Norman castle wall found under UK prison basketball court

Archeologists recently unearthed the walls of a Norman castle under a prison basketball court in Gloucester, England.

A team of archaeologists exposed a 12th century "castle keep wall" while excavating the site ahead of a redevelopment project, BBC reported.

In the 1780s, the castle where the prison now stands, was demolished to make room for a new prison, according to a statement from Cotswold Archaeology, the firm that ran the excavation.

While archaeologists were aware there was a castle on the property, they were not expecting something so massive, Neil Holbrook, head of the excavation, told the Gloucester Citizen. 

"As you came to Gloucester you would have seen the cathedral and the castle, which is representative of how important the city was in Norman Britain,” he told the Citizen.

Gloucester said the structure would have resembled the Tower of London or Canterbury Castle, the Citizen reported.

City and Country Group purchased the prison after the facility shut down in 2013, BBC reported.

The group is considering what to do with the property and is set to consult the public in hopes of preserving the historic aspects of the property, the Citizen reported.

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