archaeology

Ancient jar discovered under Roman Road

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Sun, 08/02/2015 - 6:32am

An archaeological dig in a rural Devon village is yielding more ancient secrets.

Last year experts working on a major field study at Ipplepen, Devon, excavated a Roman road, complete with ancient wheel ruts and potholes.

Now they have uncovered new insights into how the community lived, through the discovery of new archaeological features and pottery, such as a continental food storage jug that would have travelled across Europe before it was used at the site.

The team uncovered a large fragment of storage jar, known as an amphora, buried under the surface of the...

Ancient floor uncovered at Exeter Cathedral

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Fri, 07/31/2015 - 11:46am

An ancient tiled floor described as the "finest medieval tile pavement surviving in Devon and Cornwall" has been revealed for the first time in decades.

The floor has been uncovered as part of planned renovation work to the Cathedral. It is in a room above a Chapel, which in the Middle Ages was used as the Exchequer and in the 20th century as the Song School for boy choristers.

The decorative tiled floor has intricate patterns and was laid in the late 13th century.

The nearest similar medieval floor is in Winchester Cathedral.

The Cathedral’s Archaeologist,...

Dartmoor archaeologists need you!

Help Dartmoor National Park Archaeologists and Rangers look after prehistoric stone rows on a two day conservation work project on 19 and 20 August 2015.

Dartmoor’s landscape is among the richest in western Europe in terms of its prehistoric archaeological remains. Dartmoor contains the longest stone row in the world and has the greatest number of archaeological sites out of all the UK National Parks. In fact 60% of all stone rows to be found in England are on Dartmoor and 1/3 of all stone rows in the UK and Brittany are on Dartmoor.

All of this takes some looking after!...

Hands on archaeology at Bellever Day

Event Date: 
25/07/2015 - 11:00am
Venue: 
Dartmoor National Park Visitor Centre, Princetown

Get hands on experience of Dartmoor’s archaeology at Bellever Day, Dartmoor National Park’s celebration of the Festival of British Archaeology on Saturday 25 July 2015.

Visit the National Park Visitor Centre, Postbridge between 11am – 4pm and get involved in a variety of family friendly activities with plenty of hands on opportunities. These include basketry and weaving workshops, using natural materials collected from Dartmoor, demonstrations of jewellery making, including prehistoric beads and tin studs, learning how to grind corn in a prehistoric fashion and wood turning....

Archaeologists visit lost Dartmoor Manor

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Sun, 07/05/2015 - 10:24am

From Monday 13 July until Saturday 18 July 2015 archaeologists and volunteers will be returning to the site of North Hall Manor in Widecombe-in-the-Moor to continue investigations into this intriguing location.

This will be the second season of excavation. The first phase in 2012 targeted the medieval manor site and revealed wall footings, boundary works and pottery that strongly suggest a high status medieval building once stood in the area.

Andy Crabb, Archaeologist, Dartmoor National Park, said: "This year we will continue to investigate some of the features unearthed in...

Newly discovered Dartmoor stone circle

The first stage of some exciting archaeological exploration has just been completed on Dartmoor. This has involved a geophysical survey on a recently discovered large stone circle located close to Sittaford Tor.

The circle is situated 525m above sea level, making it the highest stone circle in southern England, with panoramic views in all directions. With a diameter of 34m, it is the second largest circle on Dartmoor. The first stones were identified by Alan Endacott a few years ago.

The circle consists of 30 recumbent stones, plus one more lying in a gap just outside the...

This craft can time-travel!

Re-Making the Past is a new exhibition of objects that 'commute between different times and cultures' at Devon Guild of Craftsmen.

The exhibition brings together a group of artists who share a common fascination with bygone eras. While their objects are newly-made, inspiration is based on ancient landscapes and materials from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. Mainly sculptural work is created from natural fibres, metal, resin and ceramics with wall-based installations in enamels, glass and textiles.

Helen Marton has made giant oven gloves patterned with scans of...

Archaeological conservation day

Event Date: 
12/03/2015 - 9:30am
Venue: 
Holne Moor, Dartmoor

Help Dartmoor National Park Rangers and Archaeologists carry out vital archaeological conservation work on Thursday 12 March at Holne Moor.

A number of important prehistoric burial cairns have become covered by gorse and bracken which threatens their long term condition. These impressive monuments, thought to be around 3,500 to 4,000 years old form an important part of the internationally regarded archaeological landscape of Holne Moor. We need your help to clear these sites of invasive vegetation and ensure that they are preserved for future generations.

If you would like...

Roman cemetery discovered in Devon

Fifteen ancient skeletons have been discovered on an archaeological dig in Ipplepen, a major Romano-British settlement in Devon and now the best preserved Roman cemetery in the county.

University of Exeter archaeologists and a team of students and volunteers uncovered the human remains during an excavation of a Roman Road and found a roadside cemetery, the like of which has never been seen in the region. The significance of the discovery took on further importance when one of the skeletons was found to date from around 250 to 350 years after the Roman period, an era often referred...

Stone row conservation day

Event Date: 
27/02/2015 - 3:00pm
Venue: 
Near Glasscombe Corner, Corringdon Ball, South Brent

Help Dartmoor National Park Archaeologists and Rangers look after prehistoric stone rows in a day of conservation work on Friday 27 February 2015.

Dartmoor’s landscape is among the richest in western Europe in terms of its archaeological remains. Dartmoor contains the longest stone row in the world and has the greatest number of archaeological sites out of all the UK National Parks. In fact 60% of all stone rows to be found in England are on Dartmoor.

All of this takes some looking after and we hope that you will find the time to help us. The work will involve clearing...

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