Hints from Hamptonne: How to build a Jersey farmhouse

When, in 1988, the National Trust for Jersey purchased a semi-derelict farmstead called Hamptonne, a detailed archaeological investigation followed as part of a seven-year restoration programme. The multi-period site, with 15th-century origins, opened to the public as the Hamptonne Country Life Museum. Building on what was learned from this project,…

Gladiators: A day at the Roman games

Colchester was the first capital of Roman Britain, and excavations within the town frequently uncover evidence of this chapter of its past. Colchester Castle, built over the ancient temple of Claudius, is currently home to an exhibition exploring one aspect of Roman life (and, for many unlucky participants, death): the…

La Tène: A place of memory

When La Tène was discovered more than 150 years ago, the site gave its name to the second half of the Iron Age across much of Europe, and objects of La Tène type are often equated with the Celts. But what was found at La Tène? Andrew Fitzpatrick and Marc-Antoine…

Liman Tepe: A bridge between worlds

For over 30 years a pioneering project has investigated the prehistory of the Izmir region of Turkey. What has it discovered? Vasıf ÅžahoÄŸlu told Matthew Symonds an epic tale of rise and fall, connectivity and technology, and the long shadows cast by devastating natural disasters.…

It was just meant to be a night out

John Lock resumes his occasional series on the ‘Butterfly Effect’ by examining another event that would have unforeseen consequences. This time, he turns his attention to Paul Revere’s ‘midnight ride’ and the events that became known as the ‘shot heard round the world’.…

The cruel siege of Siena

When the army of Europe’s most powerful monarch besieged the Tuscan city in 1554, it took terror and hunger to achieve what cannon and arquebus could not, as William E Welsh explains.…

Europe 1943: A year of arguments, decisions, and victories

It was the critical time, when the tide finally turned in the West. But even victories at Stalingrad, in North Africa, and in Sicily could not mask the tensions between the Allied ‘Big Three’. Eighty years on, Taylor Downing describes a pivotal period in World War II.…

The Bare Bones: Presenting a very regional Neolithic

During the early Neolithic period, a distinctive regional tradition of funerary architecture developed on either side of the waters stretching between Northern Ireland and south-western Scotland. Matt Ritchie explores how archaeological research and interpretation is helping to illuminate the chambered cairns of the North Channel and the people who built…

Fortress Londinium: Tracing London’s Roman defences

This summer, a museum displaying a portion of the wall that once encircled Roman London has opened, and three sections of the settlement’s riverside defences have been granted scheduled status. Carly Hilts visited the museum and spoke to Jane Sidell to learn more about Londonium’s fortifications.…

One and all: Discovering the distinctiveness of Cornish buildings

The Cornish Buildings Group recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. Dedicated to preserving and improving Cornwall’s built heritage, the Group has marked its half-century by publishing a short history of its achievements and a volume of conference proceedings that address the question: what defines Cornish buildings? Among the factors…

Lost orders: Time Team and the Knights Hospitaller of Halston Hall

The Knights Hospitaller were forged in the fury of the Crusades, providing protection, hospitality, and medical care for travellers in the Holy Land, and building fundraising communities back in Britain. Few of these sites have been excavated in detail, but Time Team have been investigating a Shropshire example. Carly Hilts…

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