Red Clay Brick with Handprint (Archaeological Find)
Title:
Red Clay Brick with Handprint
Subject:
Though the Harvard of today is recognized the world over for its iconic red brick architecture, the first purpose-built structure, the Old College, was undoubtedly constructed of wood, with 4,000 boards purchased in 1642 to side the building as it neared completion (Davis 1890). This means that the bricks uncovered in our excavation served very specific purposes, likely either as part of a chimney or the cellar, which excavations in the mid-1980s discovered had a brick floor (Stubbs 1992). The decision to construct such a monumental building from wood was likely influenced by Massachusetts’ prolific timber trade, since bricks at this time were still largely imported from England as ballast in the bottom of ships (Long 1971). However, early Harvard College records include a £2.15 charge for brickmakers, suggesting the bricks used in the construction of the Old College were some of the first made in what was quickly becoming a major new industry (Stubs 1992). In fact, the first house in Massachusetts made entirely of brick was erected in Boston in 1638, two years after the first land grant for brickmaking was issued (Reis, Leighton 1909). The premature deterioration of the Old College, which by 1679 is only referred to in the past tense, coupled with rapidly expanding local brick production, surely played a deciding role in the choice to construct the neighboring Indian College (1655) and still-standing Massachusetts Hall (1720) with brick, cementing (literally and figuratively) the association of Harvard to red clay bricks just like this one (Davis 1890; Reis, Leighton 1909).
Source:
Davis, Andrew McFarland. “The early college buildings at Cambridge. From Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society, April 30, 1890." Worcester, MA: C. Hamilton, 1890.
Harvard University. Harvard College Records. Boston: Colonial Society of Massachusetts, 1925.
Leighton, Henry and Heinrich Ries. History of the Clay-Working Industry in the United States. New York: J. Wiley & Sons, 1909.
Long, Burton G. "The Romance of Brick. Read at a meeting of the Cambridge Historical Society, March 28, 1971." Cambridge, MA: Cambridge Historical Society, 1978.
Stubbs, John Delano Jr., Ph.D. “Underground Harvard: The archaeology of college life.” PhD diss., Harvard University, 1992.
Object Name:
Red Clay Brick with Handprint
Peabody Number:
2016.29.332
Culture/Period:
17th century
Intrasite:
H942, Level 5
Depth:
80-90cm
Class 1:
Architectural
Class 2:
Ceramic
Class 3:
Brick
Quantity:
1
Height (cm):
11.0cm
Width (cm):
22.5cm
Depth/Thickness (cm):
6.0cm