While holes in the masonry joints on either side of the first floor windows provided evidence that suggested that the Mansion originally had shutter dogs, no surviving example had been found before the Restoration started.  However, as had happened many times during the Restoration, having an archaeological crew working alongside the Restoration Team resulted in an incredible discovery.  While excavating near the northern side of the western foundation, the archaeologists uncovered an unidentifiable rusted hunk of iron.  However, after the archaeologists conserved the object by exposing it to an electrolysis reduction tank to convert the rust back into non-oxidized iron, it became clear that the object was a piece of architectural hardware.