Hundreds of artefacts have been uncovered at a dig which is taking place as part of one of Australia’s biggest railway construction projects.

An excavation team that is working on the $25.3 billion Sydney Metro West project has uncovered hundreds of relics at the site of the new Hunter Street station.

A particularly interesting find was a range of sandstone brick footings which are believed to form part of a property that was once owned by prominent Sydney colonial-era merchant Prosper de Mestre.

The footings are believed to be part of the e Mestre residence and counting house – a traditional office where business finances were managed.

They date from the 1820s to the 1840s.

(Hunter Street West site heritage investigations. Image supplied)

The footings were found near the former De Mestre Place, a laneway off George Street, that is now part of the station’s footprint.

Archaeologists also unearthed a well that was likely tied to De Mestre’s redevelopment of the site in the 1840s.

(Glass and miscellaneous items, including a toothbrush, a spoon, a thimble and buttons, retrieved from a drain sump where they were originally deposited in the 1830s. Image supplied)

Descendants of the De Mestre family recently joined Sydney Metro and the site’s Excavation Director, Ronan McEleney, to view some of the artefacts which have been recovered.

Other relics included gun flint and bullet shells. These were likely found due to the site’s proximity to George Street Barrack that once stood opposite. This was Sydney’s first military barrack.

Smaller items that were discovered include glass beads, a coin circa 1834, lead shot, slate pencils and glass bottles, bone and metal buttons.

(A stoneware ink bottle and a salt glazed tobacco jar made by A. Singer of Vauxall (London) dating from between 1840 and 1860. Image supplied.)

The artefacts are currently being catalogued and analysed by specialists who will advise on the best approach for their long-term safekeeping.

Select items were also on display during a community open day at the site which took place on Sunday.

While archaeological excavation at the site has concluded, work by heritage experts continues on site to preserve the heritage-listed Skinners Family Hotel. This was built 1845 and will be incorporated into the future over station development.

The latest works that have been discovered on the Sydney Metro project follow the earlier uncovering of a 180-year-old timber boat which occurred during excavation works for the Barangaroo metro station.

The boat is the oldest of its kind ever found in NSW and is a state-significant heritage discovery.

It is believed to have been built in the 1830s and is the oldest known example in NSW of an Australian-built small European-style timber boat that once moved around the Sydney colony.

(Skinner’s Family Hotel, Corner George and Hunter Streets, Sydney CBD in c1849. A watercolour by Andrew Torning, SLNSW. The Hotel will be preserved and incorporated into the future over station development.)

The latest find was uncovered at the site of what will be the new Hunter Street Station.

The station is one of at least nine stations which have been confirmed to be constructed as part of the Sydney Metro West project – a new 24-kilometre underground metro railway that will double rail capacity between Parramatta and the Sydney CBD.

The new line and stations are currently expected to open in 2032.

(Hunter Street West. Artist Impression. Skinners Hotel.)

NSW Transport Minister John Graham welcomed the latest findings.

“The Hunter Street metro station project is part of Sydney’s future, but these finds are a fascinating window into the city’s past,” Graham said.

“Thousands of people will arrive daily at what will be the busiest station on Metro West, and we hope these relics serve as a reminder of how rich in history the site is.”

(Set to open in 2032, Sydney Metro West will double rail capacity between the Sydney CBD and Parramatta.)

Excavation Director Ronan McEleney said that care is being taken to preserve the relics so as to enable future generations to learn more about the Sydney of the era to which the artefacts relate.