British

ISSN 1357-4442
Editor: Mike Pitts

About BA magazine and subscription latest issue: No 113 July / August 2010 British Archaeology is a publication of the Council for British Archaeology (CBA), and is available in WHSmith and other leading newsagents. To keep up to date with the latest developments in archaeology in the UK you can subscribe or become a CBA member (includes BA magazine subscription) online in the CBA Online Shop. New web-only content: The Varmints Show, showcasing music inspired by archaeology or heritage.

latest online issue: No 112 May / June 2010 You will find here a selection of texts. Printed magazines contain more features, as well as comments, interviews, book reviews, columns on science, the internet and television, event listings and news from the CBA. They are illustrated in colour throughout.

Introducing the July/August issue of British Archaeology, available from Friday 18 June

The voice of archaeology in Britain and beyond

ON THE COVER

Invisible diggers
The main photo shows Rich, Smiler and Disco Dave (who has a conservation HND) digging at a site that features in the daily lives of homeless people. The small excavation in Stokes Croft, Bristol, was part of an investigation into homelessness and heritage. Rachael Kiddey and John Schofield describe the distinctive characteristics of homeless places and the interest in heritage .

OTHER STORIES INCLUDE...

Cornish Stone Could Show Ancient Ship
A small piece of engraved slate from West Penwith, Cornwall, has been tentatively interpreted as showing a prehistoric or medieval vessel in a scene with surf and nets. Quantities of dateable prehistoric finds have also been made at the site by Graham Hill whilst fieldwalking. The engraving is unique in Britain.

Cuts at Bristol
In the first high-profile university archaeology losses, the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology at Bristol University has been told to cut four academic staff. Students conducted a protest excavation outside the university's Senate House, saying the cuts were unsustainable.

Community Archaeology: What Next?
We are hearing much about "community archaeology". Is it a recent movement which has changed the landscape of archaeology? Or has it been around for years, if not always recognised? What are its successes, and why are some people unhappy about it? What exactly is it, anyway? Suzie Thomas and Dan Hull report on a major new survey by the Council for British Archaeology .

Mick's Travels
Mick Aston visits Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire, where, in July 1970, he started his "first proper paid job" in the prime minister's constituency, as a field officer based in the City and County Museum in Woodstock .

The Links of Noltland
Hazel Moore and Graeme Wilson describe the startling new discoveries at one of the bleakest sites in the country, on the shore of a remote island in Orkney. Excavations have revealed more than a dozen stone buildings – one with whole cattle skulls set into its foundations – and a small stone figurine, the earliest human depiction from Scotland. Dating from the neolithic and bronze age (3000–1500BC), the site represents one of the most complete early prehistoric landscapes yet found.

Dig for Shakespeare
Literary critics may wonder if Shakespeare wrote all those plays, but archaeologists know where to find him: at home in Stratford. Kevin Colls and William Mitchell describe the background to an imaginative excavation now in progress.

Preservation by Record
Tim Darvill considers the archaeologically-minded rock musician, as we launch a web column dedicated to archaeology and popular music. making tracks, written by The Varmints, will feature popular music with archaeological and heritage connections, with free downloads. Read the first column by John Varmint (aka John Schofield).

Living with Death in the Iron Age
How people treated the dead varied enormously over the past few thousand years, but until recently what happened in the iron age – from 800BC till Roman times – was largely a mystery. A new dating programme in Atlantic Scotland reveals the dead were there all along. Fiona Tucker and Ian Armit report.

The Stone Collector
Fieldwalking, writes Matt Mossop, offers enthusiasts a rewarding, non-invasive and cheap alternative to excavation. Some remarkable artefact collections have been made in Cornwall, which are increasingly being augmented by detectorists' finds. Few, however, are as meticulously recorded as Graham Hill's.

and much more...

REGULARS INCLUDE

• My archaeology
  Photographer Don McCullin chases ancient Roman light
• Spoilheap
  Want something done in hard times? Go to the top
• Letters
  The difficult balance between saving past and future
• In View
  Is small best for TV? It's certainly cheaper, says Greg Bailey
• On the web
  Google Street View, and other ways of seeing the landscape
• Books
  Making the British landscape, and Shakespeare's theatres
• Briefing
  Lots of digs and some unusually good exhibitions. See Briefing section for latest events.
• CBA Correspondent
  Mike Heyworth reviews current events in marine archaeology

British Archaeology is a bimonthly members' magazine that is also available in larger WH Smith stores and the best independent newsagents, and by subscription.

Winner of the Press Award at the 2002 British Archaeological Awards

News | Features | Letters | Comment | Book reviews | Obituaries | Interviews | Essays

Issues from earlier years:

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