Berkshire Barns Explored at the Vale and Download Museum

The humble barn is often overlooked in our social history, yet they have played a central role in rural life and the production of food, as well as other materials in Britain for hundreds of years.

Today these buildings, dotted around the shrinking corners of our countryside, are under threat from increased use of machinery, decline in agriculture and unsympathetic conversions into houses.

Crucks, Flails And Rats: An Exhibition about Oxford and North Berkshire barns 1300-2003, runs until March 3 2007 at The Vale and Downland Museum and explores the history of these unassuming buildings and the people who built and worked in them.

The exhibition looks at four barns that have been saved for future generations, three of which are open to the public. One example is Swalcliffe barn, which was built by New College Oxford, took nine years to build and was completed in 1409. This barn was originally used as a store and for threshing corn.

Over the last 600 years its use has changed, first to house livestock and later to store root crops. It now holds the Oxford County Museum's collection of vehicles and farm machinery and is open to the public during the summer.

Another famous local barn is the Great Coxwell medieval tithe barn – a magnificent church-like structure which is generally considered to be the best barn of its kind in Europe. A one-metre long model of the barn occupies the centre of the exhibition space and reveals the fascinating methods used in its construction.

The exhibition also features detailed interpretation boards alongside images and objects, including traditional threshing tools. There are also some taxidermist specimens illustrating the birds that nest in farm buildings.

Needless to say the exhibition doesn't contain any actual barns, although it is worth noting that part of Vale and Downland Museum consists of a 17th century timber framed barn moved from the nearby village of East Hendred, while another nearby museum, Cogges Manor Farm, is to be found in a converted barn building.

Vulnerable to decay and insensitive conversions, barns are costly to maintain and rarely have the visual impact of a historical house and so tend to remain unrecorded and unnoticed. This exhibition celebrates the place of barns in our countryside, from their visual impact to their place in history and the people who built them, used them and worked in them.

A Family Friendly day of activities takes place on February 24 and offers visitors the chance to try their hand at assembling wooden joints, animal modelling, a mystery photo quiz and to meet a 19th century shepherd to find out about the tools of his trade and his way of life - contact the Museum for more details.

(by Neil Cooper - from 24Hour Museum - 19 February 2007)

Ancient finds go on show

Objects unearthed by metal detector enthusiasts have gone on show in an archaeological museum.

The finds recovered by members of the Dunelme Metal Detecting Club form an exhibition opening at Durham University's Old Fulling Mill Museum today. Among the items of historical interest located by club members include everyday artefacts dating from the Saxon and medieval periods. The display is on show alongside the museum's popular Gold of Byzantium exhibition, which has been given an extended run.

Durham University Museums curator Craig Barclay said: "We are delighted to once again have an opportunity to display a selection of the Dunelme Club's finds at the Filling Mill. The fact that such a display is being mounted in a university museum speaks volumes for the positive way in which the links between professional archaeologists and their amateur counterparts have developed in recent years. We are all excited at the prospect of showing these amazing locally-found artefacts alongside the fabulous golden treasure of Byzantium."

The selection of metal detector club members' artefacts, Finding Our Past, and Gold of Byzantium, can be viewed at the Old Fulling Mill until May 29.

(The Northern Echo - 24th February 2007)

Donington Le Heath Hosts Day to Reveal Recent Archaeological Discoveries

Almost nine per cent of Leicester's historic core has been investigated in recent excavations. Photo University of Leicester Archaeological Services

A manor house in Leicestershire is giving the public the chance to handle and interact with ancient artefacts from Saxon, Roman and medieval times.

Donington le Heath Manor House is launching an exhibition to reveal the exciting findings of recent archaeological excavations in the area. The show will be held on February 25 2007 and is designed to be a hands-on way for locals to learn more about the history of their region.

Recent excavations in Leicester city centre have produced a mass of new information about the history of the City; including the most complete Roman townhouse yet found, a collapsed wall from the Roman market, a previously unknown early Saxon settlement, late Saxon and medieval buildings and two medieval churches with over 1,000 burials.

Archaeologists from the University of Leicester will be on hand on the day to display some of the finds from these excavations together with new discoveries made at Watermead Country Park and from a Roman Villa being investigated at Ibstock.

During the day, re-enactment group The Vikings of Middle England (who will later be involved in more serene demonstrations of traditional craft techniques) will treat visitors to a lively battle reconstruction. There will also be an opportunity for visitors to ‘play archaeologist’ by using an excavation simulation program.

Or, if you just want to listen, then experts from local universities will be imparting their knowledge on the unearthed items. Recent Excavations in the City and County is open from 11am to 4pm. Admission and car parking is free.

(Picture: A curse tablet found in Leicester lists about 18 or 19 suspects for the crime of a stolen cloak. Photo University of Leicester Archaeological Services)

(By Isla Harvey, 24 Hour Museum - 13 February 2007)

Archaeologists Bid to Unravel Mystery of Thornton Abbey

English Heritage archaeologists are bidding to unravel the turbulent post-dissolution history of Thornton Abbey, near Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire.

A major project is underway as part of the £4.5m South Humber Bank Heritage Tourism Initiative to tap the site’s potential as a visitor attraction and also carry out conservation work and further archaeological investigation.

A key aim for the team of investigators is the task of unravelling the mystery of the site’s fate after it was suppressed by Henry VIII in 1538. Built in the 14th century after the Peasant's Revolt, the abbey was one of England’s wealthiest Augustinian monasteries and boasts the nation’s best preserved monastic gatehouse.

In common with many medieval abbeys its heyday is well documented while its post dissolution history is shrouded in mystery.

“It’s a big mistake to believe history stood still after the monks left,” explained English Heritage Archaeological Investigator Al Oswald. “Thornton has never been intensively studied and because the site has escaped modern development, there’s a great deal still to discover. The information we glean will be used to create exciting new interpretation panels and displays.”

The site will open to the public in June 2007.

(24 Hour Museum - 5 February 2007)

Ancient Walls Unearthed at Dunster

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Archaeologists working on the restoration of Dunster's medieval Tithe Barn have uncovered ancient finds pre-dating the barn.

The remains of substantial walls have been unearthed during the final phase of work on the 16th century structure. Consisting of two main walls, an area of paving and fragments of medieval glazed ridge tiles, they were almost certainly associated with the former Benedictine Priory of Dunster, in existence by 1177, in the grounds of which the barn now stands.

County archaeologist, Bob Croft, said the finds suggest a wealth of history below the surface. "This shows there is considerable potential for the survival of more medieval remains associated with the Priory," he said. "This is something that any future development in this area will have to be sensitive to."The finds have been recorded in detail and grassed over for safekeeping.

The final stage of the £450,000 scheme to restore the Tithe Barn involves laying paving to the barn's west door entrance and linking it with the adjoining village gardens. Drainage works are also being undertaken and they have been revised to avoid damaging the archaeological deposits.

Tithe barns were used in the Middle Ages to store farm produce that had to be given to the church. A barn was first recorded on the Dunster site in 1498 and the present example is thought to date from 16th century. It was falling into disrepair until the restoration project began in late 2005.

The Tithe Barn stands within the precinct of the former Benedictine Priory of Dunster, a part of the much larger Benedictine Abbey of Bath. In existence by 1177, the Priory was sold by the Crown to the Luttrell family, owners of Dunster Castle in 1543. The nearby Parish Church of St George, Dovecote and Priory House also date from this medieval period.

The restoration has been funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, with match funding coming from Somerset County Council, West Somerset Council, charitable trusts and many local people and organisations. A formal opening ceremony of the barn as a community centre, with meeting room and reception area, is due to take place in May.

(Chris Alder, Somerset County Gazette - 8 February 2007)

Petition Over Church Repair Law

Home buyers are being forced to take out home insurance to avoid falling foul of medieval laws that mean they have to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds for church repairs.

More than 2,500 lawyers are calling for the scrapping of “chancel repair liability”, which they say is spawning a £20 million industry for insurance companies and increasing conveyancing costs for house buyers.

The Law Society, the solicitors’ professional body, which has started an on-line petition signed by thousands of solicitors, says that historic tax on church repairs is unfair.

It accuses insurance companies of profiteering by pushing home buyers into paying for inappropriate insurance to protect them from having to pay for repairs.

Paul Marsh, deputy vice-president of the Law Society, said: “The reality is that chancel repair liability applies to only a tiny fraction of properties.”

(Aston Cantlow, Times Online -19 December 2006)

Performer mixes song, speech for 'Beowulf'

Benjamin Bagby never tires of performing "Beowulf." He first performed sections of the epic Anglo-Saxon poem in 1990 when it was commissioned for a storytelling festival in the Netherlands. "I love creating medieval stories. My original intention was to use it as an adjunct to my medieval music group" -- the Paris-based Sequentia. "The more I did it, the more I loved it," Bagby says. "It always surprises me with something new."

Seventeen years later, he and his six-string lyre will make their third appearance onstage at Synod Hall on Saturday as a presentation of the Renaissance and Baroque Society. "He always sells out," says Ann F. Mason, executive director of the Renaissance and Baroque Society who calls it her organization's equivalent of that other perennially popular single performer show, "Late Night Catechism."

At first glance, Bagby's performance of "Beowulf" seems an unlikely candidate for sell-out status. First created as an spoken poem sometime between the 6th century and the 11th century when it was written down by monks, "Beowulf" is performed in the language of its birth -- Anglo Saxon, a language as unfamiliar to most of us as Etruscan or Latin.

When the original storyteller-singer performers, called scops, traveled through medieval England performances of the entire 3,182- line epic would last between four to seven hours. Bagby's performance is shorter -- 99 minutes, no intermission, and accompanied by supertitles that simultaneously translates the spoken text into modern-day English.

While the complete tale is about the same length as Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," Bagby's version covers only the first third of the whole story. It follows Beowulf as he travels to Denmark to help King Hrothgar who is being menaced by Grendel, a descendant of the biblical Cain, who is making nightly forays into Hrothgar's castle to carry off and devour the king's warriors.

Those who love the tale know it's still a heck of a story, filled with grisly details, plenty of action and a tale of a brave hero pitted against a fearsome monster. "'Beowulf' has survived because it's about a man who is righteous and defeats the forces of evil. He definitely has a testosterone problem and typical of a medieval hero, he is much more concerned with his reputation than anything else," Bagby says.

Asked whether it's more accurate to say he sings or speaks the poem's lines, Bagby chooses a third interpretation. "I give it voice," he says. "It's a mixture of song and speech. I try to use all the shadings of the voice. There is an enormous spectrum to the voice."

(Alice T. Carter - The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 08 February 2007;
see also: News for Medievalists)

13th Century Finds Uncovered in Berwick Dig

A SILVER coin dating from the 13th century reign of King Henry III is among the medieval finds uncovered by archaeologists in the Walkergate area of Berwick.

The short-cross penny, which is still in very good condition having been preserved in the soil for centuries, dates from the 1260s.
"This date and the quality of the building's construction suggest that it may relate to the medieval heyday of Berwick," explained Chris Burgess, Northumberland county archaeologist.
"It appears to have been slightly disturbed by some of the later pits and robbing, but should be in a comparatively good state of preservation, having been largely protected by the depth of the dark-earths that overly it.
"We won't know more until we can expose more of this by removing them."
Archaeologists from Tyne and Wear Museums have been working on the former Beehive site for over two months prior to construction work starting on the new £3.3 million business start-up units.
Early in the dig they found the foundation walls of three separate buildings, the one nearest the road thought to date back to the Elizabethan period.
These three phases of building seem to show how the street has become wider over the years, with a progression from early to late from the front of the site to the back through a series of different buildings gradually moving away from Walkergate.
However, the team were always confident the site would throw up some older archaeology given Berwick's rich history and that has turned out to be the case.
"As expected, several walls and a possible floor are now visible in the sill-beam trenches," revealed Mr Burgess.
"At this stage, it's hard to see exactly what this means. What seems most likely is that we have a building with good quality stone walls and floor extending east to west in the southern part of the site."
The team were also recently given the go-ahead to extend the excavation site slightly to the south to match the final building footprint more closely.
Mr Burgess said: "We have hired in a JCB to take off the majority of the garden soil and are quickly recording any features that we encounter in this area.
"This means that we can make a start on digging the various sill beams and the lift-shaft that go much deeper than the majority of the excavation area.
"This is our best chance of investigating the earlier medieval deposits from a time when Berwick was, in theory at least, much more densely populated than it was in the later periods that we have been looking at so far. This means that we should expect to find more structural features like walls."
Once the excavations have finished on December 15, the team will have a watching brief over the initial construction work to check for fresh archaeological information.
Mr Burgess said: "We're very pleased with the way the excavations have turned out because we now have a full archaeological history of Berwick from the medieval period through the Elizabethan and the Georgian eras right up to the modern day."
A webcam on the Tweeddale Press building will go live over the next few days to enable the public to see what is happening.

(Berwick Today - 16 December 2006)

Angel Dig May Have Found Lost Church

One of Corbridge’s lost churches may have been unearthed by archaeologists working on what has been called Northumberland’s most important medieval site.

In recent weeks, archaeologists from North Pennines Archaeology Limited, based in Nenthead, have been working against the clock to record every aspect of the site behind the Angel Inn.Wednesday was the last day of working on the site for the team and the remains are now due to be covered over.Having already uncovered two skeletons, archaeologists this week found evidence of medieval bronze and iron working on the site, as well as what they say could be one of Corbridge’s lost churches, dating back to before the 13th century.Archaeology supervisor Tony Liddell explained: “We have found a number of substantial walls on the site, which we are dating back to the 13th century because of pottery remains on the site.“Several of the walls cross over each other and are from different buildings; some are quite slight but others are very sturdy.“It seems as if the older, sturdier building fell in to disuse and a new building was put up over the top of it, but slightly off centre.“We have found iron working and bronze working associated with these structures, including a bronze cauldron handle.“There are distinct burning areas with metal slag, all of which gives us an important view on what life was like during the period.“We then have evidence, through domestic waste and domestic pottery, that suggests that the site was reused for domestic purposes shortly after this time.“There are only about 30 sites across the whole country for medieval bronze working, and only two of these are in Northumberland. That makes this one of the most important medieval sites in the region.“These are certainly the most important mediaeval remains found in Corbridge.“We have taken some samples for carbon dating, but we would need additional funding to carry that out, so it may have to wait.“One of most important things we have found is an even older and thicker wall, dating back before the 13th century.“It’s the oldest l we’ve found on the site and the most substantial. It’s pre-13th century because some of the other walls we have dated cut across the top of it.“Although we may never be able to determine the exact period the wall was built in – due to a lack of artefacts relating to it – we are speculating that it could be a lost church.”The revelation, however, has not cast any new light on the two skeletons found on the site, as they date from a later period and at least one did not show signs of a Christian burial.With the site due to be covered over, field archaeologist Kevin Mounsey has drawn a detailed plan of the site – mapping it stone by stone – and numerous photographs have been taken to record a part of Corbridge not seen in over 700 years.

(By Will Green Hexham Courant - 9 February 2007)

Digging for History

AN archaeological dig is under-way at a Portishead church as part of a project to expand the Grade I listed building for its swelling congregation.

Leaders at St Peter's Church have spent two days painstakingly removing a wall which leads to the north door of the church.The wall had to be excavated as part of proposals to build a new chapter house on the side of the church.Team rector of Portishead, The Rev Alan Taylor, said: "The door can only be seen from the outside of the church so we had to take down the wall and carry out an archaeological dig to see if there were any important remains there."I know at another church in Somerset, they have opened up medieval doors and found dead priests lying there."The archaeological work to be carried out to make sure there were no reasons the mediaeval church, which dates back to 1320, could not plough ahead with its plans to extend the building.An architect has now been appointed to draw up plans for the extension, which is expected to cost in the region of £500,000.Rev Taylor added: "As a church, we are bursting at the seams and desperately need more room."Around 400 people each week use the building, from the toddlers group to the Mother's Union."This extension is badly needed and is somewhere we could hold meetings, choir practice and for our toddler group to meet."On some occasions we have had to limit our services to ticket only.""It would also be somewhere that people could meet for coffee after services."The church has the second largest congregation in the whole of the Bath and Wells Diocese and is second to only Bath Abbey.If no archaeological remains are found and planning permission is agreed, it is planned to launch a public fund-raising appeal towards the cost of the extension.

(Weston & Somerset Mercury - 14 February 2007)

Three skeletons discovered under newspaper car park

IT is usually journalists who are accused of digging the dirt, but when archaeologist scratched below the surface of a newspaper car park they found three skeletons.
The grisly discovery began with half a skull and an arm bone protruding from the bottom of a 3ft deep trench, which was found to contain another set of human remains below.

In another 20ft trench just five metres away in the East Lothian Courier car park in Newton Port, Haddington, the archaeologists found another skeleton.
Four one inch pieces of what has been described as white, gritty pottery were also found last Friday and are now set to be analysed and given to a local museum.
The remains are believed to have been from some kind of Christian burial, while the pottery is between 500 and 800 years old.
They were uncovered during a dig ahead of development of the building and car park by Abercorn Archaeology, near Haddington.
Site manager Richard Heawood was reported as saying the bones were "definitely human".
"We have found some bones which suggest there may have been a burial."

(Scotsman.com - 15 February 2007)

Ripon Charter Horn

The Ripon Charter or Wakeman's Horn, comprising a covered cattle horn and suspension straps, plus a separate baldric, was recently the subject of detailed investigation and recording for the first time in its long existence.

The horn itself, now dressed in dark blue velvet with silver mounts, is said to have been presented to the city by King Alfred the Great, and is Ripon's most important piece of civic regalia; it is certainly of considerable local and national interest and importance.

With financial assistance from HLF, Ripon City Council commissioned York Archaeological Trust to bring together a team of conservators and expert researchers to make a full record of every aspect of the horn and its fittings. The Council was aware that without this, any accident or loss could deprive not only Ripon but the nation of this remarkable object and the history that it contains.

The tradition that the Horn was given to Ripon by King Alfred stems from the History of the Loyal Town of Rippon, written and published by Thomas Gent in the early 18th century. Although Gent claimed that the information he presented had been 'faithfully and painfully collected', his work was later described as being 'somewhat fragmentary and erratic'. Gent claimed to have seen 'an antient manuscript' in which it was stated that Ripon had been incorporated as a borough in the 14th year of the reign of King Alfred, i.e. in 886. On this basis he claimed that the office of wakeman, forerunner of the present mayor, and recorded in Ripon from 1400, had been instituted at that time; and therefore it became accepted that the Wakeman's Horn, the badge of office, also dated from 886.

The rather shaky basis for these assertions is obvious. No-one other than Gent has ever claimed to have seen the manuscript to which he refers; other, more trustworthy local historians, including John Richard Walbran, the noted Victorian Riponian who wrote extensively and informatively about Ripon and its vicinity, either ignore or reject Gent's claim. Even if Gent did see 'an antient manuscript', there is no reason to believe that it was a genuine, contemporary, ninth or tenth century factual record of events; it may have been of any, pre-eighteenth-century date, and be a fanciful collection of tall stories. For this reason alone, examination of the Horn itself provides the best means of establishing its pedigree.

The Horn's silver suspension mounts and craft guild badges, and also the baldric, covered in many silver mayoral and Wakemen's badges going back several centuries, have all been carefully recorded and studied. The various layers of velvet and other textiles were also examined, some probably dating back to 1703 when the first detailed redressing of the horn is recorded. X-ray plates, made at the Tower Armouries, Leeds, of the various elements of the horn, now form a unique visual record of the horn and accoutrements.

A major element of the work was to 'undress' the horn itself, a very exciting and rather tricky business. Once exposed, it was found to be a steer's horn from a type of longhorn cattle not thought to have been bred in Britain before the post-medieval period. Remarkably, though, the horn had been thinned down in antiquity, leaving a curious 'keel' raised proud on the underside. The surfaces were covered in the 'chatter marks' from the tool used to pare the horn down, and there were heavy signs of wear and polishing in the area that the horn would have been held when being blown. As anticipated, the narrow end of the horn was shaped into a mouthpiece, demonstrating that this had indeed originally been intended as a functioning blast horn before it assumed a wholly ceremonial (and unplayable) use. Of particular interest were the many redundant fixing holes from previous mounts and adornments, demonstrating that the horn must be of considerable antiquity. An initial report detailing the work undertaken so far is now being prepared.

(York Archaeological Trust - News)

Museum of London Acquires Rare Medieval Altar Panels

The Museum of London has unveiled its latest acquisition, a pair of rare medieval paintings, known as the Westminster Panels, which miraculously survived the mass destruction of English religious art during Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries.

Acquired by the museum for £190,000, the panels were commissioned by or for George Fascet, Abbot of Westminster from about 1498-1500. They depict the Archangel Gabriel and the Virgin standing on plinths which bear the shield of arms of Westminster Abbey and the Abbot himself.

Originally forming the wings of an altarpiece, the oil painted panels represent the high quality religious artwork available to wealthy medieval Londoners of the time. The Annunciation scene is depicted in glowing colours, with the Archangel Gabriel on the left panel and the Virgin Mary on the right.

Illuminated by candles in its original setting, the ‘cloth of gold’ featured in the panels would have provided a shimmering backdrop against which the figures would appear to step out toward the viewer with an uncanny lifelike quality.

“Acquiring the Westminster Annunciation Panels for the museum will ensure that this outstanding and fascinating example of high quality religious painting will be made accessible to the general public, as the centrepiece of a permanent display,” said John Clark, curator of the museum’s Medieval Gallery.

After a period on display individually, the panels will be placed adjacent to cases dealing with Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries and the Protestant/Catholic conflicts of the ensuing reigns of Edward VI and Mary – part of the Medieval London Gallery, which opened in November 2005.

For the museum the homecoming of the panels completes a tale of extraordinary and unlikely survival, which saw them pass intact through the cataclysmic upheavals of Reformation, the Dissolution of the Monasteries and religious turmoil.

These are key themes in the museum’s Medieval London Gallery, where the panels will help convey the importance of religion for the higher social classes. Their connection with a documented London figure and one of medieval London’s most important establishments, make them an outstanding and extremely important addition to the museum’s collection.

“This display will interpret the work in the wider context of religion in the medieval city and will illustrate the overriding importance of faith and worship across the social spectrum of Londoners,” added Mr Clark.

The acquisition was made possible with a grant of £100,000 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF), £56,430 from The Art Fund, £15,000 from The Pilgrim Trust and generous funding from private donors.

(24 Hour Museum - 08 December 2006)

Castle's Secrets Yet To Be Fully Uncovered

The remains of some strange old building features have just been unearthed, quite by chance, inside Bodiam Castle.

One of most beautiful and spectacular castles in the country, Bodiam was built by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge in 1385 and is now owned and managed by The National Trust.The exciting discovery happened on Friday February 2 when some earth was being cleared away in the Great Hall ruins. The ground was being made ready for a new gravel base when suddenly the mini-digger struck stone. As the earth was carefully cleared away, with an archaeologist on hand to observe the proceedings, more stonework appeared along with some clay tiles and pieces of rubble. It soon became apparent that this was something substantial: a wall of some kind. Further down the Hall something else appeared, a strange circular construction. National Trust staff were puzzled and immediately got on the phone to East Sussex archaeology department. Casper Johnson, the County Archaeologist, agreed with the Castle's staff about the rubble and tiles; they might well have fallen onto the ground and been subsequently buried at the time the Castle was 'slighted', or semi-demolished on the inside, by Cromwell's troops at the end of the English Civil War. The wall and circular feature, however, were a mystery. Could they be the remains of a gardener's cottage built inside the ruins in the eighteenth century? Or perhaps part of Sir Edward Dalyngrigge's medieval hall? There is now a race against time for the National Trust and the archaeologists and historians, as the remains will have to be covered over again rather than being more fully excavated. It's a wonderful discovery for the Castle and the staff there are very excited, but it couldn't have come at a more inconvenient time. It's all happening at the moment, as the Castle staff make preparations for full time opening (7 days a week, 10.30am – 5pm) from 10 February. There are the children's events for half term to get ready, some new wooden stairs and decking are being installed on one of the towers, and two massive trees are being cleared from the moat. They were blown over by the recent storm winds and in falling they dug out large chunks of the moat bank – some more 'unearthing' at the Castle, which has certainly opened up the view across the romantic moat to the battlements and towers.

(Hastings Today - 06 February 2007)

Magyar fejtette meg a viking hajósok titkát

Magyar kutató fejtette meg, hogyan hajóztak a vikingek iránytű nélkül a tengereken. Hegedűs Ramón, az ELTE biofizikusa szerint az északi nép úgynevezett napköveket használt.

Hegedűs egy nemzetközi kutatócsoport eredményeit publikálta az Angol Királyi Tudományos Akadémia folyóiratában. A cikkben leírja, hogy a vikingek úgy jutottak el Izlandra, Grönlandra, sőt, Kolumbusz előtt Észak-Amerikába, hogy nem használtak iránytűt – hiszen azt csak több száz évvel később fedezték fel. A tudósok már régóta kutatják és vitatják, hogyan voltak erre képesek. A legendák szerint kristályokat tartottak a fény felé, és ezek segítették őket a hajózásban, s ezt látszanak alátámasztani Hegedűs és kollégáinak megállapításai is.

Felhőben is működött

Annyit már régészeti leletek alapján korábban is tudtak, hogy a vikingek nappal, tiszta időben a Nap állását vették figyelembe, és egyfajta fából készült napóra alapján tájékozódtak. Felhős időben vagy ködben azonban ez a módszer nem működött. Hegedűs társaival arra a következtetésre jutott, hogy az északi hajósok valóban "napköveket" használtak, amelyek – ha a fény felé tartják és forgatják őket – úgy szűrik meg a fényt, hogy felhős időben is meg lehet határozni a Nap állását.

A vikingek kristályai valószínűleg úgynevezett polarizációs szűrőként működtek. A fényképezés során is használatos szűrők kizárólag azokat a fényhullámokat engedik át, amelyek egy irányból érkeznek. Miután a Föld felszínére érkező napsugarak egy része polarizált, és ezt a felhők vagy a köd csak részben fogják fel, a szűrő segítségével valóban meghatározható annak a fényforrásnak az iránya, ahonnan a fényhullámok eredetileg érkeztek. A mostani expedíció mérései szerint felhős időben elegendő a fény a tájékozódáshoz, ködben viszont csak különleges körülmények között.

Hegedűs fiatal kora ellenére régóta foglalkozik optikai jelenségekkel. Néhány évvel ezelőtt első lett a középiskolások számára meghirdetett országos innovációs versenyen, ezután a Magyar Innovációs Szövetség támogatásával juthatott ki Amerikába egy nemzetközi versenyre, ahol negyven ország ezerkétszáz diákja vett részt. Ott az idehaza is győztes gimnáziumi pályamunkájával megnyerte az Eastman Kodak Company kategória első díját. A fiatal kutató témája a lézerrel volt kapcsolatos: azokat a változásokat modellezte, amelyek egy anyag felületén játszódnak le akkor, ha speciális lézerrel sugározzák.

(Index - 2007. február 8.)

Pub Builders Uncover Leper Colony

Evidence of a medieval leper colony has been uncovered by builders who are renovating a pub in Coventry.

Human remains thought to date back some 900 years were found in the area of the men's toilets at the Four Provinces pub in the Spon End area of the city. Legs, arms and a jaw bone as well as a skull were found and are to be tested for evidence of leprosy.
An archaeologist said he believed they came from a patient at a hospital that stood in the area centuries ago. Chris Patrick said: "It would have been treating mostly lepers, located on the outskirts of the city. "There would have been a place where they would have lived and slept and ate. "And of course as many of them died here they would have been buried in a cemetery which is where the bones would have come from, we think."

(BBC News - 5 February 2007)

Saxon Jewellery Bought by Museum

A small piece of Saxon jewellery unearthed in Kent has been bought by Maidstone museum.

The gold and garnet artefact measures about an inch (2.5cm) and was found near Maidstone using a metal detector. Giles Guthrie, from the museum, said: "It's very high status. I haven't seen this kind of material cropping up in Kent before." The piece, which was made during the 6th Century, is expected to be on show at Maidstone Museum next week.

Mr Guthrie said the man who discovered the artefact in 2005 told him it came out of the ground untarnished and needed no cleaning. "He just lightly dusted it off to get a bit of dry dirt off," he said. The item is thought to be a section of a larger piece of jewellery or part of a buckle.

(Edited from BBC News - 1 December 2006)

Virgin and Child Statue Restored

A 13th Century statue at a former Nottinghamshire abbey has been restored and placed back on display.

The Virgin and Child statue at Newstead Abbey had been damaged by extreme weathering over the centuries. It was restored during the abbey's Adopt-a-Stone Appeal and will be returned to a niche in the West Front. The statue of the Virgin Mary holding the baby Jesus was in fragile condition when it was removed from the front of the abbey earlier this year. General manager Gillian Crawley said: "The cumulative effective of acid rain, freeze-thawing, vegetation growth and salt deposits had begun to wreak destruction." Newstead Abbey was home to poet Lord Byron who died in 1824.
The restoration work included making the stonework and mortar more secure and watertight and fixing a fine steel mesh across the niche to protect the statue from more damage.
The 333-acre estate was given to Nottingham City Council in trust in 1931.

(BBC News - 10 December 2006)

Illicit Artefacts Sold as eBay Turns Blind Eye

Roman and Anglo-Saxon jewellery and other artefacts are still being sold illegally on eBay, despite the website's promise to clamp down on the trade.

Roman and Anglo-Saxon jewellery and other artefacts are still being sold illegally on eBay, despite the website’s promise to clamp down on the trade. The British Museum has told The Times that it is alarmed at the number of sellers offering gold and silver that has apparently been found on British soil but has not been reported. The Treasure Act 1996 requires the reporting of all gold and silver objects more than 300 years old, and groups of coins that are more than 300 years old and found on the same site.

Two years ago The Times reported that the number of potential treasure finds being offered for sale on eBay was so high that it was undermining the credibility of the Act. This month the journal British Archaeology reports that between August and September this year almost 3,500 antiquities were offered for sale on the British eBay website, of which 600 were “British”.

In October eBay addressed the problem, signing a memorandum of understanding with the British Museum and The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, the Government’s advisory body. The website promised to discourage the illegal trade in antiquities and agreed to allow the British Museum to contact sellers “to ascertain whether there is a reasonable cause for concern”. But Claire Costin, of the Portable Antiquities Scheme at the British Museum, said yesterday: “The number of potential treasure finds for sale on eBay has not noticeably decreased since we began the monitoring process.”

Sellers have found a way round the problem. On being contacted by the British Museum, they simply insist that the objects came from overseas. Miss Costin said: “Frequently we are told that an item was bought abroad or was from an old collection, in which case there is not much that we can do, although in some cases we will inform the seller that they should provide evidence to buyers that the object has been legally exported from its country of origin.”

Among the recent offerings on eBay was an early medieval gold pendant. When contacted by the British Museum, the seller said that it had been bought at an antiquities fair in Germany in the 1980s. The owner of a Roman silver bracelet said: “This bracelet originates from Italy. All of my items are from private collections of Central Europeans.” The seller of a medieval silver ring became agitated after being contacted by the British Museum, saying in an e-mail: “I have responded and answered all your questions. I have been polite and courteous. I would now appreciate you cease this harassment and deal with eBay.”

A spokesman for eBay said: “If people are saying they don’t know where something’s from, then that is the truth, as far as we know.”

As many of the finds are sold by dealers or another third party rather than the finder, there is little information about whether such finds have or should have been reported.

Miss Costin said: “Many sellers also feel that they have no obligation to report the artefacts they are selling, feeling that this is the finder’s responsibility. “We would love a change in the law to expand the obligation to report. We want all those who are involved in the sale of potential treasure artefacts to ensure that the finds have been reported, and also to be aware of the fact that finds should not be bought or sold unless evidence can be provided that the object has been disclaimed by the Crown.” The Treasure Act confers a legal obligation on all finders of treasure to report them to a coroner within 14 days of making the find, or realising the find was treasure. The penalties include imprisonment for up to three months and a £5,000 fine.

Miss Costin said she was hopeful that things would improve. “It is still early days. Given that we have persuaded several eBay sellers to report artefacts — the majority of whom were previously genuinely unaware of the treasure Act and the legal obligation to report potential Treasure finds — and that these sellers have been very co-operative, we are hopeful there will be a long-term impact of our work.”

Auction site is a treasure trove for collectors - but have these items been reported?

• What eBay advertisement said: “Very rare silver Saxon ring of interwoven silver strands which do not normally survive because of fragility”

What the British Museum said: “This was found in Cambridgeshire. If the finder thinks it is (Saxon) he had an obligation to report. He says it was found ‘some years ago’, which may suggest it should have been reported treasure trove rather than under the Treasure Act”

• “Rare Anglo-Saxon gold snake-ring, c6th century, found with a detector, Suffolk”

British Museum: “The seller says object has been reported, but we would be interested to know that for sure”

• “Silver button, possibly medieval, found in Norfolk”

British Museum: “Since the finder says this is medieval — though I think it might be more recent — it should be reported. The finder says he is going to take it to our finds officer in Suffolk (where he lives). If it is potential treasure he will remove it from sale and report it”

(edited from Times Online - 18 December 2006)

How a Manuscript Found in an Irish Peat Bog Was Saved

Restorers are hoping to separate the pages of the ninth-century psalter and recover some of the ancient text

An astonishing discovery in an Irish bog is posing an unusual conservation challenge. A chance find by a peat cutter last summer in County Tipperary, southern Ireland, turned out to be a psalter, which has been dated to around 800 AD. The discovery has been described as the Irish equivalent of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

National Museum of Ireland conservator Rolly Read and his team are now stabilising the compacted vellum mass. The difficult issue is how to separate the pages, preserving as much as possible of the ancient text.

The story began on 20 July, at Faddan More. Bulldozer driver Edward Fogarty was cutting peat when he spotted something unusual in his excavator bucket. After it was realised that the find was an ancient book, Kevin and Patrick Leonard, the bog’s owners, immediately called for archaeological assistance, and followed advice to keep the find damp and not expose it to air. The following morning National Museum of Ireland conservators safely moved the find to their laboratory at Collins Barracks, in Dublin.

The next task was to excavate the area where the psalter had been found. This led to the discovery of fragments of leather straps and a leather sheaf, probably the remains of a bag in which the book had been kept. Also found was an organic substance that might have been used to conceal the object.

According to museum keeper Eamonn Kelly, writing in Archaeology Ireland, the excavation results “suggest that the book was concealed deliberately, perhaps with a view to its later recovery”.

Peat bogs provide excellent conditions for the preservation of organic remains—a fact probably known in the early ninth century, when the psalter would have been hidden at Faddan More. This is due to the low level of oxygen and the presence of an antibiotic substance called sphagnum in the peat. Sphagnum binds with proteins on the surface of micro-organisms, immobilising them and causing organic material to undergo chemical changes that makes it impervious to rot.

The Faddan More Psalter is now safe in the National Museum of Ireland’s conservation laboratory. It is kept damp, at 100% relative humidity, in refrigerated storage (at four degrees centigrade). The room in which examination and recording takes place is cooled to 14 degrees, and the compacted vellum mass is only removed from the refrigerator for a maximum of two hours a day.

Sadly, much of the text has been lost. Some of the periphery of most of the pages has survived, but the centres of all the pages have rotted away. Where the vellum has survived, written portions vary from full legibility to complete loss. In some areas the ink has had a preservative effect, although the vellum around the letters has been lost. This has led to a series of inked letters piled on top of each other.

The first stage of the work, which has almost been completed, is a full investigation of the book in its excavated condition. This has involved an analysis of the binding and book structure, photography, magnetic resonance imaging, multi spectral imaging, analysis of vellum deterioration and an investigation of pollen samples.

Work is about to start on the second stage, which will involve the delicate separation of the pages and the process of drying out the vellum. Sadly, the vellum losses mean that only a fairly small part of the text of the Psalms remains, but it should be enough to enable scholars to see how the book has been written, decorated and bound.

The realisation that the Faddan More find was a psalter was made very quickly, after two words of the exposed Latin text were read as “ualle lacrimarum”, or “valley of tears” (Psalm 83). Trinity College Library keeper Bernard Meehan dates it to around 800AD, almost the same time as the Book of Kells. The psalter is in a large format (32 by 22 cm), almost as large as the latter, and was conceived on a lavish scale.

It has now been determined that the Faddan More Psalter comprises 104 (or possibly 108) pages. There are around ten words to a line, and 30 lines to the page. This means that the entire text of Psalms would fit neatly into the book, with perhaps a few pages left over for decorations.

The exposed front of the book offers a tantalising glimpse of a highly decorated page, including an interlaced border and the figure of a bird, possibly an eagle. Throughout the psalter, initial letters appear to be painted in red lead, now oxidised and badly discoloured.

The hope is that somewhere in the book it may be possible to identify the place where the psalter was compiled, the abbott who commissioned it or the name of the scribe. So far it remains speculation, but a possible owner was Birr monastery, which lay seven kilometres from Faddan More. Nearly 1,200 years ago, it is likely that the precious book was taken to the peat bog, possibly to hide it during a raid by Vikings from Norway.

(The Art Newspaper - 18 December 2006)

Medieval Bones Found by Workmen

A jaw bone and teeth discovered by workmen in Northampton have turned out to be medieval bones.
The workmen unearthed the severely decayed bones as they were digging the pavement in Abington Square. Police forensic investigators confirmed the bones were human but asked an archaeologist to identify their age. The bones were put back into the ground after the archaeologist confirmed the site, to the left of the war memorial, was a medieval church or burial ground.
Sgt Adrian Sharpe said: "The bones were clearly very old and decayed but they did cause some concern when they were unearthed. What the archaeologist had to say was very interesting, and the bones have been laid back to rest."

(BBC News - 26 January 2007)

House of Commons Debate on The Lindisfarne Gospels

House of Commons Hansard Debates - 25 Jan 2007

Tim Loughton: rose—

Dr. Roberta Blackman-Woods (City of Durham) (Lab) rose—

Mrs. Hodgson: I will give way first to the hon. Gentleman and then to my hon. Friend.

Tim Loughton: I think that we might be about to say different things. I fully acknowledge the plea made by the hon. Lady that the Lindisfarne gospels be taken back to the north-east of England, but will she acknowledge that the Lindisfarne gospels are a national, indeed an international, treasure? They can be seen in the British Library by many, many more people, I am afraid, than would go up to Lindisfarne to see them. We should value them in the context of the development of literature and publishing, and perhaps occasionally they could travel around the country to maximise viewing opportunities.

Mrs. Hodgson: That is a valid point, but all we are asking initially is for the Lindisfarne gospels to visit the north-east. The last visit was a number of years ago. We have been told that a further visit will not even be considered until, I think, 2012, and consideration does not mean that they will actually come. I completely take on board the fact that other people need to see the gospels, but for them not even to be allowed to come to the north-east for people in the north-east to see them for another six or more years is not acceptable.

Dr. Blackman-Woods: Does my hon. Friend agree that in the north-east we do accept that the Lindisfarne gospels are a national treasure? We would, however, suggest to the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) that there is no reason why a national treasure cannot be located in the north-east, because we want people to travel to the north-east to see those wonderful gospels in the context in which they were written.

Mrs. Hodgson: I also point out that the colours used to create the gospels were extracted from local plants and minerals nearly 1,500 years ago in what was the kingdom of Northumbria. They are literally, therefore, a part of the north-east. More than 180,000 people visited the gospels when they were last on display in the north-east, and if they were returned, many more visitors would be expected. I know that the Minister is aware of the case and I look forward to meeting representatives of the British Library. I hope that the Select Committee might look into the case when it next meets. If we are serious about preserving our heritage we need to be serious about sharing it. The chance to share such an evocative piece of our heritage with perhaps a quarter of a million people is, in my opinion, too good to turn down.

I am grateful to hon. Members for listening to me this afternoon. I hope that I have contributed a regional perspective to the debate. The battle to preserve our cultural heritage is being fought on many fronts. At regional level, people continue to live their heritage, not least through local terminology and local knowledge. That is why I believe in regional renaissance—linking the local with the national to create a shared heritage that we can preserve for many years to come.

(www.publications.parliament.uk)

New Year sees new arrivals at Bede's World

This New Year Bede's World is celebrating the arrival of two adorable young male Dexter calves. The new calves were chosen because of their similarity in size and appearance to Anglo-Saxon cattle.

Dexters are one of the smallest breeds of cattle and are thought to be the most appropriate for us to use at Bede's World, although they have a reputation for being one of the more difficult breeds to train! The Anglo-Saxons would have used cattle for draught work, whilst horses were kept mainly for riding.
The new arrivals belonged to Mr & Mrs Jackson from Ponteland, who have bred and shown Dexter cattle for a number of years. When the farm manager Christine FitzGerald visited the herd she was convinced to have this pair because of the extremely good temperament of all the cattle, as well as their quality. Mr & Mrs Jackson plan to follow the progress of their two protégés throughout their training and are pleased that they have got a home for life.
The calves will be handled daily and will learn how to walk in a halter and as a pair. Next year they will learn how to wear a yoke (cattle harness), but will not be expected to pull anything until they are big and strong enough. Our older cattle, Edwin and Oswin, will carry on working for now however when the younger pair are ready to work, the older 'boys' will retire to a nearby field, where they will be able to keep a watchful eye on the younger pair, as they carry out jobs such as ploughing, harrowing grass and pulling a cart.

(www.bedesworld.co.uk)

Anglo-Saxon Sword Joins British Museum Collection

A beautifully crafted sword pommel and hilt fittings found in a Lincolnshire field have been purchased by the British Museum.

A rare seventh century sword, found in a Lincolnshire town in 2002, has become part of the British Museum's collection.The National Heritage Memorial Fund and the Friends of the British Museum provided funding to purchase the sword for £125,000 after it was valued by an independent treasure valuation committee.Discovered using a metal detector near the town of Market Rasen four years ago, the Anglo Saxon gold sword pommel and hilt fittings are the first of their kind to be found in England and are decorated with garnets, crafted animal heads and Celtic patterns.The pommel would have been carried along trade routes from Asia, while Anglo-Saxon workers crafted the hilt fittings and the sword is excellent example of early medieval workmanship.Similar items have been unearthed in Italy and Scandinavia, but this is the first Anglo-Saxon sword of such quality to be found in Britain and provides vital information about seventh century workshops and craftsmen.The anonymous finder of the sword is reported to be planning to share the cash with the owner of the field in which it was found.

(UKTV History - First published: 8th January 2007)

Medieval Graveyard Found in Central England

A large medieval cemetery containing around 1,300 skeletons was discovered in the central English city of Leicester in 2006. The bones were found during a dig before the site is developed as part of a 350 million-pound ($630 million) shopping mall. University of Leicester archaeologists say the find promises to shed new light on the way people lived and died in the Middle Ages.

"We think, probably outside London, this must be one of the largest parish graveyards ever excavated," said Richard Buckley, director of University of Leicester Archaeology Services.
"Archaeology will tell us a lot from the rubbish people throw away. We can really learn about the lives they were leading."
"But it's very rare that we get a look at a [whole] population itself. It's quite a tightly dated group."
He said the graveyard was probably used from the 12th century until the demolition of a church at the site in 1573.
Communal graves and a high number of child skeletons already provide evidence of high infant mortality and contagious diseases in the area, Buckley said.
What is believed to be Britain's largest medieval cemetery was found at Bishopsgate London in 1999. It contained more than 10,000 bodies.

(Edited from Foxnews)