When it was completed in 1209, medieval London Bridge was the only fixed crossing of the Thames downstream of Kingston-upon-Thames (until Fulham Bridge was built in 1729). Remarkably, it was also home to some 500 people – equivalent to the population of a small medieval town. In London Bridge and…
In the concluding part of our Orkney trilogy (see also CA 394 and 395), Carly Hilts reports on her visit to the Knowe of Swandro on Rousay, where Julie Bond and Caz Mamwell took her through the latest findings from this long-lived but rapidly eroding site.…
The latest on exhibitions, acquisitions, and key decisions.…
One of the most noteworthy finds was a huge pit full of burnt animal bones, including those of cattle and sheep/goat, as well as pottery vessels and stones.…
Review by Finbar McCormick Skellig Michael, a rocky outcrop off the south-west coast of Ireland, boasts the best-surviving early medieval monastery in Ireland, if not western Europe. Ironically, despite the richness of Ireland’s early medieval documentary sources, mentions of the site are few, but they note the fact that it…
David Breeze, Tatiana Ivleva, and Rebecca Jones consider the contribution made to the study of Roman frontiers by Brenda Heywood, who died last December, and other contemporary female archaeologists.…
Review by Nathalie Cohen This monograph, the result of a project started by David Neal and Warwick Rodwell in 2015 to examine the historic floors in the eastern arm of Canterbury Cathedral, is a stunning achievement. Over nearly 400 pages, Neal and Rodwell provide a detailed description, context, and chronology…
Since the excavation, the team from Wessex has laser-scanned and digitally recorded the entirety of the ship.…
A round-up of some of the latest news; includes the discovery of one of Scotland's largest medieval coin hoards.…
Review by Joe Flatman I do not disagree with anything that Kalliopi Fouseki says in this book about the management of cultural heritage. As she summarises in its conclusion, ‘heritage as a thing and as a process is a dynamic, complex system… [comprising] non-linear, dynamic interrelationships between materials, values/meanings, place/space,…
Review by Andrew Tibbs The importance of Chester in the Roman period cannot be overestimated. Not only was it an important military centre with the establishment of a legionary fortress (Deva) in the 1st century, but the subsequent development of a major urban centre around the military site and in…
The British Cartographic Society (BCS) was formed in 1963, and since then map-making has undergone a revolution, from land survey using theodolites to digital survey using satellites. But the infrastructure for the old ways still exists and the most recent issue of Maplines, the BCS membership magazine, calls for Ordnance…
It appears that this site had been a significant place for local communities for millennia.…
Review by Mark Knight There is something of a contradiction between the main title of this publication and the archaeology presented within its pages. The book details and interprets an impressively large-scale, decade-long excavation of a low-lying Bronze Age site made up of familiar components: barrows, field systems, and settlement.…
The National Trust cares for more than 250,000ha of land, encompassing historic sites and structures spanning prehistory to the present day – but what do the Trust’s archaeologists do? Joe Flatman highlights some of their diverse roles, recent research, and how routes into the profession are evolving.…
Between 2015 and 2020, Oxford Archaeology and MOLA (Museum of London Archaeology) investigated, prior to development, parts of a Civil War rampart buried below an access yard to Savile House at New College School in Oxford. The city’s defences were established in 1642, when Charles I made the town his…
The team found that the modified stone cobbles had been used with a percussive action – either as stationary anvils or hammers – and that some preserved traces of gold contemporary with their use.…
Review by Neil Holbrook Many people have a favourite archaeological site, an evocative place that has a personal resonance with the past. The landscape setting is frequently inspirational, sometimes more so than the actual remains of the site itself. Roger White’s love of the Roman town at Wroxeter in Shropshire…
Almost 20 years ago, York Archaeological Trust were excavating part of a Roman cemetery when they uncovered dozens of decapitated skeletons. Were these the remains of gladiators? An exhibition at Cirencester’s Corinium Museum sets out the evidence, as Carly Hilts reports.…
Archaeological work ahead of a new housing development in Northamptonshire has revealed hints of possibly ceremonial activity spanning 2,000 years. Carly Hilts reports.…
We’re getting ready to hear leading experts discussing archaeology from across the UK and abroad, and we hope you can join us on 25 February (Saturday) for another stimulating and enjoyable conference. Tickets are selling fast, so book now.…