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Home , Chewton Mendip, East Harptree, Ebbor Gorge, Goatchurch Cavern, Mendip Hills, Wells and Mendip Museum

Festival of Archaeology Discover the fascinating history and archaeology of Wells and the Mendip Hills with open days, talks, walks and other events 12 – 27 July 2014

For the fifth year, the Museum will be co-ordinating a Mendip-wide programme of special events as part of the national CBA Festival of British Archaeology. Visit www.archaeologyfestival.co.uk for full details of the national event. Full details of the Mendip Hills Festival are also available on our website – www.wellsmuseum.org.uk/mendip-hills-festival-of-archaeology-2014

The Museum itself will be organising a number of events including Time Team-style geophysics days, a Finds Identification Day, a Medieval pottery handling day, as well as visits to excavations in and , to a Grade II Listed farmhouse, and a Cold War underground bunker. The annual Mendip Hills Historic Environment Day will also take place during the Festival on Saturday 19 July. Tickets are now available.

Time Team-style geophysics on Cathedral Green, Wells Tuesday 8 July, Friday 18 July and Tuesday 22 July 11am to 4pm Museum staff, members of CHERT, and volunteers will be undertaking a geophysical survey of Cathedral Green, in partnership with the Cathedral Office. There will be practical opportunities for people of all ages, including children, to get involved. Several archaeologists and historians have suggested that there may be a Roman road crossing the Green and its use as a burial ground may also be revealed in the results. Join us at any time 11am to 4pm. No charge.

The Charterhouse Mineries Saturday 12 July at 2pm From a panoramic view point of this minery, members of CHERT will explain the various stages of processing from pre-history to the Industrial Age, some 2000 years of technical progress. We explain the mining, dressing and smelting of the , ready for market. Guided tour lasts approx. 2 hours. Rough terrain – stout footwear recommended. Drinking water also advised. No booking required. Children and dogs welcome. Meet at the Charterhouse Centre, BS40 7XR www.chert.org.uk

Inspecting Prehistoric Markings and Ritual Engravings in some Burrington Caves Sunday 13 July & Sunday 20 July 10.30am – 12.15pm, 12.30pm – 2.15pm, 2.30pm – 4.15pm Suitable for the relatively faint-hearted. Underground exploratory guiding by Chris Binding FRGS, CIC, ACI and co-author of Ritual Protection Marks in 2004 and Ritual Protection Marks in Hole & Caves in the 2010 (University of Spelaeological Society). Strong footwear must be worn and BYO refreshments/drink. A degree of personal fitness needed to negotiate uneven rocky chambers and uphill walk. £7.50 per person, includes specialist equipment. Numbers limited. Booking essential quoting ref: Arch guided tour or phone in advance. Tel: 07968 275969 or [email protected] Venue: , meet in the disused quarry car park near the Burrington Inn BS40 7AT. Ample free parking with toilets 1

Explore Medieval Pottery Monday 14 July 11am to 4pm A special opportunity to see and handle medieval pottery with experts. During the excavations in the Museum garden before the building of the Lecture Room and Conservation Store, large quantities of Medieval and post-Medieval pottery were found. Volunteers are now identifying and sorting all this material. You will be able to see and handle examples and talk to the experts. You may find similar pottery in your own gardens! Normal museum admission charges will apply.

Time Team-style geophysics on Cathedral Green, Wells Friday 18 July 11am to 4pm

Old Deanery Gardens, Wells Wednesday 16 July & Wednesday 23 July 10.30am – 12.30am Since 2004, a group of volunteers have worked to revive the gardens and to commemorate William Turner (c.1508 – 1569) with plants familiar to, and catalogued by him. Old Deanery, Cathedral Green, Wells BA5 2UG. Use Wells car parks. No need to book. Grateful for donations. www.olddeanerygarden.org.uk

Explore a Cold War Underground Bunker at Wednesday 16 July at 6.30pm and Saturday 26 July at 2.30pm with former Chief Observer of the Royal Observer Corp Mike Parfitt. See the primitive measuring instruments and scary instructions! Organised by Wells & Mendip Museum. Booking essential as number limited. Tickets £3, to be collected from the museum in advance. Tel: 01749 673477 or Email: [email protected]. Meet at Harptree Hill Farm BS40 6EL or grid ref ST 544 560 for roadside parking.

Manor Farm and Church, Thursday 17 July at 2pm Manor Farm is Listed Grade II and the oldest part has walls 90cm thick which date from the early 14th century. Phase II occurred in the 16th century when the original build appears to have become a solar wing. Phase III is mid-17th century and further developments had taken place by the time of the 1840 Tithe Map. Amongst many other features you will see an early plate tracery window of two-lights with twin cusped heads. Two internal stone arches to doorways, a solar fireplace dating from 1659 and a grand 4-light transomed window with ovolo mouldings dating from a serious up-grading. Want to know more, then come and see! The visit will also include the adjacent redundant church. Organised by the Vernacular Building Research Group and the Museum. No charge. The number of places is restricted, so booking is essential. Tickets available from the .

Mendip Hills Historic Environment Day Saturday 19 July 10am to 4pm This full day of talks and presentations will include “The Tribe of Witches” by Stephen Yeates, “a re-evaluation of the Witch of ” by Barry Lane, “On-going excavations at by Pip Osborne, “from Mendip to the Levels: Landscapes and Identities 1500 BC to 1086 AD” by Dr Zena Kamash, and “The icing on the archaeology cake” by members of the Somerset Vernacular Buildings Research Group. Booking is essential. Tickets are £12.50 which includes a buffet lunch, and are available from the Museum.

The Garrison, The Bishop’s Palace, Wells Saturday 19 July 11am – 4pm A colourful and entertaining day for all the family with drill displays, musket firing and weapons displays with a living history camp. Come and meet the soldiers and rebels from 1865 when the Monmouth Rebellion took place in and around the West Country, including Wells itself. There is a tale to tell so come and find out about the fascinating Rebellion story. Venue: The Bishop’s Palace, Wells BA5 2PD. No booking required but normal admission charges apply. www.bishopspalace.org.uk Tel: 01749 988111

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Inspecting Prehistoric Markings and Ritual Engravings in some Burrington Caves Sunday 20 July 10.30am – 12.15pm, 12.30pm – 2.15pm, 2.30pm – 4.15pm Details as above

The Taunton Garrison, The Bishop’s Palace Sunday 20 July 11am – 4pm Details as above.

Time Team-style geophysics on Cathedral Green, Wells Tuesday 22 July 11am to 4pm Details as above.

The Charterhouse Mineries Tuesday 22 July at 10am A walk along paths that once were rail tracks for the movement of the raw materials from the mining shafts to the washing floors, condensing flues and smelters. You will see the reservoirs, a settling pond and the round buddles where the ore was separated. Guided tour lasts approx. 1.5 hours. Level ground – good footwear recommended. Drinking water also advised. No booking required. Children and dogs welcome. Meet at the Charterhouse Centre BS40 7XR. www.chert.org.uk

Old Deanery Gardens, Wells Wednesday 23 July 10.30am – 12.30pm Details as above

Finds Identification Day Thursday 24 July 11am – 3pm Laura Bennett, the Finds Liaison Officer for , will be available at the Wells and Mendip Museum to identify your finds from digging your garden or while walking your dog. No charge or booking necessary.

Gully Cave, Ebbor Gorge Friday 25 July 2.30pm Another special opportunity to visit a unique prehistoric cave excavation led by Prof. Danielle Schreve of Royal Holloway, University of London, who has been carrying out excavations at the previously unexplored Gully Cave, which have exposed deposits rich in prehistoric (Ice Age) fossil remains. Participants need to be reasonably physically fit as there are lots of steps to reach the cave through Ebbor Gorge, about 20 minutes each way. Good walking shoes are recommended. Booking is essential as numbers are limited. Tickets are £3 each and are to be collected from the Museum in advance.

Explore a Cold War Underground Bunker at East Harptree Saturday 26 July at 2.30pm Details as above

Cave People in Cheddar Gorge daily 10am – 5pm Our ancestors came to the caves in Cheddar Gorge as the Ice Age melted 14700 years ago and hunted the wild horses by stampeding them over the cliffs. Re-enactors, dressed in deerskins, demonstrate the Stone Age survival skills of flint knapping and fire-making and show off the artefacts and human and animal bones excavated from Gough’s Cave. Other activities, on most days, include “cave painting”, dig boxes, dressing up, making pinch pots, quiz sheets and colouring sheets. No booking necessary, activities included in “Explorer” ticket. www.cheddargorge.co.uk

Barry Lane, Honorary Curator, Wells & Mendip Museum, 8 Cathedral Green, Wells, BA5 2UE Tel: 01749 673477 Email: [email protected]

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