, in which three to four layers had been buried. Hoogendijk: “The graves were in a former manure and waste pit. These were meter-deep pits along the ring wall castle that date from the 15de century. We have also found pieces of pottery from this period in this pit. It probably concerns hand-baked drinking vessels such as jugs and cups, made in Siegburg. We also find pieces of metal, such as a stirrup from a horse harness.” Hoogendijk: “They were under a concrete container of the weighbridge, which was placed there in 1921. In the Middle Ages there was also a weigh house there. It was used to weigh goods for trade to prevent discussions. In the pit we also found drains and wells from the time of the construction of the 14de century town hall. That is an interesting find.”
27 – 4‑2010
AD Rivierenland
by Kees Tanis