A community archaeology project has been awarded £400,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to uncover the history of Hadrian’s Wall and its legacy on Tyneside.
Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums is organising the three-year project, which will involve more than 500 people from the north east. Work will begin in autumn 2012 to unearth details about Hadrian’s Wall, including large sections under roads and buildings, and to raise awareness of the Roman fortification in local communities.
Members of the public participating in the project will have the opportunity to get involved in excavation work, surveying and desk-based research. They will also work alongside professional archaeologists and historians.
Ged Bell, chairman of Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums joint committee, said: “This is a very exciting project which will reveal more about one of our region’s most important landmarks, from its starting point in Wallsend and heading as far west as Hexham and Corbridge.”
Segedunum Roman Fort in Wallsend is the most excavated fort along Hadrian’s Wall, and it is hoped that the project will unearth further finds.
The research will focus on the remains of the Roman Fort of Condercum in Benwell; sections of the wall in Wallsend, central Newcastle and Roman finds from Gateshead; Arbeia Roman Fort at South Shields; and the “lost Roman road” between Chesters and Corbridge, the route of which is unknown.
Former BBC weather presenter Trai Anfield, who has been appointed as a new member of the HLF north east committee, said: “The project will bring different parts of the community together to help uncover the secrets of this lesser-known part of Hadrian’s Wall.
"It will provide fantastic volunteering opportunities and teach people taking part a diverse range of practical archaeological skills.”
Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums is organising the three-year project, which will involve more than 500 people from the north east. Work will begin in autumn 2012 to unearth details about Hadrian’s Wall, including large sections under roads and buildings, and to raise awareness of the Roman fortification in local communities.
Members of the public participating in the project will have the opportunity to get involved in excavation work, surveying and desk-based research. They will also work alongside professional archaeologists and historians.
Ged Bell, chairman of Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums joint committee, said: “This is a very exciting project which will reveal more about one of our region’s most important landmarks, from its starting point in Wallsend and heading as far west as Hexham and Corbridge.”
Segedunum Roman Fort in Wallsend is the most excavated fort along Hadrian’s Wall, and it is hoped that the project will unearth further finds.
The research will focus on the remains of the Roman Fort of Condercum in Benwell; sections of the wall in Wallsend, central Newcastle and Roman finds from Gateshead; Arbeia Roman Fort at South Shields; and the “lost Roman road” between Chesters and Corbridge, the route of which is unknown.
Former BBC weather presenter Trai Anfield, who has been appointed as a new member of the HLF north east committee, said: “The project will bring different parts of the community together to help uncover the secrets of this lesser-known part of Hadrian’s Wall.
"It will provide fantastic volunteering opportunities and teach people taking part a diverse range of practical archaeological skills.”
