Issue 89

July/August 2006

Contents

news

Sensational new discoveries at Bryn Celli Ddu

Missing royal table discovered in Westminster Hall

Unprecedented divide over Stonehenge

DNA surprise: Romani in England 400 years too early

Drama of Shrewsbury's lost medieval bridge

In Brief

features

Balloon over Stonehenge
Martyn Barber considers a photo taken 100 years ago.

Discovering Scotland
Dave Cowley looks back on 30 years of air photography.

Forgotten hero
Miles Russell finds Nero in England.

on the web

Recommended websites

letters

Views and responses

CBA news

Headlines from the CBA office.

ISSN 1357-4442

Editor Mike Pitts

CBA news

Stonehenge roads review

In considering its position in relation to the recent Stonehenge roads review (see CBA commentary on Stonehenge, Mar/Apr) the CBA has been working closely with a number of other conservation organisations who broadly share similar views. At the end of March ten organisations (the CBA with the National Trust, the International Council for Monuments and Sites UK, the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, Rescue, the Prehistoric Society, Transport 2000, Friends of the Earth, the Campaign to Protect Rural England and the Ancient Sacred Landscape Network) published a joint statement on Stonehenge and the A303.

This shows the strong consensus on the issues underlying the consultation, on a vision for the Stonehenge world heritage site, on strategies for the way forward to achieve this vision, and on the potential for huge public value that an unencumbered world heritage site could deliver. The full statement is available at www.britarch.ac.uk/stonehenge.

In relation to the road review, all ten organisations agreed that the options put forward were lacking a long-term vision that respects the international significance of Stonehenge as a world heritage site. After due consideration by CBA trustees in May, the CBA's response to the Highways Agency advocated a number of small-scale measures that make use of previously developed land that could bring real benefits without significant adverse effects on archaeology or ecology, principally the closure of the A344/A303 junction and review of managed access along the A344 line. The CBA emphasised the need for resourcefulness, perseverance and partnership in seeking a satisfactory long-term solution that recognises the international and outstanding national significance of this truly unique landscape.

The Highways Agency has indicated that there is no overriding priority for upgrading the a303 within the current government road programme. So if there is no immediate transport need for the damaging 2.1km bored tunnel, surely now is the time for everyone to be working together on a sustainable, long-term solution that minimises the archaeological and environmental damage yet offers significant benefits for the presentation of the landscape. There is no need to create an artificial deadline leading to a compromise "solution" when significant but small scale steps can achieve so much.

A decision on the roads review is expected later in the year, perhaps in time for the CBA's weekend event in the area in early October.

National Archaeology Week

Included with this magazine you will find details of the NAW events planned for the CBA's major flagship event in England and Wales, this year running from July 15 to 23. More sites often get added after the printing deadline for the booklet, so for up-to-date details of all NAW events check out the web site at www.britarch.ac.uk/naw.

Scottish Archaeology Month takes place in September, organised by the Council for Scottish Archaeology. For details see www.scottisharchaeology.org.uk/projects/sam.html.

CBA trustee elections

Each year the membership is invited to elect (or re-elect) at least five trustees to participate in the strategic oversight of the CBA. Nominations are invited for members to stand in a postal ballot, prior to the annual general meeting on October 8 in Salisbury. Trustees have identified the following areas of expertise as being of particular relevance in terms of expertise necessary for the organisation: maritime archaeology, local government service delivery, rural stewardship, marketing and fundraising. Please contact Peter Olver at the CBA in York for further details.

History Matters

July sees the launch of a major public engagement campaign which is aiming to demonstrate the widespread public support and interest in history and heritage. The campaign, using the slogan History Matters – Pass It On, is being run in England and Wales by a number of organisations including the National Trust, English Heritage, the Heritage Lottery Fund and the CBA.

The main premise of the campaign is that "We believe that history matters. Asociety out of touch with its past cannot have confidence in its future. History defines, educates and inspires us. It lives on in our historic environment. As custodians of our past, we will be judged by generations to come. We must value it, nurture it and pass it on."

The launch will take place on July 2 and 3 and will include a debate on why history matters, at Speakers' Corner in London, involving historians and leading personalities. Badges, stickers and postcards will be available (and will be circulated to all CBA and YAC members), and there will be a number of activities coming under the History Matters umbrella over the following months, leading up to a finale later in the year.

Further details will be available after the launch at www.historymatters.org.uk.

The Stones Tour

Commemorating the 20th year of Stonehenge and Avebury being designated a world heritage site, the 2006 CBA Weekend Event will take place in and around Salisbury on October 6–8. Events will include the free annual de Cardi lecture by Peter Fowler and special tours of Stonehenge and Avebury with presentations by Mike Parker Pearson, Mike Pitts, Josh Pollard, Julian Richards and others. Andrew Fitzpatrick will describe the Amesbury Archer in Salisbury Museum and there will be a rare opportunity to visit the Salisbury Plain Training Area with informed guides. Places are limited so please book early using the form enclosed or contact the CBA directly info@britarch.co.uk.

YAC leaders get together

The annual get together of the volunteers who run the branches of the CBA's Young Archaeologists' Club took place this year in Newark over the May bank holiday weekend. The main focus for discussion was inclusion, in relation to learning styles, disabilities and special needs, and diverse communities. As ever, the weekend event, organised by YAC's network & events officer Wendi Terry, was a fun event for all: it involved practical sessions and trips to CreswellCrags to see the ice age cave art, Sherwood Country Park, local sites in Newark and a Civil War reenactment during which the castle was stormed!

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