One of the things that I really love about archaeology is that there is always something to learn. We might develop areas of specialty, but a single person could never learn it all (in fact, we could never learn it all because so much of archaeology is based on interpretations of evidence and our ideas … Continue reading The Late Bronze Age in County Durham
By Jo Zalea Matias Boudica (d. AD 60 or 61), rebel queen of the Iceni (Image 1) is stereotypically depicted in the present day with a mane of long, fiery hair - one could even say that this is one of her defining features. This is true in both academically produced images in books to … Continue reading Guest Post: Boudica the Redhead? The Difficulty in Translating Ancient Colour Words
When you get down to it, archaeology is a bit of a funny subject. We make use of specialised tools like magnetometers to do geophysical surveys and we use scientific instruments like XRF and LA-ICP-MS for materials analysis. Yet, the field archaeologist usually uses tools like the iconic trowel, shovels, mattocks and often a digger … Continue reading Tools of the artefact specialist
For the last twelve months I was lucky enough to work as an Assistant Finds Liaison Officer in the Durham Portable Antiquities Scheme office. This was a part-time role supported by the Headley Trust for the first six months and I am grateful that it was extended for another 6 months for one day a … Continue reading Researching Roman Dividers
Freddie and I are artefact specialists and we both followed similar paths. I did a PhD that allowed me to study Iron Age glass beads and other artefacts, which allowed me to gain an in depth understanding about how dress was constructed during the Iron Age and Roman period. I did my research by reading … Continue reading Becoming a finds specialist
After much deliberation I have decided to resurrect my blog. I have moved all of my previous blog posts from prehistoricglass.wordpress.com (which will be shut down) to this website to get us going. The previous posts were on Iron Age glass beads from Britain, but rest assured I will be writing about other archaeological topics … Continue reading Welcome (again!)
I recently attended the 20th Congress of the International Association for the History of Glass conference in Fribourg, Switzerland and presented a poster on my research. I have included the text and and some of the original images (due to copyright restrictions, some images have been replaced, see below for alternatives). Introduction Although a history … Continue reading Decoration and Colour of Iron Age Glass Beads from Britain
It is extremely rare to find glass beads in British Iron Age burials. This is partially because there are so few burials of human remains that can be attributed to this period. It seems that the practice of burying the deceased in formal graves was not the dominant practice. Instead, the archaeological record suggests … Continue reading Glass Beads from a Late Iron Age Mirror Burial
A Glass Bead from Caerau Hillfort, Cardiff, South Wales An Iron Age glass bead was discovered in an enclosure ditch during the 2013 excavations at Caerau Hillfort. Although unique in design, it bears many similarities to the glass beads from Meare Lake Village in Somerset, which suggests an Iron Age date of 300 – 50 … Continue reading A Glass Bead from Caerau Hillfort, Cardiff, South Wales
A recently recorded glass bead from the Portable Antiquities Scheme provides valuable insight into how late prehistoric beads were used. LON-041951(Figure 1) is a large translucent blue bead with a number of opaque white spirals that sit on protrusions in the glass. These spirals alternate between single occurrences and pairs along the circumference of the … Continue reading An Exciting New Iron Age Glass Bead from London
