Media frenzy - thanks to the Moles!

Yet again, the moles of Epiacum have caused a media frenzy! Whilst the farmer at Castle Nook continues to deride these underworld creatures, they are once again doing a fantastic PR job for us here at Epiacum. One mention of these ignorant archaeologists, who are defying the rules of English Heritage, and the phone starts to ring, the TV crews turn up and people get excited!

Joined by over 50 volunteers on site, molehills have been surveyed and sieved and treasures uncovered.

Working away, under the watchful eye of Rob Young (English Heritage), volunteers came from far and near to join in with this unique and enjoyable day. For once, the sun shone and the site was uncharacteristically calm. It was a glorious day to be out to survey the activity of our underground archaeologists. Blissfully unaware of the laws of the land, the moles didn't disappoint us.

This was the most interesting find of the day. Remarkably heavy for one of these tiny creatures to "kick up", an iron and lead knob! Like many archaeological finds, it throws up lots of questions about its origins and uses.................more of that soon when we get to grips with all of the molehill finds!

One day down and one to go...............the site is gridded out in readiness for another day of community archaeology tomorrow - this time it is the Bath House site. We are hoping for some interesting finds there - hopefully some lady left her jewellery behind - we can live in hope!

It was great to see everyone enjoying themselves today -- people who had no previous experience of archaeology alongside those who were "old hands" at it - young and old all participating in a very worthwhile day.

And it wasn't ALL hard work - we allowed tea breaks!

The Gathering

The Gathering -  April 16 2013

Another successful event took place at Cairns Community Hall. This time, under the NIACE funded project,59 people came together to celebrate local heritage and the recent achievements of local learners in their Heritage Skill Classes.

We were once again delighted to welcome Stewart Ainsworth, our ever supportive President, who inspired us with a presentation about the local archaeological landscape.

Describing the area as "a stunning example of landscape archaeology",he set the Epiacum site in a wider and vibrant historical landscape and uncovered many previously unknown areas of archaeological significance, such as Alston's Norman Castle and, what he described as a "large" settlement at Gossipgate.  LIDAR imaging demonstrated the fantastic eathworks that are all around us.
Following on from Stewart, Paul Frodsham (Epiacum Director & North Pennines AONB) described how the "Altogether Archaeology" project is enabling people to engage with the research that Stewart has done. Archaeological digs have taken place around the North Pennines, including work on the Maiden Way near Epiacum last year and at Long Meg Stone Circle.

After a fantastic lunch, provided by Blue Sheep Catering, Alston, there were opportunities to have a go at heritage skills such as feltmaking, peg loom weaving & Rag Rug Making. Deb Bell was on hand to talk about here interest in Dowsing too. Learners Fiona Gifford, Rosie Howie & Jill Durnford all demonstrated skills they had taken up as part of our project and this casued much interest and participation.

Ben Dyson, a post Graduate from Newcastle University,has been working with us for 3 months and he showed his work on the LIDAR imaging to interested listeners, helping them to understand and interpret what, at first glance, appears a complex resource.

 

Alastair Robertson showed his extensive historical research and archive documents about the local area. It was great to share local heritage stories with new audiences, including Cumbria Blue Badge Guides, who uses the event as part of their CPD training - one commented that the event was "the best CPD training day they had ever had" - high prasie for us at Epiacum, which demonstrates the untapped heritage and tourism reousrces in the local area! Our project aims to promote the Epiacum site and local areas as a potential tourist destination and to build a volunteer base to support us on our journey to bigger things!

One significant learning activity during the day was a workshop by ZapActive, a newly formed Alston buisness. In a workshop called "A Quick Response to Hidden Heritage",Mark & Irene Lawrence showed how QR codes could assist in interpreting diverse sites. The room was full of people, many who had never heard of a QR code before, let alone used them. Here is ours.................... if you have a Smart Phone, download a QR reader app and scan it and see  where it takes you! We hope in the future to use these to improve interpretation on the site. Due to the fact that the site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, we can't even contemplate putting traditional information panels up there................these could the answer!! 

 

Another great day.............................................what's next???

Heritage Champions finally make it out on site

After a few weeks of awful weather and postponed ventures, the Heritage Champions group finally made it out on site today.
After spending the morning at Cairns Community Hall, where we learned about the site history led by Alastair Robertson, we set off to Epiacum to work togteher as a group looking at the landscape features with a view to producing and publishing our very own walks leaflet.
We discussed the potential walk routes - which was the best way to guide independent visitors into the site, what did we want them to discover? There is far too much to tell people everything in one go - so what to include and what to leave out?
The group were encouraged to contribute their own skills - photography, sketching  etc - the end product is a work in progress but people were keen to join in the tasks
Judith Wood, one of the learners , led the session, using her own knowledge and skills to guide the rest of us along the way.
The Heritage Champions Course is a great way to get involved in the project. Funded by NIACE to develop learning opportunities in the local area, we are focussing on heritage skills and buidling a volunteer base to contribute directly to the ongoing work of Epaicum Heritage.
It is fantastic to see two distinct projects working to complement each other. Come and join us along the way! You might even have some fun!