GORINCHEM – 'Saepe stilum vertas', these words will have been heard regularly in the premises of the Latin School at the Scoelsteghe in Gorinchem. It is now certain that the pupils – boys only, because girls were not in the school benches – regularly turned their stylus to make corrections. The Archaeology working group of the municipality of Gorinchem found five iron styluses at the future construction site for V&D.
"All five almost at the same time, this confirms the image we already had," says archaeologist Martin Veen. "The current Knipsteeg was registered in the fifteenth century as 'Schoolsteeg', a name that referred to the Latin school that was located there. The nice thing is that the pens are in almost perfect condition, except for some rust.”
The volunteers of the Working Group and city archaeologist Pieter Floore started their search for the Court of the Lords of Arkel. The house with outbuildings and garden of the powerful family would have stood in the inner city of Gorcum in the fourteenth century. There are no drawings or paintings of it. The search is based entirely on references to the 'court' in the archives.
Shortly after the first excavation work, the researchers came across a fifteenth-century layer. "Not unexpected, because this part of the city was only minimally raised in the centuries that followed." The writing pens are not the only finds made by the archaeologists. In their temporary accommodation, the former fire station at Kazerneplein, there are now several crates. These contain plastic bags with shards, pieces of wood and metal. Everything will later be preserved by volunteers.
The work is attracting a fair amount of interest, because the excavation site is right next to the fence on Krijtstraat. “People are standing around watching us work almost all day long. And then of course the questions and comments come,” says Veen. “Have we found gold yet? I’ve heard that comment several times this first week. And to be honest, I’ll probably hear it more often. After all, we have seven weeks.
Anja Broeken
The Dordrecht resident
August 17, 2002