MP calls for Flag Fen funding

From Peterborough Today.

CITY MP Stewart Jackson has urged the Government to cough up money to help a cash-strapped archaeological site near Peterborough.

Flag Fen to the east of the city, is described by Mr Jackson as "one of Western Europe's finest Bronze Age sites".

But the attraction – which needs about £300,000 a year to cover its bills – receives no funding from Whitehall.

Mr Jackson has tabled a Parliamentary question to ask if the Government plans to dip into its coffers to support the expansion of the exhibition at the site and further excavations to unearth more of its secrets.

He said: "We should be proud we have one of western Europe's finest Bronze Age sites and I think it will be very much part of a tourism strategy which includes the cathedral, Ferry Meadows and Central Park.
"But because it's so near the urban area I think it's kind of overshadowed, and there's a lack of transport to it and publicity about it.

"There's a lot more excavation work to be done there and it has massive potential for education and tourism.

"It would be a tragedy if it had to close, or further excavation could not be done before the site deteriorates."

The remains at Flag Fen were discovered in 1982 by Professor Francis Pryor, who now appears on Channel 4's archaeological programme, Time Team.

He literally stumbled on a piece of wood protruding from the ground while carrying out a dyke survey for English Heritage.

Further delvings exposed a Bronze Age ceremonial platform the size of Wembley Stadium and a causeway leading from Northey Road to where the power station sits today, thought to date from around 3,500 years ago.

The site now boasts a visitors' centre, museum and a reconstructed roundhouse based on a layout found during excavations.

But Flag Fen's general manager, Georgia Butters, said it received no help towards meeting its £300,000 annual running and research bills from the Government or city council.

Instead, Flag Fen depends on grants from English Heritage and other bodies limited to specific projects rather than for ongoing costs, plus admission fees and donations.

Ms Butters said only 10 per cent of the site has been excavated so far, sparking fears that hidden archaeological treasures may be lost as the ground dries out due to climate change, drainage work on the Fens, and new developments.

She welcomed Mr Jackson's call for more funding.

Ms Butters said: "Anything the local MP or others can do to raise awareness or our plight is much appreciated."

The full article contains 431 words and appears in Peterborough ET newspaper.

Last Updated: 08 March 2008 12:15 PM

Full story here.

Dig uncovers Iron Age waterhole

From BBC news.

Archaeologists have found what they describe as a remarkable Iron Age waterhole on the site of an extension to York University.

The waterhole complete with a preserved wickerwork lining was revealed during excavations in Heslington village.

The structure also contains fragments of wood giving clues to the landscape of the time, about 2,500 years ago.

The university's archaeology department plans more digs at the site, which also contains an important Roman building.

The university plans to open the site to local archaeological community groups as well as allowing students access to a live dig.

'Fantastic opportunity'

Steve Roskams, of the Department of Archaeology, said: "Exciting archaeological discoveries very often follow hot on the heels of planned commercial developments. That's what has happened here.

"It's a fantastic opportunity to learn more about what our local landscape was like thousands of years ago, and we intend to make the most of it."

Initial analysis suggests that the only evidence of high-status Roman architecture dates from quite late in the Roman period.

"If this is confirmed," said Mr Roskams, "it could indicate that York was essentially little more than a military enclave during the early part of the Roman occupation, only developing into the full-scale imperial settlement of Eboracum centuries later."

Full story here.

The Rollrights are in the firing line again.

From the 24 Hour Museum.
In the wake of the drawn out proposals to divert the main road next to Stonehenge into a tunnel to improve the historic landscape, trustees of an ancient monument in Oxfordshire are set to do battle to prevent a new traffic plan spoiling the site of another stone circle.

The Rollright Stones, which date back about 4,500 years, could have heavy goods vehicles sent thundering down the lane that passes between the stone circle and associated megaliths, if a new traffic management proposal goes ahead.

The proposal is one of several options outlined by West Oxfordshire County Council to deal with air quality in nearby market town Chipping Norton, which mean that alternative routes for traffic are being sought.

A new by-pass has been all but ruled out due to high costs and the time it would take to build, so diversions and widening of existing routes around the town are favoured by the air quality action plan.

The lane would have to be widened under the £4.95m scheme, the Cross Hands Lane Diversion, which is now open for public consultation. It is billed as taking five to seven years to complete, but could be prolonged if scheduled ancient monument consent is needed, which it would indeed, to pass through the stones site. Other proposals being considered would also keep traffic on the edge of the town.

“It’s ironic really when there’s been such effort put into the roads around Stonehenge that this should even be contemplated,” said George Lambrick, Chair of the Rollright Trust.

Traffic is a serious problem in Chipping Norton, where nitrogen dioxide levels from fumes along the busiest thoroughfares are far above the government target of 21 parts per billion.

“It’s a genuine problem,” said George, “but simply moving it from one nice place to another is not the solution.”

“The main thing is concern over air quality, which should be resolved through technology and regulation of emissions.”

However, while residents may complain that stones do not suffer from exhaust fumes, the Rollright Trustees would beg to differ – the stones are home to lichens which could be seriously damaged by increased air pollution.

“We’ve found 59 different species of lichen on the stones, and while dating them may not be perfectly accurate, measurements show that one of them could be the oldest in Britain, going back to 1100AD,” explained George.

Full story here.

National Archaeology Week 2008

From the CBA website.

National Archaeology Week is your unique chance to discover and explore the archaeological heritage of the United Kingdom. During this NINE DAY event, which will run from 12th–20th July, you can take part in excavation open days, hands-on activities, family fun days, guided tours, exhibitions, lectures, ancient art and craft workshops and much, much more.

'National Archaeology Week is the CBA's flagship event, a national festival of archaeology with numerous events ... which showcase the best of British archaeology and allow everyone to see archaeology in action'.

Mike Heyworth, Director, CBA

The aim of this annual event is to encourage everyone, and especially young people and their families to visit sites of archaeological/historical interest or museums, heritage and resource centres, to see archaeology in action and to take part in activities on-site.

Events will be taking place all over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Details of events taking place in 2008 will be placed on this webpage in Spring 2008.

Full details at the Council for British Archaeology website.

Portable Antiquities Scheme to move to BM

Margaret Hodge was the answering minister in a parliamentary debate over the future of the Portable Antiquities Scheme yesterday, during which she revealed that the Museum, Libraries and Archives Council were negotiating with the British Museum with the aim that the scheme will eventually be run from there.

Margaret Hodge put on a less than fiery performance, first praising the success of the scheme to the heavens, then telling us we were lucky to have it at all. She managed to evade detailed questions about next month's Finds Liason Officer's 3 year contract renewals and what the move will mean for them by waffling, then came out with the following reminder;

"Every organisation that enjoys any benefits in the form of resources from the public purse should be consistently reviewing its processes and how it operates, and can, every year, eke out some savings."

30 million Stonehenge bypass inquiry anyone?

I also wonder if the PAS liason officers get to claim expenses of up to £250 without reciepts. Apparently there's eking, and there's eking..

Full transcript from this most excellent website...
Click on any ministers name to see their history, and how they voted on key issues in the past. You can even add your own comments to the debate. I love the internet. It's beginning to out the 'demos' back into democracy.

Roman shops unearthed under Corn Hall

Take this with a pinch of salt - the paragraph;

"A series of walls were discovered 10 feet below the level of the floorboards in the main room of the 19th Century building along with evidence the site used to house shops over 2,000 years ago."

rather suggests that the Roman shops would have been up and running when Claudius was a toddler.

From the Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard

THE remains of an ancient Roman shopping parade, hidden for centuries under the floorboards of Cirencester's historic Corn Hall have been unearthed this week.

Workers came across the remains of what archaeologists claim is the most significant Roman discovery in the town in the last 50 years while carrying out refurbishment work.

A series of walls were discovered 10 feet below the level of the floorboards in the main room of the 19th Century building along with evidence the site used to house shops over 2,000 years ago.

And alongside the remains evidence of Ermine Street, the famous Roman road which ran from Silchester to Gloucester.

Laurie Coleman of Cotswold Archaeology, project manager for the dig, said it was no surprise to make the discovery in a town with such a rich Roman history.

"There is always the expectation there will be some archaeology but the features that we found were completely new to us.

Full story here.

Arriving soon at Stonehenge: 480 trucks a day from Tesco's 'megashed'

From the Guardian.

It is known as "the gateway to the south-west" and the "holiday trail". But the A303, which links Devon with the M3, is also notorious as a road plagued by tailbacks where frustrated families queue for hours en route to the English riviera and beyond.

It may be about to get worse. On a greenfield site just outside Andover, Hampshire, Tesco is planning to open a warehouse which, at more than 85,000 sq metres (21 acres), will be one of the biggest buildings in Europe. It will be bigger than Heathrow's terminal 5 and the height of four double-decker buses, each stacked on top of the other.

Every minute of every hour, day and night for 364 days a year, an average of one Tesco juggernaut will roll in or out of the so-called MegaShed.

Suppliers bringing in goods destined for Tesco's stores are likely to produce as much heavy goods traffic again. About half the lorries, according to the developer, will head east towards London and the M3 - back in the direction from which most of the goods have arrived. One in five will head down the A303 past Stonehenge, where the road becomes a single carriageway. Plans to build a Stonehenge bypass, complete with a tunnel, were thrown out by the government in December.

The MegaShed is planned for a 50-hectare site on a disused airfield, once the home of the Royal Flying Corps, just outside Andover.

In a far corner of the site, with traffic thundering along the A303 in the distance, a red balloon is tethered two metres off the ground. The balloon marks the planned road level around the MegaShed.

Full story here.

Visitor centre so ugly it might place the Giant's Causeway on the World Heritage 'at risk' register

From the Belfast Telegraph.

Monday, March 03, 2008

By David Gordon

Government environment advisers feared the Giant's Causeway would be placed on a world heritage at risk list if visitor centre proposals tabled by developer Seymour Sweeney were approved, the Belfast Telegraph has learned.

The warning was sounded last December by a senior official in the DoE's Environment and Heritage Service (EHS).

It came as Minister Arlene Foster was finalising her decision on Mr Sweeney's application for a new private sector centre building at Northern Ireland's only Unesco world heritage site.

Mrs Foster revealed to the Assembly in January that she was refusing permission, reversing her earlier position of being " of a mind" to approve.

Mr Sweeney is to challenge her decision through a hearing at the independent Planning Appeals Commission.

The EHS concerns about the Causeway's world heritage site status were conveyed in a high-level memo to colleagues in the DoE's planning service.

It has been made publicly available as part of the open planning file on the application from Mr Sweeney's firm, Seaport Investments.

Written by EHS's Director of Natural Heritage, Graham Seymour, the memo outlined the ground rules established by United Nations body Unesco for development close to the Causeway.

Unesco is responsible for the historic north Antrim attraction's world heritage classification.

Mr Seymour's memo noted that the National Trust and Moyle Council had ruled out removing their existing visitor facilities above the Causeway.

He said Unesco was likely to take a "critical" view of a doubling of building "footprint" in the area.

"EHS therefore considers that there is a high risk of the Giant's Causeway world heritage site being placed on the list of sites in danger if the planning application from Seaport Investments Ltd is given approval," the senior official stated.

Mr Sweeney has repeatedly dismissed claims that his plans would jeopardise the Causeway's world heritage status.

He has argued that his blueprint offers the opportunity to replace the existing ridgeline buildings with a centre down the hill.

The developer's long-time supporter, DUP MLA Ian Paisley, last September argued claims about the world heritage classification risk were "blackmail" and " rubbish".

The environment minister decided that the Seaport project would have an "adverse impact" on the world heritage site as it could "adversely affect the character of the area".

Full story here.

Isle of Wight villa to be excavated as part of 5 year project

From BBC news.

One of the Isle of Wight's most important historical sites is set to be uncovered in a five-year long archaeological dig.

Only part of Brading Roman Villa has been excavated so far.

Now a leading Oxford University professor and 20 graduate archaeologists are to work on the four-acre site to excavate it further.

Sir Barry Cunliffe said there are signs the north side could contain a large assembly hall with side aisles.

He is hoping to find more mosaic floors like the ones in the main building.

The remains of the Brading Roman Villa were found in 1879, by a local farmer.

Five years ago, the villa was listed by the World Monument Fund as one of the world's 100 most endangered sites before a full refurbishment was carried out in 2004.

The project, which is due to start in August, will cost about £50,000 a year and will also involve local people.

Full story here.

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Explorator 10.45