Adventures
in Finds and Post Excavation
Kurt and
Sandra are York-based UK archaeologists, each with over 30 years of experience
in British archaeology. Contact them on sgnuk@yahoo.co.uk
Kurt has worked on urban and rural archaeological
sites of all eras, specialising in post excavation and the interpretation and
publication of complex archaeology. Notable sites include Beddington
Roman Villa in Surrey, Castleshaw
Roman Fort, the post excavation and publication of Viking and Medieval Coppergate York, excavation of St
Leonard’s Hospital York, the Headless Romans of
Driffield Terrace, York, and the Community Dig at Ravenglass Vicus, Cumbria.
Follow Kurt on Twitter @postexkurt
Sandra concentrates on the study of artefacts. Ceramic
building materials (aka brick and tile) are her particular specialisation, and
she is the author of many (mostly grey literature) reports concerning this
important, but unglamorous, class of find. She has also developed an interest
in local history, including gasholders, First World War auxiliary/VAD Hospitals
and windmills. Follow Sandra on Twitter @tegels
NEWS
2018
February
– March A busy two months, with
Kurt cleaning up and planning the frigidarium in York Roman Bath Museum. Sandra contributed the YAYAS-funded display board about World War
One Auxiliary Military Hospitals in Central
York and a St John’s Brassard (patch supplied by Museum of the Order of St John) to the
pop-up exhibition at York’s Bar
Convent. She is also supplying information for performances at Temple Newsam during May 5th- 7th about the
St John’s VAD Hospital there during World War One.
January
– Lots
of archaeological work is planned, including at the Roman Bath Museum.
Sandra has been sorting out copyright notices for a large number of requested
images from YAYAS’s Evelyn
Collection. Those requesting the
images include a local historian, a local museum and Historic England
2017
December
–
Sandra & Kurt volunteered at the Roman Bath Museum.
They investigated the Frigidarium finding a clutch of
tiles with signatures and hobnail imprints. Further work will include cleaning
up the area and recording it archaeologically.
Sandra met with a local historian and Historic England, spending a whole
day showing them the collection.
November
–
Sandra has returned to scanning old glass plates which are part of the Yorkshire Architectural and York
Archaeological Society’s Evelyn
Collection. This group is the Joseph Duncan Collection of late 19th
century images. Kurt will be writing up this season’s excavations at
Ravenglass, and look out for a blog on Digging for Ravenglass. Both Sandra and Kurt will be helping to
re-jig York’s Roman
Bath Museum.
October
–
Kurt and Sandra had a busy month, but most of it did not involve archaeology or
history. Kurt spoke to the Cawood Heritage
group about the evidence for Roman Cawood. At the end of the month Sandra took
down the display board about the First World War Auxiliary Military Hospitals
in Castle Museum’s Home Comforts Exhibition.
Just days later, it appeared on the Yorkshire
Architectural and York Archaeological Society’s stall at the CBA Yorkshire Showcase event.
September
–
Kurt and Sandra had five days in Ravenglass, during
which they worked on various aspects of the village’s Roman heritage. Kurt concentrated on digging test pits
with the help of local diggers. Sandra
sorted out a large collection of Beach Walking finds so that they can be sent
on to specialists. Follow their adventures on the Digging for Ravenglass blog.
Sandra will be working on some cbm from Hull
for AOC, and speaking at the Cawood Heritage
group meeting.
August
– Kurt wrote
a design project for forthcoming small-scale excavations at Ravenglass
looking for further evidence of the vicus, as
well as researching general aspects of the archaeology of York. Sandra helped install the exhibition of Home
Comforts: the role of the Red Cross Auxiliary Hospitals in North Yorkshire
1914-1919 in the Community Room at the Castle Museum, York. She
compiled the York display board (York being in the West Yorkshire division,
under the auspices of the Order of St
John) using images from the Hanstock
Collection of Yorkshire Architectural
and York Archaeological Society. She
also made a slide presentation for the exhibition, including images from North
Yorkshire, the York auxiliary hospitals and an audio track of ‘Keep
the Home Fires Burning’ recorded in 1917.
July –
Kurt
went to Portugal and had a great time exploring the heritage of the Douro
Valley. Sandra taught a brick recording workshop in Cawood and people will be
recording brick in the village; there will be a results session in September.
Sandra also posted a piece on the Day of
Archaeology project.
June – Kurt
and Sandra took part in the Eboracum Roman Festival demonstrating crafts and games,
as well as wearing the red security t-shirts on the Roman parades through
York. Kurt is planning his trip to
Portugal under the Erasmus
PEATS programme, and is set to discover how archaeologists train and work
in Portugal. Meanwhile, he continues to plan possible further work at
Ravenglass, and Sandra is working on the East Yorkshire tile as well as
planning a brick
recording day in Cawood.
May – Kurt
has continued working as a supervisor at the University of York’s Archaeology
Department’s Malton excavation. The dig was filmed and excerpts can be found on
the Department’s Facebook
page. On 19th May, Headless
Gladiators of York (link to Channel 5, requires registration) will be
shown on Channel 5 at 8pm – Kurt was a consultant for the programme.
Sandra continues with reporting on the CBM from
East Yorkshire, as well as researching York’s First World War Auxiliary
Hospitals. Both are planning their
participation in this year’s Eboracum Roman Festival, 1st-4th
June.
April – Kurt
is working on writing up the small trench at Ravenglass
last year, as well as formulating proposals for work there this year. Later on
in April he will be supervising University of York students on the Archaeology Department’s dig at
Malton
Sandra is working on a small assemblage of
ceramic building materials from a site in East Yorkshire for the University
of Hull. Also research for the
article on York First World War VAD hospitals continues.
March-
Kurt’s paper ‘The Roman main road to Chester and the civilian settlement in
York’ has been published in York Historian,
Volume 33, 2016. He is now writing
up the small excavation that took place in Ravenglass
in 2016, which he will then send to the local community. He is still working on
the Roman deposit modelling project with John Oxley at the City
of York Council.
Sandra has taken delivery of the brick and tile
from a site in East Yorkshire. Research for the York VAD Hospitals continues.
February
–
Kurt is finishing off his Deposit Modelling York case study for forthcoming
Historic England guidelines
Sandra is now working on an article about the
York VAD hospitals. She will also be helping with the Waterproof
Memories project on 24th-25th February
January – Kurt is just
finishing his Roman Road article for York Historian. Lesley
Collett has kindly agreed to do the illustrations
for this piece. Sandra is writing the text for the York VAD Hospital board for
the Home Comforts exhibition at Castle Museum later this year.
The board may be finished in time to be shown at the CBA
Yorkshire Annual Symposium in February.
2016
December
– Kurt
is working on his paper on the Roman Road in the Tanner Row area of York. Sandra is still researching the First World
War Auxiliary hospitals in York
November –
Kurt is hoping to consult the evidence for the date of Wilmott’s excavation at
Tanner Street/Brewer’s Arms, York. He is also completing a paper on York Deposit Modelling with John
Oxley for the Historic England
guidelines. He will be finishing an article about the Roman road in York’s
Colonia for York Historian. Sandra continues to research York’s first
World War Voluntary
Aid Detachment (VAD) hospitals for a display board, funded by YAYAS, that will be part of the ‘Home Comforts’ exhibition next year in
York’s Castle Museum. She’s
hoping for it be finished in time for CBA
Yorkshire’s Conference in February 2017. She will also be preparing the
King’s Manor site finds for deposition with the Department of Archaeology,
University of York.
October
–
Kurt and Sandra will be going to consult the archives of the Museum of the Order of St John in
London. Kurt will be writing up
September’s investigations in Ravenglass for the
various interested parties. He is also involved in writing a York Deposit
Modelling article with John
Oxley for the proposed Historic
England guidelines. In addition he will be starting an article about the
Roman road in York’s Colonia for York
Historian.
September- Kurt
& Sandra went to Ravenglass for a week to
undertake a small excavation in cooperation with some local residents, as well
as investigating finds from the beach. Also reports for the small investigation
at the University of York (site, finds CBM) was written and submitted. Sandra
completed an evaluation for a site dug in Hull by AOC
August
–
Kurt continues to write up the University of York site whilst planning a return
to Ravenglass.
Sandra continues to research the VAD hospitals, now including the illusive Nunthorpe Hall hospital. And a trip to the Museum of the Order of St John, London,
which holds lots of documents on the hospitals, is being arranged
July –
Kurt
is currently writing up a small site at University of York. Sandra is currently
researching the First World War Voluntary Aid Detachment auxiliary hospitals at
St Johns (Lord Mayors Walk) and Clifford Street, both in York. She is also
recording the finds from King’s Manor
June 2nd & 5th – Kurt will be speaking at York’s Eboracum Roman Festival 1st-5th June.
His talk, Romans
lose their heads: an unusual cemetery in Roman York, will take place on
Thursday 2nd June. Some of his theories are explored in Gladiators:
Secrets of the Dead which was shown on UK tv a few years back, so this talk will be your chance
to ask him questions face to face! His tour, In the footsteps of the legionaries: the Roman fortress at
York, will take place on Sunday 5th June.
May 16th –
Sandra will be talking on the subject of ceramic building materials to the Friargate
Community Archaeology Group
April-May –
Kurt will be digging out in East Yorkshire with the Department of Archaeology of
University of York
April – Kurt
will be speaking at the Roman Finds Group meeting ‘Finds from Roman York, Brigantia and Beyond’ on 2nd
April
March
– Sandra’s
CBM report for the Excavations at York Minster Library 1997 has just been published
in a BAR
volume
February
–
Kurt’s web report on Driffield Terrace can be downloaded in PDF format from here. In addition, there is a selected small finds
report from the site by Hilary
Cool, which is available here.
January
-
The Headless Romans of Driffield Terrace
York (dug by Kurt) have returned to public notice with an article about the
skeleton’s DNA in Nature on its Nature
Communications page (open access)
2015
November
– The Romans in Ravenglass final
report is available from here. Kurt had a major role in both the excavation
and the publication about the fort’s vicus
OTHER INTERNET PAGES
* BRICKMAKING
IN 19TH CENTURY YORK: A PRELIMINARY SURVEY
* CBM GREY
LITERATURE AND PUBLICATIONS
28/03/2018