Groundwell Ridge Dig Diary by Chris Walker

Friday 16th July – Week 6 Day 3 [Day 28] Last week of digging

Typical, site polished to a high gleam yesterday, heaving it down with rain today . Even after a few minutes work the site was resembling The Somme.
“Dr Wilson will blow the whistle and we go over the top for the big push, lads” quipped Dave Hunter in a clipped accent.

The clay around the site sticks like a News of the World innuendo and although we have taken the “deep room” back and beautifully exposed and cleaned the plaster no-one can see it because it is under thick plastic sheet to protect it from the rain.
English Heritage chief archaeologist David Miles is doing the press interviews and the site is being celebrated as “one of the most important Roman sites in England”.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wiltshire/3900845.stm

Anyway the press have departed and the councillors, dignitaries and VIP’s are gone (why doesn’t somebody say that high heels are not the ideal footwear for a soggy archaeological site, and that was just the male members of Swindon Borough Council and we get down to cleaning up for recording the room when…. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

we find ANOTHER floor joist…..

while chasing down the plaster on the walls.
Pete Wilson, when told, shakes his head, shakes me by the throat and tells us the only thing we know he is going to tell us. Leave it, shoot an EDM co-ord, note it on the plan and forget it.
Aaaaaarrrrgggghhh.

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