The remains were found during the dig at Monsal Dale in the Peak District Pic: BBC

The BBC reports that Tests carried out on a skeleton discovered at an archaeological dig in Derbyshire have found it was that of a pregnant woman. Now, extra lottery funding means there can be a second dig at the Fin Cop hill fort site to find out more. Archaeologists unearthed the Iron Age skeleton last August. During the excavation, the woman was uncovered among the jumbled stone of a collapsed rampart

The main focus of the dig was to find how the ramparts of the hill fort were built and when they were erected and archaeologists described the skeleton find as

“unexpected”.

Experts said it was evident the woman had been thrown into the ditch as the stone wall of the hill fort was being pushed in.  Specialist analysis of the bones revealed the woman to have been about 21 to 30 years of age when she died between 300 and  200 BC.

The Longstone Local History Group has now been awarded a grant of nearly £50,000 to continue to research the area with the help of Archaeological Research Services Ltd.

One of the project managers, Jim Brightman, said:

“Quite a lot of very important finds cannot look like much on site. But when you get back to the lab, throw the scientific techniques and analysis at them, that’s when you start to get the story out. The bones are a great example of that, we found out so much more by analysing them.”

Source

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Originally posted 2010-06-25 08:00:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Visiting Alton Towers today, it’s hard to believe that this hugely popular Staffordshire theme park spreads across the site of an iron age fort. The grounds were gradually developed over the years and once held a castle, which was the home of the Earl of Shrewsbury from 1412.

More than three centuries later, the 15th Earl took the house and estate firmly in hand, bringing in an impressive taskforce of labourers and artisans to begin a major transformation. Alton Abbey’s landscape was tamed, bringing with it lakes, statues and the magnificent Chinese pagoda fountain.

It was in the 1890s that the estate began to be developed as a tourist attraction. Members of the public flocked to the grounds to marvel at firework displays, balloon festivals and even instruments of torture. However, these early heydays were short-lived, as a family dispute caused the house to fall into decline.

The Alton Towers estate was bought up by a local businessman and all its contents auctioned off. Regardless of its lack of exciting attractions, thousands of loyal visitors continued to visit the house and its cafes, until the Second World War saw it requisitioned by the army as a cadet training base.

In 1951 it was returned to the Alton Towers company. However, as there was a post-war shortage of copper, lead and other metals, the whole interior of the house was stripped out. The entire building was abandoned, save for the Chapel, which became home to a model railway, and the Armoury, which evolved into a gift shop.

Twenty years later new owners took over, carrying out major renovations, so in the 1970s the public were once again able to enjoy the house and surrounding landscape. A number of small attractions were also placed around the estate to encourage further visitors.

In the following decade everything changed once more. A businessman named John Broome used his vision to develop the land into a 500 acre family leisure park. In 1979 almost seventy containers arrived on site, carrying vast steel structures that were to become the country’s first ever double-corkscrew rollercoaster. Tens of thousands of visitors were lifted, twisted and plummeted along its exhilarating length until it was finally decommissioned in 2008.

An altogether more sedate attraction was the popular swan boats. Housed on the lake that had once held the Splash Kats, they were slowly moved around the water by pulleys below the surface, changing direction a couple of times every minute. As visitors continued to crave bigger and better thrills, these swan boats became less popular and were removed in 2004.

In 1990 John Broome sold Alton Towers to the Tussauds Group and it has continued to change hands. However, it remains as popular as ever and, as Europe’s eleventh most visited family theme park, attracts almost three million people each year.

PCL Travel has been established since 1995 and operate a regular Leeds Airport transfer service throughout the year by luxury vehicles.

This article was written by Glynis Charlton

Author: Glynis Charlton
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Make PCB Assembly

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
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Newgrange Pic: Wiki

When most people think of the Ancient Celts and their priests, they think of Druids and more specifically, they think of Druids as celebrating the Summer Solstice as the most important time of the year but is this a true impression? The December solstice will occur at 23:38 (or 11.38pm) Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on December 21, 2010. It is also known as the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere and the summer solstice in the southern hemisphere due to the seasonal differences. At precisely this moment, ancient monuments throughout the Celtic World are aligned to the Winter Sun.

Meán Geimhridh or Grianstad an Gheimhridh

Meán Geimhridh (Irish tr: midwinter) or Grianstad an Gheimhridh (Ir tr: winter solstice) is a name sometimes used for hypothetical midwinter rituals or celebrations of the Proto-Celtic tribes, Celts, and late Druids. In Ireland’s calendars, the solstices and equinoxes all occur at about midpoint in each season. The passage and chamber of Newgrange (Pre-Celtic or possibly Proto-Celtic 3,200 BC), a tomb in Ireland, are illuminated by the winter solstice sunrise. A shaft of sunlight shines through the roof box over the entrance and penetrates the passage to light up the chamber. The dramatic event lasts for 17 minutes at dawn from the 19th to the 23rd of December. The point of roughness is the term for the winter solstice in Wales which in ancient Welsh mythology, was when Rhiannon gave birth to the sacred son, Pryderi. In England, during the 18th century, there was a revival of interest in Druids. Today, amongst Neo-druids, Alban Arthan (Welsh tr. light of winter but derived from Welsh poem, Light of Arthur) is celebrated on the winter solstice with a ritualistic festival, and gift giving to the needy. [Wiki]

Bryn Celli Ddu

Bryn Celli Ddu is a prehistoric site on the Welsh island of Anglesey located near Llanddaniel Fab. Its name means ‘the mound in the dark grove’. It was plundered in 1699 and archaeologically excavated between 1928 and 1929. During the Neolithic period a stone circle and henge stood at the site. An area of burnt material containing a small human bone from the ear, covered with a flat stone, was recovered.

Bryn Celli Ddu Pic: Wiki

The stones were removed in the early Bronze Age when an archetypal passage grave was built over the top of the centre of the henge. A carved stone with a twisting, serpentine design stood in the burial chamber. It has since been moved to the National Museum of Wales and replaced with a replica standing outside. An earth barrow covering the grave is a twentieth century restoration; the original was probably much bigger.

Norman Lockyer, who in 1906 published the first systematic study of megalithic astronomy, had argued that Bryn Celli Ddu marked the summer solstice. This was ridiculed at the time, but research by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas in 1997- 98 showed this to be true. Knight and Lomas also claimed year round alignments allowed the site to be used as an agricultural calendar. Steve Burrow, curator of Neolithic archaeology at Amgueddfa Cymru (National Museum of Wales) has more recently supported the case for summer solstice alignment. This alignment links Bryn Celli Ddu to a handful of other sites, including Maes Howe and Newgrange, both of which point to the midwinter solstice. It has also been suggested that a feature similar to the ‘lightbox’ at Newgrange may be matched at Bryn Celli Ddu (Pitts, 2006). [Wiki]

Maeshowe in Orkney

Maeshowe Pic: Wiki

Maeshowe (or Maes Howe) (Norse: Orkhaug) is a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave situated on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. The monuments around Maeshowe, including Skara Brae, were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. It gives its name to the Maeshowe type of chambered cairn, which is limited to Orkney. Maeshowe is very similar to the famous Newgrange tomb in Ireland, suggesting a linkage between the two cultures. Maeshowe is a magnificent example of Neolithic craftsmanship and is, in the words of the distinguished archaeologist Stuart Piggott,

a superlative monument that by its originality of execution is lifted out of its class into a unique position.

Maeshowe appears as a grassy mound rising from a flat plain near the south-east end of the Loch of Harray. Maeshowe is one of the largest tombs in Orkney; the mound encasing the tomb is 115 feet (35 m) in diameter and rises to a height of 24 feet (7.3 m). Surrounding the mound, at a distance of 50 feet (15 m) to 70 feet (21 m) is a ditch up to 45 feet (14 m) wide. The grass mound hides a complex of passages and chambers built of carefully crafted slabs of flagstone weighing up to 30 tons. It is aligned so that the rear wall of its central chamber held up by a bracketed wall, is illuminated on the winter solstice. A similar display occurs in Newgrange. This entrance passage is 36 feet (11 m) long and leads to the central chamber measuring 15 square feet (1.4 m²). The current height of the chamber is 12.5 feet (3.8 m), this reflects the height to which the original stonework is preserved and capped by a modern corbelled roof. The original roof may have risen to a height of 15 feet (4.6 m) or more. [Wiki]

So from Ireland to Wales and up to Scotland and the Orkneys, the same culture appears to have held influence. Exactly what did the Winter Solstice mean to our ancestors, I wonder and how did they observe it? Are the Summer Solstice observations a modern urban myth, or is there some evidence that other structures are aligned to that time of the year?

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.

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The Hill of Tara Pic: Irish Central

The Hill of Tara (Irish Temair na Rí, “Hill of the Kings”), located near the River Boyne, is an archaeological complex that runs between Navan and Dunshaughlin in County Meath, Leinster, Ireland. It contains a number of ancient monuments, and, according to tradition, was the seat of Árd Rí na hÉireann, or the High King of Ireland. Recent scholarship claims that despite the rich narratives derived from mythologies, Tara was not so much a true seat of kingship, but a sacral site associated with kingship rituals. Other historians have argued that the concept itself is mostly mythical. [Wiki]

The Destruction caused by the Motorway

The M3 motorway, which opened in June 2010, passes through the Tara-Skryne Valley – as does the existing N3 road. Protesters argue that since the Tara Discovery Programme started in 1992, there is an appreciation that the Hill of Tara is just the central complex of a wider landscape. The distance between the motorway and the exact site of the Hill is 2.2 km (1.37 miles) – it intersects the old N3 at the Blundelstown interchange between the Hill of Tara and the Hill of Skyrne.

The presence of this interchange situated in the valley has led to allegations that further development is planned near Tara. An alternative route approximately 6 km west of the Hill of Tara is claimed to be a straighter, cheaper and less destructive alternative. On Sunday 23 September 2007 over 1500 people met on the hill of Tara to take part in a human sculpture representing a harp and spelling out the words “SAVE TARA VALLEY” as a call for the rerouting of the M3 motorway away from Tara valley. Actors Stuart Townsend and Jonathan Rhys Meyers attended this event.

The Hill of Tara was included in the World Monuments Fund’s 2008 Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites in the world. It was included, in 2009, in the 15 must-see endangered cultural treasures in the world by the Smithsonian Institution.

The Curse of Tara and its Fairy Forts

Irish Central reports that Activists claim desecration of Tara for highway sparked ancient curse.

An ancient curse of Tara has been unleashed in Ireland by the destruction of the Fairy Forts. That’s according to anti-highway activist Carmel Divine who says a “modern day Curse of Tara” has been unleashed on Ireland by the “destruction and desecration of the M3 Motorway.” She said that Seannachaí Eddie Lennihan warned the Irish Government in early 2007 against destroying the Fairy Forts in Ireland’s historic Tara Skryne Valley. She said the Seannachaí warned the Irish Government that they would be cursed. At the time, a spokesman for the National Roads Authority, mocked the Seannachaí and said they weren’t concerned. Diviney says all of Ireland’s woes date back to July 2007 when work began on the new M3 motorway. She lists the following incidents as evidence of the Fairy Fort curse.

Wakeman Plan of the Tara Complex Pic: Wiki

The Fey in Action

In June 2007 Minister for the Environment Dick Roche signed an order destroying the Lismullin Henge. Lismullin Henge was a 4,000 year old astronomical observatory and place of worship and hailed as one of the most important archaeological finds of the century.

Roche was since held up by an armed gang in the Druids Glen Hotel and also lost his job and was then demoted.

Martin Cullen the then Minister for Transport nearly got sucked out of a helicopter when the door fell off on one of his extravagantly expensive trips.

The chief Health and Safety Officer was seriously injured by a falling tree when felling began at Rath Lugh in 2007.

A worker was killed when he became trapped at Fairyhouse where there have been many accidents on this stretch of road.

A human tooth was discovered in a digger which was used to destroy the famous ancient feasting grounds and gathering place of ancient Harpers at Baronstown. Shortly afterwards the stairs in the National Museum collapsed.

And finally, just last summer, several large wasp nests were found throughout the valley. In Celtic Lore the appearance of the wasp was associated with the anger of Mother Earth.

Diviney says that Ireland will continue to be cursed as long as it continues to meddle with sacred ground.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.

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Pic: Northumberland Gazette

NEARLY a thousand new archeological sites have been discovered off the North East coast as part of an English Heritage-funded project. Helen Woods of the Northumberland Gazette tells us: The survey, conducted by EH archaeologists along with help from Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, has been done to help researchers understand the history of the coastline and damages it may face.

Among the results were a number of Iron Age multivallate forts and hillforts. At Howick Hill, these are still used as earthworks. David MacLeod, senior investigator with English Heritage’s Aerial Survey Team, said:

“Often, it’s only by looking at a site from the air that you start to understand its size and structure. Historic sites along the coast are vulnerable to the effects of both natural coastal change and human activities. Although erosion has actually helped to reveal a number of nationally important sites along the North East coast, such as Bronze Age burial mounds at Low Hauxley in Northumberland, too often it poses a threat. This project will help us understand not just the history of our coastline, but also the dangers it faces now and in the future.”

Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2009-02-07 03:32:59. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Caer Drewyn, Corwen, Wales Pic: http://www.corwen.org/

Walkers are invited to the hillfort of Caer Drewyn, Corwen (Denbighshire, Wales), as part of the Festival of British Archaeology. Known locally as Mynydd y Gaer, the fort is unique in the area as its ramparts (walls) are made up of stone, unlike others on neighbouring hills and the Clwydian Range. This hillfort is thought to date to the Iron Age, about 2,500 years ago.

Caer Drewyn continued to be used long after the Iron Age had ended – legend is that it was used by Owain Gwynedd (a self proclaimed King of Wales) as a camp whilst Henry II was encamped on the Berwyn Mountains.
The guided walk will include a live voice commentary for, in particular, experienced visually impaired walkers. A minibus will leaves from Loggerheads Country Park at 10am returning at 4pm. Other events in Denbighshire’s countryside throughout the Festival of British Archaeology included a guided walk around Moel Famau Country Park on Tuesday, July 27 . The next Access for All event will be held on August 10, when people will be guided on a second Live Commentary Voice Trail at Moel Famau from 2-3.30pm. Call Colin Antwis of Fieldsman Trails on 01352 756202.
For more information or to book, call Loggerheads Country Park on 01352 810614, email loggerheads.countrypark@denbighshire.gov.uk or visit festival.britarch.ac.uk

Source

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.

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Maiden Castle in Dorset Pic: AllEmpires.net

The desirability of a view is not new. Ancient peoples valued them as much as we do! The ability see a long distance over water or land today is visually aesthetic, a sought after asset giving pleasure to the owners. In earlier centuries it was defence. Small populations organised the building of forts overlooking a distant expanse in order to protect themselves from invaders.

That odd looking bump on a hill in the British countryside could well be a hill fort. A hill upon a hill, covered now in grass and trees.

The earliest hill forts in Britain are of the Bronze Age which is about three to four thousand years ago. Mostly these forts are of the following Iron Age which lasted until the Roman invasion.

(The population of Britain at the time of the Roman invasion would be around the four million mark. Sparsely populated by today’s standards.)

The Romans found some of the forts useful and took them over, others were abandoned. Quite a few were taken over again after the Romans left and Celts and Saxons fought over them. King Alfred the Great repaired and reorganised many in southwest England as camps and way stations along herepaths (military roads) in his campaign against the Vikings.

Many of these forts can still be seen and visited being protected by English Heritage or The National Trust. The largest and the most intricate in Europe is Maiden Castle in Dorset started well over 6000 years ago in Neolithic times, well before the Bronze Age. It is still in use today as a major tourist attraction.

A major battle took place here between the Romans under their great general, Vespasian, and the obdurate Celts. Dorchester Museum has the story and the artefacts. It must have been a terrible battle. Stand in the middle of the fort and just imagine that Durotrige Tribe trying to defend their home against a highly organised army. They did not let it go easily, but it was not built for that warfare. Nor did they have the weapons the Romans did.

The actual management needed to build those forts and keep them repaired would have been considerable whether it was a small one for the defence of a local population or a large one in a vulnerable or important position. All done by hand, no machines!

Everyone must have had to do their bit. Obviously they were built over time, gradually adding to the defences as needs arose. Time for many of these forts was centuries. Generation after generation called these structures home and added their contribution.

Some forts are actually animal enclosures, farmers feeding and protecting their herds and flocks.

Typically the hill fort is a complex and sometimes elaborate earthwork following the curves of the chosen site. They are sited so that the best view of the surrounding countryside is obtained in order to see the enemy coming and so be prepared for attack.

How big they were depended on whether the fort had to defend a small settlement, or in times of real trouble most of the tribe.

Not all are on the tops of actual hills, some are on ridges with steep slopes, very hard to attack. Two or more major tracks or major rivers leading to a settlement would be another. Perhaps protected by marshland or other natural obstacle. On the coast it was necessary to defend the shore from attack from the sea, here hill forts can be found on cliffs.

Most are multipart compounds with lines and circles of massive earthen ramparts. Stockades made of upright logs with sharpened spikes harvested from the local forest were used for further defence. The logs were placed side by side and stood right round the fort.

In later times a few forts had mud covering to the stockade to protect from the elements as well. Even later if the materials were to hand, stone walls were created. Might have spoilt the view however. Sentries perhaps? Certainly the beginnings of the castles. Some are known as castles.

Ditches, probably from where the earth had been taken, surrounded the stockade. This suggests considerable planning and working out of the whole site through the ages. Do not discount the wisdom of the ancients! Marvel at it. Marvel too at their industry.

That these forts were successful for their purpose is evident. The techniques lasted so long and over two thousand have been found in the country. Over one hundred of the larger, more important sites have been excavated.

Copyright Mary Temple 2009.

To find out more about Wessex, cycling, walking or holidaying in this lovely area please visit http://www.travelwessex.com/.

Author: Mary Temple
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Pic: Save Newgrange

Just what is it with Governments and heritage that makes them want to build over it? The Irish Independent announced on January 22nd that the proposed route of the Slane bypass in Co Meath will run just 500 metres from the edge of the ancient Newgrange complex.

The National Roads Authority (NRA) yesterday released an environmental impact study for the route which shows that although it skirts the perimeter of the Bru na Boinne complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it would be almost 3km from the famed burial chamber at Newgrange.

Planning permission for the 3.5km dual carriageway has been sought from An Bord Pleanala, and the NRA said the proposed route would have the “least impact” on the archaeology and heritage of the area.

Included in the scheme is a new bridge over the River Boyne, which will be around 200 metres long.

Bypass Slane Campaign group spokesperson Michelle Power said:

We welcome the plans and look forward to the day permission is granted and funds are allocated for its construction. After numerous fatal accidents human life must take precedence.

Brian Taylor, of An Taisce in Meath, said the route seemed to be the “least offensive” option. Documents for the planning application show there are 44 archaeological and cultural sites within 500 metres of the route.

Read the full article on the Irish Independent site and more at the Irish Herald. Join the Facebook Save Newgrange campaign to help spread the word and help Vincent Salafia of Tarawatch protect Newgrange by signing the Petition.

Pic: Burrenforts.ie

The partial remains of a young person, probably female, which could date back to between 2500-2000 BC, have been uncovered during an archaeological dig in the Burren, Co Clare, Ireland reports the Irish Times back in 2008.

The prehistoric remains were found in the passageway to the central burial chamber of Caherconnell Cashel, a well-preserved stone fort, during the dig which began a fortnight ago.

A significant factor of the discovery is that the body had been allowed to decompose elsewhere before some of the skeleton was placed where it was found, according to archaeologist, Graham Hull.

Mr Hull, who runs a private archaeological company TVAS at Crusheen, Co Clare, said the remains were "disarticulated", meaning that it was not a full skeleton.

The excavation team, which was carrying out the dig as part of Heritage Week events, recovered the skull, rib bones, spine, pelvis and right arm during the dig. With the bones were part of a stone axe and other flints and artefacts which led experts to believe the bones date from 2500-2000 BC.

The fact that all the bones were not there would suggest that the body was brought from somewhere else and were allowed to decompose before burial.

Mr Hull said.

He said this was similar to practices carried out by North American Indians, but there were other examples in Ireland of bones from bodies being deposited like this.

He said not all of the adult teeth in the skull had "erupted", indicating the probable age of the person as about 15 years.

The facial bones, the eyebrow and the chin bone give some indication of sex, and that indicates a female.

The burial, he said, was likely to be a secondary one to the primary burial site of the central chamber in the area being excavated. The bones would be sent for radio carbon-dating and if they proved to date from the period 2500-2000BC, the find would extend beyond regional significance he said.

This type of burial and this type of burial chamber in this part of Ireland would be unique.

said Mr Hull, who is working with Dr Michelle Comber of NUI Galway.

[Source]

An artist’s impression of the hilltop fort dating from 1200 BC which was uncovered recently near Innishannon by archaeologists from UCC. Pic: Southern Star

ARCHAEOLOGISTS believe they have discovered what may have been Cork’s ancient capital, built 3,200 years ago at a time when Rameses III was pharaoh of Egypt. A team of archaeologists from UCC, led by Professor William O’Brien, have carried out extensive research that sheds new light on what is the largest prehistoric monument in Co Cork and the oldest dated ring fort in the country. Their three-year project, funded by the Irish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences and the Royal Irish Academy, shows that huge wooden defense walls once surrounded the ring fort at Knockavilla, near Innishannon.

Radiocarbon dating shows that the ring fort was constructed about 1200BC confirming it as the oldest known prehistoric ring fort in Ireland, according to Prof O’Brien. This puts its importance on a par with prehistoric sites such as Dún Aengus on Inishmore and Mooghaun, Co Clare. Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2008-11-25 10:52:59. Republished by Blog Post Promoter