A HISTORY OF DURHAM 



describes the gateway as strong, and mentions 

 the drawbridge and barbican.^^ From what 

 remains of the original work, which appears to 

 be of Bishop Flambard's time (1099-1128), and 

 from excavations made in 1898, it would seem 

 that the Norman gateway consisted of a square 

 tower with shallow projecting wings. All that 

 definitely survives, however, of the Norman 

 period are the circular turret stair up to the 

 first floor and a string-course of sunk star 

 ornament under the lean-to roof on the west 

 side of the gateway, which is in excellent pre- 

 servation. No doubt also a considerable amount 



which apparently formed the springers to an 

 arch of the bridge approach. 



Of the east barbican wall a short portion is 

 known to exist under the west wall of Bishop 

 Barrington's easterly projecting wing, but it 

 appears to have been destroyed south of the 

 termination of the wing ; the fact that he built 

 his west wall upon the old foundation, and his 

 south and east walls upon the made ground of 

 the moat, accounts for the unequal settlement of 

 the east wing and the distortion of the south 

 window. 



Considerable repairs and additions were made 



Durham Castle : The Courtyard looking South 



of original masonry exists in the interior of the 

 walls. The barbican was about 90 ft. in length 

 and defended by an outer tower or turret and 

 a giXeP The excavations disclosed the foun- 

 dations of the west wall of the barbican, which 

 averages about 7 ft. 4 in. in thickness. A cross 

 wall 3 ft. 3 in. thick found at the same time, at 

 a distance of 12 ft. from the wing of the present 

 building, indicates the position of the draw- 

 bridge immediately in front of the gate. On the 

 south side of this wall three stones remain 



*2 Laurence of Durham, op. cit. (Surt. Soc), lib. i, 



U-433-40- , , . , ^ 



23 In a tracing of the castle m the possession of the 

 University, supposed to date about 1775, the newel 

 staircase is shown entered from the courtyard on 

 the west side ; the east side of the gateway is shown to 

 have a projection into the courtyard the full width of 

 the original work (p. 67). 



to this gateway by Bishop Tunstall^ (iS30~S9)> 

 He seems to have widened the passage through 

 the gateway by recessing the jambs 3 in. on 

 each side beyond the line of the soffit of the inner 

 order to support which he provided small 

 moulded abaci as brackets. A close examination 

 further suggests that for the same purpose he 

 rebuilt the arch and endeavoured to spread it out. 

 It may be noticed with regard to this point that 

 the joints of the voussoirs of the innermost 

 order on each side of the keystone are open 

 respectively 2 in. and f in., the former being 

 filled in with small cobble stones ; and the bed 

 joints generally of this and the two middle 

 orders appear tight at the top and widen at the 

 soffit, while the outer order which was added 



^* Hilt. Dunelm. Script. 7res (Surt. Soc), 155; 

 F. G [odwin]. Cat. of Bishops of Engl. (1601), 533. 



68 



