Cover Story
Staffa’s past signatures: Uncovering the hidden human history of a celebrated Scottish island A small team of archaeologists has been undertaking research into the island of Staffa in the Inner Hebrides. Camping for a few days at a time over a number of years, they have carried out both survey and excavation work.… Features
Bacon Hole: Rediscovering Britain’s forgotten Ice Age cave art Hidden within the limestone cliffs of the Gower Peninsula in South Wales is a cave that has witnessed dramatic changes in climate, landscape, and human history. Bacon Hole, overlooking what… 
Grave concerns: Exploring the history of the British cemetery and its uncertain future The cemetery – defined as a burial ground without an attached primary church or chapel – is a place where artistic, architectural, horticultural, historical, and literary interests are combined. Many… 
Unearthing the present: Why archaeologists should study the contemporary world ‘There’s no time like the present’, as the adage goes – and those who specialise in Contemporary Archaeology certainly agree. John Schofield explores how applying archaeological techniques to the material… 
Worth a thousand words: Examining medieval wall-paintings at Goodrich Castle Tiny traces of medieval wall-paintings have been discovered at Goodrich Castle in Herefordshire, transforming our understanding of how its chapel was decorated. Carly Hilts spoke to Sophie Stewart to learn… News
Science Notes: Sensing the future of ceramic conservation We often write in ‘Science Notes’ about how technology is revolutionising many aspects of archaeology, but this column rarely touches on conservation. This is one of the areas, however, where… 
Oscar Wilde’s room rediscovered at Brighton hotel The hotel suite in which Oscar Wilde stayed shortly before his arrest for gross indecency has been rediscovered during recent archaeological work at the Royal Albion Hotel in Brighton. The… 
Interpreting signs of child abuse in excavated remains While research is increasingly looking at the experience of children in the past, this is still an under-researched area, and in terms of children’s exposure to violence, while cases of… 
New excavations shed light on Shropshire marsh-fort The first excavations at Wall Camp in more than 40 years have revealed new evidence for how Iron Age communities built and used one of Britain’s most unusual wetland enclosures.… 
Fossil find from Roman Colchester Archaeology is often confused with palaeontology – with most archaeologists having been asked at least once in their career about the most interesting fossil they have found. Now archaeologists from… 
World News Earliest evidence of Yersinia pestis? As DNA analysis of human remains continues to expand, evidence is mounting that Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes the plague, has been ravaging human… 
More finds from Magna Roman Fort The latest season of digging at Magna Roman Fort is currently uncovering further details of how the site was used both during and after the Roman period. One of the… 
Roman hoard uncovered in Buckinghamshire A metal-detectorist has discovered a hoard of Roman bronze objects in the Chilterns, Buckinghamshire, including a rare rattle that may have been used in religious ceremonies (below centre). Adam McClelland… 
Brutality at Brading? Reinterpreting human remains from a Roman villa on the Isle of Wight Recently published research suggests that the bones found around Brading Roman Villa could reflect violent events linked to 4th-century political upheaval. Kathryn Krakowka reports. Views
Current Archaeology’s September Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home What's on There are lots of great ways to get involved with history and archaeology over the next few months, including exhibitions, lectures, and conferences exploring a wide range of subjects. If… 
Excavating the CA archive: Monasteries of the high medieval period Comment One of the joys of the Current Archaeology archive is its ‘tales of the unexpected’. After last month’s column on early medieval monasteries, this and next month’s columns will be… 
Finds Tray: Lead toy figurine Objects This is a small toy figurine dating to between AD 1550 and 1700, recently found by a metal-detectorist near Azerley in North Yorkshire. Measuring approximately 4cm by 2cm (1.6in by… 
CA 439 Letters – September Letters Milestone Ground at midsummer The description of 59 pits forming a long, neat line at the Milestone Ground, Worcestershire (CA 435) is intriguing, especially as such features found elsewhere in… 
Daily dose of cultural activities Comment Several recent reports have suggested that participation in cultural activities is good for one’s well-being. Under the headline ‘Daily dose of art as important to health as 5-a-day’, The Telegraph… 
Historic drought reveals historic garden: Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire The Picture Desk While this summer’s drought conditions have had a dramatic effect on many aspects of our environment, one upside of the recent hot and dry conditions has been the discovery of… 
Scottish Archaeology Month What's on Scottish Archaeology Month, Archaeology Scotland’s flagship festival, returns this September to showcase the best of the country’s archaeology, history, and heritage in a month-long programme of events for all ages.… 
Friends of Abingdon Abbey Buildings Trust Groups On 9 February 1538, Abbot Thomas Rowland signed a Deed of Surrender, formally handing over his monastery to Henry VIII, and the 1,000-year history of Abingdon Abbey came to an… 
Following the Eagle, After the Fire, and Treasure: Hidden, Lost, Found Museum, What's on CA recently visited exhibitions at three sites in the care of North East Museums, with displays exploring Roman military life and ideas of ‘treasure’. Reviews
Current Archaeology’s September Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home There are lots of great ways to get involved with history and archaeology over the next few months, including exhibitions, lectures, and conferences exploring a wide range of subjects. If… 
Castlehill Wood (re-)Dun: reinterpreting a Stirling oddity Castlehill Wood, located south-west of Stirling, has historically been labelled a ‘dun’ – a poorly defined term that is usually used to describe an unroofed enclosure that is smaller than… 
50 Stone Age Finds from the Portable Antiquities Scheme This slim volume is the latest addition to the ‘50 Finds’ series produced by the Portable Antiquities Scheme in England and Wales (PAS). While most finds recorded by PAS are… 
Feeding Medieval England: a long ‘Agricultural Revolution’, 700-1300 This volume by Helena Hamerow and her team is the interpretive companion to their digital database (https://doi.org/10.5284/1057492) for the recently finished five-year FeedSax project. It explores the profound changes in… 
On the Banks of the Humber: archaeological and palaeoenvironmental investigations at Goxhill, North Lincolnshire, and Paull, East Yorkshire, 2016-2020 This site report details excavations carried out by Oxford Archaeology ahead of the replacement of the gas transmission pipeline that crosses the Humber between Goxhill in North Lincolnshire and Paull… 
The Archaeology of Leicester in 20 Digs This is the latest in the ‘…in 20 Digs’ series. Gavin Speed has been involved in Leicester’s archaeology for more than 20 years, and he has produced a well-illustrated account… 
Geevor: Voices from a mining community Mining is rooted in Cornish heritage and woven into the fabric of Cornwall’s historic landscape, and so it seems fitting, as we mark the 20th anniversary year of the Cornwall… Scottish Archaeology Month Scottish Archaeology Month, Archaeology Scotland’s flagship festival, returns this September to showcase the best of the country’s archaeology, history, and heritage in a month-long programme of events for all ages.… Following the Eagle, After the Fire, and Treasure: Hidden, Lost, Found CA recently visited exhibitions at three sites in the care of North East Museums, with displays exploring Roman military life and ideas of ‘treasure’. 
From the editor
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the island of Staffa coming into the care of the National Trust for Scotland. Famed for its dramatic cliffs, caves, and black basalt columns, this picturesque portion of the Inner Hebrides has been a subject of scientific and artistic fascination – and a popular tourist destination – for centuries. Recent fieldwork has added to this picture, uncovering evidence of repeated visits, cultivation, and occupation stretching back to the post-medieval period, as well as unexpected echoes of even earlier activity dating to the Bronze Age, as our cover feature reports.
One of Staffa’s most intriguing aspects is the historic graffiti that has been recorded on the walls of Fingal’s Cave – and our second feature also highlights significant markings found within a cave, this time at Bacon Hole on the Gower Peninsula. There, a cluster of red lines were first reported as prehistoric paintings in 1912, but this interpretation proved controversial, sparking decades of debate and doubt. Can modern scientific investigations set the record straight?
Our next article examines British cemeteries, exploring how these peaceful places were influenced by historical, artistic, architectural, and literary interests, as well as by innovations in garden design. With many such sites now in a state of decline, how can we safeguard their legacy?
The articles above are mostly concerned with the distant past, or events on the cusp of living memory – but in our fourth feature we ask what can be learned by applying archaeological techniques to the present.
We end with an excursion to Goodrich Castle in Herefordshire, where recent conservation work has revealed traces of medieval wall-paintings showing that its chapel was much more elaborately decorated than previously thought.
CARLY
