Welcome!

The new format of the Newsleer seems to have found favour with our readers, and - even moreto the point - so has the content. To take just one example, a number of readers of Issue 2 werequick to get in touch with Stuart Brookes about the Landscapes of Governance project, and four groups are now trialling his recording kit in order to put forward possible assembly sites in theSouth West. Stuart has promised to keep us informed of their progress, thereby providing the perfect example of how we want the Newsleer to operate: rstly by bringing new techniques, projects and ndings to the aenon of the wider archaeological community across the region;secondly by increasing the number of people acvely involved in archaeological acvies, and thirdly by providing feed-back, and thus reducing the isolaon of individual projects within theextensive area that we cover. Our hope is that the Newsleer will become a clearing house for news, informaon, ideas and opportunies of interest to anyone in the South West with an in-terest in archaeology in its broadest denion. That is why we devote so much space to contact details, not least our own – see the back page for more, or visit our website at

www.britarch.ac.uk/cbasw/.

Issue 3 June 2010

THE FESTIVAL OF BRITISHARCHAEOLOGY 2010

Every year, the Council for Brish Archaeol-ogy organises an

“annual extravaganza of heritage events

”

to showcase the very bestof Brish archaeology. The Fesval bringstogether hundreds of special acvies, whichare organised and hosted by museums, lo-cal sociees, naonal and countryside parks,universies, and heritage organisaons acrossthe UK. The individual items include excava-on open days, behind-the-scenes tours, fam-ily fun days, hands-on acvies, guided walks,talks and nds idencaon, all of whichshare the overall objecve of presenng ev-eryone with the opportunity to learn abouttheir local heritage, to see archaeology in ac-on, and to get involved.

The

Fesval of Brish Archaeology 2010

isbeing held from

Saturday 17th July to Sun-day 1st August

, and the CBA is determinedto make it the biggest celebraon of archae-ology yet - and that means geng as manypeople involved as possible. In 2009 over650 events were held by archaeological andheritage organisaons and sociees acrossthe UK, and we in the South West need to bethinking about how we can take part, both asthe organisers of events and as visitors to oneof the hundreds of happenings that are takingplace during the Fesval fortnight.Although the Fesval is coordinated by theCouncil for Brish Archaeology, it is enrelyreliant on the parcipaon and support of local heritage groups, sociees and organi-saons. Holding events during the Fesvalpresents an excellent opportunity to promotethe work of local sociees and organisaons,to engage with local communies and tohelp members of the wider public to becomeinvolved in archaeology and the historic envi-ronment as a whole.Anyone interested in organising an eventas part of the Fesval 2010 should start byvising the dedicated website set up by theCBA at

hp://fesval.britarch.ac.uk/

. Onthe website one can see the events thathave been registered so far this year, reviewthose that took place in 2009, and consultthe secon for event organisers (accessibledirect at

hp://fesval.britarch.ac.uk/organ-iser

). This provides guidance on vital topicssuch as markeng, insurance, managing themedia and keeping a record of your acvi-es. Sample publicity materials for the 2010events will be available shortly. This area of the site also provides guidance on registeringan acvity, complete with a downloadableform. The deadline for inclusion in the printedbooklet has passed, but organisers are urgedto complete and return the registraon formby email as soon as possible, to ensure theirevents are listed on the website in good me.

for further informaon on the Fesval of Archaeology:contact

CBA

web

hp://fesval.britarch.ac.uk

AN EXAMPLE FROM THE SOUTH WEST:THE MENDIP HILLS FESTIVAL OFARCHAEOLOGY

Wells and Mendip Museum and the MendipHills AONB were quick o the mark with theircontribuon to the Fesval, and have alreadyappointed

Jane Hill

as the Coordinator of theMendip Hills Fesval of Archaeology. Janehas worked as Archaeology Curator for NorthSomerset in Weston-super-Mare for the last15 years, having previously worked for theMuseums Associaon and the Royal Commis-

sion for the Historical Monuments of England,as well as excavang Roman and medievalsites in Hampshire.A vital part of Jane’s new role is to encour-age local people and organisaons with aninterest in archaeology to organise events asa way of sharing their passion with residentsand tourists alike. She will then organise a joint publicity campaign by means of a singleleaet covering all the events in the area. Allkinds of acvies have already been pencilledin, both indoors and out, ranging from a ndsidencaon session at Wells Museum, tocaving trips, guided walks and excavaons inthe surrounding countryside and villages.Talking about her new role, Jane said “TheMendip Hills are rich in archaeological re-mains, ranging from the famous caves of Cheddar and Wookey, to the Neolithic hengemonuments of Priddy circles, traces of a Ro-man fort and amphitheatre at Charterhouse,and medieval eld systems at Westbury-sub-Mendip. The built heritage is also fascinang.Axbridge was a fored town or burgh in the10th century and went on to become an im-portant medieval market town. Walk aroundAxbridge today and you can see mber-framed 15th century houses, including KingJohn’s Hunng Lodge, which houses a mu-seum that is well worth vising.”Asked about her favourite sites, Jane men-oned two, both dang from the Iron Age.The rst is Dolebury hillfort at Churchill,where a steep climb to the top is rewardedby magnicent views taking in other hillforts,as well as Brean Down and the North Somer-set coast. Another is nearby Read’s Cavern,which remained undiscovered for many years.When cavers did nd it, they uncovered skel-etons, poery, a set of iron shackles, a latchlier, texle implements and - most impor-tantly - a brooch, which helped to date thewhole assemblage to the late Iron Age. Thecave had a series of hearths, suggesng thatthe inhabitants had been using it for metal-working. Unfortunately a rock fall, which mayhave been due to an earthquake, caused theentrance to become blocked up, thus trappingthe inhabitants, unl their fate was revealedtwo thousand years later! It is stories likethis one, which the fesval will bring alive topeople of all ages and walks of life.

for further informaon about the Mendip HillsFesval of Archaeology:contact

Jane Hill

address

The Nook, 23 Coombe Road, Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset BS23 2QR

janehill1@sky.com

phone

01934 643022

MORE CBA NEWS: THE 2010 WEEKENDEVENT IN CORNWALL, FROM 15th TO17th OCTOBER

Each year the CBA holds a Weekend Event in adierent part of the UK, and which in the pasthas coincided with the Council’s Annual Gen-eral Meeng. The Weekend draws togetherCBA members, trustees, sta and others, plusexperts on the archaeology of the chosenregion.In previous years the Weekend has beenbased in Belfast, Liverpool, Leicester, Salis-bury, York, London and Shropshire, and theCBA is pleased to announce that this year’sevent will take place in

Cornwall in mid Octo-ber 2010.

The focus will be on the county’s uniquearchaeological heritage, from the prehistoriclandscapes of Bodmin Moor, to the miningindustry of the 18th-20th centuries. There