Past Newsletters

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HADAS EVENTS 2008

Tues 12 February Lecture by Christopher Sparey-Green, BA MIFA ‘The Archaeology of Dorset – A Time-Torn landscape’

Tues 11 March lecture by Chloe Cockerill – Regional Development Manager ‘The Work of the Churches Conservation Trust’

Tues 8 April lecture by Peter Davey – Bristol Tram Photographic Collection ‘Clifton Rocks Railway’

Tues 13 May lecture by Angela Wardle – MOLAS Finds Specialist ‘Finds From Roman London’ Angela hopes to present some results of a Roman London glass working project and talk about the Roman London website with an online finds catalogue

The winter lecture series is held, as ever, at Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley. Nearest tube Finchley Central. Lectures start promptly at 8pm, non-members £1, coffee/biscuits 80p.

AN IMPORTANT DATE FOR YOUR DIARIES by DON COOPER

The next HADAS long weekend trip will take place from Wednesday 27th August 2008 to Sunday 31st August 2008. The accommodation will be at Bishop Burton College (single rooms only I’m afraid) near Beverley, South Yorkshire. The detailed programme is still being worked on, but highlights of the trip will include a day in Lincoln, the Humber Bridge (one of the world’s longest single-span suspension bridges – see www.humberbridge.co.uk), the thirteenth-century Beverley Minster with its medieval gothic architecture and Saxon sanctuary chair (see www.beverleyminster.org.uk) in the market and festival town of Beverley in East Yorkshire, Wilberforce birthplace Kingston-upon-Hull’s Hull and East Riding Archaeological Museum (part of Hull’s ‘Museums Quarter’, with Maritime Museum and Streetlife Museum of Transport nearby – www.hullcc.gov.uk), St Peter’s Anglo-Saxon church in Barton-upon-Humber, North Lincs, excavated 1978-84, with its thegn’s tower museum and new ‘Bones Alive!’ exhibition (as featured in Current Archaeology 214, January 2008), Thornton Abbey with its enormous gatehouse, called the ‘finest surviving in Britain’ by English Heritage, Skidby Windmill and Museum of East Riding Rural Life, and, possibly, Wharram Percy, the remains of a medieval village, for those who have never been there. The cost, including four nights accommodation with breakfast, dinner and a packed lunch at Bishop Burton College and a coach throughout our stay, will be approximately £350 per person. Places will be limited and a deposit of £50 will be required during March for those wishing to travel.

HADAS Christmas Event by Ken Carter

St. Lawrence, Whitchurch/Finchley Chamber Choir

Tuesday 18th December, 2007

The surprise of St Lawrence’s exterior struck grey and chill on a very cold night in Little Stanmore. Without frost, the two-acre churchyard had no glitter. Rearing up towards the sky is a c.1500 brick, stone and flint tower [with much red Roman tile, possibly from a kiln whose waster dump was found in ‘The Spinney’ nearby and excavated by the Museum of London in the 1970s – Ed], deprived of its original mediaeval nave. Jammed in its place is an early-C18 temple in continental baroque style, the grand project of James Brydges, the 1st Duke of Chandos around 1715, extended to include a mausoleum in 1735. St Lawrence’s is apparently Britain’s only such parish church (following Vanburgh at Blenheim or Hawksmoor in the City).

We huddled into oak-box pews, original. Gathering before the altar, the organ and flanking murals, the Finchley Chamber Choir sang for us – in confident, stylish and practised manner – two of George Frederic Handel’s familiar Coronation Anthems for King George II and Queen Caroline’s Coronation in 1727 (Zadok the Priest – sung at every British coronation since – and Let Thy Hand Be Strengthened). David Lardi directed gustily and amiably. The experience had rare authenticity – this small, well-trained choir sang in the intimate atmosphere of the church where first performances had taken place, John Winter accompanying them on the organ (case of 1716 possibly by Grinling Gibbons) with newly-restored works (Goetze & Gwynn) producing sound close to that which Handel made. At the finish of the ‘surprise’ third item – We Wish You A Merry Christmas – a soprano’s high note resounded around the nave quite spectacularly. Handel – the Dukes’ composer-in-residence around 1717-1718 – composed 11 Chandos Anthems for a staff of twenty or so musicians.

Sheila Woodward filled in some background: – Canons, Chandos’s mansion, a ‘most magnificent palace’ according to Daniel Defoe, was constructed concurrently with the St Lawrence modernisation, to replace its Tudor predecessor after Brydges made a fortune out of being the Duke of Marlborough’s Paymaster-General; Canons was dismantled and the parts sold off in lots by the debt-laden second duke between 1747 and 1753, following the Duke’s huge losses in the South Sea Bubble of 1720 and his death in 1744 – part of the portico apparently survives at the Hendon Hall Hotel. Chandos employed the same ‘continental’ masters for both edifices (Belluci, Laguerre and Sleter); the church interior’s continental baroque encompasses coloured scenes on the ceiling and on the east wall, behind altar and organ, designed to present the whole scheme of Christian salvation with ‘trompe l’oeil’ figures of the four evangelists in grisaille. The Chandos pew, entered through a door in the tower at first floor level, faced the altar along the length of the nave with its complete set of box pews. The mausoleum, a later addition and definitely the coldest place in the church, primarily accommodates a sculpture in Roman style of the Duke, flanked by his first two wives.

By now, we were pleasantly and warmly ready for our HADAS Christmas Dinner at the Apollonia Restraint, Stanmore. And our thanks go to Jim and Jo Nelhams for organising it all, and to Christopher Newbury for kindly providing himself and his minibus for transport!

NB – the HADAS finds archive stored at Avenue House includes seven fragments of imbrex, tegulae and bonding tile from the vicinity of the Canons Park Roman tile kiln, recovered from the park by Ted Sammes in 1979.

ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE CLAY TOBACCO PIPE, BY PETER HAMMOND

This was a lecture to the City of London Archaeology Society (CoLAS), reported by Andy Simpson

Peter Hammond is an archaeologist and a member of the Society for Clay Pipe Research, which has some 70 members worldwide. His excellent lecture covered the technical and historical development of the clay pipe, with a particular London emphasis, since London was a major centre for clay pipe production, with many made for export.

He explained that he had enjoyed studying clay pipes since childhood, first finding stems in local fields; aged 12, near Nottingham, he found his first bowl, and has been intrigued by them ever since, exploring fields, canals and the Thames at low tide for examples. Clay pipes are an excellent source for social history, being well made and surviving in huge numbers and being so well dated and sourced after years of research by clay pipe enthusiasts; he did his PhD on London Clay Pipes, studying their patterns and markings, and he is doing active research on pipemakers also.

The talk focused on the clay pipes of London; they have been around since the late Tudor period. King James 1 was very anti-smoking, increasing the tax on tobacco. Pipes developed to cater for the smoking habit, increasing in size to the end of the nineteenth century from their sixteenth century beginnings with very small bowls. Pipes are often decorated and have the maker’s name, and can often be closely dated to an exact year of manufacture. Early pipes have few markings. Pioneer archaeological studies of clay pipes were by Oswald and Atkinson in 1969 in their paper ‘London Clay Tobacco Pipes’, since when much more information has been discovered and a more comprehensive list of makers is possible. The size of the bowl gradually increased over time, initially flat heeled to stand upright on the table top. Mid- nineteenth century bowls were often plain and milled around the top of the bowl, and relatively fine-walled compared to those made in Northern England. Spurs on the base of the pipe appeared in the eighteenth century, often with maker’s initials either side or a maker’s mark (name) on the back of the bowl on late eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century (1860s-70s) London-made pipes, though in the early and mid-nineteenth century a number of London makers also marked their names in relief along the stems, as done too in southern and eastern England. Scottish makers also practised bowl stamping to some extent. Some were burnished (polished) and may have been more expensive to purchase. It is not always clear who the maker’s initials represent.

There were many pipe makers in parts of the City of London, and there are more makers’ stamps in London than elsewhere in the UK. Some Victorian examples of the 1860s-70s are extremely ornate, such as Masonic emblems, plus Generals and actors, and some makers actually registered the designs to prevent them from being copied by others. A fluted bowl design was common in London and Eastern England. Three complete pipes were found in the recently excavated Tower of London moat, being very rare survivals of the ‘Churchwarden’ type nearly two feet long. Many of this type were made at Broseley, Shropshire, possibly being so-called due to the length of Vicar’s meetings.

Late Victorian London pipes were made in various localities such as King’s Cross, Shoreditch, Poplar, Stepney, and south of the river at Southwark, Lambeth, Bermondsey and Clapham and with particular concentrations in the east and south-east, often with the makers having moved to London from elsewhere in the country. Documentary research into pipemakers covers parishes through Parish records such as registers of baptisms, marriage records and census returns, and nineteenth century trade directories, issued annually by 1840.

From a base of 25 makers during the early 1820s, clay pipe manufacture in London peaked in 1856, with 84 pipemakers recorded at the time, with Briar and Meerschaum types also being produced; after that, numbers gradually declined, reflecting the pattern in many other parts of the country, to just 66 in 1880. In 1853 makers of pipes for export are first distinguished.

A Worshipful Company of Tobacco Pipemakers was established, but faded away soon after the 1860s. Pipes were normally sold by the dozen or by the gross rather than individually, and by 1872 the cheapest regular pipes were one shilling per dozen. Cutty (short) pipes could be had for 10d per dozen. The maker’s wives were often pipe trimmers, removing excess mould material, and many pipemakers were apprenticed to learn the trade. Peter Hammond is in contact with their descendant families.

As a relatively small industry, there was a well-developed social network; pipemakers often kept pubs. Firing the kiln was a skilled job, but it was a low-paid trade. Registration of pipe design ended after around 1874 as a gradual decline set in. Victorian pipemakers sometimes copied older bowl shapes dating back to the eighteenth century, as deliberately ‘antique’ designs. One pipemaker, Ebenezer Church of Pentonville, near St. Pancras, had rat designs on the stem and bowl.

Local clays used in the seventeenth century were off-white or yellow, succeeded by china clay from Cornwall brought in as railways and canals developed in the nineteenth century. Makers would actually taste the clay to see if it was suitable for use. They could have their own kiln in their family backyard, or share a kiln between several families, rarely being factory based, though occasionally in London, Manchester and other big cities up to 20 people could be employed at a pipemakers. More usually the workforce was no more than eight journeymen. The National Archives at Kew have a register of pipe designs in the nineteenth century, riflemen were a popular design in the 1860s with the growth of rifle clubs, and a Negro’s head was often the sign of a tobacconist. Pipes were of course very disposable; short pipes were known as ‘nose warmers’, and short ‘cutty’ pipes were in common use.

Pipes have a great archaeological and social research value, allowing study of the maker’s inter-relationships and hierarchy. In the eighteenth century, maker’s names were common on the backs of bowls from pipes made in London, but not in the rest of the UK. Of those that are stamped in the regions, 70% are linked with London makers. Peter Hammond has studied the Museum of London and British Museum clay pipe collections, and is always interested to see others.

Sadly, many of the skilled pipe maker’s two-piece cast iron pipe moulds were melted down for scrap during the two world wars; by the time of the Great War, cigarettes were rapidly killing off use of the clay pipe.

A few pipe makers survived in London into the 1950s making pipes for fairground shooting galleries; now, even the long-established Pollock’s of Manchester has closed, despite producing pipes into the 1980s. Today, a few small-scale pipemakers survive, such as at the former William Southern works at Broseley, near Ironbridge.

ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH TRANSPORT & ENGINEERING MUSEUMS (ABTEM) AUTUMN SEMINAR AND ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

LEARNING IN TRANSPORT AND ENGINEERING MUSEUMS

TUESDAY 2 OCTOBER 2007 THE BRUNEL MUSEUM, ROTHERHITHE, LONDON
A REPORT BY ANDY SIMPSON

The splendid Brunel Museum in Railway Avenue, Rotherhithe, in south-east London celebrates Brunel’s Thames Tunnel built between 1825 and 1843 and is housed in the Brunel Engine House – a scheduled building with riverside gardens. It is open daily, and covers the careers of both Brunels, father Marc and son Isambard. Further information on www.brunel-museum.org.uk

It is close to Rotherhithe Station on the East London Underground line, shortly to close for refurbishment and extension as the East London Railway. The original tunnel, first opened as a pedestrian route beneath the River Thames from Wapping to Rotherhithe in 1843, now forms part of the route of the tube line, being the oldest tunnel on the present London Underground. Marc Brunel employed his then 19-year old son Isambard as resident engineer. His work through the many physical and financial tribulations of the project won him the respect of the miners employed to dig the double tunnel through treacherous soft and marshy ground beneath the Thames using a cast-iron tunnelling shield invented by Marc Brunel. The tunnel, was then lined with brick. Although it was relined in the mid 1990s sections of original lining are still visible.

The shield, as shown by a model in the museum, housed 36 miners at a time, each in their own cell, cutting soil four inches at a time, looking out for sudden floods (five major floods during construction, one of which almost killed Isambard Brunel) and explosions of marsh gas. Seven men drowned during the digging. After 20 years as an underwater shopping arcade and fairground, the tunnel was sold to the East London Railway in 1865, opening for railway freight and passenger use in 1869.

Currently undergoing building work to improve facilities such as toilets, and aided by funding from the HLF Outreach Grant to fund a part-time education officer, the Museum in the Brunel Engine House now attracts over 11,500 visitors per year, from an original level of just 500 per year in 2002, and is greatly involved in community and local school projects, including, as delegates saw, the furnishing and decoration of its gardens.

The meeting was kindly hosted by Robert Hulse, Curator of the Brunel Museum, and three interesting presentations were given to nineteen ABTEM delegates, on Museum Education, Adult Education (report reproduced below, with so many HADAS members involved in Adult Education), and a case study on the Heritage Motor Centre, Gaydon, Warwickshire.

A new web page ‘Learn with Museums’ (www.learnwithmuseums.org.uk) is helping to develop on-line resources for teaching and learning with Museums in the East Midlands. There are downloadable images for pupils and teachers. On line – adding value – provision of services for teachers, and engaging children with access to new material, plus skills development for museum and archive staff.

Continuing Education – The Adult Experience Denis Smith, Engineering Historian

The speaker has been involved with Extra Mural Studies for some 40 years. The three ages of man are school/further or higher education, work, and retirement. In 2005, over 20,000 people over the age of 65 were studying for a degree. This figure does not include postgraduate students in the ‘Third Age’ – now truly ‘Lifelong Learning’.

George Birkbeck was the pioneer of adult education, born in 1776 to a Westmoreland Quaker background. In 1800 he began a free course of Saturday evening lectures for artisans – from such beginnings grew the Mechanics Institutions, feeding the need for young apprentices; such institutions, with their informal learning, expanded enormously in the nineteenth century, serving the artisan/’respectable working class’ desire for education. A famous example is the Great Western Railway Apprentices’ School at Swindon. Birkbeck’s name lives on today – indeed, the writer of this piece spends Wednesday evenings on a University of London/Birkbeck College archaeological post-excavation course, processing finds and archives from London archaeology sites for publication. Students on such courses build up Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (CATS) points towards award of a degree, even to those without a single O-level/GCSE. After two years on his course, your scribe now has 60 CATS points; completing an assignment this academic year will give another 30 – enough (90) to claim a Certificate in Archaeology – a further year and another 30 CATS points leads to a Diploma, equivalent to the first year of an undergraduate degree course. If I attain 360 CATS points that is equivalent to an undergraduate degree.

From 1854, Working Men’s Clubs, run by Christian academics to share their knowledge with working men and apprentices were established. People went because they wanted to. The Worker’s Educational Association (WEA) was founded in 1903 and by 2003 ran courses for 110,000 adults. The University of the Third Age – U3A – began in Toulouse, France, in 1972, for retired people wishing to continue their education. The UK’s founder members joined in 1978. A U3A group can be set up anywhere, with a fee paid to attend meetings, though as volunteers share their knowledge with others, the lecturers receive no payment. As people live longer, it is an affordable pastime. The speaker warned of the danger of doing superficial things to get people through the doors of your museum.

Highlight of the afternoon, after an excellent canapé lunch, was the floodlit journey through the Thames Tunnel, kindly arranged with London Underground by Robert Hulse who led the walking tour and train ride – the lights in the tunnel were specially turned on, and our normal service train run at walking pace to permit us to view its arched construction – a rare treat. Standing inside the original tunnel (now lift) shafts was certainly impressive. The Brunel Museum hopes to install a viewing platform inside one of the shafts as part of its expansion plans.

HISTORIC BARNET PHOTOS ONLINE

A new service from Barnet Local Studies is publication of ’Image Bank’ – an image database of an initial 500 pictures (from a total collection of some 16000 – it is hoped to add more) from the collection that can be browsed on the internet from the Barnet website (www.barnet.gov.uk/archives). Where little detail is known, people can add detail to the pictures by completing an online form.

NEW SERIES OF TIME TEAM

That time-honoured feature of winter Sunday evenings is back- the new series of Time Team. Channel 4, around 5.45pm (times and transmission order may vary-details from the Unofficial Time Team web site, www.timeteam.klz.com); Series started 6 January. See also the official site, www.channel4.com/history/timeteam.

3 February Mysteries of the Mosaic (Near Cheltenham, Glos) 10 February Blitzkrieg on Shooter’s Hill (South London) 17 February Keeping Up With The Georgians (Hunstrete, Somerset) 24 February Saxons on the Edge (Mkt Harborough, Leics) 2 March The Fort of the Earls (Dungannon, Ntn Ireland) 9 March From Constantinople to Cornwall (Padstow, N. Cornwall) 16 March Five Thousand Tons of Stone (Hamsterley, Co Durham) 23 March The Romans Recycle (Wickenby, Lincs) 30 March Hunting King Harold (Portskewett, S. Wales)

WORK IN THE GARDEN ROOM – BURROUGHS GARDENS EXCAVATION

Further to Bill Bass’s report in the previous newsletter, work continues on evaluation of the Burroughs Gardens 1972 site archive. Using standard LAARC recording forms, the approximately 100 clay pipes, of which around 80% are our old friend Andrews of Highgate type AO27, 1780 – 1820 (Thanks, Sigrid!), and about 60 coins, the earliest being George III, 1806 (thanks too Vicki, Natalie and Bill!), and other small finds have now been listed (glassware next), and work continues on interpreting the site plans and stratigraphy, which seemingly involves two phases of brick building and a substantial brick drain above a layer of buried soil which contained much medieval pottery at the front of the site closest to the Burroughs. The finds have now been fully re-boxed and re-bagged, and cleaned where necessary. There are many coins of nineteenth/twentieth century date, many found in a doorway sealed by a late 1940s concrete slab. There is even a stray1940s Irish Florin! It would appear from the site archive, which Peter N. is starting to interpret, that following the demolition of the six nineteenth century terraced houses, nos. 31-41 The Burroughs, in 1972, HADAS found beneath their footings the incomplete brick footings of an earlier building at the north end of the site. This lay over and cut through the dark layer containing much thirteenth-fourteenth century greyware pottery.

LAST MINUTE ADDITION – TWO MORE OUTINGS FOR YOUR DIARY!

Don Cooper reports; We are proposing an outing to the Bath area on 17 May 2008. Please put a note in your diaries and, also, an outing to West Sussex on 5 July 2008. Full details to follow in subsequent newsletters.

OTHER SOCIETIES’ LECTURES & EVENTS ERIC MORGAN

Thursday 7 February 8pm Pinner Local History Society, Village Hall, Chapel Lane Car Park, Pinner WEMBLEY PARK – 1750 TO PRESENT. Talk by Geoffrey Hewlett Visitors £2.

Sunday 10 February 2pm BARNET CHURCHES Guided walk – meet outside Barnet College, Wood St. A stroll around some of the churches of High Barnet & Monken Hadley, led by Paul Baker. Cost £6.

Monday 11 February 3pm Barnet & District Local History Society, Church House, Wood St (opposite Museum), Barnet IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE FAMOUS IN HIGH BARNET Talk by Paul Baker.

Wednesday 13 February 8pm Mill Hill Historical Society, Harwood Hall Union Church, The Broadway NW7 THE BEEFEATERS OF LONDON – Talk by Mike Casson (Yeoman Warder) preceded by AGM.

Sunday 17 February 11am THE HEART OF HIGH BARNET Guided Walk-Meet outside Barnet College, Wood St. Led by Paul Baker. Historical Walk. Costs £6, lasts two hours.

Sunday 24 February 11am THE BATTLE OF BARNET Guided Walk. Meet at junction of Great North Road/Hadley Green Rd. Led by Paul Baker. Cost £6.

Wednesday 20 February 7.30pm Willesden Local History Society, Scout House, High Rd (Corner of Strode Rd) NW10. THE LONDON CITY MISSION & WILLESDEN IN THE 19th CENTURY. Talk by Dr. John Nichols.

Wednesday 27 February 8pm Friern Barnet & District Local History Society, St John’s Church Hall (next to Whetstone Police Station), Friern Barnet Lane, N.20 HISTORY OF CHURCHYARDS Talk by Dr. Michael Worms, Refreshments 7.45pm. Donation £2.

Thursday 28 February 2.30pm Finchley Society. Drawing Room, Avenue House, East End Rd, N3 MR PEPYS & HIS DIARY Talk by Brenda Cole. Non-Members £2.

Sunday 2 March, 2.30pm Heath & Hampstead Society Meet at Entrance to the Kitchen Garden, Kenwood (Off Hampstead Lane N6) HIDDEN HEATH – A LOOK AT HISTORICAL & ARCHAEOLOGICAL FEATURES OF THE HEATH Walk led by Michael Hammerson, Highgate Archaeologist & HADAS Member. 2hrs – £2 Donation. .

Newsletter

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HADAS Diary

The winter lecture series takes place at Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley N3 3QE. Nearest tube Finchley Central. Lectures start promptly at 8 pm – non-members £1, Coffee or tea 80p.

Tues. 8th January lecture by Kate Sutton – Museum of London “The Works of a Finds Liaison Officer”

Tues. 12th February lecture by Christopher Sparey-Green BA MIFA “The Archaeology of Dorset – a Time-torn Landscape”

Tues. 11th March lecture by Chloe Cockerill – Regional Development Manager “The Work of the Churches Conservation Trust”

Tues. 8th April lecture by Peter Davey – Bristol Tram Photographic Collection “Clifton Rocks Railway”

Tues. 13th May lecture by Angela Wardle – MOLAS Finds Specialist “Finds from Roman London” Angela hopes to present some results of a Roman London glass working project and talk about Roman London website with an online finds catalogue.

Dorothy Newbury Supplement

With this newsletter you should find a supplement containing an interview with Dorothy conducted by Andrew Selkirk on her life and subsequent work with HADAS. This was presented to Dorothy at the event held in her honour at Avenue House in September celebrating her retirement from the HADAS Committee, on which she served for so long. It also contains some of the photographs used in an exhibition at the event, and an album that was also presented to Dorothy.

New site for the HADAS/Birkbeck course by Don Cooper

This year’s HADAS/Birkbeck well-attended course on Post-excavation Processing has started processing a new site.

As well as continuing with the task of bringing Church Terrace (CT73/74) to publication, a site from 1987 that of Eagle House (site code EAG87) has been started. Eagle House, now home of the Bank of China, is at 90-96 Cannon Street EC4N 6HA near Cannon Street Station. The site lies within the scheduled area of the Roman Governor’s palace. The excavations were carried out in the basements of Eagle House during July and August 1988. The work was funded by the developer (MEPC).

The existing basements had already truncated the stratigraphy to within 0.3m of the natural brickearth, however, evidence of Roman foundations and more deeply cut post-medieval features had survived. The artefacts from the excavation have not been processed up to now for a host of different reasons. The large variety of Roman and Post-medieval artefacts involved is providing the course with an opportunity to identify and record these finds. Access to the archive of this site was provided by the London Archaeological and Research Centre (LAARC) and its manager Roy Stephenson to whom we are very grateful. A full report of the finds will be made on completion of the analysis.

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MATA HARI’S GLASS EYE AND OTHER TALES – A HISTORY OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY by Peter Nicholson

An intriguing title brought a lager than average audience to Avenue House on 13th November to hear Martin Barber of English Heritage Aerial Survey.

As an hors d’oeuvre before the main course Martyn told us something of what is being done now. EH have two high winged Cessna aircraft, one each at Oxford and York engaged in a national mapping program. Like painting the Forth Bridge this is never finished. Changes in the built environment and in the ground conditions, gives the possibility of crop marks appearing which have not been seen previously, this means that continual re-surveying is needed. A particular interest is comparison of current photos with those from the early days 50 or 100 years ago. A recent technique using laser scanning called ‘LINDAR’ can “see through” trees and bushes to show the contours of the ground surface in fine detail. It is very useful when looking for features in wooded areas, but unlike crop marks can give no indication of what lies under the surface. 2007 is the centenary of the publication of the first aerial photo of an archaeological site. The publication was by the Society of Antiquaries of photos of Stonehenge donated by the Royal Engineers, who had taken them from a balloon in the previous year. The Royal Engineers had begun ballooning in the 1870s and 1880s using the technique in the Boer War. Difficulties in producing hydrogen in the field meant that as far as possible balloons were kept inflated when transported from site to site – which was far from easy. Not all early aerial photography was military. Martyn showed a photo of Gertrude and John Bacon, the publishers of Bacon’s London Map, about to take off in their balloon. Their first aerial photo was taken over Stamford Hill in 1882. The approach of the First World War greatly increased interest and investment in aerial photography. There were now alternatives to balloons but not all trials were successful. An attempt to use a Cody man-carrying kite towed behind a warship resulted in the unfortunate aviator having to be retrieved from the sea. By the time hostilities began, aircraft with cameras capable of automatic plate-changing were an effective means of showing the immediate battlefield area and some way behind it. This greatly increased the effectiveness of artillery bombardments. We were shown aerial photos of the intricate pattern of trench lines, the devastation at Ypres, a gas attack in progress and a countryside ruinously pock-marked by shell craters, showing the nature of the conflict in ways which words cannot describe. An innovation on the maps produced form the aerial photos was the addition of a grid – a feature that was not to appear on civilian maps until the 1930s. Stonehenge taken from an early balloon flight (Sorry – Image not yet available). After the First World War the Ordnance Survey appointed an Archaeological Officer, OGS Crawford who collected photos which the RAF was taking over Britain for training purposes. These revealed the missing arm of the Stonehenge Avenue and also in 1925, Woodhenge was discovered. A publication “Wessex from the Air” was produced. Before long, thoughts of war returned with both sides taking illicit photos. Besides secret military flights apparently innocent airship flights and civilian aircraft were used. The final photo Martyn showed was one from the Luftwaffe archives taken before the declaration of war. It showed central London with a target marked – not Buckingham Palace or Downing St but Broadcasting House. Lord Reith would have been proud! Mata Hari’s glass eye? She didn’t have one….it was a bit of 1930s spin. When there were complaints about the cost of having an aerial photography program the response was that it was as good at gathering intelligence as Mata Hari with a glass eye (the camera). The lecture title is also the title of the book shortly to be published. It may be expensive but if you see it in the library it should be worth a read.

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ARCHAEOLOGY ‘08

February 9-10, at The British Museum A major new two day conference event organised by Current Archaeology Magazine and the British Museum’s Department of Portable Antiquities and Treasure.

Preliminary Session schedule:

• THE NEW RADIOCARBON REVOLUTION

• READING THE STONES

• RETHINKING ROMAN BRITAIN

• TREASURES OF THE CELTS

• WHAT DID THE ROMANS DO FOR US?

• UNDERSTANDING PREHISTORY-NEW TECHNIQUES

• BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY ABROAD

• ROADS, PIPES AND POTATOES

• PICTS VIKINGS AND SCOTS

• ARCHAEOLOGY IN THE MEDIA

• THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF MODERN CITIES

• THE FUTURE OF THE PAST

• THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF MODERN CONFLICT

Current Archaeology subscribers £95.00, General Admission £125.00. To register go to www.archaeology.co.uk or call 08456 44 77 07

Welcome to New Members – Membership Secretary

Greetings to new members who have joined since mid-year: Natalie Lumsden, Kate Sweeney, Lesley Jones, Anne Harding, Dennis Bird, Evadne Smith, Christine Moritz and Christopher Carstairs. Some of you have already been to lectures or on trips, or are involved in the Birkbeck training course. Others just want to come and hear interesting lectures, or are now at the start of finding ways to use or to develop their interest in archaeology. A warm welcome to you all. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with any committee members if you are looking for further information.

Captain Kidd wreck found

According to Barry Wigmore of the Daily Mail the wreck of a treasure ship captured by the British pirate Captain William Kidd 309 years ago has been found in the Caribbean. Lying in just 10ft of water, the Quedah Merchant is on the seabed off the island of Hispaniola between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The wreck is now being researched by marine archaeologists from Indiana University.

In 1695 Kidd left London in the Adventure Galley, a 284-tonner with a crew of 150 and 34 cannon. Late in 1696, he attacked a British East India Convoy and was declared a pirate. In 1698, he took his greatest prize the Quedah Merchant. A 400-ton Moorish trader from Armenia, it was loaded with gold, silver and fine silks. The Adventure Galley was by now rotting and leaky. So he scuttled her, renamed the Quedah Merchant the Adventure Prize, and sailed for the Caribbean – where the Adventure Prize was scuttled.

Eventually Kidd was arrested, and found guilty of piracy and murder, he was hanged on May 23, 1701 at Execution Dock in Wapping.

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HADAS PROJECTS – GARDEN ROOM, AVENUE HOUSE

Recent activity at HADAS HQ has included the updating and refurbishment of several archives and finds collections from past HADAS fieldwalking and excavation projects.

Burroughs Gardens

Currently we are dealing with a site dug at Burroughs Gardens, Hendon in 1972 (junction of The Burroughs and Burroughs Gardens). The dig directed by Ted Sammes produced a wonderful collection of medieval and post medieval pottery, clay pipes, coins and other bits and pieces. As with other similar archives the boxing, packaging and labelling needed to be completely revamped. Fortunately there is a pretty full archive – site diary and plan, finds listing (up to a point), slides and photos, associated notes and documents. The original dig was summarised in various papers but we now need to consider how far we go in listing and processing the finds and perhaps producing a final report.

St James the Great, Friern Barnet

In 1974 HADAS was asked to excavate beneath a tombstone in connection with a planned extention adjacent to the church. Subsequently a burial vault was excavated producing a fine collection of inscribed coffin plates and coffin fittings. These together with the paper archive researching the burial occupants and a survey of the remaining churchyard were conserved and repackaged.

Pipers Green Lane

This site lies on the junction of Watling Street (A5) and Pipers Green Lane (PGL) just north of Edgware just as Brockley Hill rises northwards. Brockley Hill is of course where a major Roman pottery producing site is known (see below).

The digging of a new sewage trench near PGL in 1954 discovered the remains of two Roman cremation burials, pottery and other finds. In the mid 1950s P. G. Suggett excavated 5 trenches in the area, where apparently little was found.

During 1977, due to deep ploughing, HADAS members decided to fieldwalk PGL once again finding significant amounts of Roman pottery and building material suggesting an occupation site at the foot of the hill (Newsletter No 75, May 1977). It’s the finds from the 1977 fieldwalking we repackaged as best we could, in this case, unfortunately the archive had suffered somewhat over the years with some of it seemingly missing, so it’s something we may go back to. Especially as………..

Brockley Hill

For many years HADAS have been the custodian of a substantial collection of Roman pottery excavated at Brockley Hill, Edgware. These digs were in the 1930s & 1950s so they are not HADAS digs but the material eventually came to us for safe-keeping, a lot of work was undertaken on this material by members around the 1970s/80s.

An equal amount of material is also held by the Museum of London, it maybe the time for ‘our’ collection to join that of the MoL. To do that we would have to completely reorganise, record, rebag/box/label the HADAS material – it will be a big job. Something we need to ponder on in the next few weeks.

Mathilda Marks-Kennedy School, 68 Hale Lane, Mill Hill, London NW7

Around 2001, HADAS was asked to site-watch building work at the school. We have recently been contacted to do a similar job, possibly taking place in early 2008.

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LONDON ARCHAEOLOGIST – FIELDWORK ROUND-UP 2006

Selected sites from The Borough of Barnet

Bibsworth Manor, 80 East End Rd,Finchley

MoLAS (Robert Cowie) evaluation Aug 2006, The Manor House Trust MHF02 A watching brief in 2005 (LA 11, supp 2, 2006, 26) was followed by an evaluation in which a test pit on the medieval moated manor, a Scheduled Monument, revealed a post-medieval dump containing residual medieval pottery. The dump may have filled either a garden feature or possibly a moat shown on 18thc maps. Other test pits revealed late post medieval and modern strata and land drains over till (boulder clay). A trench in the NE corner of the site (outside the Scheduled Monument), revealed one side of a moat shown on early maps (1727-1935), crossing the area now occupied by a caretaker’s house and garden. In addition, a transect of four auger holes established the profile of a surviving section of moat near the SW side of the site.

St Paul’s Church, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill

MoLAS (Victoria Donnelly) watching brief Aug 2006, Parish of St Paul PLC06

A burial vault containing two lead coffins was recorded. From the coffin plates, the burials were identified as Matthias Newmarsh (d. 1837) and his wife Ann (d. 1841), servants of William Wilberforce, the slavery abolitionist and reformer. The coffins were re-buried within the churchyard.

36-38 High Street, High Barnet

PCA (Jonathan Crisp) watching brief May 2006, Lal Khajuria HSZ06

Above the natural gravels in the SW of the site were four 14th-15th c walls, which may have formed the east corner of a fairly substantial, chalk and stone medieval building. Evidence of 16th – 17th c maintenance of the structure was also recorded. These walls were truncated by a possible brick cellar dating to 17th-18th c. The site was then sealed by a brick soak-away dating to the late 19th or 20th c, and a well associated with the existing shops and businesses. A layer of 20th c garden soil covered the site.

TUTANKHAMUN AND THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE PHAROAHS by Vicki Baldwin

In November I visited the exhibition at The O2 (the infamous Millennium Dome in its previous incarnation). I had neither seen the Tutankhamun exhibition in 1972 nor visited The O2 before and overall I enjoyed both.

Many people have been disappointed to find that the exhibition does not include the famous gold mask, probably the first thing that springs to mind when Tutankhamun is mentioned, and that the publicity material actually features an apparently similar but much smaller canopic jar. Also the exhibition is presented in chronological order starting with rooms containing material relating to the time of Tutankhamun’s great-grandparents to, finally, Tutankhamun himself. The 130 plus exhibits therefore are drawn from a much greater collection than just the items from Tutankhamun’s tomb and fewer of those treasures than might be expected are on display. In spite of that, I found the exhibition both enjoyable and informative.

The cases are well lit and positioned so that it is possible to view most of the exhibits in the round. Labelling is particularly good in that the information on each exhibit is repeated in a large font on labels positioned at the top of the front and sides of the case. Certain items have been chosen as an introduction to each section and are particularly well displayed. All the information panels are easy to follow. At one point the exhibition continues on a lower level and there is a rather odd break in the continuity as one leaves the subdued lighting of the galleries to walk down a brightly lit flight of stairs. However, the theme of the exhibition is continued by photographs from the excavation of Tutankhamun’s tomb and a small gallery devoted to the discoveries and the publicity surrounding them. The penultimate gallery is devoted to items found in the sarcophagi and a projection indicating the position of certain items on the body. Also a series of brass lines in the floor show the size and sequence of the sarcophagi.

The exhibition ends with a display of the latest scans of Tutankhamun’s mummy. These indicate that the cause of death is as much a mystery now as it ever was.

I would encourage anyone that wants to visit to do so Monday to Thursday if possible as the tickets are £15 (£12-50, £7-50) instead of £20 (£16, £10) Friday to Sunday.

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MEDIA INTEREST

Olympic Archaeology

As reported on BBC London News digging is continuing at the Olympic Park in east London. Kieron Tyler, project manager for MoLAS reported that the latest finds included evidence for Iron-age occupation. The area, low-lying and marshy adjacent to the River Lea would have been used for fishing, the remains of cooking pots have been found, suggesting they had cooked their catch in the area. A Roman 4th century coin has also been recovered.

For a short film by Kieron made for the BBC’s Video Nation go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2007/11/13/london_archeology_video_feature.shtml

Blast – the Cutty Sark

Staying east of the capital, the METRO reports that the restoration project is short of £14 million due to a previous shortfall and subsequent the fire damage. Fortunately damage to the ships hull was not as bad as feared and most of the fixtures and fittings were stored at the Chatham Dockyard for conservation.

BBC News website mentions that a company had been appointed to cleanse, repair and repaint the wrought ironwork of the tea clipper. Martin Griffin of Sussex Blast Cleaning said “the contract involves blast cleaning the metalwork back its raw state and then applying layers of coating to specifications which will preserve the ship for years beyond our lifetime”. Renovation work will take around a year to complete.

Donations can be made on the Cutty Sark website www.cuttysark.org.uk

Humidity and temperature fluctuations threaten Westminster Abbey woodwork

Just how much damage dry heat can do in the wrong place was brought home by the story in the December issue of The Art Newspaper, saying that the 700-year-old Coronation Chair, commissioned in 1296 and used for virtually every coronation since 1308, had suffered from serious flaking of its gilded and painted surface because of fluctuating humidity caused by the central heating system at Westminster Abbey. Conservator Marie Louise Sauerberg said that environmental conditions inside the Abbey are now causing ‘serious concern’, and had already caused considerable damage to the early fourteenth-century painted sedilia, on the south side of the high altar. The World Monuments Fund and the Kress Foundation are funding a full survey of the sedilia, including photogrammetry, x-radiography and infra-red reflectography, prior to light cleaning and the securing of lifting paint with adhesive. Monitoring devices have now been placed throughout the Abbey to record temperature, humidity and light levels and provide the data for devising a better environmental strategy.

Drapers Gardens

It was reported widely in the media in December that Pre-Construct Archaeology has recently finished a major excavation at Drapers Gardens which could prove to be one of the most important London excavations in recent years. Amongst the large quantity of truly spectacular Roman finds the highlight of the site was a hoard of metal vessels recovered from a late 4th century well, which are currently on temporary display in the Museum of London until 27th January 2008. The archaeological excavations which were undertaken between February and November 2007 were funded by Canary Wharf Developments and Exemplar Developments LLP on land owned by the Drapers Company. The site was in the upper reaches of the Walbrook valley, 100m south of the City Walls, in an area where four streams of the river which divided the City were predicted to converge. With the exception of a multitude of concrete piles, the surviving archaeology was intact with an unbroken sequence dating to between 1st and 3rd centuries. The waterlain and anaerobic nature of the deposits has resulted in the exceptional preservation of organic materials such as wood and leather and the majority of the metal objects are largely without corrosion. The Walbrook valley has previously been known for industrial activity and the associated ovens and kilns encompassing areas of the buildings or even tacked onto the side of structures would conform to such activity. Large amounts of leather and an immense assemblage of animal bone also suggest tanning and other bone working processes with a number of tools such as awls and saws also having been recovered.

For the full article see: http://www.pre-construct.com/Sites/Highlights/Drapers.htm

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Not just dust and dinosaursb by Kimberly Martin

The prospect of attending a recent lecture on ‘The Natural History of Beer’ at the Natural History Museum in South Kensington sounded like fun all by itself. It combined two of my favourite topics – beer and science. Always a fan of the Museum, I remember years ago spending hours examining row upon row of rock specimens or pondering the survival value of different shapes of bird feet in various environments. Over the years, while I have been away raising children and developing a career, the Natural History Museum has evolved into an enthralling education and entertainment centre. On the last Thursday of every month, the curators and researchers at ‘Nature Live’ host an evening session aimed at adults. We walked into the Darwin Centre anticipating rows of seats arranged in lecture formation and a bearded, bespectacled lecturer describing the taxonomy and lifecycles of the various cereals, hops and yeasts employed in brewing beer from australopithecus to the present day. The speakers were bearded and bespectacled, but the tables and chairs interspersed among the rows of seats created a pub atmosphere. Meeting friends and fellow beer drinkers Helma Krueger and Bryan Betts (pictured) was a very pleasant surprise. The format of the evening could best be described as a mixture of the Christmas Science Lectures and The Wright Stuff: lectures and informal discussion with the added bonus of beer tastings. Dr Dave Roberts, researcher in microbiology at the Museum and quite possibly Rory McGrath’s evil twin, described the biological constraints of getting food out of grass and ‘what puts the fizz into fermentation’. He then provided an insight into the archaeology of beer. The first brewers may have walked the earth 23,000 years ago. Evidence for this comes from geological preservation of anaerobic conditions. Cave paintings dating back to this period revealed a ‘smart and artistic people without metal’. Although there were no crockery pots yet, ‘all you need to make beer is a way of holding water’, and this could be achieved by stretching an animal skin over a hole in the ground. Our first beer tasting of the evening, bottled Fraoch Heather Beer (apparently the oldest style in Britain), was led by Julian Harrington, Master Brewer and tutor at the Beer Academy. Julian’s knowledge of beer is encyclopaedic and the reader is encouraged to accept any opportunity to hear him speak. The nose of the beer elicited comments from the audience as ‘cow shed’, ‘honey’, ‘fizzy cola bottles’ and ‘sweet clover’; while the taste was variously described as ‘pine needles’, ‘sourness and dirt’ and ‘peaty’. Our next speaker was Dr Robert Symmons, Curator of Archaeology at Fishbourne Roman Palace and active CAMRA member from Sussex. Robert discussed the natural history of beer from an historical and social context. The history of beer varies throughout the world. In Britain, the ‘spiritual home of beer’, it probably formed part of the Neolithic domestication package, which it evolved independently from Neolithic Europe. The first evidence of this comes from pieces of pottery dating back to 2500 BC containing beer residues. During this period, beer was almost certainly made in large batches for feasting and celebrating. This was a ritualistic society and the prerequisites for brewing, i.e. barley, an oven or hearth and large crockery pots, are often found at Neolithic ritual sites. Robert provided an interesting perspective on the modern ritual of buying rounds. When you reciprocate, you do not cancel the debt, but rather transfer it to the next person! Descriptions of Viking drinking horns, which were shaped so they could not be put down, thus obliging the drinker to consume the lot, and the more recent yard of ale, provoked a comment from a lady in the audience that ‘with thousands of years of good binge drinking behind us, we are not likely to change overnight!’ Altogether, four beers were sampled by the audience. Three of these were bottled: Heather Ale, Harvey’s Porter and Harvey’s Tom Paine. The fourth was bright Harvey’s Sussex Best. Of these, Tom Paine turned out to be the most popular. Even without the beer, the organisers presented science in a novel and entertaining manner. If only all science classes were the same!

This article originally appeared in the ‘London Drinker’ Oct/Nov 2007, a magazine for the London branches of the Campaign For Real Ale (CAMRA) and is reproduced with their kind permission. Thanks to Kimberly Martin and Geoff Strawbridge

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Other Society’s Events by Eric Morgan

Thurs 3 Jan: 8.00pm, Pinner Local History Society, Village Hall, Chapel Lane Car Park, Pinner. Gregory King’s Harefield in 1699 talk by Eileen Bowlt . Visitors £2.

Weds 9 Jan: 8.00pm, Mill Hill Historical Society, Harwood Hall, Union Church, The Broadway, NW7. A Meander Through Monken Hadley, talk by Paul Baker (City of London guide & HADAS member).

Weds 9 Jan: 8.00pm, Hornsey Historical Society, Union Church Hall, Corner of Ferme Park Rd/Weston Park, N8. Theobroma: The History of Chocolate, talk by Ruth Hazeldine.

Thurs 10 Jan: 6.30pm (refreshments 6.00pm), LAMAS, Terrace Room, Museum of London. Recent Archaeological Work at St Paul’s Cathedral, talk by Dr John Schofield (MoL)

Mon 14 Jan: 3.00pm, Barnet & Local History Society, Church House, Wood St, Barnet, (opposite museum). The Mystery of Middle Row, talk by Richard Selby

Weds 16 Jan: 10.15am, The Enfield Society, meet at the front door of Forty Hall Mansion. A 2.5 hour circular walk through the Forty Hall & Whitewebbs Estates, led by Carol Cope and Kinu Ohki

Weds 16 Jan: 7.30pm,Willesden Local History Society, Scout House, High Rd, (corner of Strode Rd) NW10. More Willesden Images, talk by M Barres-Baker & Tina Morton (Brent Archivists & Museum)

Fri 18 Jan: 7.00pm, City of London Archaeological Society, St Katherine Cree church hall, Leadenhall St, EC3 (please note change of venue). £2, light refreshments after. Visiting Pompeii, talk by Dr Denise Allen

Mon 21 Jan: 8.15pm, Ruislip, Northwood & Eastcote Local History Society, St Martin’s church hall, Eastcote Rd, Ruislip. Visitors £2. City of London & Livery Companies, talk by Yasha Beresiner

Thurs 24 Jan: 7.30pm, Camden History Society, Burgh House, New End Sq, NW3. The Jewish Museum – Past Present & Future, talk by Ms Rickie Burman (Curator).

Weds 30 Jan: 10.15am, The Enfield Society, meet at Winchmore Hill Station for a linear 2.5 hour walk ending at Oakwood Station, after a short tour past some of the older & historic village buildings around and near the green, the varied parks of Groveland & Oakwood will be seen, led by Brenda Brown. Shorter options available.

Newsletter

Page 1

As it is that holiday season again, we take the opportunity to wish all our readers a happy holiday and a healthy and prosperous New Year.

HADAS Diary

• Tuesday 18th December 2007, HADAS Christmas Dinner Handel choral music with members of the Finchley Chamber Choir, followed by a tour of St Lawrence Church in Little Stanmore, then dinner at the Apollonia restaurant in Stanmore. The dinner will be held in a private room, where there will be a bar available for you to buy your drinks. For last minute bookings check with Jim Nelhams (contact details below) to see if there are places available. The cost is £30 per person.

• Tuesday 8th January 2008, Kate Sutton – Museum of London. “The work of a Finds Liaison Officer.” • Tuesday 12th February 2008, Christopher Sparey-Green BA MIFA. “The archaeology of Dorset – a Time-torn Landscape.” • Tuesday 11th March 2008, Chloe Cockerill – Regional Development Manager. “The work of the Churches Conservation Trust.” • Tuesday 8th April 2008, Peter Davey – Bristol Tram Photograph Collection. “Clifton Rocks Railway.” • Tuesday 13th May 2008, Angela Wardle – MOLAS Finds Specialist. “Finds from Roman London”. Angela hopes to present some results of a Roman London glass working project, and talk about a new Roman London website with online finds catalogue.

The winter lecture series takes place in the Drawing Room at Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley N3 3QE. Lectures start promptly at 8pm – non-members £1, Coffee or tea 80p.As we are now starting to think about the 2008/9 winter lecture series, if there are any suggestions for future lecturers, please pass them to Steve Brunning, 1 Reddings Close, Mill Hill, London, NW7 4JL

CHRISTMAS AT CHURCH FARMHOUSE MUSEUM by Gerard Roots

‘The Moving Toyshop’ An exhibition, based on two extensive private collections, showing how toys and games have changed since the beginning of the 20th Century. The exhibition includes lots of toys for the very young to play with. (It ends Spring 2008.)

The Case of the Illustrious Illustrator: Sidney Paget and Sherlock Holmes

Sidney Paget was one of the earliest and most influential illustrators of the Sherlock Holmes stories. It is he, rather than Conan Doyle, who created the now iconic image of Holmes – the hawk-like face, the deerstalker cap. Paget lived for a time in Finchley, and is buried there in Marylebone Cemetery. This small exhibition is for the centenary of his death in January 2008. (It ends 20 April 2008.)

Christmas Past

As is customary, the Museum’s 1850s dining room will be decorated for a Victorian Christmas from 6 December to 6 January. NB The Museum will be closed on 24, 25, 26 December and 1 January.

The Museum staff wishes all HADAS members a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

The report on the Excavation at Hendon School between 11th June and 15th June 2007 by Don Cooper

Site code HDS06 Grid reference: 23660, 89033

1.Introduction This is a brief report of the second season of excavations at Hendon School. As in the previous year, the project at Hendon School is a joint collaboration between University of London’s (UCL’s) Institute of Archaeology (IoA) and HADAS. The report and results of the previous year’s excavation, written by Gabe Moshenska of UCL, appeared in last year’s December HADAS newsletter. In preparation for the project, Sarah Dhangal, UCL’s widening participation officer gave a number of introductory talks at the school for the students, who had volunteered to take part and received an enthusiastic response. The other essentials for an excavation these days are the project design document which was produced by Gabe Moshenska and the risk assessment document by Sarah Dhangal. The background to the site; the history of Hendon House, as so far researched, was published in the September 2007 HADAS newsletter by Don Cooper. In summary the objectives were to provide the students with a taste of archaeology and also to explore the archaeology of the playing field.

With the scene set, the excavation took place on the school’s playing field in the week commencing 11th June 2007 for five days.

2.Summary

The UCL/HADAS dig team opened a 2m by 4m trench alongside the north boundary of the playing field of the school. The team assisted by 14 students carried out the excavation. Whilst no structures were found, the trench proved to be remarkably “fertile” in terms of finds. Clay pipe bowls and stems, medieval and post-medieval pot sherds, modern coins, lots of brick and tile fragments not forgetting worms and ants!!! The weather was generally kind with rain only on the Monday, suntan cream was required on the rest of the days. Apart from one student slightly cutting himself with a trowel there were no health and safety issues.

3.Detail

Image & photos not yet included

The location of the trench was heavily constrained (as last year!) by the fact that the playing field is laid out as a sports field. Particularly important this year as the school’s sports day was to take place a week after the excavation. It was decided, therefore, that the trench should be located in one of the few sports-free areas. As can be seen, from the overlay of the old estate map onto a Google Earth satellite image of the area (see below), the northern boundary of the estate lies close to the current boundary of the playing field. The trench was sited by this boundary (although marked on the image below it is difficult to see!!) in the hope of finding evidence of the old estate’s boundary. Two students from University College London’s (UCL) Institute of Archaeology (IoA) and four members, two of whom were part-time, of the Hendon and District Archaeological Society (HADAS) took part as well as Sarah Dhangal of UCL’s widening participation initiative and Maria Phelan representing the school. Fourteen students took part during the week at an average of five sessions each, three students were returnees from last year’s dig. The dig attracted a lot of attention from both teachers and students, who returned time and again to ask questions and view the progress of the dig. Following the decision to open a 4m by 2m trench, the area was deturfed (context 100). Then over the next three days, approximately 30cm of top soil (context 105) was carefully taken out. Below the top soil, was a layer of clayey soil (context 110) of which only about 10cm was excavated as time ran out. Two small sondages were sunk (contexts 115 and 120) to test the depth of this layer, but natural sub-soil was not reached. Auguring indicated that London clay, the probable natural sub-soil, was still some distance further down. The modus operandi was as follows: Excavating started at 10.00 to fit in with the school timetable. The students arrived for two three-quarter hour sessions either side of the school lunch hour. After the students had returned to class, further “spits” were taken from the trench and work finished about 17.00.

4.What did we find?

The key objective of bringing archaeology to school, both pupils and teachers, was achieved to some extent at the expense of the archaeology!! Weather and the small number of excavators also contributed to the fact that we did not get down to the natural level. In the event, no structures were found, and no evidence of the boundary of the old estate. On the other hand, there were many finds as follows: Pot sherds 198 (33 modern flowerpot sherds discarded) Clay pipe parts 92 Slag 24 Building material 292 (282 bits discarded) Misc: pen parts 6 Bottle caps 2 Plastic 9 Wrappers 3 Coal 37 Slate 8 Flint & stone lots (all discarded) Coins & tokens 7 modern with one unknown Metal Nails many Bits of iron many Bullet 1 Bone animal 5 pieces of abraded bone including one horse’s tooth

5.What does it mean?

Both the “deturf” layer and the top soil (context 105) were, not surprisingly, much disturbed whether in situ or re-deposited it was not possible to tell. A lady who had been at the school during Word War II, said that students had been allocated parts of the playing field as allotments to grow vegetables, presumably to supplement rations. The amount of flowerpot sherds and plant identity sticks support this evidence. The dateable clay pipe pieces indicate a date of 1840 to 1845 for the context, although the pot sherds cover a huge date range from early medieval (ESHER dated 1150 -1300 & LOND dated 1080 – 1350) to modern 20th century sherds. Once the clayey-soil layer (context 110) was reached the stratigraphy became more reliable. The pot sherds recovered give a date range of 1350 to 1620, the small amount of glass and building material from this layer seem consistent with these dates, as does the lack of clay pipe. The two sondages (contexts 115 & 120) that were sunk into the clayey-soil also bear out the stratigraphy with the pot sherds in context 115 having dates in the range 1200 to 1480 and those for context 120 dates between 1500 to 1550. One surprise was the lack of animal bones found in the excavation (we only found one horse’s tooth); excavations in the area have generally turned up lots of animal bone. As the area excavated is small and the dateable sherds few, not too much should be read into the result. It is a pity that lack of time prevented the excavation reaching the bottom of the clayey-soil layer. However, it seems clear from the artefacts found that the archaeology of the playing field has more to tell us about Hendon House and Hendon. It is to be hoped that next year an excavation in an adjacent area, with perhaps more time might unravel more of the story.

6.Contribution to research questions The research questions posed by the project design brief can be answered as follows: a. Is there any residual evidence of prehistoric activity? There was no evidence of prehistoric activity, probably because the excavation did not reach such depths. b. Considering the proximity to various Roman roads, is there evidence of Roman activity? There are three or four small much-abraded sherds of Roman pot. Again, however, the excavation did reach the levels at which one would have expected to find such material. c. Excavations in the area have uncovered considerable Anglo-Saxon material, is there any evidence of similar remains here? There was no evidence of Anglo-Saxon activity, possibly for the same reason as prehistory and Roman above. d. Is there any evidence of activity in the area between its mention in Domesday and the construction of the house? A number of early medieval pot sherds were recovered, which, if not re-deposited from elsewhere, would indicate activity locally during that period. The evidence from the nearby Church Terrace site (CT73) and Burroughs Gardens site (BG72) and the history of St Mary’s Church would support this proposition. e. What evidence remains for the different phases of the rebuilding of the house up to the demolition in 1909? As no structures were found, there was no archaeological evidence of any rebuilding phase.

7.Results

The main objective of the project was to provide training and practical experience of archaeology for the students of Hendon School. The interest and enthusiasm shown by the pupils that took part in the excavation, the number of pupils and teachers who came to view it during their leisure time, as well as the many well-formed questions, made this excavation a considerable success. From the point of view of the archaeology, all that can be said is that the artefacts found indicate a long period of occupation in the area, always provided that the ground material is in situ and not re-deposited from elsewhere. The physical archive will be housed at Hendon School. There is also a photo library of the excavation largely compiled by Sarah Dhangal. The SMR has been updated under the site code HDS06. Copies of this report will be sent Jon Finney at the London Borough of Barnet and to Kim Stabler of English Heritage.

8.Recommendations

If a third season is proposed, then it is recommended that the excavation take place over two weeks rather than one week, and that the location should be further up the sports field along the same border but nearer to the old long jump pit.

9.Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to a whole range of people from staff at the school especially Maria Phelan, to UCL students Hannah Davis and Alex Mulhall, to HADAS members Andrew Coulson, Angela Holmes, Jim Nelhams, not forgetting the students who took part. Thanks also to Jacqui Pearce for reviewing the pot sherds found. Sarah Dhangal, UCL‘s widening participation officer and Gabe Moshenska UCL made it all possible.

Update on the history of Hendon House by Don Cooper

Since putting the report of the research on the history of Hendon house on to the HADAS internet site, we have been contacted by Geoffrey Cornwall, a direct descendant of the John Cornwall that lived there. He has kindly sent us a photocopy of miniature portraits of Mr. and Mrs. John Cornwall. The miniature portrait of Mrs Cornwall is signed by Adam Buck and dated 1828. The portraits are labelled “John Cornwall Esq. of Hendon House and 37 Grosvenor Place” and “Mrs. Cornwall of Hendon and Grosvenor Square”. It is wonderful to have confirmation of our research – Thanks Geoffrey. As an aside this demonstrates the power of the internet (if such a demonstration was required!!). As you know, Jim Nelhams loaded the first 100 HADAS newsletters on to our internet web site so that they can be searched. The remaining three hundred and forty still remained to be transcribed into a searchable form. They are currently held as .pdf files and need to be passed through an Optical Character Reading software program, corrected, edited to remove personal data, formatted and loaded onto our site. Anybody…….. ********

A Plea for information

At the beginning of May 1972, HADAS began excavating on the site of six demolished houses at Burroughs Gardens opposite the White Bear pub. Digging took place only at weekends, and there are constant complaints of a lack of diggers in the newsletters of the time. The dig finished in mid-October 1972. Although the dig didn’t last very long and was poorly manned, significant amounts of medieval pot were said to have been found. Until last month, the fate of the artefacts from the dig was not known. A number of boxes of them have now turned up, and there are fine examples of medieval pot sherds (ESHER, SHER, LSS & CHAF). WHERE ARE THE REST? Please search attics, garages, and anywhere else you can think of and let us know if you find anything including documents and/or artefacts, or if you have any information as to where the results of the dig went. Why are we interested now? Many digs have taken place in the area since, both by HADAS and other archaeological units, and a picture seems to be gradually emerging of the settlement pattern in Hendon during the medieval period. We now know that there was a significant medieval settlement around St Mary’s Church, Hendon (the book on the detailed results of the excavation by HADAS at Church Terrace in 1973/4 should be published next year by the members of the post-excavation class). The medieval pottery sherds from the dig at Burroughs Garden seem to indicate that there was another settlement in the immediate area. Some of the pot sherds were looked at, at the time, by the late John Hurst, an expert on medieval pot, who visited the site and identified them as early medieval. However, the many excavations (Church End Farm, behind the Hendon fire station, on the Middlesex University site among others) that have taken place between the two sites have failed to find, other than the odd sherd or two, any medieval pot or any other indications of medieval occupation. Were there two distinct settlements in the area? On Warburton’s map of 1749, the road that runs by the Burroughs is called “Watling Street”; does this reflect an ancient route with a small settlement on the high ground? We know that there were separate settlements later on, but the few artefacts recovered from the Burroughs excavation seem to indicate that there was occupation there by at least the 10th century, whereas the Church Terrace site seems to have been in continuous occupation since Roman times. The White Bear has closed (October 2007) and it is to be hoped that when the site is redeveloped, there will be an archaeological condition included in the planning consent, which might help to clarify the details of the occupation of the area in medieval times.

St Mary’s Church, Harrow-on-the-Hill

Daniel Secker has been doing research and limited survey work on the above during this summer (2007). He has kindly sent us a copy of his report (Secker, 2007) and given us permission to quote his preliminary results. His main finding shows that “despite assertions to the contrary, the fabric of the nave of the late eleventh century church survives, and that the present early thirteenth century arcades are insertions. There are also signs that the predecessors of the present late medieval transepts were diminutive structures; it is just possible these originated as porticus of an even earlier minster church. While no minster was ever directly mentioned at Harrow, the indirect documentary and place-name evidence suggests that such a foundation existed”. The documentary evidence for the building of a late eleventh century church by Archbishop Lanfranc (Archbishop of Canterbury from 1070 to his death in 1089) is provided by Eadmer, the twelfth century chronicler, who says that Lanfranc began building a church at Harrow in 1087, which after Lanfranc’s death in 1089, was completed and consecrated by Archbishop Anselm (his successor as Archbishop of Canterbury) in 1094. Another finding is “the presence of Roman brick in the later fabric of the church”. If you would like more details and to request a copy of his report please write to Daniel Secker, 48 Walbrook House, 1 Huntington Road, Edmonton, London N9 8LS. St Mary’s Harrow-on-the-Hill is another of the so-called “Middlesex Marys” together with others including our own St Mary’s Hendon. These churches seem to have been built during the “great rebuilding” that took place between the conquest and the first half of the twelfth century. They are often on prominent hills in the landscape. The top of St Mary, Harrow-on-the-Hill’s spire is the highest spire at 169.47m above sea level in the country even higher than Salisbury Cathedral at 168.24m! (Harris, 2006). But was there any structure on these hill tops before these: such as an older Anglo-Saxon timber structure or Romano-British pagan temple? I wonder will we ever know.

Secker, Daniel. 2007. St Mary, Harrow-on-the Hill: The evidence for Langfranc’s Church and the Possible Anglo-Saxon Minster. Unpublished

Harris, Brian, 2006. A Guide to Churches & Cathedrals: discovering the unique and unusual in over 500 churches and cathedrals. London: Ebury Publishing.

Other Societies’ Events Compiled by Eric Morgan

Tuesday, 4th December 7.00pm. The British Postal Museum & Archive, Phoenix Place, Clerkenwell, WC1 (Corner of Mount Pleasant Sorting Office). “War heroes of the Post Office” The history of the Post Office Rifle Volunteer Corps. To book call 020 7239 2570.

Thursday, 6th December, 8.00pm. Islington Archaeology & History Society, Islington Town Hall, Upper Street, N1. “Berthold Lubetkin – Master Architect” by John Allan.

Saturday, 8th December 10.30am. Enfield Society. Meet at platform 9, King’s Cross main line station. “Linear Tunnels old & new”, a walk ending at Highbury & Islington Station led by Roy Nicholls details 020 8360 0282. Shorter options, lunch stop in the Angel area.

Saturday, 8th December. RAF Museum, Grahame Park Way, NW9. “Freedom & Liberty Activity day – to tie in with the Museum’s temporary exhibition includes talks by curators, escape & evasion gallery trails, poster design & displays.

Tuesday, 11th December, 5.30pm. Institute of Archaeology, Room 412, Gordon Square, WC1. “Recent research on Late Medieval Alchemy – British Museum Medieval Seminar” by Dr. Marcos Martinon-Torres.

Tuesday, 11th December, 8.00pm. Amateur Geological Society, The Parlour, St Margaret’s Church, Victoria Avenue, N3 (off Hendon Lane). “The Forensic use of Micro-Fossils” Talk by Dr. Haydon Bailey.

Wednesday, 12th December 8.00pm. Mill Hill Historical Society, Harwood Hall, Union Church, The Broadway, NW7. “A London Quiz” by John Cooke (a Blue Badge Guide).

Wednesday, 12th December 8.00pm. Hornsey Historical Society, Union Church Hall, corner Ferme Park Road/Weston Park, N8. “Grimaldi lived here”, the National Census & a house in Clerkenwell. Talk by Marlene McAndrew, Refreshments 7.45pm £1.

Thursday, 13th December, 6.30pm. LAMAS, Terrace Room, Museum of London, 150 London Wall, EC2. “Merv – A forgotten city on the Silk Road”, by Tim Williams (IoA).

Friday 14th December, 8.00pm. Enfield Archaeological Society, Jubilee Hall, 2 Parsonage Lane/Junction Chase Side, Enfield. “The Christmas Story in Art”, by Stephen Gilburt £1.

Thanks to our contributors: Eric Morgan, Steve Brunning, Gerard Roots

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HADAS DIARY – LECTURES AND CHRISTMAS DINNER 2007

Tuesday, 13th November 2007, Mata Hari’s glass eye and other tales: a history of archaeology and aerial photography. Martyn Barber – English Heritage Ariel Survey.

Tuesday 18h December 2007, HADAS Christmas Dinner.

Handel choral music with members of the Finchley Chamber Choir, followed by tour of St Lawrence Church Little Stanmore. We then adjourn to the Apollonia restaurant in Stanmore for the meal. Numbers are growing fast, but there is still room for more. This event is of course open to friends, so if you do not want to come on your own, why not bring a friend? You never know, they might then join HADAS.

A reminder that deposits are required by Jim Nelhams by 1st November, (please see contact details on page 4). The cost of £30 includes transport, the visit to St Lawrence’s Church with a brief choir performance, followed by the dinner in Stanmore.

Lectures start at 8.00pm in the Drawing Room, Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley N3 3QE. Buses 82, 143, 326 & 460 pass close by, and it is five to ten minutes walk from Finchley Central Station (Northern Line).

DOROTHY’S DO – by Don Cooper

What a lovely occasion! Over a quarter of HADAS’s membership turned out on Sunday 30th September to honour Dorothy on the occasion of her retirement from her long service on the HADAS committee. We assembled at 12.30 for drinks followed by buffet lunch at 1.00. Old friends reminisced with Dorothy about old times. A collection of photographs suitably enlarged (prepared by Bill Bass) were on hand to stimulate memories. Dorothy was presented with an album containing the many old photos, some nice bottles of sherry and a “this is your life” booklet compiled via an interview with her by Andrew Selkirk. The lunch concluded with a short speech by the chairman and a reply by Dorothy.

Thanks are due to the many people involved in organising the occasion especially June Porges, Jo and Jim Nelhams, Bill Bass, Andrew Selkirk and all those who helped on the day.

An interview with Dorothy written by Andrew Selkirk will appear in a future edition of this newsletter.

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THOMAS TELFORD – A LIFE 1757 TO 1834 – A 250TH ANNIVERSARY LECTURE GIVEN BY DENIS SMITH ON TUESDAY 9 OCTOBER 2007 reported by Liz Gapp

Thomas Telford was born 250 years ago this year in Westerkirk, Scotland; his father, a shepherd, died three months later aged 33 years. From these very humble beginnings, he rose to become the first president of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Denis Smith, a lecturer in Industrial Archaeology, started with a brief overview of the life and work of Thomas Telford. This encompassed Architecture; Canal creation; Road-making; Bridges; Railways and Steam carriages; Fen Drainage; Docks, Harbours and Piers; Water supply; Church building; and even the Exchequer Loan Commission. Denis then expanded on this, illustrating his talk with slides. Thomas Telford first came to Langholm, Scotland, looking for work. His first job when he came to Langholm, where he trained as a stonemason, was to carve his father’s commemorative gravestone. His second job was a doorway at Langholm where a plaque now commemorates this. Thomas came south to Somerset House, London looking for better and more remunerative work. There one corner of masonry was carved by Telford himself, which Denis considers to be better carved than other work there. In London he met Sir William Pulteney (1729 – 1805), a wealthy man, who became a life-long friend and patron sponsoring various work for Telford including his appointment as county surveyor of public works for Shropshire. He also became great friends with Robert Southey, a Lakeland poet and Poet Laureate. Thomas Telford built a great number of structures many of which were illustrated by Denis Smith. The first structure was Montford Bridge in 1792 built in masonry with three segmental arches built for £5,800. At Bridge North he was the architect and building supervisor for a new church St. Mary Magdelene in 1792-4. Pevsner comments on it in one of his books. In 1796 Thomas Telford completed a 130 foot span iron bridge at Buildwas over the river Severn with the arch ribs in cast iron. The bridge was only replaced in 1905. In 1801 Thomas Telford came up with a design for a new London Bridge of one 600 ft cast iron arch that was published and much admired, including by the monarch and royal family of the day. However, it was never built and an investigation at Imperial College calculated that this design would have created so much thrust that the bases would have had to be huge. In 1796 Thomas built an iron aqueduct in Longdon on the Shrewsbury canal. This was a test bed experiment 186 feet long with square nuts and bolts, blacksmith made, not mass produced. Next came the Chirk aqueduct which with its use of masonry piers and iron arches reduced the quantity of masonry used. Then the canal aqueduct at Pont Cysyllte which an engineer, William Jessop, suggested could be made in cast iron. This was achieved by creating 19 arches with masonry columns and cast iron arches, and was illustrated in some nice coloured engravings. Canal barges make no difference to the weight loading due to the water displacement. To this day the 7/8” iron plates are still in place. Various other bridges were then built including: the Dunkeld Bridge over the river Tay in 1809; the Craig Ellachie in 1812-15; and the Waterloo Bridge in Betsw-y-coed, Wales, in 1816. A pattern started to emerge: that of bridges with 150 foot span. Thomas was not great with his road design over the bridges as they often took sharp right turns at the exit of the bridge. In 1821, at the age of 64, Thomas Telford bought his first house at 24 Abingdon Street, just opposite the Houses of Parliament. One of the reasons for this location is that engineering drawings for projects were only passed once a year by Parliament. If they were not submitted in time it meant that a project would be delayed for a year until the next approval date. One of Telford’s biggest projects was the building of the Caledonian Canal, which was a ship canal, not a barge canal, going from Fort William to Inverness. Unfortunately, although a magnificent piece of engineering, it was superseded by steam navigation before its completion.

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More of his bridges followed including his first chamfered edge bridge, the Ova Bridge in Gloucester; the Conway Bridge; the 1826 Menai Bridge; and the Severn Bridge. He then built the Harecastle tunnel on the Trent and Mersey canal in Staffordshire in 1824-27. After that he built the Western and Eastern Docks of the Katherine Docks by the Tower of London. Today only the Ivory Docks survive. Interestingly this is one of the few cases where the whereabouts of the spoil from such a project can be traced as the Duke of Westminster used it in Pimlico. To build this, all the work was done using manual labour, wicker baskets, barges, and horse and carts – there was no automation or steam power to speed this up. The first ship came into the dock in 1829. In recent years, the Telford retracting foot bridge of St Katherine’s docks was saved for posterity. The Birmingham canal network was then built from 1790-1830 which can be seen in Smethwick in Birmingham from the cast iron Galton Bridge over the Birmingham canal. His only foreign project was the Gotha Canal for the King of Sweden, which used lakes as in the Caledonian Canal. One of his cast iron bridges, that for the Holyhead road over the Birmingham and Liverpool canal, has a commemorative plaque showing his qualifications as FRSL&E. This underlines that Thomas Telford was a member of the Royal Societies of both London and Edinburgh.

Questions after the talk elucidated that, coming from a humble background as he did, Thomas Telford was lucky to be Scottish as the educational system was better than in England. He was born too early to have had much work relating to the railways.

Many of Telford’s drawings are still available; the Telford collection is the largest collection of architectural drawings in Great Britain and probably the whole world apart from perhaps in Russia. One myth that was laid to rest is that the churches in West Scotland and Iona often claimed to be Telford churches were not in fact designed by him. Thomas Telford was born in humble circumstance; never married; but died a wealthy, acclaimed man who was buried in the nave of Westminster Abbey.

COUNCIL FOR BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY AGM AND WEEKEND IN YORK By Peter Pickering

From 14th to 16th September I was in York for an exhausting but most rewarding series of talks and events organized by the Council for British Archaeology. We were taken round three mediaeval guildhalls – Merchant Adventurers, Merchant Taylors and St Anthony’s, with their exceptionally fine roofs. The first two are in full use; the third is being restored after occupation by the University of York. It is hoped that a use will be found for it which will permit public access. Dr Philippa Haskin showed and described to us a recently discovered Roll of the Pater Noster Guild which describes, among other things, the food bought for their feasts. Simon Thurley, the Chief Executive of English Heritage, gave the Beatrice De Cardi lecture (in the presence of Beatrice herself, in her 94th year) entitled “Archaeology and Artifice – the fabrication of Mediaeval History”. This was an entertaining and thought-provoking account of how the early Inspectors of Ancient Monuments, though eschewing reconstruction, removed all later accretions from the abbeys and castles in their care, and determinedly mowed the lawns round the remains, thus giving an impression of a definiteness that did not reflect mediaeval reality. They seemed to prefer their ruins to be unroofed, and removed the roofs from Wharram Percy church and Appuldurcombe House. Of course, the style of presentation favoured in our own day is no doubt itself distorting. On Saturday we had a very interesting address by Mr Hugh Bayley, the MP for York. He is an active member of the All-Party Parliamentary Archaeology Group, and emphasised the need to convince the Government that archaeology had an importance that went beyond tourism, and that it should be taken account

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of by all Government departments, not just those with direct sponsoring responsibilities. He emphasised the value of writing to Members of Parliament pressing the case for archaeology. If each one only “went through the motions”, the result of a lot of people going through the motions was action. This is a lesson we all should learn. Dr Hall took us speedily through the archaeology of York, mentioning: the headless Roman burials (too many to be the result of a single particular historical event); the recently discovered traces of Anglo-Saxon York (hitherto surprisingly absent); St William of York (the response to Canterbury’s Thomas Becket); a fourteenth century bowl (for the game of bowls, not a container); and a wax tablet with a poem on it (the chorus ‘she didn’t say yes and she didn’t say no’). Christopher Norton and Stuart Harrison have a theory about York Minster as it was in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, working from fragments surviving after the Gothic rebuilding which started in the thirteenth century and from parallels elsewhere in England, France and Trondheim. Dr Mainman talked about the Coppergate excavations (Coppergate means ‘cup-makers’ street’, and has nothing to do with copper). Among the finds was a coin of Samarkand (forged – not silver). Dr Whyman described his work on the Vale of York, overlaying maps of land-cover with maps showing archaeological sites and crop marks. Dr Kenny talked about Community Archaeology Projects in York. It seemed to me that the distinction between community archaeology and old-fashioned archaeological society excavations and field walking is becoming very blurred, and that local history societies in the countryside are often undertaking archaeological investigations, whether involving digging or not. Several of them have professional support, perhaps paid for through money from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Such amateur/volunteer activity (and there is a lot of it) is almost all outside the urban area of York; the only exception seemed to be the vast Hungate redevelopment, where there is much more volunteer involvement than is usual now in London. It may be that London archaeology could learn from all this, though the circumstances may be too different. On Saturday afternoon there were four different walks. The first one I attended, led by the York City archaeologist John Oxley through the Foss area of the city, was largely away from the tourist track. He pointed out to us particularly the many changes in level in York, both natural (York is at the confluence of two rivers) and due to the build-up of deposits. He pointed out that the churches of mediaeval York tended to be built on higher ground. Among the unlikely visits we made was to a run-down yard, with weeds and parked cars, where nine-metre deep excavation had been carried out seventeen years ago in anticipation of a redevelopment that was yet to happen. We also stood in the car park in front of York castle, where a nineteenth century prison had so trashed the archaeology that there was no way of showing where mediaeval gateways shown on maps had been. We then went to Barley Hall, where we got the full tourist treatment from an ‘authentically costumed’ but well-informed guide with a Scottish accent. Excavation in the 1980s revealed that under a jumble of run-down derelict offices and workshops was a medieval townhouse, originally of the Priors of Nostell but later of Alderman William Snawsell, goldsmith and Mayor of York. Ironically, in view of Simon Thurley’s lecture, it has been restored to how it looked towards the end of the fifteenth century. Finally we visited the Church of All Saints Northgate, which has a truly remarkable set of mediaeval glass. One of the windows is based on an anonymous Middle English poem called the Pricke of Conscience, concerned with the final fifteen days of the world. In the window each of the final days has a separate panel with a Middle English text that paraphrases the poem; the seas rise and fall, buildings (including the spire of the church the window is in) are destroyed by an earthquake; human beings hide in holes, emerging only to pray. Finally, the stars fall from the sky, the bones of the dead rise, and the world burns on every side. Another window has each of the nine orders of angelic beings, from common angels to seraphim. The day concluded with a ‘mediaeval’ feast in the Merchant Adventurers Hall.On Sunday there was a walk along part of the walls of York, and then an enthusiastic account by a founder member of the Pontefract and District Archaeological Society, which grew out of a WEA class in the 1950s, and has done a lot of work since. The Yorkshire CBA Group described what it was doing to encourage its

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members to take better account of landscape. Then there were two talks with similar themes – archaeological investigation of a large geographical area – Dominic Powlesland on the Vale of Pickering and Peter Halkon on the Foulness Valley. Mr Powlesland told us that, in the Vale, ‘there is no part of the landscape that is empty’; archaeology is everywhere. Instead of field-walking Mr Powlesland prefers full excavation of one-metre squares. Dr Halkon was bringing together all the information that could be found (with great community involvement) and had identified a large number of curvilinear hill-fortlets. The Annual General Meeting followed. Nick Merriman, the President, emphasised the importance of the political and economic context of archaeology. The new Prime Minister had little interest in culture; Secretary of State James Purnell was interested in culture but little in archaeology; the Minister, Margaret Hodge, showed interest in the social and educational, but not the grimier aspects of archaeology. So there was a need, in putting our case to Ministers, to use arguments they would understand and could relate to access, regeneration and diversification. Though the Olympics were undeniably a threat to the financing of heritage, the Cultural Olympiad would provide an opportunity which should be seized. We should also be ready to respond to the legislation expected next session to change the regulatory framework. Mike Heyworth, the Director, reviewed the year, mentioning the All-Party Parliamentary Archaeology Group; the CBA’s listed building casework; the Young Archaeologists’ Clubs (the CBA hopes soon to have two more people working on education); the new Marsh Archaeology Award for community archaeology; widening the number of outlets for the CBA’s magazine ‘British Archaeology’; and the importance of the CBA website. Peter Olver presented the accounts. There was virtually no discussion. The final item was the Thornborough henges – a lecture by Dr Harding and then, in the afternoon, a visit to this remarkable set of three henges in a virtually straight line (like the stars in the belt of Orion?), with three more henges in the same alignment within twelve kilometres. Each of the Thornborough henges had originally a double circuit of banks and ditches, and there was a cursus nearby. One of the banks of the middle henge is well preserved, the southern one has suffered more plough damage, and the third is concealed in trees. Dr Harding speculated interestingly on the significance of the complex; he was inclined to dismiss the idea that each henge was the monument of a different chief, and to prefer a more democratic model of a major pilgrimage site. He pointed to the absence of finds in the henges; there was an area nearby with flint debris, but it was out of sight of the henges themselves. There was little discussion of the controversy over the preservation of these henges, which have been under threat from quarrying.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION AT “THE STOCKS” by Don Cooper

Site Code: HDY07 National Grid reference: 524460 197320

Site address: The Stocks, Hadley Green West, Hadley Green, Barnet, Herts. EN5 4PP.

1.Introduction

At the request of David Hampson of Oliver and Saunders and with the approval of Barnet Council’s planning department and English Heritage, the Hendon and District Archaeological Society (HADAS) carried out an archaeological evaluation on the above site. The planning application (N06949G/06 with subsequent amendments APP/N5090/E/06/2029489 and 2029494) submitted was for a new two storey detached house to be built on the site of a standing house that had been built in the mid-1920s, the footprint of the old and new houses to be approximately the same.

2.Geological & Topographical

The site is located north of Barnet High Street on the left-hand side of the Great North Road, midway across Hadley Green. The house has private road access. The area is more or less level, and is

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made up of grassland with a few trees and ponds. The garden of the house is approximately 70m long and backs on to a footpath, which in turn borders Old Fold Golf course. According to the Geotechnical and land contamination assessment report carried out by LBH Wembley, the geology of the site is of London Clay overlaid by Stanmore gravel to a thickness of 2.5m, which in turn is overlain by made ground of an average 1.4m thickness. The made ground consists of top soil with a little gravel and brick. The site is approximately 130m OD.

3.Archaeological and Historical Background

Having consulted the Ordnance Survey of 1878, the site appears to be in an agricultural field belonging to the then Old Fold Manor Farm. Old Fold Manor is believed to date back to around 1140AD, when a deed grants the area to one Hugh de Eu. The eastern boundary of the field is a footpath which is believed to be the route of the old Great North Road. The stocks that give the house its name are shown on the map to be further east on the other side of the footpath. The house first appears on the 1935 Ordnance Survey map. The demolished house appears to have been built in the mid-1920s on a green-field site. The area, originally known as Gladsmuir Heath, is the reputed site of the Battle of Barnet in 1471. Archaeological activity in the area has, however, failed to identify the site or sites of the battle. The television series “Two men in a trench” included a programme on the Battle of Barnet and examined Old Fold Manor Golf Course and its surrounds, but failed to find any evidence of the battle. This is written up in a book of the series by Pollard & Oliver (2002). Old Fold Manor some 400m to the north, has also been the subject of an archaeological evaluation (Malcolm, 1991) in 1991 (Site Code GOF91) and although evidence of the old manor building was identified there was no evidence of the Battle of Barnet. There is no known Roman activity in the area, although Ermine Street (the modern A10) is not far away. Other periods are represented only by occasional chance finds. The site which is about 130m OD seems to have been an agricultural field for much of recent history. The small footprint of the development, disturbance by the foundations of the present house, coupled with the unlikely survival of artefacts from the Battle of Barnet, (even if it took place on Gladsmuir Heath aka Hadley Green!!) made this a somewhat unpromising archaeological investigation.

4.Methodology

The evaluation was achieved by site watching. Initially, the pile driving was observed so as to review the geology. Then the foundation trenches were observed both in the trenches and examining the spoil from those trenches. Metal detecting was carried out on the garden behind the house.

5.Results

The examination of the foundation trenches revealed no evidence of any structures other than those from the demolished house. The layer of top soil was (surprisingly!) sterile with little or no evidence of previous human activity, one clay pipe stem and a few pieces of post-1900 pottery were all that was found. The results of the metal detecting survey were similarly meagre. Pieces of modern iron pipe, modern coins and nails represent the sum total of the finds from the garden.

6.Conclusion

No evidence of the Battle of Barnet or indeed any other previous activity was found on the site of the new house at Hadley Green West.

7.Acknowledgements

HADAS would like to thank the building staff on site especially Len Jones, the site supervisor, for their full co-operation and assistance in carrying out this evaluation. Thanks also to HADAS members Vicki Baldwin, Bill Bass, & Andrew Coulson for all their help.

8.References

Malcolm, Gordon. 1991. Archaeological evaluation: Old Ford Manor, Barnet. London: Museum of London.

Pollard, Tony & Oliver, Neil. 2002. Two Men in a Trench: Battlefield Archaeology – The Key to Unlocking the Past. London: Michael Joseph Ltd.

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THE STEPHENS COLLECTION – by Peter Pickering

Many readers will know that there is a small museum at Avenue House dedicated to “Inky” Stephens and writing equipment generally. I hope most members of HADAS will have looked around it at some time. The collection is open to the public on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 2pm until 4.30pm. To keep it open we need more stewards (Avenue House itself is staffed, but they are not responsible for the collection). In the last year or two some stalwarts have had to give up for one reason or another. Replacements are urgently needed. We ask each volunteer to be a steward once a month. A rota is drawn up, but if an allocated day is inconvenient, it is always possible to change it. The work is not onerous, and being a steward provides an opportunity for private reading. There is a trickle of visitors, ranging from people at some event at Avenue House who drop in for a few minutes, to people who have made a special journey to see the collection and study it carefully. We provide information for stewards to help answer visitor’s questions.

If you feel able to help and would like to know more, please telephone me on 020 8445 2807, or email pe.pickering@virgin.net.

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Other Societies’ Events Compiled by Eric Morgan

Thursday 8th November 6.30pm. LAMAS. Terrace Room, Museum of London, 150 London Wall EC2. Hinemihi: The Maori Meeting House at Clandon Park, Surrey. Talk by Dean Sully (NT). Refreshments from 6pm.

Sunday 11th November 11-11.45, 12-12.45, 1-1.45, 2-2.45, & 3-3.45. LAARC. Mortimer Wheeler House, Eagle Wharf Road, N1. Shoreditch Park Remembered. Discover what lies beneath in a tour of this site destroyed by the blitz. Excavated by MoL. Call 0870 444 3850 for more details, or visit the website www.museumoflondon.org.uk.

Wednesday 14th November 8pm. Mill Hill Historical Society. Harwood Hall, Union Church, The Broadway NW7. British Post Box Design & Use. Talk by Stephen Knight. (Curator – Colne Valley Postal Museum).

Thursday 15th November 8pm. The Enfield Society. Jubilee Hall, 2 Parsonage Lane (junction of Chase Side), Enfield. Discovering Enfield’s Historic Buildings. Talk by Stephen Gilburt.

Thursday 15th November 7pm. Friends of Cricklewood Library. Cricklewood Library, Olive Road, NW2. Medieval London Now. Talk by Hillier Wise.

Friday 16th November 7pm. COLAS. St Olave’s Parish Hall, Mark Lane EC3. Butrint: The Myth of Aeneas. Talk by Oliver Gilkes (University of East Anglia). Visitors £2. Light refreshments.

Friday 16th November 8pm. Enfield Archaeological Society. Jubilee Hall, 2 Parsonage Lane (junction of Chase Side) Enfield. The Old Welsh Bridge, Shrewsbury. Talk by Bruce Watson (MoLAS). Refreshments, sales & info 7.30pm. Visitors £1.

Friday 16th November 7.30pm. Wembley Historical Society. St Andrew’s Church Hall, Church Lane, Kingsbury NW9. Kingsbury & its Pubs. Talk by Geoff Hewlett (Wembley Historian). Visitors £1. Refreshments.

Friday 16th November 7.30pm. Barnet Borough Arts Council. Brent Cross Shopping Centre (outside M&S).

Painting and What’s On (including HADAS).

Saturday 17th November 10.00am to 5.00pm. LAMAS 42nd Local History Conference. City of London School for Girls, Barbican. They Came to London: 1,000 years of Migration. Introduced by Dr Simon Thurley (President of LAMAS) who will also present the Annual History Publication Awards. There will also be displays of recent work and publications by Local History Societies. Cost £10. For further information contact the secretary: Ann Hignell, 24 Orchard Close, Ruislip, Middlesex HA4 7LS. PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE AND PRICE INCREASE.

Sunday 18th November 2-4pm. Museum of London Walk. St Pancras Station & Beyond. Celebrate the re-opening of this stunning Victorian station as Eurostar’s new terminal. Cost £7.50. Call 0870 444 3850 for more details, or visit the website www.museumoflondon.org.uk.

Monday 19th November 8.15pm. Friends of Barnet Borough Libraries. Church End Library, Hendon Lane N3. Monumental Brasses, a Record of Past Times. Talk by Susette Palmer.

Monday 19th November 8.15pm. Ruislip, Northwood & Eastcote Local History Society. St Martin’s Church Hall, Eastcote Road, Ruislip. Recent Medieval Finds in London. Talk by Geoff Egan. Visitors £2.

Tuesday 20th November 2.30pm. Edmonton Hundred Historical Society. Jubilee Hall, 2 Parsonage Lane (junction of Chase Side) Enfield. Street Names in the City. Talk by Paul Taylor.

Friday 23rd November 8pm. Barnet & District Local History Society. Church House, Wood Street (opposite Museum), Barnet. AGM.

Monday 26th November-Sunday 2nd December. Barnet Borough Arts Council. The Spires (outside Waitrose), High Street, Barnet. Painting and What’s On (including HADAS).

Wednesday 28th November 8pm. Friern Barnet & District Local History Society. St John’s Church Hall (next to Whetstone police station), Friern Barnet Lane, N20. The History of Money. Talk by Richard Selby. Refreshments 7.45 and afterwards. £2.

Thursday 29th November 2.30pm. The Finchley Society. Drawing Room, Avenue House, East End Road, N3. The Statue of La Delivrance: an enquiry into its history. Talk by John Rickard. Non-members £2 (info board unveiled in Sept).

Saturday 1st December 10.15am to 3.30pm. Amateur Geological Society. St Mary’s Hall, Hendon Lane N3. Mineral & Fossil Bazaar. Including rocks, crystals, gemstones & jewellery. Refreshments. Admission £1.

Sunday 2nd December 10.30am. Heath & Hampstead Society. Burgh House, New End Square, NW3. Artefacts of the West Heath. Walk led by Michael Welbank. Donation £2, lasts 2 hours. (HADAS excavated here in the 1970’s).

Newsletter

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Lecture Season Starts

Just a reminder that the 2007/8 lecture season starts on Tuesday 9th October with the talk by Denis Smith on Thomas Telford (1757 — 1834). This was postponed from last season.

Report of the excavation at St Mary’s (C of E) High School, Downage, Hendon. NW4 lAB By Don Cooper

Grid reference: 23260, 89609 Site code MSDO7 Introduction

Following an approach by St Mary’s (C of E) High School in Hendon to University College London’s (UCL) widening participation officer, Sarah Dhangal, it was agreed that students from UCL’s Institute of Archaeology (IoA) supported by members of the Hendon and District Archaeological Society (HADAS) would carry-out an archaeological intervention in the school grounds. The main objectives, as set out by Gabe Moshenska in the project design were, as follows: • to provide an experience of practical archaeology for year eight and nine pupils at St Mary’s. • to investigate the possibility of archaeological remains on the school grounds. Choosing an area to investigate proved difficult as much of the schools grounds are either concreted or used as car parks etc. An area in front of the secondary school, on the corner of Parson Street and Downage by the side of Church Walk was chosen. Although a long way from the presumed Saxon centre of Hendon around St Mary’s church, it was hoped that its proximity to Church Walk would yield some archaeology for the pupils. A resistivity survey was carried out and produced an interesting, but difficult to interpret, grid. The risk assessment report was prepared by Sarah Dhangal. The excavation took place in the week commencing 16th June 2007.

The excavation

The UCL/HADAS team opened a 4m x 2m trench on the north-eastern edge of the large black area on the resistivity grid. It was hoped to investigate what the black area consisted of before perhaps excavating it. After de-turfing and initial trowelling back, a section of what seemed like the concrete edging of a path was revealed in the north-western end of the trench (see photo –Editor note: Image not yet available!!). The trench was extended to the west to examine this feature. It revealed a cinder base. The concrete edge was then traced using spikes and a small test pit was dug at the western extreme, which showed the opposite side of the concrete edging. A large”structure” was revealed. With a long-forgotten memory of a long serving member of staff and the technical knowledge of one the HADAS diggers a former athlete, it was finally established that the area was the site of a high jump area. This was fantailed shaped and had a cinder base. It had been provided when the Secondary school buildings were constructed in the 1950s.This accounted for the resistivity “large black area”. With that issue solved the original trench was mattocked (by the excavators) and trowelled (by the pupils) in successive spits to a depth of about 56cm. By the time this depth was reached, time was running out. Two sonciages were sunk in the trench (see photo) a further 30cm. At this point London Clay was reached, which is the geological “natural” in the area.

What we found

The contents of the trench consisted of much disturbed and re-deposited soil with a lot of building debris (brick & tile fragments), domestic rubbish (electrical fittings, etc.), window and bottle glass & pottery sherds. Whilst it gave the pupils “things” to “find”, from an archaeological point of view there was little of interest. Almost all the finds were disposed of with only a small sample being kept to record the excavation.

What does it mean?

It is likely that the ground to the east of the high jump fantail was made up to make it level as there was a pronounced slope towards the road. Building and domestic debris was used and this is what we found. There is unlikely to be any archaeology in that corner of the school grounds.

Result

The main objective of the project was to provide training and practical experience of archaeology for the students of St Mary’s School. The interest and enthusiasm shown by the pupils that took part in the excavation, the number of pupils and teachers who came to view it during their leisure time as well as the many well-formed questions, made this made this excavation a considerable success. From the point of view of the archaeology, all that can be said is that the artefacts found were typical of the debris that results from buildings being constructed. Whether from nearby sites or brought in from elsewhere we will never know. The physical archive will be housed at St Mary’s School. There is also a photo library of the excavation, largely compiled by Sarah Dhangal. The SMR will updated under the site code MSD07. Copies of this report will be sent Jon Finney at the London Borough of Barnet and to Kim Stabler of English Heritage.

Recommendations

To maintain the enthusiasm of the school and pupils, another season of excavations should be planned. Where the excavation should take place needs more thought. Offsite on Church Farm Museum ground or in Sunning Hill Park is a possibility; however, being on the school grounds enables the teaching staff and pupils not directly involved to see what is going on.

Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to a whole range of people from staff at the school especially Michele Hussain and Paul Denchem (a school governor) , to UCL students Hannah Davis, Alex Mulhall, Andy May and James Lee, to HADAS members Andrew Coulson, Angela Holmes, Vicki Baldwin, Steve Brunning, not forgetting the students who took part. Sarah Dhangal, UCL’s widening participation officer and Gabe Moshenska UCL made it all possible.

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Lecture at Kingsbury Old Church Report by Don Cooper

I’m sure that many members will remember the excellent talk that Andy Agate of UCL gave to HADAS at Avenue House in May 2006. It was subsequently written up in the July 2006 newsletter (no 424). At that time he was hoping to carry out a limited archaeological intervention on the site. In the event a team from HADAS and UCL got permission to record the site in detail and also to dig a small number of trenches on the site in the summer of 2006. On last Friday, 14th September 2007, Andy returned to the St Andrew’s Old Church to give a talk to the Wembley History Society and HADAS to update us all on his work on the site. (Andy is now living in Newcastle from where he is studying for his PhD in archaeology). He started his well-attended lecture by updating us on the outcome of his research on the old church, its long history, its prominent position in the landscape, how it fitted in with the highways and settlements around it. He then went on to describe the excavation carried out last summer. St Andrew’s Old Church is a difficult place to excavate — the church is surrounded by a tightly packed cemetery with much disturbed ground. Six small trenches were dug and yielded little additional evidence of the churches history. However, one trench dug to reveal the foundations of the church provided interesting dating evidence. Up to now it has generally been held that the church was of Saxon origins. The six un-abraded sherds of Early Medieval London Flinty ware found stratified in the foundations of the church can be securely dated to soon after the conquest of 1066AD. It suggests therefore that the flint/stone church dates to about 1100 which would fit in with the entry in the Domesday book. The Roman bricks and tile including the five hypocaust tiles, that are in the fabric of the church, are still a mystery. Where did they come from? Had they just been lying around for 500 years? We will probably never know! It is quite possible that the flint/stone church replaced an earlier wooden structure as may well be the case with other alleged Saxon churches in our area. What happens next? Andy has now finished his researches on the church. Father John, the priest-in-charge of the New St. Andrews Church, is hoping that a use can be found for the old now deconsecrated church and that the graveyard “inhabitants” can be properly recorded and published and the cemetery kept in good condition so that the site can become an attraction both for genealogists and local people. Our thanks are due to Andy for a fascinating lecture especially as he had come from such a long way.

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Other Societies’ Events Compiled by Eric Morgan

Thursday 4th October, 8pm: Pinner Local History Society, Village Hall, Chapel Lane. Oliver Cromwell by Dr David Smith. Visitors £2.

Monday 8th October, 3pm: Barnet & District Local History Society Church House, Wood Street (opposite Museum). Next stop London, the Holyhead and Great North Road. Talk by Dennis Bird.

Wednesday 10th October, 8pm: Mill Hill Historical Society Harwood Hall, Union Church, The Broadway NW7. A History of the Welsh Harp. Talk by Yasmine Webb — Barnet Archivist

Wednesday 10th October, Spm HOnsey Historical Society Union Church, corner of Ferme Park Road and Weston Park, The Men who made millions — The story of the North London Pot Makers. Talk by Ken Barker. Refreshments 7:45. £1.

Thursday llth October, 6:30pm: LAMAS Terrace Room, Museum of London. Gardens and Archaeology at Hampton Court. By Todd Lanstaffe-Gowan

Saturday 13th October, 11 am to lpm: King Harold Day Waltham Abbey Gardens. The History of Waltham Abbey, King Harold, Arts and Crafts, Lots of Stalls.

Saturday 13th October, 2pm: Guided Walk by Paul Baker, Meet outside East Barnet Library, Broolchill Road. Historical walk through Ancient and Modern East Barnet. £6.

Saturday 13th October, and Sunday 14th October at St Paul’s Church, The Ridgeway,Mill Hill, NW7

BLACK HISTORY MONTH CELEBRATIONS
Saturday – 10:30 — 4:30 >> Exhibition to include Slavery from the 18th Century to the present day Wilberforce and his local connections St Paul’s Church Restoration

4:30: Talk by Kevin Belmonte— Wilberforce: Friend of Humanity and his Enduring Influence Concert by St Ignateous Caribbean Choir

Sunday — 10:30 — 4:30>> Exhibitions as Saturday plus Local Village and Graveyard Historic Trails

Monday 15th October, 8:15pm; Ruislip, Northwood and Eastcote History Society St Martin’s Church Hall, Eastcote Road, Ruislip. History of Building and Restoration of Westminster Abbey. Talk by Geoff Roberts. Visitors £2.

Wednesday 17th October, 7:30pm: Willesden Local History Society Scout House, High Road, NW10 — corner of Strode Road. The Genealogists Picture Book — Heraldic Clues to Family History. Talk by Dr Andre Gray, Middlesex Heraldry Society. (Will include references to local Willesden families – e.g Nicols)

Wednesday 17th October, 8:00pm: Islington Archaeology and History Society Islington Town Hall, Upper Street, Ni. Farthing a Bundle Lady of Bar — extraordinary story of Clara Grant, Headmistress and Founder in 1907 of Fern Street Settlement. Talk by Rev. Michael Peet.

Thursday 18th October, 7:30pm: Camden History Society Crowndale Centre, Eversholt Street, NWI. The Greville Estate: The History of a Kilburn Neighbourhood. Talk by Dick Weindling & Marianne Collens.

Friday 19th October, 7pm: COLAS St Olave’s Parish Hall, Mark Lane, EC3. Recent Excavations at Bermondsey Square. Talk by Alastair Douglas (Preconstruct Archaeology). Visitors £2. Refreshments afterwards.

Friday 19th October, 8pm: Enfield Archaeology Society Jubilee Hall, Parsonage Lane, Enfield. The Vickers Ship Model Experimentation Tank. Talk by Tim Crichton

Friday 19th October, 7:30pm: Wembley History Society St Andrew’s Church Hall, Church Lane, Kingsbury, NW9. Metropolitan Electric Locomotives and the people associated with them. Talk by Terry Lomas — with musical additions. Visitors 1. Refreshments.

Saturday 20th October, 10:30 — 3:30pm: LAARC Mortimer Wheeler House, Eagle Wharf Road, Ni. Murders at the Archive. Victims, Weapons and Murder Scenes- discover all of the murderous objects stored at the LAARC.

Saturday 20th October, 2:00 — 3:30pm: Meet at Thornhill Bridge Community Gardens, Caledonian Road (Nr Carnegie Street), Ni. Leisurely stroll led by Jan Brott, Waterways Heritage Adviser. Find out more about the history of the canal. Finishes in Camden. Booking essential — 020 7527 1835 or email to Dominique.allenAislington.gov.uk – website www.islington.gov.uk

Wednesday 24″ October, 8pm: Friern Barnet and District Local History Society St John’s Church Hall, Friern Barnet Lane, N20. Almshouses Talk by Peter Willcocks (Barnet & District LHS) Refreshments 7:45. £2.

Thursday 25th October, 8pm: Finchley Society Drawing Room, Avenue House. Turn again, Whittington. Talk by Brenda Cole. £2

Saturday 27th October, 10:00am — 4:00pm: Edmonton Hundred Historical Society Jubilee Hall, Parsonage Lane, Enfield Day conference — Local Industries, Firms, and their Processes. Contact Pat Keeble, 15 Onslow Gardens, N21 I DY (020 8360 3873)

Tuesday 30th October, 10:30 am: The Enfield Society Jubilee Hall, Parsonage Lane, Enfield. Octavio Hill, Founder of the National Trust. Talk by Pam Wright

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HADAS DIARY

Sunday 30th September 2007, 12.30 to 3pm

Special Event to mark Dorothy Newbury’s retirement from the HADAS Committee. A booking form was enclosed with the last Newsletter, but it is not too late. You can still book by contacting Jim Nelhams, HADAS Hon.Treasurer (details on the back page). We hope many longstanding HADAS members will be able to make this lunch-time event. If help is needed with transport, let us know.

Tuesday 9 October 2007, 8pm: Denis Smith (Lecturer & industrial archaeologist)

Thomas Telford (1757-1834): 250th Anniversary lecture

Tuesday 13 November 2007, 8pm: Martyn Barber (English Heritage Aerial Survey)

Mata Hari’s Glass Eye and other tales: A history of archaeologyand aerial photography

Tuesday 18 December:HADAS Christmas Do: See further details below and Application Form

Tuesday 8 January 2008, 8pm: Kate Sutton (Museum of London)

The Work of a Finds Liaison Officer

Tuesday 12 February 2008, 8pm: Christopher Sparey-Green MIFA

The Archaeology of Dorset: A time-torn landscape Tuesday 11 March 2008, 8pm: Chloe Cockerill (Regional Development Manager)

The Work of the Churches Conservation Trust

Tuesday 8 April, 8pm: Peter Davey (Bristol Tram Photograph Collection)

The Clifton Rocks Railway

Tuesday 13 May 2008: Still being finalised

Lectures start at 8pm in the Drawing Room, Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley N3 3QE, Free to members visitors £1. Buses 82, 143, 326 &460 pass close by. Finchley Central Station (Northern Line) is 5-10 minutes walk Coffee & biscuits (80p)are served after the lectures

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HADAS CHRISTMAS EVENT

It may seem a little early to start thinking about Christmas, but places get booked up if we don’t begin now. This year we are trying something different for the HADAS Christmas party – with a little local interest. The event will begin at St Lawrence Whitchurch, Stanmore, with members of Finchley Chamber Choir giving a short performance of choral music by Handel. Then, after a tour of the church, we will adjourn to the Apollonia restaurant in Stanmore. The enclosed application form gives further details. Final transport arrangements will depend on the wishes and needs of those coming, so please fill in the form now and let us know.

The Society of Antiquaries Tercentenary Lectures

The Society of Antiquaries is celebrating its 300th year by holding a series of seven public lectures at different UK locations. Two will be held in London: on September 26th Dr David Starkey, described as one of the country’s most pre-eminent historians, will talk on “The Antiquarian Endeavour” at St James’s Church Piccadilly at 6.30pm and on June 26th next year, at the British Museum, Prof Richard Bradley, Prof David Cannadine and Carenza Lewis will consider “The Future of the Past” . Tickets (£5 & £10, respectively) can be had by phone (020 7479 7080) or via their website (www.sal.org.uk).

Metal Detector Find: An important Viking hoard in Yorkshire

A metal detectorist father and son pair has brought to light a magnificent Viking hoard that had been buried in a Yorkshire field probably in the year 927. As reported in the Daily Telegraph (20th July) experts at the British Museum found 617 coins, jewels and ingots packed inside an 8th C silver-gilt pot, itself a 200-year old heirloom at the time of the burial and thought to be an ecclesiastical vessel plundered from northern France. It is ornately carved with vines, leaves and hunting scenes showing lions, stags and a horse. Described as the most important Viking silver and gold hoard found in this country for 150 years, the finds was put on show at the Museum in mid-July. The origins of individual items could be traced as far afield as Samarkand, Afghanistan, Russia, France and Ireland. They have been declared treasure trove and a valuation is underway. The “treasure hunters” maintain that the value matters little, their reward was simply to have found something exciting after spending hundreds of hours over the last three years without locating anything of value.

If you feel the same, HADAS has some metal detectors and has been training members in their use (strictly for proper archaeological work, of course).

The story continues…. by Don Cooper

Many of you will remember the excellent lecture that Andy Agate from UCL gave on his researches at Kingsbury Old Church (St. Andrews) before his recent excavation there in which HADAS members were involved. Andy has now collated all the information discovered and updated his thinking on the history and archaeology of the church. He is coming to Kingsbury Old Church to give a lecture on the subject on 14th September 2007 at 8pm in the Old Church itself. The address is St Andrews, Old Church Lane, Kingsbury (the old church is set back to the right from the modern St Andrews in the old churchyard). There is free parking in from of the modern church. This will be an opportunity for HADAS members to see the inside of this interesting old building as well as listen to Andy’s latest report.

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HADAS AUGUST OUTING TO SUSSEX:

PART 1: ON THE WAY by Sheila Woodward

How did they do it? In this rain-drenched summer June Porges and Stuart Wild organised the only HADAS outing of this year on a perfect day of blue skies and continuous sunshine. Miraculous!

An early start and trouble-free roads brought us to our mid-morning coffee stop at the Copthorne Hotel Gatwick slightly ahead of schedule so we had ample time to enjoy our refreshments and admire the hotel’s gardens before resuming our journey to Worth and its extraordinary church.

Worth means “a place in a clearing” and when the church was built (possibly in the early 11th century) the whole region would have been heavily forested. The site would have been remote and it has been suggested that the church was an outpost of Chertsey Abbey, an Edward the Confessor foundation. Today it serves a parish with a population of 30,000, yet it still feels peacefully rural as one approaches it along an avenue of lime trees.

“Worth the name and worth the detour” quips Simon Jenkins in his Best Churches guide, and entering the church by the west door to gaze at its 3 massive Saxon arches one can only agree. The chancel arch is colossal in both height and width and the solidity of its stonework is awe-inspiring. The building conforms to the basic Saxon two-cell plan (rectangular nave and apsidal chancel), but the chancel is unusually spacious and the east end of the nave sprouts two wings (alae, or porticus) north and south which are really mini-transepts. Their entrance arches are narrower than the chancel arch, but no less majestic. High in the walls of the nave are three Saxon windows, unglazed and double with a mid-wall shaft. In troubled times churches were places of safety and high windows would deter marauders. Two further archways near the west end of the nave framed the north and south doors; the former has now been filled in. Legend has it that the tall arches allowed a horseman to ride into the building, bow to the altar, pray without dismounting and ride out through the opposite door without turning his mount.

Later ages have altered and added to the Saxon church. There is a lovely little 12th century stained glass window in the north transept, an unusual rectangular 13th century font, more stained glass from the 14th century to modern times, a 15th century piscina, a 16th century elaborately carved pulpit, a 17th century west gallery and chandeliers, an 18th century Spanish crucifix, a 19th century carved oak lectern and Victorian bell tower, and a 20th century organ. And the 20th century almost saw the end of it all. In 1986, while workmen were “treating” the roof timbers, fire broke out and damaged the nave roof so severely that it had to be removed and replaced. The account of the work which this entailed to protect the rest of the fabric and the church contents makes harrowing reading. But by 1988 all was restored. The new roof is less ornate and less heavy than its Victorian predecessor and may more clearly resemble earlier roof structures. The total cost of the work was about £500,000. I’m quite sure that it was worth it!

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Part 2: PEVENSEY: A HIDDEN JEWEL By Jean Bayne

A small community with a long history and a large walled castle, Pevensey now stands over a mile from the sea it once overlooked. From Roman times till the second world war the castle was variously used as a defensive structure, a domestic establishment and a prison, though not continuously.

Built as a fort by the Romans around 290AD and named Anderida, the impressive fort wall of stone with brick courses still stands to nearly its full height of 30 feet. It covers two-thirds of the original circuit. One of the biggest roman forts, with two main entrances, it is unique in that it eschews the usual rectangular or square plan for an irregular oval following the contours of the high ground on which it stands. Marshland and sea lay to the north and south and the east and west extremes were protected by D-shaped, state of the art, towers. Excavations have revealed little in the way of significant Roman building, though a series of hearths suggest barrack blocks and the site could be dated by oak beams found in the timber and rubble of the 15 ft ditch used as foundation for the walls.

Anderida, mentioned in the 4th century document Notitia Dignitatum, was one of the 9 forts which defended the Saxon shore against pirates. It is likely that a British community lived there after the Roman withdrawal: the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records a siege in 491AD in which all the inhabitants were massacred. Possibly it then fell into ruins until William the Conqueror landed there in 1066.

Initially William renovated the fort as a campaign castle for his forthcoming battle with King Harold, but later developed it into a strategic defensive post with communication links to the continent. The walls were re-fortified and two enclosures created. A chapel was added later. Changing hands over the next 200 years, the castle experienced sieges in which the inhabitants were starved into submission rather than successfully assailed and eventually it was repossessed by the Crown in the late 12th century. Exchequer accounts show that Pevensey’s structures, apart from the walls, were still largely of earth and timber and that the first stone buildings – perhaps the keep and the gatehouse – were probably erected in the 1190s. However, it seems that by 1216 it was partially destroyed and indefensible.

The 13th century witnesses building repair and maintenance and a further siege in 1265 which led to considerable damage. A pattern, of expensive reconstruction quickly followed by ruination, was established – the result of both limited use and neglect and unscrupulous behaviour by officials. One was accused of pulling down the bridge to the castle and selling the wood! During the 14th century the South of England was threatened by the French and an active garrison was in evidence until at least 1372, but John of Gaunt, who then owned it, refused to garrison Pevensey against the French attacks of 1377. The last siege of Pevensey took place in 1399 and it was successfully held by the Pelhams for Bolingbroke, later Henry IV.

During the 15th century the castle was used as a state prison, imprisoning James I of Scotland and Henry IV’s second wife, Joan of Navarre. But by 1573 records show that the buildings were again in ruins and remained so until the Armada, when a gun emplacement with two cannons was constructed.

After that a slow decline set in until right up to the second world war. Following the fall of France in 1940, Pevensey was once again seen as a potential invasion point and a command and observation post was set up in the castle while the perimeter defences were re-fortified. Pill boxes and an anti-tank weapon blockhouse were added and the towers of the inner bailey were prepared as garrisons for troops. The alterations were blended in, to camouflage their positions.

I have described Pevensey as a “hidden jewel”, because I felt that few people on the HADAS trip were familiar with it. Or it may just be that I don’t get out much. However, I was greatly impressed by its state of preservation and its long, eventful history. Seen against the backdrop of a brilliant blue sky it towered above us and dominated the local area. You could almost hear the sound of hooves and the cries of battle and imagine the daily life of its inhabitants. Unfortunately, I did not manage a visit to the local museum, which is run by local volunteers, but hope to explore further.

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BATTLE ABBEY by Tessa Smith

On leaving Pevensey Castle we headed north, as William would have done, he with archers, footmen and cavalry, we arriving at Battle by high horse-powered coach. Next, we walked to the ridgeway overlooking the valley and battle area. The valley below looked remarkably intact and peaceful, just a handful of mediaeval tents accommodating a children’s fun day camp, with a few children learning archery skills, trying on armour and experiencing mediaeval music and dance.

Now we could only imagine the ghosts of Norman and Saxon warriors. The reality on 14th October 1066 would have been of wounded, dead and dying men, the hillside slippery with blood and littered with bodies, horses and broken weapons, the results of a nine hour vicious battle of assault, skirmish and counter-charge. In the morning of that day King Harold’s men had formed a Saxon shield, a wall of men along the edge of the ridgeway where we now stood, a marvellous commanding position. William’s Norman troops took the southern hillside, foot soldiers equipped with crossbows and heavy cavalry mounted for battle, never before seen in Britain. They had to negotiate the somewhat marshy valley floor and climb the slope to attack.

A sandstone plaque on the ridgeway marks the spot where Harold was killed. The Abbey Church was later built here on the command of William the Conqueror himself, the high altar overlying the scene of the fiercest fighting of the battle of Hastings, but all that remains to be seen now of that church is a stone outline.

Although little of the original church remains, the imposing Gateway to the Abbey, rebuilt in 1338, remains a symbol of Norman wealth and power. On the day we were there glorious sunshine lit up the great battlements, the arrowslits and decorative stonework of this Gateway, one of the finest in England. All traffic to the Abbey had to pass through the central arched passageway, at each side of which rise two corner turrets containing stairs to the upper two floors, which form substantial private apartments. A portcullis and murder holes provide a defence system for an upper chamber which may have housed important officials concerned with the collection of money. Flanking the Gatehouse stands the Courthouse, built in 1592 and restored in the 1990s. These buildings and the surrounding walls dominate the town of Battle.

The East Range of buildings housed the vast monastic dormitory on the first floor, now only a roofless shell, but the surviving undercroft chambers give an indication of the original size and importance of the Abbey. The novices’ chamber, the common room and the inner parlour have magnificent vaults supported by columns of Sussex marble, the rooms face south and certainly when we were there they were gloriously lit up through open lancet windows.

The West Range and Abbot’s Lodgings survived as a grand house with 13th century undercroft, the building being substantially intact until 1931 when a severe fire caused great damage and much of the West Range was rebuilt internally. It is now occupied by Battle Abbey School.

During the war Battle Abbey was commandeered by the War Office and on D Day, 6th June 1944 troops from Battle took part in the invasion of Normandy, almost 900 years after William had sailed from Normandy to the Battle of Hastings.

Last year, 2006, to mark an anniversary of the battle, a new visitor’s centre was opened. Modern in design and using today’s materials of glass and steel it is built on the side of the slope and houses a light and airy restaurant at ground level and an excellent “hands on” exhibition area below. First stop for us was the film show which re-created and explained the Battle of Hastings, told from both Saxon and Norman points of view, and using in part the Bayeux Tapestry, amusingly manipulating the soldiers’ limbs, the weapons and the horses’ legs to animate the embroidery. The commentary by David Starkey was clear, the seating comfortable and the music good.

Interactive screens enabled us to find out more detailed information, armour and weapons were there to touch and try on, the sword was really very heavy to lift. More information was displayed on the walls and an extract from Beowulf provided something for everyone, making this a very enjoyable exhibition and part of an altogether splendid HADAS day out.

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Limericks: AGAIN!

The now standard HADAS on-the-coach spontaneous limerick competition was won by some very good entries, but many were once more slightly unprintable. The following are printable, thanks to Robert Michel and “Anon”‘s post-modern take on the limerick scheme:

Harold thought the battle he’d mastered

He knew that the Normans were plastered

But when push came to shove,

Good Heavens above,

Duke William was really a bastard

We’ve been to the Castle at Pevensey

The Romans constructed it cleverly

It was at the coast

now the sea is a ghost

The battles are only a memory

OTHER EVENTS ELSEWHERE Eric Morgan

Sunday 2nd Sept, 10.30-4.30: The Jewish Museum, Finchley Sternberg Centre, East End Rd, N3 Free opening, European Day of Jewish Culture: Last chance to see before closure for redevelopment. Various exhibitions & meet & hear Leon Greenman OBE, 96, British born Auschwitz survivor.

Sunday 9th Sept, 3pm: Finchley Soc. at Statue of La Delivrance (aka “The Naked Lady”), nr junction Regents Park Rd/North Circular Barnet Mayor & Deputy Lieutenant unveil new Information Board

Monday 10th Sept, 3pm: Barnet & District Local History Soc Milestones Along the Great North Rd Talk by John Donovan (Member of HADAS) Church House, Wood St (opposite Museum)

Tuesday 11th Sept, 8pm: Amateur Geological Soc. Catching & Analysing Micrometeoroids Prof Anton Kearsley (Natural History Museum) The Parlour, St Margaret’s Church, Victoria Ave N3

Wednesday 12th Sept, 7.45pm: Hornsey Historical Soc History & Restoration of North Bank, Pages Lane, Muswell Hill Talk, Gill Simpson Union Church Hall, corner Ferme Park Rd/Weston Park N8

Saturday 15th, Sunday 16th Sept: London Open House Weeekend Free access to 600 buildings Details at www.openhouse.org.uk Booklets cost £3, but are usually freely available in local libraries

Monday 17th-Sunday 23rd September: Barnet Borough Arts Council The Spires, High St, Barnet

Wednesday 19th September, 8pm: Willesden Local History Society Talk by Dr Jim Moher London Millwrights in the 18th & 19th centuries Scott House, High Rd (corner Strode Rd) NW10

Thursday 20th September, 8pm: Enfield Soc A Tangled Web: London’s Overground Railways Talk by Peter Hodge, Jubilee Hall , Parsonage Lane, Enfield

Friday 21st September, 7.30pm: Enfield Archaeological Soc The Portable Antiquities Scheme: New rules for metal detectors Talk by Kate Sutton (MoL) Jubilee Hall, Parsonage Lane, Enfield

Sat. 22nd Sept 7.30pm: William Wilberforce: His retirement to Mill Hill & the building of his church Talk by Dr Michael Worms (archivist of the church) St Paul’s Church, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, NW7

Wed. 26th Sept, 8pm: Friern Barnet etc Local History Soc. Friern Barnet & The Times Online Hugh Petrie, Barnet Archivist (& HADAS member) St John’s Church Hall, Friern Barnet Lane N20

Thursday 27th September, 8pm: Finchley Society How to Research Family History Talk by Ian Waller (Non-members £2) Drawing Room, Avenue House, East End Rd, N3

Newsletter

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SPECIAL EVENT

To mark the retirement of Dorothy Newbury from the HADAS committee, HADAS are holding a lunch in her honour. The event will take place at Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley N3 3QE, Tel: 020 8346 7812 on Sunday, 30th September 1007 from 12.30 to 15.00. Price to members will be £5.00 and a booking form is enclosed. Dorothy has been a member of HADAS for nearly 30 years and during that time has done sterling work for the society. Her contribution to the society is inestimable and the lunch is a small token of appreciation for all her hard work over the years, so do come along and participate in this tribute to Dorothy.

HADAS Diary

Saturday 4th August, 2007: HADAS outing to Sussex with June Porges & Stewart Wild.

Tuesday 9th October, 2007: Denis Smith (lecturer, industrial archaeologist) Thomas Telford (1757-1834) 250th anniversary lecture.

Tuesday 13th November, 2007: Martyn Barber (English Heritage Aerial Survey) Mata Hari ‘s glass eye and other tales: a history of archaeology and aerial photography.

Tuesday 8th January, 2008: Kate Sutton (Museum of London) The Work of a Finds Liaison Officer.

Tuesday 12th February, 2008: Christopher Sparey-Green BA, MIFA The Archaeology of Dorset: a time-torn landscape.

Tuesday 11th March, 2008: Chloe Cockerill (Regional Development Manager) The Work of the Churches Conservation Trust.

Tuesday 8th April, 2008: Peter Davey (Bristol Tram Photograph Collection) Clifton Rocks Railway.

Tuesday 13th May, 2008: tba

Lectures start at 8.00 pm in the Drawing Room, Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley N3 30E. Buses 82, 143, 326 & 460 pass close by, whilst Finchley Central station (Northern Line) is five to ten minutes walk

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The Birkbeck/HADAS Course by Don Cooper

Do come and join us!! It’s that time again! The task of processing the Ted Sammes archives of the HADAS excavations from the 70s continues anew this autumn. As usual the course is being run at Avenue House by Jacqui Pearce of MoLSS (the Museum of London’s Specialist Services). Jacqui is one of the country’s experts in post-medieval pottery and clay pipes. This is your chance to learn how to identify artefacts found in excavations, research the sites, write up the results, and publish them, at a local venue and in a very friendly environment. So do come and join us!! (See details below from the Birkbeck internet site). To apply write, phone or e-mail for an application form quoting the course code below to: Archaeology FCE Birkbeck 26 Russell Square London WC1B 5DQ Tel: 020 7631 6651 E-mail archaeology@fce.bbk.ac.uk Course title and description Course code is FFAR015UACP After the Excavation: Archaeology from Processing to Publication The module will run as a workshop, providing a model for post-excavation procedures based on current practice; covering finds processing, identification, recording and analysis leading to publication and archive deposition. Amateur groups and local societies are encouraged to bring along material from excavations to be used in practical sessions, with teaching and supervision by specialists. Wednesday, 26th September 2007, 6.30pm-8.30pm 24 meetings including visits £240 (£120 for concessions) Jacqui Pearce, BA, FSA Avenue House, 15-17 East End Road, Finchley N3 30 CATS points at Level 2

Building demolitions at Colindale by Andy Simpson

Demolitions in June 2007 included some landmark buildings in Colindale Avenue at the junction with Edgware Road. The former bank building at the corner has now gone, along with the adjacent boundary wall with the well-preserved circa 1930s ‘Studebaker Depot’ wall painted advert. Also now gone is the large building behind, upon the southern wall of which was still visible ‘Integral Propeller Co.’, dating back to the First World War when much of the Edgware Road was lined with aircraft and component manufacturing companies serving/associated with the adjacent Hendon Aerodrome of Claude Grahame-White fame.

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Research on the Hendon House History by Don Cooper

As part of further research for this year’s excavation at Hendon School (address: Golders Rise, Hendon, London NW4 2HP), which I will publish in a future newsletter, I have been trying to get more information on the history of Hendon House on which the school is supposed to stand!! Here is the story so far. (if anybody can add/correct any of the information please contact me) The blue plaque on the main Hendon School building proclaims that this is the site of the residence of John Morden (sic) (1548 — 1625) antiquary and topographer. It is wrong in a couple of aspects.The blue plaque should say John Norden (not Morden) a strange and inexplicable typographical error. Even though the Barnet Borough’s web site http://www.bamet.gov.uldindex/leisure- culture/local-history-heritage.htm accessed on 25th June 2007 at 21.15 states “Hendon School now occupies the site where the famous 16th- century mapmaker John Norden lived” the plaque is in the wrong place. As can be seen from old map of Hendon, his house was between Golders Rise and Brent Street rather than on the other side of Golders Rise!! However, the school is in the grounds of the famous old house and, therefore, represents an opportunity to investigate if there are any remnants left of its former glory. According to Kitchen (1997) there is a local tradition that John Norden built Hendon House. He certainly lived at Hendon in 1607, as by then he was signing his works as “from Hendon”. He lived there until 1619 when he moved to St Giles-in-the-field (Kitchen, 1997). Norden prefaced, at least, two of his works, “Speculum Britanniae” and “Surveyor’s Dialogue” as being written from “his poore house in Hendone”. On Speeds map of Middlesex dated 1611 (http://faculty.oxy.edu/horowitz/home/johnspeed/Maps3-4.htm, accessed on 26th June 2007 at 0900), which he says was described by Norden, shows a “Hendon house” in approximately the right position. I believe it is one of few houses recorded on that map. Kitchen (1997) disagrees and suggests that it refers to Hendon Manor and not Hendon House. According to Baker( 1976): “John Norden (1548 — 1625), the topographer, who is believed to have lived at Hendon House, Brent Street”. The issue as to whether Hendon House was actually where he lived is not resolved.

Kitchen (1997) constantly refers to Norden’s poverty pleas, which is not in keeping with buying or building a mansion with 16 hearths!!! However, by about 1607, his popularity was such that perhaps he could have afforded to have the house built. Until more evidence comes to light it should be treated as a strong probability rather than a certainty that lived in Hendon House or that he built it. In the Middlesex Session Records for 1614 Volume 2 there is a record of convictions for “assaulting and robbing John Norden and Josias Norden of Hendon on the highway, both gentlemen”. What we know with some certainty is that the house was a gabled building probably of the 16th century and had 16 hearths in 1664 according to Middlesex Record Office (now called The Greater London Record Office (Middlesex Records) reference Mit/TH/5 (Hearth tax assessments). We don’t yet know who lived there between 1619 and 1660, but the next residents we know of are the Whichcotes. The Whichcotes family were a well-known family of 17th c in Hendon (Brett-James, undated, p76). Jeremy Whichcote, who lived at Hendon House from 1660 to 1677, was Solicitor General to the Elector Palatine, presumably after he had lost his Palatinate and his Kingdom of Bohemia. During the Commonwealth, Whichcote bought the post of Warden of Fleet Prison and was able to help shelter many of the exiled king’s friends and agents in this way. He was made a baronet after the Restoration as a reward for his devotion to the king. His heir and eldest son Sir Paul Whichcote also lived at Hendon House until 1691. It then became the residence of Sir William Rawlinson (1640-1703), a Commissioner of the Great Seal, appointed on the 14th May 1690. There are also references to him in the House of Lords Journal; Volume 15 dated 19 November 1692. He is recorded as having purchased the house from the Whichcotes in 1691. He died of apoplexy in Hendon in 1703 and is buried in Hendon Church. He had two daughters, one of whom Elizabeth married, for the second time, Giles Earle (1678 — 1758), a politician and wit. They lived at Hendon House. They had two children, one of whom his son William Rawlinson Earle died in 1774 aged 72 and is buried with his sister in the vault of his grandfather at Hendon Church. It is unclear how long the house stayed in the possession of the Rawlinson/Earles, however, in the 1790s it came into the ownership of John Cornwall, said to have been a Director of the Bank of England. Lysons (1795) says: “At Brent Street, about quarter of a mile from the church, stands an old mansion, now the property and residence of John Cornwall, Esq. which was formally a seat of the Whichcotes, whose arms are in the windows of the drawing room and afterwards of Sir William Rawlinson, one of the Keepers of the Great Seal.” There are a number of references to the house being rebuilt in the 19th century (Baker,1976), (Petrie, 2005), however, a recent publication (Dean, 2006) refers to work Sir John Sloane did in 1791 and 1798 for John Cornwall. From Dean (2006, p149)) “1791 21st December ‘went to Hendon with own horse, survey’d house…” and again in 1792 23rd November ‘delivered his bills at Mr Thorntons Kings Arms Yard…”. The bills, which are in the Soane’s archives (Dean, 2006), show that the work was additions to stables and coach house, greenhouse and fruit room at a cost of £1323.0.53/4. Later in 1798 another bill is for a new chimneypiece in the drawing room. Perhaps the house had a make-over rather than a rebuild. There is a painting of the house in Petrie (2005) before John Cornwall’s additions.By 1841, according to British Census, the house, with the address shown as BRAINT Street, as being occupied bif Major General Christopher Fagan, a 55 year old retired soldier who had served in Bengal. Also in the household is his 30 year old wife, 5 children and 8 servants. The Major General left in 1843. I still have to discover who was living in Hendon House between 1843 and 1860! The 1861 census tells a different story, the house has become a private mental institution run by Charlotte Dence for ladies described as “lunatics”. It is still recorded on the 1871 census after which it disappears!! There is a painting of the house when it was a mental institute in 1860 in Petrie (2005, p21). By 1871, the new owner was Mr Ardwick Burgess, eldest son of Henry Weech Burgess of the Temples. Ardwick Burgess had married in 1871, and it seems that he purchased Hendon House at this time. His first wife died, and he remarried in 1881. The Times of April 6th 1886 reports the birth of a daughter at Hendon House. In 1909 Burgess sold the house and 23 acres for £15,350 according to The Times dated 20th May 1909. In 1909 Hendon School is built. I have not so far researched the history of the school.

Bibliography

Baker, T F. T. (Ed.) 1976. A History of Middlesex. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Dean, Ptolemy, 2006. Sir John Sloane and London. Aldershot, Hampshire, UK: Lund Humphries. Kitchen, Frank. 1997. John Norden (1547-1625): Estate surveyor, Topographer, County mapmaker and devotional writer. Imago Mundi, Vol. 49: P43-61.

Lysons, Daniel. 1795. The environs of London, Volume 3: The County of Middlesex. London: T. Cadell, Jun., and W. Davies.

Petrie, Hugh. 2005, Hendon and Golders Green Past. London: Historical Publications

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Digging at Vindolanda by Vicki Baldwin

For the third year running, Lydia Demitris and I spent 13th-17th May in Northumberland as volunteer excavators at Vindolanda. In previous years we had been working in the South West corner of the later stone fort; this year we were opening a new area outside the fort walls on the North West corner. The intention was to locate the North West corner of Stone Fort I c. 160-190 AD. Sunday morning we began by de-turfing the area we were to excavate. Our supervisor was Matt, an American PhD. student, and the fourth member of our team was Richard, a surveyor whose family had paid for his trip to Vindolanda as a Father’s Day present. These two were very keen and moved prodigious quantities of earth over the next few days. Lydia and I were working in the part of the trench nearest to the wall and uncovered an area of large flat stones. Although at first they looked promising, it decided to remove them. Matt and Richard had located a turf rampart which showed up as very dark, almost black, lines in the side of the trench. Two days of digging produced very little in the way of finds — a few pieces of pot and some animal bone. We dug further down and found another area of stones similar to the first. Again they were removed. The picture(unfortunately the pictures are not yet accessable – ed.) shows the trench we were working in. Shortly after it was taken, the rain began. At Vindolanda excavation only stops if the rain makes it hazardous to continue or there is thunder and lightning. Fortunately, filming for a programme featuring Clive Anderson had finished before the rain. The programme will be aired in August and will show him excavating in the Vicus. Our trench was not included in the filming. By Wednesday morning the rain was so heavy that no digging took place. After a very early lunchbreak, we were treated to an illustrated lecture by Andy Birley which made the chronology of the fort sequence very clear. At that point the fmdings from our trench appeared to indicate that although there was a turf rampart, Stone Fort I perhaps did not extend that far North of the later wall. However, the following week’s excavations revealed the stone wall to be about 30cms deeper. The heavy rain had left our trench too wet to continue excavation so on Thursday, our last day, we were transferred to the Vicus where the majority of our group had been working. What a difference! Within minutes I found the base of a samian cup or bowl with a (very degraded) maker’s stamp. There were sherds of Black Burnished ware, pieces of mortaria, bone, nails and other objects including the spoon in the picture, found by Lydia. In addition we uncovered the North wall of the Severan fort 208-212 AD which was smaller than Stone Fort II but made use of that fort’s West wall as its East wall; and in the centre of the building we were excavating, there appeared to be the remains of an oven. After lunch, we tidied our area, had a group photo taken, and went to view the latest work in Area B. At Vindolanda there are two areas under excavation at any time: Area A which works Sunday-Thursday and mainly deals with the fort and Vicus areas, and Area B which works Tuesday-Saturday and focuses on the latest area to be opened which is further West and has revealed, among other things, some huge timbers. This means that during the excavation season from April to September, weather permitting, there is always work in progress for visitors to see. As excavators we become part of the visitors’ experience of the site and we are expected to answer their questions or direct them to someone who can. This can be very pleasant as it gives you a break from what is often very heavy-duty digging! Many people who dig at Vindolanda came as visitors before they volunteered and all are welcome to apply. For more information about Vindolanda the following websites may be of interest. Matt’s journal covers the whole period of his stay in England this year and includes details of his walks and trips in the area. The web forum has some very good topics. Vindolanda website: http://www.vindolanda.com/ Matt’s Digging journal: http://diggerjoumal.blogspot.com/ Web forum for those interested in/involved with Vindolanda: http://www.wedigvindolanda.com/

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What’s On by Eric Morgan

Sunday 5th August, 2.30pm: Heath and Hampstead Society, The Hill Garden, off North End Road, NW3 (meet beside the ornamental pond) walk led by Ian Greenwood. Donation £2. Lasts 2 hours approximately.

Sunday 5th August, 2.30pm: Enfield Preservation Society, Heritage Walk: Winchmore Hill. Start on the green (by the station) to be taken round the conservation area with a possible visit to St. Paul’s Church and ending at Grovelands Park (near the café).

Tuesday 14 August, 8pm: Amateur Geological Society, The Parlour, St. Margaret’s Church, Victoria Avenue, N3 (off Hendon Lane): Evening of talks given by members including slides of a recent visit to Iceland by Susan Jacobs.

Friday 17th August, 10.30am: Camden History Society & Burgh House Museum: Edwardian Hampstead, guided walk led by museum curator Carol Seigel. Meet outside the house. Costs £6. Reservations tel. 020 7431 0144.

Friday 17th August, 7pm: COLAS: Ghosts & Graveyards. Guided walk led by Robert Stephenson. Meet outside Blackfriars public house, corner of Queen Victoria Street/New Bridge Street (by Blackfriars Station). Visit a number of City graveyards including St. Paul’s. Pass the City’s first playhouse and Shakespeare’s house. Find out about executions, bodysnatchers and the Black Dog of Newgate Prison!

Saturday 18th August & Sunday 19th August, 12-6pm: Friern Barnet Summer Show, Friary Park, Friern Barnet Lane, N12. Friern Barnet & District Local History Society and The Finchley Society will have stands here. Also an Art Exhibition by Barnet Borough Arts Council whose stand has HADAS info, and many other stalls.

Sunday 2nd September, 11 am-5pm: Angel Canal Festival, Regents Canal, City Road Basin, Islington Ni (near LAARC). Many stalls, boat trips & rally. London Canal Museum & Islington Archaeology & History Society have stalls.

Sunday 2nd September, 10am-5pm: The Jewish Museum, Camden Town, Raymond Burton House, 129-31 Albert Street, NW 1. Open Day for European Day of Jewish Culture free admission. Last opportunity to view before closure for redevelopment. Exhibitions: Ghetto Warriors — Minority Boxers in Britain, also Trace Jewish History in Britain Since 1066. Displays on Jewish religious life and ceremonial art.

Sunday 2nd September, 2pm: The Battle of Barnet guided walk. Meet at junction Great North Road/Hadley Green. Led by Paul Baker, cost £6.

Until Sunday 2nd Celebrating the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade, Kenwood House, Hampstead Lane, NW3: Slavery & Justice — the legacies of Lord Mansfield and Dido Belle. Admission free, guided tours 2pm. Also Sunday 26th & Monday 27th August, 1 lam- 4pm: Breaking the Chains — discover the voices of 1807 with costumed actors in short dramatic performances, (both Days).

Tuesday 4th September, 6-8pm: Highgate Wood. Walk to look at Places of Historical Interest in the Wood. Meet at Information Hut (access from Archway Road, N6).

Training Excavations at Copped Hall, with WEAG, August From Sundays to Saturdays, beginning 5th, 12th & 19th August. Excavation of an Elizabethan Great House and its Medieval predecessors. Learn basic excavation & recording techniques. Costs £170 (with a certificate at the end) or £120 for additional weeks or people who have taken the basic course previously. Topics include use of archaeological tools, principles of stratigraphy, surveying, writing and drawing, sessions on finds, landscape, post-excavation processing. Lunch & tea/coffee free. Details from Mrs. Pauline Dalton, Roseleigh, Epping Road, Epping, Essex CM16 5HW, tel. 01992813725, email: pmd2@ukonline.co.uk or visit www.weag.org.uk (HADAS have helped WEAG here with resistivity and surveying site). Latest excavation report (2004/5) available price £7 also from above.

No 436 JULY 2007 Edited by Graham Javes
HADAS DIARY
Saturday 4 August, 2007, HADAS Outing to Sussex with June Porges & Stewart Wild. See below
Tuesday 9th October 2007, Denis Smith (lecturer, industrial archaeologist) Thomas Telford (1757­1834) 250th anniversary lecture.
Tuesday 13th November 2007, Martyn Barber (English Heritage Aerial Survey) Mata Hari’s glass eye and other tales: a history of archaeology and aerial photography.
Tuesday 8th January 2008, Kate Sutton (Museum of London) The work of a Finds Liaison Officer.
Tuesday 12th February 2008, Christopher Sparey-Green, BA, MIFA. The archaeology of Dorset: a time-torn landscape.
Tuesday 11th March 2008, Chloe Cockerill (Regional Development Manager) The work of the Churches Conservation Trust.
Tuesday 8th April 2008, Peter Davey (Bristol Tram Photograph Collection) Clifton Rocks Railway.
Tuesday 13th April 2008, tba.
Lectures start at 8.00 pm in the Drawing Room, Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley, N3 3QE. Buses 82, 143, 326 & 460 pass close by, whilst Finchley Central station (Northern Line) is five to ten minutes walk
HADAS. Outing, to Sussex, Saturday 4 August June Porges & Stewart Wild
The itinerary and a booking form are enclosed in this mailing. Unfortunately, due to a technical error, the June Newsletter mentioned an outing to Fishbourne. It was realised that August 4, coincides with the finale of the Glorious Goodwood Festival, and the likely traffic congestion this will cause make it unwise to visit the Chichester area at this time. Thus, at short notice we had to come up with another itinerary, and postpone our visit to the Roman Villa at Fishbourne until a future occasion.
Our revised itinerary includes Worth Church, Pevensey Castle and the famous Battle of Hastings battlefield site at Battle. We hope that a large number of members will be able to join us, especially as this may be the only outing this summer.
Secretary’s Corner Denis Ross
The Society’s Annual General Meeting was held on 12 June 2007 at Avenue House with the President, Harvey Sheldon, in the Chair. 26 Members were present. The various Resolutions of the Notice of Meeting were duly passed including, in particular, approval of the Annual Report and Accounts.
The Officers elected for the current year are:
Chairman: Don Cooper
Vice-Chairman: Peter Pickering
Hon Treasurer: Jim Nelhams
Hon Secretary: Denis Ross
Hon Membership Secretary: Mary Rawitzer
The following were elected as 8 other members (the limit is 12) of the Society’s Committee:
Bill Bass, Stephen Brunning, Andrew Coulson, Eric Morgan, Dorothy Newbury, June Porges,
Andrew Selkirk, and Tim Wilkins.
The Meeting was followed by:
(a) A presentation by the President on the current digging and research at Syon House;
(b) A display and explanation by the Chairman of the Society’s activities over the past year; and
(c) A talk by Stewart Wild on his recent journey to Antarctica.
All the above were warmly received.
It was made clear at the meeting that if the Society is to maintain or increase its activity and progress, there is an urgent need for new and active recruits, at both Officer and Committee levels, as several existing members wish to retire by the end of the current year.
Volunteers please!
New Look for The London Archaeologist. Don Cooper
The London Archaeologist has been redesigned, and is now published in A4 size with full colour, whilst maintaining its four issues a year. The London Archaeologist is the Capital’s only dedicated archaeology magazine/newsletter and a must for those of us who take an interest in London’s archaeology. I am including a leaflet on the publication to give more details to potential readers —although the leaflets still have the old London Archaeologist’s logo.
The London Archaeologist is publishing a profile of HADAS in its next issue, so be sure to look out for that!
TRAMS OF NORTH-WEST LONDON: a report by Andy Simpson on the MAY LECTURE by DAVID BERGUER, with added information by Andy.
Now a curatorial volunteer at London’s Transport Museum, our speaker has a lifelong interest in transport, and has been working on the cataloguing of historic London Transport glass plate negatives.
The last tram in the immediate HADAS area ran on 5 March 1938, being replaced by trolleybuses. The last London tram of all ran in the Woolwich/Charlton areas of south London on 5 July 1952. Traditional ‘first generation’ trams still of course run in Blackpool, and since the 1990s second
generation light rapid transit systems have been introduced in such locations as Sheffield, Manchester, Croydon and Birmingham/Wolverhampton.
`Trams’ originated in sixteenth century German mines, running on wooden rails. Street tramways originated in Manhattan in 1832 and the in UK, at Birkenhead, in 1860, due to the work of the American, George Francis Train. Early motive power included horses, steam locomotives and cable traction, as used today in San Francisco, and formerly on Highgate Hill. Such types were more efficient than horse buses, but around ten horses were needed to keep one tram running and they literally ate the profits. A horse worked for about four hours at a time, and their working life was short, despite careful stabling and veterinary attention. Steam trams were produced by companies such as Merryweather, Falcon and Kitson.
The first London trams, drawn by horses, appeared in March 1861 on the Marble Arch — Bayswater Road route, introduced by the American, George Francis Train, followed by two other routes, but all had closed by mid 1862. There was a problem with the iron step-rail edges projecting above the road surface causing an obstruction to other traffic, and as a relatively well-off area there were few passengers from the well-off ‘carriage folk’, and jingoistic Londoners objected to the ‘Yankee Railroads’. The first trams in North London were those in Finsbury Park in 1871, being horse trams running to the Nag’s Head, and on to Archway in 1872. Steam trams appeared in Edmonton in 1885, being replaced by horse cars in 1891, and cable trams ran on Highgate Hill from 1884 to 1907.
London’s first electric trams ran in Alexandra Palace park from May 1898 to September 1899, being four German-built ‘toastrack’ cars running on a 600 yard line. The Tramways Act of 1870 governed tramway operation, laying down sometimes restrictive regulations such as the requirement for the tramway operator to ensure his tracks were 9ft 6 inches from the kerb, and having to maintain the roadway 18 inches either side of the tracks, so the nicely made-up tramway section, usually of better quality than the rest of the road surface, was naturally used by all the other road users too. There was a legal requirement for cheap workmen’s fares in the early morning, making public transport affordable for the working man, being cheaper than the horse buses. This was a tradition inherited by the trolleybuses, but not by the succeeding motorbuses.
The local authority could purchase company-owned tramways after 21 years, and at seven-year intervals thereafter, restricting the incentive for investment in ageing track and rolling stock. Trams had to have dedicated stopping places, but buses could stop anywhere until 1935 — a particular problem with the competing ‘pirate’ buses of the 1920s.
Local to Hendon was the Metropolitan Electric Tramways Co, (MET) with its extensive network of routes to Waltham Cross, High Barnet via Whetstone, Enfield, Edgware/Canons Park, Finchley, and Golders Green. Trams never ran in central London, nor did trolleybuses, only reaching the Embankment and Tottenham Court Road. The London County Council and the City of London did not want them in the central area. This was partly due to a prejudice against a working class form of transport. The London County Council (LCC) and smaller municipal operators such as Bexley, Walthamstow, East Ham, West Ham, Barking, Leyton, Ilford, Croydon and Erith also ran their own tramway systems, as did London United Tramways in the Kew Area and South Metropolitan Electric Tramways (SMET) around Wimbledon. There were around 200 London tram routes, with the bulk of lines opened 1903 — 1910.
The Cricklewood — Edgware line opened in December 1904, extending to Canons Park in October 1907. The Whetstone and Highgate Archway route opened to the public 8 June 1905, following a
formal opening the previous day, running from 5am to 11.47pm, and was extended in stages to High Barnet by 28 March 1907. MET cars met LCC cars at Archway, though through running between the two operators’s systems did not begin until 1909.The Middlesex County Council had the authority to run the trams, which were operated by the MET on their behalf Trams started running from Wood Green to Finchley in April 1909 and to Enfield in July 1909, Golders Green to North Finchley opened in December 1909, and Golders Green to Cricklewood in February 1910.
The early trams were impressive in size and appearance, bogie doubledeckers weighing some five tons and seating an average of 68 people, and had controllers at either end on which the driver `notched up’ to accelerate, plus other controls including warning gong and sand pedal to release sand from the sandboxes to improve grip on wet, slippery rails. The Metropolitan Police would not permit driver’s windscreens, as there was no safety glass in those days. Open top cars had wooden seats-although some cars originally had cushions in the lower saloons, they were removed due to carrying dirty, louse-ridden passengers.
in 1913, the central traction poles supporting the overhead through Finchley were replaced by traction poles either side of the road, helping to date photos, which have a value recording former street life, buildings and fashion as well as the trams themselves. At Tally Ho, Finchley, three routes converged. The coming of the trams encouraged development; tram services linked with the Hampstead Tube at Golders Green. During the First World War, women were employed for the first time on the trams, as conductresses (and in some places as drivers), but rapidly dismissed post-war when the troops returned home.
Photos used included a shot of Hendon tram depot and works at Annesley Avenue, Colindale, where Merit House stands today. Here the MET overhauled and built its own trams, such as the experimental car 318 – ‘Bluebell’ built there in 1927 with lightweight aluminium structure, and a distinctive pale blue colour scheme.
London’s first trolleybus ran on an experimental circuit there in September 1909. The LCC used the conduit system rather than overhead wires — a short stretch of conduit track can still be seen at the northern ramped entrance to the former Kingsway tram subway at Holborn. Older readers may remember the routine at the change pit where the overhead and conduit swapped over — there was one at Archway Tavern from 1914 so MET cars could run south, and LCC cars could reach Finchley and Whetstone.
One tram ran away down the hill at Archway, and three people were killed. Finsbury Park was notorious at rush hours, needing police to control the crowds. Competition from motorbuses, with their upholstered seats and, latterly, pneumatic rather than solid tyres, increased in the 1920s, so older open-top trams gained covered tops and improved seating to compete.
The Felthams — built by the Union Construction Co — were luxurious modem streamlined cars, with prototypes in service from 1929 and production cars from 1931. Popular with both crews and public and speedy, they couldn’t reach Barnet due to the closeness of the tracks beneath the railway bridge at the foot of Barnet Hill.
The London Passenger Transport Board took over the operation of the former company and municipal tramways in July 1933, inheriting some 316 trams from the MET and instituting a major trolleybus replacement programme instead of the trams, with the Edgware Road routes converting in August 1936. Trams still ran to Hendon Works for scrapping until October 1936. High Barnet, Finchley and Enfield lost their trams in March 1938, the last (single-deck) trams to Alexandra Palace having run the previous month, being known to all as ‘The Ally Pally Bang Bangs’.
November 1938 saw the virtual end of trams in NW London, due to their replacement by trolleybuses, the Edmonton and Wood Green routes being the last to convert All the older MET trams were scrapped —many at Hampstead Depot – (tram enthusiasts had selected one to purchase preservation, but could find nowhere to keep it), and others at Hendon and Walthamstow, and only the modem Felthams survived to be transferred to other routes — they ran ‘south of the river’ until sold to Leeds in 1951, where they ran until the Leeds system closed in November 1959. The Barnet and Edgware trolleybuses in turn succumbed to the motor bus in January 1962.
A horse tram and West Ham electric car can be seen at the refurbished London’s Transport Museum at Covent Garden hopefully reopening November 2007, and a Feltham and classic LCC `El’ at the LT Museums’ Acton Town depot, which has occasional public open days.
This was an excellent and informative talk, enjoyed by all — not just us tramway enthusiasts! (David Berguer is chairman of Friern Barnet and District Local History Society.)
Andy Simpson’s further reading list.
Barrie, J, North London’s Tramways 1938-1952, LRTA, 1968
Gibbs, T.A, The Metropolitdn Electric Tramways — A Short History, TLRS 1964
Harley, R J, Barnet and Finchley Tramways, Middleton Press, 1997
Harley, R J, Edgware and Willesden Tramways, Middleton Press, 1998
Jones, D, Enfield and Wood Green Tramways, Middleton Press, 1997
Jones, D, Hampstead and Highgate Tramways, Middleton Press, 1995
Kidner, R W, The London Tramcar 1861 — 1952, Oakwood Press, 1992
Smeeton, C S, The Metropolitan Electric Tramways, LRTA vol. 1, Origins to 1920, 1984, vol. 2,
1921 to 1933, 1986
Other Societies’ Events Eric Morgan
Sunday 1 July, 2.30pm, Heath & Hampstead Society, Burgh House, New End Square, NW3. How the Heath and Kenwood were saved from Development, a walk led by Thomas Radice, £2 donation. Optional visit to Hampstead Museum. Burgh House, 2.00pm. See June Newsletter for exhibitions.
Thursday 5 July, 7.00pm, Enfield Preservation Society. Heritage walk around Edmonton. Meet Millfield House, Silver St. Finish at Charity School, Church St.
Sunday 8 July, 11.00am-5.00pm, Friends of Kensal Green Cemetery, Harrow Rd, NW10/Ladbroke -Grove, W10. Open Day, tours, band, refreshments, stalls, including Willesden Local History Society.
Sunday 8 July, 12.00pm-4.00pm, Myddelton House Gardens, Bullsmoor Lane, Enfield. Open Day hosted by London Wildlife Trust & Lee Valley Park. Refreshments, plant sale. £2.60. HADAS did resistivity survey here a few years ago.
Sunday 8 July, 2.00pm, Ancient & Modern East Barnet. Guided walk by Paul Baker, meet East Barnet Library, Brookhill Rd, £6.
Tuesday 10 July, 8.00pm, Amateur Geological Society, The Parlour, St Margaret’s Church, Victoria Ave, N3. Magnetism in the Solar System: a Journey from the Sun to the Centre of the Earth, speaker Prof. David Price (Birkbeck and UCL).
Saturday 14 July, 9.00pm, Barnet & District Local History Society. Coach outing to Jane Austin’s house at Chawton, Hants, to Gilbert White’s house at Selborne, and to the Oates’ Museum also at Selborne. Meet Odeon Cinema, Underhill. Returning from Selborne 5.00pm. Cost £23, including entrance fees. Apply to Pat Alison, 37 Ladbrooke Drive, Potters Bar, Herts, EN6 1QR (n 01707 858430), including your name, address and a contact phone number, together with a cheque payable to Barnet & District Local History Society.
Saturday 14 July, 2.00pm, The Battle of Barnet, a guided walk led by Paul Baker. Meet junction Great North Rd & Hadley Green Rd, £6.
Sunday 15 July, 11.30-4.00pm National Archaeology Day. Forty Hall. Enfield Archaeological Society & Enfield Museum Service. The event is planned to coincide with a weekend dig by EAS in the grounds, where HADAS has previously done resistivity surveying.
Wednesday 18 July 7.30pm ‘Willesden Local History- Society. Meet entrance to Willesden Junction station for 11/2 Mile guided walk of Willesden Junction area, including new; .Powerday Canal Wharf, former LNWR, Old Oak village and the newly modified All Souls church (Fr Michael Moorhead).
Wednesday 18 July, 8.00pm, Edmonton Hundred Historical Society, Jubilee Hall, junction Chase Side & Parsonage Lane, Enfield in World War I, talk by Graham Dalling.
Friday 20 July, 7.00pm COLAS, St Olave’s Parish Hall, Mark Lane, EC3. The Archaeology of the Clay Tobacco Pipe, talk by Peter Hammond.
Saturday & Sunday 21 & 22 July, 11.30-4,00pm. National Archaeology Weekend, Archaeology at the Tower of London with COLAS. Venue: public path between The Tower & the River Thames. Lots to do: handle finds from London sites: bones, pots, shoes; learn about London’s past from past Londoners; try to be a London archaeologist; dress up as a Roman Londoner. Visit Tower Beach on the Thames foreshore, 12 noon-2.00pm Saturday, 12.30-2.30pm Sunday.
Saturday & Sunday 21 & 22 July, 11.00 4,30pm. Museum of London. National Archaeology Weekend, Home Sweet Home, Roman Style; how the Romans built their houses, with demonstrations of building crafts; what Roman Londoner’s wore, and Roman artefacts.
Comments

Newsletter

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HADAS DIARY

Tuesday 12 June — Annual General Meeting

Sunday June 17th 2-5pm Come to the HADAS Get-Together: ALL MEMBERS ARE INVITED to drinks, nibbles and chat on Sunday afternoon, 17th June. Our Chairman, Don Cooper will host the event which will be at Avenue House, East End Rd, where we usually meet for lectures. All recent new members will also be getting a personal invitation. We hope to find out more about what you all want and what ideas you have for us, as well as this being a chance just to get to know everyone – and each other. We look forward to seeing you there!

Saturday 4 August —Outing to Fishbourne with June Porges & Stewart Wild We shall tour through the delightful Sussex countryside, with the possibility of a local dig in progress, visiting the Roman Fort of Anderitum (now better known as Pevensey Castle), and Battle (1066 and all that). Full details and booking form will accompany the July newsletter.

Lectures and the AGM take place at Avenue House, 17 East End Rd., Finchley N3 3QE. Fifteen minutes walk from Finchley Central tube station going south towards Golders Green, Gravel Hill junction. Limited parking. Events begin at 8 pm. Tea, coffee and biscuits 80p. Non-members £1.

Hadas Archaeological Work in June from Don Cooper

June is a busy month for the HADAS digging team. We are supporting the Institute of Archaeology’s widening participation team with their digs at Hendon School (11th to 15th June) and also at St. Mary’s (C of E) school also in Hendon (18th to 22’d June). These projects aim to provide training and experience in practical archaeology to the students while at the same time addressing real research questions on the area. The students will be trained in a range of archaeological techniques including excavation, recording, surveying and finds processing. This is the second year at Hendon School following up a successful week’s work last summer. The results of these digs will be published in a later newsletter.

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Our Wonderful English Language by Stewart Wild

Ever since I began to learn languages as a schoolboy I have always been fascinated by the mechanics of the English language and the origins of words. We all know that a considerable part of our vocabulary derives via modern European languages from Latin and Greek, yet few are aware of how many words and ideas have entered our language from classical Arabic. Most people know that many English words beginning al- are likely to have come from Arabic (usually via Spain where the Moors were dominant until the Reconquest in 1492). Examples are alchemy, alcohol, alcove, alembic, alfalfa, algebra, algorism, algorithm, Alhambra, alkali, almanac and the rare word almagest (great astronomical treatise of Ptolemy). There are many others, especially in science and astronomy. Azimuth is one, nadir and zenith two more. Assassin comes from a sect word meaning ‘hashish-eater’, harem from a word meaning ‘prohibited’, sherbet from a verb ‘to drink’, mohair from an adjective meaning `choice’ or ‘select’ and zero from Arabic gift (also our word cipher). Many are direct imports, increasing in number in proportion to the growth of Islam in the UK: mosque, minaret, imam, sheikh, emir, fatwa, intifada, jihad, madrassa or medersa, burnous and burqa. Others are less obvious, like magazine. This is a splendid word, with a variety of meanings: a store for arms, ammunition or provisions; a periodical publication containing articles by various writers; and an online forum for information and dialogue. The common thread here is the notion of “place where things are stored”, and the French word magasin, meaning shop or department store, comes from the same root, which is the Italian word magazzino. This in turn comes from the Arabic word makhazin, the plural of makhzan, meaning “storehouse”. Another fascinating word is gazette and its sibling gazetteer. Reaching us from the Italian gazzetta, this word for a newssheet or periodical publication has its origin in the 16th-century Venetian word gazett, meaning a small coin. This coin carried the image of a wise old owl, but this was mistaken for a magpie, in Italian, gazza, and the coin named accordingly. The gazett coin was the cost of buying a popular newssheet in Venice in those days, or at least what it cost to read it. Thus the coin gave its name to the periodical, achieving official importance in England when its first recorded use is in 1665: The Oxford Gazette. (The courts and government officials of London had moved to Oxford on account of the Plague.) Later this became The London Gazette, followed by The Edinburgh Gazette in 1695 and The Dublin Gazette in 1705. I am still trying to link gazza with an Arabic origin, but have not yet succeeded!

Rick Gibson An appreciation by Stewart Wild

News reaches HADAS of the sad and untimely death of Rick Gibson. Older members will remember Rick and his wife June, who lived in Hampstead Garden Suburb and who were active members of the Society in the 1970s and 80s. In recent years they sold their house in Erskine Hill and Rick moved to West Kensington. He was a Druid priest and was very knowledgeable about ancient Egypt and especially the pharoahs’ religious practices. For some years he led tours to Egypt for study purposes. He died on 3 March, as a result of lung disease (apparently asbestosis) which may have been attributed to work many years ago at the Post Office Research Establishment in Dollis Hill. Apart from being a very skilled electrician, he was also talented at the repair and maintenance of clock mechanisms and did the London Borough of Barnet a considerable favour some years ago by volunteering to clean and repair the clock of the War Memorial at the crossroads in Golders Green, which still keeps good time today in his memory. He was interred on 23 March in a woodland grave at Wrabness, Essex, after a simple tree-planting ceremony.

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CHURCH FARMHOUSE MUSEUM

An Exhibition on Hampstead Garden Suburb is running until 9 September. The spade with which Henrietta Barnett dug the first sod, the Bible used for the United services which were held in a workmen’s but in the early years, Henrietta’s sketch book with a talented watercolour of a landscape are some of the many items on view. There is an impressive map of the many famous people who have lived in the Suburb, such as Harold Wilson and Elizabeth Taylor. There are many photographs dating from pre 1914 of the building of the Suburb, the social life, jubilees, pageants, children and communal housing for Henrietta wanted all classes of people to live in friendship.

THE FAMOUS IN HIGH BARNET April lecture by Paul Baker Reviewed by Stephen Brunning

Paul Baker commenced his talk with a reference as to why High Barnet had attracted so many famous people over the centuries — the clean air and pleasant living conditions as opposed to the smoky, smelly City of London was one reason given. The biggest Saturday night in Barnet’s history occurred on April 13th 1471 when approximately 23000 troops gathered on Hadley Green to fight the Battle of Barnet the following day. Amongst them were three kings, the Yorkist Edward IV, Lancastrian Henry VI, and the future King Richard III, then known as the Duke of Gloucester aged just eighteen. The oldest standing pub in High Barnet — the Red Lion, probably paid host to Henry ‘VTII’s visit to Barnet in 1529. Samuel Pepys was known to have eaten cheesecakes here after a curative trip to the Physic Well near to Barnet Hospital. Charles Dickens and a friend lamed their horses during a madcap ride back to London following a boozy lunch at the Red Lion. Just around the corner from the Red Lion was a pub called the Crown — now demolished. It was here in 1611 that Arabella Stuart, cousin of James VI, stayed. Other pubs associated with famous people included Doctor Johnson eating at Ye Old Mitre Inn, and Prime Ministers Lord Melborne and Palmerston, as well as Sir Robert Peel frequenting the Green Man which still stands on the corner of High Street and St Albans Road. . The talk then moved onto churches, where Paul discussed famous architects involved with the building of Barnet’s places of worship. William Butterfield was responsible for extending the parish church of St John the Baptist, George Edmund Street renovated St Mary’s of Monken Hadley and St Mary’s of East Barnet before working himself to death in 1881 as the architect of the Royal Courts of Justice. Sir George Gilbert Scott built Christ Church on St Albans Road — location of some the scenes from EastEnders!!

The novelist Kingsley Amis lived at “Gladsmuir” in Monken Hadley between 1968 and 1976. It was rechristened “Lemmons” by Amis and “Gin-and-Lemons” by John Betjeman who was a regular drunken house-guest. Another famous resident of Monken Hadley was Spike Milligan. Paul told us of an amusing tale of where Spike kept a dirty cup on his mantelpiece for many months. When guests asked what the cup was doing there, Spike explained that Prince Charles had done the washing up last time he’d dined with him, and was going to make sure that he (Charles) washed it properly next time he visited!! Paul concluded his talk about political associations with Barnet. Robert Carr, now Lord Can of Hadley, lived at “Monkenholt” for many years. When he was Home Secretary during Ted Heath’s government in the early 1970’s, the Angry Brigade exploded a bomb in front of the house which was heard all over Barnet. Luckily Lord Carr and his wife were out that night. With grateful thanks to Paul Baker for providing the notes to write this report. I had forgotten to ask a member of the audience to do so! Incidentally, Paul leads a series of 8 dffercnt wall.-.- in High Barnet, including one of the Battle of Barnes For further information please telephone 020 8440 6805.

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HEROD, THE CRUELLEST DICTATOR?

Herod built Herodium, south of Jerusalem for his own burial place. Like Hitler, Mussolini and Saddam he was a constructor of great monuments He built the second Temple, the fortress of Masada and the port of Caesarea. He was guilty of the massacre of the innocents — the slaughter of all boys under the age of two in Bethlehem. The location of the burial was discovered in 2006 and excavation has only just started. The location is still being questioned by some archaeologists.

BONE CLUES

Advances in analysing human remains have enabled scientists to find how neolithic people at Wayland Smithy met their death. Three people were shot by arrows, two were dismembered by dogs or wolves. They lived between 3625 BC and 3590BC which may have been a time of increasing social tension and upheaval.

THE GLADIATOR EMPEROR

A mosaic discovered at the Villa dei Quintili, south of Rome and the home of the Emperor Commodus, depicts a gladiator named Montanus holding a trident alongside a referee who appears to be pronouncing him the victor over a prone opponent. Commodus, who was Emperor from AD 180 to192, loved sport and sometimes dressed up as a gladiator himself and fought in the arena, a practice that scandalised polite Roman society, which regarded such fighters as occupying the lowest rungs on the social ladder.

RAPA NUI DID NOT COMMIT GENOCIDE

A new theory on the fate of Easter Island, now known by its native name of Rapa Nui — meaning navel of the world — suggests that rats and outsiders, not the depredations of its native people, caused the depletion of the island’s resources and the shrinking of its human population. For two and a half centuries Easter Island has been famed for its moai statues, tall stone heads with elongated features that are found across the island. It has been alleged that the inhabitants destroyed the forest cover, depleting their food resources and shelter and eventually leaving themselves unable to build canoes. The recent book by Jared Diamond, Collapse, calls Rapa Nui “the clearest example of a society that destroyed itself by over exploiting its own resources”. This has been called “ecocide”. Yet rats rather than people may have been the crucial factor on Rapa Nui according to the archaeologist Terry Hunt of the University of Hawaii. He notes that the Pacific rat, rattus exulans, arrived with the human settlers, possibly as a fast breeding source of protein for the voyagers. Dr Hunt believes that the impact of rats on the forests of Rapa Nui was devastating. He estimates that the rat population could have exceeded 3.1 million within a very short time following their introduction. They ate seedlings, nuts and birds eggs. Dr Hunt says “The documented population collapse of Rapa Nui occurred as a result of European contacts, with Old World diseases and slave trading”, adding to the damage by rats. It is not a case of ecocide.

TYRANNOSAURUS REX TASTES LIKE CHICKEN?

Researchers have isolated a protein from a 68 Million-year-old Tyrannosausus Rex that is very similar to one found in the 21 st-century chicken. The existence of prehistoric protein defies a long standing assumption that when an animal dies protein immediately begins to degrade and, in the case of fossils, is slowly replaced by mineral. The process was thought to be complete after one million years. Collagen tissue was removed from a fossilized thigh bone belonging to one of the giant predator dinosaurs. Analysis showed it was structurally similar to chicken protein, providing further evidence of the evolutionary link between dinosaurs and birds. As well as showing how this technique can confirm the evolutionary relationship between long extinct creatures, the feat has shown how tiny traces of protein might be detected to reveal cancer in the body and track its spread. In another study it was found that extracts of soft tissue in T rex bones reacted with antibodies to chicken collagen, further suggesting the presence of bird-like protein. Until today’s work, the oldest protein analysed by scientists was around 300,000 years old.

SILBURY HILL

Silbury Hill is the largest pre-historic man made structure in Europe. This summer English Heritage will spend £600,000, to preserve it. And in doing so may find out more about its construction and its original purpose. It was probably constructed 4,400 years ago. Earlier this year archaeologiqts found traces of a Roman settlement at the landmark. They say that it may have been a place of pilgrimage.

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OTHER SOCIETIES EVENTS from Eric Morgan

Saturday 2 June 7.30 pm CELEBRATING THE BICENTENARY OF THE ABOLITION OF THE SLAVE TRADE St. Paul’s Church, The Ridgeway NW7 BRITAIN & THE TRANSATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE Talk by Prof. Jim Walvin

Thursday 7 June 10.30 am Mill Hill Library, Hartley Ave., NW7 AMY JOHNSON-BARNET’S OWN AVIATION HEROINE Talk by David Keen (RAF Museum) with refr. 50p

Saturday 9-10 June OPEN GARDEN SQUARES WEEKEND incl, THE HILL GARDEN OFF NORTH END RD., Hampstead

Sunday 10 June 2.30 pm ENFIELD PRESERVATION SOCIETY Heritage Walk FORTY HILL & BULL’S CROSS Start from car park of Forty Hall

Monday 11 June 3 pm. Barnet Local History Society, Church House, Wood St. (opp. Museum)CHARLES I & PURITANISM IN 1630s talk by Dr Alan Thomson

Sunday 10 June- 16 September Hampstead Museum, Burgh House, New End Sq., NW3 CENTENARIES OF UNIVERSITY COLLEGE SCHOOL, HAMPSTEAD TUBE& HAMPSTEAD GARDEN SUBURB EXHIBITION

Wednesday 13 June 8pm. Hornsey Historical Society Union Church Hall, Ferme Fark/Weston Park Rd. N8 THE HISTORY OF LONDON’S BLACK & ASIAN COMMUNITIES Talk by Cliff Pereira

Saturday 16-17 June GLADSTONBURY FESTIVAL Gladstone Park, Kendal Rd. NW2 Stalls incl. Willesden Local History Society

Thursday 21 June 7.30 pm Camden History Society 2nd floor Crowndale Centre, Eversholt St. NW1(nr. Mornington Cres. Station) THE HAMPSTEAD TUBE Talk by Roger Cline

Friday 15 June7pm. COLAS, St. Olaves Parish Hall, Mark Lane, EC3 SUGAR REFINING IN THE EAST END Talk by Tony Tucker £2

Sunday 24 June EAST FINCHLEY FESTIVAL Cherry Tree Wood (opp. the Station) N2. Lots of community stalls

Tuesday 26 June 7.30 pm.Enfield Preservatioin Society, Mount Carmel Centre, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel & St. George RC Church, London Rd., Enfield E.A. BOWLES OF MYDDLETON HOUSE Talk by Bryen Hewitt

Wednesday 27 June 8 pm. Friern barnet & District Local History Society, St. John’s Church Hall (by Whetstone Police Stn.) Friern Barnet Lane N20 THE SHOCKING HISTORY OF ADVERTISING Talk by David Bergner £2

Thursday 28 June 8 pm.Finchley Society, Drawing Room, Avenue House, East End Rd. N3 THE STEPHENS COLLECTION Talk by Eileen Kenning £2

Saturdat 30 June -1 July East Barnet Festival, Oak Hill Park, Church Hill Rd.E. Barnet. Stalls/Farmers Market A GUIDED WALK IN OAKHILL PARK 2 pm.

Wednesday 20 June 8 pm. Islington Archaelogy & History Society, Islington Town Hall, Upper St. N1 BERTHOLD LUBETKIN – MASTER ARCHITECT – WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO CLERKENWELL & FINSBURY Ta1k by John Allan

Newsletter

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HADAS DIARY

Forthcoming Lectures and Events.

Tuesday 10th April – Paul Baker (City of London Guide) — In the footsteps of the famous in High Barnet

Tuesday 8th May – David Berguer (Friern Barnet and District Local History Society Chairman and curatorial lecturer at London Transport Museum) Trams of North-West London.

Tuesday 12th June – Annual General Meeting.

Saturday 4th August – Outing (destination to be announced later) with June Porges and Stuart Wild.

As ever, lectures and the AGM take place at Avenue House, 17 East End Road, Finchley, N3 3QE. Events begin at 8pm. Non-members £1. Tea, coffee and biscuits 80.p. Fifteen-minute walk from Finchley Central tube station. Turn left on exiting the station and go down the hill – East End Road is a turning on the left; several nearby bus routes; limited parking.

Volunteers urgently wanted by Don Cooper

For many years now HADAS has been running two one-day summer outings to places of archaeological interest as well as one long week-end away. Following the resignation of Jackie Brookes, who so ably ran the week-end away for a long time, we need volunteer/volunteers to organise this event. Although it is probably too late for this year, it would be a great shame if this annual event were no longer in the HADAS calendar. It typically attracts between 35 and 45 members who will otherwise be disappointed. Likewise, June, Stewart, Tessa and Sheila, with help from Dorothy as well as others, have been organising one-day outings for as long as anyone can remember!!! We need volunteers to take on these tasks and also perhaps to run more local (London) events. Do please seize these opportunities — we need your help. If you would like more details or would like to run an event please contact me (details at the end of this newsletter) or any one of the committee.

Resistivity Day by Bill Bass and Andy Simpson

In February at Avenue House HADAS was able to pay host to two members of the St. Albans Archaeological and Historical Society (Roger Miles and Bill Martin). They wished to field-test their home-built version of their new resistivity surveying equipment with HADAS’s CIA version for a ‘compare and contrast’. We laid out a grid over a known feature — a Victorian pond/fountain feature backfilled just after the war — the results being shown at the end, with the paler area of the pond showing up well against the darker, higher- resistance background This meant the rare sight, for HADAS, of two resistivity meters working on the same grid. We gained some useful insights from the St Albans team, including cable arrangement and use of new `surveyor’s chains’

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Reva Brown remembered

Members will be saddened to learn that Reva Brown died very suddenly in January. She was one of Dorothy’s loyal team of newsletter editors for many years. She had been Professor of Business Studies at Oxford Brookes Business School. Born in South Africa shortly after the outbreak of the second world war, she had a degree in English Literature from the University of Cape Town. Disenchanted with the emerging political climate, she and her partner chose to leave South Africa. After settling in Britain, she became a freelance journalist and lecturer in secretarial studies at Hendon College of Further Education. She studied for a post-graduate diploma in research methods then for no fewer than two MAs and a PhD for a thesis entitled “The Business of Knowledge and the Knowledge of Business.” Reva became a member of HADAS around 1974 when she bought and moved in to a flat in Hendon. She had a keen interest in history and in people, and so the archaeological society was ideally suited to her tastes. As well as the conversations with many of the members, including Dorothy Newbury, she particularly enjoyed the outings to places of interest, and brought her ten year old son along on many of the trips. The time spent on the coach was perfect for her as she could talk and knit while simultaneously enjoying the scenery. Reva and her son would enjoy packed lunches that she made specially fur the occasion. She went to a number of diverse locations including the Roman Baths at Bath, Canterbury Cathedral, and a village of recreated houses of various historical times. When she moved away in 1988, she missed the HADAS outings. In recent years, she visited her son in London (by now middle-aged), and the two again went on a couple of the HADAS days out, seeing a Roman villa being excavated and visiting a castle and museum. On these trips she forewent the packed lunches in favour of food prepared in commercial establishments which she ate with gusto.

Other deaths by Peter Pickering

Reva’s is not the only death I have to report. We send our condolences to our member Sigrid Padel on the recent death of her husband. And Martin Gladman, so long a bookseller in West Finchley and before that in Friern Barnet, died tragically in February.

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February Lecture by Tessa Smith

Avenue House was packed for the February lecture presented by Dr Andrew Gardner entitled “The End of Roman Britain.” What? When? HOW? Dr Gardner began with an amusing cartoon of the Roman Governor leaving British shores with the quip “Well, I’m off. Look out for the Angles, Jutes, Saxons, Scots, Picts, Danes and Normans.” Throughout his lecture Dr Gardner compared the changes that happened under Roman rule, with the continuity of Roman influence after they had left Britain, his goal being to try to see both sides of the story. Comparing evidence from the year A.D. 300 with that from A.D. 600, he touched on evidence from archaeology, religion, culture, politics and the military. Slides of central Canterbury in the 3rd century showed classical buildings in a prosperous, bustling area, whereas excavations of the 7th century showed a much smaller central area built within the 3rd century ruined buildings. At Cirencester the Forum changed its original use and became a high status residence with mosaic floors. Silchester basilica and Forum became centres for light industry over the centuries. Generally large Roman administered towns became smaller over the years. Making a case for continuity, Dr. Gardner highlighted Wroxeter, where bath house materials were reused for high status dwellings. In the countryside many Saxon houses reused Roman farm structures, e.g. Orton Hall farm in Cambridgeshire, and many Roman villas continued to be occupied when Roman troops had gone. Change in religious culture from 2nd century worship of Jupiter to the acknowledgement of Christianity in the 4th century is accepted, but whom did these changes actually affect? A fascinating fact offered by Dr Gardner was that the elite, the military and the traders in newly built Roman towns together made up only 10% of the whole population, the other 90% worked the land and had only limited contact with the Romans and their culture. Evidence for religious continuity came from Wasperton where a Romano-British cemetery continued in use into Anglo-Saxon times, and at Uley the Roman Temple continued in use as an early English church on the same site. Military buildings changed in their style and use over the decades, stone quarrying for the military stopped in the latter part of Roman occupation, at South Shields the Gateway was recommissioned and continued in use, but with a more perishable material than the previously used stone. At Housesteads the early 4th century small chalet style of buildings changed to the later Roman long garrison style and at Birdoswald the granary changed to domestic use as a hall. The Romans introduced sophisticated pottery, Samian ware, which influenced Romano-British styles, and production of which fluctuated between A.D. 50 and A.D 400. Imports of continental pottery stopped altogether around 400 and Roman coinage minted on the continent was also no longer imported after that time. How did people experience this change? Was it catastrophic? Cultural changes were shown by loss of literacy by A.D. 600-700. Written evidence had a strongly religious and political agenda, was often written far away in the Mediterranean area and often a great length of time after the event. Manuscripts had been copied many times and mistakes made. So how reliable was this source of information? Dr. Gardner’s lecture questioned continually. When did change occur? What was the pace of change? What is meant by Roman? Why was there a collapse of values? Why did change occur? Plenty to mull over as we travelled home via Watling Street.

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Further Thoughts on the end of Roman Britain by Andy Simpson

Besides my notes of Dr Gardner’s lecture, I used the recent Osprey Fortress Series Publication ‘Rome’s Saxon Shore – Coastal Defences AD250-500’ Nic Fields 2006. ISBN 10 84603 094 3, ‘The Ending of Roman Britain’ b A S Esmonde Cleary (Batsford 1989 ISBN 0 7134 5275 7), The Decline and Fall of Roman Britain’ by Neil Faulkner (Tempus 2000 ISBN 0 7524 1944 7), and ‘Britain and the End of the Roman Empire’ by Ken Dark (Tempus 2000, ISBN 0 7524 2532 3) This is an endlessly fascinating period, featured in popular culture and theatre, right up to the recent Hollywood ‘King Arthur’ film with Keira Knightly. The Roman Empire is seen as the paragon of civilisation, with the common view of history that around A.D. 410 the Romans left the Britons to the tender mercies of the Saxons. Dr Gardner’s lecture looked at the Britain of around A.D. 300, problems of interpretation, different aspects of 4th-5th century archaeology, and comparing Roman Britain in A.D. 300 to the situation in post- Roman ‘Dark Age’ Britain in Al). 600. By A.D. 300, Britain had recently rejoined the Roman Empire after another rebellion by an usurper of the Imperial crown, Carausius (287-293). Under the Emperor Diocletian, the Diocese of Britain (Britannia) was divided into four provinces. These included Maxima Caesariensis covering the SE and Britannia Secunda covering the whole of Britannia north of the Humber. Southern Britain was prosperous, with classical buildings in towns such as Canterbury with its theatre. Fourth century Roman material culture saw widespread circulation of pottery and coinage. There was a settlement hierarchy of towns and a large population. The post- (or sub-) Roman period saw a ‘decline’ and the growth of small native British and incoming Saxon kingdoms and less political centralisation. Christianity was reintroduced to eastern England by St Augustine in 597 (in the native Celtic west it had never gone away). The Saxon incomers lived in smaller villages rather than towns, with new forms of material culture in metalwork, burial customs and other cultural changes, including the loss of much literacy in eastern areas, (in the west it was preserved by the Celtic church). This is unlike Gaul/Frankish kingdoms, where Roman law was carefully maintained for a long time by the new ‘Barbarian’ rulers. What continued and what changed? There are two sides to the story and a problem of lack of evidence, so ‘Dark Ages’ though not an academically popular term does have some relevance. What does the ‘dark earth’ found in many towns sealing Roman levels actually mean? Is it evidence of agriculture within the walls, or the decayed remains of timber buildings? Loss of evidence is a fundamental problem, with a likely change in the way people used things such as buildings. Pottery and coinage seem to have gone out of use in the early fifth century, (possibly by 430) — a relatively sudden loss of such evidence, with new fashions in architecture etc. coming in. Some changes can be traced back into the fourth century. There are problems with written sources such as the Notitia Dignitatum — a list of civil and military officials and units, dated c.395 — Britain always being rather marginal for classical writers more concerned with happenings around the Mediterranean, and with political and religious biases. Sixth century monastic British writer Gildas, for instance, had a strong religious agenda, and Bede had a seventh century political agenda in his writings — they and other writers were at some distance from the events’ they were recording which happened some 2-300 years earlier, like a modern writer recording the English Civil War, only with fewer primary sources. Sources such as the Notitia are usually medieval copies of earlier texts, leaving room for errors in transcription, especially in place names etc. What DO we mean by Roman? What had changed before the fifth century? And just WHO do we have evidence for? The material record is dominated by just 10% of the population. How do people experience change — was it a slow change over 20 years or more, or a catastrophic change? Did it happen at all? Few people in Roman Britain were actually FROM Rome, or even Italy. They were Roman because they lived in a Roman province, having a Roman identity, reinforced from the fourth century by a religious identity through the church — in the second century that identity was through worship of Jupiter ‘Best and Greatest’ and the other classical gods, and the cult of the Emperor. Different entity — same people. Culture — a Roman way of using artefacts. Roman citizenship was universal from the early third century, no longer earned through military service etc. How people lived — settlement patterns — living in a town — urban living being a key feature for `civilised’ living, especially in the Eastern Empire. Was Romanisation just a façade? Pace of change — archaeological evidence gives a better picture of long-term change. Historical evidence relates to events possibly not known to everyone in those pre mass-media days. Changes occurred throughout the Roman period. The political situation — the usurpation of Magnus Maximus, the esteemed Macsen Wledig of Welsh legend, in 383-388, was followed in 395 by the succession of the Emperors Honorius in the West and Arcadius in the East. In the late 390s/early 400s the Romano-Vandal Generalissimo Flavius Stilicho was involved in Britain, but may then have run down garrisons, abandoned forts and withdrawn troops to protect other parts of the Empire from Gothic attacks around 398. In 406 came the rapid series of usurpations of British troops led by Marcus, Gratian and Constantine III, the latter crossing to Gaul in 407 only to be killed by imperial forces at Arles in 411. Serious barbarian attacks on Britain in 408-09 seem to have led to revolts ‘of a popular nature’ against Constantine/Constantinus, and in 410 came the infamous rescript of Honorius telling the British civil administration — the civitates — to ‘look to their own defences’ as the Visigoths sacked Rome. In 440-450 came the supposed `Adventus Saxonum’ — 449, according to Bede — which Dr Gardner thinks doubtful. Towns — change and continuity. (`Town Life, or life in Towns? To quote my 1970s essay question) Fourth century towns were changing considerably, as evidenced, for instance, by the public buildings at Silchester, where there was metal working in the Basilica — perhaps the local military moving in to make equipment? At Cirencester, a provincial capital in the fourth century, where the excavations have been only part published, there may have been a high status residence for the provincial governor created from the basilica, which became a restricted access area for an authority figure rather than a publicly accessible structure. Fourth century town houses may have catered for a small but rich population involved in administration, with artisans working in the smaller towns/nucleated settlements springing up elsewhere, and bigger towns serving as ‘administrative villages’. Some towns were abandoned by the sixth century, but others may have been occupied by a reduced elite. The classic example of this, as revealed by the late Phil Barker’s excavations from the 1960s to 1990s, was Wroxeter in Shropshire. Rubble platforms over the part-demolished basilica seem to have supported multi¬storey timber buildings in classical style — a high status centre, possibly for the church rather than the state by the sixth century, leaving no obvious evidence other than patterns of stones and rubble. There are similar hints in other British towns, but British sites generally preserve little evidence of timber buildings. There were changes in the countryside too, e.g. in villas, whose occupation seems to have declined from the 350s, with hints such as human remains and rubble found in wells. Some of this could date to the ‘Barbarian Conspiracy’ of 367 — synchronised raids on Britain from north and south. Recent excavations and improved excavation techniques over the past 30 years in detecting features such as timber buildings like those of the Saxon period have found hints of continuity at villa sites such as Orton Hall Farm. Attempts have been made to extrapolate Roman estate boundaries from modern parish and other boundaries. What did the less well-off rural population do at this time? As for the Army — did it actually withdraw? There is conflicting evidence. In the fourth century at Housesteads fort up on Hadrian’s Wall barrack blocks were built in a new style as small individual structures — ‘chalets’ — perhaps even housing families. There was a change in the structure of the Army, with the old 5000 mail legions being replaced by smaller units of a different. nature. Building styles were different, with evidence of earth ramparts built over earlier stone defences at Housesteads and a decline in stone quarrying for building material. Later post-Roman occupation at Birdoswald on Hadrian’s Wall featured a timber hall over the levelled remains of the stone granaries, which was occupied into the fifth or sixth century. At South Shields, the dilapidated gateway (now reconstructed in full on site) was recommissioned and repaired in timber rather than stone, with a new timber lintel. All these could have been occupied by Roman soldiers or succeeding ‘war bands’. Material culture such as coinage and pottery is fundamental to archaeologists’ lives. Production of pottery and importation of coins ceased soon after 400, probably after the reign of Constantine, around 409 (as central authority was no longer bringing in cash from the continent to pay troops). The fourth century economy was highly monetised and dependant on coinage, but after around 409 there were no more coins imported and no local production of coinage. Why? There was however some continuity of metalwork such as the belt fittings worn by soldiers and officials as badges of authority, their styles often a mix of Germanic and Roman, given the number of Germanic troops in the late Roman army. Changes in religion saw pagan Anglo-Saxon styles of cremation burials replacing Christian inhumations in eastern Britain, where Christianity had become the state religion in the early fourth century. There is some evidence of religious continuity, such as at Uley in Gloucestershire, where the site remained important as a Christian Church was built over a pagan temple. As for language, although the British tongue died out in eastern Britain, some Romano-British place names survived. There is increasing recognition of such Celtic evidence, with less bias towards suivival in western Britain than previously thought. Latin survived as a scholarly language in western and northern Britain, being used by scholars such as Gildas, and returned post 597. In the west, inscriptions were made in both Latin and Irish Ogham script. As for religion and politics, there was change as new people arrived in eastern England. New kingdoms bore little resemblance to Roman provinces, though it is notable that Kent preserves the name of the pre-Roman Cantii tribe, and there is some other continuity. Spread of cultural attributes — compare the spread of American culture in Britain in the past 50 years. Burial practices changed from inhumation to urned cremations, but the idea of Rome survived on Saxon coins in the images used, in however debased a form, and influenced later English Kings. Existing Romano-British populations may have adopted Germanic cultural norms. Few people these days believe they were wiped out — more likely absorbed by intermarriage or moved to more marginal land. When did the changes occur? Roman Britain was not static. There were cyclical phases of pottery production and the culture, religion and politics of fourth century Britain were different from those of the second century. Coin use and ceramics production fluctuated. The late fourth century was more like the fifth century than the second, with smaller settlement patterns. Many changes took years — and who did such changes affect? The urban provincial and civic elite, the Army, and traders serving them — a small proportion, perhaps 10%, of a late Roman population of some three million, of whom the other 90% lived in the countryside. Of these majority, we know little of what they did and thought at the time, having often made limited use of Roman material culture, bartering goods, for which coinage was not essential once the Roman tax collectors were replaced perhaps by more local dues in kind. By the fourth century, the centralised state was battling regional trends towards independence as evidenced by the various usurpers, with archaeology partly confirming this with the growth of ‘unofficial’ small towns. Political authority collapsed rapidly because of longer term fragmentation. Cultural practices had their own patterns of change. The arrival of the Anglo-Saxons was a long-term process over decades in the fifth century, with the balance of power shifting from the native Britons to the Anglo Saxons in eastern Britain in the late fifth century, long after the collapse of the Roman administration. Formation of the succeeding English kingdoms took centuries. Resistance by the British was so stubborn that around 500 many migrants left Briton for their homeland or Gaul — Arthur? — but by around 550 the Saxon advance resumed into Wiltshire, Staffordshire, Cheshire and beyond. How did Britons see themselves in the fourth century — as having a British, Roman or tribal identity? Who held power in the early fifth century — perhaps high-status individuals/kings descended from the Romano-British aristocracy or pretenders, perhaps with some sort of urban elite as evidenced by the visits of St Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, to St Albans in 429 and again a few years later. The sources record a few names such as the Romano-British king Vortigem who supposedly first invited in Saxon mercenaries in the mid fifth century. What was the scale and mechanism of the Anglo-Saxon migration — was it led by mercenaries or an active invasion? There is little evidence for sub-Roman political forms; taxation probably moved from coinage to in kind. `The End’ life goes on? Or ‘Barbarians at the gates’? Both probably true in part. To quote that great man Obi-Wan-Kenobi, ‘Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view’

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Re -enactments at the Royal Gunpowder Mills — Waltham Abbey by Stephen Brunning

Members may be interested to know that the Royal Gunpowder Mills is holding a series of weekend re-enactments between April and September 2007. For further information, call 01992 707 370, or see hyperlink “http://www.royalgunpowdermills.com”: The Royal Gunpowder Mills are open weekends, Wednesdays during the summer school break, and bank holidays from Saturday 28th April to Sunday 7th October between l lam to 5pm (last entry 3.30pm). Admission prices INCLUDE the above events: Adults £6, children £3.50 (5-16 years), under 5’s Free, concessions £5 (over 60 & students), family tickets £19 (2 adults and up to 3 children). Their address is Beaulieu Drive, Waltham Abbey, Essex. For those who use Satellite Navigation, the Post Code is EN9 1JY!! Members may also be interested in the exhibition ‘Life and Death in Ancient Egypt’ at the Museum of St Albans until Sunday 10th June.

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The Last Hendon Farm: The archaeology and history of Church End Farm by Don Cooper

This review of our publication appeared in the winter number of London Archaeologist. The editor is grateful to Becky Wallower, the author of the review, -and Clive Orton, the editor of London Archaeologist, for permission to reprint it. It should inspire those members who have not bought The Last Hendon Farm to buy it (copies are available to members from Don Cooper (address at the end of this newsletter) at the concessionary price to members of £8) and those who are not subscribers to London Archaeologist to subscribe (£16 a year, from 8 Woodview Crescent, Hildenborough, Tonbridge Kent TN11 9HD.) “So what can be done with all those fading, incomplete, difficult to interpret and unpublished records that lurk in the archives of archaeological societies up and down Britain? This exemplary report from Hendon and District Archaeological Society (HADAS) offers a model of just how much can be extracted, and just how well it can be communicated. “Money helps of course. The generous use of photographs and historical images, the high production quality and some technical artefact analysis was made possible by a legacy from a HADAS member_ But the success of this volume is equally due to the innovative approach taken to get the archives analysed and written up. Local people enrolled on a course in post excavation analysis with Birkbeck College have researched the documentary evidence, unravelled the “bewildering array” of site records and written this account of one of Hendon’s three farms, under the tutelage and editorship of MoLAS post-med pottery specialist, Jacqui Pearce. “The problem was a familiar one: a large volume of excavation records, press cuttings, photographs, historical documents and artefacts resulting from the 1960s excavations by the fledgling archaeological society of two areas in the centre of Hendon. In search of Hendon’s Anglo Saxon origins, HADAS first investigated the site of Church End Farm before it was demolished to make way for Hendon Technical College. The second set of excavations, of Church Terrace is being studied by further Birkbeck post-excavation courses and will be the subject of a future volume from the society. “The students / authors clearly had some problems making firm conclusions from the available site records: the approach to recording was changed part way through the excavations making contexts difficult to identify, and a proportion of the artefactual evidence had gone missing in the intervening 40 years. Nevertheless, quite a reasonable job appears to have been made of cross referencing the various bits of documentation and relating it to artefacts. “Historical and archaeological background makes up the first part of the report, with Hendon and the farm being set in the context of London’s hinterland over 250 years. A key conclusion of the study group was the dating of the farm buildings. Whilst documentary evidence supports occupation only back to the mid 18th century, typology of the farmhouse construction, based on period watercolours and pre-demolition photos as well as the excavation evidence, indicates 17th century.- origins. “This was supported by the detailed study of the finds, the account Of which represents just over half the report. The description of typologies and dating is smoothly merged with discussion of the significance of particular types of pottery, clay pipes, tiles, bottles, coins or animal bone. Plenty of helpful background to each class of artefact is given without being too dry, so that quite a vibrant picture emerges of comfortably off occupants enjoying the fruits of their various labours. An unusual collection of bird, or sparrow, pots, for example, elicits a fascinating consideration of the form, the origins of the pots, where they might have been placed and what they were used for (either for collecting bird bounties or sparrow pie apparently). “The few quibbles with this volume are hardly substantial ones. The omission of a modern site plan in favour of a few historical maps makes it difficult to understand where the excavations took place and how the buildings related to each other and to neighbouring farms, church and pub. The writing by seven authors is inevitably a bit patchy. The chapter on future work doesn’t actually describe any. An index would have been good. This really is the gold standard though. It’s both a readable, well organised and interesting account of a site of local importance, and a benchmark for those with cupboards full of seemingly unmanageable archives.”

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Other Societies’ Events Compiled by Eric Morgan

Monday 2nd April 3 pm Barnet and District Local History Society. Church House, Wood Street (opposite Museum) Barnet. The Elephant Man’ talk by Dr Kate Thompson

Wednesday 4th April 8 pm Stanmore & Harrow Historical Society. Wealdstone Baptist Church Hall, High Street, Wealdstone. Some Middlesex Milestones Talk by John Donovan. Modest charge.

Thursday 5th April 8 pm Pinner Local History Society. Village Hall, Chapel Lane car park, Pinner Chiltern Open Air Museum Talk by Len Baker. visitors £1

Wednesday llth April 8 pm Hornsey Historical Society. Union Church Hall, Corner of Ferme Park Road Weston Park N8. The Workhouse in 19th century Middlesex Talk by Paul Carter.

Saturday 14th April 7.30 pm Celebrating the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade St Paul’s Church The Ridgeway NW7. John Newton, mentor to William Wilberforce talk by Mary Lynn Rouse.

Thursday 19th April 6.30 pm LAMAS Terrace Room, Museum of London150 London Wall EC2. The Old Welsh Bridge at Shrewsbury – a newly discovered fortified bridge Talk by Bruce Watson. Refreshments.

Friday 20th April 8 pm Enfield Archaeological Society Jubilee Hall Junction of Chase Side and Parsonage Lane, Enfield. Excavations and Fieldwork of the Society 2006 and AGM. Dr Martin Weare & Mike Dewbrey. £1

Saturday 21st April 2pm The Battle of Barnet Guided Walk. Meeting Junction of Great North Road and Hadley Green Road. Led by Paul Baker £6. Lasts 2 hours.

Wednesday 25th April 8pm Friern Barnet and District Local History Society St John’s Church Hall (next to Whetstone Police Station) Friern Barnet Lane N20. Exhibitions in Great Britain Talk by Don Knight £2.

Thursday 26th April 8pm The Finchley Society Drawing Room, Avenue House, East End Road N3 Talk by Robert WintOn (Hon. Sec.) Non-members admission £2

Sunday 29th April 2pm East Barnet Village Guided walk. Meet outside East Barnet Library, Brookhill Road Historical walk led by Paul Baker. £6

Sunday 29th April- 9th September Church Farm Museum Greyhound Hill, Hendon, NW4 Exhibition on Centenary of Life in Hampstead Garden Suburb from the early years to the present day.