Watch this space

Dear All,

We are all looking forward to the new excavation season (five weeks until the bookings open). Watch this space for up-dates about how to apply, fees, and any other information you need to whet your appetite for the new season ahead.

The Vindolanda Website – on-line booking

The main Vindolanda website is undergoing re-development at this present time, and will have a completely new look and be a truly modern representation of the Trusts aspirations for the next few years. As such we hope to iron out some of the problems that dogged the old site when many people were trying to apply for excavation places at once. It is being designed to work like a normal web shopping site (aka Amazon et al). The excavation placement weeks are being divided into units, and can be bought in the same way, once a place has been purchased, it will automatically be taken off the availability list on the website. It is hoped that this will make the booking process easier and clearer. From the moment you have placed your card details on the site and the payment taken, the place will be yours, and in the next few days an email will arrive from me to confirm your booking.

You will still be able to apply through the post, via the normal address;

Fiona Watson
Vindolanda
Chesterholm Museum
Bardon Mill
Hexham
Northumberland
NE47 7JN

Telephone: 01434 344 277
Fax: 01434 344 060

The basic fee looks likely to remain the same as last year’s fee (this will be decided at the Trustees Budget meeting to be held in late October this year, and so I cannot confirm this in stone yet until the Trustees have made their decision).

At present, two weeks on the excavations costs £50, with the additional £15 ‘Friends of Vindolanda’ membership on top of that fee. If more than two weeks are requested, then an additional £20 per week after two weeks will be charged. If one was to Volunteer at Vindolanda for four weeks, and was not already a ‘Friend of Vindolanda’ the overall cost would be £105 for four weeks. The breakdown being as follows:

Friend of Vindolanda annual fee £15
Excavation booking fee £50
Additional two weeks £40
Total cost £105

As always, the Vindolanda Trust endeavours to keep the fees as low as humanly possible. The fees do not cover the cost of the excavations, not even close, but they do help to provide facilities for the excavators, tea, coffee and the excavation T-shirts, as well as new trowels, spades and even the odd wheelbarrow.

All the best,

Andrew

A new excavation shed? (just maybe)

It looks likely that all being well the base shed for the excavators will be demolished later in the year to make way for a much improved and smart facility that can take greater numbers with more comfort and be used as a base to give lectures on site etc.

We all love the shed that is there at present, in a purely sentimental way rather than as a facility (as it is far past its prime) and some of you will remember what it was like before even this was inhabitable (brids nesting, dodgy electricals and a constant gale blowing through shattered windows, sacks of pot ash to sit on instead of benches and a stan pipe for water outside the building). However, we have had our eye on this for some time, and would like to give everyone a better base of opperations.

This will all depend on planning permission being granted, and final costs agreed, but we 'hope' that the new facility will be up and running for the start of the 2008 season. As soon as I get more details on progress or otherwise I will upload them, including pictures etc.

best,

Andrew

Excavation dates:

The excavations will officially open up on the 23rd of March in 2008 and will close on the 13th of September. This will provide a good five and a half months of excavation, and one of the longest seasons in the history of the work undertaken by the Vindolanda Trust.

Andrew

The current website:

At present there are a few problms with the current www.vindolanda.com website on the excavation pages, Donation pages and the friends of Vindolanda pages. Please do not be alarmed, this is due to the re-building that is on-going on the website (which will look radically different from the current form) and all information about applications etc will be on the site by the 1st of November.

If anyone has specific enquiries that need to be cleared up before applications go live on the 1st of November remember you can always email to fionawatson@vindolanda.com or myself at andrewbirley@vindolanda.com

best,

Andrew

Excavation Numbers:

We can now announce the number of places that will be available on the Vindolanda excavations for the 2008 season. Justin will be running with a team of up to 8, and Andrew with a team of up to 20. This will provide excavation places for 636 slots during the 2008 season. We hope to have new excavator facilities on-line by that point to cope with the extra numbers, such as a new team base etc.

This should provide for a great mix between experienced and new team members.
all the best,

Andrew
[B]

Dear All,

Accommodation.

This is just a helpful reminder to everyone to remember to book their accommodation in the Vindolanda vicinity as soon as they can. We remind everyone who fills in the application form that they should consider this, especially if they are due to excavate over a bank holiday or a school holiday period. Vindolanda is set in a highly popular tourist area, and places to stay fill up accordingly.

Best,

Andrew

Vindolanda Geophysical survey.

At the moment the areas that are due for excavation are being surveyed by Timescape archaeological surveys. The results look promising, with buildings, wells, roads etc showing in the extramural areas, and at least one of the granaries coming out clearly on the plots of the interior of the fort. Due to contractual and copyright reasons I will not be able to share the plots with this group by uploading them, so you will have to wait and see the results when you come to Vindolanda for the excavations. There will be several publications in due course which will show the results, and we hope to make a small exhibition at the west gate entrance.

Best,

Andrew

Excavation T-shirts

Hi all,

New Excavations T-shirts

This year we will be resplendent in black excavation T-shirts. Black has been a long time coming, and it's year has finally arrived. The design will be simple, and will also carry the NRF logo (Northern Rock Foundation logo) an extension of the Northern Rock bank. Why? They have very generously and successfully sponsored the Vindolanda excavations in the past, winning a top national archaeology sponsorship award in 2001 for their efforts. In a mark of profound respect for the work of the Northern Rock Foundation has carried helping many good causes in the region (as well as our own) the Vindolanda Trust wanted to show it's support.

Old Excavation T-shirts

Not all shirts from past seasons find a loving home, some people fail to show up for various reasons and their t-shirts are never claimed, we also tend to over order to compensate for any girth changes that may have taken places post booking and pre turning up. Most of them are the designs you can see at the top of this page. Those that we have left from past seasons are going to be sold to excavators for the princely sum of £2 (or $4 for Harry’s benefit). It is on a first come first served basis, so those that arrive in March, April and May might clean us out. Just another good reason to book in for March, April or May on the excavations then!

Best,

Andy

New Excavation Shed up date:

The shed goes ahead!

Construction of the new facility will start on the 14th of April this year and it should be open to use by the 28thof April at the latest. This will make things very comfortable for the excavators and provide a proper base of operations for the forseable future.

best,


Andrew

The 2008 report:

An interim report on the work that has taken place in 2007, with a raft of specialist reports is due to be released later this year, possibly as soon as May. It is hoped that we will be able to make this report downloadable from the main Vindolanda website at www.vindolanda.com

The report will include the latest geophysical survey of the site. A full report on the 2007 work will be published in due course as part of the biannual publications of the work undertaken on the site by the Vindolanda Trust.

best,

Andrew