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Today the floor in the ca. 1764 section of the cellar is made from clay and the story of how it was restored showcases the pains that the historians and architects that Montpelier went to in order to ensure that the restored mansion would be as accurate as possible.  For the archaeologists excavating the cellars, one of the main goals was to determine the type of flooring that was found in each of the subterranean rooms. These spaces were heavily renovated several times after the Madisons sold Montpelier and as a result it was highly unlikely that the archaeologists would be able to recover any information.  However, after undertaking extremely careful, rigorous excavations the archaeologists were able to miraculously find a small sample of the ca. 1764 earthen floor.

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The Montpelier Foundation's archaeologists excavate the floor in the Mansion's cellar.