Newsletter

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HADAS DIARY

Tuesday 9 March – An Urban Roman Site in Colchester – lecture by Ben Holloway (field archaeologist and site supervisor for Colchester Archaeological Trust) about last year’s excavations in Colchester where finds included a 2nd C Roman town house. Ben Holloway has also worked on the Isle of Man and the west coast of Scotland.

Tuesday 13 April – Hendon – Field and Factory – lecture by Hugh Petrie

Tuesday 11 May – Roman Roads – lecture by Harvey Sheldon

Tuesday 8 June – AGM

July – HADAS long weekend in Cumbria.

Lectures start at 8 pm in the drawing room (ground floor) of Avenue House, East End Road. Finchley. N3. Buses including the 82, 143, 260 and 326 pass close by along Bollards Lane, a five to ten minute walk from Finchely Central Tube Station.

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THE PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES SCHEME PETER NICHOLSON

Our first lecture of 2004 was given by Nicole Weller, who spoke about the Portable Antiquities Scheme, which arises from the 1996 Treasure Act. Before the 1996 Act, the only formal framework relating to archaeological finds was the ancient common law of treasure trove, which was concerned only with objects made of precious metal and determining whether they should become Crown property. The foundation of the 1996 Act was the recognition that archaeological finds have a value other than that of any bullion they may contain, in the information they can provide, and that this informatkion is worth collecting. The Act extended the definition of “treasure” to include items of high significance which were not previously covered, for instance two or more metal prehistoric objects, of any composition, found together now count as treasure, and, as before, there is a legal requirement to report the finding of treasure to the Coroner to have its ownership determined. Evem under the extended definition, most interesting archaeological finds will not count as treasure, and to deal with these the Portable Antiquities Scheme was set up. This is a completely voluntary scheme set up to promote the recording of archaeological objects found by non-professionals of all sorts, especially metal detectorists, who in the past have had little contact with the archaeological community. It operates through a network of Finds Liaison Officers gradually built up since 1997, which now covers all the counties of England and Wales. Our lecturer, Nicole Weller, is the recently-appointed Finds Liaison Officer (and also Community Archaeologist) for London, stationed at the Museum of London. Nicole is happy to look at archaeological finds of all kinds, as she demonstrated by casting a professionl eye over the multifarious small finds brought to the meeting by members of the Society, which added to the interest of the evening. Finds submitted to her under the PAS will be identified, with the help of other staff at the Museum of London where necessary, and a written report provided. All items prior to 1650 are recorded on a database (with safeguards against unscrupulous interest) and will in due course be added to the Sites and Monuments Record. Some items prior to 1714 will also be recorded, and no-one should be deterred from submitting finds because of doubts about their eligibility for recording – all are welcome. After examination, items will be returned to their finders, unless the objects are shown to be treasure, in which case fair compensation will be paid. Although the scheme has only recently started to operate in our area, since it began in 1997 more than 150,000 finds have been recorded, so it can fairly be described as an established success. The good news: there is a nationwide scheme gathering large amounts of information which would formerly have been lost, and locally we have an approachable and enthusiastic Finds Liaison Officer. And the (possibly) bad news? Funding for the scheme is only guaranteed for three more years. Let us hope by then its value will be as apparent to those who control the purse-strings as it is to us.

PEOPLE IN THE NEWS by Audree Price-Davies

Mrs Ann Saunders, a past President of HADAS, is a new entry in Who Who 2004. She was awarded the MBE in 2002 for her work as voluntary editor of journals for the Costume Society and the London Topographical Society. Mrs Saunders said “Clothing is very important, because we say a lot in the way we dress, in the way we present ourselves to the world. Textile production has been a staple industry for a very long time. The London Topographical Society has been going since 1880, and every year we publish one thing – it might be a book or a map.” Mrs Saunders teaches the History of London at City University, and is currently writing a history of the Merchant Taylors.

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OTHER SOCIETIES’ LECTURES AND EVENTS by Eric Morgan

Exhibitions

Saturday 28 February-Sunday 23 May: Church Farmhouse Museum, Greyhound Hill, Hendon, NW4. Local Treasures. Some of the historical documents and objects held by the Museum and Council’s local studies and archives. Meetings

Wednesday 3 March, 5 pm: British Archaeological Association, Society of Antiquaries. Burlington House, Piccadilly. W1 The Colonia Family and the Flamboyant Gothic Style in Burgos 1440-1540. Talk by Dr Steven Brindle.

Thursday 4 March, 7.30 pm: London Canal Museum, 12-13 New Wharf Road, Kings Cross, London N1. Bournevilles – Chocolate to Cadburys. Talk by Richard Hill. Concessions: £1.25.

Saturday 6 March, 11 am – 2 pm: LAARC – Mortimer Wheeler House, 46 Eagle Wharf Road, N1. Glass – Open Day. Find out about the fascinating glass collection, and take a tour of the new stores … plus how to spot fakes.

Sunday 7 March 2.30 pm: Heath and Hampstead Society, Burgh House, New End Square, NW3. History of archaeology of the Heath. Walk led by Michael Hammerson (Highgate archaeologist and HADAS member). Donation: £1.

Monday 8 March 3pm: – Barnet and District Local History Society, Wyburn Room, Wesley Hall, Stapylton Road, Barnet. The End of the Line – Story of the Railway service to the GNL Cemetry. Talk by Martin Dawes.

Wednesday 10 March 7 pm: RAF Museum, Grahame Park Way, NW9. A chance to see rare and exclusive footage from the archives of RAF Museum.

Wednesday 10 March, 8.15 pm: Mill Hill Historical Society Harwood Hall, Union Church, The Broadway, NW7. Claude Grahame White and Hendon Aircraft Factory. Talk by Edward Sargent.

Friday 12th March, 8 pm: Enfield Archaeological Society, Jubilee Hall, Parsonage Lane / junction .of Chase Side, Enfield. Rock Art of Prehistoric Britain. Talk by Fay Stevens. Visitors £1.

Wednesday 17 March, 6.30 pm: London and Middlesex Archaeological Society. Interpretation Unit, Museum of London, 150 London Wall, EC2. Brunel, the GWR and the Making of Paddington Station (1836-55). Dr Steven Brindle (English Heritage).

Wednesday 17 March, 8 pm: Willesden Local History Society, Willesden Suite, Library Centre, 95 High Road, NW 10. Where Was the Well-on-the-Hill? (Recognition of Saxon geographical features). Talk by Zäe Ayle.

Friday 19th March: City of London Archaeological Society. St Olave’s Parish Hall, Mark Lane, EC3. The Archaeology of Armageddon – The Great War. Talk by Andy Robertshaw,

Saturday 20th March 11 am – 1pm and 2pm – 4pm: LAARC, Mortimer Wheeler House, 46 Eagle Wharf Road, NI. Ceramics: Open Day. Explore the ceramics collection – how it’s stored, conserved, researched and documented; and attend a Roman pottery demonstration.

Saturday 20 March, 10.30am – 12.30pm:. Highgate Wood Information Hut. A demonstration of a charcoal kiln.

Wednesday 24th March, 8 pm:. Friern Barnet & District Local History Society, St John’s Church Hall Friern Barnet Lane, N12. A Million Years at STC (the History of Standard Telephones & Cables). A talk by Stan Springate.

Thursay 25 March, 8 pm: The Finchley Society, Drawing Room, Avenue House, East End Road, N3 Recycling Progress in Barnet – Not A Moment Too Soon. A talk by Fred Woodworth (London Borough of Barnet).

Saturday 27 March, 11 am – 5 pm: LAMAS CONFERENCE, Museum of London Lecture Theatre. HADAS will have a stand there (Please see February Newsletter).

Saturday 27 March, 11 am – 1 pm: LAARC. Mortimer Wheeler House, Eagle Wharf Road, N 1. A Local History for Greater London – Conference by LAMAS. Local History Committee. 2 representatives from HADAS are invited to discuss how LAMAS could be of assistance to HADAS and research potential of Societies combined to provide “joined up” local history for London. Dr Cathy Ross (MoL) will talk on Museum’s projected 20th C Gallery, Wartime Evacuation, parish records. Further tour of ceramics and glass store, coffee and biscouts wioll be served. Apply ASAP to Anne Hignell, Sec., 24 Orchard Close, Ruislip, Middx. HA4 7LS.

Sunday 28 March 10.30 am: Enfield Preservation Society, Jubilee Hall, Junction Parsonage Lane/Chase Side, Enfield. Beneath the City’s Streets – London’s Unseen History. Talk by Mr P. Lawrence.

Thursday 1st April, 8 pm: Pinner Local History Society, Village Hall, Chapel Lane car park, Pinner. The “Golden Age” of Thames Finds – the social and antiquarian background to finds recovered from the Thames. Talk by Jonathan Cotton.

Sunday 28 March 2004 – 1100 am: – a walk along the ancient boundaries in Kenwood, led by Malcolm Stokes for English Heritage. To book, phone Kenwood House : 020 8348 1286. £3.50 (concessions £2.50). Meet at the main entrance to the house itself.

ADVANCE NOTICE: Sunday 9 May, 1-5 pm Church End Festival, Avenue House grounds, East End Road, Finchley. HADAS will have a stand here.