Cover Story
A Roman landscape revealed : Celebrating 20 years of the Culver Archaeological Project Two decades of excavations in East Sussex farmland have uncovered the remains of an unusual enclosed settlement linking the Roman road network with the River Ouse. Rob Wallace and David Millum explain more. Features
From gasholders to chic apartments: Tracing the history of the most prominent landmarks in the gasworks industry The system whereby coal was heated and the resulting gases purified, stored, and distributed to factories, street lamps, public buildings, and, in due course, to every home was developed in… 
Paradise lost: Rediscovering a forgotten pleasure garden at Attingham Park Recent archaeological research in the grounds of a Shropshire stately home has added a surprising new chapter to the estate’s story. Viviana Caroli and Nigel Baker explain more. 
The Melsonby Hoard: Exploring unprecedented insights into Iron Age Yorkshire One of the largest Iron Age hoards ever found in the UK was recently unveiled. Comprising hundreds of metal items, its contents are shedding brilliant light on this period of… 
Building the past: Reconstructing a late Neolithic house from Wyke Down The newest archaeological reconstruction to be unveiled at Butser Ancient Farm is a late Neolithic house, based on a structure whose 5,000-year-old footprint was excavated in Dorset. CA visited the… News
Bronze Age ceremonial site identified in Farley Wood Excavations in Derbyshire have revealed that an apparently solitary standing stone in Farley Wood is in fact part of a larger ceremonial complex dating to the early Bronze Age. Standing… 
‘Portrait of Lady Jane Grey’ may have been painted during her lifetime Recent research on a portrait believed to depict Lady Jane Grey has revealed that the painting may be the only surviving image of the ‘Nine Day Queen’ that dates to… 
New insights into kinship in Neolithic Ireland A recently published study has shed new light on the ways in which kinship was tied to monuments from Ireland in the Neolithic period, suggesting that biological relationships and social… 
World news New light on Danish sun stones Hundreds of stone plaquettes from two Neolithic enclosure sites on the Danish island of Bornholm have been linked to the eruption of a volcano… 
Roman coin hoard discovered in Barton Bendish A coin hoard spanning more than 200 years of Roman history has been found near the village of Barton Bendish in Norfolk. Discovered by metal-detectorists, the 16 coins are all… 
Reconstructing the face of an Iron Age woman from Dorset The face and head of an Iron Age woman whose remains were discovered in Dorset’s Kimmeridge Bay 25 years ago have been reconstructed by an MSc Bioarchaeology student at Bournemouth… 
Science Notes: Let the sunshine in – analysing levels of Vitamin D in past populations As we move into warmer months, the words ‘I’m going to go out for some Vitamin D’ are beginning to make their appearance in conversation. Vitamin D is essential for… 
Roman brooch illuminates Iron Age Ayrshire The discovery of a rare enamelled brooch at an Iron Age settlement site in Curragh, South Ayrshire, has revealed interesting insights into how the Britons of south-west Scotland and the… Views
Current Archaeology’s May Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home What's on There are lots of great archaeological and historical events and activities coming up over the next few months, including exhibitions, festivals, and conferences. Or, if you would prefer to get… 
Go digging! Digging, What's on Following on from CA 422, this selection of summer digging opportunities includes projects in Aberdeenshire, Essex, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, and Nottinghamshire. 
Tutankhamun: The immersive exhibition What's on A recently opened experience in London is using virtual-reality technology to explore the life and times of one of ancient Egypt’s most famous pharaohs, as Carly Hilts reports. 
CA Letters 423 – May Letters World’s oldest waterworks? Chris Catling, in his excellent piece on those temples of engineering, the waterworks (CA 421), refers to a Boulton and Watt beam engine at Kew dated 1820… 
Secrets of the Thames: Mudlarking London’s lost treasures What's on A new exhibition showcasing hundreds of artefacts recovered from the banks of the River Thames sheds illuminating light on London’s long history. Carly Hilts visited the displays at London Museum… 
Planning reforms Comment The Westminster Government has published its revised National Planning Policy Framework amid a flurry of boosterish phrases about ‘backing builders not blockers’, ‘unleashing billions in economic growth’, and introducing ‘seismic… 
Roman Chester: Excavating the CA archive Comment Roman Chester – Deva Victrix – is one of the unquestioned ‘great sites’ of Roman Britain. This was a major military centre from its late 1st-century AD origins through to… 
Fortress Study Group Groups Formed in 1975 (and thus celebrating its first half-century this year), the Fortress Study Group (FSG) is devoted to the study and preservation of artillery fortifications. While early examples of… 
Finds Tray – Roman coin Objects This coin, found by a metal-detectorist near Basingstoke in Hampshire, was minted in North Africa during Julius Caesar’s Civil War (49-45 BC), and is a fascinating example of Roman Republican… Reviews
Current Archaeology’s May Listings: exhibitions, events, and heritage from home There are lots of great archaeological and historical events and activities coming up over the next few months, including exhibitions, festivals, and conferences. Or, if you would prefer to get… Go digging! Following on from CA 422, this selection of summer digging opportunities includes projects in Aberdeenshire, Essex, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, and Nottinghamshire. Tutankhamun: The immersive exhibition A recently opened experience in London is using virtual-reality technology to explore the life and times of one of ancient Egypt’s most famous pharaohs, as Carly Hilts reports. Secrets of the Thames: Mudlarking London’s lost treasures A new exhibition showcasing hundreds of artefacts recovered from the banks of the River Thames sheds illuminating light on London’s long history. Carly Hilts visited the displays at London Museum… 
Houses of the Living: Domestic architecture in England and Wales, 4000-1500 BC REVIEW BY RACHEL BALLANTYNE Fabulously comprehensive and systematic, this is primarily a resource assessment of later prehistoric structural footprints for homes – places of social reproduction, craft activities, food storage… 
The Road to Mons Graupius REVIEW BY REBECCA JONES This is not a traditional archaeology or history book. It defies conventional modern categorisation, taking its inspiration from the writings of antiquarian travellers, such as Jessie… 
A Mosaic of Recollections: Memoirs of an archaeologist REVIEW BY STEPHEN R COSH David Neal’s autobiography is a candid – sometimes perhaps too candid – account of his personal life and almost 70 years involvement in archaeology, lavishly… 
Cultural Landscapes of North-east Scotland REVIEW BY EDWARD STEWART This volume brings together an exciting range of contributions to provide new insights into the cultural landscapes of the north-east of Scotland, a region that has… 
Archaeological Excavations at Holme Hall Quarry, South Yorkshire REVIEW BY KEVIN MOON This monograph details the archaeological works undertaken by ARCUS (2004) and ARS (2015 and 2019-2022) at Holme Hall Quarry, near Doncaster, South Yorkshire. It is largely… 
From the editor
Founded in 2005, the Culver Archaeological Project has for the last two decades been uncovering a fascinating Roman landscape – including an unusual enclosed settlement – beside the River Ouse in East Sussex. With the initiative now marking its 20th anniversary, we explore some of its key findings to date.
Turning from a long-running excavation to a newly announced discovery, we then share the latest in sights into the magnificent Melsonby Hoard, one of the largest Iron Age hoards found in the UK. Research into its hundreds of components has only just begun, but this collection – discovered half a mile from the Iron Age stronghold at Stanwick – is already shedding vivid new light on this period of Yorkshire’s past, and the wealth of some of its inhabitants.
Meanwhile, echoes of rather more recent elite activity have emerged at Attingham Park, a grand country residence and National Trust property in Shropshire. There, excavations have uncovered the remains of a long-forgotten ornamental garden dating to the early 19th century.
Also originating in the 19th century, but rather more functional in design, are the gasholders that were once unmistakable industrial features of every town. Today, only around 600 examples survive; our penultimate feature traces the history of these striking structures, and the new uses that they are finding now.
Finally, we highlight a building that combines both ancient and modern themes: Butser Ancient Farm’s latest archaeological reconstruction, which depicts a late Neolithic house that was originally excavated at Wyke Down in Dorset almost 30 years ago.
CARLY
You must be logged in to post a comment.