Cover Story
The world of Stonehenge: placing a famous monument in context A new exhibition at the British Museum explores the landscape that Stonehenge emerged from, and the social, cultural, and technological transformations it witnessed. Neil Wilkin and Jennifer Wexler told CA more. Features
Artistic obscurity: analysing Britain’s most elusive Roman sculptures Research in the hinterland of Hadrian’s Wall has revealed remarkable examples of Romano-British artistry hidden in plain sight. Ian Haynes and Lindsay Allason-Jones explore some of the key examples identified… 
Reinterpreting 15th-century wall paintings in Shakespeare’s Schoolroom Recent analysis of 600-year-old murals in Stratford-upon-Avon’s historic guildhall has revealed clues to their probable date, as well as the purpose behind their creation. As the building, now a visitor… 
HS2 works uncover major Roman trading settlement Excavations in advance of HS2 construction in Northamptonshire have uncovered the remains of a previously unknown Iron Age village that grew into a flourishing Roman trading settlement. Carly Hilts spoke… 
Family matters: tracing kinship links in a Neolithic tomb Genetic analysis of 35 individuals buried in a Gloucestershire long cairn has reconstructed a 5,700-year-old family tree spanning five generations, shedding unprecedented light on Neolithic social structures and how people… 
Family ties: deciphering the DNA of the Amesbury Archer and the Companion Twenty years ago, one of the richest Bell Beaker burials ever found in Europe was discovered close to Stonehenge. At that time, DNA analysis was not sufficiently advanced to learn… 
Quarrying clues: exploring the symbolism of Neolithic stone extraction The bluestone circles at Stonehenge represent one of the best-known examples of Neolithic skill in the extraction and long-distance transport of stone, but archaeologists have recorded thousands of equally awe-inspiring… News
‘Disappearing’ Hadrian’s Wall ditch marked in Cumbria The ditch was not recorded on English Heritage’s 2010 Hadrian’s Wall map and was thus in danger of fading from written records. 
Remains of a medieval tower discovered at Auckland Castle The team, from Durham University’s Department of Archaeology, working in partnership with archaeologists and volunteers from The Auckland Project, found the tower’s steps and stone foundations. 
Mitigating heritage loss at Seaford Head An Iron Age hill fort and multiperiod site under threat from coastal erosion at Seaford Head in East Sussex is being investigated as part of a new initiative tackling the… 
Bronze Age hoards in Wales declared Treasure The larger of the two hoards comprises fragments of seven socketed axes, a piece of sword-blade, two ingots, and six casting jets 
New aDNA evidence for Bronze Age migration into Britain A new investigation has now seen an international team of more than 200 geneticists and archaeological scientists discover aDNA evidence for a second significant and hitherto unknown Bronze Age migration… 
Rare Roman carving found in Buckinghamshire The anthropomorphic figure, which is 67cm tall and 18cm wide, was found in an excellent state of preservation due the ditch being water-logged 
New excavations at Yeavering Durham University investigations have revealed previously unknown aspects of the 7th-century settlement. 
Oldest ink pen found in Ireland Its discovery is significant because while there is archaeological evidence for secular literacy in the Roman and early medieval periods in Britain, this is not really the case in Ireland 
Galloway Hoard jar belonged to medieval bishop Discovered by a metal-detectorist in 2014, the hoard comprises more than 100 objects of gold, silver, copper-alloy, glass, earth, crystal, and other minerals... Views
Current Archaeology LIVE! 2022 – new speakers confirmed! Competitions, What's on It is almost time for Current Archaeology Live! 2022, which will run from 25 to 27 February. We have an excellent line-up of leading archaeological experts ready to share their… 
Museum news – January 2022 Museum, What's on The latest on acquisitions, exhibitions, and key decisions. 
Excavating Cambridgeshire Comment, Places Meanwhile, at Yaxley, Current Archaeology reported on work examining the archaeology of the ‘second’ English Civil War, during which the village church of St Peter’s was the scene of an… 
Reading between the runes The Picture Desk The British Museum’s Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) recently passed the milestone of one million records generated since the project’s foundation in 1997. Among the highlights announced at the launch of… 
Events, exhibitions, and heritage from home – Spring 2022 Museum, What's on There is a great variety of archaeological and historical exhibitions, events, and activities scheduled for the coming year, and we have gathered a selection of the opportunities on offer below,… 
The Society for Landscape Studies Groups When The Making of the English Landscape by W G Hoskins was published in 1954, its author claimed that ‘no book exists to describe the manner in which the various… 
Gold coin of Elizabeth I Objects This coin, found near Shrewsbury, Shropshire, is one of a series of high denomination gold coins issued during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558-1603). Elizabethan coins are among the objects… 
Victorian architecture Comment There is a growing realisation that the solution to the climate emergency is to retrofit existing buildings, with all their embodied carbon and energy, rather than to build new ‘environmentally… 
Cultures of cloth in the medieval East Midlands Museum, What's on The Midlands was a key centre for wool-production and textile-making during the medieval period. Carly Hilts visited an exhibition at the University of Nottingham Museum and spoke to Chris King… Reviews
Roman Bath: a new history and archaeology of Aquae Sulis For me, the crux of this book comes on page 132. Peter Davenport explains that ‘the plan of the Classical temple [was altered] into something quite similar to the more… Current Archaeology LIVE! 2022 – new speakers confirmed! It is almost time for Current Archaeology Live! 2022, which will run from 25 to 27 February. We have an excellent line-up of leading archaeological experts ready to share their… 
Greco-Roman Medicine and What It Can Teach Us Today This book examines aspects of the medicine practised in the Roman Empire from the reign of Augustus to that of Marcus Aurelius. ‘Roman medicine’ was an amalgam, which combined the… 
Prehistoric Rock Art in Scotland: archaeology, meaning and engagement Over the past 50 years or so, the later prehistoric open-air rock art of Scotland has received much useful attention with the sterling work of researchers Ronald Morris and Stan… Events, exhibitions, and heritage from home – Spring 2022 There is a great variety of archaeological and historical exhibitions, events, and activities scheduled for the coming year, and we have gathered a selection of the opportunities on offer below,… 
Iron Age and Roman Settlement at Highflyer Farm, Ely, Cambridgeshire This well-produced collaborative volume (with 12 subsidiary authors and two illustrators) presents – very timeously – the results of the 2018 excavation of c.4.5ha of development land on the outskirts… 
Explorations in Archaeology and Philosophy Showcasing 12 articles in four parts, Explorations in Archaeology and Philosophy emerged from a 2017 interdisciplinary conference, and the editors aimed to represent the diversity of topics that arise when… 
The Metal in Britain’s Coins: where did it come from and how did it get here? At a time when even the highest-value coin in regular circulation (£2) will sometimes hardly cover the cost of a cup of coffee, it is refreshing to be transported back… Cultures of cloth in the medieval East Midlands The Midlands was a key centre for wool-production and textile-making during the medieval period. Carly Hilts visited an exhibition at the University of Nottingham Museum and spoke to Chris King… 
From the editor
This month’s cover star is, of course, Stonehenge – one of the most recognisable archaeological sites in Britain. What can we understand about the world that this famous monument emerged from, though, and how much can we know about the experiences of the people who built it? A new exhibition at the British Museum places the site in its wider context, and explores the transformative social, cultural, and technological changes that it witnessed.
While our cover feature considers the ideas and identities that Stonehenge may have been intended to express, was there also deeper meaning in the act of sourcing its raw materials? Our next article discusses ideas of significance and symbolism in Neolithic stone extraction.
Stone and the art of shaping it also plays a key role in our third feature, which showcases the latest findings of the Elusive Sculptures project. Researchers have been documenting previously unrecorded Roman carvings and inscriptions that have lain hidden for hundreds of years – many of them in plain sight.
Centuries-old artistic secrets have been coming to light in Stratford-upon-Avon too. We have visited the town’s medieval guildhall to learn more about 15th-century wall paintings that were covered over during the Protestant Reformation – and about the building where William Shakespeare is thought to have attended school.
Finally, bookending this issue with more news from Salisbury Plain, we bring you the latest findings following ancient DNA analysis of the Amesbury Archer, an early Bronze Age migrant from the Continent who was given one of Europe’s richest Bell Beaker burials a short distance from Stonehenge.
