WINKLEIGH AIRFIELD SURVEY

     The Winkleigh Airfield Survey is now avilable for download on our ACE REPORTS Page where there are full details.
     The full version with all the photograghs is still available on CD at a much reduced price.  Please contact ACE at ace@ACEarch.org.uk for full details.

HEADS WITH THREE FACES

     Recently, a member of ACE was reminded that there is a head with three faces on Winkleigh Church.

     These carvings were associated to the Trinity by the Christian church to make then acceptable after the attempts to associate them with demons and the devil failed to eliminate them altogether.  The significance of heads with three faces came long before the Christian church but seems to have been lost, possibly because the church authorities would not be pleased to hear talk of them for so long.  If anyone knows of the significance of the heads or where and when they originated, ACE would be most interested and may be able to provide assistance to broadcast the message.  Please email us at ace@ACEarch.org.uk

NORTH DEVON ATHENAEUM

     The North Devon Athenaeum is now online and expanding its searchable catalogue of items available online.  There are some 100,000 entries for documents, library, newspapers and images.  In December they are releasing the first 6000 images from the North Devon Journal image collection, there is also a set of north Devon archaeological pictures loaded and WWII propaganda pictures (British).
  Visit www.northdevonathenaeum.org.uk

ACE NEWSLETTERS

     ACE Newsletters in PDF file format are available here 6 months after publication to members.
Click on the file name to download.

SEPTEMBER 2010:  2010September.pdf  file size 2.59mb.
MARCH 2011:  2011March.pdf  file size 1.32mb.

ACE SUBSCRIPTIONS

SUBSCRIPTIONS ARE DUE IN SEPTEMBER.

    The subscription rates are: £10 for individual members; £15 for families/households.  Please send your subscriptions to Erica.  Her e-mail address is members@ACEarch.org.uk and the postal address is on our Contacts Page .

Dartmoor Archaeology and Bracken Project 2010 and beyond

At long last we have been able to demonstrate and quantify for the first time the degree of damage being caused by bracken rhizomes.  The amount of damage is likely to vary considerable between different sites and now we need to establish the amount of variability.  This of course is not just a problem on Dartmoor but anywhere in the world where Bracken grows!  What we need to do now is to develop a successful and efficient methodology for landowners, such as the National Parks and National Trust etc, to enable their archaeologists to assess potential damage to monuments in their care.

The future:
The next phase of the project must be a series of small scale excavations in a variety of locations utilising the lessons from Teigncombe to gather the information in a much more efficient and targeted manner to find out whether the results from Teigncombe are typical or not.  The results of this phase will certainly help inform future management strategies on Dartmoor and elsewhere for years to come  In many ways this work will certainly have far more reaching effects that our work to date.

In 2011 we intend to develop this methodology at a couple of very different sites and using these results in the following year spread further afield.  The two sites have been identified and permissions are being sought this autumn.  But we need sites for future work, so please do get in touch if you know of any that fit the criteria below.

Criteria:
Bracken infested site within a field system.
Shallow stratigraphy.
Anywhere in Devon but off the open moor, preferably one main stakeholder land, i.e. DNP, ENP, DPA, NT, SW Forrest SW Lakes etc.

Methodology:
We need to be as non-intrusive as possible and have therefore decided that 1 x 1 metre pits may be the answer.
1; Stipe and level survey.
2; Remove turf, measuring all rhizomes.
3; Remove all topsoil, cut out (leaving 1cm in section) and measure all rhizomes, clean up.
4; Level survey.
5; Excavate to natural, recording in the usual way and measuring all rhizomes.
6; Plan and draw section.

The good news is that we will NOT be cleaning the rhizomes in situ.  We now know what a rhizome mat looks like and we are now after the data so that we can compare it directly with the over 100 metre squares that we have already investigated.

This work is of national (maybe international) importance as it will help identify and quantify the bracken problem and may be utilised to generate resources for future beneficial management of sites currently under bracken.  We will probably excavate two 1x 1 metre pits at each site and have estimated that we will need 8 people for this and that it will take 2 to 3 days to complete.  It is proposed that we carry this out in September next year.

A meeting can be arranged to explain the future of the project in more detail.  If you are interested in joining the team please get in touch with Janet at ace@ACEarch.org.uk .

Some ACE events will be subject to a small charge to cover hire, material and insurance costs.
Non-ACE members attending ACE events have to pay £5.00 per day; this will be in addition to any other cost for an event.

2012

JANUARY

Saturday 7th.  Annual walk on Exmoor led by Phil Tonkins.  Meet in the South Molton Cattle Market car park at 10am.  Sadly this will be the last of the Annual Exmoor Adventure led by our intrepid Moorland Sherpa Phil Tonkins, he is afraid that he has run out of accessible places to take us.  I am sure that we will all miss these New Year cobweb blasters.  Thanks Phil for some great walks.  Wear warm waterproof clothes and bring a packed lunch.  Booking essential.

Saturday 28th - AN EXTRA ACE DAY.  Mandy Kingdom Restoring Antique Ceramics.  Crediton Guide Hut – opposite the Leisure Centre, Lord’s Meadow.  10.30 – 3.30  Cost: £3 for ACE members & £8 for non-members.  (This is £3 for the session plus the £5 Non-Members charge).  The day will comprise an introduction to ceramic restoration and will include both a taught session, with examples of repaired pieces, and a practical session where you have the chance to try the techniques for yourself (and get covered in glue!).  Bring something ceramic to mend if you wish, or an item can be provided.
**Note: Please book for this event: Booking deadline is 14 th January .  We need a minimum of 6 people to run this event; there will also be a limit on the maximum number of places to allow for individual tutor access, space needed per person, and buying-in of the necessary materials.
FEBRUARY

Saturday 4th.  Surveying at Moistown, Pattiland Farm Broadwoodkelly 10am.  We will be setting up the Grid for the Dowsing and Geophysics next month and hopefully getting some drawing in as well.  There is the rest of the field boundary and the lane down to the pond to do. Wear warm waterproof clothes and bring a packed lunch.  Booking essential.

MARCH

Saturday 3rd.  Dowsing survey at Moistown Pattiland Farm Broadwoodkelly 10am.  Dowsing as a geophysical tool for archaeology is the order of the day.  The plan is to use the same grid for a dowsed survey and a ‘normal’ Geophysical survey, and to compare the results.  The dowsers get to go first so that there are no pre-conceived ideas about what is or isn’t there.  Wear warm waterproof clothes and bring a packed lunch and Dowsing Rods.  (These can be supplied if needed).  Booking essential.

Sunday 4th.  Geophysics day at Moistown if we can borrow the necessary equipment.  Booking essential.

APRIL

Saturday 7th.  Help build a coracle!  Using willow/hazel for the framework, and skin or tarpaulin for the cover.  Venue to be confirmed as we need to be near water to try it out!  Booking essential.

MAY

Saturday 5th.  Walk on Dartmoor with Dr Sandy Gerrard – to be confirmed nearer the date.

JUNE

Saturday 2nd.  Smithing – To be confirmed.

JULY

Saturday 14th to Saturday 21st.  Planning the extant buildings at Moistown, and setting up tents for the Festival.

Saturday 21st.  3rd Festival of Archaeology and Ancient Technology, Pattiland Farm, Broadwoodkelly.  For more details, to offer help, or exhibit, contact Giles Warham (Festival organiser), or see NEWS page above.

AUGUST>br>
Saturday 4th.  Suggestions for activity welcomed.  Contact Mac Howard.

SEPTEMBER

Saturday 1st.  Suggestions for activity welcomed.  Contact Mac Howard.

OCTOBER

Saturday 6th.  Deer processing day: Skinning, butchering.  Other possible activities could include bone/antler carving to make tools, hide tanning, leatherworking.  Venue and times to be confirmed. Booking essential.

NOVEMBER

Saturday 3rd.  Annual General Meeting.

DECEMBER

Saturday 1st.  Xmas Party…

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