Slate

Fifty fragments of slate found on an archaeological excavation at Bruce Castle in Tottenham. Bruce Castle was originally a 16th century manor house but the house has been altered several times since by different owners. In 1827 it was converted into a boys' school by Sir Rowland Hill. Some of these pieces of slate may have come from the school as Victorian schoolchildren used to write on slates with slate pencils, before progressing onto paper and ink when they were older. They wrote with slate pencils, which often squeaked loudly, making classrooms quite noisy. The slates could be wiped clean and then re-used to write something new. Bruce Castle now houses a museum of local history.