HADAS DIARY
Tuesday 1st November
Lecture: “The Hoxne Hoard and others: late treasures from Britain” by Dr Catherine Johns (curator in the Department of Prehistoric and Romano-British antiquities at the British Museum) who will indicate the relationship of the Hoxne finds with earlier Roman discoveries. This will be an excellent conclusion to our 1994 lecture season. Lecture at Hendon Library, The Burroughs, 8.00 pm for 8.15 pm.
Tuesday 6th December
Christmas Dinner at “The Old Bank of England”. This is a recently opened Fuller’s hostelry in Fleet Street which was previously the site of two earlier pubs, and one of the earliest buildings in Fleet Street. Before our meal we will visit the Temple Church opposite. The original church was built in 1185 by the Order of the Knights Templers on their return from the Crusades, and is said to have been modelled on the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. Details and application form enclosed.
HIDDEN FEATURE UNCOVERED AT BARNET CHURCH
In September, this year, HADAS was asked to observe building works at St John the Baptist, Chipping Barnet (TQ 24559645). The church was first referred to in 1361 (given WI- for works at the chapel) , it was rebuilt 1420, in 1875 the structure was enlarged. “At a cost of £14,000 the architect, Butterfield, did the job so thoroughly that little remains of the original church”. In this year’s works, a doorway was to be inserted through the east wall of the 15th century (north) aisle
leading into a more recent brick built privy-cum-storage area. Initial appearances of the wall were of
dressed flint outside with plaster rendering inside. When this internal plaster was removed, a dressed sandstone architectural feature was revealed. This stonework was recessed to a depth of 23cm, a skim (5mm) of plaster covering the rear of the recess, the whole having been later infilled with brick, chalk and stone rubble. Surrounding areas of the wall were also of a flint/brick mortared rubble with slight variations as indicated on the drawing. The intact bricks had shallow frogs and were late Victorian/modern in date although a brick of the Arkley type, early 19th century, was noticed in the spoil. A stone lintel seen behind the sill of the present (?Victorian) window may further indicate the presence of a similar early feature. Unfortunately, due to previous rebuilds and repairs it is difficult to give an exact date to the stonework. If it is contemporary with the surrounding brick rubble then it is likely to be post-medieval. However, if it is associated with the more consistent flint/chalk mortared wall it may be a survival from the 1 5th century. Site watching was carried out by Bill Bass, Arthur Till and Roy Walker. Thanks are given to Adrian Bream, builder; Jenny Renfrey & Robin Marsden, churchwardens; and to Barnet Museum.
MINIMART
The sun shone on this year’s extravaganza, attracting over 130 paying public, plus HADAS members. This despite a large looking German shepherd dog which had been left at the front door for safe-keeping! Dorothy reports on another successful day:
I was hopelessly behind in minimart preparations this year and had the feeling we were not going to do so well financially – but in those last two weeks several members rallied round, frantically sorting and pricing the sudden avalanche of contributions of all kinds which threatened to fill every room in my house. Members assisted Alex Jeakins to erect rails and tables beforehand and they and many others lugged the boxes into the hall. A total of 54 members helped in so many ways on the day (too many to name) and I think the rest of the Society owes them a big thank you for raising the magnificent sum of f 1,164 clear profit. We took f790 on the day, the rest was an accumulation of income from our monthly sales and wants slips, bead stringing, prior minimart sales, car boot sales and donations.
And of course, all this would not have been possible without the jam-making and baking by members and their attendance at the sale itself.
Some members ask what happens to the stuff we have over. Well, in the past John Enderby and others have ventured into the realms of car boot sales and now Gill Baker, Gwen and Tessa are carrying that on. Another member gathers surplus warm clothing for dispatch to Poland and gives us a donation in return. Other surplus goes to Father de Mello in Hackney who runs a charity shop for the needy. So rest assured, nothing is wasted.
Further donations have been gratefully received from Myfanwy Stewart, Shirley Korn and Mrs Banham who were unable to attend the minimart.
Dorothy Newbury also deserves the thanks of the Society for generously organising this event and motivating the helpers.
MEMBERS’ NEWS
· Andy Simpson made a brief appearance on the local BBC 6.30 pm news programme on 29th September. He had attended the penultimate day of operation on the Central Line branch between Epping and Ongar and was asked by the film crew for his comments on the closure.
· Brian McCarthy was lucky enough to dig with Martin Biddle at St Albans Abbey during the summer.
· And another examination success: Malcolm Stokes has passed his first year, prehistory, for the certificate of Field Archaeology.
· Richard Nichols, NADAS member and Secretary of the Mill Hill Historical Society, has written an interesting new book entitled “The Diaries of Robert Hooke, the Leonardo of London, 1635 – 1703. A short review is on page 4.
· Miss M. E. Johns, has kindly donated a much-appreciated set of Journals of the Society for Medieval Archaeology covering the years 1961-1992, fully indexed from 1957-1991. These volumes will be a very useful means of research for Society members and complement our sets of other journals such as the Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, London Archaeologist and the LAMAS Transactions.
CHURCH FARM HOUSE MUSEUM, POST EXCAVATION
As mentioned in the post-interim report it was suggested that a contour plan of the whole of the garden area would help in establishing movement and landscaping of the extent of the surviving old (medieval) land surface. It has been no surprise then to find that a few members of the HADAS excavation team have been carrying out a contour survey in the Museum’s garden. This is being done by laying out a grid, taking readings with a dumpy level at 1m intervals, these readings (hundreds of them) are reduced onto a plan. Now the fun and games begin – some poor soul has to work out by mathematical calculation, each level to produce a given contour. This heroic devotion to duty has already enabled us to see some subtle changes in the landscape not noticeable by eye.
We are also using this exercise as training for when we have to tackle the Anglo-Saxon boundary ditch on Hampstead Heath. Unfortunately, as we are restricted to using just one level , it has not been possible to call for volunteers – four being a suitable team size.
In a process known as arm-twisting we are now trying to get this business computerised by a member who knows about these things, so that we can spend more time in the pub, sorry, the field.
SPECIAL DISCOUNTS AT THE HADAS BOOKSHOP
The Society has a well-stocked (too well-stocked!) bookshop containing several titles of relevance to the archaeology and history of the area which are sure to be of interest to new members especially as they also provide a background to work undertaken by HADAS. Not-so-new members may wish to replace their old dog-eared copies or treat a friend or neighbour to a “localised” Christmas present such as “A Place in Time” or “The West Heath Report”!
A Place in Time
£4.50
The Blue Plaques of Barnet
£ 0.50
Chroniclers of the Battle of Barnet
£0.50
Those Were the Days
£ 1.00
Victorian Jubilees
£0.50
Pinning Down the Past
£ 1.50
GO Years of Local History
£1.50
While stocks last, a set of the above seven titles can be purchased
at the discounted price of £8.00, a saving of £2.00.
West Heath Report
£ 7.00
Barnet in Old Photographs
£7.99
Georgian Hadley
£ 5.00
SHIRE ARCHAEOLOGY: The following are earlier editions, which might have been revised, but nonetheless are suitable for reference purposes and ideal as an introduction to archaeology for the younger reader. Later Stone Implements (f 1.50); Flint Implements of the Old Stone Age (L1.50); Romano-British Mosaics (f1.95); Barrows in England and Wales (f1.95); Bronze Age Metalwork (f1.95); Archaeology of Gardens (f1.95); Animal Remains in Archaeology (L1.95); Wood in Archaeology (L1.95); Roman Military Tombstones (f1.95); Egyptian Mummies (f2.50).
These books will be on sale at our monthly meetings or can be purchased by arrangement with Victor Jones (087-458 6780), Alan Lawson (087-458 3827) or Roy Walker (081-367 7350).
if you are friendly with your local bookshop owner or manager, it will be very helpful to the Society if you could suggest that our books are stocked in the local history section. Please contact one of the above who will be pleased to let you have some samples, if needed, and provide details of the terms of sale.
“THE WESTMINSTER CORRIDOR” by DAVID SULLIVAN
David’s book has now been published and will be reviewed fully in the next Newsletter. Published at £17.00 by Historical Publications, this 190 page volume with 16 pages of hand-drawn colour maps examines the development of what was to become Westminster Abbey and looks closely at the charters and boundaries of the Abbey’s estates. Of interest to HADAS will be references to the Anglo-Saxon boundary ditch on Hampstead Heath which we will be surveying and which was brought to our attention by David through his researches for the book. Hendon and Hampstead have their own chapters in this Anglo Saxon history. A second volume taking the story on to AD 1400 is currently being researched.
“THE DIARIES OF ROBERT HOOKE, THE LEONARDO OF LONDON 1635 – 1703” by RICHARD NICHOLS Without the publication of these diaries Hooke might only be known for his classic illustration of the structure of a snowflake which was used on a postage stamp, and his picture of a flea used by London Transport in a campaign against fare-dodgers! However, his unique contributions to scientific development are all around us today: the universal joint, kitchen scales and the iris diaphragm in cameras – to name but a few. A friend and colleague of Pepys and Wren, over the years Hooke embarked on an astonishing diversity of ingenious experiments, ranging from brick making to blood transfusion; from meteorology to medicine. These simple experiments led directly to many of the scientific advances of this period. Not only did Hooke directly inspire many of Isaac Newton’s scientific breakthroughs, but he also devised the means by which Christopher Wren could build the dome of St Paul’s Cathedral.
Richard Nichol’s book with its striking reproductions of Hooke’s own illustrations and carefully selected diary extracts is a vivid evocation of domestic, social and scientific life in 17th century England.
Signed copies of this 184 page hardback are obtainable from the author at 29 Maxwelton Avenue, Mill Hill, London, NW7 3NB, price £15.00.
THE PROPOSED REGISTER OF HISTORIC BATTLEFIELDS
As members may have seen in the media, English Heritage have drawn up a provisional register of 56 battle sites to improve awareness and conservation. This may have been prompted when a dual carriageway was driven through, near to the Northamptonshire site at Naseby (1 645) in 1989.
The role of the register is for information purposes only, setting out maps which identify the most visually sensitive areas and making clear the extent of current public access, also to highlight features for understanding the battle. Text includes the location and description of sites, sources and interpretation of the battle, guidelines for conservation.
HADAS has received a consultation draft of the Battle of Barnet entry to the register, this gives a useful summary of the various accounts of the conflict ranging from contemporary chronicles (1471), to Frederick Charles Cass, Rector of Monken Hadley (LAMAS Transactions 1882), and more recently P W Hammond – The Battles of Barnet and Tewkesbury (1990).
The present and past topography is discussed with a suggestion that public access could be improved with the provision of a ‘trail’ and interpretive boards at suitable viewpoints eg the public footpath on Old Ford Golf Course. Barnet battlefield is still open to interpretation, the exact location is not clearly known, the number of dead and where they were buried is open to question. So it is important that the site is kept well intact, protected by Green Belt (hopefully).
“The Chroniclers of the Battle of Barnet” is available from the HADAS bookshop, price f 0.50p. see above.
THE SEARCH FOR ST ALBAN
Martin Biddle has renewed his effort to find the original shrine of St Albans (see Current Archaeology 130 and Newsletter 274). After excavating beneath the Shrine of St Albans and a site 50m south of the present cathedral nave in previous years to no avail, he has this year been digging close to the south wall of the nave. Several impressive fragments of the conventual building attached to the abbey church have been uncovered. These include the north-east angle of a `cellarium’ discovered a decade ago and now known to cover some 4,000 sq. ft. with a vaulted roof found collapsed on the floor and decorated tiles from an upper floor scattered over the remains. Part of the pillared hall for receiving guests has also been found.
Unfortunately, no sign of either Saxon or earlier buildings has appeared, nor have the densely clustered burials that might indicate a desire to be buried close to the martyr’s tomb.
“There is no evidence that either a Roman or Saxon church stood here, nor is one likely to have been located under the present nave of the abbey.” He said. “When Paul of Caen, the first post-Conquest abbot, rebuilt the church between 1077 and 1088, he seems to have done so on a green-field site”. (Abridged from a report in The Times)
ST ALBANS MUSEUM SERVICE Bill Bass
As part of the 1994 National Archaeology Day, the field archaeology section had an open day at their premises in lnkerman Road, St Albans. Upstairs they had displays and exhibitions of current work with staff on hand to show people around. Featured sites included the Celtic Warrior Tomb at Folly Lane and a Roman cremation cemetery from Harpenden. Visitors were allowed to inspect and handle various finds such as pottery, bone, etc. Downstairs there was a tour of the storage area where finds and so forth are kept on a rotatary cabinet/shelfing system. And then back to the main department where children were reassembling vessels (broken flower pots) and doing unspeakable things in the environmental section.
SEPTEMBER OUTING – HAMPSHIRE HIGHLIGHTS Sheila Woodward
Hampshire teems with places of interest and associated “famous names”. This outing concentrated on just a few – but what a splendid few! The first, our coffee stop, was Selborne, known to all nature lovers as the home of Gilbert White, 18th century author of “The Natural History of Selborne”. In 1801 it had a population of 762; by 1901 it was 7,915. Despite such growth it still has considerable charm and the National Trust cares for its adjacent countryside. Our stop was brief but we caught a glimpse of “The Wakes”, the house in which White lived for almost 70 years. It is now a museum.
En route to Alton we passed Chawton where Jane Austen lived and wrote, and Alresford immortalised by Miss Mitford’s “Our Village” and now the terminus of the Watercress Line steam railway. Alton itself is a sturdy little town with a history of occupation stretching back into prehistory. It still seems to be thriving and has not yet been completely ruined by its modern development. It is fortunate in having two excellent museums. The Allen Gallery where we began our tour is housed in 15th and 18th century buildings with an enchanting little garden where delicate sculptures of flora and fauna mingle with trees and flowers. Inside is a fine collection of pottery, paintings and silver, including ceramics ranging from a fragile porcelain teapot-cover from China to stout white salt glazeware from Germany and a good display of English tin-glazed tiles. A temporary and very entertaining exhibition featured the vagaries of beachwear during the last 100 years.
Our guide, Nicholas Riall, gave us a brief introduction to Alton: prehistoric settlements in the surrounding countryside, its heyday as a Roman town (it was probably Vindomis mentioned in the Antonine Itinerary), its re-emergence as the late Saxon market centre of Neatham (= cattlemarket), and the growth of prosperous medieval Alton, many buildings of which survive. This “Story of Alton” is admirably displayed in the Curtis Museum. Never a large town, Alton was always important as a centre of communication as its mansio and coaching inns indicate, and as a market town for Roman pottery (the Alice Holt kilns were nearby) and later for locally produced paper and beer. All this and more is covered by the Museum exhibition. the loveliest exhibit is the magnificent Saxon Alton buckle, comparable to the British Museum’s Taplow buckle. The Gallery of Childhood is delightful but there is a poignant reminder of Alton’s most famous child, 8 years old Sweet Fanny Adams, hideously murdered in 1867. With no time to do justice to the fine church of St Lawrence (Saxon font and unique Norman carvings) we sped onwards to Old Winchester Hill where Dr Peter Reynolds was waiting to give us one of his lively talks and lead us on a very wet walk round this impressive promontory fort. Views of the Isle of Wight were invisible, though the enveloping mist produced a suitably sinister prehistoric atmosphere. But Dr Reynolds will have no truck with theories of tribal warfare. Peaceful farming and harmonious relationships typify his Iron Age! The newly-sited Butser Ancient farm in Bascombe Copse continues Dr Reynolds experiments in Iron Age agriculture and animal husbandry, familiar from the old site. Old breeds of animals and fowl are kept; early types of cereals and legumes are grown, as is woad. Various types of Iron Age structures have been built and there are areas for corn grinding, pottery-making, metalworking, spinning and weaving. It is all as fascinating as ever.
Our last stop was in Petersfield where we all enjoyed tea and scones at “Fanny Anny’s” and where the more-resilient fitted in a tour of St Peter’s Church with its great Norman chancel arch. A truly splendid day, thanks to the organisation of Bill Bass and Vikki O’Connor. And congratulations and special thanks for the magnificent programme – guide – a great help in compiling this report!
TRANSLATION OF HAMPSHIRE: In the Hampshire outing programme, Vikki mentioned that according to John Barton’s “Visitors’ Guide to Hampshire”, the county was first referred to by name in 757 as “Hamtunscir” (shire of Hamtun). She asked if any member could offer any further translation.
Audree Price-Davies writes that in Anglo-Saxon “Hamtun” could mean a Chief’s town or area. Audree also wrote to the Archives assistant (R.G. Watts) at Hampshire County Council who replied: “According to ‘The Place Names of Hampshire’ by Richard Coates (Batsford, 1989), the Old English term ‘ham’ is a habitative term meaning ‘an inhabited place’, whilst ‘tun’ originally denoted ‘fence’ or ‘enclosure’, but developed to the meaning ‘enclosure round a house’. It is, however, difficult to distinguish ‘ham’ from Ihamm’ which was a topographical term denoting ‘an enclosed plot’. According to Coates, ‘Fareham’ derived from `Fearnham’ or `Fernham’, in Old English ‘bracken estate’. ‘Alton’ derived from ‘Auueltona’ or ‘Awelton’, in Old English ‘Spring Farm’.”
We seem to be left with an “enclosed inhabited place” either one or more dwellings.
It was good to see a turnout of over 50 members for the first of HADAS’s lecture evenings; Daphne Lorimer (Vice President) gladly chaired the proceedings.
As well as giving the vote of thanks, Peter Pickering also sends this report.
The 1994/5 lecture season began on October 4th with a personal view of excavating in Egypt by Dr Patricia Spencer, the Secretary of the Egypt Exploration Society. She is currently excavating a site in the Delta called Tel El Balamun, having previously been working at El Ashmuneim in Middle Egypt. At El Balamun the excavation, on behalf of the British Museum, is concentrating on a temple complex of the 25th and 30th dynasties, searching successfully for foundation deposits amid fluctuations of the water table. Finds made include a small plaque inscribed in incompetent hieroglyphs; the techniques of the ancients were not always perfect!
Dr Spencer’s lecture was entitled ‘Excavating in Egypt”, not Excavations in Egypt”. She ranged widely on her theme. She showed truly delightful slides of 19th century excavations with hordes of native labourers being supervised by the archaeologist standing on a little mound, like Napoleon on a field of battle; another slide of the same period showed an archaeologist making his home in an unexcavated tomb near the one he was excavating. Slides showing modern excavations and the home of today’s archaeologist were more striking in their resemblance to the past than in the differences, though the ratio of labourers to professionals is now lower, and there are more women among both groups actively working rather than reclining gracefully.
Relations between archaeologists and the locals now seem much closer than they were, and wedding parties provide a diversion from scraping, brushing and photographing for all. Not that Egyptology started in the 19th century; we were reminded of the interest that some later ancient Egyptians took in their early past, and of the tales they told Greek and Roman visitors, who were as struck by the grandeur of the pyramids as we are today.
Dr Spencer took a balanced view of the present state of the monuments in Egypt, accepting that modernisation, particularly of agriculture, which is so necessary for improving the lot of those who now live in Egypt, will damage monuments, and that recording is essential as the water table rises.
THE MANSHEAD ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY, DUNSTABLE Vikki O’Connor
On the overcast afternoon of Saturday 30th September, four HADAS members and Andrew and Wendy Selkirk took advantage of an invitation, circulated by Andrew, from the Manshead Archaeological Society of Dunstable to attend the opening of the Les Matthews Archaeology Centre. We were welcomed by Committee Member Joan Schneider, then joined a small party of their members in a walk on Dunstable Downs, led by Renny Hudspith. He explained that the Manshead group were formed in 1951 by local people in response to threats to sites from chalk quarrying and new housing estates, taking their name from the Manshead Hundred. Renny and Ron Fowler (their President) then pointed out the quarry, Roman villa and Matte & Bailey at Totternhoe and many other features on the misty horizon, which disappeared and reappeared as the rain clouds drifted across the Downs (thankfully passing us by).
We walked to Five Knolls, a group of seven bell & bowl barrows. It took a few minutes to work out ‘Five Knolls’, seven barrows, but nine in total! Numbers 2, 3 & 4 are bell barrows, joined by a ditch to form a `triple barrow’. There have been unrecorded excavations of numbers 3 and 4, but numbers 3 has been dug on two further occasions in 1850 and 1922 – empty grave cists and secondary cremations are recorded. R E M (Sir Mortimer) Wheeler was one of the site directors on the 1926-9 excavation of barrow number 5 by the University College Society. This revealed a late neolithic primary burial – now displayed at Luton museum; secondary cremations; and 98 other burials – thought to be gallows ‘victims’. Barrows 6 & 7 are possible pond barrows. Two further barrows numbers 8 and 9 lay within 200m of Five Knolls, on the present golf course, and were partially excavated in 1887 shortly before their destruction. Each comprised an empty central grave and 6/7 satellite graves. Beaker pottery was found in number 8.
On our way back, the Visitor Centre on the Downs with historical and natural history displays (and tea stall) was especially opened for us. We had to hurry back to Dunstable for the official opening of the Matthews Centre – named after the group’s late founder, Les Matthews. Andrew Selkirk, (a Manshead Vice-President), made a speech to the Mayor, officials, Society members and visitors who had gathered in the street, all warily eying the heavens – but the rain still held off. Andrew cut the tape and all trooped inside for refreshments and a tour of the Centre. Manshead have purchased their own premises – a two storey house which they used to rent from the council – largely thanks to a bequest from the late Les Matthews. The upstairs rooms are used for finds processing, storage, meetings, and the inevitable
administration work. Downstairs is used for larger meetings and exhibitions. The society has undertaken an impressive range of projects, including systematically fieldwalking the area around Dunstable. They regularly publish their work in the Manshead Journal, and meet two or three times a week. If we find ourselves with a lull in HADAS activities, we have an open invitation to contact Manshead and join them fieldwalking. We enjoyed the archaeology, but the welcome we received from this society made it an afternoon to remember!
A note of interest: Whilst admiring the photographic display, we met John Hyde-Trutch who repairs
and restores timber frame buildings, and who works at the Chiltern Open Air Museum, whose buildings range from an Edwardian Public Convenience to an iron Age House. Athough their season runs from March to October, there is a Victorian Christmas Celebration on 3-4th December 7 0.30am – 3pm, with Father Christmas in the Toll House, carols, hand bells, nativity play, mulled wine, roast chestnuts etc. Their full address is: Chiltern Open Air Museum, Newland Park, Gorelands Lane, Chalfont St Giles, Bucks, HP8 4AD. Information telehone line: 0494 872163.
OLDEST ENGLISH WHEEL, BRITAIN’S OLDEST PLOUGH AND A NEW METHOD OF PRESERVATION
Dr Francis Pryor and his team at Bronze Age Flag Fen, Cambridgeshire, have unearthed the earliest prehistoric wheel ever found in England. The wheel, made of alder, is 800mm in diameter, 65mm thick and held together with two oak rivets. It is 3,300 years old, predating the Holme Pierrepont, Nottinghamshire, spoked-wheel by some 400 years.
From the Neolithic henge monument at Pict’s Knowe, near Dumfries. comes another wooden object – a perfectly preserved ard. This simple plough, provisionally dated to between 4,000 and 5,000 years old, is the first wooden artifact to have been found in the ditch of a henge anywhere in Britain. Preservation of organic deposits was ensured by the waterlogged deposits which yielded perfectly preserved leaves, turves, seeds and fragments of wood. Chips cut from large timbers indicated wood-working had taken place on site and examples of wickerwork hurdles with associated postholes showed that areas of the monument had been screened perhaps to preserve the secrecy of the rituals that took place there. The ard, which has yet to be
radiocarbon dated, is believed to be earlier than other British or north European examples. Lack of wear shows that it was never used and it may have been taken to the henge specifically for deposition. Finally, as a timely aid to the above discoveries comes news of a wood-drying process from the University of St Andrews which is claimed to be an advance on the usual method which involves impregnating wooden objects with polyethyleneglycol (PEG). The new process, “supercritical drying”, requires the replacement of the water in the wood with methanol. The artifact is then placed in a chamber with carbon dioxide in the form of dry ice which when warmed becomes a supercritical fluid and dissolves out the methanol. The wood is not subjected to drying stresses under this treatment nor are associated metal components adversely affected as they would be by the use of PEG.
AUSTRALOPITHICUS RAMIDENS1S – THE MISSING LINK? Roy Walker
The discovery of the fossilised bones of one of Man’s ancestors was widely reported in the press in September usually with the cliche “missing link” somewhere in the headlines. This expression is so dated and imprecise that it detracts from the facts. For instance, the Evening Standard on 21st September has the headline “Ape to man: 4m-year-old missing link is discovered”. The article starts “What may be the `missing link’ between man and the apes has been discovered…” But when you read on it says “the scientists themselves stop just short of claiming the discovery of the missing link probably because the scientific world is already saying that this is just one creature in the long process of evolution.” So why do journalists insist on calling it the “missing link”? Let’s give the newspaper the benefit of the doubt, after all “scientists stop just short of claiming the discovery of the missing link”. However, the same item further on quotes one scientist as saying “this is not the missing link because there is no such thing….really, if you are going to make claims about the missing link, you need a whole population, not just an individual or two”. It appears the only link missing is that between the headline and the reported story.
FURTHER DIARY DATES
Museum of London, Friday lunchtime lectures, 1.10 pm – 1.50 pm
Reports on new findings from current excavations in London. 11th November: The Rose and Globe theatres
1 8th November: London’s prehistoric environment 25th November: East London Roman cemeteries
2nd December: The Jubilee Line extension – recent investigations
9th December: Archaeology at Albion Place, Clerkenwell 16th December: Recent finds research from MoLAS
Exhibition of Glass and Ceramics from the site of Henry Great Palace of Nonsuch.
At Jonathan Horne, 66c Kensington Church Street, London, W8 4BY
10.00 am – 5.30 pm, admission free. Exhibition ends on 20th December.
Essex Archaeological Symposium
To be held at Southend-on-Sea Central Library, Saturday 5th November, 10.00 am – 4.30 pm. Talks on the latest excavations and archaeological research in Essex. Tickets at f4.50 and further details from Pamela Greenwood, Newham Museum Service, Archaeology and Local History Centre, 31 Stock Street, Plaistow, London, E13 08X, telephone 081-472 4785.
Exhibitions at the British Museum
Until 21st January, 1995 (room 69A): Money under the Microscope: the application to numismatics.
This joint exhibition between the Department of Coins & Medals and Scientific Research shows how the earliest coins were made, the ingenious methods used by forgers ancient and modern, and how coins can tell us about early metal production.
Until 30th November (room 338): 16th century Chinese Porcelain, a small display of superb pieces.
LAMAS Local History Conference
“London’s Poor 1700 to 1900” Museum of London lecture theatre, Saturday 19th November at 10.00 am. See last Newsletter for details.
SCOLA Seminar
“The Prehistory of London” Saturday/Sunday 28-29th January, 1995 at the Museum of London. Further details available from Patricia Wilkinson, 081-472 4785
Training with the Compton Bassett Area Research Project
The summer courses run under the auspices of the Research Project have been publicised in previous newsletters. Andrew Reynolds, the Field Survey Director, has now sent details of the following two-day practical courses in archaeology being carried out in Wiltshire this winter. The team now has use of a disused dairy so there will be some haven from the elements.
10-11 December, 1994: An introduction to landscape archaeology.
14-15 January, 1995: Elementary archaeological surveying.
11-12 February,1995: Recording an archaeological site.
11-12 March, 1995: Archaeological illustration.
Further details from Archaeological Resources, Compton Bassett Area Research Project, The Old Dairy, Street Farm, Compton Bassett, Wiltshire, SN7 I 8SW (telephone 07249 760433).
