Archaeology in Northumberland volume 14: 2004 Contents Foreword . .3 Welcome . .3 Return of the Tides of Time . .3 The Medieval Bridge at Etal Castle . .4 The Breamish Valley Archaeology Project . .6 A Memento of Hadrian’s Wall . .6 Blyth Power Station: The End . .7 National Mapping Programme in Northumberland . .8 The National Park Historic Village Atlas Project . .9 Excavations at St Leonard's Nunnery, Berwick . .10 Facelift for Haltwhistle Tyne Bridge . .11 Experience Northumberland at Woodhorn . .12 Discovering our Hillfort Heritage . .12 Abbey House, Hexham . .12 The Industrial Secrets of the Cragside Estate . .14 Bothie or Pillbox? . .15 The Sanitary and the Sepulchral - Langley Brick Works . .16 Exciting finds from Bamburgh Castle . .17 Going, Going, Guano! . .18 A new future for Hartford Hall . .19 Images from the Lead Mining Industry . .20 Books for all . .22 2000 Years of Military History . .24 Field Survey at Dunstanburgh . .25 A Medieval Settlement at West Hartford, Cramlington . .26 The Secrets of Berwick Railway Station . .28 Tanks not a threat to Hadrian's Wall . .29 Silver Mining in the North Pennines . .30 Railings Return to Ravensdowne . .31 Recent Listings . .32 Assessing the Past . .32 Glimpses of Medieval Bedlington . .34 Excavations of a Horned Cairn at Scald Hill . .35 Portable Antiquities Scheme Arrives in the North-East . .36 Discover Northumberland . .37 New discoveries at Chesters Roman Fort . .38 New Exhibition for Ingram National Park Centre . .39 Keys to the Past . .39 Thirlwall Castle . .39 List of Contributors . .Back Cover Cover Photo: Blyth Power Station during demolition. Photo: Margaret Eagle-Clark This Page: Cup and ring marks at Lordenshaw. 2 Welcome to the fourteenth edition of Archaeology in Northumberland his year’s newsletter contains Conservation Team, including the a taste of archaeological Keys to the Past website. New Twork in the County between projects are now being considered April 2003 and April 2004. The within the team that will hopefully articles cover a range of activities continue our work to make the including developer-led recording, information on the County’s thematic projects and Government heritage more accessible to its sponsored recording projects such citizens and visitors. as the Portable Antiquities Scheme (page 36) now operating We hope that you find that this from the Museum of Antiquities in year’s newsletter contains a wide Newcastle. There is also a range of articles to interest you, welcome return to articles and that accurately reflect the submitted from the diversity of prehistoric and historic Northumberland National Park, remains with which who describe several of their Northumberland is blessed. We longer-term research projects welcome any comments or including the Village Atlas enquiries you have about the (page 9). articles and also any contributions you may wish to submit for Foreword This year has seen the completion consideration for future issues. s the short years roll round, and launch of a number of long annual milestones become term projects run by the Chris Burgess and Sara Rushton Aan anticipated pleasure. To Conservation Team Managers introduce another welcome issue of Archaeology in Northumberland is one such occasion. Our magazine continues to interest and impress The Return of widely, thanks to the commitment of the compilers, Sara, Chris and Liz, and the The Tides of Time revelations of the contributors, to all of whom, grateful thanks. ides of Time returns by popular discovery whilst walking along the demand with the publication of beach. There is also advice on The reports this year cover a Ta second edition of this guide which sites can be visited and maps variety of periods but the most to the archaeology of the and details of how to find them. recent development may be the Northumberland coast. Tides of With colourful reconstructions and most interesting: the Keys to the Time covers the history of the many specially commissioned Past website: Northumberland coast AONB, from photographs, Tides of Time is a the prehistoric to visual treat and a www.keystothepast.info the twentieth must for anyone century. In with an interest in which has been a very successful addition to the archaeology of and worthwhile project. There is chapters dealing Northumberland. an article in this issue which will with major It can be introduce the site to you themes along the purchased from (page 39). coast such as the Conservation settlement, Team for £9.99 May you find the magazine as defence and plus £1.30 post informative and as absorbing as economy, Tides of and packing and usual. Time describes will also be the sort of available through Alan Cutter archaeological many good local Executive Member for remains which bookshops. Environment can still be found Northumberland County Council and what to do if SR you make a 3 The Medieval Bridge at Etal Castle Remains of the east pier of the medieval bridge visible in the River Till. ong hot summers and endless The sandstone blocks which formed arches, the absence of voussoirs rain-free days are a double the base of these piers testified to a amongst the fallen stonework was Ldelight to the archaeologist out medieval bridge of some quality and intriguing. walking the landscape. Under these substance. Finely dressed and with a drier conditions upland peats shrink rubble core, the hexagonal bases Historical references to the bridge back from long-concealed stony survived up to two courses high. At were sadly few and brief. A survey of features, cereal crops assume a some angles, and particularly those the Borders carried out in 1541 height and colour in response to near the cutwaters, iron bars records that the bridge had recently underlying moisture levels and river remained within their bar-slots, collapsed, ‘to the great trouble hurte levels fall to a sluggish trickle – all tightly cramping the individual and annoyaunces of thinhabitants offering rare opportunities to stones together. The site had been therabouts, whiche had allwanis discover new sites and record well chosen by the bridge-builders. redy passage over when the said additional details about known ones. Here, the river was some 27m wide river is waxen greate and past riding So it was with the River Till at Etal between steep banks, with upon horsebacke.’ Its strategic last summer, where abnormally low outcropping bedrock providing a firm location for the moving of ‘ordnance river levels exposed the base of two foundation upon which to set the and armys’ into Scotland required bridge piers lying 7.5m apart some piers. Although nothing of the speedy repair. Indeed, later writers 300m south-west of the castle (NT abutments was visible, the position have speculated that the Scottish 922 390). Through the kindness of of the buried eastern abutment was ordnance captured by Surrey at the Andrew Joicey, the opportunity to indicated by a pronounced projection Battle of Flodden might have been obtain a detailed record of the of the riverbank. Many of the stones carried to the safety of Etal Castle remains was too good to miss, and from the collapsed superstructure over this very bridge. This second in partnership with Peter McKegue remain on the riverbed, and a bridge was described in 1760 as and Roger Miket the Conservation number reveal architectural detail, being of wood over stone piers. Team was able to produce the plan which reinforce this impression of Around 1777 it was swept away by shown here. quality in the build. Yet while this severe floods; this time it was not would suggest a bridge with stone repaired, but replaced by a ferry crossing. 4 Plan of remains of medieval bridge piers surveyed in 2003. What then might the combined were pulled by no less than 16 Around the 1540s the fortunes of record reveal as to the history and oxen, while the large cannon firing a Etal Castle were in decline, as the appearance of the bridge? We 60lb shot required a team of 36 village moved northwards to New possess no notice of when the bridge oxen. Etal and the interest of the was built, however it is landowners in their manor here not unreasonable to diminished. There was view it in the context of apparently little incentive the stone phase of Etal to do more than repair Castle, which was the piers and provide the completed around the cheaper option of a mid 14th century. What wooden carriageway to has survived suggests span the river. Removing that it was originally the collapsed debris, entirely of stone, and including the with three arches each architecturally valuable with a span of 7.5m voussoirs and parapets between two abutments from the riverbed at this and two piers. It is time, would be a logical known that a road from operation, and one that the castle crossed the would account for their Till at this point and absence today. It is that one branch, at testimony to the skills of least, ran westwards. the builders that this The width of the stone repair was to stand for a carriageway is further two centuries. suggested by the length of the sides of the piers Roger Miket – 1.3m, too narrow for a cart to cross. It is hardly credible that a narrow bridge would allow the passage of ordnance of any size, Remains of the west still less the Scottish pier of the medieval guns captured at bridge visible in the Flodden; the smallest River Till. (‘culverins moyane’) Photo: R. Miket 5 Breamish A memento of Hadrian’s Wall Valley Archaeology Project 003 saw the final scheduled summer season 2of the National Park Authority’s Breamish Valley Archaeology project, part of the Discovering our Hillfort Heritage initiative. This project has completed a ten-year programme of survey and excavation, based largely on Ingram Farm.