Digging the beautiful game in Glasgow
Previously used by Queen’s Park FC, who built the second Hampden Park there in 1884, the football ground was re-established as New Cathkin Park in 1904 by Third Lanark.
Post-Medieval & Industrial
CWA 114 Letters
Your observations, your objections, and your opinions.
Life and death in an early South Australian colony
Information about the health of early migrants to South Australia was obtained through analysis such as micro-CT scanning of their teeth.
The Restless Republic: Britain without a crown
The execution of King Charles I in January 1649 and the subsequent abolition of the monarchy turned Britain into a republic, which it would remain until the Restoration of Charles II 11 years later. Yet it is a period of…
British soldiers whose remains were excavated in Dutch city died of illness, not injury, research finds
Located in the centre of the Netherlands, Vianen saw two wars in the 18th century, the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748) and later the Flanders campaign of 1793-1795.
Review: Fort George
Open 9.30am-5.30pm daily (April to September) and 10am-4pm daily (October to March)Ardersier, Inverness, IV2 7TDwww.historicenvironment.scot/visit-a-place/places/fort-george/+44 (0) 1667 462 834 Fort George is an imposing reminder of a turbulent period in British history. Its commanding position on the Moray Firth in…
Research project announced into royal shipwreck discovered off Norfolk coast
Due to her age and prestige, the condition of the wreck, and the accident’s political context, the discovery has been described as the most important British maritime find since that of Mary Rose in 1971.
More details on the historic royal shipwreck found off Norfolk coast
The find has been hailed as the most significant British maritime discovery since the Mary Rose.
Lessons from Canterbury: saving heritage with new approaches to urban development
Influential figures in the heritage world are concerned about the scale and height of new buildings proposed for the centre of Canterbury, where the primacy of the cathedral as a focal point of views and the intimacy of historic streets are under threat. Chris Catling reports on a manifesto for the city produced by SAVE Britain’s Heritage, warning against the mistakes of post-war development and recommending a new approach that has lessons for many of our towns and cities.
The Florence Nightingale Museum, London
With the Florence Nightingale Museum having recently reopened, Carly Hilts dropped by to learn more about the life, legacy, and legend of the ‘Lady with the Lamp’.
Finds tray – Victorian letterpress printing plate
This 19th-century letterpress printing plate was found by a metal-detectorist, on cultivated land in Warwickshire, last summer. It is made from copper alloy, and – measuring 6.24cm by 4cm by 0.48cm – it weighs just over 100g. Rectangular plates like…
Travellers from an antique land: exploring the collections of the Society of Antiquaries of London
As the Society of Antiquaries of London launches a new affiliate membership, increasing access to its library and museum collections for the general public, Carly Hilts visited Burlington House to learn more about three centuries of antiquarian activity, and its very eclectic holdings.
Jubilee listings and haunted homes
Woodchester Mansion is considered to be one of the UK’s most haunted buildings, and people pay large sums to spend the night in the freezing cold mansion with their ghost-detecting cameras and radar equipment.
Burials uncovered at Leicester Cathedral
All individuals will be carefully reburied following completion of the research work.
HMS Invincible: excavating a Georgian time capsule
In its heyday, HMS Invincible was considered one of the finest ships in the Royal Navy – and although it sank off Portsmouth in 1758, its remains represent the best-preserved 18th-century warship known in UK waters. Carly Hilts spoke to Daniel Pascoe, who headed recent excavations of the wreck, and visited an exhibition currently running at The Historic Dockyard Chatham to find out more.
Wreckage of 17th century warship HMS Gloucester discovered off Norfolk coast
'This can be claimed as the single most significant historic maritime discovery since the raising of the Mary Rose in 1982.’
The science of conservation: preserving Tudor bricks from the Mary Rose
The Tudor vessel sank during the Battle of the Solent in 1545, and its surviving timbers and contents have been undergoing conservation since the wreck was raised in 1982
Farming Wales
This image shows Esgair Llewelyn in Powys, one of the oldest farmhouses in Wales. It was built as a cruck-framed upland hallhouse c.1500. It would have originally had an open fire in the middle of the hall floor, but the…
This week: Marble Hill
The glorious, far-reaching south-western outlook from Richmond Hill has long been one of England's most famous views. For centuries, painters (including Reynolds, Gainsborough, Constable and Turner) have climbed to the top in search of inspiration from the landscape, and to marvel at the beauty of the Thames as it wends its way serenely past the grand houses below.
Restoring Marble Hill: how archaeology helped to revive a Georgian gem
When Henrietta Howard (née Hobart) built her Thames-side country house in Twickenham in the 1720s, it represented so much more than a fashionable escape from the bustle of court life: it was a refuge from her abusive marriage, and a sign of hard-won independence. With the house and its grounds now restored to their Georgian glory, and the site reopening to the public, Carly Hilts visited to find out more.
The Faversham Society
‘Widening access’ and ‘access for all’ are two of the slogans that characterise today’s heritage practice, but the community-minded people of Faversham have been doing access for half a century. Open House, held almost every July since 1982, sees the…
New analysis from Oxford hospital cemetery
‘We’ve been able to diagnose tuberculosis, a possible case of leprosy [a rare find for this period], and syphilis.’
Georgian Britain Quiz
The death of which monarch led to the accession of George I?
Japan: Courts and Culture
A new exhibition at the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, tells the story of 350 years of interaction between the British and Japanese royal and imperial families. Amy Brunskill visited to find out more.
Conservation work on Constable painting reveals long-lost Thames skyline
Bright blue skies and a view of the early 19th-century Thames skyline were revealed after layers of yellowed varnish were removed.
Rare suits of Japanese samurai armour go on display together for the first time
The collection forms part of a new exhibition, Japan: courts and culture, which is being shown at the Queen’s Gallery in Buckingham Palace.
The King’s culprits: what became of the prisoners of 1798?
Inspired by the American and French revolutions, the Irish Rebellion of 1798 saw thousands take up arms against against British rule. But though it would inspire future generations of republicans, the rising was quickly crushed and many of the rebels were taken prisoner. Patrick Mercer looks at what happened next.
London’s finest craftspeople come together to discuss city’s heritage
The event, Meet the Makers Behind London's Heritage, is being hosted by the Heritage of London Trust (HOLT), an independent charity which has spearheaded restoration projects in the city for over 40 years.
Street Furniture
Review by AB. The term ‘street furniture’ encompasses a wide range of everyday objects that are found along roads and in towns and cities around the world, from manhole covers and postboxes to bus stops and cabman’s shelters. In this…
Ruins, Remains and Relics: Sussex
Review by Robin Hughes. Ruins, Remains and Relics: Sussex is a miscellany, organised into the three titular groups, of various historical curiosities from across the historic county of Sussex. Horlock explicitly emphasises the ‘unusual, offbeat, and decidedly quirky’, and the…
English Civil War defences unearthed in King’s Lynn
The excavations featured in a recent episode of The Great British Dig.
Paper worlds and hidden masterpieces
A small selection of the thousands of drawings compiled by Regency architect Sir John Soane have gone on display in London, among them exquisite works that bring us visions of ancient monuments abroad and of unrealised splendour in England. Lucia Marchini takes a look.
On show in 2022: exhibitions from around the world
The dates listed below may have changed since we went to print. Check the websites of the museums for the most up-to-date information and bookings.
Institutions acquire new artworks inspired by the ancients
A rare history painting by the French artist Marie-Guillemine Benoist (1768-1826) has recently joined the collections of Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
Paintings of Catholic saints returned to Chastleton House following conservation work
A fourth portrait – St Ambrose of Milan – has been missing since the early 20th century.
Victorian vents and Roman roads
Inventive Vents has a clever way of engaging younger people with scatological anecdotes, in the style of Horrible Histories. Thus we are told that the innocuously named Carting Lane was known colloquially as ‘Farting Lane’ because of the smell of sewer gas.