Cosmeston Archaeology

What happens to artefacts after they are excavated? Some, such as pot sherds and animal bone, are washed and catalogued straight away. Other objects (particularly those made of metal, wood, textile or animal skins) are too delicate to be handled immediately and need careful conservation before they can be studied. At Cosmeston this work is undertaken by staff and … Continue reading »

Do you remember the fantastic rams head aquamanile that was discovered at Cosmeston during the 2011 excavation? Today Cardiff PhD student and pottery specialist Alice Forward brings you an in-depth update on how this fantastic discovery is shaping up in post-excavation:  An aquamanile in context Work on the pottery assemblage from the Cardiff University excavations … Continue reading »

Yesterday evening we bought you the world premier of Cosmeston 2011: The Movie. Today we bring you a behind the scenes glimpse into the production of the video by Cardiff students Rob Barrett and Tom Durbin: It is now officially 4 months from the end of the dig, and every day it gets harder and harder. Some of us … Continue reading »

We are proud to bring you the world premier of the Cosmeston 2011 movie! This exciting 17 minute odyssey takes you behind the scenes and beneath the ground to show you the latest discoveries at one of South Wales’ most important and unique heritage attractions. Written and directed by Cardiff undergraduate auteurs Robert Barrett and Tom Durbin … Continue reading »

The Cardiff University summer season of excavations has drawn to a close as the new academic year approaches. There are, however, plenty of other opportunities to get your hands dirty in South Wales. One new project which looks particularly exciting is the CADW community project at Tinkinswood: Cadw are working in partnership with Archaeology Wales, the local community, with local … Continue reading »

After our day of archaeology blog-a-thon last week this Friday evening we have our first post-excavation contribution for this blog. Tonight we are introducing Beth Williams. The lab has been filled with various music tastes over the last two weeks and when what’s on is not to her taste, Beth spends her time, whilst marking … Continue reading »

Today we bring you another retrospective post. Lucy Harries is a second year undergraduate at Cardiff University and, despite initial attempts to avoid digging, she found her way to Cosmeston where she learnt to love the excavation lifestyle:  So, it has now been a week since life at Cosmeston, and the majority of diggers have … Continue reading »

29th July 2011, what day was it? No, not Friday, Friday, but the Day of Archaeology 2011: Yesterday was the inaugural Day of Archaeology, a project conceived by Lorna Richardson (UCL PhD student) and Matt Law (Cardiff PhD student and commercial archaeologist). The project, designed to give a window into the daily lives of archaeologists, had over 400 contributors chronicling … Continue reading »

The 2011 excavations at Cosmeston ended last week. With impressive archaeology and fantastic finds, this season was an amazing success. When we finish the dig we reinstate the land so people can continue to enjoy the field (which is regularly used for events hosted by the village) without falling into a big hole. Today we bring you … Continue reading »

Today we bring you a guest post by Mark Rosoman. Mark is a Scope employee, responsible for exterior and interior maintenance, which includes taking the guys out to work in the community. Sully Scope are extraordinarily active, being involved with a community allotment scheme in Gibbonsdown and working in conjunction with Tidy Towns (litter picking in towns … Continue reading »

We are nearing the end of our dig, but fear not! This does not mean the end of blogging, as we shall continue throughout the year to bring you the latest post excavation news and interpretations from Cosmeston. In the meantime, the dig isn’t over yet! Today we bring a blog by Tom Durbin, first year … Continue reading »

Amy’s previous blog on the site kitchen was hugely popular. We are pleased therefore to bring you an update, along with the exclusive recipe for Supervisor Scott’s Tagine: The last week in the kitchen is going to be interesting. Making sure there is enough food for the masses and also that there is very little left over … Continue reading »

And should the strongest arm endeavour, The limpet from its rock to sever, Tis seen its loved support to clasp, With such tenacity of grasp, We wonder that such strength should dwell, In such a small and simple shell, (Wordsworth) On childhood holidays limpets fascinated; that these small, extraordinarily tough things were creatures seemed incredible. … Continue reading »

Jonathon Madge, a second year undergraduate digging at Cosmeston for the second year, loves clay and and King Arthur. He has long sought a way of combining the two, and today he achieves just that in his blog: Hi my name is Jonathan Madge and I hereby declare this day, ‘Clay Day’. In the North-East … Continue reading »

Today’s post is part of our continuing series on public involvement at the site. It is written by Julia Best, a PhD archaeology student who spends most of her time in a lab studying the bones of birds from small, Scottish, wet and windy islands. Occasionally she is allowed out of the lab and enjoys … Continue reading »

Today’s blog is the first of a short series that deals with the experience of the archaeologists at Cosmeston in engaging with the public during the 2011  excavation season.  Unlike other posts so far it is a multi author effort, with contributions from John’s Oberst & Durman (undergraduate tour guides) Julia (re-enactor, PhD student & … Continue reading »

Working on site is not just about the singular relationship betwixt person, trowel and archaeological context, for sites are complex social organisms. Like a band of warriors deep in foreign territory, bonds are formed as the group faces adversity (rain, people walking over a freshly towelled surface etc.). With these connections develop distinctive sub cultures, … Continue reading »

We are now well into the third week of the excavation and, to some people’s frustration, we are still excavating post-medieval features. The site is presented as a ‘Medieval Village’ and Cosmeston was certainly a medieval settlement, but the site did not disappear after the black death, rather it continued and developed into a prosperous … Continue reading »

Sunday was the second day of our Getting Medieval open day. With glorious sunshine and over 800 visitors the day was a wonderful success. One of the Cardiff University undergraduate students digging on site, Rob Barret, is an expert videographer. As part of his site report Rob is producing a movie of the 2011 season (we will bring you the exclusive premier of … Continue reading »

Our week begins on Saturday. Today we introduce you to Matt Austin, site supervisor, occasional commercial archaeologist and recent recipient of a 1st class BA honours degree from Cardiff University (congratulations Matt!). Matt is the source of many words of wisdom on site and a keen cyclist: Our one day weekend was spent with hangovers of varying severity after Thursday night’s … Continue reading »

Friday is our day off. So, whilst we recharge our batteries ready for our exciting fun, FREE, family Getting Medieval! weekend we thought we’d bring you a blog about some of the other aspects of life at the dig. Today’s Friday special is written by Amy Gardener, a recent graduate of Cardiff University who runs … Continue reading »

This evenings Daily Dig brings you the report of yesterdays exciting digging. This is also a momentous blog, introducing Rachel Phillips, a second year undergraduate at Cardiff University and the first student blogger on the Cosmeston site! Rachel is without a doubt the best troweller on site. Today we uncovered GGAT trench two.  Completely unexpected … Continue reading »

Today has been just as warm as yesterday but despite the heat and mild hangovers, work has, as always, been moving on at a pace. When the top soil was initially machined off a large rubble layer was revealed. This deposit is very typical in this particular area of the site and in each year … Continue reading »