Newsletter 202: JANUARY 1988 Edited by: Liz Holliday
PROGRAMME
Important reminder: lectures will be held on first TUESDAY each month
Tuesday 5th January Work for the Protection of Ancient Buildings
Talk by Philip Venning. Philip, a HADAS member for many years, is Secretary of S.P.A.B.
Tuesday 12th January Visit to The Emperor’s Terracotta Warriors (Details below)
Tuesday 2nd February The Romans in Rumania – Margaret Roxan
Tuesday 1st March Tythe Maps – Geraldine Beach
Saturday 23rd April Morning tour of St. Lawrence, Whitchurch (Edgware) – conducted by Sheila Woodward
THE EMPEROR’S TERRACOTTA WARRIORS
The visit is on but is now on Tuesday afternoon at 2p.m. Will all those who have booked meet at the Royal Horticultural Society’s OLD HALL, Vincent Square, SW1. Instructions as follows –
“On arrival, the group leader only should go to the group booking entrance at the centre of the hall, collect an admission voucher and return to ‘The Coach’ for the rest of the party.” As we don’t have a coach, presumably we gather outside.
Will members who have not yet paid please send cheques, payable to HADAS, by return as the tickets have already been paid for. Adults £4.50; OAP £3.
CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS Marjorie Errington
A hostelry with medieval atmosphere on an ancient site within the walls of Roman London was the perfect choice for an archaeological function. A comfortable coach manned by a cheerful driver had been arranged, for our journey to the Museum of London, and we arrived in good time for a sherry or coffee before making our way to the lecture hall.
Dr. Francis Sheppard led us through the history of the two London Museums with extracts and. illustrations from his book. The Guildhall Museum which began as an adjunct to the library in 1826 and. the National Museum founded in 1911 which was located at Lancaster House until 1939. After 1945 both museums had temporary quarters – The Guildhall at the Royal Exchange; The London Museum at Kensington Palace – until they came together in 1975. Transporting some of the larger artefacts created problems but now they are all together well presented for our interest and pleasure.
After the talk and a brisk walk in the bright and frosty evening, we received a warm welcome on our arrival at “The Crowders Well”. The restaurant below stairs (in the well so to speak!) was cosy and Christmassy – the room and tables attractively decorated with hats, crackers and streamers. With good food, and liquid refreshment, the buzz of conversation and laughter soon filled the room. We left with a feeling of well-being. Our thanks go to Dorothy for a well- organised, happy occasion.
OPPORTUNITY FOR STARDOM
The Society has been asked (by the BBC) if six members would like to be part of the audience for a forthcoming edition of Sir Robin Day’s QUESTION TIME. The programme will be recorded on a. Thursday evening (date not known yet), between 7.45pm and 9.15pm at the Greenwood Theatre, Guy’s Hospital Complex, which is close to London Bridge Station. Coffee and sandwiches will be available from 6.30. If you would like to represent HADAS, send your name and address to Brian Wrigley, The Mermaid, 21 Woodcroft Avenue, NW7 2AA as soon as possible. The first six names received will carry the flag for the rest of us.
LUCILLE ARMSTRONG
Members will be saddened to hear that Mrs. Lucille Armstrong died suddenly early in December. She was nationally recognised for her knowledge of dance, a subject which she had studied and taught for over fifty years. She will be greatly missed, not only by her pupils but by her many friends within the Society.
BROCKLEY HILL Gill Braithwaite
The report on our month at Brockley Hill, which I’m afraid ended up rather longer than planned, has been produced as a separate leaflet instead of part of the Newsletter. I would like to take this opportunity to express my warmest thanks to the other HADAS committee members who helped me organise the dig, in particular to Brian Wrigley, who as “chief assistant organiser” provided invaluable help and support, as well as master-minding all the Electrical Resistivity Metering. Also to Robert Michel, the other “assistant organiser”, who was a tower of strength in every meaning of the phrase, and to Victor Jones and Jean Shelling who were always there when needed, and immensely helpful.
On their behalf, and on my own, I would like to heartily thank all the following old and new members who came to give us a hand, either digging, field-walking, finds-processing or resistivity metering: Tessa Smith (last remaining member of the Roman Group, and great tea lady and rape planter as well as everything else), Myfanwy Stewart (our only prehistorian, who was responsible almost single- handed for turning our Roman dig into a prehistoric one, and finding the famous Early Bronze Age arrow head in Trench C and most of the flints from the field-walking), Wendy Baker, Helen Gordon, June Porges (who obtained the invaluable maps of the 1970 Gas Main), Brian Macarthy, Vicky O’Connor, Howard Bowdler (whose metal detector in our trenches and on the spoil heaps was a very useful tool), Charles Reed, Marjorie St Clair, Jack Goldenfeld, Fred King, Trevor Tucker, Mike Bardill, Mick Streatfield, Mark Hillier, Brian Marston, Peter Pilkington, Jan Bryant, Eleanor Witherow, Jane Jones, David. Trinchero, Anne Young, and any others who I may have omitted to mention. Brian and I also owe a big thank-you to Dan Lampert and to my brother Anthony Robinson, who provided invaluable help and professional knowledge at the very beginning when we were faced with the daunting problem of trying to establish the exact position of the Water Pipe Line across the field. This was no easy matter in this huge, featureless field, with almost all its old hedgerows now ploughed-out and not a peg in sight.
Lastly I would just like to say that we were most grateful to the farmer, Mr. Shepherd, for generously allowing us the use of his field, despite the fact that it had already been sown. We were also very glad of the friendly support of various local inhabitants, who came with their children to look and give encouragement, one of them providing useful information about past earth-moving and. levelling operations in the field.. Another brought the fruits of his metal detecting – a perfect coin of Flaustina II and two tiny bronzes: a minute winged Cupid and a very fine head of Jupiter Ammon. Apparently people may come and. metal detect just as they can come and. shoot pigeons, on a financial basis. As metal detectors don’t go down much more than six inches and the field is already so massively disturbed by deep-ploughing and levelling operations, hopefully there is not much harm that they can do. It was clear though, that Brockley Hill is quite a favourite hunting ground. Perhaps more people can be encouraged to come and show us their finds. In this respect, as in many others, our being at Brockley Hill was a very positive factor.
ARTISTIC ARCHAEOLOGIST
Congratulations to Helen Lampert, whose painting ”Ghost House”* was selected for the recent Barnet Artists’ Exhibition held at North Finchley Library – no mean feat as 340 works were submitted, arid only 61 chosen for exhibition.
*(Any sub-conscious influence by the spirits of Roman potters past I wonder …? Ed)
LIBRARY LECTURES
The Immortal Swan A programme of rare film recording performances by “Anna Pavlova ‘will be introduced by Leonard. Newman, Assistant Curator of the Pavlova museum at Ivy House, at 8.15pm on Wednesday, 3rd February at North Finchley Library, Ravensdale Avenue, N.12
The Welsh Harp Dr, Leo Batten will be speaking at Hendon Library on Wednesday 24th February about the wildlife and plants of this valuable local habitat, created 100 years ago by the Regents Canal Company as a reservoir for their London canal network.
MORE LOCAL MAPS
The splendid series of large-scale 19th Century Ordnance Survey maps reprinted by Alan Godfrey now includes The Welsh Harp, Edgware and. Whetstone. Our well-known secret agent (code name PR) has “found time in between reading the Thousand and One Nights to provide the notes which accompany the Whetstone map. Archivists Joanne Corden and Pamela Taylor have contributed notes for The Welsh Harp and Edgware. The new maps and the others so far available may be bought from local libraries and The Local History Library, price £1.20 each.
Alan Godfrey, the publisher, hopes to complete the series with other sheets covering the rest of the Borough. Unfortunately it is very difficult to find good, clean, uncreased copies of the originals. If any member has copies of the 1890s OS maps in good condition please contact Pamela or Joanne at the Local History Library- they will fall on your neck in gratitude;
