Online journal of volunteerarchaeologyand training

Past Horizons

November2009

Adve nt u re s i n Arc h a e o l o g y

Tambora Excavat ion

S lovenianPreser vat ion

Dat ingH il l for ts

Detec t ingArchaeology

Front ierFor t

Up from the Ashes, Indonesia’s Kingdom of Tambora Resurrec ted

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32 Making Preservation Happen

Slovenia is a small nation with big ambitions to preserve its wealth of historical buildings. Two Slovenians are at the forefront of this work and have reached out to the international community for help. Now in partnership with Colorado-based Adventures in Preservation, hands-on workshops are now up and running.

14 Up From the Ashes

In 1815 on the Indonesian island of Tambora a massive volcanic eruption caused a pyroclastic flow which wiped out all in its path. The tiny Kingdom of Tambora disappeared under the ash. Now, almost 200 years later, the carbonised, well-preserved remains are slowly being uncovered.

Issue 10November 2009

Editors:Felicity DonohoeMaggie Struckmeier

Layout:Maggie Struckmeier

GraphicsDavid Connolly

Past HorizonsTraprain HouseLuggate BurnHaddingtonEast LothianEH41 4QA

Tel: +44 (0)1620 861643 Email: editor@pasthorizons.comWeb: www.pasthorizons.com

Contributors: Rik StoetmanDan McLerranJamie DonahoeMurray CookDominic HallPeter TwinnIan B KerrDr. Michael NasseneyAnnie Evans

Front cover: The Jungle landscape covering the lost Kingdom of Tambora.Photo: Rik Stoetman

NotePast Horizons can give no endorsement of any listed project or guarantee the accuracy of the information supplied. The editors accept no responsibility for any loss, injury, or inconvenience sustained by anyone using the resources contained within this magazine and/or the websites mentioned herein. When considering a project, be sure to contact the director with any questions you might have about conditions, travel, health issues, etc. Check for references from previous participants, seek advice where possible and select a project that will be of the greatest benefit to you, the project and the team.

All content is copyright and no reproduction of text or images is allowed without prior permission from the author.

Past Horizons 2009

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4 EditorialCommunity involvement.

6 News News stories from around the world.

40 Dig InVolunteer digs and field schools for 2010.

42 Dig CookCulinary escapades from Annie Evans.

44 Course FinderSuggestions for practical archaeology courses within the UK and Ireland.

45 ViewpointDavid Connolly discusses the need to create standards in archaeology.

46 Back PagesArchaeology comedy from the video archive, including classic Monty Python.

Contents

20 A Series of Fortunate Events

Metal detectorist Peter Twinn describes the chain of events in his life that led to a passion for archaeology.

8 Archaeology Through the Keyhole

Dating of hillforts has long been the subject of debate amongst archaeologists. Murray Cook argues that keyhole excavation is the way forward.

26 Fort St. Joseph

An 18th century French frontier fort involved in the fur trade provides the subject for an exceptional award-winning community archaeology project.

Regulars

38 Prepare for Action

Dominic Hall, a field skills expedition leader, shares some of his top tips for enjoying a safe but exciting adventure.

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C o m m u n i t y a r c h a e o l o g y has been hai led as the ant idote to commercial archaeology, a way to remind ourselves that

archaeology is about people’s l ives and what they lef t behind, and not just about schedules , budgets and f inancial accountabi l i ty. However, are most archaeologis ts ready to tackle this type of work? From my experience working with a community can be a great pleasure but i t can also be a potent ia l minefield.

My advice is to t read careful ly and take t ime to connect with people , f ind out what they want through discussion but have the s t rength of character to keep the momentum going when the community might seem downhearted at a perceived lack of progress . After a l l , archaeology can be a long, drawn-out process and can of ten disappoint the hopeful .

Remember, every community has i ts own establ ished his tory that has been passed

down through generat ions and is of ten accepted as t ruth. Deal ing with these communit ies requires sensi t ivi ty and care f rom the archaeologis t as people understandably take great pr ide in their corner of the world. For example, you can be guaranteed that every t ime a Scot t ish cast le or mansion is ment ioned a local wil l recount a s tory connect ing i t to Mary Queen of Scots . Simple s tone-l ined drains are myster ious escape tunnels that lead from every cast le , and any suspicious mound is bound to be a plague pi t or a Roman camp. Oh, and don’t forget the pot of gold that is said to be buried somewhere in the vicini ty.

The Time Team of course may have a lot to answer for in the creat ion of unreal is t ic expectat ions. These days, the publ ic expectat ion is that a lmost anything can be found and the mystery solved in three days. Everyone is happy and by the end of the third day they can be found down the pub celebrat ing.

However, we al l know that this is normally not what happens. In fact , the beauty of archaeology is that i t produces more quest ions than are ini t ia l ly asked, which is great for the archaeologis t but a

community is of ten not ready for this . You may be held responsible for their ini t ia l disappointment i f you do not f ind what they were looking for but i f you remain posi t ive and enthusiast ic , and explain your case clear ly, you might be pleasant ly surpr ised by their gradual acceptance.

Community archaeology can be an organic process . I t may have a c lear s tar t ing point but i t can change direct ion

editorial

editor@pasthorizons.com

Community involvement. . .

Pe o p l e o f C o u s l a n d e xca va t i n g a r o u n d a 1 5 t h ce n t u r y t o w e r h o u s e i n t h e ce n t r e o f t h e i r v i l l a g e.

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along the way and does not necessar i ly have an end. By contrast , i f you are used to commercial work the process is qui te different . The archaeologis t goes in with a pre-determined goal , the community is not general ly par t of the process and there is a t ime scale for complet ion. I t i s therefore no

wonder that many commercial archaeologis ts f ind i t d i ff icul t to make the mental t ransi t ion to community involvement .

Perhaps more t ra ining is needed for archaeologis ts who are interested in community engagement . After a l l , sect ion 64 of the proposed Planning Pol icy Statement 15 for England and Wales makes i t c lear that in the future some commercial archaeological excavat ions which may be of publ ic interest should be made more accessible . The feasibi l i ty of this goal needs more discussion and does not const i tute ful l -blown community archaeology, but i t may open the doors for greater community involvement in the future . Although some archaeologis ts wil l be horr i f ied by this prospect i t i s my bel ief that archaeology can benefi t f rom this process .

There seems to be a consensus of opinion that commercial archaeology needs to become more community fr iendly but unt i l now that has been met with some resis tance. Legis la t ion is not a lways welcome but sometimes i t forces us to re-evaluate our posi t ion and in this instance i t might just be a s tep in the r ight direct ion.

Maggie Struckmeier

Vo l u n t e e r s f o r t h e 2 0 0 9 N a t i o n a l Tr u s t f o r S co t l a n d T h i s t l e C a m p g e t t i n g r e a d y t o e xca va t e B l a c k p o t t s h i l l f o r t , S t . A b b s.

M e m b e r s o f E d i n b u r g h A r c h a e o l o g i ca l Fi e l d S o c i e t y h e l p i n g t o l o ca t e a 1 2 t h ce n t u r y c h u r c h a t O l d Pe n t l a n d g ra v e ya r d o n b e h a l f o f t h e l o ca l co m m u n i t y.

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new

s T he 2009 summer t ra ining excavat ion of the Kent Archaeological Field

School (KAFS) set out to invest igate a Roman octagonal bui lding at Bax Farm in Kent , south east England. The bui lding was located in 2000 by excavat ion director Dr Paul Wilkinson as debris in a f ie ld during the Swale Archaeological Survey.

The 2009 excavat ion brought together 82 s tudents f rom most of the major Bri t ish univers i t ies who helped to expose this magnificent la te Roman octagonal s t ructure , complete with an octagonal central plunge bath. The corpus of excavated pot tery and coins suggests that the bui lding at Bax Farm was bui l t dur ing the reign of Constant ine, the f i rs t Chris t ian emperor, and could be associated with his t ime in Bri ta in where he was proclaimed emperor on the death of his fa ther a t York.

Amazingly, the blue-coloured fresco f loor of the plunge bath has survived, as wel l as the lead water pipe leading from the massive br ick arched condui t bui l t to carry large amounts of water to the plunge bath.

Among the other s t ructures that Dr. Wilkinson has found on the s i te , revealed by evaluat ion t renches dug in 2006 along with a geophysical survey, is the concrete base of an enormous Roman corn mil l . A road or ‘hol low-way’ also leads down from other Roman bui ldings to a possible harbour, and the presence of ear l ier I ron-Age di tches

and la ter Anglo-Saxon bui ldings have also added to the r ich repertoire of the s i te .

The jewel in the crown, however, is the bath house which has no paral le l in south east England. The s t ructure , approximately 14 metres across , has arcaded columns surrounding the huge four metre-wide central octagonal pool . The wal ls of the bui lding were or iginal ly covered with decorated painted plaster and the f loors with unusual ly small

tesserae in black, yel low, red and blue s tone and t i le . Smaller marble mosaic cubes were also retr ieved indicat ing that some of the f loors may have featured mosaics .

Octagonal bui ldings of this type have only ever been found in England’s

West Country at Lufton and Holcombe. Further af ie ld in I ta ly, a t Ravenna and Rome, there are known to be ear ly Chris t ian bapt is ter ies . The funct ion of these elaborate and exot ic bui ldings in Bri ta in has of ten been discussed but most experts favour the idea that the octagonal f r igidar ium at the centre of the bui lding could have been used for Chris t ian or possibly Jewish bapt ismal bathing. This theory is supported by the discovery of a Roman lead seal a t Bax Farm which depicts a special kind of f ive-branched menorah used in the Jewish bapt ism ceremony, and may be a ‘ redemption of the f i rs t born’ medal .

Some rooms at Bax Farm had underf loor heat ing as wel l as a lcoves which contained hot plunge baths . Of par t icular interest is the discovery of an

Excavat ing a Poss ible Ear ly Chr ist ian Bapt ister y

The high bui lding would have echoed

and ref lec ted the sound of cascading

water on i ts b lue domed cei l ing.

Top r ight image: Adam Stanford ht tp: / /www.aerial -cam.co.ukBottom r ight image: Lawrence Lew

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apse or schola set out of the per imeter of the octagonal bui lding on the south west s ide. I t encloses a hypocaust hot room and the masonry

base of a large cold-water basin or labrum. I t i s logical to assume i t is probable there was a vaul ted cei l ing carr ied on arcaded columns above the central pool and i ts fountain (some elements of a s tucco cei l ing have survived) , and a large dome set on pendent ives pierced by clears tory l ight ing. The high bui lding would have echoed and ref lected the sound of cascading water on i ts blue domed cei l ing.

Cei l ings such as these would have been possible with the columns or arcading bear ing the ver t ical pressure, with the surrounding ground f loor room masonry wal l dividers providing a but t ress to counteract the outward thrust of the tower. This was very sophis t icated Roman engineer ing that was more common in the Eastern Roman Empire , and wil l no doubt encourage discussion on why such inf luences were present in Roman Bri ta in .

2 0 0 9 e xca va t i o n s a t B a x Fa r m r e v e a l i n g t h e o c t a g o n a l b u i l d i n g w i t h c e n t ra l p l u n g e p o o l .

To f ind out more about Kent Archaeological Fie ld School (K AFS) v is i t the website :http://k afs .co.uk/ index.html

T h e o c t a g o n a l L a t e ra n B a p t i s t e r y i n R o m e i s t h o u g h t t o b e t h e f i r s t b u i l d i n g o f i t s k i n d, f o u n d e d b y Po p e S i x t u s I I I i n 4 4 0 .

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S t u d e n t s a n d v o l u n t e e r s e xca va t i n g a n d s i e v i n g o n H i l l o f B a r ra , A b e r d e e n s h i r e. I m a g e s : D a v i d C o n n o l l y

Hillforts of Strathdon

LammermuirsRampart Scotland

S cotland

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A small fort s i tuated on a small nose of land and consis t ing of a s tone wall surrounded at a s l ight ly lower level by a rampart wi th an external di tch.

T his 1959 descr ipt ion of Aberdeenshire’s Maiden Cast le can be found in records of the

Royal Commission on the Ancient and Histor ical Monuments of Scot land. Astonishingly, unt i l recent ly this was the sum total of our knowledge regarding this s i te , and is sadly t rue for the majori ty of hi l l for ts found on every

hi l l and mountain range the length and breadth of Scot land.

Attempting to address the problem, the Hil l for ts of Strathdon project was set up in 2007 with the specif ic purpose of producing sol id dat ing evidence for some of these enigmatic s i tes . Supplying pr imary data to move the subject forward is the overarching aim of the project , arguing that i f archaeologis ts cont inue only to undertake survey af ter survey we wil l have bet ter plans but no new dates!

A smal l team of profess ional archaeologists , s tudents and local volunteers have been carr y ing out keyhole research excavat ions on the hi l l for ts in the nor th east of Scot land. Murray Cook the projec t d i rec tor expla ins how keyhole excavat ion could re ignite the debate on the dat ing of these magnif icent but l i t t le understood monuments.

A r c h a e o l o g yt h r o u g h t h e K e y h o l e

K e y h o l e t r e n c h o v e r s t o n e ra m p a r t o n H i l l o f B a r ra .

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The Aberdeenshire hi l l forts have been surveyed and assessed three t imes s ince the 1960s, each t ime using the same basic evidence of s ize and type of defences. With each new survey the sample s ize became smaller and smaller, respect ively Northern Bri ta in , Aberdeenshire and f inal ly the Don Val ley, each t ime coming up with different conclusions. As resul t , for the best par t of 50 years a l l we have to work with is a massive corpus of data but no new hard evidence to go on.

Arguably, less and less pr imary research work is undertaken each year by academics, both because of the r is ing costs of such work, as wel l as the dr ive of United Kingdom nat ional pol icy to preserve remains in s i tu . As a consequence of this , local archaeological societ ies and community projects have also tended to focus on non-intrusive archaeology including desk-based work, f ie ld walking and var ious types of survey.

Advances in dat ing techniques have seen a recent upsurge of interest in the use of l imited keyhole excavat ion to re t r ieve carbonised mater ia l for C14 dat ing. Real academic gains can resul t f rom a relat ively small investment in money and t ime which safeguards the monument for future research. Alongside

achieving these goals the aim of the Hil l for ts of Strathdon project has been to offer t ra ining to enable future generat ions of research s tudents to carry out their own projects .

Scot land already has a f ine t radi t ion of keyhole excavat ion which has demonstrated good resul ts . Examples of such projects include Colin Renfrew’s work at the Ring of Brodgar, Orkney in 1979 (recent ly a major research excavat ion by Orkney Research Centre for Archaeology) , Close-Brook’s work

Imag

e: P

addy

Pat

erso

n

R i n g o f B r o d g a r, O r k n e y.

Ta p O ’ N o t h h i l l f o r t , A b e r d e e n s h i r e.

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at Clatchard Craig, Fife in 1987 (now quarr ied away), the la te Lesl ie Alcock’s work on Early Histor ic for t i f icat ions during the 1980’s and most recent ly the Edinburgh Universi ty Angus and south Aberdeenshire Field School .

I t i s possible to take a very targeted approach to re t r ieving data f rom a hi l l for t by put t ing in a t rench of around 10m long x 1m wide across the ramparts and di tches . However, the methodology must be f lexible enough to a l low for s i te var ia t ions. This a l lows the best chance of recovering charcoal and minimises any archaeological intrusion. On conclusion of the f ie ldwork al l that is lef t to do is to draw up the plans and sect ions, s ieve the samples and obtain charcoal ident i f icat ions and radiocarbon dates . A report can then be produced, with plans, sect ions and dat ing evidence and s ignif icant ly, there is an almost immediate academic return; a real chronological f ramework to work from.

Taking Maiden Cast le as an example, the team decided to undertake keyhole excavat ion in 2007 and again in 2008. Three radiocarbon dates were recovered from below and above the outer rampart and below the inner enclosure wal l . The dates show that the rampart was constructed in the 5th to 7th centur ies AD,

while charcoal f rom below the wal l indicates that i t was constructed af ter the 6th or 7th centur ies . This was a complete surpr ise as the

s i te was never assumed to date to the ear ly his tor ic per iod.

Exci ted by the obvious potent ia l and wishing to undertake a comparat ive s tudy, the project is now focusing on another region al together and looking to the future i t has been chris tened

R e t r i e v i n g c h a r co a l f r o m t h e wa l l a n d d i t c h o f M a i d e n C a s t l e.

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Rampart Scot land. Moving south to the rugged, heather covered Lammermuir Hil ls in the Lothians and due east of the capi ta l c i ty of Edinburgh, enormous hi l l for ts s tand s i lent ly guarding every ancient pass .

In common with the Aberdeenshire hi l l for ts only short descr ipt ions are avai lable of the physical character is t ics as there have been l i t t le or no intrusive archaeological invest igat ions within the inter ior port ions, ramparts and di tches . The mighty Traprain Law which l ies a few miles to the north of the Lammermuirs is the only hi l l for t of the region to have been extensively s tudied in recent years and shows a dat ing range from the Neol i thic per iod to the Mediaeval .

In addi t ion to keyhole excavat ion the Rampart Scot land project wil l expand to survey the surrounding countryside. I t i s hoped to obtain a greater understanding of how each hi l l for t s i ts within the wider landscape by looking at the many unexplored features that l ie within the environs.

The Hil l for ts of Strathdon project has enabled us to learn much about keyhole excavat ion and has a l lowed us to hone our techniques in a non commercial environment . We would encourage other commercial archaeologis ts to

give up a bi t of their t ime to join us in this immensely enjoyable experience. I t i s easy to feel a l i t t le jaded with the commercial world and what bet ter way to recharge your bat ter ies than a couple of week in the beaut i ful Scot t ish hi l ls .

As a commercial archaeologis t myself , wi th many years of experience behind me, taking par t in a purely research based project is t ruly rewarding. I have enjoyed the chal lenge of teaching new ski l ls to s tudents and volunteers and take great pleasure in seeing people come back each year. A couple of s tudents who have been with the project f rom the s tar t were given supervisory roles on the 2009 Hil l of Barra excavat ion and i t i s hear tening so see their confidence growing as their ski l ls set develops.

At present we are in negot ia t ions with al l the var ious landowners and of course Histor ic Scot land in order to f inal ise the detai ls for future years of Rampart Scot land. There are so many interest ing hi l l for ts to choose from in the Lammermuirs that we are spoi l t for choice. Our f i rm bel ief in this project and the benefi ts i t can br ing to Scot t ish archaeology is extremely exci t ing and I for one cannot wai t to get out there to examine the past through the keyhole once again.

G e t I n v o l v e dThe R ampar t Scot land projec t wi l l take in the Lammermuir H i l l s near Edinburgh. An impor tant par t of the projec t i s to provide t ra ining to students and volunteers in excavat ion and sur vey techniques taught by profess ional archaeologists .

Dates : 1 - 15 August 2010

Cost : £395 ( includes bunk house accommodation, food and transpor t to and f rom s i te) .

For more detai ls and to book a place emai l Murray Cook at : info@rampar tscot land.co.uk

Website : http://w w w.rampar tscot land.co.uk

M u r ra y C o o k j o i n e d AO C A r c h a e o l o g y G r o u p a s a s u b co n t ra c t o r i n 1 9 9 6 e v e n t u a l l y b e co m i n g a d i r e c t o r i n 2 0 0 7 m a n a g i n g a w i d e ra n g e o f p r o j e c t s . I n 2 0 0 9 h e j o i n e d O x f o r d A r c h a e o l o g y N o r t h a s p o s t - e xca va t i o n p r o g ra m m e m a n a g e r. T h r o u g h o u t h i s ca r e e r h e h a s d e v e l o p e d a n d r u n a n u m b e r o f co m m u n i t y - l e d a r c h a e o l o g i ca l p r o j e c t s a n d r e m a i n s p a s s i o n a t e l y co m m i t t e d t o u n d e r t a k i n g r e s e a r c h f o r t h e s a ke o f r e s e a r c h !

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The Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity offer a range of postgraduate and professional training courses aimed to provide you with the skills you need to work in the heritage environment today. From project management techniques in archaeology to the visualisation of past environments, we aim to give you practical experience in the diverse range of techniques and approaches available to heritage practitioners.

All of the courses we offer can be tailored to your individual interests and needs, and can be delivered full-time or part-time degrees.

Campus-based programmesMA/PG Diploma in Practical ArchaeologyMA/PG Diploma in Landscape Archaeology, GIS & Virtual EnvironmentsMSc in Environmental Archaeology & PalaeoenvironmentsMA in Conflict ArchaeologyM Phil (B) in Archaeological Practice

Distance Education programmesMA/PG Diploma in Practical Archaeology (DE)MA/PG Diploma in Landscape Archaeology, GIS & Virtual Environments (DE)

To find out more, go to http://www.iaa.bham.ac.uk/Postgraduate/or email us at archpgrad@lists.bham.ac.uk

Birmingham provides the ideal footing for anyone wanting to begin a career in archaeology or the heritage environment. Along with diverse skills and opportunities provided, I also got to experience city life in Britain’s second city. Thanks to the course, I have been employed in archaeology since I graduated in 2007. Emma Sautejeau, MA Practical Archaeology

Emma holding a medieval leather shoe recovered from excavations in Birmingham

U B U B

Advertising Feature

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A b o v e : T h e j u n g l e g r o w s o v e r t h e l o s t k i n g d o m o f Ta m b o ra .R i g h t : T h e ca r b o n i s e d s ke l e t a l r e m a i n s o f a r e s i d e n t o f Ta m b o ra ca u g h t i n t h e p y r o c l a s t i c s u r g e.

I m a g e s : R i k S t o e t m a n

0 10km

Tambora

Area ofInvestigation

Sumbawa

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M ost people are famil iar with the cataclysmic erupt ions of Mount Krakatau and Mount

Vesuvius both of which lef t an indel ible mark on human his tory. Comparat ively few, by contrast , have heard of the erupt ion of Mount Tambora in Apri l 1815 on the is land of Sumbawa, Indonesia , but i t i s now accepted that this was the largest and possibly most destruct ive erupt ion on record.

The pyroclast ic onslaught of pumice and ash completely engulfed and destroyed two ent i re kingdoms within the vicini ty of the volcano, Pekat and Tambora, leaving no survivors . The swathe of destruct ion, however, did not s top there .

Discover ing the K ingdom of Tambora

Up from the Ashes

By R ik Stoetman and Dan McLerran

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The neighbouring is lands of Bal i , Lombok and south Sulawesi were covered in a crushing blanket of ash 20 to 30 cent imetres thick, col lapsing bui ldings and burying many of their i l l - fa ted inhabi tants . The worst was yet to fol low, with destroyed crops leading to massive famine, plunging the is lands into an abyss of poverty and misery. Altogether i t i s bel ieved that 117,000 people in the region died, most of them from disease. I t would be f ive long years unt i l any new vegetat ive growth returned to the area.

The erupt ion of Mount Tambora was so immense and i ts force so powerful that i ts a t tendant a tmospheric effects inf luenced weather

pat terns as far away as Europe and North America. In fact i t ra ted as 7 on the Volcanic Explosivi ty Index giving i t the s ta tus of ‘super colossal’ . Research now connects direct ly the summer of 1816, known as the ‘year without summer ’ with the erupt ion which threw up a column of ash 28 miles high. The unusual ly cold summer in the Northern Hemisphere was caused by a lack of penetrat ing sunl ight due to the high amount of upper a tmospheric dust . This in turn contr ibuted to catastrophic f looding and eventual famine.

Europe, s t i l l recuperat ing from the Napoleonic Wars , suffered from food shortages. Food r iots broke out in Bri ta in and France and grain warehouses were looted. The violence was worst in landlocked Switzer land, where famine caused i ts government to declare a nat ional emergency. I t i s es t imated that there were 200,000 deaths in Europe as an indirect resul t of the erupt ion.

Mount Tambora’s height was est imated at around 4000 metres before 1815 but i t l i teral ly blew i ts own top off and was reduced in s ize to 2851 metres producing a crater, or caldera , s ix ki lometres in diameter and 1100 metres deep. Before the blast , the people of Tambora made a l iving pr imari ly by growing r ice , mung and maize, and by t rading coffee, beeswax, pepper, cot ton, t imber, honey, redwood,

S u n s e t o v e r M o u n t Ta m b o ra’s ca l d e ra .

Pu m i ce f a l l f r o m t h e e r u p t i o n o f 1 8 1 5 .

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sandalwood, incense, red dye and horses . By the t ime of the erupt ion, i t i s es t imated that Tambora consis ted of approximately 10,000 inhabi tants , def ining what seemed to be a small but weal thy kingdom. Si tuated on the volcano’s western f lank, the remains of this kingdom are now being invest igated by archaeologis ts .

The remarkable preservat ive effects of the sear ing volcanic surge carbonised almost everything in i ts path. This has lef t behind a weal th of s t ructures , ar tefacts and human remains which are beginning to yield information about the l i fes tyle that the inhabi tants enjoyed before this cataclysmic event .

C o l l a p s e d ca r b o n i s e d b u i l d i n g s t r u c t u r e w i t h p r e s e r v e d co i l o f r o p e i n f o r e g r o u n d.

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Work s tar ted in 2004 when volcanologis t Dr. Haraldur Sigurdsson of the Universi ty of Rhode Is land, United States of America, discovered remnants of a buried vi l lage. Known as ‘Museum Gully’ by the locals because of the amount of ar tefacts found there , i t i s located approximately f ive ki lometres inland, deep in the jungle . Sigurdsson’s f i rs t major f ind, located using ground penetrat ing radar, included a complete house crushed beneath two to three metres of pyroclast ic f low and surge deposi ts . Though completely charred, i t was wel l -preserved making i t possible to ident i fy the shape of the roof , roof beams and bamboo f loors . Chinese porcelain and copper bowls lay within the house s t ructure , indicat ing a weal thy people who had grown prosperous from trade.

Since 2004, succeeding excavat ions have revealed a number of features , ar tefacts and human skeletal remains. In 2008, another house was uncovered, this t ime containing a male skeleton s i t t ing in an upright posi t ion, s t i l l adorned with a copper tobacco box t ied to the wais t and a ceremonial spear a t his s ide. On his f ingers were r ings inlaid with precious s tones, a bracelet on his wris t and around his neck he wore a large pendulum necklace. The pendulum is considered local ly to be an at t r ibute of royal dress . In 2009, another carbonised house s t ructure was discovered, this t ime with another male skeleton lying just outs ide under the fal len debris , his lef t hand cradl ing the back of his head.

A ca r b o n i s e d s ke l e t o n b u r i e d u n d e r a t w o m e t r e t h i c k a s h d e p o s i t .

We l l - p r e s e r v e d s m a l l C h i n e s e s t o ra g e j a r f o r a l co h o l.

D a m a g e d C h i n e s e b o w l s w i t h g l a z i n g i n p r i s t i n e co n d i t i o n .

past horizons19

The excavat ions have so far only scratched the surface. They wil l cont inue during 2010 under the direct ion of Dr. M. Geria of the Bal i Inst i tute for Archaeology, bui lding upon the previous work that has taken place. The logis t ical expert ise for the project fa l ls to Rik Stoetman of Travel4pros, an experienced expedi t ion leader. They are both looking forward to welcoming s tudents and volunteers f rom around the world who wil l work in tandem with local archaeologis ts to excavate and record the s i te .

The Kingdom of Tambora is par t icular ly intr iguing because very l i t t le is known about i ts res idents , the language they spoke, how their l ives were s t ructured and who they t raded with. Now, with the help of archaeological research a picture is s tar t ing to emerge. The ar tefacts recovered point to t rading l inks par t icular ly with Vietnam and Cambodia. I t has even been suggested in the scant his tor ical records that a vis i tor to the is land just before 1815 concluded that the Tamborans spoke a language s imilar to that of Cambodian or Laot ian.

However, what we do know for cer ta in is the fateful events that took place here in Apri l 1815 brought an end to this thr iving kingdom in the most horr i f ic and deadly of c i rcumstances. The opportuni ty to br ing Tambora up from the ashes al lows the chance to s tudy an old world order that had been lost to us unt i l now and with each new discovery that world gets tantal is ingly closer.

R i k S t o e t m a n h a s l i v e d i n I n d o n e s i a f o r 2 2 y e a r s a n d w o r k s i n p a r t n e r s h i p w i t h l o ca l p e o p l e e x p o r t i n g a n d p r o m o t i n g I n d o n e s i a n h a n d i c ra f t s . W i t h h i s e xce l l e n t l o ca l k n ow l e d g e, h e h a s l e d m a ny g ro u p s a n d e x p e d i t i o n s, i n c l u d i n g a National Geographic e x p e d i t i o n t o t h e h e a r t o f B o r n e o. R i k i s c u r r e n t l y w o r k i n g c l o s e l y w i t h v o l ca n o l o g i s t D r H a ra l d u r S i g u r d s s o n a n d B a l i n e s e a r c h a e o l o g i s t s o n t h e M o u n t Ta m b o ra e x p l o s i o n .

D a n M c Le r ra n i s a f r e e l a n ce w r i t e r a n d a r t i s t w h o h a s p a r t i c i p a t e d i n a n u m b e r o f e xca va t i o n s i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s, a s w e l l a s t h e B e t h s a i d a E xca va t i o n s Pr o j e c t i n I s ra e l . H e i s c r e a t o r a n d e d i t o r o f A r c h a e o l o g i ca l D i g s, a p o p u l a r i n f o - b l o g a b o u t a r c h a e o l o g i ca l d i g s a n d r e s e a r c h o p p o r t u n i t i e s . H e i s a l s o c r e a t o r a n d a d m i n i s t ra t o r o f A r c h a e o l o g y N e t , a n o n l i n e s o c i a l n e t w o r k f o r a r c h a e o l o g i s t s , s t u d e n t s, v o l u n t e e r s a n d e d u ca t o r s .

R i k S t o e t m a n e x p l o r i n g t h e v i c i n i t y o f Ta m b o ra .

Volunteers wi l l receive t ra ining in excavat ion, s i te recording and other invest igat ive techniques.

Par t ic ipants wi l l lodge in a local guesthouse or may camp near the excavat ion s i te in tents.

When not work ing, there wi l l be oppor tunit ies to explore the area , which includes the beaut i fu l beaches, a shor t boat t r ip to Satonda Is land, a c l imb to the summit of Mount Tambora or h ikes in the v ic in i t y of the dig.

Dates : 20 June - 3 July 2010

Cost : $1500 (approx £950 or €1050)The volunteer contr ibut ions help to provide much needed resources and f inance for the local archaeologists and the communit y. Dates : 20 June - 3 July 2010

G e t I n v o l v e d

Emai l R ik Stoetman at t ravel4pros_indonesia@yahoo.com for more information or to apply.Website : http://t ravel4pros- indonesia .blogspot .com for more detai led information.

past horizons 20

A b o v e : Pe t e r Tw i n n d e t e c t i n g i n a G l o u c e s t e r s h i r e f i e l d i n 2 0 0 5 . R i g h t : Pe t e r Tw i n n e xca va t i n gI m a g e : C h a r l e s S a i n s b u r y - P l a ce

past horizons21

After leaving school my job brought me into contact with a col league who was sel l ing a metal detector. Deciding to buy i t , I used this C-Scope 770D on many occasions in my local woods and parks and never found anything much older than a Georgian penny, but for me i t was, and s t i l l i s , a very tangible way of touching the past .

Then, near ly 20 years la ter, in 2002, a sequence of events changed everything. I jo ined a metal detect ing web forum cal led UKDetector Net (UKDN) and par t ic ipated in discussions about detect ing machines , f inds ident i f icat ion, detect ing on farm scheme land and recording f inds with the Portable Antiqui t ies Scheme (PAS). I upgraded my detector, was introduced to my local Finds Liaison Off icer (FLO) Kurt Adams and eventual ly I became par t of the UKDN team.

Now very aware of the importance of recording f inds, I purchased a hand held Garmin GPS (Global Posi t ioning System) which al lowed me to record and bag ’n’ tag in the f ie ld . I could then hand my f inds over to Kurt Adams for fur ther recording and research.

The next for tunate event occurred on a warm September evening in 2006 when I met a group of people on a f ie ld that I had permission to detect . The group were par t t ime archaeology s tudents f rom a cont inuing educat ion course run by the Universi ty of Bris tol and were laying out a gr id for f ie ldwalking. I was invi ted to come along the next day to detect this area for them and was then encouraged to s ign up to their univers i ty course. I have to say that the meet ing in that f ie ld and the subsequent adventure I have undertaken has been a rol ler coaster r ide that has yet to s top.

A Ser ies ofFor tunateEvents

By Peter Twinn

D uring my ver y f i rst term at school our h istor y c lass v is i ted Berkeley Cast le, South Gloucestershire, in the south east of England. This t r ip lef t an indel ible mark upon me, opening the door to an interest in a l l

th ings histor ical . I l ike to bel ieve this exper ience was the star t of a ser ies of for tunate events that eventual ly awakened in me a ver y real pass ion for archaeology.

past horizons 22

The course at Bris tol Universi ty, ini t ia ted by Mick Aston of Time Team , has introduced me to some fantast ic people . Dr. Stuar t Pr ior, Professor Mark Horton and Dr. Paul Tubb have lef t their mark of encouragement and experience for which I am extremely grateful . They have equipped me with the ski l ls to deal with the archaeological s i tes I have come across while detect ing and f ie ldwalking.

My course also led to an invi ta t ion by Dr. Pr ior and Professor Horton to par t ic ipate in a research excavat ion in the Gloucestershire town of Berkeley, looking for an Anglo Saxon double minster. Whils t a l lowing me to take par t in an extensive archaeological excavat ion, i t a lso gave me a chance to demonstrate my metal detect ing ski l ls to the team.

In 2007, I was soon discovering small f inds on the spoi lheap which had been missed during digging. Returning in 2008, many more f inds came to l ight including an important 8th century Anglo Saxon ar tefact , bel ieved to be an Aest le or text pointer for mediaeval manuscr ipts . This exci t ing f ind introduces the possibi l i ty that a scr iptor ium may have been present a t the double minster.

I t would be wonderful to see more excavat ion directors engage with metal detector is ts to a l low for a las t l ine of defence against the loss of precious his tor ical mater ia ls . The 2009 spoi lheap contained a cut half penny of Wil l iam the f i rs t and a cut half penny of his son Henry the f i rs t ( found by cont inuing educat ion s tudent Mark Smith) and even during the very las t day of the dig, a 12th century heraldic harness pendant hanger belonging to the de Sudeley family was also discovered.

The greatest sat isfact ion, though, was yet to come. Returning once more to the scene of the school t r ip I undertook al l these years ago, I was pleasant ly surpr ised to be invi ted by Dr. Pr ior to ass is t him in a ta lk to the ‘Friends of Berkeley Cast le’ where I found myself in the Great Hal l facing the gathered crowd. This event for me was a lovely culminat ion of a s tory that s tar ted back at school aged 11.

My own personal projects began in 2002 covering an area of around 2000 hectares of Gloucestershire . I gain a great deal of sat isfact ion when recording my f inds, as i t ’s not about money or even the col lect ing (I do nei ther) , but about information. A grot ty

B e r ke l e y C a s t l e, S o u t h G l o u ce s t e r s h i r e, b u i l t c . 1 1 5 3 A D.

past horizons23

spoil heap f ind: A h e ra l d i c p e n d a n t h a n g e r w i t h t h e d e S u d e l e y co a t o f a r m s f o u n d i n 2 0 0 9 a t B e r ke l e y.

J o h n d e S u d e l e y wa s p a r t o f a g r o u p w h o s e a l e d t h e b a r o n’s l e t t e r t o t h e Po p e i n 1 3 0 1 . T h e l e t t e r w h i c h wa s n e v e r s e n t , s t a t e d t h a t t h e b a r o n s w o u l d n o t b o w t o t h e Po p e’s d e m a n d s t h a t E d wa r d I a b a n d o n h i s c l a i m s t o S co t l a n d.

spoil heap f ind: A p o s s i b l e A n g l o S a xo n Ae s t l e f o u n d i n 2 0 0 8 a t B e r ke l e y.

M a d e f r o m a s i n g l e s h e e t o f co p p e r a l l o y w h i c h wa s r o l l e d t o f o r m a co n i ca l s h a p e a n d a r o u n d f l a t h e a d w i t h a p i e r ce d c r o s s . I t m a y h a v e s a t o n a n i v o r y, a n t l e r o r b o n e s h a f t a n d u s e d a s a p o i n t e r t o r e a d m a n u s c r i p t s a n d r e l i g i o u s t e x t s .

T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i s t o l ’s e xca va t i o n a t B e r ke l e y C a s t l e. Le f t t o r i g h t : Pr o f e s s o r M i c k A s t o n , Pr o f e s s o r M a r k H o r t o n , D r. S t u a r t Pr i o r a n d S i a n T h o m a s.

past horizons 24

Roman coin or a broken f ibula means an unfolding s tory, something to be teased out f rom the landscape. I am for tunate to have a good relat ionship with the landowners I come into contact with and they are a lways wil l ing to offer up their f inds to the local museum.

On one par t icular farm I was told by the farmer that sub-soi l ing was to take place and knowing of some s ignif icant f inds that I had recorded previously, I asked for permission to do geophysics to check for archaeological features .

A small group of us surveyed 100x40m resul t ing in the locat ion of a large di tch

running through the corner of the f ie ld . With the farmer ’s consent i t was decided to put a 3xm trench across this di tch to a t tempt to date i t . After s t r ipping the topsoi l (which had no metal f inds within i t ) a few sherds of Roman pot tery were recovered, which is normal for the region, but what happened next was unexpected. Beneath the topsoi l in the top f i l l of the di tch some Mesol i thic f l int blades were uncovered, a l l in pr is t ine condi t ion.

Confusingly, Roman pot tery s tar ted to increase in f requency as the f i l l was excavated in 100mm spi ts . At 300-400mm the amount of Roman pot tery became disproport ionate to the s ize of the t rench. By the t ime the di tch was

C o i n s o f M a r c u s A u r e l i u s a n d Fa u s t i n a I I . Tr e n c h w i t h i n s i t u d e p o s i t s o f p o t t e r y a n d b o n e s. A b o v e I n s e t : f ra g m e n t s o f u r n i n t h e o u t s i d e e d g e o f t h e d i t c h .

past horizons25

ful ly excavated to a depth of 1m there were nine t rays of pot tery dat ing from the 2nd to 4th centur ies .

This small evaluat ion t rench also revealed a complete Roman hair pin made from ant ler, the remains of a chi ld’s f inger r ing with a blue glass intagl io and what is probably a chi ld cremation, badly damaged in the past when the di tch had been recut before f inal ly being f i l led in .

This invest igat ion tes ted al l my new knowledge to the l imit , being presented with reverse s t ra t igraphy, where the ear l ies t f inds are found above the la ter. This was due to the bank beside the di tch, which must have contained the Mesol i thic f l ints , being pushed over into the di tch once i t had been par t ia l ly f i l led with Roman deposi ts . Only through the careful recording of the layers and ar tefacts was the process understood.

The cremation was spread throughout the inf i l l of the di tch with only a few bone fragments remaining. However, the dat ing of the burial was made easier by the pot tery fragments and by two coins which had been deposi ted within the urn.

One was a copper a l loy sester t ius of Marcus Aurel ius (AD 161-80), the other a contemporary copy of an As of Faust ina II ( the younger, AD 145-60) . These coins depict a couple who had 13 chi ldren during their 30-year marr iage, many of whom died young. Perhaps these coins are symbolic of parents who had to bury their own chi ldren. The second coin is a scarce copy from the reign of Antoninius Pius . The obverse copies a type of Faust ina II whils t the reverse is f rom a coin of Faust ina I . Other copies of this per iod have been found in the Sacred Spring at Bath, not far f rom this s i te .

The bone fragments are due to be s tudied by a PhD student a t the Universi ty of Bris tol and another excavat ion wil l hopeful ly make sense of the di tch i tself , especial ly as the clay l ining suggests i t was made to re ta in water – but why?

It is exci t ing to be able to take par t in what has become a combined project involving

everything from metal detect ing to f ie ld walking, geophysics and excavat ion. All the coins found in this area have been s tudied by Sam Moorhead of the Portable Antiqui t ies Scheme and Phi l l ipa Walton (for her PhD). The resul ts have been outs tanding, reveal ing a 4th century temple s i te and a possible market or habi ta t ion s i te in the vicini ty, and the wider landscape may contain a Roman estate or a small set t lement .

This ser ies of for tunate events has come about by deciding to becoming involved. Of course there is an element of chance to i t a l l but there is nothing to beat joining a c lub or a society where you wil l have the opportuni ty to meet l ikeminded people . These days there are a lso many learning opportuni t ies avai lable for any age and abi l i ty and l ike me, you wil l discover that i f you choose that path, archaeology is guaranteed to add a whole new dimension to your l i fe .

Le a r n M o r e

The Univers i t y of Br istol ’s l i fe long learning programme of fers a range of prac t ica l archaeology shor t courses.Pr ices range f rom £36 - £120

I n July/August of 2010 the univers i t y wi l l run a f ive - day archaeology summer school . This inc ludes t wo -and-a-hal f days of c lassroom tuit ion, one hal f - day sur veying sess ion, and t wo ful l days of prac t ica l excavat ion exper ience at a nearby archaeological s i te.

E : arch- l i fe long@bristol .ac.ukW: http://w w w.br istol .ac.uk/archanth/continuing/shor tcourses

A par t-t ime degree, BA (Hons) in Archaeological Studies is a lso avai lable for people who wish to pursue archaeology at undergraduate level . The course is taught one weekend a month, with one day dedicated to lec tures and another to f ie ld-tr ips.

Appl icat ions are now being accepted for Oc tober 2010 entr y. Contac t :

Chr ist ine E ickelmannE: c .e.e ickelmann@bristol .ac.uk

past horizons 26P h o t o s : V i c t o r i a H a w l e y

A b o v e : T h e o p e n h o u s e p r o v i d e s a u n i q u e o p p o r t u n i t y f o r co m m u n i t y m e m b e r s a n d v i s i t o r s t o o b s e r v e a n d t o u r t h e s i t e a s w e l l a s i n t e ra c t w i t h t h e a r c h a e o l o g y s t u d e n t s.

R i g h t : Tw o s t u d e n t s e xca va t i n g a f i r e p l a ce a n d h e a r t h co m p l e x d u r i n g t h e 2 0 0 9 f i e l d s e a s o n .

past horizons27

For tSt . JosephArchaeology and Publ ic Outreach

O n a warm, clear August day in Niles , Michigan, United States of America, seven hundred

people turned up to view the ongoing excavat ions at Fort St . Joseph. ‘Open House’ was the culminat ion of the successful 2009 archaeological f ie ld season which saw students and s taff members cal l Niles their home for s ix weeks.

P h o t o s : V i c t o r i a H a w l e y

By Dr. M ichael Nassaney and Ian B. Kerr

Fo r t S t . J o s e p h a n d co n t e m p o ra r y Fr e n c h s e t t l e m e n t s i n t h e We s t e r n G r e a t L a ke s.

past horizons 28

The Fort St . Joseph Archaeological Project is conducted under the auspices of Western Michigan Universi ty’s (WMU) Anthropology Department in Kalamazoo and led by pr incipal invest igator Dr. Michael Nassaney. The excavat ions have been ongoing for seven years and have previously centred on

understanding the social makeup of the for t ’s diverse inhabi tants through the discovery of intact cul tural features and ar tefact deposi ts .

Excavat ions in 2009 shif ted the focus to determining the temporal and spat ia l re la t ionship of the for t to i ts surroundings through i ts s t ructural remains, post holes and wal l t renches and f inding archaeological evidence for the French construct ion method known as poteaux-en-terre (posts in the ground) . Several occupat ion features were posi t ively ident i f ied including sheet middens, a s izable s tone hear th and f i replace with clear evidence of burnt oxidized soi l and clay, and a possible wel l .

Fort St . Joseph was a French mission-garr ison-trading post complex s i tuated along the banks of the St . Joseph River in present day Niles . Firs t es tabl ished as a mission in the 1680s by French Jesui ts i t i s one of the oldest European set t lements in the Western Great Lakes region.

Later, during the f i rs t half of the eighteenth century i t took on the roles of both garr ison and t rading post , support ing a commandant , 8-10 enl is ted men, a blacksmith, a pr ies t , an interpreter and up to 15 addi t ional households compris ing a diverse community of French t raders , their Nat ive wives and their Métis chi ldren. The for t was an essent ia l l ink in the chain of French colonial f ront ier set t lements and played an important role in the commercial and social funct ioning of the North American fur t rade.

In 1761 during the French and Indian War (Seven Years’ War) , the for t came under Bri t ish control . While the French sought a l l iance with indigenous populat ions, s t rengthened through pract ices such as gif t -giving and intermarriage, the Bri t ish appeared to approach Nat ive relat ions in a less conci l ia tory fashion and with l i t t le incl inat ion towards establ ishing the same arrangements that had character ised French rule . This led to the upris ing known as Pont iac’s Rebel l ion, and in the spr ing of 1763 Fort St . Joseph and other posts in the Great Lakes region were at tacked in order to force the Bri t ish from the area and encourage the return of the French.

A 2 0 0 9 f i e l d s c h o o l s t u d e n t ca r e f u l l y e xca va t i n g a w h i t e c l a y p i p e.

past horizons29

The Bri t ish did not re-garr ison the for t af ter this a t tack unt i l a br ief occupat ion in 1779. However French t raders remained in the area unt i l roughly 1780. In 1781 a small cont ingent of French and Nat ives supported by the Spanish governor a t St . Louis ra ided the for t , c la iming i t for Spain, though remaining at the s i te for only a day. After this episode the post was largely abandoned, providing an excel lent opportuni ty for archaeologis ts to examine in detai l i ts re la t ively short but fascinat ing his tory.

The Fort St . Joseph project , though, is far more than s imply an academic exercise. A primary component and dr iving force s ince i ts incept ion in 1998 has involved publ ic outreach and community service learning. The local community of Niles is invi ted to work with the archaeology team in the many facets of the project . Strong col laborat ion between local people and WMU field school s tudents has a l lowed for a mult i layered reconstruct ion of the past through these shared experiences . Various outreach programmes have succeeded in creat ing an ongoing dialogue which serves the needs of the many community groups, something which l ies a t the hear t of the project .

Educat ion has a lways played an important par t in Fort St . Joseph publ ic archaeology. Each f ie ld season three summer camps are held; for young adul ts , cont inuing educat ion adul ts and middle and high school teachers . These week-long camps provide local communit ies with the opportuni ty to receive hands-on archaeological t ra ining through the excavat ions at the for t , working closely with

the WMU students . Since 2006 teachers have been offered a summer camp for cont inuing educat ion credi ts through Western Michigan Universi ty, and this educat ion programme was the proud recipient of the 2007 Histor ical Society of Michigan Educat ion Award.

Ensuring that local res idents cont inue to engage with the ongoing archaeological work at Fort St . Joseph,

publ ished reports , f ie ld summaries and promotional mater ia l provides valuable information on recent developments , f indings and interpretat ions. The for t i tself became a mult i -cul tural community and an informed publ ic can add to the discussion on the layered contexts and his tor ies of such a s i te . Empowering people through information wil l not only help shape the research quest ions but should ul t imately help answer them.

A b o v e : Yo u n g v i s i t o r s t o t h e O p e n H o u s e e v e n t ca n o b s e r v e a n d t a ke p a r t i n t h e a r c h a e o l o g y.

Empower ing people through information wi l l

not only help shape the research

quest ions but should ult imately

help answer them.

R i g h t : A s u m m e r ca m p e r t r i e s h i s h a n d a t w e t - s c r e e n i n g d u r i n g t h e f i r s t o f t h r e e w e e k - l o n g p u b l i c a r c h a e o l o g i ca l ca m p s.

past horizons 30

Since 2004, ‘Open House’ has been the exci t ing culminat ion of WMU’s archaeological f ie ld school , and the showpiece of i ts publ ic educat ion and outreach ini t ia t ive. The publ ic , f ree of charge, is invi ted to Fort St . Joseph to view the ongoing excavat ions where they can interact with the archaeology s tudents .

Outdoor museum displays, recent ar tefact f inds, s tudent-created information panels and professional re-enactors demonstrate 18th century l i fe . Publ ic lectures on the archaeology and his tory of the for t are a lso given along with craf t demonstrat ions and games for the younger generat ion. This year ’s Open House focused on the Jesui ts of New France and played host to 1500 vis i tors f rom the ent i re Midwest region over the course of two days.

In 2009 the project added a lecture ser ies to i ts reper toire co-sponsored by Niles Distr ic t Library and WMU. Four wel l -a t tended publ ic lectures on current research at the for t were presented to an audience who learned about subsis tence s t ra tegies , s i te his tory and planned developments .

Directed at an audience beyond Michigan, numerous ar t ic les on var ious aspects of Fort St . Joseph, par t icular ly concerning publ ic

archaeology, faunal remains and important recent f inds, have been widely publ ished. Students and facul ty members involved in the project have in recent years given presentat ions at professional conferences in Wil l iamsburg, St . Louis , Albuquerque, Quebec, Puerto Rico and La Rochel le , France.

I t i s the opportuni ty for local involvement and par t ic ipat ion that remains at the forefront of this project . In the coming years effor ts wil l be geared towards expanding our understanding of the for t ’s role within the fur t rade. We are a lso keen to examine how the larger forces of colonial ism transformed the social ident i t ies of the inhabi tants and to what extent this impacted on their l ives . Hoping to fur ther incorporate the publ ic’s vis ion and possible future direct ives we are confident that this project can go from strength to s t rength. I t offers many benefi ts to our f ie ld school s tudents and most important ly gives the people of Niles a very tangible l ink to their past .

G e t I nvo l ve d

There are three summer camps avai lable in July 2010.

1 . Adults2 . H igh school students3. Teachers

Western M ichigan Univers i t y a lso runs a f ie ld school for students over a per iod of s ix weeks in the summer. For a chance to par t ic ipate in an award-winning communit y archaeology programme whi le gaining prac t ica l f ie ld and laborator y exper ience contac t :

Dr. M ichael Nassaney :M ichael .Nassaney@wmich.eduhttp://w w w.wmich.edu/for tst joseph

D r. M i c h a e l N a s s a n e y i s a p r o f e s s o r o f a r c h a e o l o g y a t W M U w i t h r e s e a r c h i n t e r e s t s i n a r c h a e o l o g i ca l t h e o r y a n d m e t h o d, p o l i t i ca l e co n o m y, e t h n o h i s t o r y, co l o n i a l i s m , r e g i o n a l a n a l y s i s , m a t e r i a l a n a l y s i s a n d c r i t i ca l t h e o r y.

I a n B. K e r r i s a t e a c h i n g a s s i s t a n t a n d m a s t e r ’s ca n d i d a t e i n t h e D e p a r t m e n t o f A n t h r o p o l o g y, W M U .

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past horizons31

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past horizons 32

S t e p h e n B o o ke r m e a s u r e s a co l l a p s e d s e c t i o n o f wa l l w h i l e p r e p a r i n g m e a s u r e d d ra w i n g s o f t h e M l i n a r ’s C o t t a g e.

I m a g e : Ad v e n t u r e s i n Pr e s e r va t i o n

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Mak ingPreser vationHappenHeritage Conser vation in Slovenia

S lovenia is a small country of natural beauty and abundant her i tage. I ts r ich and var ied past has inspired a nascent her i tage conservat ion movement s t r iving to preserve the bui ldings that

give the country i ts dis t inct ive feel . Working on behalf of Slovenia’s her i tage, several key people have sought out internat ional ass is tance. One s t ra tegy has been to encourage volunteers to par t ic ipate in hands-on conservat ion work and American-based Adventures in Preservat ion (AiP) has become a s t rong par tner in this endeavour.

By Jamie Donahoe

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Two Slovenians instrumental in this col laborat ive effor t are the founder of Zavod ETNO-EKO, Tanja Gobec, and Franci Pečnik, a conservator. Zavod ETNO-EKO encourages intergenerat ional co-operat ion, working to create and preserve Slovenian oral his tor ies and other records of t radi t ional l i fe . They bel ieve the older generat ion can keep folklore a l ive by teaching younger people t radi t ional ski l ls and l ivel ihoods which are being lost to technology and machinery. AiP in turn promotes the phi losophy that t radi t ional mater ia ls and techniques are the key to preserving t radi t ional and his tor ic bui ldings, so the two organizat ions are a natural f i t .

Two highly successful hands-on bui lding conservat ion workshops have resul ted from the effor ts of Tanja and Franci . Volunteers f rom al l walks of l i fe under the guidance of a technical expert learned, pract iced and completed much needed preservat ion work at each s i te . Both projects have involved types and s tyles of bui lding that ref lect the breadth of the country’s archi tectural , e thnological and cul tural her i tage. The f i rs t workshop, deal ing with decorat ive s tucco in the chapel

of a 17th century manor house in Oplotnica, succeeded beyond their expectat ions and set the s tage for future col laborat ions.

The manor house chapel , consecrated in 1631, is Baroque in s tyle with a r ichly decorat ive cei l ing and just one the many Baroque masterpieces to be found throughout Slovenia . The workshop’s goal was to examine what was hidden beneath the cei l ing’s vibrant , mult i -hued colour scheme, in the hope of discovering and restor ing the or iginal . Remarkably, the volunteers found that the chapel had been repainted only once in i t i t s 377-year his tory and that the or iginal paint scheme of s i lver, gold and cream lay just beneath the br ight colours of the1800s.

Signif icant ly, in addi t ion to the t ra ining and restorat ion work accomplished, the workshop succeeded in ra l lying the ent i re community around the project . The volunteers’ commitment , apparent in their hard word and wil l ingness to share their knowledge and contr ibute ideas , inspired the community to adopt the project themselves and carry i t through to complet ion.

A b o v e : J u d i t h B r o e ke r, o n e o f t h e f o u n d e r s o f A i P, w o r k i n g t o u n co v e r t h e o r i g i n a l p a i n t s c h e m e o f t h e m a n o r h o u s e c h a p e l , O p l o t n i ca , S l o v e n i a .

R i g h t : Vo l u n t e e r s m e a s u r e t h e d e p t h o f t h e m a s o n r y wa l l a t t h e M l i n a r ’s C o t t a g e i n Š m a r t n o o b Pa k i d u r i n g t h e 2 0 0 8 w o r k s h o p. I m a g e s : Ad v e n t u r e s i n Pr e s e r va t i o n

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Slovenia , soon to be celebrat ing 20 years as a sovereign nat ion s ince the demise of Yugoslavia , is working to preserve i ts his tory and to develop a s t rong her i tage tourism programme. Franci saw AiP’s hands-on workshops as an opportuni ty to demonstrate the many benefi ts of preserving a his tor ic s i te , whether f inancial , social , economic or educat ional .

Slovenia’s Publ ic Inst i tute for Cul tural Heri tage Protect ion, es tabl ished in 1999, focuses pr imari ly on actual preservat ion. Franci was concerned that many other aspects of her i tage conservat ion, such as fundrais ing and s i te promotion, interpretat ion and management , were fal l ing through the cracks. I t proved a smart s t ra tegy as , presented with their own preservat ion project the Oplnotnica community ral l ied to the cause. Such was the publ ic support that the community sought and received European Union funding to complete the project . Today the bui lding, with i ts gleaming chapel cei l ing, is a wel l -used community centre .

Fol lowing such a s t rong debut was a chal lenge, but one AiP and Tanja Gobek were happy to embrace. Tanja co-ordinated the local port ion of the 2008 workshop held in co-operat ion with the municipal i ty of Šmartno ob Paki to encourage preservat ion of the Mlinar ’s Cot tage, the oldest known vintner ’s cot tage in Slovenia .

The Mlinar ’s Cot tage is even older than the Oplotnica manor house, a s tone and wood s t ructure ini t ia l ly bui l t around 1540 and expanded over the centur ies , most recent ly in 1840. Incredibly, i t s t i l l houses the massive, hand-made wooden press that was used up unt i l 1970 to make wine and apple c ider, and s tands tes tament to the region’s long and r ich wine-growing his tory and cul ture .

Workshop part ic ipants focused on documenting the s t ructure and creat ing measured drawings in preparat ion for eventual conservat ion. The goal of the local community is to use the bui lding as a regional wine-making museum, but plans for a road through the area may adversely affect this . I t i s hoped that present ing fur ther evidence of the s t ructure’s s ignif icance and potent ia l wil l persuade planners to choose an al ternat ive route .

One of the par t ic ipants in this workshop, Stephen Booker, an Austral ian conservat ion archi tect , fe l l in love with the country and i ts her i tage. Having never been to Slovenia before , he saw the workshop as an opportuni ty to meet people involved in s imilar work and to learn how other countr ies manage her i tage s i tes . He was so enthral led with the Slovenian people , i ts scenery and his tory, that he wil l be leading AiP’s third workshop to be held in Brecl jevo at a 17th century cot tage.

Tra d i t i o n a l f a r m b u i l d i n g s i n a r u ra l S l o v e n i a n s e t t i n g, t y p i ca l o f t h e s t r u c t u r e s Za v o d E T N O - E KO i s w o r k i n g t o p r e s e r v e.

I m a g e : S t e p h e n B o o ke r

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The cot tage is located in a very rural vi l lage where the issue of cul tural landscape preservat ion, as wel l as that of t radi t ional s t ructures , need to be addressed. In a recent a t tempt a t ‘ res torat ion’ a contractor did more damage than good. This was largely due to inexperience working with his tor ic s t ructures and a lack of understanding and appreciat ion for t radi t ional bui lding mater ia ls and techniques. The current owner, a young member of the family that has owned the cot tage for generat ions, is very keen to recover as much authent ic i ty as she can which is contrary to the at t i tude of many older Slovenians who tend to favour new bui ldings over old.

The work involves four main areas: the s tone wal ls , the central oven, the t imber s t ructure and the joinery. Work related to the wal ls includes repair ing and re- laying of the s tone and Stephen is hoping for a group of 10-15 volunteers able to rotate through the different tasks . This way they wil l have the chance to learn different ski l ls and accomplish a good amount of work.

The other goal of the project is to once again present an example of local preservat ion to the greater community. Stephen descr ibes the Brecl jevo workshop as a ‘message’ project

which emphasises that preservat ion work done at the domest ic level can serve as an example for people on the cusp of changing their minds about reusing old farm bui ldings. His hope is to enable future interpretat ion of Slovenia’s rural cul tural landscapes.

Stephen emphasises to community members that the volunteers are there to motivate ra ther than dictate , and to show the ways their cul ture can be preserved and t ie in with Zavod ETNO-EKO’s mission. Enjoying the opportuni ty to work with people f rom a var ie ty of countr ies , and par t icular ly the opportuni ty for cul tural and professional exchanges, he has befr iended a number of t rades people including those doing restorat ion work at St . Rok. One of the f ie ld t r ips planned for the Brecl jevo workshop is to St . Rok. I f the t iming is r ight , the group wil l be t reated to a behind-the-scenes tour of the church with a chance to view the restorat ion work of one of Slovenia’s f inest examples of Baroque archi tecture . .

A S l o v e n i a n co n s e r va t o r ca r r i e s o u t r e s t o ra t i o n w o r k i n t h e C h u r c h o f S t . R o k , o n e o f t h e co u n t r y ’s f i n e s t e xa m p l e s o f B a r o q u e a r c h i t e c t u r e.

J a m i e D o n a h o e i s t h e o p e ra t i o n s d i r e c t o r a n d co -f o u n d e r o f Ad v e n t u r e s i n Pr e s e r va t i o n ( f o r m e r l y k n o w n a s H e r i t a g e C o n s e r va t i o n N e t w o r k ) . S h e r e ce i v e d a m a s t e r ’s d e g r e e i n Pr e s e r va t i o n S t u d i e s f r o m B o s t o n U n i v e r s i t y i n 1 9 8 7 , a f t e r g ra d u a t i n g f r o m H a m i l t o n C o l l e g e w i t h a d e g r e e i n A m e r i ca n S t u d i e s . J a m i e h a s l i v e d a n d w o r ke d o v e r s e a s s i n ce 1 9 9 6 a n d c u r r e n t l y l i v e s i n H o n g K o n g.

I m a g e : S t e p h e n B o o ke r

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G e t I nvo l ve d

The workshop ‘Cottage I ndustr y : Saving S lovenia’s Architec tural and Ethnological Her i tage’ wi l l be held in Brecl jevo at a 17th centur y cottage which is in need of both struc tural repairs and inter ior restorat ion. This inc ludes the large S lovenian stove and the repair of i tems of wooden furniture.

Dates : 22 August - 4 September 2010.

Fee: $2150 for one week and $3100 for t wo weeks which covers lodging, most meals , f ie ld t r ips, projec t mater ia ls and insurance.

For more detai ls see http://w w w.adventures inpreser vat ion.org/ws-s lovenia-2010.htmA complete l i s t of workshops oppor tunit ies i s avai lable at http://w w w.adventures inpreser vat ion.org

T h e i n t e r i o r o f t h e 1 7 t h ce n t u r y co t t a g e a t B r e c l j e v o. T h e r e s t o ra t i o n o f t h e l a r g e t ra d i t i o n a l S l o v e n i a n s t o v e a n d t h e r e p a i r o f w o o d e n f u r n i t u r e w i l l b e i n c l u d e d i n t h e 2 0 1 0 w o r k s h o p t a s k s.

Pr o j e c t v i c i n i t y.

I m a g e : Za v o d E T N O - E KO

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Prepare for Action

A rchaeologis ts cer ta inly get about , explor ing the modern world every bi t as much as they explore the past .

Whils t Raiders of the Lost Ark has perhaps gone somewhat too far in creat ing an image of the wild, adventurous archaeologis t , there is no doubt that archaeology as a subject can take you to wild and pret ty inhospi table par ts of the world. As providers of expedi t ion support and t ra ining we are constant ly approached by companies , univers i t ies and individuals requir ing our help to get out into remote and chal lenging places , and archaeology is of ten the reason why.

Of course this is one of the at t ract ions of the discipl ine, the lure of the fabulous locat ion and the discovery. As a non archaeologis t an experience I wil l t reasure forever happened on my f i rs t tas te of expedi t ion t ravel back in 1999. I was taken to the Mayan s i te of Caracol , Bel ize , by the father of the family I was s taying with. Myself and two fr iends were led around small caves and burials s i tes that very few people ever get to see,and i t f i l led me with a sense of wonder and pr ivi lege at being given access to these special places .

Taking a leap from the romantic back to the pract ical , t ravel l ing in remote regions is not without i ts dangers . The jungle contains poisonous snakes and deadly malar ia whils t deser t condi t ions produce sear ing heat and disor ientat ion. Mountain al t i tude and cold can cause many problems i f proper precaut ions are not taken and good t ra ining is invaluable to counteract these issues . After a l l an adventure is only worthwhile when you come back safely and get to recount your s tory.

In Apri l 2007 BSI Bri t ish Standards publ ished i ts specif icat ion for the provis ion of vis i ts , f ie ldwork, expedi t ions and adventurous act ivi t ies outs ide the United Kingdom. Developed in response to increasing cal ls to make overseas adventure act ivi t ies safer, i t out l ines requirements that should be met by organisers of such t r ips . This can range from a school day t r ip to France to the scal ing of mountain peaks. With such a broad range to cover this has had inevi table diff icul t ies in the preparat ion, but nonetheless there are now some very clear guidel ines for safer t ravel . The aim is to enjoy the adventure but to ensure that the par t ic ipants do not come to harm.

Field sk i l ls exper t Dominic Hall provides down-to - ear th, hands- on prac tic al training for al l t ypes of expeditions. His advice helps to create a safer environment for adventure travellers, including archaeologists. B elow he shares some t ips for a successful tr ip.

Dominic’s expedition tips:

1. Pre -planning So much of expedi t ion and f ie ldwork safety is dr iven by advance planning which can feel l ike a waste of t ime when you have other things to arrange. More of ten than not everything runs to plan and you might resent the t ime you feel that you have spent on i t , but on those rare occasions that something does go wrong pre-planning is worth i ts weight in gold.

2 . Assess the r isksMost people take a sharp intake of breath at the thought of r isk assessment . I t i s not just about f i l l ing out a form; r isk assessment is a process of thought and discussion concerning potent ia l dangers and coming up with mit igat ion s t ra tegies . This process should cont inue even when out in the f ie ld as i t i s the dynamic assessment of r isk that keeps people safe .

past horizons39

Prepare for Action

3. Prepare for a cr is is before you are in i tTake a few hours to research where the local hospi ta l is and what i t i s l ike. Read over the par t iculars of what your insurance company wil l cover and prepare a l is t of useful numbers to contact in an emergency. Do not assume that i f something goes wrong things wil l be deal t with in the same way as back home. Always have a backup s t ra tegy and a backup for that backup!

4. Enjoy itThe whole reason to carry out pre-planning is to ensure you have a great t ime. I t should not s top you from doing the things you want to do but is there to enable you to par t ic ipate with confidence and safety.

Be PreparedFieldsk i l ls Ltd. is a UK-based expedition training company providing a wide range of courses for adventure travellers, researchers, students and expedition leaders.

For more detai ls on the selec tion of courses avai lable go to:http://w w w.f ie ldsk i l l s .com S t u d e n t s c r o s s i n g a j u n g l e r i v e r i n t h e C r o c ke r N a t i o n a l Pa r k , B o r n e o.

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A selection of archaeological andconservation projects around the world

Greece - The Hel ike Projec t

England - Roman For t on the Tyne

Dig InIn the winter of 373/372 BC, a violent ear thquake s t ruck the southwest shore of the Gulf of Corinth and destroyed and submerged the Classical c i ty of Hel ike. The rediscovery of the ci ty has remained a goal of many archaeologis ts ever s ince and as par t of this object ive, the main focus of future f ie ldwork wil l be archaeological excavat ion of the Hel lenis t ic , Classical , Ear ly Bronze and Late Bronze Age s i tes discovered in recent years . Bore hole dr i l l ing and geological t renching wil l be used to invest igate the geographic evolut ion of the area.

Dates: 5 July - 13 August 2010Cost: From €550 per week (minimum period two weeks)

Email: e l iki@otenet .gr Web: http:/ /www.hel ikeproject .gr

This excavat ion s i te is in a quiet res ident ia l area with views over the River Tyne and the North Sea. Over 11 years , Earthwatch teams have helped map over 1000 square metres of pre-Roman and Roman set t lement here , excavat ing jewel lery, armour, gaming pieces , and ceramics . Less than four miles f rom Hadrian’s Wall , Arbeia , the Roman for t overlooking the r iver and harbour f rom Lawe Top, became par t of one of the largest and busiest supply depots in the northern Roman Empire .

Dates: June, July or August 2010Costs: £695 for 7 days or £1095 for 14 days

Contact: info@earthwatch.org.ukWeb: http:/ /www.earthwatch.org/europe/exped/bidwell .html

I s rael - H ippos (Suss i ta) Projec t

The ancient c i ty of Hippos-Sussi ta is located on the east shore of the Sea of Gal i lee on the top of a f la t , d iamond-shaped mountain, 350m above the lake. Ci ty and mountain are a lmost ent i re ly isolated from their surroundings with just a narrow ‘saddle’ br idge leading towards the western s lopes of the Golan Heights . The object ive of the expedi t ion is to uncover the ent i re ancient c i ty, the s t reet network, the main publ ic secular and rel igious bui ldings, and the domest ic quarters .

Dates: 4 - 31 July 2010Costs: €350 per week or €1240 for ful l season

Contact: hippos@research.haifa.ac. i lWeb: http:/ /hippos.haifa.ac. i l

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Germany - Mediaeval Cathedral Excavat ion

Bulgar ia - A Roman M i l i tar y Camp

Menorca - The Necropol is of the Roman Cit y of Sanisera

United States of Amer ica - Saving ‘Shotguns’

For the past seven years Grampus Heri tage groups have joined the excavat ions in the ci ty of Magdeburg. Working alongside f ie ld archaeologis ts f rom the Landesamt fur Archaeologie Sachsen Anhal t , par t ic ipants were able to develop key ski l ls re la ted to archaeological excavat ion in the urban environment . The 2010 placement in Germany wil l once again offer par t ic ipants the chance to work on the Mediaeval cathedral located in the centre of Magdeburg.

Dates: 1 July - 12 August 2010Costs: The placement is f ree of charge to archaeology undergraduates ( f i rs t and second year s tudents only) enrol led at a UK univers i ty.

Contact: enquiries@grampusheritage.co.ukWeb: http:/ /www.grampusheritage.co.uk/EASE%20Germany.htm

Excavat ions at the hi l l top for t of Cambust ica have revealed a c lass ic model of Roman defensive archi tecture . The wal ls of the rhomboid-shaped for t were massive, with s tone foundat ions measuring over s ix feet high and f ive feet wide. Students can learn systematic survey and s t ra t igraphic excavat ion techniques, including mapping of excavated features . The t ra ining wil l a lso include plan and sect ion drawing, archaeological draf t ing, laboratory processing and documentat ion of excavated mater ia l .

Dates: 5 - 31 July and 2 -29 August 2010Cost: €500 for 4 week session

Contact: info@archbg.netWeb: http:/ /cambustica.archbg.net

A project a imed at res tor ing some of the his tor ic ‘shotgun’ houses of Cairo, I l l inois , for qual i ty affordable housing. The Shotgun Preservat ion Project includes some of a few hundred houses being evaluated for inclusion in the Cairo Histor ic dis t r ic t and l is t ing on the Nat ional Regis ter of Histor ic Places . This coal i t ion of the Nat ional Regis ter and the Shotgun project wil l cont inue to work together in 2010 and hopes to provide a spark to increase business and tourism, and even at t ract new residents to the his tor ic town.

Dates: June 2010Costs: $775 per week or $1275 for 2 weeks ( including lodgings)

Contact: info@adventuresinpreservation.org Web: http:/ /www.heritageconservation.net/ws-cairo-2010.htm

The City of Sanisera was occupied from 123 B.C. to A.D. 550 and f lourished due to the heavy mari t ime commercial industry that received boats going from Spain to I ta ly and from France to Afr ica . Par t ic ipants in the f ie ld school wil l learn and apply excavat ion techniques used when excavat ing tombs and in the laboratory wil l fol low guidel ines for the classi f icat ion, s tudy and conservat ion of human remains and other re la ted mater ia l .

Dates: 29 March - 31 October 2010Costs: $2300 - $2700 per session

Contact: archaeology@ecomuseodecaval leria.com Web: http:/ /www.ecomuseodecaval leria.com

To see more projec ts go to: http://w w w.pasthorizons.com/WorldProjec ts

past horizons 42

Most of my cooking for archaeologis ts has happened in the Mediterranean and Europe in boi l ing hot summers, so a mid-winter expedi t ion in inland Austral ia required a very different approach.

The locat ion was Lake Mungo, a deser t region in central Austral ia . Mungo is a World Heri tage area consis t ing of a ser ies of long dr ied-up lakes , and is a place where Aborigines have l ived on the shores of the lakes over many thousands of years .

This is a wide-open, f la t landscape of spectacular beauty and never-ending sky. There are very few l ights and the s tars are amazingly br ight , l ike diamonds scat tered on a black velvet backdrop.

We stayed on a former sheep s ta t ion that is now part of the Nat ional Park and s lept in the old and very draughty shearers’ quarters . I worked in the or iginal ki tchen where the shearers’ cook would have made damper (an unleavened bread subst i tute) and cooked lamb in every way possible . Back in those days i t would have been meat and two veg for a lmost every meal . Good, but very plain fare .

I t was mid-winter and very cold when the sun went down so I made lots of ‘comfort’ food – s low cooked, r ich casseroles that s immered away on the old Aga s tove for hours . For desser t , r ice pudding, f rui t crumbles , apple pies and bread and but ter pudding were very popular.

When everyone came in f rom the f ie ld a t sunset af ter walking many chi l ly, dusty and windy ki lometres , I had a s teaming pot of soup and home-made bread ready for them.

I have cooked many types of food for very diverse groups of people . I ’ve done plenty of cater ing for par t ies where the food provided had to be the la tes t fashionable f inger food for people who aren’t real ly hungry and don’t even not ice what they are eat ing. I t ’s never l ike that on a dig. The cook real ly feels appreciated.

Archaeology, f rom my observat ions, is very t i r ing, dir ty and physical ly taxing work and archaeologis ts are a hungry and appreciat ive lot . They make my job, which is a lso hard and t i r ing at t imes, very rewarding.

The fol lowing recipe is a big hear ty, heal thy and yummy soup, very warming and comfort ing af ter a hard day in the f ie ld . I t i s basical ly a minestrone with the addi t ion of a bolognaise sauce. This is a one-pot meal when you add ei ther home-made bread or some good local bread i f avai lable .

You can subst i tute many of the vegetables and herbs with what is avai lable in the area where you are cooking. I have used horta (wild greens) in Greece and there are many var ie t ies of sweet potatoes . You could also include pasta , r ice , noodles or lent i ls in this soup.

Annie EvansThe Dig Cook

Recipes for Archaeologists

The Dig Cook’s websitehttp://www.digcook.com

Cook ing in the Deser t Chi l l

past horizons43

Soup Ingredients ( for 10 people)

2 tablespoons ol ive or vegetable oi l2 large brown onions roughly diced4 cloves gar l ic crushed2 medium potatoes , peeled and diced1 small sweet potato (kumera) peeled and diced2 large carrots peeled and diced2 zucchini diced1 large red capsicum (bel l pepper) seeded and diced4 s ta lks celery diced 1 medium fennel bulb diced 1 cup shredded spinach, s i lverbeet or black kale2 l i t res vegetable s tock500 mls water1 tablespoon each of f inely chopped fresh pars ley, chives and oregano 2 tablespoons f inely grated parmesan cheese1 t in beans, eg. chickpeas, borlet t i or red kidney beans2 teaspoons sugarSea sal t and freshly ground black pepper to tas te

Bolognaise Sauce (make f i rs t )

500 grams minced beef1 large brown onion f inely diced3 cloves gar l ic crushed1 tablespoon ol ive oi l400 grams tomato paste400 grams chopped tomatoes ( t inned)2 cups beef s tock1 cup red wine (opt ional) 2 teaspoons dr ied oregano2 tablespoons fresh basi l or basi l pestoSal t and pepper to tas te

Bolognaise Method

Heat the oi l in a saucepan and brown mince wel l , making sure there are no lumps. Add onion and gar l ic and cook a fur ther 5 minutes . Add tomatoes and paste , s tock, wine and herbs . St i r unt i l combined and s immer gent ly for 2 hours . Test for seasoning and adjust .

Soup Method

Heat oi l in a 5 l i t re capaci ty pot . Add onions, gar l ic , potatoes , carrots and kumera, and toss wel l in the oi l unt i l onions are sof t . Add s tock and water and cook the veggies for 5 minutes . Add zucchini , capsicum and beans and cook for another 10 minutes . Add celery, fennel , spinach or kale herbs and sugar, and cook unt i l a l l are tender but not mushy. Adjust seasoning. Serve the vegetar ians f i rs t , then add meat sauce and mix in . Serve soup spr inkled with grated parmesan and fresh, warm crusty bread.

Annie’s B eef and Tomato M inestrone

past horizons 44

ViewpointCourse Finder

Prac t ical f ie ldwork courses in the UK and I re land which of fer vaious levels of t ra ining for profess ional archaeology.

Universi ty of Oxford/Engl ish Heri tage - One day to week long courses in post excavat ion assessment , heal th and safety and survey.

Prices range from £109 - £770

ht tp: / /awardbearing.conted.ox.ac.uk/archaeology/Histor icEnvironment .php

Univers i ty of Sussex - Short pract ical archaeology courses covering f inds i l lustrat ion, excavat ion t ra ining, s i te photography and planning and sect ion drawing.

Prices range from £50 (ful l ) /£25 (concession) to £220/£155

ht tp: / /www.sussex.ac.uk/cce/1-2-23-40-1.html

Univers i ty of Bris tol - Weekly courses and day schools containing topics which range from an introduct ion to archaeology, geophysical survey and human remains.

Prices f rom £36

ht tp: / /www.bris tol .ac .uk/archanth/cont inuing/shortcourses

Birkbeck Universi ty - Short courses in academic wri t ing for archaeology, archives , s i te reports and records as wel l as recording and analysis of small f inds.

Prices f rom £42 (ful l ) /£21 (concession)

ht tp: / /www.bbk.ac.uk/s tudy/ce/archaeology/awards/XSCAR001.html

Achi l l Archaeological Field School - Special is t and development t ra ining in f ie ld and laboratory techniques.

Pr ices range from €395 - €595

ht tp: / /www.achi l l - f ie ldschool .com/special is t -courses

past horizons45

C ommercial archaeology appears to be running headlong into the abyss . The boom t ime of the previous years saw many

commercial companies offer work to people who had no specif ic abi l i ty or any real experience in f ie ldwork. As a resul t , s tandards have decl ined not iceably even at basic levels and the industry, now in cr is is , i s being forced to admit that the lack of any formalised system of ski l ls t ra ining is becoming a real issue that needs to be addressed.

I t is essent ia l to the future heal th of f ie ld archaeology that key ski l ls , ident i f ied by the United Kingdom National Occupat ional Standards, become formally s tandardised. When applying for a job i t should be ent i re ly possible to show a potent ia l employer a set of qual i f icat ions which are recognised as an industry s tandard. Although this is a l ready avai lable in the UK as a Nat ional Vocat ional Qual i f icat ion, the cost of s igning up to this is more than most people can afford and has resul ted in very l i t t le uptake.

Current ly, a major problem is a lack of consis tency in t ra ining. Some univers i t ies , who, i t could be argued, should be teaching f ie ld ski l ls to an industry s tandard feel i t i s e i ther not their role or have l i t t le idea of the needs of commercial archaeology. A graduate should expect to be able to prove to an employer that they have achieved recognised ski l ls , o therwise what is the point of their educat ion? As there are s imply not enough research posts to go around the only other large employer of archaeology graduates is within the commercial sector, so i t would make sense to t ry to a t least fulf i l some of i ts needs.

In Poland, for example, a s tudent needs to obtain one year ’s work experience in the f ie ld before receiving their degree. However, here in the UK, a s tudent need only achieve on average s ix to e ight weeks of experience through the non-commercial environment of the f ie ld school . There are some

short courses avai lable (see page 44) which may be sui table for obtaining some of the necessary ski l ls and al though I would recommend them as a means to get some form of s t ructured t ra ining, i t i s obviously a commitment in t ime and money that many people just do not have in this a l ready poorly paid industry.

When I was a regular face on the digging circui t in the eight ies and ear ly ninet ies archaeology was beginning to move into the commercial sector. At that t ime, however, we did not occupy the cut-throat world of compet i t ive tendering to the extent we do now. Although s t i l l working to deadl ines we were able to hone our ski l ls within the workplace. Some of us had no archaeological qual i f icat ions when enter ing the profession but learned in the f ie ld f rom those with more experience. Nowadays a person cannot real ly expect to learn in this way because commercial work has nei ther the t ime nor the space to a l low this to happen.

There has to be some way out of the s i tuat ion we have so quickly found ourselves in . Do we real ly want to be ‘ temporal contaminat ion engineers’ , ski l led in the task of c leaning up a s i te for the developer but lacking the ski l ls of a good archaeologis t? For me the choice is easy, I know the direct ion I would choose and i t i s def ini te ly not the former. I am, to my very core, an archaeologis t .

I f as an industry we real ly want to move forward there is a need to formalise the teaching of ski l ls before our working l i fe s tar ts , then al low for cont inued growth within the workplace. Embarking on this process wil l not be without teething t roubles but we desperately need to do something to improve s tandards. I f we achieve this goal we can begin to just i fy cal l ing ourselves professionals and maybe then we wil l enjoy the benefi ts that we have denied ourselves for so long.

ViewpointStandards, what standards?

David Connol ly i s the direc tor of Br i t ish Archaeological Jobs and Resources (BA JR)Web: http://w w w.bajr.org

past horizons 46

B a c k P a g e s - C o m e d y V i d e o s

Mont y Python - Archaeology Today (1969)

Eddie I zzard a i rs h is v iews on archaeology (1998)

A selec t ion of c lass ic comedy v ideos on the subjec t of archaeology for your enjoyment .To watch more go to http://w w w.pasthor izons. t v/t v

To v iew this v ideo please c l ick here

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past horizons47

Time Team - T V Burp (2007)

Armstrong and M i l ler - Time Team spoof (2009)

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To v iew this v ideo please c l ick here

past horizons 48

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