 
|
  
|
|
|
   
|
Stonehenge visitor centre in balance
From the Telegraph:
"Plans to build a £20 million pound visitor centre at Stonehenge in time for the 2012 Olympics are under threat because of a major row between Britain's two leading heritage organisations.
The National Trust and English Heritage, who are part of a committee set up to ensure the centre is built in time for the games, have clashed over the proposed location for the new building.
English Heritage, the government body, which is responsible for the day to day running of the World Heritage site wants to build the new visitor centre and car park on a piece of land known as the Fargo plantation.
But the National Trust, which owns a large chunk of the land surrounding the 5,000-year-old site is refusing to support the proposal because it says that the installation of such a significant construction would breach the site's World Heritage status.
It wants to build the centre on a site called Airman's Cross which is further away from the stones. Under this proposal visitors would be ferried to the stones via a new transit system.
The row is a major blow for the Government which announced last year that a new centre would be built in time for the expected influx of visitors in 2012.
Barbara Follett, the Heritage Minister had been expected to announce the proposed location last week but has now postponed the decision to January because of the deadlock.
Supporters of the new centre are adamant that if it is to be built on time than a planning application must be lodged with Salisbury Council within the first three months of next year.
If both heritage bodies fail to reach a compromise than either side could force a planning inquiry which would add further delays to the proposals.
Supporters of the new proposal believe that the money for the project will not be forthcoming if it can't be completed in time for the games."
|
Footpaths to be removed
From the Stornoway Gazette:
More natural setting for Calanais Stones
SOME of the modern footpaths at the Calanais Standing Stones are to be removed to create a more natural setting and allow visitors to wander more freely.
It is hoped that the move will further improve the enjoyment of visitors to one of the country's most celebrated prehistoric monuments.
The work is timetabled for November and will involve replacing the chipped stone paths with turf.
Stephen Watt, Historic Scotland district architect, said: "We believe that visitors will prefer a more natural setting for the stones and a greater sense of freedom to wander among them.
"The path from the visitor centre to the site will remain in place for easy access and the grass around the stones will be kept short."
The Calanais Standing Stones date from around 3,000 BC and are an important attraction for the Isle of Lewis.
|
No more quarrying on Stanton Moor
From the BBC:
Deal is agreed in park quarry row
A dispute over quarrying in the Peak District has finally been settled.
The park authority had been battling Stancliffe Stone over future extraction at the Lees Cross and Endcliffe quarries, near Bakewell.
Now the company has agreed to give up its planning permission for the site in return for permission to work Dale View quarry.
The authority said the deal would protect a valuable part of the park and surrounding heritage sites.
The authority said that following extended negotiations with landowners and quarry operators, the final legal documents were completed this week.
The case had seen years of controversy, court cases and and a protest camp.
Lees Cross and Endcliffe lie close to the pre-historic Nine Ladies Stone Circle, burial mounds and cairns on Stanton Moor.
Stancliffe has promised to manage biodiversity habitats in neighbouring hay meadows and woodland throughout Dale View quarry's 21-year active life.
|
 
|
3,500-year-old 'sauna' saved from destruction
From The Scotsman
A BRONZE Age structure thought to have been used as a sauna has been saved from destruction by the sea after a team of archaeologists moved the entire find to a safer location.
The building, which dates from between 1500BC and 1200BC, was unearthed on the Shetland island of Bressay eight years ago. It was found in the heart of the Burnt Mound at Cruester, a Bronze Age site on the coast of Bressay facing Lerwick.
But earlier this summer, because of the increased threat of coastal erosion, local historians joined archaeologists to launch a campaign to save the building and to move it somewhere safer. A third of the mound had already been lost to sea erosion.
The central structure was carefully dismantled and each stone numbered before being moved to a site a mile way next to Bressay Heritage Centre.
And today, following the completion of the unusual removal scheme, the Bronze Age building will be officially opened at its new location by Tavish Scott, the MSP for Shetland.
Douglas Coutts, the project officer with Bressay History Group, said the structure was one of the most important archaeological discoveries ever made in the Northern Isles.
The building was hidden in a mound of burnt stones and is thought to have been used for feasts, baths or even saunas.
The structure comprises a series of dry-stone, walled cells, connected by two corridors. At the end of one corridor is a hearth cell, thought to have been used for heating stones, and at the other end is a tank sunk into the ground which is almost two metres long, more than a metre wide, and half a metre deep.
Mr Coutts said: "Burnt mounds don't usually consist of very much more than a hearth and a tank and a heap of burnt stones. But in Shetland, we seem to have much more complex structures with little rooms or cells leading off from a main passageway which connects the hearth and tank.
"We have approximately 300 burnt mounds on Shetland but only four or five have been excavated and, of those, the Cruester mound is the most fascinating and complex. It looks as if it has been in use for anything between 500 to 1,000 years."
He added: "We think these cells may have originally been roofed over in a beehive shape.
"One theory is that these structures may have been used for cooking meat or tanning hides.
"But it is possible they could have raised steam by heating the water and that these little cells could have been used as saunas."
Tom Dawson, a researcher at St Andrews University who also worked on the removal project, said coastal erosion was threatening thousands of archaeological sites around Scotland.
"The local group here came up with a novel idea for dealing with the problem," he said.
"It is great to have had the chance to give new life to this particular site and make it accessible to future generations, while also learning something new, not just about Cruester, but about burnt mounds in general.
"This structure is important in world terms. There are thousands of burnt mounds in Britain, Ireland and Scandinavia but only a handful are known to have structures within them."
Mr Scott praised the partnership between the local history group and outside archaeological bodies.
He said: "This exhibition will be a great asset for visitors to Bressay and local people. The more we understand about the past, the better informed we are about the future."
|
Isle of Man unearths a prehistoric tragedy
From IOM Today
ARCHAEOLOGISTS may have unearthed evidence of a prehistoric tragedy at Isle of Man Airport.
They are working on a theory that fire could have razed a Bronze Age village to the ground in a cataclysmic conflagration in the area known as Ronaldsway.
Prehistoric remains including three human skeletons, discovered during earthworks for the airport runway extension project, made headlines around the world.
The excavations have been completed some two weeks ahead of schedule and the site, equivalent to about 20 football pitches, cleared ready for construction work to resume.
It was initially thought that pottery fragments, found under the route of a proposed taxiway extension in the north east of the airfield, dated back some 4,000 years to the late neolithic era.
But following a further study of the artefacts, experts from Lancaster-based Oxford Archaeology North have provisionally revised that chronology by some 500 years.
It is now believed that what has been uncovered is a further part of a Bronze Age settlement first discovered when the runway was built in the 1930s.
Several of the half-dozen circular structures unearthed at the site featured charred earth indicating evidence of burning.
The experts now believe these are Bronze Age homes dating back 3,500 years that appear to have burnt down.
Two cairns, in which were found the human skeletons, appear to be slightly more recent. One of the burials contained fragments of a ring or bangle which had been worn around the upper arm.
Andrew Johnson, field archaeologist at Manx National Heritage, said: 'We now think these circular structures are Bronze Age homes. It certainly seems possible that some of these buildings have in some way been burnt down.
'The site stretches from a south west to a north east direction and it does seem likely that if fire took hold in the south west then, given the direction of the prevailing wind, the possibilities of disaster are obvious. It's an interesting speculation.
'The cairns appear to have been built slightly later, potentially after the conflagration. Perhaps in what psychologists would now describe as a process of closure, the settlement's use was changed from a living community to a place of the dead.'
Hundreds of pottery shards and pieces of worked flint were recovered, together with domestic rubbish in the form of shellfish and bones.
Mr Johnson said the age of the remains had been revised after a much more detailed look at the pottery fragments. Radiocarbon dating may be used to get a more accurate date for the human skeletons.
He said: 'We are certainly not disappointed that we are now looking at Bronze Age rather than neolithic remains, absolutely not. Slight revision of working theories goes with the territory.
'This dig has been an enormous success in terms of working with the airport and the construction team. It has been quite a difficult job but everyone involved in it can feel justifiably proud.
'By providing a body of new evidence on the Bronze Age period, it will probably contribute several important pieces of the jigsaw puzzle. But it also gives us an opportunity to completely reassess the excavation that took place in the 1930s when the site was being developed as an airfield. It will take us forward some significant distance.'
All artefacts have been removed for study and conservation and a preliminary report will be prepared by Oxford Archaeology. It is likely that the team will return in the spring when construction work moves to the eastern end of the airport where the promontory is to be built out to sea.
Airport director Ann Reynolds said: 'I understand that no archaeological project of this scale and complexity has been undertaken in the Island before in the course of a major construction contract. It has been a major achievement for all concerned.'
Mrs Reynolds confirmed the runway project had not been delayed and was scheduled for completion by December 2009.
|
Ancient stone chamber unearthed in garden
From the Derry Journal
An ancient underground chamber which could date back 2,000 years has been unearthed near Clonmany in Inishowen.
Discovered by Clonmany man Sean Devlin, the previously unrecorded structure appears to be an underground tunnel or souterrain.
Mr Devlin revealed yesterday that he first discovered the underground chamber several years ago while landscaping his front garden, but didn't make much of a fuss about his amazing find at the time. The historic significance of the tunnel only became apparent recently after Mr Devlin showed it to amateur archaeologist friends.
"I knew it was an exciting find and I did show it to some people but never to any real experts," Mr Devlin, owner of Devlin's Fireplaces in Bridgend, told the 'Journal'. "I had been doing my lawn and dug it out accidentally with a digger. It was a big round circle with a tiny dark tunnel leading off it which seems to go quite far."
Souterrains are underground man-made drystone built structures roofed with large lintels, comprising of one or more chambers linked by tunnels called creepways. Their entrance is concealed at ground level. They are usually found in locations near to ringforts, cashels and early ecclesiastical sites. Interestingly, Clonmany means 'the meadow of the monks'.
Mr Devlin says he may try to improve the underground chamber: "My children couldn't believe it when we found it - it was great. And the tunnel seems structurally safe and dry so eventually I might do it up and maybe try and put some kind of lights in there to make going in there a bit easier."
Derry man and long time amateur archaeologist Eddie Harkin, who visited and examined this fascinating structure with colleagues Tommy Gallagher and Brian MacNeachtain, confirmed that it has at least three chambers with a creepway linking each one.
In one chamber Mr Harkin says there is a quantity of bones - which may or may not be human - deposited in niches along one side of the souterrain wall. He also found part of a quern stone as well as a quantity of shells.
According to Mr Harkin, archaeologists believe that sounterrains were used as places of refuge, as many of them have defensive features such as low set lintels built into their roofs. They may have also been used for storing food. Indeed, it is possible that this souterrain continues and may be connected to the sixth century monastic site across the road.
A member of his local heritage group, Mr Devlin says he is delighted to have discovered this ancient monument in his garden and he hopes to learn more about it when an archaeologist from Dublin examines it some time soon.
|
King Arthur continues Stonehenge protest
From Thisiswiltshire
A SENIOR druid is gaining worldwide attention as his protest at Stonehenge continues into its second month.
Demonstrating on behalf of the Council of British Druid Orders, King Arthur Pendragon has vowed to remain at the site, living in his caravan, until the historic site is opened fully to the public.
He said: "I've been here five weeks now. I'm very cold and very wet but I'm staying here."
"I'm getting a lot of response from foreign tourists. They agree with me and say it's too expensive."
Pendragon, 54, has been camping close to the World Heritage Site since the Summer Solstice on June 21 and is hoping his protests will encourage the Government to remove the fences around the monument, build a tunnel under the A303 and grass over the A344.
He said: "The thing that really annoys me is that not only have they spent so much money on public inquiries and doing nothing with it, but it is a sacred site. It's not a cash-cow."
A public inquiry was set up in 2004 to look at ways of improving the traffic flow in and around the Stonehenge area.
Among the many options that were discussed were a new dual carriageway and a 2.1km bored tunnel.
The plans were scrapped in December last year after ministers decided the costs, which had spiralled from £223m to £470, could not be justified.
|
|
|
|
Cursus dated
From The University of Manchester:
'Cursus' is older than Stonehenge
Archeologists have come a step closer to solving the 285-year-old riddle of an ancient monument thought to be a precursor to Stonehenge.
A team led by University of Manchester archaeologist Professor Julian Thomas has dated the Greater Stonehenge Cursus at about 3,500 years BC - 500 years older than the circle itself.
They were able to pinpoint its age after discovering an antler pick used to dig the Cursus – the most significant find since it was discovered in 1723 by antiquarian William Stukeley.
When the pick was carbon dated the results pointed to an age which was much older than previously thought - between 3600 and 3300 BC – and has caused a sensation among archeologists.
The dig took place last summer in a collaborative project run by five British universities and funded by the Arts and Histories Research Council and the National Geographic Society.
Professor Thomas said: "The Stonehenge Cursus is a 100 metre wide mile long area which runs about 500 metres north of Stonehenge.
"We don't know what it was used for – but we do know it encloses a pathway which has been made inaccessible.
"And that suggests it was either a sanctified area or for some reason was cursed."
Professor Thomas believes that the Cursus was part of complex of monuments, within which Stonehenge was later constructed.
Other elements include the 'Lesser Stonehenge Cursus' and a series of long barrows - all built within a mile of Henge.
He added: "Our colleagues led by a team from Sheffield University have also dated some of the cremated human remains from Stonehenge itself.
"That's caused another sensational discovery and proves that burial cremation had been taking place at Stonehenge as early as 2900 BC – soon after the monument was first built.
"But what is still so intriguing about the Cursus is that it's about 500 years older than Henge – that strongly suggests there was a link and was very possibly a precursor.
"We hope more discoveries lie in store when we work on the Eastern end of the Cursus this summer.
"It will be a big step forward in our understanding of this enigmatic monument."
|
Heel Stone vandalised
From the Salisbury Journal:
"VANDALS used a hammer and screwdriver to damage the Hele Stone at Stonehenge between 9pm and 10pm on Thursday.
Police are appealing for witnesses after two men climbed over the fence surrounding the area and caused the damage, before driving off in a red Rover 400.
The suspects were caught on CCTV going to the stones on another day but were chased off."
Salisbury Journal
More details from The Independent
|
  
|
 
|
|
Grave robbers strike Sussex tomb of Bronze Age chief
From The Telegraph:
"Archaeologists excavating an enigmatic burial mound in Sussex believe that grave robbers beat them to the prize of finding the remains of a Bronze Age chief.
Racing against time to date a burial mound on the cliffs at Peacehaven Heights in East Sussex before it collapses into the sea, they have found evidence of human occupation of the site spanning back to 8,000 years BC.
But the prize was to find the remains of the warrior chief who was placed there in the Bronze Age, when the burial mound was built some 2000-3000 years ago, around the same time as the famous stones were erected at Stonehenge.
Many such mounds were built in the Bronze Age, often in high places, to mark the burial of a local chief.
With him would have been placed grave goods such as beads, bone pins, pottery, even gold artefacts.
However, the team found pottery and a clay pipe dating from the 1700-1800s, which suggests that robbers had excavated the mound then, said Susan Birks, who has led the effort by the Brighton & Hove Archaeological Society and the Mid Sussex Field Archaeological Team."
Full story
|
Axe factory site to be surveyed
From BBC News:
"Archaeologists are hoping to unearth evidence of what they believe to have been one of Bronze Age Britain's largest axe-making "factories".
Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust (CPAT) said the axes, made from a distinctive type rock - known as picrite - had been found throughout the country.
A three-week survey at the 4,000-year-old site will start soon in Hyssington, near Welshpool, Powys.
The trust's Chris Martin said it may have been a large industrial centre.
The trust carried out a preliminary survey last year, but it did not uncover the factory site.
However, it said test results from 2007 proved that picrite had been mined in an area known locally as Cwm Mawr, and a study in the 1950s had suggested it was an area where axes had been made."
Full story
UPDATE: Bronze Age axes found in Powys
A HOARD of Bronze Age axes has been discovered by archaeologists.
A three-week survey is under way by Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust to find out more about the weapons' origins. They were unearthed at a site in Hyssington, near Welshpool.
The trust said the axes were made of picrite, a type of rock mined in the area.
From icWales
|
La Hougue de Vinde is a cist-in-circle, a type of monument peculiar to the Channel Islands.
We liked this place - and it seemed to like us. It's been robbed - the cist has long since gone; damaged, overgrown and neglected; not easy to find in the trees. Branches overhang and encroach into the inner space. A saw is needed here. There's a geocache. Yet, despite all the setbacks, we were pleased to be there in its stillness to share its existence.
We kissed in a circle.
|
|
Log in |
Register
Previous 50 | Showing 201-250 of 650 posts. Most recent first | Next 50 
Top of page