ONE of the most interesting archaeological finds in Oxford of last century was made during the demolition of the Old Clarendon Hotel in 1955.

The hotel was being cleared when a vault or cellar, dating from the middle of the 12th century, was unearthed.

It was immediately beneath what was at the time the famous 'Clarry Bar' and until the year prior had been used as a cellar for about 800 years.

Archaeologists said it was probably the oldest remaining domestic building still standing but unfortunately it could not be preserved.

Instead, the curved stone moulding of the entrance archway at the western end was removed and displayed at the Ashmolean Museum.

Its floor, at the time was about 8ft below the level of Cornmarket Street and inside the walls measured 26ft in length and 12ft across.