News

Ely & District Archaeological Society have a fund to make financial contributions to 13-18 year olds based in Ely, Cambridgeshire and the surrounding district towards the cost of studying and undertaking archaeological investigations within the UK.

The AHK Bursary is named after Anne Holton-Krayenbuhl who was a distinguished scholar and archaeologist and a founding member of the Ely and District Archaeological Society. Upon her death in 2015 a memorial fund was set up by her family members and others.

1. Applications for funding must be made in writing to the Ely and District Archaeological Society.

2. Bursary funding will be limited to a maximum of £100.00 per person or organisation.

3. Applicants must be aged between 13-18 years of age at the time of the application.

4. The granting of funds will be at the discretion of governing committee of the Ely and District Archaeological Society.

5. Recipients of funding may be required to give a short account of their fund usage and how knowledge or skills gained can be put into practice.

6. The scheme will exist until the fund is exhausted.

Applications for 2017 must be sent to the following address to be received no later than 29th July 2017:- Mr S W Cole. Chairman, Ely and District Archaeological Society, c/o 2a Church Lane, Ely. Cambridgeshre. CB7 4JG

For more information please contact enquiries@elyarchaeology.org.uk

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We are pleased to welcome Oakington and Westwick History Society to the Jigsaw community of local archaeology and history societies in Cambridgeshire. They are the first group since the end of the Heritage Lottery Funded term of the project to join Jigsaw Cambridgeshire which is testament to the project's legacy and continuing popularity and relevance in the county.

Oakington and Westwick History Society is now officially affiliated to the Jigsaw network which means their events will be promoted on the Jigsaw wesite, social media sites (Facebook and Twitter) and email list. Representatives of Jigsaw affiliated community archaeology groups are also invited to regular meetings to discuss upcoming projects, events and collaborations, and have access to our specialist archaeological equipment.

The Society's next speaker meeting is on Thursday 18th May and will be given by Richard Mortimer of Oxford Archaeology East and Duncan Sayer of the University of Central Lancashire giving an update on the archaeology of the recreation ground in Oakington. The Society was set up in 2008 as a result of village interest in archaeological excavations that took place on the recreation ground in preparation for the build of a new pavilion which uncovered a large Saxon cemetery.

The Society have been developing their online presence with new design and content on their website with pages relating to the local history, genealogy and archaeology of their parish.

If you are interested in affiliating your existing archaeology or history society (in Cambridgeshire or a neighbouring county) or finding out how to set up a new group, please contact us for more information.

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Last year Dr Jody Joy, Senior Curator at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology here in Cambridge (shown in the photograph below), extended an invitation to Cambridge Archaeology Field Group (CAFG) to have a display cabinet in the museum to showcase our contribution to Cambridgeshire's archaeology. Members have worked with him and his staff to bring this about and on Monday 10th April the display was unveiled for the first time.

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Thanks to Robert and John the cabinet highlights examples of our work in a very successful way. A new trifold leaflet about the group and its work was produced to accompany the display.        
Our display at the Museum in Downing Street, Cambridge is in a temporary exhibitions case on the ground floor – behind and to the left of the case facing you at the entrance. Do go and have a look.

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Cambridge Archaeology Field Group - Monthly talk
'The 18th Century Surveyor and Parliamentary Enclosure' by Bill Franklin
Wednesday 3rd May at 7:30pm
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Downing site, Cambridge
All welcome (CAFG invite contributions of 50p)

Fen Edge Archaeology Group - Guided walk
Saturday 6th May, 10am-11:30am
A walk around Comberton explores the answers to two questions: First, why is the 13th-century church at a distance from the modern settlement? And second, to what extent can the medieval layout and development of the village be discerned in the modern landscape? The walk begins at the church, continues to Green End, and ends at the crossroads where the High Street, South Street and Green End intersect. Sue Oosthuizen is the Honorary President of FEAG. She is Reader in Medieval Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology, University of Cambridge. Her research bridges archaeology, history and historical geography.

Cambridge Antiquarian Society - Monthly talk
'From Hadstock to Westminster: forty-five years of church archaeology reviewed' by Warwick Rodewell
Monday 8th May 2017 at 6:00pm
Faculty of Law, West Road, Sidgwick Site, University of Cambridge
There is no charge for visitors or guests at lectures. New members are warmly welcomed.

Histon and Impington Archaeology Group & Histon and Impington Village Society History Group - Monthly talk
'The History of Cambridge in One Hole' by Alison Dickens (Cambridge Archaeological Unit)
Thursday 11th May at 7:30pm
Histon Baptist Church
Members £2 Non-members £3 Refreshments Available

Fen Edge Archaeology Group - Monthly talk
'The Scultptures of the Lady Chapel, Ely Cathedral' by Jonathan Rogers
Thursday 18th May at 7:30pm (doors open 7:15pm)
Tony Cooper Suite, Cottenham Village College
The early 14th century sculptures of the Lady Chapel were intended to be a definitive statement of what a devotee of the Blessed Virgin Mary should know. They were badly damaged during the 1540s in attacks on the images and practices of traditional religion. They were covered with thick whitewash for over three hundred years while the Chapel was in use as a parish church. Campaigns of cleaning, repair and conservation since the 1850s have restored the sculptures to our sight but not necessarily to our understanding: their mutilated state makes it difficult to read and appreciate them, the non-scriptural narratives that they illustrate are quite unfamiliar to many people. Even today they can be an uneasy reminder of England’s Catholic past and of its violent end. The talk will identify of some of the sculptures and describe how the tide turned from condemnation to conservation.
Jonathan Rogers is a specialised Guide at Ely Cathedral and the author of "Ely Cathedral: The Sculptures of the Lady Chapel" published in 2015 by The Ely Society.
Speaker meeting open to everyone. Admission: Members £2; Non-members pay £3.

Oakington and Westwick History Society - Monthly talk
'Update on the Archaeology from the Recreation Ground' by Richard Mortimer (Oxford Archaeology East) and Duncan Sayer (University of Central Lancashire)
Thursday 18th May at 7:30pm
St Andrews Church Hall, High Street, Oakington, CB24 3AG
Entry is free to members and £3 to non-members


News

Cambridge Archaeology Field Group have a display in the temporary exhibition case on the ground floor of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Downing Street, Cambridge. Senior Curator for Archaeology at the Museum, Dr Jody Joy, invited the the group to produce the display to showcase their contribution to Cambridgeshire's archaeology. Members of the group have worked with him and his staff in recent months and the display was first unveiled on Monday 10th April. A new leaflet about CAFG and its work has been produced to accompany the display. Do take a look at their work in the temporary exhibitions case at MAA - behind and to the left of the case facing you at the entrance.

Oakington and Westwick History Society have affiliated to the Jigsaw Cambridgeshire network of community archaeology groups. Their events will be promoted on the Jigsaw wesite, social media sites and email list. Representatives of Jigsaw affiliated community archaeology groups are invited to regular meetings to discuss upcoming projects, events and collaborations, and have access to our specialist archaeological equipment. If you are interested in affiliating your existing archaeology or history society, or finding out how to set up a new group, please contact us.

There are a couple of new exhibitions about the discoveries at Must Farm:
Discover the Must Farm Boats at Flag Fen (26th March - 30th September) https://www.vivacity-peterborough.com/heritage/flag-fen/discover-the-must-farm-boats/
Must Farm: The Story So Far at Peterborough Museum (5th May - 10th September) http://www.themomentmagazine.com/history/must-farm-three-thousand-years-making/

The Heritage Lottery Fund's East of England office have announced dates and locations for their funding events and surgeries across the county for 2017: https://www.hlf.org.uk/about-us/news-features/funding-fairs-and-surgeries-east-england If you are interested in developing a heritage project and applying for their grants you can make an appointment to discuss your ideas further with one of the HLF's funding officers.

Visit the Jigsaw calendar for details of upcoming community archaeology events in Cambridgeshire. Please contact us if you have any other events to add.

On the 6th May 2015 and again on 7th March 2016 group training days in OASIS were provided for archaeological societies working within Cambridgeshire as part of the HLF funded Jigsaw initiative and hosted by Cambridgeshire County Council's Historic Environment Team.

Attending the 2015 session were representatives from

  • Covington Local History Group
  • Cambridge Archaeology Field Group
  • Warboys Archaeology Project
  • Fen Edge Archaeology Group

Together they disproved the belief that local societies are not up to date with the online side of archaeology as they had with them the software tools needed to overcome problems with the training room passwords at Shire Hall!

In 2016 the attendees were from:

  • Access Cambridge Archaeology
  • Cambridge Archaeology Field Group
  • Fen Edge Archaeology Group
  • Sawtry History Society

Both sessions were really enjoyable thanks largely to the fact that several diverse groups all got on together & shared questions and solutions springing from their first Oasis Forms. Recently the FEAG form for the Twenty Pence Project Excavations 2011–2015 in Cottenham was signed off & completed and is a fine reminder of the value of the two Jigsaw Days.

The report from Fen Edge Archaeology Group

It is still hoped that the Cambridgeshire Jigsaw experience can be spread to other counties.

Although not part of the Jigsaw initiative, the Community Archaeology reports produced by Access Cambridge Archaeology have started to appear in the ADS Library and demonstrate the growing number of Community projects being entered onto Oasis.

 

This article was written by Mark Barratt of Historic England and orginally posted on the OASIS blog here. For further advice on reporting and recording archaeological sites and finds in Cambridgeshire, including OASIS forms, please contact Cambridgeshire Historic Environment team at archaeology@cambridgeshire.gov.uk