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in the news Archaeological Achievement Awards extended to the Republic Established in 1976, the Archaeological Achievement Awards are a showcase for the best in UK archaeology and a central event in the archaeological calendar across the Irish Sea. Previously known as the British Archaeological Awards, there was initially a focus on celebrating community archaeology. The Awards were previously biennial and were run for many years by an independent charity. In 2019 the Council for British Archaeology (CBA) agreed to take on their running, with the support of a steering group representing the breadth of the archaeological sector. Relaunched in 2021 as the Archaeological Achievement Awards, they have a new set of categories and cover the whole of the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Alongside the name change, the award categories have been revised to better reflect the diverse work being undertaken by professional and volunteer archaeologists. There will now be five categories (Innovation, Public dissemination, Engagement, Early-career archaeologist, and one under the category ‘Learning, training and skills’) and an overall outstanding achievement award, celebrating every aspect of archaeology on these islands. The relaunched Awards are believed to have received three years’ funding from the National Monuments Service, and Irish nominations are to be vetted by the Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland. It is hoped that the 2023 Awards ceremony will take place in Dublin. A spokesperson for the Awards said that the aim is to advance public education in the study and practice of archaeology in all its aspects. It is hoped that the Awards will be recognised and valued by archaeologists, those with whom they work and the wider public, to facilitate and celebrate good practice in archaeology, raise the profile of the discipline and contribute to a greater recognition of its academic, social, environmental and public relations value. deliver publications which will bring together information across regions and time periods, forming an up-to-date narrative on this past. €2.2 million announced for INSTAR+ archaeological research programme Minister Malcolm Noonan has announced the establishment of a €2.2 million archaeological research programme funded by the National Monuments Service, in partnership with the Heritage Council and administered by the Irish Research Council. The INSTAR+ programme, which will run initially to 2024, is a successor to the Irish National Strategic Archaeological Research (INSTAR) Programme, which ran from 2008 to 2014 and which delivered a number of key collaborative projects in areas such as Neolithic agriculture, ancient human remains and early medieval settlement. Announcing the establishment of INSTAR+, Minister Noonan said that, ‘through the Irish Research Council’s COALESCE programme, the highest-quality peer-review rigour is ensured of the various INSTAR+ research projects that it is hoped to fund over the next two years. The €2.2 million investment in INSTAR+ will support links between Ireland’s highly experienced commercial archaeological sector and our Higher Education Institutions, it will grow research capacity, and it will contribute to a better understanding of Ireland’s archaeological heritage.’ Operated by the Irish Research Council as part of the COALESCE Programme, INSTAR+ will fund 24-month collaborative projects aimed at addressing key knowledge gaps in Irish archaeology, building further research capacity and helping to address the issue of unpublished archaeological excavations. According to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the interactions between commercial, academic and State archaeologists and local communities will lead to greater co-operation and resilience across the sector. The objective of the INSTAR+ archaeological research programme is to contribute to a better understanding of Ireland’s archaeological heritage by tackling key questions about our past, to fully realise the potential of Ireland’s archaeological record and to transform our understanding of how Ireland’s society has evolved. One objective of INSTAR+ is to ensure that all archaeological work undertaken in the context of development-led excavations is translated into knowledge about Ireland’s past. INSTAR+ will Commenting further on unpublished excavations, the Minister said that ‘INSTAR+ will bring together information gleaned from the thousands of development-led archaeological excavations licensed by my Department over recent years, weaving that into the complex story of Ireland’s past. Involving communities as key partners, we will look to research some of the key issues that our society faces today, including environmental and climate change and how societies adapted to those and built resilience. Our understanding of the past shapes our future, with much to learn from how past societies grappled with the challenges of change.’ INSTAR+ will open for applications on 23 September 2021, and researchers in IRCeligible Higher Education Institutions and ResearchPerforming Organisations in Ireland are invited to submit collaborative applications for funding. 6 Autumn 2021
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ARCHAEOLOGY IN THE NEWS A date for the Gortnacrannagh idol Archaeologists from Archaeological Management Solutions (AMS) recently made international news with their wonderful discovery of a wooden idol at Gortnacrannagh, 6km north-east of the prehistoric royal site of Rathcroghan, Co. Roscommon. The team retrieved this rare artefact, made over 1,600 years ago, from a bog while working on the route of the N5 Ballaghaderreen to Scramoge Road Project, funded by the Government of Ireland and administered by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) through Roscommon County Council. Preserved by the bog in which it lay for over 1,600 years, the idol was made from a split oak trunk. It has a small human-shaped head at one end and a series of horizontal notches carved along its body. The artefact has been radiocarbon-dated to cal. AD 252–413 at 2𝜎 (UBA-43937; 1715+28 BP), meaning that it belongs to the very twilight of prehistory in Ireland. AMS archaeologist Dr Eve Campbell, who directed the excavation of the site, commented: ‘The Gortnacrannagh idol was carved just over 100 years before St Patrick came to Ireland; it is likely to be the image of a pagan deity. Our ancestors saw wetlands as mystical places where they could connect with their gods and the Otherworld. The discovery of animal bone alongside a ritual dagger suggests that animal sacrifice was carried out at the site and the idol is likely to have been part of these ceremonies.’ Wooden idols are known from bogs across northern Europe, where waterlogged conditions allow for the preservation of ancient wood. Only a dozen such idols are known from Ireland and, at over 2.5m long, the Gortnacrannagh idol is the largest found here so far. Wood specialist Cathy Moore commented: ‘The lower ends of several figures were also worked to a point, suggesting that they may once have stood upright. Their meaning is open to interpretation, but they may have marked special places in the landscape, have represented particular individuals or deities, or perhaps have functioned as wooden bog bodies, sacrificed in lieu of humans.’ The Gortnacrannagh idol is currently in University College Dublin, where conservator Susannah Kelly is undertaking a three-year process to preserve the ancient object. Once Above: Cathy Moore examines the Gortnacrannagh idol on site in Roscommon. Above: Sketch of the idol by John Murphy. conserved, the idol will be given into the care of the National Museum of Ireland. Dr Ros Ó Maoldúin of AMS commented: ‘Since the Gortnacrannagh idol is such a unique and significant find, we are making a replica to help us understand the idol better and appreciate how it was made. It will be possible for people to see this in action at the Craggaunowen Archaeology Park in County Clare during the last weekend of August.’ The replica idol will be made by AMS staff in collaboration with members of the UCC Pallasboy Project and the UCD Centre for Experimental Archaeology and Material Culture. The replica will then go on display at the Rathcroghan Centre in Tulsk, Co. Roscommon. The find at Gortnacrannagh will have no impact on the progress of the N5 Ballaghaderreen to Scramoge Road Project. Analysis of the artefact and the site in which it was found is ongoing, and the results of the excavation will be published in a book to be produced by TII. Roscommon County Council Resident Archaeologist Deirdre McCarthy commented: ‘Road projects such as the N5 provide a significant opportunity for the investigation of our archaeological heritage. Gortnacrannagh is an excellent example. Were it not for the road, we would never have known about this extraordinary site.’ Autumn 2021 7

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in the news Archaeological Achievement

Awards extended to the

Republic Established in 1976, the Archaeological Achievement Awards are a showcase for the best in UK archaeology and a central event in the archaeological calendar across the Irish Sea. Previously known as the British Archaeological Awards, there was initially a focus on celebrating community archaeology. The Awards were previously biennial and were run for many years by an independent charity. In 2019 the Council for British Archaeology (CBA) agreed to take on their running, with the support of a steering group representing the breadth of the archaeological sector. Relaunched in 2021 as the Archaeological Achievement Awards, they have a new set of categories and cover the whole of the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

Alongside the name change, the award categories have been revised to better reflect the diverse work being undertaken by professional and volunteer archaeologists. There will now be five categories (Innovation, Public dissemination, Engagement, Early-career archaeologist, and one under the category ‘Learning, training and skills’) and an overall outstanding achievement award, celebrating every aspect of archaeology on these islands.

The relaunched Awards are believed to have received three years’ funding from the National Monuments Service, and Irish nominations are to be vetted by the Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland. It is hoped that the 2023 Awards ceremony will take place in Dublin. A spokesperson for the Awards said that the aim is to advance public education in the study and practice of archaeology in all its aspects. It is hoped that the Awards will be recognised and valued by archaeologists, those with whom they work and the wider public, to facilitate and celebrate good practice in archaeology, raise the profile of the discipline and contribute to a greater recognition of its academic, social, environmental and public relations value.

deliver publications which will bring together information across regions and time periods, forming an up-to-date narrative on this past.

€2.2 million announced for INSTAR+ archaeological research programme Minister Malcolm Noonan has announced the establishment of a €2.2 million archaeological research programme funded by the National Monuments Service, in partnership with the Heritage Council and administered by the Irish Research Council. The INSTAR+ programme, which will run initially to 2024, is a successor to the Irish National Strategic Archaeological Research (INSTAR) Programme, which ran from 2008 to 2014 and which delivered a number of key collaborative projects in areas such as Neolithic agriculture, ancient human remains and early medieval settlement.

Announcing the establishment of INSTAR+, Minister Noonan said that, ‘through the Irish Research Council’s COALESCE programme, the highest-quality peer-review rigour is ensured of the various INSTAR+ research projects that it is hoped to fund over the next two years. The €2.2 million investment in INSTAR+ will support links between Ireland’s highly experienced commercial archaeological sector and our Higher Education Institutions, it will grow research capacity, and it will contribute to a better understanding of Ireland’s archaeological heritage.’

Operated by the Irish Research Council as part of the COALESCE Programme, INSTAR+ will fund 24-month collaborative projects aimed at addressing key knowledge gaps in Irish archaeology, building further research capacity and helping to address the issue of unpublished archaeological excavations. According to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the interactions between commercial, academic and State archaeologists and local communities will lead to greater co-operation and resilience across the sector.

The objective of the INSTAR+ archaeological research programme is to contribute to a better understanding of Ireland’s archaeological heritage by tackling key questions about our past, to fully realise the potential of Ireland’s archaeological record and to transform our understanding of how Ireland’s society has evolved. One objective of INSTAR+ is to ensure that all archaeological work undertaken in the context of development-led excavations is translated into knowledge about Ireland’s past. INSTAR+ will

Commenting further on unpublished excavations, the Minister said that ‘INSTAR+ will bring together information gleaned from the thousands of development-led archaeological excavations licensed by my Department over recent years, weaving that into the complex story of Ireland’s past. Involving communities as key partners, we will look to research some of the key issues that our society faces today, including environmental and climate change and how societies adapted to those and built resilience. Our understanding of the past shapes our future, with much to learn from how past societies grappled with the challenges of change.’

INSTAR+ will open for applications on 23 September 2021, and researchers in IRCeligible Higher Education Institutions and ResearchPerforming Organisations in Ireland are invited to submit collaborative applications for funding.

6

Autumn 2021

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