There cannot be many bars where bottles of alcohol have remained unopened for decades at a time.
But the remains of a 200-year-old public house have been unearthed in a busy city centre - complete with untouched bottles of brandy.
Archaeologists have unearthed the former drinking house as workers prepared to lay the foundations for a new 13-storey skyscraper in Manchester city centre.
That's a rare find: 200-year-old pub unearthed in busy city complete with untouched bottles of brandy
Archaeologists excavated the site ahead of construction of a skyscraper
They discovered a pub called the Astley Arms that dates back to 1821
They unearthed plates and mugs that bore the name of the former landlord
The descendants of the pub's landlord Thomas Evans now live in Texas
By Richard Gray for MailOnline
September 2016
There cannot be many bars where bottles of alcohol have remained unopened for decades at a time.
But the remains of a 200-year-old public house have been unearthed in a busy city centre - complete with untouched bottles of brandy.
Archaeologists have unearthed the former drinking house as workers prepared to lay the foundations for a new 13-storey skyscraper in Manchester city centre.
Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of a pub called the Astley Arms that dates back nearly 200 years in the centre of Manchester. Inside the building they even found bottles still filled with what appears to be brandy (pictured)
Archaeologists were brought in to excavate the site on the corner of the city's Port Street and Great Ancoats Street.
They discovered the remains of the Astley Arms pub, which dates back to 1821 when Napoleon's forces had swept across Europe.
At the time, Manchester was still a modest market town rather than the bustling city it is today.
Within the pub, archaeologists discovered keys, pots for quills, pipes and the personalised crockery bearing the name of the pub's landlord, Thomas Evans.
The discovery shows how pubs formed an important part of the community 200 years ago. Alongside the hidden pub were also the remains of several houses and an old bank vault.
James Alderson, site developer of construction firm Mulbury City, which is carrying out the building work, said: 'A lot of bottles have been found, maybe around 20.
Three or four of them are full of brandy. We opened the cork on a few and you can still smell it.
'It really takes you back to the time when they would have been outside of the pub drinking.'
A crockery set including personalised plates and mugs were found at the site bearing the name of the former landlord of the Astley Arms Thomas Evans (pictured)
Several houses were discovered alongside the remains of the pub (pictured), which remained open until 1928 and was torn down in around 1986
The remains of the pub were found on a development site at Port Street and Great Ancoats Street in Manchester City Centre (shown on map)
Historians say The Astley Arms pub was renamed the Paganini Tavern in 1840 by Thomas Inglesent.
By the 1850s it was back as the Astleys Arms, remaining open until 1928 as a Cornbrook House.
The building was partially rebuilt in 1986 but later demolished.
Mr Alderson added: 'It's amazing knowing there's so much history at this site and it's really exciting.
'I never expected this kind of thing to be found but we are really fascinated by it all.
'Part of Manchester's vast history is being captured in these findings which is really interesting.'
Experts say pottery found on the site dated back to the early 1800s while several of the bottles of alcohol are thought to date from the early 1900s.
The excavation unearthed pottery from the pub dating back to the early 1800s (pictured left) and glass bottles that date from the early 1900s (pictured right)
Some of the items recovered from the site will be put on display in the city's Museum of Science and Industry.
But it's not yet clear what will happen to the bottled brandy.
Aidan Turner, supervisor at the site and senior archaeologist, said it was exciting to be able to link the findings to living people today.
Spoons, coins and ink pots (pictured) were also recovered from the site, which includes the remains of an old bank vault and several former houses
He said: 'We found pottery and bottle from the Astley Arms which actually has the name of the proprietor Thomas Evans, and the name of the pub written on it, so it must have been a commissioned piece for the pub.
'It's brilliant because you can suddenly connect it to the local people in the area.
'We looked online about his family history and one of his descendants now lives in Texas.
'It's nice to be able to connect it directly to living people and their families.'
The development that will be built on the site will create 135 apartments and shops. It is expected to be finished by the end of 2017.
ARTEFACTS FROM A PUB
The archaeologists excavating the site in Manchester's city center found more than 20 glass bottles some with liquid still inside.
Clay bottles were also found and are thought to date to the early 1800s.
Several coins, including old English Pennies, and spoons were also dug out of the soil.
Keys, pots for quills and old clay pipes used for smoking also hint at the sites rather eclectic past.
The remains of a personalised blue and white crockery set, with the name of the landlord and the pub on it, were also unearthed.
But the remains of a 200-year-old public house have been unearthed in a busy city centre - complete with untouched bottles of brandy.
Archaeologists have unearthed the former drinking house as workers prepared to lay the foundations for a new 13-storey skyscraper in Manchester city centre.
That's a rare find: 200-year-old pub unearthed in busy city complete with untouched bottles of brandy
Archaeologists excavated the site ahead of construction of a skyscraper
They discovered a pub called the Astley Arms that dates back to 1821
They unearthed plates and mugs that bore the name of the former landlord
The descendants of the pub's landlord Thomas Evans now live in Texas
By Richard Gray for MailOnline
September 2016
There cannot be many bars where bottles of alcohol have remained unopened for decades at a time.
But the remains of a 200-year-old public house have been unearthed in a busy city centre - complete with untouched bottles of brandy.
Archaeologists have unearthed the former drinking house as workers prepared to lay the foundations for a new 13-storey skyscraper in Manchester city centre.
Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of a pub called the Astley Arms that dates back nearly 200 years in the centre of Manchester. Inside the building they even found bottles still filled with what appears to be brandy (pictured)
Archaeologists were brought in to excavate the site on the corner of the city's Port Street and Great Ancoats Street.
They discovered the remains of the Astley Arms pub, which dates back to 1821 when Napoleon's forces had swept across Europe.
At the time, Manchester was still a modest market town rather than the bustling city it is today.
Within the pub, archaeologists discovered keys, pots for quills, pipes and the personalised crockery bearing the name of the pub's landlord, Thomas Evans.
The discovery shows how pubs formed an important part of the community 200 years ago. Alongside the hidden pub were also the remains of several houses and an old bank vault.
James Alderson, site developer of construction firm Mulbury City, which is carrying out the building work, said: 'A lot of bottles have been found, maybe around 20.
Three or four of them are full of brandy. We opened the cork on a few and you can still smell it.
'It really takes you back to the time when they would have been outside of the pub drinking.'
A crockery set including personalised plates and mugs were found at the site bearing the name of the former landlord of the Astley Arms Thomas Evans (pictured)
Several houses were discovered alongside the remains of the pub (pictured), which remained open until 1928 and was torn down in around 1986
The remains of the pub were found on a development site at Port Street and Great Ancoats Street in Manchester City Centre (shown on map)
Historians say The Astley Arms pub was renamed the Paganini Tavern in 1840 by Thomas Inglesent.
By the 1850s it was back as the Astleys Arms, remaining open until 1928 as a Cornbrook House.
The building was partially rebuilt in 1986 but later demolished.
Mr Alderson added: 'It's amazing knowing there's so much history at this site and it's really exciting.
'I never expected this kind of thing to be found but we are really fascinated by it all.
'Part of Manchester's vast history is being captured in these findings which is really interesting.'
Experts say pottery found on the site dated back to the early 1800s while several of the bottles of alcohol are thought to date from the early 1900s.
The excavation unearthed pottery from the pub dating back to the early 1800s (pictured left) and glass bottles that date from the early 1900s (pictured right)
Some of the items recovered from the site will be put on display in the city's Museum of Science and Industry.
But it's not yet clear what will happen to the bottled brandy.
Aidan Turner, supervisor at the site and senior archaeologist, said it was exciting to be able to link the findings to living people today.
Spoons, coins and ink pots (pictured) were also recovered from the site, which includes the remains of an old bank vault and several former houses
He said: 'We found pottery and bottle from the Astley Arms which actually has the name of the proprietor Thomas Evans, and the name of the pub written on it, so it must have been a commissioned piece for the pub.
'It's brilliant because you can suddenly connect it to the local people in the area.
'We looked online about his family history and one of his descendants now lives in Texas.
'It's nice to be able to connect it directly to living people and their families.'
The development that will be built on the site will create 135 apartments and shops. It is expected to be finished by the end of 2017.
ARTEFACTS FROM A PUB
The archaeologists excavating the site in Manchester's city center found more than 20 glass bottles some with liquid still inside.
Clay bottles were also found and are thought to date to the early 1800s.
Several coins, including old English Pennies, and spoons were also dug out of the soil.
Keys, pots for quills and old clay pipes used for smoking also hint at the sites rather eclectic past.
The remains of a personalised blue and white crockery set, with the name of the landlord and the pub on it, were also unearthed.
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