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Events and Activities on or about Cawood Castle Garth Supervised Archaeological Dig, July 2008 During National Archaeology Week we held our first supervised Archaeological dig, excavating three 1 x 1 metre test pits under the close supervision of Jon Kenny from the York Archaeological Trust. Despite some astoundingly bad weather we successfully completed two of the excavations and much of the third, with some welcome help from volunteers from the village and Cawood Primary School. We are in the process of washing the finds, some of which look very interesting already, and further details of the finds will be posted here when we have them. Getting Started on the first pit Carole starting the digging Linda and Teresa examining early finds Measuring the level of the second pit Paul and Steve digging The first pit The second pit The third pit Finishing the dig A selection of finds A selection of finds A selection of finds Finds Day 2008 On Saturday June 7th 2008, the Garth Group held the third annual Finds Day at Cawood Primary School. The famous Cawood Sword put in an appearance with over 100 people coming to a special talk about it. Photographs of this event can be found on the History page. Finds Day 2007 In June 2007, the Garth Group held a Finds Day at Cawood Primary School. Further details of this can be found on the History page. Geophysical Survey 2007 In March 2007, volunteers from Cawood undertook another geophysical survey of the Garth. Markers set out for the Geophysical Survey 2007 More markers from the Geophysical Survey 2007 A marker from the Geophysical Survey 2007 Pond Clearing 2007 In January 2007, a group of volunteers waded into the near-freezing pond and thinned out the reeds, while yet more brave souls heaved the muddy mass into mounds for disposal. Pictures of this brave effort can be seen on the Natural History page. Cawood Finds Day 10th June 2006 Even though we clashed with the first England match in the World Cup, we had a good turn out for the finds day. We were really pleased with the response from the village and we found a range of items from several centuries. This included some 2nd Century Roman pottery and a 13th Century lead seal. A Find On Finds Day June 2006 Washing The Finds On Finds Day June 2006 Members of the Public Viewing The Finds On Finds Day June 2006 A Selection Of The Finds On Finds Day June 2006 A Seal Matrix Brought To The Finds Day June 2006 Buckle Brought To The Finds Day June 2006 Buckle (Reverse) Brought To The Finds Day June 2006 Neolithic Stone Tools Brought To The Finds Day June 2006 Some stone whorls brought along On Finds Day June 2006 Some Unidentified Discoveries From Finds Day June 2006 Mammal Discovery Day 18th February 2006 On a beautiful morning at the beginning of half term, a group of about 35 children and parents armed with torches, pencils and magnifying glasses learnt how to look for evidence of the mammals that live on the Garth. Fiona Gladwell, a zoologist and a member of the Cawood Castle Garth Group, showed everyone the type of footprints and droppings left by certain mammals. Her comprehensive workbook gave information on all the signs left by most British mammals that might be found. For two hours, the excited children made a wide search of the grass and vegetation on the Garth. In the undergrowth were placed special carbon treated plates, which would show footprints of any animal that walked across them. During the hunt for evidence, signs of rabbits, rats, mice, voles, squirrels and in particular many footprints of foxes were found. Unfortunately much evidence of a family friend, the dog, was also found-mostly on the bottom of shoes! The detective day was concluded with a quiz on British mammals and a prize for the most correct answers, was won by Milly Bates. Thanks to Fiona for organising a great day out and to everyone who participated. Searching For Clues on Mammal Day February 2006 Explanations being given on Mammal Day February 2006 Examining Owl Pellets on Mammal Day February 2006 Eagerly awaiting the identification of a find, Mammal Day February 2006 Fiona talking about the owl pellets, Mammal Day February 2006 Washing through the owl pellets, Mammal Day February 2006 Looking at the footprint tracking plates, Mammal Day February 2006 Pond Clearing Working Party 26th November 2005 Following the guidance from the ecological survey a group of volunteers attempted to clear 10% of the pond surface area to prevent it from silting up. It was a bitterly cold day and the work was a challenge - pulling the rushes roots out by hand was hard work. More natural history activities and photos can be found on the Natural History page of this site. Earth Works Survey Weekend 9th October 2005 Fans of Channel 4’s Time Team will know the value of the work of ‘Landscape Detective’ Stewart Ainsworth, whether the site under investigation is a prehistoric camp, a medieval abbey or a downed Second World War bomber. Over the weekend of 8th-9th October, three of Stewart’s English Heritage colleagues led a weekend of training in field survey for our Group. They opened our eyes to recognise and interpret archaeological evidence visible with the naked eye, and sometimes staring us in the face. And they showed us how to record what we saw, using a range of techniques from high-tech satellite mapping to simple, old-fashioned taped survey. EarthWorks Group Listening to Al Oswald from English Heritage October 2005 Geophysical Surveys and Molehills! In March 2005, volunteers from Cawood undertook a number of geophysical surveys on the Garth with the assistance of a group of post-graduate students from the Archaeology Department of the University of York. A large underground team also gave a helping hand...! Across the whole of the Garth site, a great many molehills are commonly in evidence. On a scheduled ancient monuments such as this, moles can burrow where humans are not permitted to investigate. Consequently, we decided to make the most of the opportunity this presented by holding a molehill sifting day with children from Cawood School assisted by Emma Waterton, our facilitator. The children plotted the location of a group of the molehills and then sifted the loose soil, bagging and labelling finds for later evaluation. A lot of ceramic building materials were found, particularly in earthworks close to the pond in the centre of the site. We aim to extend the survey soon to see what other treasures the moles have unearthed. Undertaking the Geophysical Surveys Undertaking the Geophysical Surveys in the rain Getting to grips with the Geophysical Surveys in the rain One group member wrestling with the geophys equipment One group member taping The tools used for the mapping activity Sifting Molehills For Clues June 2006 A Molehill Waiting To Be Sifted June 2006 Molehill Finds Day 18th October 2005 School children helped our experts wash and examine the finds they had seen on the Sept 04 Mole hill sift day. The children also learnt about the types of evidence people living at different types in history would have left as clues to the way they lived. Cawood Craft Fair 2005 We held an exhibition near the Church at 2005's craft festival and encouraged people to sign up for our events and voluntary activities. We had a good response. Lots of interest in our draft nature trail leaflet with the author giving a series of guided tours along its route.