Cover Story
‘Tired beyond all telling’: Revealing the hard, often brief, lives of pauper apprentices A collaborative project has brought to light the lives of a 19th-century community living and working in Fewston, North Yorkshire. Among their number were many children who were indentured to work in the nearby mills, and whose lives may have… Features
Above the Downs: Documenting human history from the Neolithic to the Cold War A recent survey project has analysed almost 10,000 aerial photographs as well as LiDAR imagery to explore archaeological features preserved within a large swathe of the South Downs National Park.… 
Ballynahatty: Reconstructing a rare Neolithic timber monument Ballynahatty, in County Down, Northern Ireland, is an astonishing site that deserves to be far better known for what it tells us about Neolithic timber monuments. At the core of… 
Before and after Hadrian’s Wall: Living on the Roman frontier east of the Pennines How did the construction of Hadrian’s Wall affect the communities living in its shadow? In CA 277, we reported on the apparent depopulation of Iron Age settlements in lowland Northumberland… 
The Conington teenager: Being ‘different’ in Anglo-Saxon England Excavations at Conington, Cambridgeshire, uncovered the remains of a young woman who, unusually, had been laid face-down in her early medieval grave. What can this burial tell us about her… News
Green-fingered finds: Piecing together the history of Scotney’s Old Castle Plans for a new, more sustainable garden within the ruins of Scotney Castle in Kent have given archaeologists the rare opportunity to explore the medieval mansion’s buried remains. Carly Hilts… 
Science Notes: Sticking with it: identifying woodworking strategies in the Palaeolithic Wood, for obvious reasons, is a rare discovery in the world of archaeology, with any and all recovered artefacts made from such a material heavily prized for research opportunities. Because… 
Significant Mesolithic site excavated in Bedfordshire Aseries of 25 Mesolithic pits have been discovered in Linmere, near Houghton Regis in Bedfordshire. This is the highest number of pits from this period ever found at a single… 
World News Palaeolithic portable art Image: Denis Gliksman, Inrap Several small limestone slabs, found at an open-air site at Bellegarde in south-eastern France in 2015 by Inrap archaeologists, have recently been identified… 
First finds from Milecastle 46 Last month we reported on the launch of the first modern excavations at Magna Roman fort and the nearby Milecastle 46 on Hadrian’s Wall, and finds from this period have… 
Iron Age coin hoard uncovered in Anglesey An Iron Age hoard consisting of 15 gold coins known as ‘staters’ was discovered in Llangoed Community, Anglesey, by three metal-detectorists between July 2021 and March 2022. This is the… 
Iron Age ‘warrior woman’ identified on the Isles of Scilly The recent re-analysis of an unusual Iron Age burial from the Isles of Scilly – which contained grave goods typical of both men and women from this period – has… 
Another Antonine Wall fortlet found In the wake of the discovery of the Antonine Wall fortlet found at Carleith Farm in West Dunbartonshire (see CA 400), another one has been revealed, this time at Bonnyside,… 
Rare Neolithic axe-sharpening stone discovered in Dorset Photo: Historic England Archive A stone used by Neolithic people to sharpen stone axes, known as a ‘polissoir’, has been discovered in the Valley of Stones near Portesham in Dorset.… Views
Drawing Dinas Dinlle: Caernarfon, Gwynedd The Picture Desk Based on three years of excavations at Dinas Dinlle – carried out by archaeologists from Gwynedd Archaeological Trust, CHERISH, the National Trust, and Cadw (see CA 356 and 394) –… 
Excavating the Current Archaeology Archive Comment Joe Flatman explores over half a century of reports from the past. 
Current Archaeology’s September Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home What's on If you are looking for new ways to get stuck into history and heritage over the coming months, there are plenty of opportunities. From conferences and lectures to exhibitions and… 
Heritage Open Days What's on England’s largest annual community heritage festival returns this month with a programme of activities themed around creativity, ranging from fashion and the arts to archaeological excavations and museum open days.… 
Scottish Archaeology Month 2023 What's on Archaeology Scotland’s flagship festival, Scottish Archaeology Month (SAM), is taking place throughout September. More details can be found at http://www.archaeologyscotland.org.uk/scottish-archaeology-month, but here are some highlights of what’s on offer. 
The UK Paranormal Society Groups Paranormal phenomena (meaning those that can’t be explained by science) tend to be associated with old buildings. What self-respecting historical house lacks a story of somebody whose death in sudden… 
Finds tray – Medieval seal matrix Objects This is a medieval seal matrix found by a metal-detectorist in the parish of Lockerley, Hampshire. It is made of cast copper-alloy and most likely dates to between 1470 and… 
Preserving heritage at risk Comment Christopher Catling, Contributing Editor for CA, delves into the eccentricities of the heritage world. Reviews
Beneath Our Feet: Archaeology of the Cambridge Region A new exhibition running at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge explores the wealth of human stories that have been brought to light in the surrounding region, through… Current Archaeology’s September Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home If you are looking for new ways to get stuck into history and heritage over the coming months, there are plenty of opportunities. From conferences and lectures to exhibitions and… Heritage Open Days England’s largest annual community heritage festival returns this month with a programme of activities themed around creativity, ranging from fashion and the arts to archaeological excavations and museum open days.… Scottish Archaeology Month 2023 Archaeology Scotland’s flagship festival, Scottish Archaeology Month (SAM), is taking place throughout September. More details can be found at http://www.archaeologyscotland.org.uk/scottish-archaeology-month, but here are some highlights of what’s on offer. 
Exploring Norfolk’s Deep History Coast REVIEW BY NATALIE BUTLER John Davies and David Waterhouse take the reader on an absorbing journey into Norfolk’s past. Exploring Norfolk’s Deep History Coast is carefully researched and beautifully presented.… 
Millstones of the Pennines and North West England REVIEW BY CERI PENNINGTON This engaging read explores the archaeology, geology, and history of millstones in North-West England and the Pennines. Initially focusing on the background of the study, the… 
The Road: a story of Romans and ways to the past REVIEW BY ANDREW TIBBS The Road is a personal journey by the author to experience Roman roads and how they impacted the lives of those around them, and the surrounding… 
Wild History: Journeys into Lost Scotland REVIEW BY HUGH CHEAPE James Crawford, broadcaster and writer, has won plaudits for the cultural biographies in his Fallen Glory: the lives and deaths of history’s greatest buildings, and its… 
Footmarks: a journey into our restless past REVIEW BY RICHARD BRUNNING Footmarks is a long and pleasant walk through the mind palace of prehistorian Jim Leary. Along the way, Leary’s delight in the mysteries of past human… 
From the editor
Our cover feature represents a powerful and poignant project which is helping to illuminate the often overlooked lives of ‘pauper apprentices’, children and young people aged 7-20 who were taken from urban workhouses and sent to labour away their often short lives in rural textile mills and farms. Research centred on cemetery evidence from Fewston in North Yorkshire is now bringing their experiences to light once more.
Another story that deserves to be better known is that of the Giant’s Ring, a late Neolithic henge monument near Belfast that represents the largest prehistoric ceremonial enclosure on the whole island of Ireland. The site was explored by archaeologists between 1990 and 2000, but the full excavation report has only recently been published.
Our next feature showcases an ambitious aerial survey project focused on almost 200 square kilometres of the South Downs National Park, which has documented how people have interacted with this landscape from the Neolithic period to the Cold War.
Historical human interactions with their surroundings don’t come much more dramatic than the construction of Hadrian’s Wall, and our penultimate article reveals how fortification of the Roman frontier sparked very different settlement patterns to the north and south of the new boundary.
Finally, we bring you an update on a burial that first featured in CA 339. This was the grave of an early medieval woman, discovered near Conington in Cambridgeshire during road improvement works on the A14. Unusually, she had been interred face-down, and now analysis of this enigmatic individual’s remains has allowed archaeologists to piece together clues about her life.
