12
Registered Charity No. 1055654 Tregeseal Stone Circle, St Just. NG387324. The eastern circle of a line of 3 similar to the Hurlers, Liskeard. All that remains of the central circle are four stones incorporated into a hedge. The western circle disappeared centuries ago. September is a good month to visit the Penwith Moors. Photo AFR. The President’s piece from Nicholas Johnson. Professor Charles Thomas, founder member, former President, Vice- President, and Honorary Editor of our Society died 7 April this year, aged 87 and was buried in Gwithian Churchyard following a service in Gwithian Chapel. The Chapel had been bought by the Thomas family to prevent it closing, and it seems entirely appropriate that he should now rest in the village so closely associated with his family and archaeological roots. A very large audience gathered at St Mary’s Methodist Church, Truro in July to hear Professors Rosemary Cramp and Peter Fowler, the broadcaster Kate Adie, his son Martin Thomas and myself speak on many aspects of Charles’ very busy life. This was followed with a reception hosted by the Royal Institution of Cornwall, an organisation he held in very special regard. Over the summer I have been involved in the transfer of his archaeological excavation archives, books, and manuscripts to the Royal Institution of Cornwall at the Royal Cornwall Museum. I have been helping Angela Broome and Oliver Padel sort through many hundreds of books and journals, and Sara Chambers, Jacky Nowakowski and Carl Thorpe sort through the archives and finds from the Gwithian excavations as well as other material from Tean, Fenton Ia, Merther-Uny and Tintagel in Cornwall, and further afield from the island of Lundy, and the Scottish islands of Ardwall, Whithorn, and Iona. This has been a privilege, a great sadness and also a revelation. The first two feelings need no further explanation, but some of the revelations are worth recording here. Without wishing to pre-empt the full tribute that will be published in the next Cornish Archaeology, I think it is worth giving a flavour of what an extraordinary man Charles Thomas was. Having had the pleasure of visiting Lambessow on many occasions I was aware that Charles had amassed a huge library. What I hadn’t appreciated was that he also had amassed a staggeringly large and nationally significant collection of military insignia consisting of over 100,000 items. He was a compulsive collector. Luckily for us he was also an inveterate cataloguer and as many of us remember he loved making lists. His library was fully catalogued, his archaeological collections were catalogued, his publications, no matter how small, were catalogued, his thousands of buttons, badges, shoulder flashes and his regiments of lead soldiers were all identified, described and catalogued, his many hundreds of slides and photographs were marked and identified, and the Thomas family archive has been catalogued. In fact every purchase he ever made was meticulously listed with its price and dealer. He had catalogues of lists and lists of catalogues and all were updated regularly. Everywhere were hundreds and hundreds of typed up labels stuck onto artefacts, files, and boxes whether boxes of photo negatives or boxes of spare arms, legs or ‘heads with turbans’ for his soldiers. We NEWSLETTER 142 October 2016

Registered Charity No. 105565 NEWSLETTER 142 … · Registered Charity No. 105565 Registered Charity No. 1055654 Tregeseal Stone Circle, St Just. NG387324. The eastern circle of a

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Registered Charity No. 105565

Registered Charity No. 1055654

Tregeseal Stone Circle, St Just. NG387324. The eastern circle of a line of 3 similar to the Hurlers, Liskeard. All that remains of the central circle are four stones incorporated into a hedge. The western circle disappeared centuries ago. September is a good month to visit the Penwith Moors. Photo AFR.

The President’s piece from Nicholas Johnson.

Professor Charles Thomas, founder member, former President, Vice- President, and Honorary Editor of our Society died 7 April this year, aged 87 and was buried in Gwithian Churchyard following a service in Gwithian Chapel. The Chapel had been bought by the Thomas family to prevent it closing, and it seems entirely appropriate that he should now rest in the village so closely associated with his family and archaeological roots.

A very large audience gathered at St Mary’s Methodist Church, Truro in July to hear Professors Rosemary Cramp and Peter Fowler, the broadcaster Kate Adie, his son Martin Thomas and myself speak on many aspects of Charles’ very busy life. This was followed with a reception hosted by the Royal Institution of Cornwall, an organisation he held in very special regard. Over the summer I have been involved in the transfer

of his archaeological excavation archives, books, and manuscripts to the Royal Institution of Cornwall at the Royal Cornwall Museum. I have been helping Angela Broome and Oliver Padel sort through many hundreds of books and journals, and Sara Chambers, Jacky Nowakowski and Carl Thorpe sort through the archives and finds from the Gwithian excavations as well as other material from Tean, Fenton –Ia, Merther-Uny and Tintagel in Cornwall, and further afield from the island of Lundy, and the Scottish islands of Ardwall, Whithorn, and Iona. This has been a privilege, a great sadness and also a revelation. The first two feelings need no further explanation, but some of the revelations are worth recording here. Without wishing to pre-empt the full tribute that will be published in the next Cornish Archaeology, I think it is worth giving a flavour of what an extraordinary man Charles Thomas was.

Having had the pleasure of visiting Lambessow on many occasions I was aware that Charles had amassed a huge library. What I hadn’t appreciated was that he also had amassed a staggeringly large and nationally significant collection of military insignia consisting of over 100,000 items. He was a compulsive collector. Luckily for us he was also an inveterate cataloguer and as many of us remember he loved making lists. His library was fully catalogued, his archaeological collections were catalogued, his publications, no matter how small, were catalogued, his thousands of buttons, badges, shoulder flashes and his regiments of lead soldiers were all identified, described and catalogued, his many hundreds of slides and photographs were marked and identified, and the Thomas family archive has been catalogued. In fact every purchase he ever made was meticulously listed with its price and dealer. He had catalogues of lists and lists of catalogues and all were updated regularly. Everywhere were hundreds and hundreds of typed up labels stuck onto artefacts, files, and boxes whether boxes of photo negatives or boxes of spare arms, legs or ‘heads with turbans’ for his soldiers. We

NEWSLETTER 142 October 2016 220162016

found sets of card indexes that record Early Christian Inscribed stones around the Britain and Ireland, and the place names of Scilly. His trusty portable typewriter cannot have ever been silent. He never moved on to computers and his catalogues and lists stand as a fascinating reminder of how research was carried out in the pre electronic age, and for this reason will now be absorbed into the RIC collections. Sorting out the archaeological material was relatively straightforward, even if the tobacco tins and wooden fruit crates containing many artefacts need re-packing! Whilst the militaria has now gone to auction, the sorting through the books and periodicals was a huge task and it was heartbreaking to see this great library broken up. However over 100 boxes of material are now with the RIC and will make a great addition to its library and collections.

With the passing of time it is easy to forget just how active a member of CAS he was. I give a few examples here to illustrate this. Whilst a lecturer in Edinburgh and then Professor at Leicester he edited the West Cornwall Field Club Proceedings and then Cornish Archaeology from 1952 to 1975, a staggering 24 years. During that time he not only wrote the editorials, contributed articles, short notes, excavation news, and book reviews but also many of the Society’s field and site guides. In addition he was responsible for three important initiatives all published in the journals that indicate his ability to gather together and organise huge amounts of data.

1. In 1958 he encouraged the West Cornwall Field Club and later CAS, to be the first archaeological society in the country to publish parish checklists of archaeological sites and monuments and he himself went on to compile the checklists for Gwithian, Gwinear and Camborne. Parish Checklists were an important influence in the later development of Sites and Monuments Records (now Historic Environment Records) that underpin archaeology today.

2. He initiated the Cumulative Index of Cornish Archaeology annual Index in 1952 with a retrospective list of all archaeological publications since 1932. This continued for 20 years amounting to an astonishing 1118 archaeological references. His lists of published material from 1932-72 give us a real insight into the width and depth of his interests and the access he had to libraries in Edinburgh, Leicester, at the Royal Institution of Cornwall and of course at his various homes. It is easy to forget that in a pre-computer age these bibliographic reference lists were an essential part of research.

3. In addition, when he took on the editorship of Cornish Archaeology he began to compile an annual Digest of Cornish Periodicals from 1960 to 1974. These 12 lists comprised a summary of each periodical for that year and the range usually covered more than a dozen periodicals and reflected his eclectic yet broad interest in Cornish history, culture and natural history.

His library contained a battered leather-bound book with hand-written yearly lists of everything he had ever published since 1948. Whilst the number of articles, books, pamphlets, guides and reviews are prodigious it is the breadth of subject that is particularly striking. Whilst much of the subject matter is well enough known- prehistoric archaeology, Post-Roman and Early Christian archaeology, and Inscriptions; what is less well known are his many articles concerning the development of professional archaeology, military insignia and military units in Cornwall and elsewhere, local folk-lore and dialect studies, nationalism and politics in Cornwall, the history of Methodism, the importance of local history studies and last but not least poetry and fiction.

As well as being editor of our journal he also excavated with the Society during the summers at St Dennis Hillfort, and Castilly Henge. In 1962 he rediscovered St Ia’s Chapel and Holy Well, Troon and partially excavated the site in 1966 using his Early Christian Archaeology extra mural class from Truro. He also used students and CAS members to investigate the Medieval chapel built inside an Iron Age Round at Merther Uny, Wendron in 1968. He never quite lost his interest in megalithic tombs and was very pleased to be able excavate the Early Bronze Age entrance grave at Bosiliack, Madron in 1984.(See Picture) Typically in the months before he died he was actively involved in our project to re visit the Mesolithic site on North Cliffs, Camborne where he had first started collecting flint tools over 50 years ago. He was also looking forward to examining the 7th century inscription on a

newly discovered Inscribed Stone in West Cornwall and was excited about the upcoming excavations at Tintagel.

One way of cherishing his memory is to keep our Society active and looking forwards. It is particularly heartening that the Society has been organising work at North Cliffs, Camborne, at the Iron Lode near Restormel Roman Fort, at Carvossa, and members are also involved at the excavations at Tintagel and The Hurlers. This has been a very busy summer.

Lastly I would like to congratulate Adrian on producing our Newsletter over so many years, and in acknowledging this great contribution, we must recognise that he now wishes to pass on the baton. So please, if you wish or you know of anyone who might be keen to take on this interesting and vital part of our work, then contact Adrian to have a chat.

Pip Richards

Pip sadly passed away on Saturday 7th May and was buried within view of Carwynnen Quoit on Saturday 14th May. It was a private ceremony, but on 3rd July Pip’s Field, as it is now known, was a scene for a celebration of her life by many people whom she had inspired and influenced. Pip was known to CAS members for her heroic efforts to raise money from HLF and other charities, including CAS, to raise Carwynnen Quoit which had fallen in the 1960s. Her charity, “The Sustainable Trust” commissioned CAU to excavate the area around the quoit while she acted as project manager. To Pip there were no limits to the possibilities of such a project. Her own interests ranged across dowsing, Cornish language studies, all aspects of the natural world, music, poetry and storytelling. She showed us what could be done to involve schoolchildren and adults in the mystery and romance of archaeology. Her drive and energy were recognized by the CBA and the Cornwall Heritage Trust. Jacky Nowakowski will deliver a lecture on Pip’s achievements for CAS in March 2017. (See the Lectures flyer.)

CAS Excavations on the North Cliffs. 2016

When Charles Thomas was digging at Gwithian he organised a team to explore the Red River Valley and the North Cliffs to identify rounds, barrows and scatters of Mesolithic flints tools. Flint scatters were discovered along the coastal paths and in ploughed fields. Throughout his life Charles would lead his family and friends to fieldwalk the most promising areas. His collection was recently donated to the Royal Cornwall Museum, where a team of volunteers under the direction of Anna Tyacke and with training from Anna Lawson-Jones sorted the flint and stone tools. There were in excess of 23,000 flints and 2000 stones.

This obviously included debitage and apparently unused pebbles from the beaches below the North Cliffs. The vast majority of the flint tools were identified as from the Mesolithic period. The majority of stone tools were made from a kind of gritstone known as greywacke. There is a greywacke outcrop to the west of Hell’s Mouth and the selected stones were sea smoothed pebbles collected from the beach and suitable for use as lapstones to process animal skins or as knapping stones for flint. Some had been deliberately flaked at one or both ends, but for what purpose is up for debate.

Greywacke pebbles. L-R. Abraded from polishing, flaked, used as hammer, decorated.

Most of the finds came from fields in the Hell’s Mouth area at Callean Memmoan and Hudder Field. It was decided to excavate Hudder Field in hope of finding a hearth or something that could be scientifically dated to the Mesolithic period, since there are few scientifically validated dates for the Mesolithic in Cornwall. Under the direction of Dr Andy Jones, his wife, Anna Lawson-Jones and Anna Tyacke, CAS volunteers, many of whom had been involved with the identification work at the RCM, hand-dug 38 one metre square test pits.

The broccoli crop in the field had not all been harvested by the time digging commenced on Monday 15th August. For a couple of days the test pits were restricted to the eastern edge of the field, where the smallest flint scatter of the three that had been recorded by Charles was located, while harvesters whipped around the rest of it. Very little was found in this area. By Wednesday all the diggers had access to the most promising of the flint scatter areas, which did not disappoint when it came to more flint and stone tools.

The test pits were far apart in the broccoli field.

However, the soil in the field was quite shallow and the plough had dug into the natural subsoil, a slatey shillet head deposit. Most of the finds came in the churned up plough soil and in some test pits there was only minimal undisturbed soil, which might have been the remnant of an old Mesolithic land surface. No hearths or suggestions of habitations were found.

Ploughing had dug into the subsoil.

A microlith retouched at its edges.

Many of the volunteers were digging for the first time and all enjoyed the experience. Anna Lawson-Jones patiently showed them how to draw sections of the

test pits. Anna Tyacke attended each day to receive the finds and discussed them with the finders, also explaining how finds are recorded by their context and date of discovery. Andy Jones encouraged the best digging techniques so that the week became a good learning experience for all the volunteers.

A week, which had begun with warm sunshine, ended with rough winds and threat of storms for the Open Day on the 20th. Despite the ominous weather several CAS members visited and were intrigued by the quality of the finds. Such delicately contrived flint tools must have been hafted for use, though many fitted perfectly between finger and thumb. It was a rush to finish on the last day, but the rain held off until the last spade of soil refilled the last test pit.

Some of the tools may have been hafted for use.

Some fitted between thumb and finger.

A flint core from which some short flakes had been struck.

It was a happy experience. Thanks to Andy and the two Annas for all their efforts, their preparation, organisation and patience. As some of the new diggers put it, “When can we come again?”

(Photos Andy Jones and Kathy Conder.)

Professor Charles Thomas: a personal tribute. Adrian Rodda

Prof Charles Thomas at Godrevy, Photo Carl Thorpe.

I first met Charles when he allowed me to join the excavations at Gwithian in 1955, although I was only 12 years old. My memory is of a very kind, humorous, supportive, encouraging man. This was also true of his assistant Director, Bernard Wailes. Both smoked large pipes and suffered burn holes in their clothes. They set the tone for the other supervisors and site directors, who were themselves only in their 20s. We were boys from working class families with little self-confidence or knowledge, but Charles’s friends encouraged and taught us, talked to us about their own lives and experiences in universities and National Service and gave us confidence. Charles introduced me to Dorothy Dudley who invited me to work on 2 of her excavations, though still a teenager.

Charles gave me to lunch at Lowenac, his family home in Camborne, now a hotel, where I met his grandmother and saw his collection of books. I had never seen so many books outside a public library, stacks of “Pelicans” covered every surface and I was confident he had read them all!

In his contribution to “Cornish Archaeology 46” which was devoted to Gwithian and to Charles’s work, Tony Blackman wrote, “Charles’s entire career has been established around three principles: fieldwork, research and outreach. His outreach saw him as a major player in the formation of CAS from its roots as the West Cornwall Field Club, to which he gave so much time and energy. Director of excavations, editor, teacher, lecturer and writer were interlinked roles he willingly undertook and, for a wider audience, he found time to teach archaeology for the Workers’ Educational Assocciation.”

Gwithian had its own museum hut; visitors were not limited to Open Days. Any local people could drop in and someone, usually Jessica Mann, who became Charles’s devoted wife, or Charles himself would show off the finds and explain the sites.

When I started a School Archaeological Society at King’s School, Grantham, Charles came over from Leicester University to enthuse the boys. Jeffrey May, who had also been part of the Gwithian team, hosted visits for us to the University Museum at Nottingham.

Charles kept up with his Gwithian diggers and their careers through phone calls and letters. He cared about people and he cared about CAS. As President, he would stand at the stairs leading up to the lecture room in the RCM and greet members personally, creating a welcoming and friendly atmosphere, an inclusive club, where all members were valued.

His time as director of the Institute of Cornish Studies was a period when all aspects of Cornish life, literature, language, dialect, flora, fauna and folklore as well as history and archaeology were explored by enthusiasts, both amateur and professional This was because Charles was an insatiable learner and sharer; he wanted to enthuse and share all he learned and to present it in a manner accessible to his neighbours in Camborne and Redruth. He even forgave me for being brought up in Redruth instead of Camborne.

Scilly: the Loss of a Battery Feature. Michael Tangye.

Annual monitoring of sites on Scilly included the small oval earthen 16th century Battery site on the west facing low cliff of the Garrison on St Mary’s, a short distance south of the larger King Charles Battery.

For several years its frontal earthen sea-facing defensive bank, faced with two courses of roughly hewn blocks of granite, has remained intact, perched on the very edge of this forever eroding low cliff. A check in July showed that, sadly, this feature has finally succumbed to the high seas of the last winter and has collapsed onto the boulder strewn foreshore.

Although many will have been familiar with the earthen banks of the Battery, few will have seen its frontal walling, which was only visible on clambering down the low cliffs or from the sea. The earthen

Breastwork linked to it and extending to the south will eventually also collapse into the sea.

Michael’s photograph was taken in June 1997.

The Tintagel Statue.

In the last Newsletter (141) I wondered if EH was getting it wrong when they planned to erect a tall statue on the cliff top of the island at Tintagel. Well I should have kept quiet until I had seen it for myself. I also wished that they would foreground the story of Tristan and Iseult rather than refer to Geoffrey of Monmouth’s account of how King Arthur had been conceived at Tintagel.

I have now seen the statue and am very impressed. There is no mention of it being a representation of Arthur. There is no interpretation board at all. It is left to the visitor to ponder its significance. Postcards in the shop explain that it is called “Gallos meaning Power in Cornish.” The sculptor is Robin Eynon. It is not intrusive, is not near any of the extant remains, but almost hovers on naked bedrock near the cliff edge. Being hollow and incomplete it has an ethereal quality.

E.H. does use the Tristan story at Tintagel. The walled garden has an interpretation board which describes the tale and invites people to follow slate

markers around the path which recount how King Mark spied on the lovers as they met in a garden.

The new interpretation boards are well written, exploiting different styles. First an account of an historical incident associated with the site, such as the landfall of a merchant, which reads like a novel and entices the visitors’ imaginations, then comes a description of the building or ruins associated with that event, which reads like a traditional guidebook entry. Bronze replica objects, such as amphorae from Greece, illustrate the accounts. The Cornish language is used extensively around the site and its approaches.

The exhibition centre emphasises that the site had two major occupations. The first was in the post-Roman era, 5th to 7th centuries, when it was probably the seat of a powerful Cornish leader who traded with the Eastern Mediterranean. The second was when Richard, Earl of Cornwall, built the medieval castle in the 1230s, possibly choosing the site because of its prestige from folk memories and an association with Arthur through Geoffrey of Monmouth’s “The History of the Kings of Britain.” The excavations by CAU this summer and next will surely shed more light on the early phase of the site’s occupation.

Book Review

“Sacred Falls. Saint Nectan and the Legacy of the Dragon.” Roland Rotheram. St Nectan’s Waterfall Publications. 2014.

When one finds a book promoted in the RCM bookshop one might expect it to be a well written, academic study of its subject, especially when the Foreword has the following statement.

“Professor Rotheram’s outstanding historical work here combines the best in objective scholarship and erudition with an open and sensitive approach to the mystery and mythology that surrounds St Nectan’s Glen.” (Rev. Lionel Fanthorpe.)

The book gives an account of the contradictory legends around St Nectan’s life and death. It is not long before King Arthur’s knights are mentioned with the claim that they would spend a night in holy vigil with Nectan before going on a quest. Rotheram gives no sources or references for this legend. Each chapter ends with a summary of its contents and a judgement of what can be accepted as Fact, Probability, Possibility or Legend. Is this

what Lionel Fanthorpe calls “objective scholarship”?

“The Legacy of the Dragon” is a chapter about the post Roman period, the identity of Arthur and his connection with Nectan. Various statements are made without detailed reference to the sources or to any academic research, although it refers to or quotes from the writing of St Gildas, the “Life of St Patrick”, the Annales Cambriae and Nennius’s “Historia Britonum.”. There are some interesting ideas in this chapter and I would have liked to have tested them by reading the sources and archaeological reports.

The final chapter is about the sanctity of water and draws together the pagan and Christian traditions associated with holy wells. It is for me the most thought provoking part of the book.

St Nectan’s Glen and kieve. Photo AFR.

The book is marred by editorial lapses and misprints. The Bibliography is limited and there are no footnotes as one might expect in an academic work. So what is good about it? The photography is amazing. Several photographers have contributed to this book and the result is ravishing. Nothing can actually detract from the beauty of the waterfall and kieve of St Nectan.

CAS FIELD TRIPS.

Chapel Carn Brea, Carn Euny and Caer Bran. June 12th 2016.

Five people joined Adrian Rodda and his dog at the foot of Chapel Carn Brea in the kind of fog only Penwith can provide. The hill top was invisible, but the intrepid optimists trudged upwards in hope to see the view towards Land’s End and to locate

the remains of the barrows recorded around and at the summit. The fog cleared eventually, but some of the excavated and looted barrows remained elusive. Grazing had cleared undergrowth on the southern slopes, but most of the hill is still overgrown. However, they were able to discuss the chambered barrow excavated by W. Copeland Borlase and which had once supported a medieval chapel lighthouse. Peter Herring had identified a long barrow on the shoulder of the hill and it too was easy to see, snuggled up against a natural tor.

Chapel Carn Euny Well

The party then followed the footpath to Carn Euny Holy Well and listened to the story of “The Changeling of Chapel Carn Brea” in verse adapted from William Bottrell’s “Hearthside Tales.”

Then on to the settlement at Carn Euny and its fogou which was begun about 500BC. The extant courtyard houses around it were occupied into the 4th century AD and adapted from earlier roundhouses. By now the sun was shining and the walk to Caer Bran over the fields gave glorious views.

For some the highlight of the excursion was a visit to Brane Entrance Tomb, which is in remarkably good preservation. It is invisible from the road, but the farmer is happy to give permission to view.

Brane entrance tomb.

The unfinished hillfort known as Caer Bran was reached by a field path. The enclosure was not yet overgrown by bracken and the party could locate the Neolithic or Early Bronze Age cairns within it At least those who could take their eyes off the stunning views could find them. (A return visit in late July found the braken

too thick and the approach lane very overgrown.)

The path over the fields had led to the stile by a cross where Janey Tregear had laid her changeling child.

A lane brought the party back down to Carn Euny Settlement and the path below Bartinney and past Tredinney Clay Works restored them to their motors. What had begun as an unpromisingly foggy day evolved into a sunny walk with good company and new recruits for CAS thanks to the advertising on our website and Facebook.

CBA Festival of Archaeology Events July 2016.

Meneage Archaeological Group at Boden.

Weekend digging has continued at the site of the fogou which was partly excavated in 2003 and published in CA 52. MAG celebrated the Festival on Saturday 16th July with a tea and cake stall on site for the visitors who turned up to see their new discoveries.

Penlee Art Gallery and Museum

Zoe Burkett, the education officer at Penlee House, organised a programme of

guided walks and children’s activities to mark the Festival.

Walkers gather around the Men Scryfa, an inscribed stone from the 6th century AD which commemorates Rialobran, son of Cunoval. It is probably an Early Bronze Age menhir in alignment with Carn Galver and near the Men-an-tol. (NG 427353) This is probably the same Bran who is commemorated in the hamlet of Brane and the hillfort Caer Bran. Mentioned in the previous report. Rialobran means the Royal Raven.

Zoe hopes to repeat the programme next year.

CAS and the Federation of Old Cornwall Societies.

Christine Wilson, Publicity Officer, at our stall.

The MAG Stall with its life size replica of the Boden Pot.

CAS member, Priscilla Oates, who is one of the Lizard Area Reps and current President of the Federation, invited CAS to take part in its Summer Event at Helston School on 9th July with St Piran’s Trust and MAG. We sold several journals from our stall. In Sept 2015 Roger Smith and Adrian Rodda had addressed the Federation’s AGM to explain our work in protecting and educating about archaeology in Cornwall.

CAN YOU HELP?

Area Reps. And the Monument Watch Scheme.

If you could spare the time to help keep a watch on the monuments in your area, please contact the Area Reps Convenor, Peter Cornall. [email protected]

Journal distribution and storage.

CAS holds about 1000 copies of journals from Number 36 onwards. Have you a space where they could be safely stored? This amounts to about 60 boxes.

Journal sales. Could you volunteer to give a good home to a selection of the journals and other books to sell at meetings at either Truro or Liskeard?

Journal distribution to members and invoiced recipients. When each journal is published 500 copies would be delivered to your home. The Membership Secretary would send you labels with the addresses of members. You would pack and label the envelopes and post them. In addition there are about 37 invoiced journals to send out and a few exchange and complimentary copies. It takes a few days of concentrated work, which could be shared with friends in CAS.

Newsletter Editor. Think it might be your turn for this interesting and satisfying job?

If you could help by taking over any of the above responsibilities, please contact Adrian Rodda, who is the current [email protected]

Refreshments at lectures.

Christine Wilson and Jenny Hancock will be taking over the teapot so well warmed for several years by Roger Smith, but would appreciate some help at Truro and/or Liskeard. Volunteers please contact Christine through the CAS secretary or at a lecture.

Another flint tool from Hudder Field. Note the use wear on its edges.

From Moors to Monsoons – a moment in Malaysia. Bryony Smerdon.

Earlier this year, seeking respite from the dark Cornish winter, my love for travelling took me to the beautiful country of Malaysia. My stay coincided with the Northeast monsoon season, which lasts from November to March. Despite the daily downpours and stifling humidity, I was keen to spend as much time outside as possible. The archaeological sites I visited were relatively contemporary, linking to the number of diverse religious identities of South East Asia. Nevertheless, this tropical backdrop provided many opportune moments to channel my inner Indiana Jones!

Murugan guards the Batu Caves.

The first place of interest I visited, known as Batu Caves, is thought to be one of the most popular Hindu temples outside of India. The caves are guarded by a golden statue of the Hindu deity Murugan which stands at 140 feet tall; the tallest of its kind in the world. During the steep climb up 272 concrete steps to the shrine’s entrance one can expect to be followed by inquisitive and boisterous macaques. I witnessed one macaque hitch a ride up the hill by perching on a woman’s backpack, only to then steal her water bottle, unscrew the cap and take a drink! Other notable fauna include the huge colonies of fruit bats which live within the network of limestone caverns where the shrines are located – so be prepared for the smell of guano!

Another memorable day of the trip was spent further North at the Sam Poh Tong cave temple, in which the sacred relationship between people and nature is demonstrated through the many statues of

Buddha which play hide and seek amongst the cavern’s stalagmites and stalactites. Passing through this incense-filled grotto brings you to a pond filled with tortoises and carp, deposited there by locals in an attempt to balance their karma. The practice of releasing animals in this way is known as fangsheng and was inspired by Buddha’s teaching of kindness and compassion shown to all creatures.

A tortoise at Sam Poh Tong Cave Temple.

I rounded off my trip by visiting the island of Penang. Situated just off the Northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Penang embraces both the cosmopolitan and more traditional aspects of its culture, making it a focal point for tourists and religious worshippers alike.

Kek Lok Si.

The temple of Kek Lok Si, the construction of which was completed in 1905, embodies these sentiments. Although commercialised with stalls and eager

vendors at every turn, the temple complex supports the sacred rituals of several different branches of Buddhism, as well as other local Chinese practices. The temple gardens offered a bubble of tranquillity in the heart of bustling Georgetown, the main city of Penang. Travelling with a friend, we found the least practical mode of transport on this island to be tandem bicycle – much to the amusement of other visitors and residents!

Bryony in the Botanical Gardens.

Overall, my time in Malaysia was spent exploring a rich and colourful fusion of old and new, East and West, flora and fauna. The resulting effect was exciting and slightly overwhelming, but an experience I would repeat in an instant.

Our congratulations to Bryony, who graduated with a first class honours degree in Egyptian Archaeolgy from UCL this summer.

More greywacke tools from Hudder Field.

Thanks to Jacky Nowakowski for editing the report that follows. Some of the details Jacky has provided make this the SCOOP of the edition. Photo courtesy CAU.

Rumours that King Arthur’s Palace have been discovered at Tintagel have been somewhat exaggerated.

English Heritage commissioned Cornwall Archaeological Unit to conduct a 5 year research project at Tintagel Castle. To coincide with the CBA Festival of Archaeology, excavations began on 18th July and the trenches were refilled on 3rd August of this summer.

In the 1930s C.A. Raleigh Radford had excavated and partially restored houses on the eastern terraces and summit of the headland, which he interpreted as a major Celtic Christian monastic settlement occupied during the C5th to C7th AD. Many of Radford’s written archives were lost when his house was bombed in 1942 before they could be published. His interpretation of the site was challenged by the analysis of the finds which amounted to the largest quantity of imported pottery and glass to be found on a site of this period in N.W. Europe. The settlement of houses was defended by a great ditch which left only a narrow approach under a cliff. It was seen as a high status, perhaps royal, residence with trade links to France, Spain, North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean, at the time of the Byzantine Empire.

In the 1990s a team from Glasgow University re-excavated Radford’s trenches and houses to confirm their original foundations under the restored walls and confirmed that the great ditch was also early medieval. Their re-examination of the finds and their radiocarbon dates hinted at late Roman activity (C4th AD) as well as confirming the C5th to early C7th occupation. Prof Charles Thomas’s reinterpretation of the site, published in 1993, had made use of a survey conducted after the grass fire of 1985, which revealed more houses and boundary walls on the east and south terraces and the summit, where visitors had picked up even more pottery from the ashes.

CAU commissioned ground penetrating radar and laser scanning to help them to decide where to dig. Two trenches were opened on the steep southern terrace, which faces the parish church. These were named Geraint and Mark, after Kings of Dumnonia. The two trenches on the upper eastern terrace, which faced the haven and the valley, were more romantically named Tristan and Isolde. These parts of the headland had never

been excavated before and CAU hoped to find undisturbed footprints of C5th to C7th buildings. Under the direction of Jacky Nowakowski and James Gossip each trench was supervised by a professional CAU member, aided by volunteers. Carl Thorpe as finds officer was kept very busy with high status imported glass and around 200 sherds of imported pottery from both terraces, confirming their occupation in the early medieval period. Some of the pieces of fine glass vessels were decorated. Soil samples were dry and wet sieved to find ancient seeds, wood charcoal, animal bones and marine molluscs to help discover people’s diet at the site. Old soils, ancient pollen and land snails will help to identify the flora on the terraces.

Isolde held a confusing jumble of stone rubble and natural outcrops, but may have had a pathway towards the rest of the terrace. Tristan revealed a very well preserved revetment wall which contained a terrace. It was built on the line of an earlier slate wall which may be the remains of an early building of post Roman date. If so the evidence here is very different to the structures on the southern terrace.

Tristan on the Upper Eastern Terrace.

Geraint on the southern terrace, revealed substantial walls, stepped paving and a carefully laid flagged floor for the inside of a room.

The wall in Geraint.

At the seaward end there was a poor quality, weathered slate “patio” outside the substantial terrace wall. There are two related built spaces linked by a flight of slate steps. It is too early to say if these are two rooms in a single (two storey)

building or two separate buildings. The revetment wall was also exposed in Mark. Only small sections of walling were revealed this year but they are of robust stone and slate masonry, architecturally designed and likely high status buildings. Such structural evidence is unlike any of the standing ruins on the headland that the visitor sees today.

The substantial nature of these walls and the work that had gone into creating the terraces led to the suggestion in “The Independent” that it was a palace from the time of King Arthur. Other reporters seized on this word to announce the discovery of King Arthur’s Palace. Certainly there are substantial buildings and further investigation being planned for next summer should find their size and purpose and show us more of the lifestyles of the people who lived in them.

There is no evidence from any of the excavations of a catastrophic event to end the occupation of the settlement in the 7th century. Win Scutt, Curator at English Heritage, has suggested that it was abandoned when people were afflicted by the bubonic plague which spread from the eastern Mediterranean.

The paved floor begins to appear in Geraint.

Ryan Smith and the wall in Mark.

More information is available on the website www.cau.org.uk and on the English Heritage Facebook page and http://blog.english-heritage.org.uk/discoveries-excavations-tintagel-castle

Truro Winter Lectures 2016/17. Thursday evenings at 7.30pm. Truro Baptist Church, Chapel Hill, Truro. TR1 3BD.

13 October 2016: Maritime Indian Ocean. J.D.Hill (TBC)

10 November 2016: Down the bright stream: the prehistory of Woodcock Corner and the Tregurra Valley. Sean Taylor (CAU) and others.

In this lecture we will try to unravel the story of around 2500 years of occupation and exploitation of this verdant vale, from the Early Neolithic just after 4000 BC to the end of the Early Bronze Age around 1500 BC. Additional speakers include Henrietta Quinnell, talking about the largest collection of Peterborough and Grooved Wares in the Duchy and Ryan Smith discussing the extensive flint assemblage from the site.

15th December 2016 Corfield Nankivell lecture: The Must Farm pile dwelling – taste, appearance and the lifestyle in the Late Bronze Age. Mark Knight (Cambridge Archaeological Unit.)

It now seems that the Must Farm Bronze Age pile dwelling (aka Britain’s Pompeii) was built, occupied and burnt down in quick succession. The brevity of settlement and its catastrophic demise provided a rareset of circumstances which in turn ensured exceptional preservation. Individual roundhouses replete with entire household inventories (whole pots, tool kits, textiles, wooden vessels, weapons, food remains etc) were preserved with the gentle sediments of a small river buried deep beneath the fens. This talk will present the context and circumstances of the excavation and, at the same time, attempt to come to terms with the sheer density of materials and what they might tell us about taste, appearance and lifestyle in Late Bronze Age Britain.

12 January 2017 Members and Area Reps evening. The topics and speakers will be published on the website.

9 February 2017 Discoveries and developments in Cornwall: an English Heritage perspective. Susan Greaney, English Heritage.

The past few years have seen research and presentation projects at several guardianship sites in Cornwall. The talk will be an opportunity to hear about the 2016 archaeological excavations at Tintagel and our plans for the research project there over the next few years. It will also cover the results of research focused on Chysauster ancient village, particularly new earthwork and geophysical survey at the site, new pottery analysis and extensive archive research. There will also be an update on the latest development plans for Pendennis Castle and work at some of our free and unstaffed properties too.

Curating the Schedule. The work of the Ancient Monuments Inspectors. Dan Ratcliffe, (Historic England)

Historic England is the new name for the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commision for England, which continues to act as the Government’s heritage agency following the licensing of publicly opened National Heritage Collection sites to the new charitable “English Heritage Trust”. The Ancient Monument Inspectors are responsible for the 1979 Ancient Monument and Archaeological Areas Act, including monitoring and responding to unauthorised works at Scheduled Monuments, the administration of the Scheduled Monument Consent, advising planning authorities on applications affecting Scheduled Monuments and other nationally important archaeological sites, and working with others at Historic England to address risks to Scheduled Monuments and research their significance.

9th March 2017. Pip Richards and the Sustainable Trust: a celebration of her work.

Jacqueline Nowakowski and others.

Pip shows Dan Snow details of the Carwynnen project after winning the CBA award for best community project 2014.(Photo Brett Archer.)

Pip was awarded the title of Heritage Champion by CHT for her work at Carwynnen.(Photo CHT)

Saturday 8th April 2017 AGM. Charles Thomas: his life and works. Henrietta Quinnell and Andy Jones.

CONTACTS:

Secretary: Sophie Mayer, [email protected]; Membership secretary: Konstanze Rahn [email protected];

Newsletter and journal distribution: Adrian Rodda. [email protected]

Our postal address is now:

Cornwall Archaeological Society, c/o Royal Cornwall Museum, River St, Truro, Cornwall TR1 2SJ.

Please use when contacting any of the officers.

Website: www.cornisharchaeology.org.uk

Facebook: Cornish Archaeology

Liskeard Winter Lectures Friday evenings 7.30pm St Martins Church Hall, Church Street, Liskeard PL14 3AD

Please note that this series will take place in the LOWER HALL.

7th October 2016. Conserving World Heritage in Mid-Cornwall: The Luxulyan Heritage Lottery Fund Project. Ainsley Cocks and Christine Garwood.

The Luxulyan Valley, much loved by local people, also holds great importance as part of the Cornish Mining World Heritage Site. This talk considers the varied history of the Valley, and efforts to conserve it through a new Heritage Lottery project, currently in development.

4th November 2016. A Tudor tin mill, Lanyon, Madron Parish. Stuart Emmett and others.

Categorised as a tyre house where alluvial tin from the streams was washed and sorted by the tinners but not necessarily smelted, as no smelting evidence has yet been found. Interestingly we did find pottery evidence that now suggests they were using cream separation dishes to pan the finer tin. Recently we had one of these dishes made, using one of the pottery sherds to give us dimensions etc and we shall bring it along on the evening, along with some hand grinding stones which were found beneath the floor areas. We have definite documentary evidence for 1632, with another more general reference to the area in the late 1500s, though again it is interesting that at this time we have no stamping or crushing house remains, suggesting this was purely a streaming operation for alluvial tin. This area as a whole is still under

excavation by us and is proving more revealing every day as to the process of the early tin washing process. It must be remembered that the only book with positive information and drawings anywhere is Agricola’s De Re Metallica; one illustration in particular is a perfect match to what we have uncovered and this assessment is supported by top archaeologists specialising in this field.

2 December 2016. Ten Romano-British and early medieval research sites of the Fowey and Camel corridor. Mark Borlase.

Following on from the Kingswood, Middle Amble and East Leigh papers in recent issues of Cornish Archaeology, this will be a whistlestop tour of ten more sites in the corridor environs. Starting at Daymer Bay and ending at Fowey, settlement dynamics, communications and Romanisation will be examined at a discursive level in regard to the presented research findings. It is hoped we will find some time towards the end of the discussion to throw open a debate to the floor.

6 January 2017 Members and Area Reps Evening.

3 February 2017. Great Halls of Fire: excavations at Restormal Castle. Sean Taylor, (CAU).

A programme of archaeological work at Restormal Castle was undertaken in response to the installation of a new admission building and associated infrastructure. The work revealed details of structures within the bailey surrounding the castle, as well as recovering finds of the period.

10 March 2017. Reading the Hurlers – the story so far. Emma Stockley.

An update on the continuing project Reading the Hurlers, following the lecture given on 11th March 2016 and the excavation which took place in September 2016. As well as a report on the excavation, the lecture will include an overview of the project findings to date and an update on the community engagement elements of the project.

CAS Field Trips and Events. Saturday October 1st – DAS/CAS joint annual event. Plymouth Citadel, Barbican waterfront and Mount Batten with Nigel Overton.

Meet 10.30am outside the Royal Citadel, Plymouth, for a morning tour with Jane Gibson. Then along the waterfront to the Barbican, with Nigel Overton, Plymouth City Museum. Cross by water taxi to Mount Batten, the site of Late Bronze Age to Roman settlement; Nigel’s tour will examine the post-medieval archaeology of the Headland. Return by water taxi c 4.30 pm. Register interest now; further details will be supplied later. Costs c £8 per person. Own arrangements for travel to Plymouth. Register with [email protected] or 01392 433214

Sunday 20th November. 11.00 – 4.00 Trencrom and Hayle. Meet Adrian Rodda at the car park at the foot of Trencrom (SW 522 361). We shall climb the hill to see the Neolithic and Iron Age fortifications as well as what remains of the Bronze Age barrows. Then we shall choose our next destination according to the weather conditions from Lelant or Phillack Churches, the Cunaide Stone, what is left of Harvey’s Foundry or a stroll up the King George Memorial Walk with an account of the rivalry between Harvey’s and Copperhouse foundries. There will be verses, saints and folklore. Bring a picnic.

Archaeology in Cornwall. Saturday November 26th 2016. 10-5.15. The Queens Hotel, Penzance. See flyer enclosed with this Newsletter.