Annual Report

ANNUAL REPORT KENT ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL The Council presents its one hundred and thirty-sixth Report and Statement of Accounts for 1994. OBITUARY The Council records with regret the deaths of Mr P.H. Blake (a member of the Society for 47 years and a member of the Council for 12 years) and the Rev. Canon B.J. Wigan (a member of the Society for 45 years and a member of the Council for 4 years). ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING The Annual General Meeting was held at Dartford on Saturday, 21st May, 1994, when the Council's Annual Report and Accounts for 1993 were accepted. Messrs. Reeves and Neylan of Canterbury were reappointed Auditors to the Society. OFFICERS The following were elected as officers of the Society: President: Vice P residents: Hon. Editor: Hon. Treasurer: Hon. General Secretary: Hon. Librarian: Mr K.W.E. Gravett, M.Sc.(Eng.), ES.A. Dr A.P. Detsicas, B.A., M.A., D.Litt., ES.A., ES.A.Scot. Mr R.H. Hiscock, LL.B., ES.A. Dr A.P. Detsicas, B.A., M.A., D.Litt., ES.A., ES.A.Scot. Mr B.T. Cousins, I.P.EA., EC.LS., Mr A.I. Moffat Dr P.H.G. Draper, B.Sc., P h.D., D.I.C., ER.S.C. Hon. Membership Secretary: Mrs. M. Lawrence lviii ANNUAL REPORT Hon. Excursions Secretary: Mrs. J.M. Saynor, M.A. Hon. Curator: Mr H.S. Middleton, B.Sc., A.M.A., M.I.Mgt. COUNCIL The following were elected members of the Council: Mr P.H. Blake,* Mr M.J. Burden, F.C.A., Mr L.E. Ilott, Mr M.A. Ocock,* Mr P.E. Oldham, M.A.,* Dr F.H. Panton, M.B.E., Ph.D.,* Dr R.J. Spain, C.Eng., M.I.Mech.E. and Mr C.P. Ward.* * Retiring member of Council FINANCE A copy of the Society's accounts for the year ending 31st December, 1994, appears elsewhere. These accounts show a deficit of £17,000 before allocating £7,300 of investment income to specific funds, compared with a surplus of £11,000 in 1993; an adverse movement of £28,000. After taking into account a reduction of £3,500 in the Society's investment income, which reflects lower interest rates and market conditions in 1994 together with a drop of £1,000 in other income, there remains £23,500 due to increased expenditure. The main items of increased expenditure were: Increased activity by committees £6,700 Archaeologia Cantiana, 1994 and Index volumes, net of grants £4,300 Net increase in grants by the Council £13,100 The major items being: Eccles excavation report Dover Bronze Age Boat £12,000 £3,736 Less reduction in general expenses Net adverse movement for the year £24,100 £600 £23,500 After taking into account the annual transfer to capital reserve of £2,000, the General Accumulated Reserve, which covers this deficit, is reduced by £26,185 to £60,109. W hilst the deficit for the year is of concern, the increase in expenditure by the committees is an encouraging indication of an expansion in the Society's activities. The Council has taken action to contain any future deficits both by initiating the recent increase in subscriptions and by adopting a system of budgetary controls. lix ANNUAL REPORT MEMBERSHIP At 31st December, 1994, the membership of the Society was 1,718, an increase of 66 over the previous year's total of 1,652. This number was accounted by the election of 124 members offset by the resignation of 42 members and the deaths of 16 members. The large number of resignations was due to the increased subscription rates approved at the 1994 Annual General Meeting. The circulation of new bankers' orders in preparation for the 1995 increase revealed many long-standing members, now octogenarians and nonagenarians, who wished the Society well but decided not renew their subscriptions. The Council expresses its appreciation of their long membership. Other resignations were due to joint members who reduced to ordinary members, removal from the County and ill health. Several long-standing members were among those deceased: Mr D.H. Deare (Gravesend, 63 years), Lt.-Col. Clarke (France, 49 years), Mr P.H. Blake (Folkestone, 47 years), Mr L. Belton (Sittingbourne, 46 years) and Canon B. Wigan (Hurstpierpoint, 45 years). The following members are to be congratulated on completing fifty years of membership and need not pay further subscriptions: Mr G.J. Davey (Rolvenden), P rofessor S.S. Frere (Abingdon) and Mr R. Dixon (Teynham), a life member. The new subscription rates from the 1 st January 1995 are: Individual members £15 Over 65, member for 5 years £10 Junior (not over 21) £7 Affiliated societies £15 Joint (husband and wife) £20 Institutional subscribers £25 Joint (husband and wife) both over 65 and members for 5 years £18 CHURCHES COMMITTEE The Society was represnted by counsel in the appeal by the P.C.C. of St. Luke's, Maidstone, to the Court of the Arches held in April against the refusal by the Commissary General to allow the P arish radically to re-order this Art Nouveau church and to replace the pews with chairs. The three judges refused the re-orientation proposals, but allowed the removal of pews provided that they were carefully preserved and stored. The Society is grateful to Mr Andrew Lloyd-Davies of counsel, who gave his services free. With financial help from English Heritage, Romney Marsh Historic Churches Trust and the Society, work was carried out on extensive repainting and repairs to the flintwork at the ruined churches of Hope and Midley on Romney Marsh. These churches, together with lx ANNUAL REPORT Eastbridge, which was reported in 1991, should now be protected from deterioration for many years to come. After consultation with the Courtauld Institute, the important early fourteenth-century wall-paintings on the north and south arcades of the nave at St. Mary's Church, Bishopsbourne, were conserved by Tom Organ of the Wallpaintings Workshops, Faversham. A small grant towards this work was offered by the society. The Committee is concerned that over the years there has been little coordination between the many different bodies that have been concerned with the recording of monuments and gravestones. To this end, steps are being taken to prepare guidelines and a county-wide index. In the Council's report for 1992, reference was made to concern for the future of both Murston Old Church and Goodnestone, St. Bartholomew. Hope was expressed that both might form interpretation centres for a Swale Heritage Trail. During the year, plans for the Trail moved forward, although the part which Goodnestone might play still remained under question. The care of Murston Old Church was transferred from the Society to the Cromarty Trust and it was hoped that repair work would start early in 1995. EDUCATION COMMITTEE The major event in 1994 has been the publication of Roman Canterbury, A Journey into the Past, by A. Harmsworth and members of the Canterbury Archaeological Trust, with the support of the Kent Archaeological Society, which was very well recieved and is being reviewed in this volume. EXCURSIONS In the Spring and Summer of 1994, one six-day excursion and three afternoon study-visits were organised on behalf of the Society. The annual excursion - to Snowdonia - was attended by 31 members. Based in an excellent hotel in Porthmadoc, each day there were visits to sites of archaeological, historical and architectural importance from Conwy to Harlech. Special arrangements were made with the owners of two of the three places visited on summer afternoons, at Riverhill House, Sevenoaks and at Robertsbridge Abbey, Sussex. Between twenty and thirty members attended each of these visits. After visiting Robertsbridge Abbey, a member, David Martin, conducted the group on a most scholarly perambulation of Robertsbridge itself. The third visit, to Faversham, was planned to co-incide with the July open house weekends of the Faversham Society and, probably because the town is better lxi ANNUAL REPORT known to Society members, attracted fewer participants, but those attending were most appreciative of the Faversham Scoiety's programme. FIELDWORK COMMITTEE The Committee met on several occasions and recommended to the Council grants for fieldwork. A day-school on medieval pottery, led by Dr A.D.F. Streeten, was held in February 1994 at Tunbridge Wells and was well attended by members and non-members from a wide area. A one-day conference on the theme of Church Archaeology was held in October 1994 at Sevenoaks, but, unfortunately, a meeting organised at Smeeth on fieldwalking had to be cancelled through lack of support. KENT HISTORIC BUILDINGS COMMITTEE The Committee is jointly sponsored by the Society and the C.P.R.E. who share the costs and expenses incurred. There are eight members representing each organisation and a number of co-opted members of the Committee who report on cases brought to their attention. The Committee deals with all listed buildings in Kent where demolition or an element of demolition is proposed and because it acts as agent to the C.B .A. throughout Kent, all such applications should be referred to it for comment. Applications are passed to reporting members of the Committee by the Secretary in order that they may consider the implications as they affect the listed buildings and make recommendations to their councils with whom decisions rest. The work in preparing the Index of Historic Buildings is progressing and when completed will do much to direct the attention of members to buildings in their areas. MEMBERSHIP AND PUBLICITY COMMITTEE The Committee met on four occasions during the year. The Society received publicity through exhibitions of photographs from the Society's archives organised by Mr I. Foreman. The monthly lecture series continued to be well supported but a new lectures secretary is needed to replace Mr D. Coast who has acted in this capacity for two years. There were two social occasions during the year: a Country Social Evening with barbecue supper at Buston Manor Barn, Yalding, with a short illustrated talk on the hop industry, and a Christmas Buffet Lunch held at the Dominican Guest House, Canterbury, when members were entertained by Mr John Rice, the County Arts Officer. lxii ANNUAL REPORT The publicity stall continued to be much appreciated at Society events and the Editor of the Newsletter appreciates the support given her by members' contributions which enables her to produce the exemplary Newsletter, the essential means of communication within the Society. The year was marked by the consideration of plans for attending the Kent Show in 1995 to which the Council gave its approval at the December Council meeting. PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE Volume CXII of Archaeologia Cantiana was issued in 1994. The volume, under the editorship of A.P. Detsicas, B.A., M.A., D.Litt., F.S.A., ES.A.Scot., maintains its high standard and its contents cover a wide field of archaeology and history. A large number of contributions has been submitted for possible publication in volume CXIV to be issued in July 1995 and, while this is very gratifying, it will mean that inevitably some material may well have to be held over until 1996. Volume CXIII, a General Index volume, covering the years 1975 to 1992, has been prepared for free issue to members in July 1995. The texts promised for the Monograph Series have not yet been submitted. Parts 9 and 10 of Kent Records (New Series) have now been issued, with a slip case, to subscribers and complete Volume 1 (1994). The Committee continues in the debt of the Society's President for the typesetting of this series. CONFERENCE OF BUILDING RECORDERS The thirty-first Conference of Building Recorders was held on Saturday, 15th October, when three papers were presented to an audience of some 45 members and their friends. F irst, Dr Derek Renn spoke on St. Leonard's Tower at West Malling which he interpreted as a burhgeat or gate-tower, an early Norman example of a building type which occurs in the Bayeaux Tapestry. He quoted a number of parallels, dating from both before and after the Conquest (e.g. Bramber Castle). He was followed by Margaret Lawrence, who explained that East Peckham was a large wealden parish with farmsteads distributed throughout and the old church towards the north end. To enable parishioners to attend services a stable was built outside the churchyard and places were allocated in it to those who lived farthest away. The building is timber-framed, with a side-purlin roof, and retains the stalls, each labelled with its farm. The old church is now redundant and both it and the stable are isolated (and regrettably subject to vandalism). The third talk was on the Black House at Gillingham and was given by Peter Cobley. This has only recently been recognized, under its lxiii ANNUAL REPORT corrugated-iron covering, as a two-storey, timber-framed cottage, with an end chimney (converted from a smoke bay) and two rooms on each floor. With a side-purlin roof, it dates from the middle of the seventeenth century. Before the meeting broke for tea the Chairman, Kenneth Gravett, reported that the Thanet section of the Kent Historic Buildings Index had been published and thanked the speakers for their contributions, Charing P.C.C. for the use of the hall and the ladies of Charing for the tea. The next Conference of Building Recorders will be held in the Barn at Charing on Saturday, 14th October, 1995, commencing at 2.15 p.m. KENT DEFENCE RESEARCH GROUP Membership of the Group stands at 87, five of whom live overseas. The Group's quarterly journal Ravelin continues to be published regularly and in January 1995 reaches its fortieth edition. Several members continue to be busy in the field of conservation and many more are active in research. Victor Smith's Cockham Wood Fort appeared in Vol. CXII of Archaeologia Cantiana. Several members attended the 1994 Fortress Study Group Conference (organised again by a Group member) at Brighton. Visits included two of the London Mobilisation Centres, Pevensey Castle, Newhaven Fort and Eastbourne Redoubt. 1994 has been a busy year for the Group, with the start of recording twentieth-century defences for the County's Sites and Monuments Record. In this respect it is important to note that Ron Crowdy and Victor Smith have done a great deal of work in north Kent along the Bast Thames Corridor. The Group was represented at Kent County Council's Heritage Strategy seminar at Aylesford in November 1994 and continues to press for recognition of the heritage value of defensive structures. The Group is also represented on the Ministry of Defence's Cinque Ports Training Area Conservation Group. Several members of the Group have played a part in the preparation of a joint Fortress Study Group/Council for British Archaeology handbook of British twentieth-century defences, which is due to be published in April 1995. Publication will coincide with the launch of the C.B.A.'s Project which will seek to record as many as possible of the country's twentieth-century defences. Here again the Group is well represented, with two members on the Management Panel, another as Field Co-ordinator and five (including the Field Co-ordinator) acting as Area Co-ordinators. This project promises to be an exciting and challenging venture and the Group is pleased to be associated with it. lxiv ANNUAL REPORT KENT UNDERGROUND RESEARCH GROUP The Group continued to investigate and record sites in Kent and southeast England. Several deneholes and chalk wells were surveyed as well as another underground ragstone quarry at Maidstone. The Group is a member of the National Association of Mining History Organisations and many Group members attend field meetings organised by this national body. These meetings give an opportunity for the interchange of ideas and are most useful. Our members organised several trips to sites in other parts of the country to compare mining techniques in Kent with other areas. Some members have been busy giving talks and lectures to local societies. These talks are popular and give members the chance to share their knowledge with others. If any society would like to have a talk on underground subjects, please contact the Hon. Secretary of the Group, R.F. LeGear. MEDWAY AND GILLINGHAM BRANCH The Medway and Gillingham Branch of the Society has undertaken three lectures and two field trips. In February its Chairman, Michael Moad, gave a talk on his many experiences in 'Museum Conservation'. In April Peter Dawson described the 'Recent Excavations' of the Lower Medway Archaeological Research Group on both rural and urban sites around Rochester. In October Martyn Chapman gave a talk on 'Anglo-Saxon Society in the Ninth Century', bringing along many replica artifacts for the audience to study. On a Sunday in April about twenty individuals braved four inches of snow for a guided walk around Cobham Park. The guide, Pauline King, archivist of the Cobham Hall Heritage Trust, then took the party around the magnificent sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Hall. On a pleasant summer evening in June Alan Ward led over 50 individuals on a guided tour of Rochester City walls. The surviving portions of the City wall on the north, including the north-east tower, the latter dating to the late fourteenth century, have recently been recorded by the Canterbury Archaeological Trust. The Tuesday evening meetings of the Branch take place in the Guildhall Museum, High Street, Rochester and are open to all. 1st January, 1995 lxv By Order of the Council A.I. Moffat Hon. General Secretary