Geophysics begins

Well, we've finally officially begun the fieldwork phase of the Durham-Stanford Binchester Project. On Thursday two members of Archaeological Services headed out to carry out a magnetometry and resistivity survey on the location of the our planned trench. Although there are existing geophysical surveys of the fort, this new work was carefully targetted, and the resistivity was carried out at a higher degree of resolution, allowing us to get a better understanding of the site before an inch of topsoil and turf comes off. I'll try and put the first versions of these surveys on the blog early next week.

We're planning to carry out a Ground Penetrating Radar survey of the same area on Monday, which will allow us to begin to build up a 3D model of the archaeological deposits we hope to uncover, particularly the precise location of any stone buildings as well as a general sense of the overall depth of archaeology we are likely to encounter. We will also carry out a topographical survey; whilst the site appears largely flat on photographs, there are a number of features which survive as earthworks. Obviously the ramparts of the fort still stand, but it is also possible to see traces of medieval ridge and furrow and probably 19th century landscaping. It is essential that all this information is recorded before we begin excavation.

AD410 and all that...

Next year is the 1600th anniversary of the end of Roman political control of Britain- conventionally described as occurring in AD410. There are going to be a series of events organised next year to commemorate (or even celebrate?) this fact.

Whether one feels the Romans were a 'good thing' or not, this was an important turning point in British, and particularly English, history. Excitingly, the end of Roman Britain and the rise of the early medieval successor states is one of those issues which still stimulates much debate and argument amongst archaeologists and historians. Did the end of Roman rule lead to a rapid collapse of 'Romanised' society in Britain, or was there the continuation of a culturally Late Antique lifestyle? Did the Roman departure trigger a catastrophic cultural collapse or was Roman Britain already in a state of decline throughout the 4th century AD. Did the incoming Anglo-Saxons arrive in large numbers as part of a mass migration or was the Germanisation of post-Roman society effected by a small Anglo-Saxon elite?

Binchester has much to contribute to this debate, as the site did not go out of use in the early 5th century. There is clear stratigraphic evidence for continued occupation, at least in the area of the commandant's house, well into the 5th century. This activity is sealed by at least two late 5th or early 6th century Anglo-Saxon burials. It is clear from other archaeological evidence from the site, that there was further Anglo-Saxon activity in the 8th and 9th centuries AD, and we know from later historical sources that Binchester was an estate centre owned by the Community of St Cuthbert in the late Anglo-Saxon and early Norman period.

One of the key questions we want to answer in our new campaigns of excavations is whether the sub-Roman occupation was limited to the commandant's house or if it extended accross much of the fort's interior. An answer to this question may allow us to better understand the nature and function of the afterlife of the fort; was it a tiny enclave of localised activity or did it continue to function as an important power centre?

Out on site

The latest news is that we now have Scheduled Monument Consent; this is the most important piece of paperwork out of the way now, and it means we are actually allowed to start the excavation. I went out on site today with David Mason, the County Archaeologist and Binchester supreme and Peter Carne, from Archaeological Services, who will be in charge of the excavation itself. We were able to give the site a good walkover and look in detail at the area we are proposing to open up. We’d had some worries about a number of large trees on site potentially impinging on the location intended for the trench, but these fears were quickly allayed. As we were able to see some traces of medieval ridge and furrow cutting the fort interior Peter decided to arrange a topographical survey of the area before excavation to record these ephemeral features. As well as enjoying ourselves discussing the nitty gritty of trench location, there were also more practical issues to consider, such as where to put the spoil heap, the tool store and the Portakabins. Will we be able to persuade the delivery driver to take his lorry into the field and unload the cabins there?

Its only when walking around the edge of the site that one gets a sense of how the Romans used the hill on which the fort sits to its best advantage; as well as commanding the river crossing to the north-west it also dominates the gentle valley of the Bell Burn which lies to the north and east. The scarp slope of the north edge of the fort still survives to at least 10’ high, which is something that its not possible to appreciate from the interior of the fort. It also really brought home to me the logistical problems of the water supply for the fort; any aqueduct would have had to have been a complex piece of engineering.

Less than three weeks to go…


Proposed area of excavation in north-east corner of the fort (looking south-west)


North-east edge of the fort showing survival of the rampart as earthworks


North-west corner of the fort.

Binchester: the countdown begins...

It's now only three weeks until we start on site at Binchester. This year we are planning to investigate an area in the eastern corner of the fort to the north of Dere Street and the commandant's house. We hope to carry out a magnetometer survey on the site our trench next week. The week after we will then carry out a Ground Penetrating Radar survey in the same area, followed by the top soil strip. Our Durham students will begin the excavation in earnest on June 8th. They will be out on site for three weeks until June 26th. The Stanford contingent will arrive over the weekend and begin work on Monday 29th June alongside some of our Durham post-graduates. This stage will continue until July 17th. The final four weeks of excavation will be carried out by members of the Durham and Northumberland Archaeological and Architectural Society. I will post up the results of the geophysical survey as soon as possible and begin updating the blog daily (more or less) once the main excavation commences.

Theoretical Archaeology Group Conference 2009

The 31st Theoretical Archaeology Group 2009 conference will be held at the Department of Archaeology at the Durham University between Thursday December 17th and Saturday December 19th 2009. You can find more information, including a Call for Papers at the conference website.

Getting the paperwork straight...

As with a big project in any walk of life, planning a major archaeological fieldwork requires a large administrative input. It’s not just a case of turning up on site with a trowel in one hand and a finds bag in the other. This means that although we’ve not started fieldwork at Binchester yet, we are already in the midst of project planning and getting all the important paperwork in place.

A key job for us is the creation of a formal project design. This sets out the research aims of the project, and lays out the methodologies we will use to tackle them. It also contains a lot of information about the systems which we will put in place to manage our time in the field, the post-excavation process, as well as the finances.

Putting together the project design is not a simple process; in England, the standard format for a project design for a scheme that aims to carry out research within the historic environment is English Heritage’s document Management of Research Projects in the Historic Environment, usually known as MORPHE. This provides a framework for a project design that covers everything from the project research aims to the detailed management structures linked to the execution of the fieldwork and post-excavation, as well as the inevitable financial issues. It is certainly a complicated document. In theory, it might be possible to carry out a field project that did not adhere to MORPHE guidelines, but for any piece of work that involves working with English Heritage (EH), its essential to use the template it provides.

The Binchester project involves EH for a number of reasons. Most importantly, the Roman fort is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. This means it is a nationally important archaeological site, as defined by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. Crucially, this imposes a measure of protection on the site, and prevents it from being destroyed or damaged by building or development work. However, the protection extends to damage by other parties, including archaeologists. Archaeological work (both intrusive and non-intrusive) can only take place with the formal permission of English Heritage (so-called Scheduled Monument Consent). Obviously if permission is going to be obtained, EH need to satisfy themselves that the work will be carried out in a professional manner, hence the need for us to provide a MORPHE compatible document. Getting all the plans for the project into a format that complies with MORPHE is not an enviable task. The current document is over fifty pages long, though considering this project will take over five years and cost hundreds of thousands of pounds, this is in fact not unreasonable.

We’re not just working on the project design though. There are a host of other jobs that need sorting out. We need to think about the logistics of running a six week field project; how will we get the students to and from Durham? How will the element of community involvement work? There is also further funding to be applied for, which involves filling in forms, producing smaller project designs and liasing with potential referees; there is more than enough work to keep the project team busy.

Welcome to the Binchester Blog

Welcome to the blog for the Durham-Stanford Roman Binchester Project. On this blog I hope to keep readers up-to-date with progress on the both fieldwork and also the crucial, yet often misunderstood, post-excavation work and other aspects of administration. I hope the Comments section will provide an opportunity for readers to ask the team questions about the project.