Online Exhibit: Porcelain from the South Flanker Well of Drayton Hall

Event Details

This exhibit highlights a sample of porcelain vessels, all originally excavated from the South Flanker well at Drayton Hall from 1979-1980. This well is located on the south side of what use to be the South Flanker building, which initially stood adjacent to the main house and fell into disrepair and was removed by 1900. While the well was originally dug as a water source, it eventually became ill-suited as such, likely due to contamination from brackish water. At this point, it became a trash pit, and we can archaeologically see several episodes of debris being discarded over generations. These deposits have resulted in distinctive layers that are recognizable by diagnostic artifact types. We can use certain "time-marker" artifacts (i.e. artifacts with known date ranges) to understand the time periods associated with each event (or group of events) of trash being thrown down the well. From this analysis, we can separate the South Flanker well feature into three distinctive periods: c. 1750-1780 (John Drayton's occupation of Drayton Hall); c. 1785-1820 (Charles Drayton); and c. 1820-late 19th century (multiple generations of Drayton ownership). Porcelain was recovered from all three of these occupation phases, with a significant concentration from John Drayton's occupation.