National Trust Archaeology

A woman in a blue fleece is holding part of a pipkin pot

A fragment of a Tudor period German stoneware flagon which is decorated with various designs, including man wearing a helmet or hat

"In the end it took us the full two weeks to locate the moat in the corners of two of our trenches. The problem was that the moat had been buried under up to 1.5 metres of soil and rubble to create a level area to layout the 17th century garden."

@nationaltrust.org.uk @midsandeastnt.bsky.social

"The key to finding the old house was going to be pinning down the position of the moat which once surrounded it. It should have been easy to find such a massive feature especially as we had some hints of its location from geophysics and earlier small excavations."

A group of archaeologists stood in and beside an archaeological trench are smiling at the camera

"Our aim was to understand more about the history of the gardens, especially those which went with the late 17th century hall, and to see if we could locate the original medieval manor house which once stood nearby."

We've got a little update from the excavations on the lawns of the Wimpole Estate in Cambridgeshire.
Angus Wainwright, NT Archaeologist, says: "We teamed up with @oxfordarchaeology.bsky.social and Cambridge Archaeology Field Group to carry out this dig in front of hundreds of visitors." 🧵

An archaeologist in a trench with a wheelbarrow and buckets and tools ©National Trust/Mike Selby

"Our aim was to understand more about the history of the gardens, especially those which went with the late 17th century hall, and to see if we could locate the original medieval manor house which once stood nearby."

Historic image in black and white showing a cricket match in progress at Sheffield Park in East Sussex. Ornately decorated pavilions are visible in the background of the image while in the foreground a bowler is running in and the batsman is standing at the stumps with other players around him

Explore the story of the 3rd Earl of Sheffield & his enduring love & patronage of #cricket, from childhood games to creating a world class cricket pitch & hosting the Australian Cricket Team in 1896 in a new exhibition at Sheffield Park, until 23 November 🏏
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex...

A picture of an archaeologist wearing a hard hat and high visibility vest standing in a test pit on an archaeological site. The captions on the image read: On the shortlist! Early Career Archaeologist Archaeological Achievement Awards Sponsored by the Royal Archaeological Institute

*NEWS* We are delighted to share that Kayleigh Hibberd has been shortlisted in the Early Career Archaeologist category #ArchaeologicalAchievementAwards.
The winners will be revealed on 28 November at Queen’s University Belfast. The event will be live streamed on @archaeologyuk.bsky.social's YouTube.

All the feels

Image with text and six coloured circles. The text reads: if you can’t see the number then you are: Blue circle with a number 4 visible: dehydrated Light green circle with a number 2 visible: too warm Grey circle with a zero visible: too cold Dark green circle with a six visible: tired Yellow circle with no number visible: still upset about the Library of Alexandria Orange circle with the number 9 visible: hungry

How’s everyone feeling??
#FridayFun

We can't wait to see and share the results!

You can read more about the site here: heritagerecords.nationaltrust.org.uk/HBSMR/MonRec...

Or learn more about Gunby Hall's history: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/nottin...

A person standing within the grassed over moat of Bratoft Hall with a red and white ranging pole to indicate depth of the moat ©National Trust

In 2012 an earthwork survey identified the survival of a medieval or early post-medieval landscape, including extensive earthworks, likely associated with formal gardens, possibly contemporary with the hall and the survival of possible medieval settlement remains beyond the formal gardens.

Lidar imagery (©Environment Agency) showing the clearly defined earthworks of the moated manor site and associated features surrounding it

The Hall was demolished in 1698 and the family moved to a new house, Gunby Hall.
The remains of the moated site survive well as a series of earthworks. The site has been little altered since it was abandoned, and the waterlogged nature of the moat indicates good survival for organic remains.

Aerial photograph from 2019 (Historic England) showing the earthwork remains of the moated site

It’s #LincolnshireDay, so we’re off to Gunby Hall to explore the site of a moated manor at the south of the Estate.
Bratoft Moated Manor was the seat of the Markham family from 1409 to 1538. In 1495 the lands of Bratoft and Gunby and the moated site at Bratoft came into the family. 🧵

Find out more about some of London’s oldest pubs - including our very own George Inn - in this new article by @jpwarchaeology.bsky.social, cheers! 🍻

Lovely! Thanks for sharing, Duncan.

You can find out more about the dovecote on National Trust's Heritage Records Online: heritagerecords.nationaltrust.org.uk/HBSMR/MonRec...

The remains of a cast iron stove surrounded by bricks and brick walls in an archaeological trench

The team are still working their way through the rubble and hope to complete their discoveries at the end of October.

Curious for more? They’re digging again this Thursday. Pop by, watch archaeology in action, and chat to the team.

NT images/Steve Timms

This hidden gem once powered the glasshouses, keeping the pineapples nice and toasty.

Stourhead estate records show there were three separate buildings for growing pineapples. Each would have been heated with a stove, which fed hot gases through cavities in the brick walls and floors.

A man in a black tshirt with a green National Trust emblem is holding a bucket, kneeling in front of an iron stove which was used to heat a pineapple house

Big news from #OutintheField at the Walled Garden excavations at Stourhead! ⛏

The team, led by @nationaltrust.org.uk archaeologist Steve, have uncovered a 19th-century cast iron stove, sitting in its original spot - the cellar of the pine house. 🧵

In the Squatters Room at Sutton House in Hackney, with a floorboard lifted in the centre of the space, showing the floor joists beneath.

A leaflet produced for the centenary of the National Trust in 1995, depicting two people on penny farthing bikes and advertising a photographic competition to win a trip to Florida and lifetime membership of the National Trust.

A snapshot of recent history at Sutton House - as part of a fire alarm upgrade project, we have some floorboards lifted & were able to look below them. All the finds post-dated the 1980s-90s restoration, including this @nationaltrust.org.uk centenary leaflet - lost almost 30 years ago to the day!

#HeritageOpenDays is now in full swing, with lots of events still planned for the rest of this week.
The festival is running right through until Sunday 21st September, and you can find out more about which of our places are FREE to visit by visiting:
www.heritageopendays.org.uk/whats-on/sea...

Find an event near you by searching the directory here:
www.heritageopendays.org.uk/whats-on/sea...

Between 12 & 22 September there are opportunities to explore places that you might not usually have access to, for example Horton Court - the oldest inhabited roofed structure the National Trust cares for, or enjoy free entry to Souter Lighthouse, the first to be designed and powered by electricity!

Brought to you by the National Trust, supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, and powered by thousands of local organisations and volunteers, the festival invites everyone to explore and connect with their local area. And it’s all FREE!

#HeritageOpenDays is here to banish boredom this September, with thousands of free events and experiences celebrating the people, places, and stories that shape England’s heritage. 🧵

@nationaltrust.org.uk

Exploring the past, and the colour palette, of Wimpole Estate @nationaltrust.org.uk 🎨

As we peel back the layers on the North Lawn in search of medieval moats and bygone gardens, you can see there's much more than just shades of brown!

@nattrustarch.bsky.social

HistoryScapes Visit the post for more.

Users can also link from each site to a webpage that offers more information, images and other content.
Find out more: historyscapes.uk

Each trail has 8 stops, linked to a historic map and triggered by GPS (or by tapping points off site). At each stop there is a ‘Discover More’ audio, commentary from National Trust experts that provides context and a view from the present, along with images from the Trust’s and other collections.

Quarry Bank: the apprentice’s tale - the industrial revolution was changing the world in 1823. Join mill apprentice Frank Scott and find out how.
Devil's Punch Bowl: broom squire’s way - this heathland landscape in Surrey has seen centuries of change. Join George Mayes in 1925 on the old turnpike.

The app brings these estates’ histories to life through the eyes of ordinary people, and is a ‘time travel experience’ through voices in the past.
Saltram - National Trust: portraits of the past - Saltram was a hive of activity in 1775. Join head carpenter Henry Stockman to explore this estate.