Minerva’s April listings: 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.
UK
King’s Lynn under siege: how a small field in North Lynn illuminated Civil War fortress engineering
This year is the 380th anniversary of the Siege of King’s Lynn, an important but often overlooked engagement during the Civil War. David Flintham presents the latest findings of a community archaeology project exploring the town’s fortifications.
CA 398 Letters – April
Your views on issues raised in Current Archaeology.
World news in brief: Neolithic burials, early bone weapons, and the Notre-Dame’s dead
A round-up of some of the latest archaeology news from around the world.
Winters in the world: a journey through the Anglo-Saxon world
Review by Rosalind Love The engagingly lyrical writing of Eleanor Parker has gained many admirers through her website ‘A Clerk of Oxford’, which gently introduced readers to the rich literature, folklore, and religion of early medieval England. Her latest book…
The Coffin Roads: journeys to the West
Review by Hugh Cheape Professor Ian Bradley has identified a network of routes extending for miles across our upland and island areas and radiating out from long-used burial grounds. The routes are marked by cairns where funerals, carrying the deceased…
Go digging! Fieldwork opportunities in the UK and Ireland
This summer offers a wealth of opportunities to get involved in fieldwork in the UK and Ireland. Ceri Pennington has put together some regional highlights for 2023, but see www.the-past.com/digs for even more archaeological experiences.
Science Notes: Recreating Neolithic violence
A recent study aimed to determine whether stone axes and adzes – common tools during the Neolithic – were also used as weapons.
UK news in brief: digging at the Ness of Brodgar, researching Saxon burials, and analysing a Viking Age boat
A round-up of some of the latest archaeology news from around the UK.
The Gloucester: piecing together the story of a royal wreck
A new exhibition at Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery features artefacts recovered from the wreck of the Gloucester, which sank off Norfolk in 1682. Carly Hilts visited and spoke to curators Professor Claire Jowitt and Dr Francesca Vanke to find out more.
Medieval Bridges of Southern England: 100 bridges, 1000 years
Review by Stuart Brookes Falling somewhere between a gazetteer, reference manual, and coffee-table book, it’s a little difficult to figure out who the intended market for this volume might be. Although containing many beautiful photographs, it doesn’t quite qualify as…
Excavating Glasgow and Edinburgh
This was the first evidence for the cult of Mithras in Scotland, and it changed our view of Roman religion on the northern frontier.
On the origins of ‘woke’
Most of us would guess that this was a word of recent coinage, but it first occurred in the lyrics of a 1938 song by the blues singer Lead Belly
Unusual artefact from Vindolanda re-investigated
Researchers suggest that this could have been some kind of sexual implement, something that is rarely considered among archaeological artefacts
Standing in the presence of a saint: reconstructing the shrine of Thomas Becket
Last month, Warwick Rodwell guided us through recent research in Canterbury Cathedral, focusing on the virtuosic mosaic that once lay before the shrine of Thomas Becket. As a sequel, he now reveals what was learned about the shrine itself, and the chapel in which it stood before the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
Exhibitions, events, and activities – April listings
There are lots of great archaeological events coming up over the next few months, including new exhibitions, lectures, and conferences. Or, if you would prefer to get your history and heritage fix at home, there is a wide selection of resources available, from virtual tours of museums and heritage sites to radio and TV shows, games, and activities. Amy Brunskill has put together a summary of some of the options available.
First residue analysis of a medieval stone cresset conducted
As most cressets from Britain do not have any evidence of residue on them, it had previously been thought that they may have been used to hold ceramic lamps
The Emperor Nero’s Pottery and Tilery at Little London, Pamber, by Silchester, Hampshire: the excavations of 2017
Review by James Gerrard This is a handsomely produced and richly illustrated volume detailing the results of the University of Reading’s research excavations at Little London, just to the south-west of the Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester; see CA…
Current Archaeology Live! 2023: the debrief
At the end of February, more than 400 people came to UCL’s Institute of Education in London for our first in-person conference since 2020. Here is a round-up of what went on.
Wealden Iron Research Group
The members of the Wealden Iron Research Group (WIRG) are dedicated to recovering the evidence for an industry that began in the Iron Age and blossomed under Roman imperial management, producing materials for the building of towns, villas, and farms,…
At the edge of the world: exploring early medieval asceticism on the Skelligs
Skellig Michael – the larger of two rocky islets that lie 8 miles (13km) west of the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland – was the favoured retreat of early medieval monks seeking an escape from worldly temptations. Reading the newly published Book of the Skelligs, Chris Catling gains some insights into the conditions those hermits endured and the reasons why the islands were added to the list of World Heritage Sites in 1996.
Work begins on reassembling the Newport ship
This January, conservation of the roughly 2,500 timbers recovered from the wreck was completed – a process that took 14 years
Treasures of Roman Yorkshire
Review by Peter Halkon As the cover note states, this is an accessible introduction to the major artefacts and sites within the county. As Adam is a member of the curatorial staff at the Yorkshire Museum in York, the book’s…
Roman place of worship found under Leicester Cathedral
The chamber is believed to have been built in the 2nd century AD and would have been semi-subterranean, with brightly painted stone walls and a concrete floor.
Stories of St James’s Burial Ground
A new exhibition running at St James’s Church in Piccadilly tells the story of how HS2 works uncovered a huge Georgian and Victorian burial ground near Euston Station, and introduces some of the individuals laid to rest there. Carly Hilts visited to find out more.
50 Finds from Somerset: objects from the Portable Antiquities Scheme
Review by KK In the latest addition to the 50 Finds series from the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), Laura Burnett, the Finds Liaison Officer for Somerset, takes us on a tour of the county through some of the most important…
Spring cleaning at Fishbourne Roman Palace
Fishbourne Roman Palace in West Sussex is home to the largest collection of in situ Roman mosaics in Britain – including the famous ‘Cupid on a Dolphin’ mosaic seen here. There are 29 such floors on display. In advance of…
Finds tray – medieval silver-gilt strap-end
This late medieval silver-gilt strap-end was recently featured in the British Museum’s Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and Treasure annual reports. It was discovered in October 2021 by a metal-detectorist in the parish of Worldham in East Hampshire. Dating to around…
Reimagining the Govan Stones: placing archaeology at the heart of a Glasgow community
Govan Old Parish Church is home to one of the most significant collections of Viking Age carved stones in the British Isles, and recent fieldwork in the churchyard has revealed the presence of further examples buried beneath the turf. Carly Hilts spoke to Stephen Driscoll about the latest findings, and about an initiative to forge new connections between the church, its archaeological holdings, and the local community.
Iron Age comb made from human skull bone among A14 finds
The artefact was found at Bar Hill, approximately four miles north-west of Cambridge, and is believed to date to the Iron Age (c.750 BC-AD 43).
Museum news: Iron Age shield and Declaration of Arbroath go on show
The latest on exhibitions, acquisitions, and key decisions.
Re-examination of the Colchester Vase reveals it was made locally
The vase was found in a grave, located outside Roman Colchester, having been reused as a cremation urn.
Medieval watermill revealed in Buckinghamshire
Evidence of a possible prehistoric ring ditch was also identified at the site
Roman and Saxon cemetery unearthed in Leeds
The 1,600-year-old site has yielded the remains of a high-status Roman woman interred in a lead coffin.
Stand ‘Easy’: searching for the ‘Band of Brothers’ at Aldbourne
Before the celebrated US paratroopers known as ‘Easy’ Company were deployed on D-Day, they were based at Aldbourne in Wiltshire. What have recent excavations revealed about their camp? Richard Osgood reports.
Echoes from the arena: exploring evidence for gladiators in York and Cirencester
Last month’s CA reviewed an exhibition in Cirencester that features six ‘gladiator’ skeletons excavated in York. Struck by the fact that Cirencester has an impressive amphitheatre, but no direct evidence for the individuals who may have fought there, while York has potential gladiators but as-yet no trace of any amphitheatre, Carly Hilts presents a tale of two settlements, exploring life and death in the ancient arena.