Festival of Archaeology 2013

Last Saturday, 27 July 2013, as part of the Festival of Archaeology we took over the National Trust's lovely Prior Park for a day of fun and learning for all ages. There were 8 activities held throughout the park, all focusing on different aspects of archaeology.

Ralph Allen made his fortune reforming the British postal system in the early 1700s and is famous for his transformation of mining in the Bath area. Allen invested in the stone quarries of the Combe Down Stone Mines in the Bath area. Using stone mined in his quarries, Allen built Prior Park for his residence in 1742. His vision for Prior Park was to showcase the beauty of the limestone house overlooking Bath with extensive gardens housing numerous unique buildings. Allen hired renowned architect John Wood, the Elder, to create the plans for the house, and landscape gardener and poet, Alexander Pope to design the gardens.

The Grotto
The Grotto was the first place to explore for the festival; here you could see the reconstructed grotto, built for Mrs Allen, which became her favourite place in the grounds to read and relax. The Grotto was constructed to show off rocks and designs on the ground made from bones and fossils.

Fun fact: The Grotto is the resting place of the family’s beloved dog, ‘Miss Bounce.’

Gothic Temple
The second stop was the Gothic Temple was built in 1742 in the wilderness part of the park. Here, Allen would provide light refreshments for his friends while they were visiting the park.

Fun fact: In 1921, the Gothic Temple was purchased and moved to Rainbow Wood House, just two miles from Prior Park.

Serpentine Lake
Allen designed the Serpentine Lake to snake through the wilderness part of the park, culminating in a cascading waterfall, which Allen would release for visitor’s delight in the Cabinet before beginning the evening’s festivities. At this third stop, visitors could view before and after photographs of the excavation with a local archaeologist.
Fun fact: The Serpentine Lake was excavated between 2006-2007 by local archaeologist, Marek Lewcun, and his team.

Summerhouse
The Summerhouse was reconstructed in 2004 by a volunteer team to its original 1912 design. It was copied from the photograph that was donated. Here, visitors could watch local stonemason, Laurence Tindall carve Bath stone.

Office
For the festival, the staff room was opened to the public to show a short film about the Combe Down Stones Mines excavation and stabilization. There were also objects from the archaeological dig at the mine for visitors to handle.

Fun fact: To save the graffiti in the mines before they were filled in, archaeologists developed techniques that removed the graffiti and then they were mounted on slabs to save them.

Natural Play Area
Down by the lake, visitors were able to be an archaeologist, identifying pottery, clay pipes, coins and look at objects through history.

Fun fact: The lakes surrounding the Palladian Bridge were designed to appear as an optical allusion that made the three lakes look like one from the house.

Thatched Cottage
Allen constructed the Thatched Cottage and Ice House on the park grounds in the mid-eighteenth century. Ice from the Ice House was transported to the house on the railway used by Allen for the mines. Visitors were able to discover how archaeologist surveys the land with Richard Sermon.

Fun fact: The Ice House was used as an ammunition bunker in the Second World War.

Palladian Bridge

The Palladian Bridge was built by Allen, and is only one of four Palladian bridges remaining. Visitors were able to learn about the history of the architecture of the bridges, have a go at a Palladian bridge puzzle, learn about the graffiti on the bridge and how it relates to the graffiti in the Combe Down Stone Mines, and try making their own graffiti in a craft activity.

Fun fact: The Palladian Bridge is on the cover of the death metal band Opeth’s album, Morningrise.


Overall, even with the threat of rain, the Festival of Archaeology proved to be a fun day out for visitors of all ages learning about archaeology.  We thank the great Prior Park team for all their help and hospitality.   Amy - Leicester University MA placement

Tuesday Time Table - Decorative Plants for the Roman Garden

A number of plants were used for decorative purposes although many were also used to freshen the air inside houses. Ivy, myrtle, box, bay and rosemary as evergreens were particularly favoured as decorative plants as they required little water.



Citron


• Acanthus was used as a ground-covering plant on banks and borders
• Bay-Laurel
• Box was used extensively around the garden as boundaries and was often shaped in formal gardens
• Citron was grown for decoration rather than being eaten. It was also used for medical purposes
• Cucumber
• Cypress
• Holly
• Ivy
• Jupiter’s Beard
• Madonna Lily
• Maidenhair covers the ground very well
• Mint
• Moss
• Oleander
• Myrtle - beautiful scent, flowers as well as useful berries
• Periwinkle, another excellent ground-coverer
• Pine
• Plane trees provided shade and were used in groves and shaded walks such as at the Academy in Athens
• Rose
• Smilax
• Southernwood was praised for its golden flowers which are heavily scented and its grey-green foliage
• Strawberry tree (not strawberry bushes) was reminiscent of Lychees. The fruit could be eaten but not very easily
• Vine
• Violet

Tuesday Time Table - Roman Flowers and Foliage for Garlands, Wreaths and Chaplets

Garlands (strings of flowers) were used to decorate places of worship, gardens and courtyard walkways and made for special occasions such as birthdays and weddings. Wreaths and chaplets (circles of flowers and foliage) were intended for feast days and banquets and would have been strongly scented. Wooden ‘frames’ made from flexible young trees and branches were worked to form a chaplet, then decorated with flowers. If no fresh flowers were available owing to the season, dried flowers could also be used. Evidence in mosaics shows the seasons, represented by women, wearing chaplets made of flowers and foliage associated with that specific season.

Iris

• Ivy, smilax and vine would have been woven together with seasonal flowers and foliage (sometimes fruit!) to create garlands and decorations for gardens and walkways.
• Mulberry and fig provided the wood for chaplet frames
• Narcissus, roses, lilies and larkspur, were often combined
• Parsley stalks and flowers were woven together to create a very fragrant and lasting chaplet.

Did you know? Parsley only flowers if grown in a green house or warm climate

• Rose and violet was a favourite combination
• Amaranth
• Anemone
• Casia
• Chrysanthemum
• Fennel
• Hesperis
• Hyacinth
• Iris
• Marjoram has a strong and very pleasing scent
• Melilot
• Mint was scattered on the floor, used in chaplets and stuffed into cushions to freshen the air
• Oleander
• Periwinkle very pliable stems and a beautiful array flowers
• Quince
• Rosemary
• Saffron
• Southernwood
• Thyme

Julie

Tuesday Time Table - Roman Plants used for Bee-Keeping

As the production of honey was important (sugar was not available in Europe at that time) bee-keeping was highly regarded. Certain plants were used to attract bees and thereby aid pollination of fruit trees and to keep bees kept in hives healthy and well fed.

Rosemary

• Apiastrum balm soothes bees by being rubbed onto the hive
• Beans
• Casia
• Cerintha
• Cunila
• Poppy
• Rose
• Rosemary and trefoil was planted to provide ‘medicine’ to bees
• Thyme was used as a food source for bees
• Tree medick
• Vetch
• Violet

Julie

Tuesday Time Table - Roman Plants for Wine

Wine was produced from various plants, including grape vines. The production of wine from grapevines was undertaken by families who owned large gardens as it was only feasible to produce wine if enough space was given to vines. Some of the more unusual plants for winemaking are listed:

Mulberry

• Asparagus
• Carrot
• Catmint
• Cedar
• Cornflower
• Cypress
• Dittany a form of Marjoram / Oregano
• Juniper
• Laurel/bay
• Lavender
• Marjoram
• Medlar
• Mint
• Dried Mulberry
• Nettle
• Parsley
• Pear
• Pine
• Pomegranate
• Rose
• Rue
• Sage
• Terebinth
• Thyme
• Turnip
• Valerian

Tuesday Time Table - Roman Plants for Medicines

Many medicines would contain a variety of ingredients, with different parts of the plant being crushed into powder (in a mortarium) and then mixed with oil to apply externally or added to wine to make a liquid remedy. Plant material was boiled down to create a liquid or a paste and often honey would be added as a sweetener to a medicine meant to be drunk.

Acanthus

• Acanthus was usually a decorative plant but its roots could be cooked and applied as a poultice for burns, sprains and gouty limbs

• Basil was eaten to ease flatulence

• Cabbage in various forms has been accorded no less than 87 different cures ranging from ingestion, infusion and application by Pliny the Elder

• Hemp/Cannabis ripe seeds were used as a contraceptive

• Hollyhock, even though more commonly used as a herb, was also made into an ointment to treat wasp and bee stings

• Marsh Mallow was crushed and boiled in wine, which thickened due to the mallow,and was applied to the skin as a poultice to treat bruises and tumours, or could be drunk to soothe toothache

• Mustard was used to cure snake bites, mushroom poisoning, toothache and stomach ailments, to soothe asthma, epilepsy, bruises and sprains

• Onion, due to its eye-watering effect, was thought to improve poor vision and if mixed with rue and salt it was applied onto dog bites

• Sweet Flag could be used on its own or in combination with terebinth-resin (turpentine) to treat coughs, with the smoke being inhaled through a funnel

• Valerian, just as today, was used as a sleep-inducing medicine, with its petals being scattered between bed sheets. It could also be used as a dusting powder if dried and mixed with dried lily petals

• Willow contains salicylic acid, the main ingredient in Aspirin, and was used to treat fever and pain

Julie

Tuesday Time Table - The Roman Kitchen Garden

Flowers were generally not found in early Roman gardens as they were used predominantly for vegetables and fruit but the poppy is an exception as its seeds were cultivated for bread making. Unlike today vegetables and fruit were only available in certain growing seasons and as no refrigerating facilities existed, many vegetables were pickled. Here are a few plants found in a kitchen garden:

Cabbage

• Cabbage, including kale (also used for medicinal purposes)
• Asparagus
• Almond
• Anise
• Artichokes
• Beans
• Beet
• Brussel sprouts
• Catmint
• Cherry
• Chives
• Coriander
• Cucumber
• Dill
• Endive
• Fennel
• Fig
• Garlic
• Hazelnut
• Hemp/ Cannabis used to produce ropes and hunting nets ....
• Leek
• Lettuce
• Mallow
• Marjoram
• Medlar
• Mint
• Myrtle was used as a form of pepper, which was not yet widely available as an import from the East
• Olive
• Onion
• Parsley
• Peach
• Pear
• Plum
• Pomegranate
• Quince
• Radish
• Rocket
• Rue
• Saffron
• Thyme

Myrtle

NB: Many plants on the various lists will appear more than once as they were used as a food source as well as for medical, ritual and ornamental uses as boundaries were fluid between some of these categories.

Julie

Tuesday Time Table - Roman Gardens

My name is Julie Allec and I am on a work placement with the Roman Baths Collections Team as part of my MA in Museum Studies at Leicester University. As part of the placement we were asked to do a Tuesday Time Table and I chose the topic of ‘Roman gardens: their plants and uses’ as I have just recently rediscovered my love for horticulture ( the last time I was regularly active in a garden was in primary school, believe it or not!).

Me and my Time Table

This week will be an introduction into the Roman garden in general.

The Roman garden (hortus) has always been an important part of the family home, although it was originally a vegetable plot rather than a decorative garden. Having a ready supply of vegetables meant self-sufficiency and therefore the garden had a certain sanctity attached to it. Before tending to the garden certain Gods had to be called upon and rituals performed to avoid a failed harvest. The hortus was located next to the house for easy access and its beds were marked by raised edges. A cistern collected rain, which was used to water the garden.

Within the towns and cities of the Roman Empire space was a rare commodity, but a garden that could supply food for the family table was even more important. The first type of housing incorporating a garden in a strict manner of layout can be dated back to the 4th and 3rd century BC and was discovered at Pompeii.

Most plants found within a Roman garden either originated in one of the provinces of the Empire or came from an area that the Empire traded with.

Since my research into the Roman hortus, or garden, yielded a lot of interesting information I decided to develop separate blogs to give you an insight into: kitchen garden; plants used for medicines, wines and cordials; bee-keeping and perfume production; chaplet-making; decorative plants and plants used for religious purposes. These will be released each week on a Wednesday  for the next few weeks. Today and for the next two weeks there are two per Wednesday (AM/PM) as some blogs are shorter than others - the last two will be released individually.


Julie