CAER: Chester Amphitheatre Environs Research Project

Team 2014 reflects on a tough first week of work, but the stage is now set to reveal the Roman road and what lies beneath the floor deposits of last year's stone structure. Troweling party in a rare moment of sunshine Eugen Although today started off windy with a bit of rain, I fortunately had the morning in a classroom looking at the impact archaeology has on the public and how that has made archaeology into a trend. The second half of the day was spent removing any remaining backfill and then using the trowels to reach the Roman remains. The highlight of the day would have to be Nathaniel and Freya finding a large amount of animal bone remains. Adam The site is really beginning to take form. With more of the Roman road uncovered earlier in the week it is becoming easier to see. We also had a refresher course on the use of the Dumpy level, which is used to take height readings across the site. There is a real feeling of camaraderie among the whole team and everyone is ex...

Our third day on site was only slightly curtailed by the elements, but Team 2014 managed to clear off the last of the terram sheeting and learn survey techniques as well. Plenty of tantalisingly unexcavated layers to play with now... Indigo Day 3 of the dig and it's...yep, raining. The mud, now starting to get sticky, feels like it weighs a tonne as you try and walk with a pair mud boots and shovel it into an ever tipping over wheelbarrow. There's nothing better than consistency! The first break was welcomed by all as we sat down groaning with muscle ache. Break being over, The A Team took the lead in using the dumpy level to record the ground measurements, whilst the others were left to get down and dirty once again! Thankfully, by lunchtime the rain decided to abate a little and we all tramped back to the hut for sandwiches, tea and hand washing queues. Nathaniel Adam learns to pull girls! Whilst the thick of the rain hits the site it has turned in to a muddy mes...

Some pictures courtesy of Julie and Cheryl!

A bit of rain never hurt anyone! Today's progress involved lifting more of the terram sheeting laid down at the end of the 2013 season, and Team 2014's first taste of context sheets. The ditch and Roman road are starting to reappear. But don't take my word for it: Tom, Jon and Dave bash last year's backfill out of the trench Matthew Today was a good day for firsts, which is odd what with it being the second day. For starters we had our first encounter with adverse weather which was bearable though I imagine there will be plenty more to come. The second first was our first on-site exposure to context sheets. And finally, today we first saw the bottom of our hole, which was a huge relief as we were worried we'd never find it. If the weather holds out and we do another half-days' worth of digging we should be able to lift up the terram and uncover the actually archaeology beneath, which I am very much looking forward to. Still no signs of dinosaurs yet, t...

Work in the park has begun! You may find it tricky to visit us this year as there is other work going on in Grosvenor Park at the moment, which means parts of it are off limits for visitors.  We will still find a way to have our annual Open Day event (watch this space) and of course we can offer lots of virtual visits through our blog. We kick off with two fresh archaeologists' views on their first day on site! Some pics hopefully to come soon! Laura becomes OK with dirt and is impressed by the finds so far: Today, was the first day of the 2014 Chester Archaeological dig in Grosvenor   Park. There was a lot of anticipation and excitement for today’s dig and we weren’t disappointed! The sun was shining and the spades were working away and everybody enjoyed doing so. In the morning, we were briefed on site and introduced to the friendly and attentive staff we were to be working with. After this, we got straight to it! We began by clearing the backfill from the previ...