 Current Archaeology 156Current Archaeology number 156 was published in March 1998  Inside the bastle at Glenochar. The site is visited by spirits each year on the 2nd January. More than one type of spirit appears for the occasion Just what can be achieved by amateur archaeologists? GlenocharIn 1603, James VI of Scotland became James I of England, and the crowns of the two countries were united. One of his first acts was to put down the notorious 'reivers' or brigands who were terrorising the borderlands between the two countries, and in the following centuries, peace gradually brought prosperity. This process has been gradually revealed in the stunning excavations at Glenochar in Southern Lanarkshire where Tam Ward and the Biggar Museum Trust have been conducting a Bastle project since 1981, and now have revealed a complete village , or fermtoun, together with the bastle, or manor house at its centre. This is a stunning account of a stunning achievement. LittlehayA more typical example of just what can be achieved by a village archaeological society - again without any professional help - can be seen in the work of the Ockbrook Archaeological Society, just outside Derby. After many years of fieldwalking, they decided to investigate a Roman pottery scatter at Littlehay. It soon turned out to be a rather fine Roman building ...
Newark Castle Amateur work comes in many different forms. Some projects are
wholly amateur, others are amateur work under professional direction.
An outstanding example of this is the work at Newark Castle. The
castle is one of the most spectacular castles in the Midlands, but the
spectacular part is the great eastern wall facing over the River
Trent. Behind, virtually everything has disappeared. John Samuels
raised funds, and laid on a hugely popular excavation to look for the
remains of the rest of the castle. What he found, however, was
something rather different ... Mid SussexIt is commonly believed that the advent of 'PPG 16', the government regulations for rescue archaeology, has removed the need for amateur rescue excavations. In Mid Sussex however, Chris Butler has been finding it rather different. Here there are still plenty of emergencies, sites where nothing is known on the surface, and here, with the support of the local planning archaeologists, he has been finding a range of sites of all periods.
Botel, or Buittle, CastleBotel, or Buittle Castle, (there are many different ways of spelling it) is one of the most historical castles in south west Scotland. Here from 1292-6, John Balliol became King John I of Scotland, albeit to some extent a somewhat unsatisfactory puppet of the English who was eventually succeeded by the first true Scottish King, Robert the Bruce. Here too one of the first Oxford colleges - Balliol College was founded, by his mother Dervorguilla, in penance for the misdeeds of his father. What have the recent excavations by Alastair Penman revealed? And, of course, there is also the Books, Diary, John Musty's Science Dairy - and the Letters page!
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