Archive

100 years ago (30 November 1917) Private Fred Dancox died in action, a month after performing the heroic action that won him the Victoria Cross and hours before he was due leave to England, to see his family and receive the medal. Those eagerly waiting to greet Dancox at the railway station were puzzled when...

  What counts as a ‘find’? To archaeologists, this term usually means artefacts we’ve uncovered. But what about archaeological features (pits, ditches and so on) – are they finds too? Both features and artefacts are things found by archaeologists, so in that sense yes they are. November’s find of the month is a Roman well,...

What's in an archive? Taking a look at archives that have been – quite literally – unearthed by our archaeologists, in our latest blog for #ExploreArchives

Our Conservator, Rhonda, has received fantastic support from a group of dedicated volunteers to help preserve our collections. Here, Rhonda tells us about one of their recent projects: With all those boxes of archives and the ever-growing list of items that need to be conserved, I am always thankful for my group of stunning volunteers...

Worcestershire Archive Service has just launched a new exhibition on Level Two at The Hive which explores the lives and expectations of those who were servants and those who were masters. It also looks at the interactions between the two groups whose lives were interconnected and dependent on each other.   The Ideal Servant In an...

The Hive, Worcester is home to all recently excavated finds recovered by Worcestershire Archaeology, so it was here that Small Pits, Big Ideas headed for the third and final day. Splitting into two, half the group went down to our finds processing room whilst Jane, one of our finds specialists, helped the others identify and...

After promising finds during Day 1 of this HLF funded project, the four teams were eager to get going on the second morning and dig the deepest test pit. Spits 2 and 3 were soon excavated and the soil sieved for finds – several of the eagle-eyed amongst the group were particularly good at spotting...

The first day finally arrived and the participating young people and archaeology undergraduates turned up bright and early to dig the first four Small Pits, Big Ideas test pits. After a great introduction from Professor Carenza Lewis, who explained how the project is contributing to important academic research, the group split into four teams, gathered...

Our community excavation at Soudley Camp in the Forest of Dean has come to an end. Over eight days a team of local volunteers and WAAS archaeologists dug three trenches and five test pits in this enigmatic ancient monument. The investigations were part of the Foresters’ Forest Programme, a Heritage Lottery Fund project. Soudley Camp...

  Young people have been investigating a local village through digging test pits in a Worcestershire Village. Worcestershire Archaeological Society was awarded £9,700 by the Heritage Lottery Fund for Small Pits, Big Ideas, with £1000 match funding from the University of Worcester. The origins came from discussions with Professor Carenza Lewis, who has pioneered the...