Philosophia
November 4th, 2006, 08:19 PM
What’s the story with... amateur archeology?
Much of Scotland's past remains a mystery. While historians offer glimpses of insight gleaned from written documents, more than 80% of archaeological sites in Scotland are not even on record. Robin Turner, head of archaeology for the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) says: "There are literally thousands of acres of hidden archaeology throughout Scotland in addition to the more recent sites you can stumble over." When the NTS surveyed the West Affric Estate - 9000 acres of mountainous moorland which appeared hostile to human habitation - 30 new sites were identified.
A new scheme called Scotland's Rural Past Project has just been launched by Scottish Culture Minister Patricia Ferguson. It's an attempt by Scottish cultural heritage agencies to give expert help to amateurs willing to augment the efforts of professionals. There is now funding to pay for training sessions and other costs. Around 40 groups in Scotland will have access to support. Turner says: "There is an enormous amount we don't know. For instance, we've done a lot of excavation work on St Kilda in the past few years and some of the evidence we are finding fundamentally challenges the written accounts of how people lived."
Meryl Marshall, a recently retired physiotherapist who lives in Dingwall, is an enthusiastic founding member of the North of Scotland Archaeological Society (Nosas). She has spent years surveying Glenfeshie in Strathspey and has written a book about her work. She says: "What we found was a township that dates back 400 years." It is now registered with the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. "This means it is afforded a degree of protection with regards to any future development."
Many in the field feel they are in a race against time to put our past on record before it is lost through modern forestry, agriculture and development. Trevor Cowie, an archaeologist and a curator with the National Museums of Scotland, is chairman of the Peeblesshire Archaeological Society which is mostly composed of amateurs. He says: "Archaeology gets under the skin. Each generation is removing traces of what's gone before but that pace of change in the landscape is getting so much faster now that recording those traces is a matter of urgency. There are clues to the past all around us, from chipped stone tools dating back 10,000 years to the ruins of farms abandoned 100 years ago. "
Shorewatch, run by the Scape Trust, assists those who want to survey shoreline sites threatened by tides and the weather. John Wombell has been surveying Loch Hourn, between Mallaig and the Sound of Sleat, since 2000. He says: "We are almost certain we have discovered the remains of an early West Coast fishing station dating back 300 or 400 years."
Much of Scotland's past remains a mystery. While historians offer glimpses of insight gleaned from written documents, more than 80% of archaeological sites in Scotland are not even on record. Robin Turner, head of archaeology for the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) says: "There are literally thousands of acres of hidden archaeology throughout Scotland in addition to the more recent sites you can stumble over." When the NTS surveyed the West Affric Estate - 9000 acres of mountainous moorland which appeared hostile to human habitation - 30 new sites were identified.
A new scheme called Scotland's Rural Past Project has just been launched by Scottish Culture Minister Patricia Ferguson. It's an attempt by Scottish cultural heritage agencies to give expert help to amateurs willing to augment the efforts of professionals. There is now funding to pay for training sessions and other costs. Around 40 groups in Scotland will have access to support. Turner says: "There is an enormous amount we don't know. For instance, we've done a lot of excavation work on St Kilda in the past few years and some of the evidence we are finding fundamentally challenges the written accounts of how people lived."
From http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/73624.html
So who's an amateur archaeologist? :viking:
Much of Scotland's past remains a mystery. While historians offer glimpses of insight gleaned from written documents, more than 80% of archaeological sites in Scotland are not even on record. Robin Turner, head of archaeology for the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) says: "There are literally thousands of acres of hidden archaeology throughout Scotland in addition to the more recent sites you can stumble over." When the NTS surveyed the West Affric Estate - 9000 acres of mountainous moorland which appeared hostile to human habitation - 30 new sites were identified.
A new scheme called Scotland's Rural Past Project has just been launched by Scottish Culture Minister Patricia Ferguson. It's an attempt by Scottish cultural heritage agencies to give expert help to amateurs willing to augment the efforts of professionals. There is now funding to pay for training sessions and other costs. Around 40 groups in Scotland will have access to support. Turner says: "There is an enormous amount we don't know. For instance, we've done a lot of excavation work on St Kilda in the past few years and some of the evidence we are finding fundamentally challenges the written accounts of how people lived."
Meryl Marshall, a recently retired physiotherapist who lives in Dingwall, is an enthusiastic founding member of the North of Scotland Archaeological Society (Nosas). She has spent years surveying Glenfeshie in Strathspey and has written a book about her work. She says: "What we found was a township that dates back 400 years." It is now registered with the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. "This means it is afforded a degree of protection with regards to any future development."
Many in the field feel they are in a race against time to put our past on record before it is lost through modern forestry, agriculture and development. Trevor Cowie, an archaeologist and a curator with the National Museums of Scotland, is chairman of the Peeblesshire Archaeological Society which is mostly composed of amateurs. He says: "Archaeology gets under the skin. Each generation is removing traces of what's gone before but that pace of change in the landscape is getting so much faster now that recording those traces is a matter of urgency. There are clues to the past all around us, from chipped stone tools dating back 10,000 years to the ruins of farms abandoned 100 years ago. "
Shorewatch, run by the Scape Trust, assists those who want to survey shoreline sites threatened by tides and the weather. John Wombell has been surveying Loch Hourn, between Mallaig and the Sound of Sleat, since 2000. He says: "We are almost certain we have discovered the remains of an early West Coast fishing station dating back 300 or 400 years."
Much of Scotland's past remains a mystery. While historians offer glimpses of insight gleaned from written documents, more than 80% of archaeological sites in Scotland are not even on record. Robin Turner, head of archaeology for the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) says: "There are literally thousands of acres of hidden archaeology throughout Scotland in addition to the more recent sites you can stumble over." When the NTS surveyed the West Affric Estate - 9000 acres of mountainous moorland which appeared hostile to human habitation - 30 new sites were identified.
A new scheme called Scotland's Rural Past Project has just been launched by Scottish Culture Minister Patricia Ferguson. It's an attempt by Scottish cultural heritage agencies to give expert help to amateurs willing to augment the efforts of professionals. There is now funding to pay for training sessions and other costs. Around 40 groups in Scotland will have access to support. Turner says: "There is an enormous amount we don't know. For instance, we've done a lot of excavation work on St Kilda in the past few years and some of the evidence we are finding fundamentally challenges the written accounts of how people lived."
From http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/73624.html
So who's an amateur archaeologist? :viking: