Between 1909 and 1915, the former Iron Age hill fort at Old Sarum was excavated under the aegis of the Society of Antiquaries of London. These excavations were abandoned in 1915, and although the findings of individual seasons were published in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries, the principal interpreter of the archaeology, William St John Hope (1854–1919), died before the promised final report could be written. The absence of a final report complicates understanding of the constructional phases of the medieval castle and cathedral, while the lack of a detailed record of the find sites for the 11th- and 12th-century carved stonework hinders attempts to reconstruct the appearance of the cathedral. The following paper reviews the early-20th-century excavations and asks whether what was found is susceptible to alternative interpretation.

1909 年至 1915 年间，在伦敦古物协会的支持下，旧塞勒姆的前铁器时代山堡被挖掘出来。这些挖掘工作于 1915 年被放弃，尽管个别季节的发现发表在古物学会会刊上考古学的主要解释者威廉·圣约翰·霍普（William St John Hope，1854-1919 年）在承诺的最终报告撰写之前就去世了。缺少最终报告使对中世纪城堡和大教堂的建造阶段的理解变得复杂，而缺少 11 世纪和 12 世纪雕刻石雕的发现地点的详细记录阻碍了重建大教堂外观的尝试。以下论文回顾了 20 世纪早期的发掘工作，并询问发现的内容是否可以接受其他解释。