currentcurrent archaeologycurrent
CONTENTS issue 288
(Vol.XXIV, No.12) | March 2014
UP FRONT
Letters
Your comments, complaints, and compliments
4
4
News
6
6
Roman coffins and rinderpest at Dickens Square, London; Lost Viking loot at the British Museum; Broxmouth hillfort: earliest evidence of steelmaking in Britain; HMS Amethyst: lost and found off Plymouth Sound; A burning question: Pentrefelin’s Medieval mound; Expanding Silchester’s Iron Age hallmarks at the British Museum; Broxmouth hillfort: earliest
I s s u e
2 8 8 |
M a r c h 2 0 1 4
current current
THE UK’S BEST SELLING ARCHAEOLOGY MAGAZINE
March 2014 Issue 288 | £4.30
March 2014 Issue 288 | £4.30
www.archaeology.co.ukwww.archaeology.co.uk
A l f r e d t h e
G r e a t |
O n e Million Years e x h i b i t i o n | S t o n e h e n g e
Vi s i t o r
C e n t r e |
D o r n i e r
D o 1 7 | R o m a n h e a d h u n t e r s c u r r e nt a r c h a e ol o g y
Million Years Million Years Million Years OneMillion Years Million Years Million Years Million Years
Rewriting the human story in Britain Rewriting the human story in Britain
Searching for Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great Alfred the Great
A missing monarch and an unmarked grave
Headhunters in Roman London? The mystery of the Walbrook skulls
Headhunters in Headhunters in Roman London? Roman London? The mystery of the Walbrook skulls
Issue 288
001_CA288_Cover_FINAL_SC.indd 1
23/01/2014 12:38
ON THE COVER A reconstructed Neanderthal and Homo sapiens from the Britain:One Million Years of the Human Story exhibition.
CREDIT: Natural History Museum Photo Unit
Special Report
The search for Alfred the Great
10
FEATURES
COLONISING BRITAIN
One million years of our human story When did our early ancestors first arrive in Britain? The latest findings from a 13-year investigation suggest hominins could have reached these shores twice as long ago as previously thought.
14
REGULARS
48
WELCOME TO THE NEW STONEHENGE
Making a Neolithic circle fit for purpose Twenty years after the monument was declared a ‘national disgrace’ by the House of Commons, we visit the brand-new Stonehenge Visitor Centre to learn about how the site’s presentation has been transformed for modern visitors.
22
LAST OF THE MANY
30
Raising the Goodwin Sands Dornier Do17 The chance discovery of the sunken wreck of a German Second World War bomber presented a rare opportunity to archaeologists and conservators. What light can it shed on this dynamic period of aviation history?
ROMAN HEADHUNTERS IN LONDON?
The mystery of the Walbrook skulls Once interpreted as victims of the Boudiccan revolt, the human skulls recovered from London’s Walbrook river have long been a subject of archaeological speculation. We explore the latest thinking on the origin of 39 skulls excavated in 1988.
38
Conference
42
Further details of Current Archaeology Live! 2014
Reviews
The Ruin of Roman Britain;Living and Working in the Roman World; The Emergent Past
44
Sherds
Chris Catling’s irreverent take on heritage issues
46
22
30
38
38
Last Word
48
Andrew Selkirk reflects on his recent trip to the new Stonehenge Visitor Centre
Odd Socs
The West Gallery Music Association
50
2
current archaeology | www.archaeology.co.uk
January 2014 |
March 2014 |
