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England (Country)

New aerial photo collection from 1943/44


Just out from Historic England:
"A collection of Second World War aerial photography has been made accessible to the public for the first time.

The photographs were taken by the United States Army Air Forces Photographic Reconnaissance units stationed around England in 1943 and 1944."

https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/archive/collections/photographs/usaaf-collection/

Worth a look to spot ye antiquities, A quick look at the South Wonston area near Winchester (including Worthy Down camp, at the time occupied by the Royal Navy Air Service with Laurence Olivier among the staff) shows some nice marks for two of the cluster of four long barrows in the area, one of which was subsequently much reduced by the plough.

Stanwell Cursus

Heathrow airport expansion "masterplan" opts for runway over cursus


Sadly, the chosen runway location is confirmed to be the option that goes over the only remaining section of cursus. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48668001

Switzerland (Country)

Bronze Age lunchbox emerges from the ice


From the New Yorker:
http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/an-ancient-lunchbox-emerges-from-the-ice

France (Country)

Possibly Neanderthal cave structures in the Pyrenees


300 meters from the surface, circles of broken-off stalagmites stacked against each other, dated at 176,000 years old. There's a nice 3-D rendering in Nature and a nice photo in The Atlantic.

Hampshire

Marine Mapping Helps Uncover the Past in the New Forest


Hampshire, UK, 08 September 2009 -
The New Forest National Park Authority is using detailed marine mapping from SeaZone to undertake an archaeological assessment of its coastline in response to changing sea levels. Part of a nationwide programme of Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Surveys supported by English Heritage, the study will help with the development of long term coastal management plans by identifying archaeological and historic sites, and protecting them where possible or making provision for their recording where this may not be possible. There is a need to protect archaeological sites and artifacts from rising sea level and flooding as well as increasing pressures from industrial, residential and leisure developments.

Using SeaZone HydroSpatial together with additional historic records such as aerial photographs many dating back over 90 years, the study aims to identify and record previously undiscovered archaeological sites and artifacts along the 86 kilometres of New Forest and National Park coastline. Supplied as a multi layered theme the digital data is easily used in the Authority's Geographical Information System (GIS).

'The SeaZone data is invaluable in identifying changes to the landscape over the past 8,000 years,' commented Mark James, Maritime Archaeology Project Officer. 'For example the bathymetric layer gives us a greater understanding of the sea bed and helps us identify previous water courses and ancient river and stream channels that are now submerged in the Solent. In addition the Wrecks and Obstruction data has the potential for discovering archaeological sites helping us identify locations for further investigation.'

[from agi.org.uk on 14 Sept 09 - not much in the way of news, more a product placement, but hopefully more will emerge in due course]

Stonehenge and its Environs

Funding shortfall threatens visitor centre?


The Grauniad have a front page story today about a "black hole" in funding at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport which threatens funding promised to a number of major arts and culture projects - including building the new Stonehenge visitors' centre.

The proportion of the £25m Stonehenge budget which is actually going to come from the DCMS is not clear, but it appears to be the cheapest of the various projects listed in the article. That, and the fact that some wiseguy in Whitehall linked it to the holy of holies, the 2012 Olympics(TM) probably makes it safer than most. Fingers crossed (or not, if you are an indomitable local older lady with photocopied road plans to hand out).

St Catherine's Hill (Hillfort)

University to digitalise archive material from UK's first road protest camp at Twyford Down


The Uni of Winchester (or King Alfred's College to locals) have started work on a publically accessible digital archive of the prolonged battle over the re-routing of the M3 motorway. This culminated in a stand-off at the protest camp on the building site in the early 90s, but the digging went ahead and took out earthworks associated with a Neolithic settlement as well as part of the Dongas (see fieldnotes and pics under this site). Rescue excavations took place and found some burials of Iron Age date if my memory serves me correctly. Read all about it at http://www.winchester.ac.uk/?page=9559
Boring old dude from Winch

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