Live Updates
Follow the archaeology action from on site as it happens
Well..we weren't expecting to find THIS!
Another Archaeological Huddle™...what has got everyone gripped?!
We're potty for pottery today!
And shortly afterwards, Jo found an even bigger pot base!
Getting to the bottom of it!
In Trench 2, Hannah has found the base of a pot!
More Samian at Sacrewell!
We’re back on site today for our second week of exploration here at Sacrewell – and what a welcome back, in the shape of this fab sherd of Samian ware, found in Trench 3!
Samian ware is always an exciting discovery to make when its rich red tones catch your eye in the ground, and it’s one of the most common high-quality wares found on sites like this. This popularity means its changing styles over time make it a really useful dating tool, helping us to pin down when other features and discoveries were made.
This is our second piece so far here at Sacrewell – and hopefully not the last!
September has been a great month for Hadrian's Wall!
Our mission dataset has now grown to include over 15,000 polygons representing archaeological and landscape features, and the map is 35% complete.
One of the most interesting patterns emerging from the data is how much of it sits outside the existing Historic Environment Record (HER).
Only around one in five of our records match a known monument – but that doesn’t mean we’ve uncovered thousands of brand-new sites! Some are known sites that simply aren’t consolidated in the HER. The HER wasn’t designed to record Landscape Intelligence Features – and just under 4,000 of the features we’ve recorded fall into this category!
That’s where bringing everything together in one place gets really interesting. Pastronauts are helping to build a single, joined-up picture of the landscape, bringing archaeological and landscape information together in a way that wasn’t available before.
The power of Deep Time!
If you haven’t joined the mission yet, you can start training and join the mission today.
DigCamp discoveries
Today, more budding archaeologists are back in Trench 3 for Trowelling 101 with DigCamp!
Here’s Steph with a lovely little clothes pin, possibly used to fasten an item to a piece of clothing – and Max, who found this fab flake from worked flint. Could this predate the Roman activity on this site?
We’ve got a day off from digging tomorrow – but we’ll be back on Tuesday, and raring to go!
You're never too young to find something great!
We’re big believers in this – and this morning’s DigCampers have given us even more reason to…
Here are Elizabeth, Edward and their dad James – who found this fabulous piece of Roman box flue tile in Trench 3!
How do you know when archaeologists have found something?
There’ll be signs…
Like the Archaeological Huddle™!
Over the last few days, we’ve been carefully excavating something very interesting…stay tuned to find out more!
Levelling up at DigClub!
Here’s Kristian, who’s been joining us for our young archaeologist sessions since he was small!
Now with over 30 (!) digs under his belt with us here at DV and his local YAC club, Kristian is a seasoned pro at trowelling and mattocking – so we thought it was time he added some new skills to his repertoire.
Here he is with Ben, learning how to conduct geophysical survey!
Don't mind if we do!
Today, this oyster shell emerged – and could be a useful clue for establishing what people at this site may have been eating once upon a time…bottoms up!
Getting warmer...?
Over in Trench 2, where we’re investigating an absolutely huge ditch that could be the enclosure for the main farm building, we’ve found some box flue tile!
The Romans liked throwing their rubbish away in ditches, especially in ditches on the edges of their settlements, like this one – so we can learn a lot from them!
The things we do for our ditches...
Remember the magnetic anomaly from Trench 3...?
We’ve now identified it – and it turned out to be…
This hefty post-medieval horseshoe, likely once worn by a heavy draught horse.
This discovery is yet more evidence that archaeology is full of surprises – and you never know what you’re going to get, until you dig!
Small but mighty!
Jeanette’s had some wonderful variety in her discoveries this week – including this teeny, tiny sherd of Roman glass!
How many archaeologists does it take to photograph a section on a gloriously sunny day?
We’d say a handful – with a sprinkling of improvisation!
...And the art!
…To produce these fab pre-excavation aerial shots of Trench 1, where we’re going to be investigating some possible ditches and pits.
The artist...
Here’s Nat (very excitedly) getting the drone up and running…
That'll do for today!
In Trench 2, today’s crew have finished their initial excavation of the big slot in the hefty enclosure ditch – which we’ve cut to see how deep the ditch could be, and what it can tell us about when (and why) it was dug.
More pottery!
Over in Trench 3, where we’re exploring ditches and a highly magnetic anomaly, Venturer Jeanette has found some more pottery!
