Project published in British Archaeology Magazine March/April 2015
The project has had an article published in the Spring edition of British Archaeology magazine, published by the Council for British Archaeology (CBA).
The article is in no. 141 March/April 2015 edition and available to buy at most newsagents or through the CBA if you join. I hope you enjoy reading about the results and key findings of the community project.
The article is in no. 141 March/April 2015 edition and available to buy at most newsagents or through the CBA if you join. I hope you enjoy reading about the results and key findings of the community project.
Merseyside Archaeological Society Conference 18 October 2014
The Society is hosting a conference on Saturday 18 October, exploring recent archaeological work in the region.
"The Archaeology of Merseyside: recent work in the region and beyond"
Saturday 18 October
10.00 - 16.15
Museum of Liverpool
Pier Head, Liverpool
A range of speakers will be attending, presenting talks on various topics including the Prehistoric Formby Footprints, the Mesolithic site at Lunt Meadows, recent Roman treasure hoards from Cheshire, and the Rainford's Roots community archaeology project.
BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL. Please fill in the attached booking form and return, with payment, to Sam Rowe:
"The Archaeology of Merseyside: recent work in the region and beyond"
Saturday 18 October
10.00 - 16.15
Museum of Liverpool
Pier Head, Liverpool
A range of speakers will be attending, presenting talks on various topics including the Prehistoric Formby Footprints, the Mesolithic site at Lunt Meadows, recent Roman treasure hoards from Cheshire, and the Rainford's Roots community archaeology project.
BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL. Please fill in the attached booking form and return, with payment, to Sam Rowe:
conference_application_form.doc | |
File Size: | 56 kb |
File Type: | doc |
'Elizabethan Extravaganza: Tudor Craft Day', Saturday 2nd August
The project hosted a Tudor craft day on Saturday 2 August at Rainford Village Hall. The day featured a host of
demonstrators and different crafts for people to make and take home.
Stalls included candle making, basket making, weaving, dyeing, grinding grain, clay-pipe making and pottery making. Horus Birds of Prey set up on the front lawn which enabled visitors to hold the birds and helped attract passers-by into the hall. Visitors were treated to an array of period songs by the talented Squeake’s Noyse. The children’s craft table remained busy throughout the day and Elizabeth Morris from ‘A Tale to Tell’ told a range of mythical children’s stories.In just 6 hours the event saw more than 300 visitors pass through the doors; the poor weather clearly hadn’t put people off from venturing out! The Merseyside Archaeological Society who run the Rainford project is delighted that the event was so successful and the team has had many positive comments from visitors:
“the event…was out of this world! My children and I had a wonderful time, the activities were really engaging and educational and fun.”
The event took a lot of organising and a big thank you to the volunteers who helped the day to run smoothly. The Society would also like to show their thanks to all the demonstrators who shared their skills and knowledge and helped to make the event such a success.
Stalls included candle making, basket making, weaving, dyeing, grinding grain, clay-pipe making and pottery making. Horus Birds of Prey set up on the front lawn which enabled visitors to hold the birds and helped attract passers-by into the hall. Visitors were treated to an array of period songs by the talented Squeake’s Noyse. The children’s craft table remained busy throughout the day and Elizabeth Morris from ‘A Tale to Tell’ told a range of mythical children’s stories.In just 6 hours the event saw more than 300 visitors pass through the doors; the poor weather clearly hadn’t put people off from venturing out! The Merseyside Archaeological Society who run the Rainford project is delighted that the event was so successful and the team has had many positive comments from visitors:
“the event…was out of this world! My children and I had a wonderful time, the activities were really engaging and educational and fun.”
The event took a lot of organising and a big thank you to the volunteers who helped the day to run smoothly. The Society would also like to show their thanks to all the demonstrators who shared their skills and knowledge and helped to make the event such a success.
Background to the project
Group of volunteers washing finds. ©National Museums Liverpool
In autumn 2011, the Society, along with archaeology staff from National Museums Liverpool, carried out a community excavation in a resident’s garden in Rainford, St Helens. The site came to light when the owner discovered an almost complete 17th century cup, or ‘tyg’, when digging up a tree stump. An excavation took place to investigate whether any more vessels or deposits lay undiscovered in the garden.
It was hard to predict what the excavation may uncover. Only three small test pits were dug, but in a short space of time, excavators uncovered a deposit including many tableware vessels. Distributed amongst the vessels were also pieces of kiln furniture. What they had uncovered was a dump of waste pottery from a kiln site. As the pottery was made of local clay from local sources, it was evident that this material must have been made fairly close by. The Society and the museum catalogued and analysed the pottery from the excavation, and a report is currently in preparation, to be published by the Merseyside Archaeological Society in 2013.
An outreach programme developed from this excavation, including finds processing sessions for volunteers, talks, and workshop events to learn about the excavation and to handle the objects discovered.
Due to the success of this excavation, and the interest it received from local residents and volunteers, the Society decided to develop a more detailed project aimed at investigating further into the post medieval potting industry that flourished in Rainford. The Society put in a bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund in June 2012, and was awarded in September. The Society was ‘delighted’ to receive this generous grant from HLF, and plan to carry out further fieldwork activities and community events over the coming months.
It was hard to predict what the excavation may uncover. Only three small test pits were dug, but in a short space of time, excavators uncovered a deposit including many tableware vessels. Distributed amongst the vessels were also pieces of kiln furniture. What they had uncovered was a dump of waste pottery from a kiln site. As the pottery was made of local clay from local sources, it was evident that this material must have been made fairly close by. The Society and the museum catalogued and analysed the pottery from the excavation, and a report is currently in preparation, to be published by the Merseyside Archaeological Society in 2013.
An outreach programme developed from this excavation, including finds processing sessions for volunteers, talks, and workshop events to learn about the excavation and to handle the objects discovered.
Due to the success of this excavation, and the interest it received from local residents and volunteers, the Society decided to develop a more detailed project aimed at investigating further into the post medieval potting industry that flourished in Rainford. The Society put in a bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund in June 2012, and was awarded in September. The Society was ‘delighted’ to receive this generous grant from HLF, and plan to carry out further fieldwork activities and community events over the coming months.
All text and images are © 2012 National Museums Liverpool.