Cover Story
Scraps of memory: Illuminating the imaginative worlds of Sutton House’s 17th-century schoolgirls A handful of tiny paper items discovered at Sutton House in Hackney offer a unique insight into the interests of the girls who were educated there in the 17th century. Carly Hilts spoke to Nathalie Cohen, Isabella Rosner, Kate Simpson,… Features
Norfolk’s earliest stone churches: Constructing a timeline of ancient religious buildings Peter Wade-Martins has visited all 649 of Norfolk’s surviving medieval churches to study the stone types used in their construction. As a result, he has identified the use of conglomerate… 
Antiquarian or archaeologist? Illustrating the influence of Edmund Tyrrell Artis In the early part of the 19th century, there began a gradual move away from antiquarian ways of simply describing archaeological features and sites towards a more analytical approach of… 
Making a splash: The Big Bronze Age Boat Build at Stanwick Lakes A recent experimental archaeology project has seen three Bronze Age-style logboats constructed and launched at Stanwick Lakes in Northamptonshire. Carly Hilts visited the project’s grand finale to learn more about… 
Buried at Bodicote: Investigating unusual inhumations at an Iron Age farmstead in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds Recent excavations at Bodicote, just south of Banbury, have revealed the remains of an Iron Age farmstead where ten storage pits had been repurposed as graves. This was not an… 
Pioneering spirit: Exploring the archaeology and history of The Glenlivet whisky Two hundred years ago, George Smith was granted the first licence to distil whisky legally in the Glenlivet area of Speyside, in the Scottish Highlands. Now archaeological fieldwork by the… News
Second World War finds unearthed in Lincolnshire Archaeological investigations in south Lincolnshire, linked to the ‘Digging Market Garden’ project, have uncovered objects relating to one of the largest airborne assaults in history – as well as some… 
World news East Africa’s earliest farming Excavations in Kenya have uncovered equatorial east Africa’s earliest evidence for plant farming. Working in Kakapel Rockshelter in the Lake Victoria Basin, archaeologists have discovered remnants… 
Caring for the sick at Cookham monastery Archaeologists excavating an Anglo-Saxon monastery in Cookham have unearthed 23 intact human burials, along with the disturbed remains of multiple other individuals. The site, which has been excavated by the… 
Possible stone circle discovered at Arthur’s Stone Excavations at Arthur’s Stone, a Neolithic burial chamber overlooking the Golden Valley in Herefordshire, have revealed evidence of a second megalithic monument on the site: a possible stone circle some… 
Science Notes: Eating fish in the medieval period A new study published in Fish and Fisheries has uncovered the piscine preferences of medieval countries in the southern North Sea area. The research analysed fish-bone remains from sites across… 
Roman road uncovered in Oxfordshire school field A summer excavation in the Oxfordshire village of Brightwell-cum-Sotwell has revealed a Roman road lying beneath the local primary school’s field. Jason Debney, chairman of the local history society, recalled… 
Rare Pictish ring found at Burghead fort An intricately set Pictish ring has been unearthed during excavations at Burghead, in Moray, home to the largest-known Pictish coastal promontory fort. Overlooking the Moray Forth, the fort would originally… 
‘Lost’ Parliamentarian house uncovered at Auckland Castle The remains of a ‘lost’ 17th-century house built by a friend of Oliver Cromwell has been rediscovered during excavations at Auckland Castle in County Durham. During the Interregnum (the period… Views
CA Letters 416 – October Letters Vitrified forts I was interested to read (in CA 415) that one version of Tinnis fort [underlying Tinnis Castle, which is shown in its medieval prime BELOW] had been set… 
London: Excavating the CA archive Comment My final geographically themed review focuses on London. I touched on some sites there in my reviews of Roman archaeology and the Thames (CA 330 and CA 343), so these… 
A marine mosaic: Wroxeter Roman City The Picture Desk Stylised dolphins and fish, in contrasting hues of red, blue, and yellow, swim across a sea of white tesserae. This striking mosaic was uncovered during excavations at Wroxeter Roman City… 
Tewkesbury Battlefield Society Groups On Saturday 4 May 1471 the ‘Wars of the Roses’ came to a head at Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. The Yorkist army commanded by Edward IV and his brother, the future Richard… 
Culture strategy in Wales Comment Sherds has recently been working on a response to the Welsh Government’s consultation on its draft Culture Strategy. This has been an opportunity for the arts, heritage, and culture sector… 
Knaresborough Heritage Centre Museum, What's on A new museum, created and funded by the local community, has opened in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire. Leon Corneille-Cowell explains how the space came to be, and highlights some of its… 
Current Archaeology’s October Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home What's on There are lots of great opportunities to get stuck into history and archaeology this autumn, whether you’re looking for conferences and lectures or new exhibitions and museum attractions. If you… 
Finds Tray – Roman chatelaine Objects This Roman chatelaine was found in Walkeringham, Nottinghamshire, and dates to AD 100-200. Cast from copper alloy, and weighing just 7g, it is beautifully decorated with a pattern of 15… Reviews
Knaresborough Heritage Centre A new museum, created and funded by the local community, has opened in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire. Leon Corneille-Cowell explains how the space came to be, and highlights some of its… Current Archaeology’s October Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home There are lots of great opportunities to get stuck into history and archaeology this autumn, whether you’re looking for conferences and lectures or new exhibitions and museum attractions. If you… 
Edinburgh: A New History REVIEW BY CH The earliest surviving written reference to Edinburgh is found in a charter of 17 July 1124 – and, to celebrate the city’s 900th ‘birthday’, Alistair Moffat has… 
Northwold Manor Reborn: Architecture, archaeology and restoration of a derelict Norfolk house REVIEW BY WILL FLETCHER This is a charming book. It features the conservation of a fine Grade II*-listed English vernacular building, situated in rural Norfolk. In total, the 13 chapters… 
Forgotten Vikings REVIEW BY AB In AD 793, Scandinavian raiders launched an attack on the island of Lindisfarne that would go down in history, and thus the Viking Age began. Or did… 
Knowth REVIEW BY JAMES O'DRISCOLL The passage-tomb complex of Knowth is often relegated to the status of smaller sibling to the better known Newgrange, despite it being of international importance in… 
Becoming Roman in North East Lincolnshire: Excavation and survey along the A160/A180 Port of Immingham Improvement Scheme REVIEW BY ADAM DAUBNEY This volume sets out the results of excavations and survey along a 5km stretch of the A160/A180 in north-east Lincolnshire. Excavations were carried out within an… 
Early Roman waterfront development: Excavations at Regis House, City of London, 1994-6 REVIEW BY RP The site of Regis House (encompassing 41-46 King William Street and adjoining properties in EC4, London) was extensively excavated between 1994 and 1996 by the Museum of… 
From the editor
Children often leave only faint traces in the archaeological record, so it is always exciting to be able to piece together their experiences in the past. Our cover feature visits Sutton House in Hackney, once a 17th-century girls’ school, where delicate scraps of paper have offered unique insights into the imaginations of one group of young women.
Turning from educational ephemera to the complexities of prehistoric funerary practices, we next travel to Bodicote in Oxfordshire, home to an Iron Age farmstead, including ten pit burials with unexpected attributes.
From treatment of the dead to the ‘water of life’, we then turn the spotlight on Speyside, one of five recognised whisky-producing regions in Scotland, where archaeologists have been uncovering one of the area’s earliest legal distilleries.
The buildings in our next feature have a rather more sacred flavour: Norfolk’s almost 650 surviving medieval churches, which often incorporate Roman remains into their masonry. What can be learned about their development?
Much smaller constructions come next: a trio of Bronze Age-style log-boats built during an experimental archaeology project at Stanwick Lakes in Northamptonshire. CA went to watch the craft take to the water for the first time, and to learn about the country park’s archaeological legacy and ongoing heritage programme.
Speaking of experimental archaeology, you might call Edmund Artis an early pioneer, as he built a replica Roman kiln to test his theories in the 19th century. Our final feature recounts his eventful life and lasting influence – and, given CA’s enthusiasm for ‘edible archaeology’, I am delighted that it all began with a cake shaped like a castle.
CARLY
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