Medieval wall decoration discovered at the Clarence

Archaeologists working on the site of The Royal Clarence Hotel have this week discovered a medieval wall decoration of a peacock.

Previously hidden, and exposed only as work moved onto the medieval timber frame within the Well House, the peacock matches others examples the hotel group understands have previously been found across Exeter.

The discovery comes as the team of structural engineers from Thomasons continues to work with archaeologists on the restoration and rebuilding of The Royal Clarence Hotel.

Estimates are that a further three months of work remains to complete the deconstruction of the building, with every effort being made to save as many historical features as possible.

Following this, the rebuild is expected to take around 18 months and aims to restore and rebuild the façade as closely as possible to the original, with a new hotel Exeter can be proud of sitting behind the restored façade.

Continuing at current rates of progress, Andrew Brownsword Hotels aims to re-open The Royal Clarence in 2019.

Gary Brown, Director at structural engineers Thomasons, said: “The Royal Clarence Hotel is a hugely significant and much-loved building.  Our engineers and project managers have vast expertise in making safe and restoring important historical buildings. In partnership with other experts, we are taking every care to salvage as much of the important historic fabric as possible to allow the hotel to be restored to its former glory.”