HISTORIANS and archaeologists have joined forces to throw new light on six centuries of everyday life in York.

As the largest archaeological excavations ever undertaken in the city continue in Hungate, three linked research projects overseen by the University of York have got under way.

The projects will investigate how everyday domestic objects such as beer bottles, trade tokens and personal seals have been used in and around York between 1400 and 1900.

The projects are all funded by scholarships from the Arts and Humanities Research Council and are being carried out in partnership with the York Archaeological Trust, which is in charge of the Hungate dig. Trust chief executive John Walker said: “The transformation of Britain into the world’s first industrial society was as marked in York as elsewhere.

“Studying these everyday objects will reveal more about an event that has continued to spread across the globe, and in its wake created new opportunities and threats for everyone.”

PhD students Jenny Basford, Lisa Liddy and Gareth Dean will be using materials unearthed at countless digs in the city over the decades to carry out their research.

Gareth Dean will look at the historical character of York districts such as Petergate, Swinegate, Hungate and Rawcliffe, as viewed through the material goods they used. “It’s a great opportunity to expand and develop my interest in medieval archaeology, particularly urban archaeology,” he said.

Jenny Basford, who is investigating how branded goods were produced, marketed and used between 1600 and 1900, said: “The project involves examining early modern, and modern, understandings of credit and trust, which are extremely relevant to today’s economic climate, centuries later.”

Lisa Liddy’s project focuses on how people traded and circulated artifacts in Yorkshire between the 15th and 17th centuries.

“I have spent much of the last 15 years studying medieval documents and this studentship is a logical extension of that,” she said.

The researchers are using the resources of the university’s departments of history and archaeology, its interdisciplinary centres for medieval, renaissance, early modern, and 18th-century studies, as well as objects and documents held in regional archives and York Archaeological Trust’s extensive collections. The results of the research will be used to create displays and guided tours for major visitor attractions at the Hungate site, the Jorvik Viking Centre, Barley Hall and DIG.