Hill-fort Survey

thesweetcheat T
thesweetcheat Jul 9, 2013 19:30:46
Replying to Evergreen Dazed

The concept seems positive, the objectives are laudable. The use of volunteers is workable, as long as they are given some decent archaeological surveying training (I'm not sure how much long-term use the data will be if it just says "there are some bumps").

But part of me does worry that this is more evidence of getting people to do work for nothing, work that would previously have warranted employing people and properly training them to do this kind of skilled enterprise.

You could argue that this is not practical in the current climate ("they're cutting the NHS for goodness sake, surely money is better spent on hospitals than surveying hillforts, etc etc") and you could well be right, but personally I'd happily see some of our defence budget go and EH, RCAHMW, etc be given the money to employ people to carry out this properly, in a way that would add vast value to the data for future generations to study.

In Wales, the upland monuments are being comprehensively surveyed and mapped by the various regional Archaeological Trusts* - would it not be better to fund bodies like that to carry out this work? I'm not suggesting that they couldn't use volunteer resources to help them, just that in my mind the project justifies a heavier bias towards using skilled, professional resource and paying the people involved fairly for that work. In government-speak, creating some real employment opportunities in the heritage sector.

*http://www.cpat.org.uk/wat.htm

E Evergreen Dazed
Evergreen Dazed Jul 9, 2013 20:02:09
Replying to thesweetcheat

Point taken, it's a little vague in the project outline on the site but it does say they are using researchers and PhD students in Oxford and Edinburgh.
I don't read it as an opportunity to get people to do things for 'nothing', more an idea which can make use of the very many people who are interested in these sites and visit them on a regular basis. I mean, why not?
There are going to be precisely 0 people bothering to fill out that form if they haven't a clue or interest in what they are doing (your example about 'bumps').
I'd like to think of it as inclusive and an attempt to harness the considerable potential of armies of enthusiasts, who may do this stuff already anyway.
I do see the point you are making, but I know that if the project outline was £1million and it was reported that several jobs were to be created in order to carry out the survey, the response from this place would have been 'What about us?'

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