a
NETWORK NEWS
The newsletter of the Leicestershire and Rutland Archaeological Network
NUMBER 31: July 2006
STOP PRESS: EXCAVATIONS OPEN
TO THE PUBLIC AT ASHBY CASTLE
English Heritage are excavating in the
Tudor gardens known as The
Wilderness
at
Ashby-de-la-Zouch
st
Castle, from 31 July to 18th August.
There will be a series of one hour
events combining a talk with a tour of
the excavations on the 7th August at
11.00, 2.00 and 4.00, and 14th August
at 2.00 and 4.00. Places at these
events are restricted to twenty people
per event, and booking in advance is
essential because of the limited
numbers of places.
Please ring the Castle on 01530
413343
to
book.
The
events
themselves are free, but attendees will
have to pay the normal admission
prices to the castle: £3.40 for adults,
£2.60 for concessions, £1.70 for
children between 5 and 16, under 5s
free. As an EH Guardianship site,
members of EH get in free.
MEMBERSHIP
to ascertain if they wish to remain as
Warden. Both of these circumstances
have led to an increase in the number
of vacancies, but the positive side to
this is that several new appointments
have been made, serving to reinvigorate the Network.
One new parish has joined the
Network, Claybrooke Magna. This
brings the total parish membership to
192 out of 278 representative bodies in
Leicestershire and Rutland. Vacancies
exist for 33 of these 192. There are
157 individuals (and couples holding
the post jointly) who are currently
Archaeological
Wardens.
The
difference between this figure and that
of 161 for the number of representative
bodies with Wardens in post arises
from some Parish Councils and
Meetings having more than one
Warden, and some individuals having
been appointed by more than one
Council or Meeting.
PROVISION OF SITE AND FINDS
RECORDS TO WARDENS
There have been numerous changes
following the review of individual
membership of the Network in 2005-6.
A handful of Wardens have resigned,
whilst details of others have been
deleted in accordance with the data
Protection Act 1998, as it has proved
impossible to make contact with them
Requests for new HER parish
summaries (as the Sites & Monuments
Record is now called) and aerial
photographs were received from over
forty Wardens in returns of the
questionnaire sent out in July 2005 to
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
all
Archaeological
Wardens.
Unfortunately, a number of resourcing
issues have led to these requests not
having been met to date. Priority has
been given to providing newly
appointed Wardens with
parish
summaries, and a backlog of these
has also built up owing to the welcome
flurry of appointments following the
review.
The patience of all Wardens who are
awaiting HER parish summaries is
greatly appreciated.
Many Wardens have also expressed
an interest in receiving lists of finds
and archives relating to their parishes
that are held in the Archaeology
Collections of Leicestershire County
Council’s museums service. Progress
towards this end is being made by
tackling another backlog, creating
computerised inventory records of all
of the Archaeology Collections. This is
scheduled to take another three years
to complete.
GREAT BOWDEN: EXCAVATIONS
BY THE HERITAGE GROUP
From reports supplied by Rosemary
Culkin
Buckminster Close. The Group is test
pitting a paddock near the parish
church, from which geophysical survey
has produced results suggestive of a
double ditched enclosure with features
inside including a stone floor, ditch,
and possible house platforms. One
internal ditch has been sectioned, and
this and other deposits have yielded
substantial quantities of medieval
pottery.
Previous excavations by the Group
have been targeted to produce
evidence of occupation before the
Norman Conquest, both Roman (on
the Ridgeway, Market Harborough)
and Anglo-Saxon/Viking (in Great
Bowden village).
LAUNCH OF A NEW FIELDWORK
GROUP IN THE LUBENHAM AREA
A meeting to launch the Upper
Welland Archaeological Group was
held in Lubenham Village Hall on 3rd
August 2006.
The group will work across ten
parishes in the upper Welland valley
west of Market Harborough including
three parishes in Northamptonshire.
The area is delimited by local
topography.
The founder members of the group
have already identified an AngloSaxon and a Roman site both
previously unknown and are currently
excavating a nationally significant
country house site. They have also
done extensive fieldwalking to the
north east of Lubenham, providing a
setting for an Iron Age settlement site
that is the subject of excavation by a
professional archaeological contractor.
The group is endeavouring to cover
the basic range of archaeological work,
from
research
and
desk-based
activities to fieldwalking, surveying,
excavation and finds management.
Contact Alan Clark for further details:
07709 239353
alanclark62@hotmail.com
A NEW HERITAGE GROUP WEBSITE
The Hinckley Field Walking Group has
created a new web-site, that went live
this Spring: for details of the Group’s
activities, and a photograph gallery,
visit
www.fieldwalking.org.uk
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
THE COUNTY ARCHAEOLOGICAL
SOCIETY WEBSITE
The Leicestershire Archaeological and
Historical Society also has a new
website: visit: www.le.ac.uk/lahs
late 3rd century pottery, animal bone,
tile and slate. Other features including
possible floor surfaces have also been
examined. The tile recovered from this
site includes tegula, imbrex and
hypocaust box flue. This material,
along with a large quantity of roof
slate, probably comes from a high
status building or complex of buildings.
GRACE DIEU PRIORY
The Priory was opened to the public on
1st July, following extensive restoration.
Members of the public can now follow
footpaths right through the grounds of
the priory, and cyclists on the Sustrans
National Cycle Network will be able to
travel through Grace Dieu Woods and
past the ruins. The opening follows
nearly ten years of work; a new Group,
the Friends of Grace Dieu, has been
formed to maintain and develop the
priory.
The priory has now been removed
from the Buildings at Risk Register
maintained by English Heritage: visit
www.englishheritage.org.uk/server/show/ConWebD
oc.6719 for the East Midlands
summary of the 2006 register.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS
AT PRETORIA ROAD, IBSTOCK,
LEICESTERSHIRE
A summary, from an interim report
produced in April 2006 by Stephen and
Paul Saunders (Witan Archaeology)
Archaeological excavation on land to
the north of Pretoria Road, Ibstock,
Leicestershire, was undertaken by
Witan Archaeology at the invitation of
the landowners after the discovery of
Romano-British pottery and tile in a
garden. Excavations have so far
uncovered
two
linear
ditches
containing large quantities of mid to
EVENTS AND EXHIBITIONS with an
archaeological,
or
historical
reenactment theme
DONINGTON-LE-HEATH
HOUSE
MANOR
17th September. 11.00-4.00. Medieval
Mayhem, the Manor House’s 12th, this
year concentrating on markets and
crafts. FREE
Look out during August for the latest
change of exhibitions in the themed
object cases in the Dairy at the Manor
House. These cases were introduced
in response to the Questionnaires
returned by Wardens last year, and
present medieval and later objects
from the County. The Costume theme
will be replaced by Religion, with
themes of the Horse and of Security to
come at later dates.
… AND OTHER VENUES
“The
Vikings
in
Leicestershire”
exhibition is on display from 4th August
to 15th September at Melton Carnegie
Museum, and then from 22nd
September to 21st January 2007 at
The Harborough Museum, with a
changed set of objects on display each
time. The hoard of 10th century coins
found near Swithland by Brian
Kimberley (Archaeological Warden for
Thurcaston & Cropston) will be on
display at both venues. This will be the
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
first time that this nationally important
hoard
has
been
exhibited
in
Leicestershire, and thanks are due to
the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge,
for lending them to us. Admission to
the museums and the exhibition is
FREE.
Linked event: 7th September. 7.30.
Melton Carnegie Museum. “Not just
rape and pillage”: an evening talk by
Richard
Knox
exploring
Viking
Leicestershire, pre-booking required
(tel. 01664 569946).
12th-13th August. 1100-4.00, Bosworth
Battlefield Heritage Centre & Country
Park. Wars of the Roses Living History
Camp. Adults £1.00, Concessions 50p.
19th-20th August. 10.00-5.00. Battlefield
Centre. The Battle of Bosworth
Medieval weekend, including full battle
re-enactment.
Adults
£10.00,
Concessions £7.00, Family £25 for one
day. Two day tickets available if
bought before 14th August.
26th-28th August. 11.00-4.00. Battlefield
Centre. Camp, as 12th-13th August.
9th-10th
September.
11.00-4.00.
Battlefield Centre. Sealed Knot –
English Civil War. Adults £5.00,
Concessions £3.50, Family £12.00.
23rd-24th
September.
11.00-4.00.
Battlefield Centre. Camp, as 12th-13th
August.
Further information on attractions and
events can be found on the website:
www.goleicestershire.com .
THE NATIONAL ICE AGE NETWORK
Adapted from an article by Lynden
Cooper of ULAS, and leaflets
produced by NIAN
The University of Leicester has
become the East Midlands Centre for
NIAN, one of four regional centres,
joining teams based at the Universities
of
Birmingham,
London
(Royal
Holloway) and Southampton.
The
project is supported by an Aggregates
Levy Sustainability Fund grant, English
Heritage and English Nature.
The project's main objective is to build
a network of people involved in the
aggregates industry, archaeologists
and other specialists, in order to
promote the recording of Ice Age
remains and finds and wider interest in
a period (the last 2.5 million years) that
shaped the English landscape.
One of the first tasks of the East
Midlands team is to prepare a
Pleistocene
theme
for
the
Leicestershire and Derbyshire Historic
Environment Records (as these Sites
and Monuments Records are now
called).
The
cataloguing
of
Palaeolithic finds from the Waite
Collection, held within the Archaeology
Collections of Leicestershire County
Council, is one of the first tasks,
building on research by Anne Graf, a
former member of the County
Council’s Archaeology Section. Later
in the 2006 Dr Mark Stephens will start
to visit the sand and gravel quarries
across the region and, hopefully, make
some exciting new discoveries.
Brooksby Quarry, near Hoby, is
scheduled to see archaeological
excavation which, it is hoped, will
reveal evidence of Ice Age landscapes
such as the Bytham River, which used
to flow through what are now the East
Midlands, Fens and East Anglia
towards the North Sea.
Three Recognition Sheets are a
available, on “Palaeolithic Artefacts”,
“Vertebrate Fossils”, and “Mollusc,
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
Insect & Plant Fossils”. These all
colour sheets can be ordered via the
website below. Limited stocks are also
held at Jewry Wall Museum.
Visit www.iceage.org.uk
information on NIAN.
for
more
ENDERBY, SOUTH OF LEICESTER
LANE
An interim report by James Harvey of
the
University
of
Leicester
Archaeological Services
Trial trenching quite close to the Iron
Age site excavated by ULAS north of
Leicester Lane in 1996 has been
undertaken as part of the planning
process on the site of the proposed
‘park and ride’ development. One ditch
and two post holes probably of Iron
Age date were located. A section
across the construction layers of the
Fosse Way has showing imported
sands, a road side ditch and possible
kerb stones.
HISTORIC
CHARACTERISATION
John Robinson
LANDSCAPE
The
Historic
Landscape
Characterisation (HLC) programme for
Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland
is part of a national initiative funded
and led by English Heritage. The
primary objective of the project is to
provide
planners
and
heritage
professionals with a tool for improved
and better informed sustainable
management of change in the
landscape.
The
project
is
predominantly a desk based exercise
which,
through
the
use
of
computerised
mapping
or
Geographical Information Systems,
draws together a variety of historic and
environmental data sources in an effort
to describe the historic dimension of
both the rural and urban landscape as
it appears to us today.
HLC is
comprehensive in the sense that it
covers the whole of the landscape
leaving no blank or grey areas and is
concerned with the commonplace and
locally distinctive.
The project is set to take 30 months
and will include Leicestershire and
Rutland as well as the City of
Leicester. Although envisaged
primarily as an aid to planning with the
results being integrated into
Leicestershire's Historic Environment
Record the project will also have
educational and research applications.
For further details contact John
Robinson (see end of newsletter).
HERITAGE LINK
The following two articles are lifted
from the e-mail newsletter “Heritage
Link Update”.
OUR PORTABLE PAST
English Heritage has issued new policy
for funding and granting permission for
archaeological work that involves
finding and collecting materials from
the surface of the land. It sets out in
detail for the first time the standards
required for work on portable
antiquities and the integration of such
work with prospection techniques, use
of metal detectors in field work,
excavation standards, conservation,
project
archiving,
analysis
and
dissemination, and retention and
disposal of materials.
The policy will be applied to sites and
projects for which English Heritage has
curatorial responsibility, or which it
funds or undertakes directly. Other
organisations, land owners and
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
individuals who give consent for the
collection of portable antiquities or
archaeological
work
are
also
recommended to follow the policy as a
model of good practice.'
The document can be downloaded
from
the
HELM
website
<http://www.helm.org.uk/upload/pdf/Ou
r-Portable-Past.pdf
SCHEDULED MONUMENTS AT RISK
A second new publication from English
Heritage draws attention to threats
direct and indirect to Scheduled
Monuments from prehistoric burial
mounds, stone circles and hillforts,
Roman towns and villas, medieval
settlements, castles and abbeys to the
industrial structures of the more recent
past.
Although protected by law, scheduled
monuments are vulnerable to a wide
range of human and natural agencies.
A pilot study in the East Midlands
demonstrated that of the region's 1493
monuments (219 in Leicestershire and
Rutland) 527 (35%) are at risk from
damage, decay or loss - unless action
is taken. Similar studies are now being
carried out across the country, and
these
show
that
agriculture,
development, the recreational use of
the landscape and natural processes
are the main agencies that are putting
monuments at risk.
In addition to the historic fabric of
scheduled monuments, which is
formally protected by legislation, there
is also a need to assure the amenity
value and the setting of monuments.
English
Heritage
believes
that
concerted effort by landowners, local
and national government and the
organisations that make decisions
about our environment can make a
real difference. The guidance can be
downloaded
from
http://www.helm.org.uk/upload/pdf/SM
%40R.pdf
LOCAL HISTORY WEBSITES
The East Midlands Oral History
Archive, based at the University of
Leicester, is adding “oral history” clips
to the web pages of villages and towns
on the Leicestershire Villages website.
www.leicestershirevillages.com .
The Leicestershire, Leicester and
Rutland Record Office has launched a
service which enables a range of
documents to be viewed on the
internet, including transcripts of church
records and census data for villages.
Audio accounts of people’s memories
are also included. The project is
funded by the Leicestershire Rural
Partnership. Visit www.leics.gov.uk for
more information, following the links to
the Record Office.
ARCHAEOLOGY IMAGE BANK
Derived from “Salon 144”, edited by
Christopher Catling
‘The Higher Education Academy
Archaeology
section
and
the
Archaeology Data Service have joined
forces to create the Image Bank, a
database
of
provenanced
and
copyright
cleared
archaeological
images that can be downloaded via the
internet
http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/learning/image_b
ank/ . There is no charge for using the
pictures, though users are strongly
encouraged to donate their own
archaeological images using the
donation section of the website's
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
interface. There are already 600-plus
images available for use in teaching
and research, with more being added
all the time.
Watling Street. Jack Lucas was
elected a Fellow of the Society of
Antiquaries in 1992.
‘A quick look at the section entitled
“popular images” illustrates the range
of material available ─ from details of
medieval buildings in York to pictures
of excavations in progress last summer
at the early medieval beach site at
Mothecombe in Devon. The images
are scanned at a resolution of between
400 and 700 Mb, so are perfect for use
with PowerPoint or a laptop, but are
not
fine
enough
for
printed
publications. Even so, this is a great
resource with enormous potential.’
CONTACTS AT LEICESTERSHIRE
COUNTY COUNCIL, ENVIRONMENT
AND HERITAGE SERVICES
OBITUARY
(adapted from a notice by Irene
Glendinning)
KEEPER OF DONINGTON-LE-HEATH
MANOR HOUSE:
Peter Liddle (0116) 265 8326
email: pliddle@leics.gov.uk
Researchers into the Roman Midlands
and ‘small towns’ have lost one of their
most senior colleagues, with the death
of Jack Lucas on 28the March 2006 at
the age of 85. Born Earl in Shilton, Mr
Lucas founded and operated his own
painting and decorating business. His
interest in archaeology, especially the
Roman period, was kindled during
RAF service in the Mediterranean in
WW2.
In the early 1960s some Roman
remains were found during quarrying in
the area of Caves Inn Farm, between
Shawell, Leics, and Churchover,
Warks. Jack joined a recently formed
group of diggers, becoming site
director in 1966. Four archaeological
reports were produced, the most
recent being published in August 2005.
A wider readership was catered for by
‘Tripontium’, a book published by Jack
in 1997. The name comes from Roman
documents that record a number of
settlements and posting stations along
what was later to become known as
The County Council’s archaeologists
are based at:
Room 500, County Hall, Leicester
Road, Glenfield, Leicester LE3 8TE
Fax (0116) 265 7965
ARCHAEOLOGICAL SERVICES
TEAM
ARCHAEOLOGY COLLECTIONS,
LEICESTERSHIRE AND RUTLAND
ARCHAEOLOGICAL NETWORK:
Richard Pollard (0116) 265 8324
email: rpollard@leics.gov.uk
FINDS
LIASON
OFFICER,
PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES SCHEME
(archaeological finds identifications
service):
Wendy Scott (0116) 265 8325
email: wscott@leics.gov.uk
ARCHAEOLOGY STAFF IN THE
HISTORIC AND NATURAL
ENVIRONMENT TEAM
SENIOR PLANNING
ARCHAEOLOGIST:
Richard Clark (0116) 265 8322
email: riclark@leics.gov.uk
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
PLANNING ARCHAEOLOGIST and
contact for HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT
RECORDS:
Helen Wells (0116) 265 8323
email: hwells@leics.gov.uk
HISTORIC
LANDSCAPE
CHARACTERISATION OFFICER:
John Robinson (0116) 265 7035
email: jerobinson@leics.gov.uk
LEICESTERSHIRE
COUNCIL MUSEUMS
COUNTY
CHARNWOOD MUSEUM
Queen’s Hall, Granby Street,
Loughborough, Leics LE11 3DU
Open Mon-Sat 10.00-4.30; Sun 2.005.00. Tel: (01509) 233754. FREE
COLLECTIONS
RESOURCE
CENTRE
Barrow-upon-Soar, Leicestershire.
Tel: (01509) 815514. Guided visits by
appointment with the Site Manager,
Fred Hartley. Appointments to examine
collections should be made with the
relevant collection curator, but will
normally be between Mon-Thurs
10.00-3.30, and Fri 10.00-3.00.
Contact: Archaeology - Richard Pollard
(0116 265 8324 or 01509 815514); Art
and Costume - Philip Warren (01509
815514); Geology - Susan Cooke
(01509 233737); Home and Family Life
- Fiona Ure (01530 278442); Natural
Life - Tony Fletcher; Working Life Fred Hartley (both 01509 815514).
DONINGTON-LE-HEATH
MANOR
HOUSE
Manor Road, Donington-le-Heath,
Coalville, LE67 2FW. Open daily from
February through to end of November
at least, 11.00-4.00. Dec 2006-Jan
2007 hours to be announced. Tel:
(01530) 831259.
HOLLY HAYES ENVIRONMENT AND
HERITAGE RESOURCES CENTRE
216 Birstall Road, Birstall, Leicester,
LE4 4DG. Open Mon-Fri 10.00-4.00 by
appointment. Tel: (0116) 267 1950.
HARBOROUGH MUSEUM
Council Offices, Adam and Eve Street,
Market Harborough, Leics.
LE16
7AG.:
Open Mon-Sat 10.00-4.30; Sun 2.005.00. Tel: (01858) 821085. FREE
MELTON CARNEGIE MUSEUM
Thorpe End, Melton Mowbray LE13
1RB. Open Daily 10.00-4.30. Tel:
(01664) 569946. FREE
THE
RECORD
OFFICE
FOR
LEICESTERSHIRE, LEICESTER &
RUTLAND
Long Street, Wigston Magna, LE18
2AH.
Open Mon, Tues, Thurs 9.15-5.00;
Wed 9.15-7.30; Fri 9.15-4.45; Sat
9.15-12.15; closed on Suns. Tel:
(0116) 257 1080.
SNIBSTON DISCOVERY PARK
Ashby Road, Coalville, LE67 3LN
April-Sept: open daily 10.00-5.00. OctMarch: Mon-Fri 10.00-3.00m; Sat &
Sun 10am - 5pm. Admission Adults
£6.00, Child £4.00, under 5's free;
Concessions £4.20; half price after
3pm. FREE entry to Fashion Gallery
after 3pm on Weds. Group discounts:
call for details. Tel: (01530) 278444.
There are many other museums and
historic buildings in Leicestershire and
Rutland open to the public, run by the
voluntary
sector
and
other
organisations.
Details should be
available at your local library, or log on
to www.lrmf.org.uk .
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965
THIS NEWSLETTER HAS BEEN
PRODUCED
BY
THE
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
SERVICES
TEAM FOR THE LEICESTERSHIRE
AND RUTLAND ARCHAEOLOGICAL
NETWORK
Heritage Services
Room 500, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8TE
(0116) 265 8324 Fax:(0116) 265 7965