I was absolutely delighted to be invited to the preview of a very special archaeological discovery this afternoon - the amazingly preserved Bronze Age material from Must Farm in Cambridgeshire. Now, as a Romanist I confess that some elements of prehistory leave me a little cold, but some discoveries are simply astounding - and this one is right up there with the best of them.
The Must Farm site sits on the edge of the fens, within a modern brick pit, and on a stretch of the prehistoric River Nene. The waterlogged deposits have preserved a wonderful and complex landscape, complete with fish weirs, dwellings, timber post alignments, tools, weapons and burials - the majority of which are preserved in incredible condition. The excavations have been carried out by the Cambridge Archaeological Unit, but it seems that the support and assistance of the landowner, Hanson, and English Heritage has been crucial.
The preview event was held at Flag Fen, part of the same prehistoric fenland landscape as Must Farm and itself one of the most important Bronze Age sites in Europe. Flag Fen is the new home to the most iconic of the finds, 8 complete or near complete log boats, the largest of which being an immense 9m in length. The boats, made from oak, alder and (uniquely I think) lime, are about to embark on a lengthy conservation process within a newly constructed, and publicly visible, cold store. The conservation process for the boats and the other amazing finds (such as the Iron Age sword with surviving wooden handle and willow scabbard) is being carried out by the York Archaeological Trust.
The boats will undergo 2 or 3 years worth of assessment and treatment at Flag Fen, before hopefully then being moved to a more permanent display at Flag fen or elsewhere. One thing I rather liked was the name that has been given to each boat, though I have to confess that whereas I understand names like 'Dorothy' or 'Belinda', 'Toppled McClary' and 'French Albert - the Fifth Musketeer' left me wondering quite what the excavators were smoking at the time!
The site is far too detailed to go into here, and I wouldn't want to use images that I don't have permission for, so I'd urge you to head over to the official website for the project and have a good look at the wonderful objects and very well written descriptions over there. In the meantime, here are some of my photos from the afternoon, both of the boats and around Flag Fen, including the newly redesigned museum displays.
I was recently fortunate enough to be able, as part of a trip to London for work, to call off at Wimpole Hall near Cambridge for the first time. Wimpole Hall is a large National Trust property with quite a few strings to its bow - large house, formal gardens, large parks with a dramatic folly, and a working farm. Sadly, time constraints meant that I could only see the hall and have a quick browse around the little array of shops in the stable yard. Needless to say, I fully intend to return at some point and have a more leisurely look around.
One thing that immediately struck me about the Hall was it that it seems to reflect the face of a new, more progressive National Trust. The ability to take photographs inside, the way that the interpretation was managed, features such as floor cushions so you could lie down to look at ceilings and being able to see conservators in action all added to the feeling of a modern heritage attraction, not a mothballed 'Stately Home'. Allied to this, and perhaps most important of all, was the fact that the staff genuinely seemed to love the place. When walking into a room, it felt as if the room stewards were wanting to chat about their own personal interests, rather than launching into a set spiel that you were going to receive in full whether you wanted it or not.
Construction on the house began in 1640, but the most obvious influence on it today is that of Elsie Bambridge, the daughter of Rudyard Kipling. She and her husband bought the house in 1938, and much of the furniture and decoration is hers. It is this sense of personality and homeliness that gives the hall its character, and it makes it more charming than many other much grander, but colder, houses in the country.
In 2010, the hall's library sadly suffered a leak and around 400 books were water damaged. These are now undergoing a very public conservation programme, and visitors can see the conservators 'in action'.
