Friends rewrite fort history books

Vicky Nash and volunteers at the Castleshaw forts dig

WITH a team of experts and enthusiastic volunteers, backed by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, The Friends of Castleshaw Roman Forts have turned another page on an illuminating chapter of the site’s ongoing saga.

And their fresh excavations at the site, which dates back to 79AD, have uncovered more exciting finds.

The project — “Redefining Roman Castleshaw: Understanding and sharing our past” — has been described as a phenomenal success.

Vicky Nash, senior archaeologist at the University of Salford and project supervisor, revealed: “Everything has not been fully recorded from previous digs so we’ve uncovered some things we expected — as well as some things we didn’t.

“We’re finding some differences in what has been written down too so we’re rewriting history in certain parts.”

Their finds include anything from prehistoric flint tools to fine Roman Samian tableware.

They also discovered Roman roof tiles and a melon bead found in excavations and museums associated with sites of Roman military occupation.

It is believed the beads may have been high status objects of ritual significance — or the Roman equivalent of the dogtag.

More than 300 local schoolchildren and 150 adult volunteers have taken part in the giant operation.

For more information visit www.castleshawarchaeology.co.uk.
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