A recent archaeological excavation in Chichester’s Priory Park has revealed the remains of a stone tower, known as a barbican, which once defended the city’s Norman castle. The discovery, made during a two-week dig led by Chichester District Council’s archaeologist James Kenny in collaboration with the Chichester and District Archaeological Society (CDAS), sheds new light on the city’s 11th-century history. The excavation, which concluded in early June 2025, focused on an area north of The Guildhall in Priory Park. Guided by geophysics and ground-penetrating radar scans conducted since 2022, the team uncovered the remains of a substantial stone structure measuring…
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Archaeologists in Sweden have uncovered a rare 1,100-year-old Viking coffin grave near Linköping. The grave contains weapons and a stone circle with Christian elements, which researchers describe as highly unusual. The discovery, made during excavations for a construction project, offers fresh insights into Viking burial customs and the early spread of Christianity in the region. The grave, dating to the late 9th to early 10th century, includes a wooden coffin surrounded by a carefully arranged stone circle. Inside, archaeologists found a sword, spear, and shield, indicating the deceased was likely a warrior of high status. A preserved nail and a…
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The ‘Big Dig’ Field School is a Bournemouth University summer field school by current students and experienced archaeologists. https://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/study/courses/durotriges-project-big-dig-field-school The Durotriges Project ‘Big Dig’ Field School is a Bournemouth University summer field school by current students, volunteers and experienced archaeologists. The fieldwork takes place within Dorset, a county of outstanding natural beauty and one of the best-preserved archaeological landscapes in Britain. The Durotriges Project is studying the role that Dorset’s ancient Iron Age societies played in networks of settlement, exchange and burial before during and after the Roman invasion of AD 43. Students from our range of archaeology courses are…
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The Young Archaeologists’ Club (YAC), the UK’s only archaeology club for 8–16-year-olds, invites its members across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland to enter the 2025 ‘Dig It!’ competition. This annual event offers young history enthusiasts a chance to participate in a professional archaeological dig. For 2025, three winners will join a University of Leicester team on 5 July 2025 at Irchester Roman Town, within the Chester House Estate near Northampton. They will excavate, clean artefacts, and learn techniques like recording finds and mapping sites. Previous ‘Dig It!’ competitions have explored sites like Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland, Ribchester Roman Fort…
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Today, May 8, 2025, the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo unveils a captivating new exhibition, The Dig: A Story Unearthed, which delves into the real-life events and personalities that inspired the acclaimed Netflix film The Dig. This exhibition, set at the iconic Anglo-Saxon burial site in Suffolk, offers archaeology enthusiasts and history lovers a chance to explore the remarkable story of the 1939 excavation that reshaped our understanding of early medieval England. The exhibition centres on the discovery of the Great Ship Burial in Mound 1, a find that revealed a 27-meter-long ship and a treasure trove of Anglo-Saxon artefacts, including…