Archaeological dig finds Iron Age and Roman artefacts in Norton

From The Comet:

THE summer archaeological dig at Norton ends this weekend with more progress made on the site.

Carried out under the direction of the Norton Community Archaeological Group the dig has been supervised by Keith Fitzpatrick-Matthews, the archaeological officer at North Herts District Council.

Tonight (Thursday) members of the public interested in the dig should attend a special event at the site in Churchwick Field, Norton, at 7pm when the discoveries will be revealed.

The field is the site of a partially abandoned medieval village. During the current dig new road systems have been uncovered, Iron Age and Roman artefacts found and the group says it is close so finding the medieval house that was on the site.

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Getting the early wheel turning on Irish bogs

From the Irish Times:

NEXT TIME a set of gleaming alloys or slick Pirelli tyres catches your eye, spare a thought for our ancestors. To get themselves rolling, they had to get creative with a tree and an axe, writes CLAIRE O’CONNELL

We don’t know much about prehistoric vehicles here, but archaeological digs for new road developments have been rolling back the years, offering clues about how people travelled from A to B in the old days.

One excavation in particular – carried out in 2006 ahead of building the Dromod-Roosky bypass on the N4 – revealed a network of wooden trackways and platforms criss-crossing through an area of bog.

The trackways date from around 3,600BC up to 800AD, explains consultant archaeologist Caitríona Moore, a director on the dig that summer at Edercloon, Co Longford, for the Cultural Resource Development Services. “It was in a little area of reclaimed raised bog along the side of the former N4,” she recalls. “Just underneath the grass was intact bog, which has high water-levels and low oxygen, so the trackways were very well preserved.”

The wooden structures, which were built through the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages and into to the early Christian period, would have allowed pedestrian access into the bog, possibly to find food and plants, explains Moore.

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Sign the "Save the NOF-Digi COntent!" petition to protect UK culture!

The NOF Digitisation Programme began several years ago as an effort to document tens of thousands of digital images and other materials relating to the UK’s Cultural Heritage. However, in recent years the project has been neglected and desperately requires revamping in order to make such content accessible to the public.

Please click here for further information and to sign the petition in order to save this wonderful resource.

Digging up the past at Maiden Castle

From the Dorset Echo:

FAMILIES and history lovers will be blazing a trail to Dorchester for a Bronze Age festival at Maiden Castle.

They will be digging up the past at the ancient monument just outside the county town on the weekend of September 19 and 20.

The free weekend will include living history, arts, crafts and workshops South Dorset Ridgeway Heritage Project officer Sarah Harbige said: “Experimental archaeologists and living history experts will demonstrate aspects of Bronze Age life including metal work, house building, textiles and food.

“Members of the Ancient Wessex Network and guests from further afield will also be on hand to show how the past and landscape continues to inspire artists today.

“There’s even a chance to make your own Bronze Age pottery beaker with Bill Crumbleholme, the Beaker Folk Potter.”

Visitors will also have the chance to meet archaeologists and try their hand at excavating some artefacts on a dig at the site.

On the Sunday, visitors can bring along interesting items and artefacts from home for an expert to identify.

The Portable Antiquities Scheme finds liaison officer will be on the site from 11am to 3.30pm.

Storyteller Graham Rogers will be on hand all weekend with tales of life in ancient times.

Maiden Castle is best known as one of the biggest Iron Age hill forts in Europe.

The Iron Age dates to 2,000 to 3,000 years ago, but Maiden Castle is surrounded by much older sites dating to Bronze Age and Neolithic times.

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3,000-year-old butter found in Kildare bog

From Leinster Leader:

AN OAK barrel, full of butter, estimated to be roughly 3,000 years old has been found in Gilltown bog, between Timahoe and Staplestown.

The amazing discovery of the barrel, which is being described by archaeology experts in the National Museum as a "really fine example" was found by two Bord na Mona workers.

The pair, John Fitzharris and Martin Lane, were harrowing the bog one day in late May when they noticed a distinctive white streak in the peat.

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Iron Age Fort wins third Sandford Award for education

From Tivyside Advertiser:

A unique visitor attraction in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park has won a prestigious award for education for the third time.

Castell Henllys Iron Age Fort, which is owned and managed by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority, has scooped a Sandford Award for Heritage Education. The award is given to heritage sites which offer a high standard of educational services, ranging from Key Stage 1 to university level.

Castell Henllys also won the award in 1999 and 2004. After the initial award is won, sites can reapply every five years. Judges look for progression and development within the educational services offered in the interim years.

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Archaeologists find prehistoric skeleton in the Dales

From Bakewll Today:

A human body, thought to date from the Iron Age, has been unearthed by archaeologists during a dig at a Peak District beauty spot.

The prehistoric skeleton emerged as volunteers, who were taking part in a lottery-funded dig, excavated the site of an ancient hillfort near Monsal Head.

Ann Hall, Longstone Local History Group project manager, said: "We quickly stopped everything, then archaeologists spent a very careful afternoon excavating the body."

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Excavation uncovers evidence of Iron Age fort

From the Wiltshire Times & Chippenham News:

An excavation to uncover evidence of the Iron Age in Bradford on Avon has been hailed a success after the edge of a hill fort was found along with medieval pottery.

The three-week dig got underway on July 20 in the garden of Peter and Jane Mann, of Budbury Place, who live in a house thought to be the former Budbury Manor, dating back to the 16th century.

Led by former Wiltshire archaeologist Roy Canham, 66, and coinciding with an Iron Age exhibition at the town’s museum, the dig has uncovered more evidence of the fort in the Budbury area, which first came to light in the 1960s.

Mr Canham and his team had to dig through a stone floor, which the Manns first discovered buried in their garden in the spring, while planting trees.

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Discovery of Iron Age log boat shows how sea levels rose in past

From the Yorkshire Post:

THE DISCOVERY of a prehistoric boat which had been buried for more than 2,000 years beneath a farm field has already provided historians with an insight into Iron Age life in Yorkshire.

But now academics say the vessel which dates back to 300BC is also helping to show how the face of the region would change in future if the sea levels continue to rise.

As a debate rages over plans to allow land around the River Hull to revert to a swamp in an attempt to protect urban areas from a repeat of the 2007 floods, a group of scientists can provide a unique insight into what wide-spread flooding of the East Yorkshire countryside would look like.

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Museum artefacts to go on public display for first time

From Northampton Chronicle & Echo:

New items including 3,000-year-old bronze axe heads have gone on display to the public at Daventry Town Council Museum.

The museum is showing the items among many from the Moot Hall Museum Store, taken over recently by the town council.

The store houses most of the items previously owned by Daventry District Council's Moot Hall Museum, however, many of the artefacts have not been on display before. Pieces on display this weekend include artwork completed for the 1991 Daventry Arts Festival, Celtic bronze axe heads dating from 1,000BC found on Borough Hill and mosaic pieces discovered in the town.

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Historic find in Gloucestershire field

From This is Gloucestershire.co.uk:

A Cotswolds history buff has unearthed a piece of weaponry believed to be among the rarest ever discovered in Gloucestershire.

Steve Taylor, from Hatherley, stumbled across the treasure, part of an ancient sword handle, while metal detecting on a farm near Cirencester.

The bronze head, which would have been fitted to the end of a Celtic sword to keep the blade in place, is worth about £5,000.

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Caithness Broch Centre to open

From Leisure Opportunities.com:

The Caithness Broch visitor centre in the Highlands, Scotland has reopened to the public.

Formerly known as the Northlands Viking Centre, the updated facility will showcase the prehistory of the north coast of Caithness, focusing on the construction of brochs - defensive round towers built in the Iron Age.

An exhibit displaying 150 items, including gaming pieces, painted pebbles, spindle whorls and stone balls, donated by National Museums Scotland will tell visitors the story of the community from the establishment of the brochs 2,000 years ago to the present day.

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Celts and Romans exhibition opens in Kirkintilloch

From Kirkintilloch-herald.co.uk:

A NEW exhibition has opened at Kirkintilloch's Auld Kirk Museum.

'On the Frontier' puts the spotlight on the clash bewteen the Celts and the Romans and aims to challenge people's perceptions of East Dunbartonshire's heritage.

Sculptor Tom Allan aims to explore the conflict and interaction between the Celts and Roman forces along the Antonine Wall.

The museum is actually sited on the line of the wall, which was built by the Romans in the second century AD and was recently recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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