Issue 85
November/December 2005
Contents
news
Archaeologists find trowel - and other stories
Bid to list first commercial nuclear power station
Model views - arial photography on the cheap
Cave archaeologists find human remains
features
From Ashes to Dust: who cares about sports heritage?
Jason Wood thinks the historic environment is losing out to sport in
government spending - and this will worsen as the London Olympics approach.
He has a solution
Coast Survey special
Archaeology on the shores of Norfolk and the Isle of Wight
White Badges
Mike Pitts visits poignant wartime field art asking 'Will we remember them?'
Roads to the past: Ireland's archaeological revolution
It's a long road: Dàire O'Rourke reveals extraordinary Irish archaeology in danger from the expanding road network.
on the web
letters
CBA news
Headlines from the CBA office.
ISSN 1357-4442
Editor Mike Pitts
CBA news
Archaeology and education 2005
Archaeology and education 2005 Over 90 practitioners working in 5-14, further, continuing and higher education came to York in September for the three-day CBA archaeology and education conference (supported by the Higher Education Academy History, Classics and Archaeology Subject Centre, and the portable antiquities scheme). Highlights included three guest speakers from Japan (partly funded by the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation) and pupils from Oulton primary school, Leeds on a "live" Roman archaeology workshop.
Presentations featured the new GCSE history pilot, the Schools History Project, archaeology education in South Africa, Australia and Japan, web-based resources produced by Newcastle and Hull Universities, the National Trust for Scotland's Ben Lawers project, heritage open days in Norwich, Canterbury Archaeological Trust's new archaeological teaching kits, and community archaeology projects at Bernwood, Moston and Stalybridge. Speakers also came from the Department for Education and Skills and English Heritage.
Among the many workshop themes were the portable antiquities scheme educational website, creating heritage trails on a PDA, and using archaeological image banks like scran. There were workshops on making textiles being inspired by the creative minds project, understanding different learning styles, the Suffolk garbology project, the schools history project approach to active learning in history, unlocking Buckinghamshire's past, carving history at the wilderness and Hadrian's Wall community education team. Delegates learned how to construct roundhouses, how to use the inspiring learning for all framework and how to engage with the home learning community.
The Young Archaeologists' Club held a workshop and a number of YAC branch leaders attended the whole conference. Carenza Lewis explained her work on widening participation in higher education. Barley Hall, Jorvik, York Minster Centre for School Visits and Holy Trinity Church all hosted visits to see education in action at heritage sites in York.
Archaeological education is thriving with more people doing more projects than ever before. Delegates were inspired by what they had seen and heard, and excited and enthused with new ideas. It was encouraging to note how many talented and enthusiastic archaeologists are now working in education. We are looking forward to seeing what has been achieved by the 2007 conference.
New CBA president
Nick Merriman, AMA, FSA, FRSA is the CBA's new president, elected for a three year term at the AGM. He is currently reader in museum and heritage studies at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London, and director of UCL's museums and collections; from March he will be director of Manchester Museum. After studying archaeology at Cambridge University, he became curator of prehistory at the Museum of London. His interests have focused on widening public participation in archaeology, including that of culturally diverse audiences. He has written many books and articles on museums and public archaeology, and has experience of a wide range of boards and committees, including as chair of the Society of Museum Archaeologists and the International Council of Museums (UK).
On his election Nick said, "I am excited by the direction in which the CBA is moving and I hope that I can contribute my passion and experience relating to public engagement in archaeology".
Leicester weekend
The CBA's annual weekend event Archaeology for All was held in late September in Leicester, in partnership with CBA East Midlands, the University of Leicester and the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society, celebrating its 150th anniversary.
The Beatrice de Cardi lecture was given by the Leicestershire county archaeologist Peter Liddle, recently awarded the mbe for his work on community archaeology. As ever Beatrice was in attendance, spending time to look round Leicestershire on a trip that took in sites including Grace Dieu Priory, Moira Furnace and Donington-le-Heath medieval manor house and museum. There was also a guided archaeological trail of the City of Leicester, concentrating on the Roman and medieval core. After a good evening out, the Sunday programme included sessions for young archaeologists in the bone and ceramic laboratories at the university's archaeology department, with a presentation from Julian Richards with YAC members on reconstructing a prehistoric house. The CBA's AGM was followed by a session on archaeology and inclusivity and a debate on current issues in archaeology. The AGM was the last to be chaired as president by Francis Pryor who stood down after seven years (the longest serving president in the CBA's history). Don Benson stood down as a CBA trustee after many years of valuable service, and was replaced by Stephen Carter of Headland Archaeology Ltd, Edinburgh.
The 2006 CBA weekend will be held in the Wessex region, linked to the 20th anniversary of the inscription of Stonehenge and Avebury as world heritage sites.
Thornborough henges
On September 20 North Yorkshire county council's planning committee finally met to consider Tarmac's application for a quarry extension at Ladybridge Farm adjacent to the Thornborough henges. The CBA represented voluntary bodies objecting to the proposals because of their impact on the landscape and archaeological contexts of nationally important prehistoric monuments. Tarmac requested a deferral of the application to undertake further evaluation. The CBA, with other objectors, had not been convinced by the interpretation of findings in the earlier archaeological evaluation work. It has requested that agreement on the scope of the next stage of evaluation should be a more transparent process, in which local stakeholders and researchers should have the opportunity to contribute.
New YAC post
Wendi Terry has taken up the newly created post of network and events officer for the Young Archaeologists' Club, based within the CBA secretariat in York. Wendi previously worked as a primary school teacher and museum education officer in Northamptonshire, as well as helping to run the local YAC branch and acting as education liaison officer for CBA South Midlands.
One of her key roles is to support the YAC branches and the volunteers that run them, working closely with Fiona Davison at the Council for Scottish Archaeology in Edinburgh who fulfils this role for Scottish YAC branches.
YAC now has three full-time members of staff based in York: Wendi Terry, Nicky Milsted (communications officer) and Ruth Green (administration assistant).
Book award
Mountains & Orefields: Metal Mining Landscapes in Mid & North-east Wales by Nigel Jones, Pat Frost & Mark Walters, published by the CBA with funding from Cadw (CBA research report 142), has won the Association of Industrial Archaeology's prestigious book award. It is the third CBA research report on a Welsh topic in a row to win an award. All CBA books are now available through Central Books and can be purchased online at www.centralbooks.co.uk.
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