A note by Hull records, 'During the war several of the houses on the south side of Essex Street were destroyed by bombing; later when the site had been cleared a block of government offices was built. M.R.H. was asked by the Ministry of Works to watch the site. This proved difficult for the work was carried out very sporadically...the foundations were shallow, but there was a series of deep shafts sunk for stanchions, cut right down to the yellow sand. So far as could be ascertained these varied from 12ft to 15ft deep, for the ground sloped as if for an old stream-bed. The overburden was all dark soil, with no stratification or signs of building...No antiquities could be seen in the sides of the cuttings (but these were obscured by timbering) nor could any be found in the great amount of upcast, so the site was dismissed as barren and probably lying within the marshy limits of the former stream which ran in the vicinity...Years later one of the Hutton's workmen brought to the Museum a small colour coated beaker (form 392) which he said he found with a skeleton under the main stairs of the new offices, which are in the centre of the building.<1> Grave Group 612.<2>