10,000 years of Durham

On 26 July 2014, the Wolfson Gallery became the new home for displays from the Museum of Archaeology. This permanent exhibition uses objects from Museum of Archaeology, alongside objects from across Durham University and other regional museums to explore the last 10,000 years of Durham.

Over the last few months, visitors to the Wolfson Gallery have been able preview a taster exhibition, unearthing the stories of how people have lived and worked in Durham for over 10,000 years.

Living on the Hills explores the lives of people who have lived and visited Durham through the tools and everyday objects they used, and the art and architecture they left behind to be rediscovered. Discover Prehistoric objects found by chance at the turn of the century, Roman objects uncovered by Victorian antiquarians and Medieval objects found during 1970s archaeological excavations.

Community Archaeology
Included in the gallery is a community archaeology space which will showcase the work of local archaeology and history groups from across the region.

Durham Archaeology Explorers, 26 July 2014 - 26 January 2015
Discover the work and activities of the Durham Archaeology Explorers (DAX). See how they engage with children aged 7-11 years to inspire a lifelong interest in, and respect for, archaeology and the people of the past.

If you are part of a community archaeology group and would like to work with the curatorial team to create a display, please contact the museum.

The Wolfson Gallery
The Wolfson Gallery is located on the first floor of Palace Green Library. The Gallery opened in 2011 after undergoing a £2.3m refurbishment, funded in part by a £500,000 donation from the Wolfson Foundation. The Wolfson Gallery is designed to exhibit the collections to the highest standards of conservation.

 

NEW EVENT: PARIS 5

5th Conference on the Preservation of Archaeological Remains In Situ (PARIS 5).

Where? Kreuzlingen, Switzerland
When? 12-18 April 2015

International legislation like the International Lake Constance Conference or Valetta Treaty, call for the "conservation and maintenance of the archaeological heritage, preferably in situ". Since 1996 research into in situ preservation has been presented at a series of international conferences: Preserving Archaeological Remains In Situ (PARIS).  The fifth of these conferences will be held in Kreuzlingen, Switzerland in April 2015.

The key aim of the conference is to present and discuss the latest knowledge, focusing on long term studies of degradation and monitoring of archaeological sites preserved in situ in urban, rural and marine environments.

The multidisciplinary nature of the previous PARIS conferences, bringing together scientists  heritage managers and policy makers, was one of their main strengths. 

Considering this the organizers call for presentations from practitioners and stakeholders to cover 6 themes:

• Preserving the archaeology of the Lake Constance area
• Past mitigation: Successes and failures
• Preservation in a changing climate and in extreme environments
• Degradation processes and rates of degradation
• First things first: Priorities for preservation
• (Monitoring) + Mitigation

All sessions will be led by a chairman who will both evaluate and comment upon the presentations.

These presentations are planned to be published by Maney Publishing in a special volume edition of Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites.

Learn more about PARIS5 including how to register >