Latest News

The clock at the Alexander Keiller Museum at Avebury, Wiltshire, will be removed for repair on 8 April, the National Trust has confirmed.

The 18th Century turret clock on the Stables Gallery has been stuck at four o’clock for more than a year.

The National Trust’s Meg Sims said: “It’s always time for tea at Avebury.”

The clock will be restored in Somerset at a cost of £5,700. It is hoped the feature will be ready and reinstalled by Easter 2010.

The museum is named after the archaeologist and businessman, Alexander Keiller.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wiltshire/7976929.stm

Article in the ‘Craven Herald & Pioneer’- March 23 2009

Modern cairns built by Dales hikers will be dismantled this weekend under plans to preserve a Bronze Age chieftain’s burial site.

The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority has organised the initiative after expressing fears that walkers have unwittingly used rocks from the ancient burial mound to build new landmarks.

Now local archaeologist Yvonne Luke and Dales volunteers plan to dismantle the cairns and all but one of the windbreaks at Beamsley Beacon, near Bolton Abbey.

Robert White, senior conservation officer for the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, said: “There are problems at a number of historically-important sites in the national park, including Beamsley Beacon.

“During the Bronze Age, some 4,500 years ago, a large stone mound was built there, probably to mark the burial place of a local chieftain and as a boundary marker. “Much of this cairn, now about 11 metres in diameter, still survives, but in recent years it has suffered a lot of disturbance due to people using stones from it to make modern cairns and windbreaks. Another smaller historic cairn lies further along the ridge at Old Pike and that has also lost some of its stones.

“We would urge walkers to resist the temptation to pick up stones and build cairns – wherever they are – because they can unwittingly damage ancient, historically-important sites like this stone mound.”

Walkers have always appreciated the good views at Beamsley Beacon. Its name, recorded in 1667, suggests it was used as part of a signalling system using fires. In 1804, during the Napoleonic wars, the beacon was refurbished and a guardhouse was constructed to shelter the beacon keeper.

Unfortunately, the stone foundations of this building are also suffering from modern stone moving.

A temporary poster urging people not to build cairns and explaining why will be put up on the concrete triangulation point and will eventually be replaced by a permanent interpretation panel.

A detailed archaeological survey of the hilltop has been done and Mr White and his team are appealing for old photographs of the site.

Contact Mr White or members of the Historic Environment Team on 0300 456 0030.

cravenherald.co.uk/news/4213677.___Don___t_desecrate_the_chieftain___s_grave___/

THE remains of a hilltop home believed to be about 5,000 years old have been discovered on the outskirts of Edinburgh, The Scotsman can reveal.

The Neolithic roundhouse, found on a site where a quarry is due to be expanded, is one of the oldest prehistoric buildings to be discovered in the capital.

Archaeologists have hailed it as one of the most important finds ever made in Edinburgh because of its age – about the same as Skara Brae in Orkney – and unique location.

It is also expected to help fill in a largely unknown chapter in Scottish history, when farming had only recently spread to Britain from Europe.

The site, at Ravelrig Hill, near Dalmahoy, enjoys spectacular views across the Lothians and Fife, including landmarks such as Arthur’s Seat.

Experts believe the roundhouse was probably built by one of the first families of farmers to start producing their own food in the area.

Experts from Glasgow University’s Archaeological Research Division (Guard) have spent several months working in the area, which is already home to the remains of two prehistoric hill forts. The house, remains of which were found in a huge circular ditch, was surrounded by a larger egg-shaped enclosure.

Although no materials such as pottery have been discovered, archaeologists have been able to date flint recovered from the site, and the remains of an internal fireplace were found.

The site is thought to be roughly the same age as the cairn at Cairnpapple Hill, which is widely regarded as Scotland’s most prehistoric burial site and can be seen from Ravelrig Hill.

Donna Maguire, project director for Guard, said there may once have been a number of settlements on the hill, lost when quarrying began in the area more than 150 years ago.

The discovery was only made because Edinburgh City Council insisted that an archaeological dig was carried out before construction giant Tarmac was allowed to expand its quarrying operation in the area.

Ms Maguire told The Scotsman: “We had no idea we would find anything like this, so it was hugely exciting. There’s been very little like this discovered anywhere in the Central Belt. It dates from around the time of early farming but very little is known of that era in Scotland and that’s why it’s so significant.

“It was clearly built at the top of the hill because of its location overlooking the landscape. In a way, it was intended to make people see it and regard it as an important landmark.”

John Lawson, the city council’s archaeologist, said: “Although remains of buildings discovered at Cramond within the last ten years have been dated to 8,500 years ago, this is one of the most significant prehistoric sites to have been found in the wider Edinburgh area for many years.”

All materials recovered are being taken away for analysis. The discovery is not expected to delay work to expand the quarry. Tarmac has been quarrying there since 1987.

By BRIAN FERGUSON

news.scotsman.com/scotland/5000yearold-home-of-capital39s-first.5097272.jp

A CONTROVERSIAL area of land in Swindon that is earmarked for a housing development could instead become Swindon’s own “mini-Avebury”, according to campaigners.

The claim comes after ancient stones, which could be part of Swindon’s Neolithic history, were unearthed at Coate.

The two sarsen stones were uncovered by the Highways Agency last week opposite Day House Farm, near the protected Coate Stone Circle.

The find has excited speculation that more historic stones may still lie undiscovered in the area.

Campaigners against a planning application by the Swindon Gateway Partnership to build 1,800 homes and a university campus on land near Coate Water say the development could rob the town of huge potential historic and tourist value.

Jean Saunders, from the Jefferies Land Conservation Trust, said: “There is a real chance here to create almost a mini-Avebury.

“This particular area is steeped in pre-history. We know of a Bronze Age settlement just south of Coate Water, two round barrows opposite Richard Jefferies’ old house at Coate, two stone circles on Day House Farm and lines of stones linking these together with others.

“It would be criminal to surround these ancient relics of the past with modern buildings. Who knows how many more of these old stones lie undiscovered? Can Swindon afford to lose more of its history?

“This raises a lot of unanswered questions. We are very aware of the importance of this whole area and it is not just Bronze Age, but medieval and Roman.

“This is something I wanted to bring up at the inquiry but because the developers didn’t actually put forward an archaeologist there wasn’t the chance. The problem was that English Heritage and the county archaeologist dropped their objections at the eleventh hour, so it no longer became an issue for the planning inspector.”

Felicity Cobb, from the Save Coate campaign, said: “It would be nice if the planning inspector took this into account but I’m not holding my breath.”

Wiltshire county archaeologist Melanie Pomeroy-Kellinger said: “I haven’t been able to go and see the stones yet but they do occur naturally in the area. There is a stone circle nearby which is a scheduled monument.”

The inquiry into SGP’s planning appeal officially closes on March 27, after which the planning inspector will make his recommendations to secretary of state Hazel Blears.

swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/4218302.Coate_could_be_the_new_Avebury/

WALKERS in the Yorkshire Dales National Park have been urged not to use stones to build cairns or wind breaks as they are putting the countryside’s heritage at risk.

Rocks have been taken from ancient sites, including burial mounds dating back to the Bronze Age, to create cairns on routes in the Dales.

Beamsley Beacon, near Bolton Abbey, which has a large Bronze Age stone mound more than 35ft in diameter, is among the sites which have been disturbed.

Another smaller historic cairn further along the ridge at Old Pike has also lost a significant number of its stones.

Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority senior conservation officer Robert White said: “There are problems at a number of historically important sites within the national park, including Beamsley Beacon near Bolton Abbey. We would urge walkers to resist the temptation to pick up stones and build cairns – wherever they are – because they can unwittingly damage ancient, historically important sites like this stone mound.” Archaeologist Yvonne Luke and the national park authority’s volunteers will dismantle modern cairns and all but one of the wind breaks at Beamsley this weekend. Repairs are also being carried out on footpaths to try to stem some natural erosion.

A poster urging people not to build cairns and explaining why will be put up on the concrete Triangulation Point.

An archaeological survey of the hilltop has been carried out and Mr White and his team are appealing for old photographs of the site to help them build a picture of what it used to be like.

Anyone who can help is asked to contact the authority’s historic environment team on 0300 456 0030.

By Paul Jeeves

yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/Walkers-urged-not-to-pick.5082953.jp

Park Hall Countryside Experience, located near Oswestry, is undertaking a major new project for 2009 with the reconstruction of an Iron Age roundhouse built using traditional methods by local crafts men and women.

There is an important local connection to the Iron Age, for just over a kilometre from Park Hall is the site of the Old Oswestry Iron Age Hill Fort, which is one of the finest hill forts in Britain.

The construction is a ‘work in progress’ and visitors to Park Hall can see each stage as it progresses. The expected completion date is mid/end of May.

Further information can be found at parkhallfarm.co.uk/iron-age-roundhouse/index.shtml

Britain’s most ancient fishing trap has been discovered off the coastline of Wales after research carried out on Google Earth.

The 853ft (260m) long construction is thought to have been built 1,000 years ago, around the time of the Domesday Book, using large rocks placed on a river bed.

Scientists believe large numbers of people worked together to erect the trap and it allowed them to catch plentiful numbers of fish for their supper.

telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5000835/1000-year-old-fishing-trap-found-on-Google-Earth.html

The story from Dredging News (what, you don’t read it?):

sandandgravel.com/news/article.asp?v1=11680

In a silent move, the RCAHMS switched to a state-of-the-art update of the good old Canmore database on 11th March 2009.
It really looks much better and there are obvious advantages over the old format like direct access instead of a log-in procedure and, when available, a 10-digit gridref.
But the best is yet to come:
“Further Canmore developments are being prepared, and from May, you will be able to make your own contributions to the database – a first for any Scottish national collection – including adding text and images through Flickr. You will also be able to customise Canmore to reflect your own requirements with a new ‘myCanmore’ facility, set up RSS feeds and links into social networking sites.”
Now that sounds really great; “myCanmore”, no need for grumbling about (type) errors anymore!
For those of you wrestling with the Canmap feature: that is still what it was but maybe it will be updated too. Hope so!
Congrats for the RCAHMS for this big leap forwards towards a virtual museum of Scotland’s (pre-) History.
Here’s the link to the new Canmore database:
rcahms.gov.uk/new-canmore.html
Enjoy!

A 4,000-year-old flint axe, four prehistoric skeletons and a 19th century boat have been unearthed at the Olympic Park.

Preparations for the London 2012 Olympics have seen over 140 trenches dug on the 1.5 sq-mile site in Stratford, east London, turning it into Britain’s largest archaeological dig, according to the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA).

dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1159700/Prehistoric-axe-skeletons-Olympic-site-UKs-largest-archaeological-dig.html

ONLY a flock of birds is standing in the way of the extraction of 1.1 million tonnes of sand and gravel from a quarry extension near to the Neolithic Thornborough Henges in North Yorkshire.

Permission for Tarmac to extend the quarry at Ladybridge Farm at Nosterfield north of Ripon was granted by North Yorkshire County Council in August, but outstanding details included approval of a Bird Management Plan.

It is required because the site is within eight miles of RAF Leeming – the Tornado and Hawk fast jet base at the side of the A1 – where there are fears of a bird strike involving flocks of geese or gulls.

Archaeologists have described Thornborough Henges as the Stonehenge of the North and an action group is claiming support from the RSPB in its attempt to stop the extension, which is within a mile of the henges.

The Friends of Thornborough Henges claim that the Bird Management Plan would deter the birds which the after-use of the quarry as an environmental wetland sought to attract. Shooting, flying of birds of prey and egg-oiling to prevent breeding are all proposed to minimise large flocks.

The Friends said farmland birds in their thousands had been recorded on the site in their thousands and there would be a detrimental effect on the Nosterfield Nature Reserve.

RSPB Conservation Officer Harriett Dennison said it had concerns about the Bird Management Plan.

A decision on the Bird Plan was delegated to the council’s environment services director and planning committee chairman. Friends’ spokesman Dick Lonsdale said: “It looks as though the whole thing will be decided by two people behind closed doors.”

A Tarmac spokesman said the proposed quarry extension at Ladybridge was needed to preserve jobs. “It has been agreed that it will not harm the Thornborough Henges.”

yorkshirepost.co.uk/localnews/Fate-of-flock-of-birds.5051604.jp

From the Natural Environment Research Council:

“The earliest known evidence of horse domestication has been unearthed in Kazakhstan in central Asia. New research suggests the Botai Culture have been riding horses and using their milk for the last 5500 years.

This is around 2000 years before horses were domesticated in Europe and 1000 years earlier than previously thought for Kazakhstan.

The findings could point to the beginnings of horse domestication and the origins of the horse breeds we know today. Archaeologists argue that it was the domestication of horses that opened the way to trade, warfare, transportation, agriculture and many other aspects of human civilisation.”

Full story

PATRICK LOGUE

Saturday, February 28, 2009

ONE OF the most respected educational and research institutes in the United States has listed the Hill of Tara among the 15 must-see endangered cultural treasures in the world.

The Tara complex in Co Meath, the ancient seat of the High Kings of Ireland, has been the subject of controversy because of the nearby construction of the M3 motorway.

The March edition of the magazine published by Washington’s Smithsonian Institution says “the clang of construction equipment can be heard at the Co Meath site nowadays. The Smithsonian features 14 other “precious historic and artistic sites” around the world which, it says, “can be visited today, but might be gone tomorrow”.

“Each testifies to our urge to build and create; each reminds us of how much we stand to lose,” says the Smithsonian.

Other sites listed include the reputed birthplace of Jesus Christ, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem; Chan Chan in Peru, the largest city in the Americas about 600 years ago; and the crumbling Route 66 across the US.

Campaigners say the M3 will cut through one of Ireland’s most important historical sites, but the National Roads Authority says the new motorway will be farther away from the hill than the existing route. The motorway is scheduled to be finished in the middle of next year.

Last month the Hill of Tara was listed among a number of locations which have been nominated for inclusion on a list of possible Unesco world heritage sites.

Vincent Salafia of TaraWatch, who is quoted in the Smithsonian article, said it “should send a clear message to both the Irish Government, and Unesco, that they cannot proceed with inscribing the Hill of Tara as a world heritage site, unless the M3 is rerouted.”

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum complex and research organisation.

irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0228/1224241986012.html

WRITE to [email protected]

tarawatch.org

“The Monkswood hoard was found in the St Catherine’s valley near Bath during the construction of a reservoir in the 1930s. It contains 38 pieces of Bronze age metalwork. This talk by Stephen Clews, Manager of the Roman Baths & Pump Room, looks at the objects in the hoard from the perspective of what they can tell us about people and society in the area around Bath nearly 3,000 years ago.”

The Guildhall, Bath
Tuesday 17 February 2009, 1.10- 1.45pm
Refreshments on sale from 12.45pm
Admission free

PRESS RELEASE – TARA CAMPAIGNERS – Tara Landscape for UNESCO Tentative list,
Celebrations for Imbolc (Brigit’s Day) at Tara,
Campaigners appear in Court 28 January 2009

Tara campaigners nominate the Tara Landscape for Tentative List of World Heritage Sites
Tara campaigners have submitted a form to the Department of the Environment asking that the Tara landscape be place on the Tentative List of potential sites to be nominated for World Heritage Status. Minister Gormley announced his intention to update the list of potential sites – it has not been updated since 1992 and the Irish Republic has only 2 WHS at present. These are Scellig Michil and The Bend in the Boyne (including Newgrange). According to the Department’s guidelines, the submission includes details on UNESCO World Heritage criteria, a definition of what constitutes Outstanding Universal Value in a World Heritage context, an explanation of authenticity, integrity and significance on a global basis.
Campaigners have expressed concern about the integrity of the site, saying:
“The integrity of part of Tara’s core area, however, is now being adversely affected by the building of the M3 motorway through the Gabhra Valley, particularly by the Blundelstown interchange … within the universally recognised core area of Tara’s landscape. Secondary development around this interchange will undoubtedly pose a still greater threat to the integrity of this landscape in the future”.
The submission emphasises the importance of nominating the wider landscape, including the Gabhra Valley, rather than confining the World Heritage Site to the crown of the hill and says: “The Hill of Tara, therefore, represents the ritual and political focus of a larger territory or landscape”.

Imbolc (St Brigit’s Day) at Tara
Tara campaigners will celebrate the feast of Imbolc, one of the four ancient Celtic festivals of Ireland, at Tara on Sunday 1st of February. They intend to mark the festival by walking sunwards around the Hill with lights or lanterns at dusk, paying homage to the ancient festival while highlighting the continued destruction of the Tara Complex due to the works of the M3 Motorway now reaching its end phase. People are invited to gather in the Hill of Tara car park at 4.30.

Campaigners said: “This should also act as a reminder of the hubris style development which ran riot over our country for the last ten years, laying our environment, social system and economy low, something Tara protesters always warned about and which has now came true”.

A number of campaigners appeared again in Navan District Court on 28th January, only to hear that the case was to be mentioned again on 22nd April. But a date for the hearing should be decided on that date. The case will probably last a number of days as there will be about 30 witnesses and video footage will be available as evidence. A Judicial Review heard by the High Court in late 2008 was successful – the documents that had been requested by the defence lawyers were produced by the State.

Tara Campaigners have also written to all the TDs, asking that, due to the dire economic circumstances, the M3 be halted and that the Meath Master Plan be implemented instead. This would have a more sustainable, viable and environmentally-friendly option. In the present climate, continuing with the M3 is akin to economic madness.

John Farrelly 087-1276829 (Imbolc Event)
On behalf of Save Tara campaigners
savetara.com

Barbed wire fencing is being erected across West Penwith (around Tregeseal and Nine Maidens/Lanyon areas in particular) with a view to introducing more cattle to areas where prehistoric sites stand.

See the following links:

stonepages.com/news/archives/003108.html

and for pictures (updated regularly):

menantolstudio.freeserve.co.uk/save%20penwith%20moors.htm

There is also a management plan leaflet:

theheathproject.org.uk//content_pdf/en/Managing_Archaeology_booklet1220874208.pdf

Which includes the following statement:

“Paths and tracks which pass over, or
close to, archaeological remains may
present a risk and may need to be
rerouted. Care is needed so that new
routes do not themselves affect sites or
features.”

A collection of rare Bronze Age axe heads discovered in Cornwall has gone on display in Truro after a campaign to keep the relics in the county.

The 3,000-year-old artifacts were found in perfect condition, buried in a clay pot at Mylor near Falmouth during a search using metal detectors.

The collection would have gone to the British Museum but the Royal Cornwall Museum raised about £10,000 to keep it.

The find is believed to be the biggest of its type in Cornwall.

Conservator Laura Ratcliffe said: “All finds like this would normally go to the British Museum, but they were so special we wanted to keep them for Cornwall.

“To get such a large collection in one place is pretty unusual.

“It’s the biggest hoard to come out of Cornwall by a long shot.”

The axe heads, all found in pristine condition, are thought to have been buried on purpose thousands of years ago.

Ms Ratcliffe said: “It could have been for security purposes or ritual, we just don’t know.”

Story from BBC NEWS:
news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/england/cornwall/7828042.stm

Published: 2009/01/14 10:50:45 GMT

© BBC MMIX

Londonderry Sentinel
By Olga Bradshaw – 21st January 2009

MEMBERS of Newbuildings and District Archaeological and Historical Society are eagerly awaiting the results of a new survey scheduled to take place this week, to discover what lies beneath a rath which has been discovered in the village.
The Rath is located off Gortinure Road, and excitement is mounting as to what it might reveal.
The idea to excavate the site is the latest ‘baby’ for members of the village ‘Dig Committee’ – an off-shoot of the Archaeological and Historial Society, whose members include Richard Brennan, Roy Orr, John Mitchell and Roger McCorkell.
The foursome have organised an investigative three-day licenced dig of the site, which was identified on Ordinance Survey maps with a symbol for a ‘souterrain’ – a French word meaning underground.
The ordinary passer-by could be forgiven for missing the site as on the surface there is no evidence of what lies beneath, essentially it is just a flat grass field.
But, as Roger explains, all is not what it seems on the surface: “In June 2005 with the guidance of Belfast Archaeologist Firm, Gahan and Long, we carried out the dig in search of the souterrain. This is an ancient underground tunnel dating back to about 800 AD. The tunnels would have been built by local people as a place of refuge in a time when Vikings would have sailed up the River Foyle and have carried out raids on any dwellings they came across.
The dig and ‘live’ opening of the souterrain was to have been filmed by a BBC production team for a future screening of their historical programme ‘Earth Works’.
“They filmed the first day but when we failed to find the top of the tunnels they wouldn’t bring back the rest of their equipment as there would have been nothing to film. However, what we did find and was unknown to us previously was evidence of a huge Rath or ring fort,” he said.
Despite the find of the Rath it was not until 2007 that the Dig Committee decided to organise another dig – but this time they are being more scientific about it.
“We applied to the Lottery Awards for All fund and were delighted to have been awarded a total of £9,575 to cover the cost of an archaeological Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey followed by another dig.”
They are hoping that the GPR survey will identify the tops of the tunnels as well as any other unknown underground features.
“This time when we carry out the dig we will know exactly using Ground Positioning Satellite maps where to dig. We are hoping that a number a tunnels will be identified as we have talked to a number of men who had ploughed the land over the last 50 years and had pointed out more than one place where the wheel of their tractor have created and gone into a deep hole.
“The holes were covered over to let them finish the ploughing and the position was then lost. We are also hoping to discover the full extent of the Rath and maybe come across remains of dwellings or even ancient artifacts,” said Roger.

tinyurl.com/d98eft

Work to strengthen the foundations of the sea wall near the famous Neolithic village of Skara Brae in Orkney is about to begin.

Waves have affected a section of concrete on which the protective walling was built, which could lead to more damage.

Historic Scotland has started a project which will involve digging down to insert new reinforcements.

It is described as important and highly-skilled work.

Stephen Watt, Historic Scotland district architect, said: “The area affected is a bit beyond Skara Brae itself, but it is important because it stops the sea outflanking us.

“These are interim measures which help protect an enormously important part of Scotland’s heritage.

“We are currently working with a number of other groups and organisations to put together a strategy to protect the entire bay from the effects of natural erosion.”

The settlement was inhabited 5,000 years ago.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/north_east/7840463.stm

One of the UK’s largest hauls of Iron Age gold coins, which would have been worth in today’s money up to £1m, has been found in Suffolk.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/7835228.stm

The decision to move large parts of the proposed port infrastructure at Bremore, North Dublin, away from an area containing a cluster of Stone Age passage tombs is a vindication for the heritage conservation lobby, an expert on ancient Ireland has said.

Anthony Murphy, author of ‘Island of the Setting Sun – In Search of Ireland’s Ancient Astronomers’, says that the planning decision avoids a probable decade-long battle between the archaeological community and the project’s developers.

“Clearly, the backers of this proposal understand the nature and sensitivity of the archaeological complex at Bremore, and the scale of the legal battle which they would have to engage in if they proceeded with this flawed plan,” said Mr. Murphy.

Some campaigners had identified the Bremore port as “the next M3 battle”.

“The Bremore complex is a cluster of passage-tombs, many examples of which are over 5,000 years old. Any proposal which would envisage the large-scale development in close proximity to such monuments is clearly untenable,” said Mr. Murphy.

Other passage-tomb complexes in Ireland include the world heritage site at Brú na Bóinne, incorporating the best-known examples of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth. Further examples are found on the hills of Loughcrew in Meath and at Carrowmore and Carrowkeel in Sligo.

“We are not dealing with a humble ringfort or souterrain here. Bremore is a site of national, if not international, importance, and utterly deserves conservation as a surviving remnant of a very distant age.”

Mr. Murphy, whose book attempts to unravel the purpose of ancient passage mounds by providing a thought-provoking merger of the studies of archaeology, astronomy and folklore, says a definitive plan for the preservation and protection of the Bremore monuments should now be put in place.

“These sites should not be just left to rot and decay in the landscape. We need a real plan to protect them for future generations. Other passage-tombs a short distance away at the Delvin estuary were destroyed as the sea encroached upon the coastline. Clearly, we don’t want this to happen at Bremore.”

“The whole debacle over the construction of the M3 motorway through the Tara-Skryne valley shows that at Government level, there has been little or no concern for Ireland’s ancient heritage, and development will come no matter what the cost.”

“However, there are a growing band of people, myself included, who believe we can have development and jobs and keep our heritage also. There are significant benefits to protecting, preserving and promoting our ancient sites, not least from a tourism perspective.”

“The latest news about Bremore is very welcome. It vindicates the stance taken by many groups, individuals and academics over the past decade relating to the route of the M3. While some may feel the M3 battle is lost, clearly the Bremore decision indicates that much greater consideration will be given to heritage sites in the future.”

“The cynical way of looking at this is that those involved just want to avoid lengthy legal battles and project delays, but the ultimate outcome is that Bremore will be saved from the awful fate which developers and some archaeologists call ‘Preservation by Record’, but which others call ‘Destruction by Documentation’.”

This is a victory for common sense and a good decision by the port’s backers. What it means is that the project may not now be delayed by legal moves and in fact the jobs will come sooner rather than later.

ENDS

A major change in planning for the new €300 million port at Bremore in north Co Dublin will result in large parts of the infrastructure for the port being transferred from Fingal into County Meath because of the presence of important archaeological monuments on the original site, the Meath Chronicle has learned.

The Drogheda Port Company, in partnership with Castle Market Holdings, intends building a new deepwater port on several hundreds acres at Bremore, close to Balbriggan. While the project will go ahead and is at an advanced stage of planning, large sections of the warehousing, storage and logistical support infrastructure will be shifted away from the site at Bremore, which is the location for a passage tomb cemetery or cluster.

A reliable source told the Meath Chronicle yesterday: “You can take it that the original site for the very large amount of infrastructure required for a port of this size is no longer under consideration. This will be a commercial decision made by the port company itself and will not be imposed by anyone else. It will be taken on the basis that the passage tomb cemetery will remain untouched, and will not be surrounded by industrial and logistical development.”

The same source said that while the deepwater facility would be located offshore from Bremore, the logistical structures would be shifted across the border into Meath but would would not be located as far north as the former Irish Air Corps base at Gormanston.

Just over three years ago, Meath County Council rezoned 240 acres of land at Gormanston for industrial and logistics development in the East Meath Development Plan. At the time, Meath County Manager Tom Dowling said that the local authority had opted for industrial zoning due to the potential synergies with the port’s development. He told local representatives that the zoning would be a significant opportunity for Meath to generate employment and benefit from the new port.

The possible location of the new port at Bremore has exercised the interest of archaeologists and historians over a number of years. Meath archaeologist George Eogan has said that the site was of “vast historic importance” and may be the site where St Patrick first landed in Ireland. He said that the Bremore site contained a unified prehistoric cemetery of mounds that extends for over a mile from Gormanston, which is north of the Delvin river, to Bremore, located to the south.

“It has the appearance of being a landing place for early people coming to Ireland and passage tombs were the likely burial places for people coming from the Iberian peninsula,” he said.

Anthony Murphy, author of ‘Island of the Setting Sun’ said yesterday (Tuesday) that passage tomb cemeteries, or clusters, were very rare. Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth were examples, as were Loughcrew in Meath, Carrowmore and Carrowkeel in Sligo. “There is no doubt but that Bremore is an extremely important site nationally, if not internationally,” he said.

Designated as a national monument in 1976, a group of five mounds is situated at the north-east corner of a rocky headland one mile north of Balbriggan.

The site, which comprises of several hundred acres, contains the remnants of a number of passage tombs and practically every field, which is the site for the new Drogheda Port Company facility, contains early Neolithic archaeology.

The site at Bremore has not been excavated but was surveyed by Professor Etienne Rynne of NUI Galway almost 50 years ago.

mythicalireland.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=536

WHILE internationally-sponsored archaeological work at Stonehenge and Durrington Walls has seized the public interest, Amesbury’s very own project has unobtrusively continued just a short distance away.

For the last three years, a small and dedicated Open University-led team of professionals, undergraduate students and local residents has been evaluating a small natural basin surrounding a spring on the western edge of the town near the Iron Age fort known as Vespasian’s Camp.

The site has been given the informal title of Blick Mead after the field name found on nineteenth century estate and tithe maps.

Their work, on private land on the margin of Abbey Parkland, has revealed a human presence from as early as the Neolithic period, through the Middle Ages to the present day.

The site occupies an area about the size of two tennis courts, and overlooks the River Avon to the south. Its proximity to the ancient Harroway trackway and the Stonehenge Avenue suggests it was close to the centre of key transport links and human movement to the area.

Peter Goodhugh from The Amesbury Society, said: “Vespasian’s Camp was probably outlined in bright white chalk in prehistory, and would have been visible for miles around, thus linking it with major barrow groups across Salisbury Plain.

“It is increasingly clear the fort would have been a most prominent marker until it was landscaped in the second half of the 18th century, when many of its ancient stories were also ‘covered over’.

“In the Saxon period, and perhaps for many centuries before, Amesbury and its environs were part of the royal estates.” Finds at this parkland site have included prehistoric flint artefacts, an Iron Age boundary formed by hedging or fencing, Roman glass, and horse bones.

A track paved with flint cobbles leading down to the water was uncovered, and a small part of the level margin of the spring-carved basin is packed with small chalk cobbles. With the spring in use for at least four thousand years, the area must have been quite a thoroughfare, and was, perhaps, a place of ritual in the Neolithic and Bronze ages, connected to the wider Stonehenge landscape.

In Roman and later periods, it may have witnessed settlement or industry.

“Many aspects of the site remain a fascinating puzzle, and only further investigation will allow the fullest possible story to be revealed,” said Mr Goodhugh.

While digs with international acclaim can command significant funding, this one has to rely on £500 a time, to allow long-weekend evaluations, with people making voluntary contributions to keep the work going.

Wider information on the project can be found on the Open University website at www.open.ac.uk/Arts/classtud/amesbury/index.

Project leader, David Jacques, will be giving a talk on the background to and progress of The Amesbury Project at the Methodist Church Hall, High Street, Amesbury, on January 23 from 7.30pm. Admission is £2.

by Morwenna Blake.. This is Wiltshire

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More than a dozen skeletons thought to be thousands of years old, have been found by Oxford archaeologists working at an ancient burial site in Dorset.

Excavations are taking place at the site in Weymouth before builders move in to build an access road to the Olympic sailing centre for 2012.

Archaeologist David Score said they had catalogued finds from almost every period of human life.

He said it “really added to knowledge of the Bronze and Neolithic eras”.

“Building the relief road has given archaeologists an excuse to excavate and record finds dating back thousands of years,” Mr Score said.

“I think it is very important because it’s not very often that you get the opportunity to excavate an area of this size, in a location of such importance with so many burials from a wide span of time.

“I think once we have done all the analysis it really will contribute quite a lot to the corpus of knowledge that we’ve got about the Bronze Age and Neolithic periods in this area.

“We found more than a dozen skeletons they’re in various states of preservation. Some are fairly poorly preserved, but the later ones, particularly the Roman ones are fairly well preserved.”

All the finds are being taken back to Oxford where they are being catalogued.

Scientists will also look for small fish bones or charred plant remains to try and find out more about ancient eating habits.

The items will eventually be returned to Dorset where they will be put on display in a museum.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/oxfordshire/7804287.stm

From the Telegraph:

“Plans to build a £20 million pound visitor centre at Stonehenge in time for the 2012 Olympics are under threat because of a major row between Britain’s two leading heritage organisations.

The National Trust and English Heritage, who are part of a committee set up to ensure the centre is built in time for the games, have clashed over the proposed location for the new building.

English Heritage, the government body, which is responsible for the day to day running of the World Heritage site wants to build the new visitor centre and car park on a piece of land known as the Fargo plantation.

But the National Trust, which owns a large chunk of the land surrounding the 5,000-year-old site is refusing to support the proposal because it says that the installation of such a significant construction would breach the site’s World Heritage status.

It wants to build the centre on a site called Airman’s Cross which is further away from the stones. Under this proposal visitors would be ferried to the stones via a new transit system.

The row is a major blow for the Government which announced last year that a new centre would be built in time for the expected influx of visitors in 2012.

Barbara Follett, the Heritage Minister had been expected to announce the proposed location last week but has now postponed the decision to January because of the deadlock.

Supporters of the new centre are adamant that if it is to be built on time than a planning application must be lodged with Salisbury Council within the first three months of next year.

If both heritage bodies fail to reach a compromise than either side could force a planning inquiry which would add further delays to the proposals.

Supporters of the new proposal believe that the money for the project will not be forthcoming if it can’t be completed in time for the games.”