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National Archaeology Week is an annual event is to encourage everyone, and especially young people and their families to visit sites of archaeological and historical interest, museums, sites and heritage resource centres, to see archaeology in action and to take part in a wide variety of activities. During this 9 day event across the UK, which ran from 12th–20th July, there were excavation open days, hands-on activities, family fun days, guided tours, exhibitions, lectures, ancient art and craft workshops and much, much more.

National Archaeology Week events at Prescot Street

On Tuesday 15th, Wednesday 16th and Thursday 17th July we held three open evenings with site tours, guest speakers, an introduction to finds, GIS and post-excavation work and an opportunity for the visitors to discuss the project and website with site staff.

The evening lectures were:

Tuesday 15th July
Speaker: Natalie Cohen – University College London
Digging London’s Past: a history of discovery

Nathalie Cohen studied Medieval Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London and worked at the Museum of London for nearly ten years, latterly as a Senior Archaeologist (specializing in standing buildings and structures) for the Museum of London Archaeology Service (MoLAS). She has taught at Birkbeck University and for the Department of Continuing Education at Oxford University.

Wednesday 16th July
Speaker: Rob Whytehead Greater London Archaeology Advisory Service, English Heritage
Digging in Tenter Street in the 1980’s

Rob has been head of the Greater London Archaeology Advisory Service since 2001. Prior to this, Rob advised on the archaeology of north and west London for 11 years, and developed a particular interest in prehistoric archaeology. Rob has excavated and published numerous sites in London since 1976 while working for a commercial unit. He directed excavations at a site in South Tenter Street during the 1980’s.

Thursday 17th July
Speaker: David Bowsher – Museum of London Archaeology Service
Digging up the people of Roman London

David is the Senior Post-Excavation Project Manager with the Museum of London Archaeology Service with a primary responsibility to lead the organisation’s programme of post-excavation projects as they progress from assessment and analysis to publication. His publications include a book on Roman burials (2000, The Eastern Cemetery of Roman London: Excavations 1983–1990, MoLAS monograph 4). He has also published smaller articles (eg 1990, ‘Recent excavations of a cemetery of Londinium’, Britannia, XXI 1995, and ‘An evaluation of the Roman Road at Brockley Hill’, Trans. London and Middx. Arch Soc., 46). David has a keen interest in the study of burial practices and has worked on a many cemetery sites from all periods.