East Kirk of St Nicholas dig - May 2007
East Kirk of St Nicholas dig – May 2007
Judith Stones, Keeper of Archaeology, writes…
Last month, Paul Duffy gave a vivid account of some of the evidence of disease and injury which he’s discovering during his analysis of the human bones at Glasgow University. Meanwhile, here in Aberdeen, the post-excavation team have just finished cleaning the ‘disarticulated’ bones - 305 boxes or 13.5 cubic metres of skeletal material found during the excavation to have been already disturbed from its original resting place in the process of digging for later graves or building work. By the end of June the last 200 complete skeletons (out of the 925 found) will also be ready to travel to Glasgow. We’ve estimated that the total volume of bones which will have to be accommodated when they’re re-buried below the new development will be 26 cubic metres.
What’s known in the trade as a ‘data structure’ report, including lists of every feature, layer and find, of photographs and plans, along with summary descriptions of the results of the dig, will be ready by the end of September. The data structure report is a significant step in the post-excavation process, a springboard if you like for the writing of the final report, once all the specialist work on finds, human remains, pottery, historical research and so on has been added in. An important tool in compiling the data structure report is the Harris Matrix, invented by archaeologist Dr Edward Harris in 1973 (on 28 February of that year, in fact, according to an article by him that I read recently). He wrote a book called ‘Principles of Archaeological Stratigraphy’, which was translated into a variety of languages, including Italian, Spanish, Slovene, Polish, Chinese and Japanese. Harris saw the matrix as ‘a new type of calendar, which allowed archaeologists for the first time, to see the stratigraphic sequences of complex sites’. The matrix is particularly relevant when dealing with complicated medieval sites with hundreds if not thousands of layers and features: it provides a diagrammatic way of understanding all the various inter-relationships. The first two photos show Kevin Appleton with his completed matrix for just one area of the St Nicholas dig – as you can see it’s quite large!
Another milestone, reached right at the end of April, was the production of a very informative and colourful ‘Initial Report’ on the dig. It contains two essays – one by Chris Croly, Assistant Keeper Research, on the historical background and research and the other by Alison Cameron, Assistant Archaeologist and dig director, outlining her first interpretations of what was found. It’s also full of pictures and very good value at £2.50! Copies can be bought at the Kirk of St Nicholas and at Provost Skene’s House, Guestrow, where the exhibition ‘Early Glimpses: excavations within St Nicholas Church 2006’ continues until mid-November 2007. The ‘Initial Report’ has been produced thanks to a grant from the Friends of the Kirk of St Nicholas and the proceeds from its sale will go towards the Mither Kirk Project.
Another aspect of the post-excavation process which is highlighted both in the ‘Initial Report’ and in the exhibition is the essential requirement for conservation of a whole range of items found during the dig. Sensitive materials, such as textiles, wood and metals, need to be professionally cleaned and treated to protect them from further decay as soon as possible after they come out of the ground. As I’ve mentioned before, that work is being done by Margot Wright at Marischal Museum: she’s seen at work on some of the St Nicholas Church objects in the next photo.
Sometimes during conservation the function or purpose of an object becomes clear, or at least possible identifications are made, particularly if the item is small, lacking in shape, or broken. For example, Margot has suggested that the copper alloy fragment in the next photo may be part of a small bell. I wonder what you think!?
Two other copper alloy objects which have recently returned to us from Margot’s care are shown below. One is a charming little watch key, while the other, a stud, may have formed part of a decorative design on a coffin, perhaps in the 18th century or later.
For further information or comment, please contact judiths@aberdeencity.gov.uk