South Coast Railway) drove their new line through the site, digging down to a track bed level to meet the new Lewes railway station, and constructing a line of railway cottages at the east end of Priory Street. This line bisected the foundations of the chapter house and church apse exposing the foundations and burials including those of William de Warenne and Gundrada. The destruction and collateral damage to the Priory remains was significant and the site was split in two but the construction triggered archaeological investigation. Elements of the fabric and finds are held by the Sussex Archaeological Society in their two Lewes museums and by the British Museum. Present situation The Priory site to the north of the railway line is in private ownership, formerly occupied by a walled nursery and before that, public gardens, all recently cleared. The standing ruins to the south are separated from the northern site by the railway. The site of Lewes Priory south of the railway line is a public park. It is open throughout the year and entrance is free of charge. Despite the disruption caused by the construction of the railway across the site, a substantial protected ruin still stands within parkland, albeit only a small proportion of the original priory building fabric. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the ruins were subject of research and conservation and a popular visitor attraction. The Priory reopened in 2011 after a two-year restoration project that improved access and interpretation of the medieval monastery. Some fencing was removed and pathways, benches and interpretive signs were installed. There are interpretative panels and a guide book. In the park there are two neo-medieval buildings, a folly tower and a cottage, made from the stone of the Priory, which were built in the gardens of the former Lords Place. A large metal sculpture of a knight's helm (1964) commemorates the Battle of Lewes. The herb garden was recreated by local historians with medicinal plants that would likely have been in the original. The Apple Orchard has six rare old Sussex varieties. There was once a minigolf course laid out over the challenging slopes of the infirmary, but this, and the public tennis courts, have been closed by the local authority. Much of the Priory precinct is given over to recreation and sports including Lewes Football Club, currently at the Dripping Pan, the Lewes Bowls Club