“LEADING experts on Stonehenge will be gathering in Salisbury to debate the monument’s purpose next weekend. The event, called Solving Stonehenge, is part of Salisbury & South Wiltshire Museum’s 150th anniversary conference on October 2 and 3. The main speakers will be Professor Tim Darvill, Professor Mike Parker Pearson, Mike Pitts and Julian Richards. The debate will be chaired by Andrew Lawson.”
More here -
salisburyjournal.co.uk/news/8407609.Experts_gather_to_gather_for_Stonehenge_debate/
Two Bronze Age gold bracelets almost 3,000 years old have been discovered during excavations along the route of the East Kent Access Road. When they were found one bracelet was placed inside the other.
The bracelets were found in an area of the Ebbsfleet peninsula from which four other Late Bronze Age hoards are already known. Those hoards are all of bronze objects, mainly axes, tools like punches and gouges, fragments of swords, and small ingots.
Full story, including lovely pictures and interview, here:
eastkent.owarch.co.uk/2010/09/02/bronze-age-gold-treasure-found/
New round of public consultations ordered for proposed Slane bypass
savenewgrange.org /2010/09/20/the-irish-times-new-round-of-public-consultations-ordered-for-proposed-slane-bypass/">savenewgrange.org/2010/09/20/the-irish-times-new-round-of-public-consultations-ordered-for-proposed-slane-bypass/
The Irish Times – Monday, September 20, 2010
FRANK McDONALD Environment Editor
A NEW round of public consultations on controversial plans for a dual-carriageway bypass of Slane, Co Meath, has been ordered by An Bord Pleanála, with October 15th set as the closing date. A public notice advertising the new round of consultations was published recently in national newspapers. The original consultation period closed on February 25th last.
An Bord Pleanála had sought additional information from Meath County Council on the road scheme, including whether an alternative route running to the west of Slane had been examined. The current proposal, which is being advanced on behalf of the National Roads Authority (NRA), would run to the east of Slane, some 500 metres from the boundary of Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Site.
The appeals board also sought alternative designs for a new bridge over the river Boyne, noting that the cable-stayed bridge originally proposed would be visible from the World Heritage Site. It also wanted the council to produce more detailed archaeological and geophysical reports on investigations of 44 archaeological sites that would be affected by the original scheme.
The information was sought “in order to clarify certain points in the environmental impact statement [EIS] and assist the board’s assessment of the likely effects on the environment” of the road. This followed complaints to An Bord Pleanála by the Save Newgrange group, former attorney general John Rogers SC and leading archaeologist Prof George Eogan that the EIS was flawed.
Save Newgrange spokesman Vincent Salafia said: “We will be waging an international campaign over the next month, particularly in Northern Ireland, to get as many objections as possible filed with An Bord Pleanála.”
FOR INFORMATION ON HOW TO MAKE A SUBMISSION PLEASE VISIT
savenewgrange.org
BBC carrying news item on new stone tool finds that potentially point to an earlier date for the spread of human ancestors from Africa.
There is a free talk at 20:00 tonight at Marlborough College. Subject is the Marlborough Mound and how it fits into the Avebury Landscape.
Contact Mrs Longland on 01672 892 200 for a seat. Donations instead of a fixed price requested please.
------------------------------
(thanks to Avebury News for the above info)
Striking prehistoric rock art created up to 5,000 years ago has been discovered at almost 100 sites in Somaliland on the Gulf of Aden in eastern Africa.
A local team headed by Dr Sada Mire, of the Institute of Archaeology at University College London (UCL), made the finds, which include a man on horseback, painted around 4,000 years ago – one of the earliest known depictions of a mounted hunter.
Leaping antelopes, prancing giraffes and snakes poised to strike are among animals and reptiles depicted with astonishing clarity.
Such is the quality of the paintings that at least 10 sites, scattered across semi-desert terrain, are likely to be given World Heritage status.
Mire, who has just become a UN consultant for Somaliland, said: “These are among the best prehistoric paintings in the world.
“Yet Somaliland is a country whose history is totally hidden. With wars, droughts and piracy in Somalia, hardly anyone has researched the archaeology until now. But it’s absolutely full of extraordinarily well-preserved rock art.”
Dhambalin, about 40 miles from the Red Sea, features horned cattle, sheep and goats painted about 5,000 years ago. The animals have distinctive bands around their backs and bellies, which suggests farming or ritual traditions.
The pictures also depict animals, such as giraffes, no longer found in Somaliland.
Mire, who is Somali-born, has been struck by paintings of “eerie headless creatures”. She said: “Sometimes the cattle are represented as necks or horns, a pictorial shorthand that was evidently sufficient to convey meaning.”
Other paintings are more mysterious, such as the 2,000-year-old colourful images of the full moon, half-moon and geometric signs at Dawa’aleh. Mire believes these depict the ancient artists’ view of the world, time and space.
Somaliland is in the northern part of Somalia, an area slightly larger than England but with a population of just 3.5m. More than half are nomads.
Once part of the Ottoman Empire, it was a British colony from 1884 until 1960. Although it declared itself independent of Somalia in 1991 and has a
separate government, it is yet to be recognised as a separate state.
Mire said: “Whereas Somalia has suffered with an ongoing civil war
and piracy, Somaliland has remained peaceful.
“Yet despite boasting a stable, grass-roots democracy, the country has
not been recognised by the UN and so does not formally exist, leaving
it a breakaway state teetering on the edge of a violent region.
The discovery of the 100 sites follows that of cave paintings at Laas Geel in 2000. For centuries, they were known only to nomads, who believed the site was haunted by evil spirits.
Mire’s research study will be published this month in Current World Archaeology.
guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/17/cave-paintings-found-in-somaliland
bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-11347013
Strange how the lives of the past can affect the Corporate business of today!!
ps. Inverness is known locally as “Tesco Town”
Archaeologists discover Bronze Age burial site, arrowheads and pottery.
More info on the article posted by Strathspey.
“The largest exhibition of John Constable work, ever exhibited in Wiltshire, is heading to Salisbury next summer.
“To mark the 200th anniversary of the artist’s first visit to the city, the Salisbury and Wiltshire museum is hosting a multi-million pound exhibition of his paintings of Salisbury Cathedral, the city and Stonehenge.”
More here – news.bbc.co.uk/local/wiltshire/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_9006000/9006303.stm
September 18th in Kirkwall Rown Hall
Must have been a Bronze Age Tesco in Inverness!!
For anyone who lives within travelling distance of Bath, this street exhibition is well worth catching – in the square by Bath Abbey:
Sponsored by Ordinance Survey and wecommunic8.com
Wonderful arial poster-photos in wooden stands with thought provoking commentary under each display.
Uffington White Horse caught my eye (as I sat down in the sunshine to listen to a classical guitarist). There was also Abor Low; Dartmoor and Tors; Maiden Castle; the South Downs; St Kilda; the Brecon Beacons; and much, much more.
A recent episode of BBC Radio 4’s Open Country reveals that a controversial grazing scheme is blighting the sacred and spiritual landscape of West Penwith and that cattle have destabilised the Tregeseal Stones:
BBC Radio 4 Open Country – Conservation grazing in Cornwall
Helen Mark is in Cornwall to find out why the reintroduction of cattle to graze the Penwith Moors of Cornwall and improve the area’s bio-diversity has upset some of the local community. She meets up with archaeologist Craig Weatherhill at the Tregeseal Stone Circle to hear about the damage he says is being caused to these ancient monuments by the horns of the non-native Longhorn breed of cattle being grazed on the moors. Craig also tells Helen about the difficulties faced by horses and their riders from the newly erected gates and fences which they have to pass through.
At Carn Galva, one of Cornwall’s most unique and pre-historic landscapes, Helen meets up with Peter Bowden from Natural England and Jon Brookes of the National Trust who explain the reasons for the conservation grazing scheme and how important it is to this ancient landscape. This heathland is of national and international importance and the grazing scheme is intended to open up footpaths the natural way, avoiding the need for heavy machinery and herbicides, and fences and cattle grids have been put there to keep cattle in and not people out. However, when Helen joins Ian Cooke and Steve Yandall of the Save Penwith Moors campaign, she hears about their concerns for the environment and how emotional they felt to have barbed wire fences appearing out on the moors. But when she arrives at Trengwainton Farm near Penzance, farmer Stephen Bone takes Helen to a part of his land that his father fenced and grazed 40 years ago and which soon became waist high in bracken when the cattle were taken in. Stephen is actually now busy re-fencing his land ready to graze animals there as part of the Conservation Grazing Scheme. He tells Helen that he has offered an olive branch to those opposed to the scheme by suggesting that he take his livestock in during the busy summer months and school holidays.
Finally, Helen meets up with Stephen Warman who has been brought in to try and resolve the situation and to narrow the gap between the two opposing sides. Where do they all go from here in order to manage the moors in the best way for all those who care about this landscape?.
Listen again: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00tjvhj
For more information visit: www.savepenwithmoors.com
“The gateway to the Avebury World Heritage Site has been transformed after work to bury unsightly electricity cables was completed…”
“The project, which started over three years ago, was made possible by a partnership involving Wiltshire Council, the National Trust, North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding National Beauty, English Heritage and local farmers. Funding for the work was provided by Scottish and Southern Electricity…”
“The new cables have been buried underneath the major monuments at Overton Hills Seven Barrows Bronze Age barrow cemetery and beneath the Neolithic West Kennet Avenue which originally linked Avebury Stone Circle to the Sanctuary.
“Scottish and Southern Electricity employed archaeologists to examine all the entry and exit points for the moleing machinery to check for any archaeological remains.
“Their work has been monitored by Dr Nick Snashall, National Trust archaeologist who said: “A major eyesore has been eliminated from the World Heritage Site with the removal or these power cables, bringing the landscape closer to its ancient appearance. We’ve also been able to record all the archaeology found during the works, which adds to our story of the development of Avebury.“”
More here – wiltshire.gov.uk/latestnews.htm?aid=107488&utm_source=Wiltshire+Council&utm_medium=twitter&utm_content=News
Focus turns to Burghead Hill as funding for the Birnie site ends.
More info :
The Alexander Keiller Museum will be open to the public free of charge on Saturday 11th September, from midday to 5.00pm.
“According to the Salisbury Journal the project might go ahead – but not till 2013.
“The newspaper says that on Thursday English Heritage project development manager Martin Harvey updated councillors and members of the public on progress made and quotes him as saying “If all goes well with the remainder of this year, we believe we can still start work on the site in 2012 and open for business the following year.“”
This afternoon I attended an English Heritage tour of the digs taking place at Silbury in the Swallowhead Spring Meadow and the next hillside meadow. Many people attended; the dig is looking specifically at the Roman settlement that appeared on a geophysics survey published in an English Heritage report about five years ago. The findings are being reported here latersilbury.wordpress.com/
and there are information posters at the site of each individual dig (I didn’t count them but about six in all).
The last dig we looked at seemed the most intriguing as may be the site of a well. There were small sarsens buried here, the reason why has not yet been determined but it could have been something simply like field clearance. Bits of Roman pottery lying around – everything found will be subjected to optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) tests.
BBC news link above.
Hundreds of ancient sites have been discovered by aerial surveys, thanks to a dry start to the summer, English Heritage has said.
The surveys show marks made when crops growing over buried features develop at a different rate from those nearby.
The newly-discovered Roman and prehistoric settlements include a site near Bradford Abbas, Dorset.
The Roman camp was revealed in June after three sides became visible in sun-parched fields of barley.
The lightly-built defensive enclosure would have provided basic protection for Roman soldiers while on manoeuvres in the first century AD and is one of only four discovered in the south west of England, English Heritage said.
The dry conditions also allowed well-known sites to be photographed in greater detail.
“It’s hard to remember a better year”
Dave MacLeod English Heritage
Bumper year
Newton Kyme, near Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, was shown to not only be home to a Roman fort dating back nearly 2,000 years but also a larger, stronger defence built in 290AD.
English Heritage senior investigator Dave MacLeod said: “It’s hard to remember a better year.
“Cropmarks are always at their best in dry weather, but the last few summers have been a disappointment.
“This year we have taken full advantage of the conditions. We try to concentrate on areas that in an average year don’t produce much archaeology.”
Flights over the Holderness area of the East Riding proved particularly productive with about 60 new sites, mainly prehistoric, found in just one day including livestock and settlement enclosures.
English Heritage said some sites which have not been visible since the drought of 1976 reappeared this summer.
Aerial photos above.
“BARRIERS installed along Britain’s oldest road have helped cut poaching and hare-coursing, according to police.
“Oxfordshire County Council installed the temporary barriers between Hill Road, Lewknor and Hill Road, Watlington, on the Ridegway National Trail. And they have already seen results with a drop in crime. The blocks were fitted in April to stop poachers, harecoursers and deer stalkers in cars accessing the track, known as the Icknield Way, and to stop thieves driving to isolated farm buildings.
“The pre-historic Ridgeway track runs from Avebury, Wiltshire, to Ivinghoe near Dunstable, across South Oxfordshire.”
More here – oxfordmail.co.uk/news/8356258.Barriers_keep_crime_off_the_Ridgeway/
See also – heritageaction.wordpress.com/2010/02/14/avebury-is-not-dudley/
Researchers in South Africa have revealed the earliest direct evidence of human-made arrows.
The scientists unearthed 64,000 year-old “stone points”, which they say were probably arrow heads.
Closer inspection of the ancient weapons revealed remnants of blood and bone that provided clues about how they were used.
Sound recording at reconstruction of Stonehenge in Maryhill Monument, USA........
Did our ancient ancestors build to please the ears as well as the eyes? Trevor Cox pitches into the controversial claims of acoustic archaeologists
“The wind, playing upon the edifice, produced a booming tune, like the note of some gigantic one-stringed harp. No other sound came from it... Overhead something made the black sky blacker, which had the semblance of a vast architrave uniting the pillars horizontally. They entered carefully beneath and between; the surfaces echoed their soft rustle; but they seemed to be still out of doors...”
This atmospheric description of a “temple of the winds” comes from the dramatic climax of Thomas Hardy’s novel Tess of the d’Urbervilles. The setting is Stonehenge, arguably the most famous prehistoric monument of all. Its imposing ring of standing stones is visible for miles on Salisbury plain in southern England. On the day of the summer solstice its outlying “Heelstone” is exactly in line with rays of the rising sun. A more perfect example of the visual impact of an ancient monument would be hard to find.
Might we be missing here something that both Hardy and our prehistoric ancestors understood? Some archaeologists have begun to think so. They argue that sound effects were an important, perhaps even decisive, factor in how early humans chose and built their dwellings and sacred places. Caves that sing, Mayan temples that chirp, burial mounds that hum: they all add up to evidence that the aural, and not just the visual, determined the building codes of the past. But is that sound science?
Assessing the claims of “acoustic archaeology” rapidly encounters a fundamental problem: sound is ephemeral. Pottery fragments, coins, bones and bits of buildings can survive for centuries, waiting to be analysed, interpreted- and reinterpreted. The sounds of the past, by contrast, have long since died away. Where historical records make mention of acoustic intent in designing structures, the claims are often based on faulty science (see “Sound design?“). Going back into prehistory, we do not even have the luxury of knowing what our ancestors were thinking- or often a clear idea of the original layout and acoustic properties of the structures we are interpreting.
There is, however, a plausible argument that sound must have been important to our ancestors, perhaps more so than it is to us now. “Today we guzzle sounds and make a lot of noise,” says UK archaeologist Paul Devereux, an advocate of the claims of acoustic archaeology. “We are visually very sophisticated, but acoustically very primitive.” Our ancestors, by contrast, would have been “acoustically more calm and attentive in a much quieter world”, he says. Without artificial light, listening intently would have been imperative to ward off night-time predators. In a time before writing, moreover, information was principally communicated orally. It seems reasonable that prehistoric humans would have paid more attention to their acoustic landscapes than we do today. “Senses as a whole were more fused,” says Julian Thomas, an archaeologist at the University of Manchester, UK. “There wasn’t the separation of vision from the other senses as there has been over the last few centuries. Nowadays we tend to prioritise vision.”
New Scientist
tinyurl.com/36eddvm
A photo of the ‘Stonehenge’ Maryhill site;
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Maryhill_stonehenge_WWI_monument.jpg
news.bbc.co.uk/local/threecounties/hi/front_page/newsid_8940000/8940216.stm
A Bronze Age henge has been discovered on land near Letchworth.
Archaeologists have found a circular area about 50 metres wide surrounded by a bank at Stapleton’s Field in Norton. North Herts Archaeology Officer, Keith Fitzpatrick-Matthews said: “Henges are quite rare with only 60 known in the UK, so this is a significant find. It’s interesting as the only other henge known locally is on the Weston Hills, which is visible from the site we are working on.”
Keith Fitzpatrick-Matthews, leading the team working on the site, revealed how the henge which dates back to between 3000 and 2000 BC was discovered: “Ariel photographs of the area showed this rather extensive ring of chalk. There’s nothing visible at ground level so we decided to put a trench through it. Having done that we found the chalk bank just survives underneath the plough soil and we have massive ditches inside and out.”
The archaeologists are able to date the henge because of pottery they found which is associated with the Bronze Age. “Grooved ware products were found, which dates the henge back to the third millennium BC,” explained Keith Fitzpatrick-Matthews.
Open invitation
There is an open invitation on Saturday 28 August 2010 at 2pm for members of the public to visit the site and view items on display. Stapleton’s Field lies between Church Lane, in the centre of Norton and the A1(M) motorway.
EAST Yorkshire’s oldest lady has come home – after a 21-year absence.
The Iron Age representation of a woman was sent to experts at the British Museum in 1989.
Staff at Hull Council’s archaeology department assumed it had been returned and was somewhere in their stores.
Manager of Humber Archaeology Partnership Dave Evans decided recently to track it down and found it still at the British Museum. He said: “It’s a joy to have her back.”
yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/Back-home-Iron-Age-figure.6462598.jp
A cave thought to have been occupied by people as early as 3BC was still being lived in this year, it has emerged.
A new hearth for a fire and stacks of wood cut for kindling were found in the L-shaped fissure at Leitir Fura, Kinloch, on Skye.
Its present day occupation is noted in the former sea cave’s entry on Highland Council’s historic environment record database.
The cave is 6m deep and stretches to 3m at its widest sections.
Forestry Commission Scotland commissioned archaeologist Martin Wildgoose to make a fresh assessment of a township abandoned during the Highland Clearances and the nearby cave.
His report was published earlier this year and is among new additions uploaded to the online database of Highland archaeological and historic sites.
Excavations of the cave in May 1996 uncovered evidence that the cave was occupied at periods of time from at least 3BC.
When it was first discovered tools, pottery, a hearth and a shell midden were found suggesting people had lived in it during the late 18th or early 19th Century.
But according to its historic environment record entry, the site remains in regular use.
From BBC News website:
