Fifth Continent: March 2021 Project Update
By Lucie Bolton
Whilst the last 12 months have not been quite the year we had planned for archaeological activities on Romney Marsh for the Fifth Continent Project, we still have plenty to update you on. From fieldwalking and geophysical surveys, when allowed, to finds processing sessions over Zoom, our volunteers have been busy.
Before I fill you in, I should mention that I spent much of the last year on maternity leave and would like to say a big thank you to Andrew Mayfield, who looked after the projects in my absence.
In the window of activity last summer, we managed to carry out two surveys for our Hunt for
Romney Port project and one survey for our Heritage, Geomorphology and Landuse project. All three of these were magnetometry surveys.
We also managed to finish our third churchyard survey at St Augustine’s in Snave. Here volunteers made an accurate plan of the churchyard and recorded the location, condition and inscriptions on the grave markers with our Churches consultants
Alan Dickinson and Lesley Voice.
Once Covid case numbers started to rise, and our in-person activities had to be once again put on hold, our volunteers continued researching or processing finds from the comfort of their own homes. Remote finds processing is not something I would have thought to do pre-pandemic. Still, it has proven very successful, and feedback from the volunteers involved has been fantastic.
Of course, the social aspect isn’t the same, but it has kept people busy and, in some cases, provided a welcome distraction.
As a Community Archaeologist, making archaeology accessible to all is one of my core beliefs. We have always incorporated remote volunteering into our projects, but the past year has shown us ways to expand this further. I am looking forward to getting back out into the field with the Fifth Continent volunteers over the coming weeks. Indeed, we have a pretty packed schedule to get our projects finished. However, if there is something positive I will take from the past year, it’ll be the growth in remote volunteering, and I intend to make sure we don’t lose this going forward.
The Fifth Continent Project is due to finish by September 2021, but we have lots of exciting activities planned between now and then for volunteers to get involved. For more details, please contact Lucie Bolton at: Lucie.Bolton@kentwildlife.org.uk
Top
Fig 1: Volunteer Kevin carrying out a mag survey for the Heritage, Geomorphology and Landuse Project
Middle, left
Fig 2: Hunt for Romney project survey
Middle, right
Fig 3: Graves at St Augustine’s Snave
Bottom
Fig 4: Volunteers working remotely