The Hunterian museum is re-assembling his(mostly Northern Isles) donation and adding this to their catalogue as they go huntsearch.gla.ac.uk
At present this is text-only but images will be added over the coming months
Latest News
August 3, 2007
July 31, 2007
Unearthing hidden treasures at Ormaig
“An open day was held at the Ormaig rock art site looking over Loch Craignish on Saturday to display the work of the recent excavation project. The project is a joint effort with the Forestry Commission and Kilmartin House Museum with Dr Andy Jones from the Archaology department at the University of Southampton casting his expert eye on proceedings.
The Forestry Commission are felling the trees around the site next year so the project is trying to discover the extent of the site to ensure it is preserved properly in the future and not damaged in the process of felling.
The excavation so far has found some hammer stones which might have been used for making tools rather than as tools themselves. It has also uncovered some more cup and ring marks typical of the area.
Dr Jones said:’We have found a lot of new motifs and hammer stones inserted into cracks and fissures on the rocks. There’s a good chance we’ll find more. Whenever we work on a project with rock art we usually find something else.’ ”
Argyllshire Advertiser, 20 July 2007
EU officials have called on the Irish Government to halt work on part of the M3 motorway after concern was expressed about the impact on newly discovered ruins at the Hill of Tara, it emerged today........... more here;-
July 28, 2007
“Iron-Age timbers which once formed part of a causeway across marshes in Suffolk are to go on public display for the first time.
Contractors working on the Environment Agency’s excavation of a new dyke on Beccles town marshes found timber remains which had been hand-sculpted. The 2,000-year-old pieces of wood, found last year, were perfectly preserved in waterlogged conditions.
They can be seen from 1100 to 1500 BST on Saturday at Beccles Town Marshes. Entrance is free and there will be students and archaeologists on hand to guide people through the site.
Archaeologists said the wooden causeway was used from the Bronze Age in about 1000 BC, through the Iron Age to Roman times and the 4th Century AD. Results suggest the more than 2,624ft (800m) long wooden causeway may have run from dry land on the edge of Beccles, across a swamp to a spot on the River Waveney. The 16ft-wide (5m) causeway would have carried carts and was the Bronze Age equivalent of a motorway. The wet conditions of the site mean that organic material such as wood has been well preserved.”
From the BBC website
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/6919314.stm
July 27, 2007
Repair works on an ancient monument in Wiltshire have been temporarily halted because of the recent heavy rain. ... more here;-
July 25, 2007
A 4,000-year-old stone feature in Herefordshire is being inspected to see if it has been affected by flood water over the weekend.
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/hereford/worcs/6912238.stm
July 21, 2007
“Flag Fen’s Archaeology Festival, part of National Archaeology Week 2007, will be officially opened by Francis Pryor on Sunday (22nd July) at 11.30am. Visitors will be able to try their hand at experimental archaeology, excavate real Roman remains and learn all about crafts like flint knapping, spinning and weaving.
Family tickets cost £16.75, adults £6, children £4.75 and concessions £5.50. Doors open at 10am and activities continue until 4pm.”
This page
24hourmuseum.org.uk/nwh_gfx_en/ART49286.html
unfortunately also describes the vandalism of moronic riff raff at the site, who smashed windows and gates and drove all over the herb garden – though the actual archaeology didn’t catch their attention, fortunately. They’re on cctv so may yet get their comeupance.
July 19, 2007
Sussex Express 18/7/07:
THE SUSSEX Archaeological Society has apologised to protesters after they allowed a controversial stunt by ITV to give the Long Man of Wilmington a sex change.
ITV and the archaeological society caused fury among Pagans and other protesters when they allowed fashion gurus Trinny and Susannah to add breasts and pigtails to the figure many believe is sacred.
As part of the programme, Trinny and Susannah Undress, ITV asked woman dressed in white to lie on the figure to create the transformation.
Chief Executive Office of the organisation, John Manley, said: ‘The Sussex Archaeological Society would like to apologise to representatives of the Pagan community, or any other individual or groups, who might have been offended by recent television filming on the Long Man of Wilmington.
‘It was not the society’s intention to cause offence.
‘The society is proud of its curation of the Long Man.
‘In future the society will consult representatives of the Pagan community and other interested parties before sanctioning any significant activities.‘
Newell Fisher was one of the protesters against the stunt and has now helped form a campaign group, Guardians of the Long Man.
As archaeological liaison officer of that group Mr Fisher said: ‘We look forward to working with the Sussex Archaeological Society to help ensure the future welfare of the site.
‘Our confidence in their custodianship has been restored.‘
He said the protesters would continue their fight to stop the footage of the stunt being aired.
He said: ‘We are absolutely determined this footage should not be shown as we feel it will encourage anti-social behaviour on the site.
‘We heard people say they were going up there directly after the filming as the activities seem to make people think it is ok an we are extremely concerned about this.‘
Modern Humans Came Out of Africa, "Definitive" Study Says
We are solely children of Africa—with no Neandertals or island-dwelling “hobbits” in our family tree, according to a new study.
Scientists who compared the skulls and DNA of human remains from around the world say their results point to modern humans (Homo sapiens) having a single origin in Africa.
news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070718-african-origin.html
July 17, 2007
Pagans have pledged to perform “rain magic” to wash away a cartoon character painted next to their famous fertility symbol – the Cerne Abbas giant.
BBC News
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/dorset/6901543.stm
I can hear those rants beginning...
July 15, 2007
Orkneyjar will be posting updates on this season’s dig that starts Monday :-
orkneyjar.com/archaeology/brodgar2007/index.html
July 13, 2007
“Stone Age Britons from across the North-East flocked to a prehistoric “Glastonbury festival” marked by mysterious rituals, a major archaeological discovery suggests.
Experts believe tools, pottery and timber stakes unearthed near Durham City show a site within view of Durham Cathedral was a place of mass worship as far back as 3,000 BC.”
A little more detail at:
thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/topstories/display.var.1532353.0.unearthing_history_at_prehistoric_glastonbury.php
Article by Mark Tallentire
“Water works have uncovered the most significant archaeological site of ancient Britons in County Durham dating back 5,000 years. Northumbrian Water are building a new £3.5 million drinking water reservoir on the outskirts with views overlooking Durham City Cathedral and Castle. Before work began extensive archaeology investigations were undertaken.
Experts from Tyne and Wear Museums found evidence of continuous settlement on the site from 3,000BC to 300BC by stone age, bronze age and iron age man. Pottery remains and flint knives and skin scrapers were unearthed. Digging also uncovered very well preserved timbers used to shore up ditches and shaped by bronze age tools and elsewhere traces of iron age fields were found.”
A little more detail at: bdaily.info/story/view/4768
A guided walk around the area above Penmaenmawr. A National Archaeology Week event by Gwynedd Archaeological Trust.
Saturday, 14th July 2007, 11.00am.
July 12, 2007
Reed Boat Sets off on Ocean Trip
From an article by Mark Pivac, published on the BBC News web site on 12th July 2007:
A team of explorers has set sail from the US for Spain in a 12-metre-long (40ft) reed boat, hoping to spend about two months sailing across the Atlantic.
They are trying to prove that Stone Age people crossed the ocean thousands of years before Christopher Columbus in the 15th Century.
Aymara Indians in Bolivia, who still use reed boats, built the new vessel.
It’s immoral. It’s criminal vandalism. What they’ve destroyed can never be replaced.
Spotted at:
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/6289762.stm
lindumheritage.co.uk/dig-diary-2007.htm
July 10, 2007
English Heritage and the British Museum are so alarmed they have commissioned a £100,000 study into the practice. It could lead to new legislation to combat offenders.
Spotted at:
telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/08/nmetal108.xml
July 8, 2007
The following links provide news coverage of the protests regarding filming at The Long Man in July 2007.
Note:These sources were originally contributed to this page as separate posts by Cursuswalker, but in the interests of brevity, the TMA Eds have taken the opportunity to condense them into one post. Apologies to Cursuswalker.
BBC (02/07/07)
The Independent (05/07/07)
The Express (04/07/07)
Brighton Evening Argus (03/07/07)
Sussex Express (04/07/07)
Sussex Express (02/07/07)
Sussex Express (09/07/07)
Eastbourne Herald (06/07/07)
Bexhill on Sea Observer (04/06/07)
July 5, 2007
Archaeologists working on a remote Scottish island have discovered an ancient stone ceremonial enclosure that is perfectly aligned to the winter and summer solstices.
The find was made by members of the Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society (Bacas) working on the island of Foula.
The stones were found on the last day of an extensive geophysical survey at an area called Da Heights. The group found stones rising from the ground in a curve which did not look like they were placed naturally.
Extensive research has shown the stones were part of an early Bronze Age ceremonial enclosure. The structure would have been built some time between 3500 and 2000BC.
Jayne Lawes, the director of excavations, said: “This excavation has proved conclusively that the stone enclosure is man made and similar in construction to others of the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age. The actual date of the construction has yet to be proved, though one shard of pottery has been found buried under 60cm of peat on the floor of the enclosure and should help to provide evidence of a date when the site was in use.”
John Holbourn, a Bacas member from Wiltshire, said: “The alignment of the stone ring to the midwinter sunrise is of real significance. While in the summer the island is bathed in light throughout most of the day and night, in the winter daylight lasts for only a few hours. The knowledge that the days will lengthen and get warmer is very cheering.”
Isobel Holbourn, who owns the land in Foula where the discovery was made, said: “We knew there was something there, and the archaeologists found an egg-shaped circle of stones. It turns out that the winter sunrise goes right up the middle, while the summer solstice rises at right angles to it. The circle is egg shaped, and in the centre they dug a trench and found a paved area and a bit of black pottery in between the stones. This has been sent away to be dated. The team watched the summer solstice sunrise on 21 June. From the middle spot the sun rolls and rises up the side of Ronas Hill – the highest hill on the Shetland mainland.”
From an article by Jamie Beatson: thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1046352007
Last updated: 04-Jul-07 00:17 BST
July 4, 2007
The Rotherwas Serpent
“Herefordshire Council has found a section of laid stone surface dating from the early Bronze Age, the only discovery of its kind in Europe.” The surface appears to be made of fired pieces of stone laid out in the shape of a serpent. Part of the surface will be intersected by a new road but, fortunately, not destroyed; the new road will be laid over the Bronze Age surface and the rest investigated.
More at -
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hereford/worcs/6268900.stm
smr.herefordshire.gov.uk/news_events2/RotherwasNews2.htm
anthropology.net/2007/07/04/rotherwas-ribbon-a-bronze-age-site-unique-in-europe/
June 27, 2007
Archaeologists are hoping to unearth ancient treasures during excavations in a Cumbrian valley.
Volunteers are needed to join archaeologists during the digs in the Duddon Valley in the south west of the Lake District beginning on 30 June.
Much of the work will focus on the cairn at Seathwaite Tarn – a mound of landmark and burial stones.
The Ring Cairns to Reservoirs Project is backed by a £50,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant.
Around 60 local people have been trained in archaeological survey techniques.
The project will be led by the National Park Authority’s senior archaeologist John Hodgson, with help from Oxford Archaeology North, students from Durham University and the Duddon Valley Local History Group.
Part of the work will involve pollen analysis to find out what Seathwaite Tarn and the surrounding vegetation could have looked like during the Bronze Age.
Chairman John Hoggett, of the local history group, said: “This will be the first excavation of a ring cairn in the Lake District and we are hoping that it will give us clues as to what was happening here thousands of years ago.”
Archaeologists are excavating the remains of houses believed to date back 2,000 years after they were uncovered by a ferocious storm.
Fife-based charity Scottish Coastal Archaeology and the Problem of Erosion (Scape) is leading a community project at the site on North Uist.
Scape is investigating the suspected Iron Age round houses before they vanish in another powerful storm.
The organisation is also carrying out work at another historic site in Brora.
Violent weather exposed the ruined houses at Baile Sear, North Uist, in January 2005.
Tragically, a family of five died on Benbecula in the same storm.
Scape has helped Historic Scotland survey 30% of the Scottish coast, which runs to thousands of miles.
Three thousand sites of historic interest have been located so far.
The sites include ancient Norse houses, burial sites, brochs and World War II observation posts.
Scape co-ordinator Tom Dawson, a research fellow at the University of St Andrews, said Historic Scotland was helping to fund the project at Baile Sear.
He said: “People had seen bits and pieces of the remains before, but as the cobbles and sand washed way the structures are just sitting there on the beach.
“There are thought to be two roundhouses. We believe they are Iron Age making them 2,000 years old.”
Scape has started investigating the remains of salt pans on sand dunes at Brora in Sutherland.
The large metal trays were filled with sea water and heated below by fires fuelled by coal from a nearby pit to produce salt.
Brora is the location of the most northerly deep mine in the British Isles and coal was dug from it from 1598 until 1974.
A total of 15 miners died in a coal mine roof fall in the 18th Century.
Set up in 2001, Scape has helped Historic Scotland survey the Scottish coastline for archaeological sites.
Mr Dawson said climate change posed a serious threat to many of the relics record so far.
He said: “Erosion has always happened, but it is said that climate change and global warming will leave Scotland one of the places worst affected by storms.”
The charity has been targeting its resources at sites where the local communities have shown a willingness to excavate or try and protect them.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/6238302.stm
Laid to rest after 4,000 years
THE ancient remains of four skeletons were interred at Highworth Cemetery last week to mark the summer solstice.
wiltsglosstandard.co.uk/display.var.1500984.0.laid_to_rest_after_4_000_years.php
June 25, 2007
Nebra Disc Fake?
Archaeologists have revived the debate over whether a spectacular Bronze Age disc from Germany is one of the earliest known calendars.
The Nebra disc is emblazoned with symbols of the Sun, Moon and stars and said by some to be 3,600 years old.
BBC
see
June 21, 2007
“Years of campaigning are finally over for protestors at Stanton Moor as a deal to save the site from quarrying has been approved.”
Matlock Mercury article.