ARCH lecture programme

16 January 2013

We delighted to announce our next series of ARCH lectures. This time some of the talks also have related walks on other days, and for ARCH lecture regulars make sure to note that not all of them are in the Dingwall Community Centre this time.

Take a look below and plan your diary to hear some fascinating speakers:

(photos courtesy of Matt Richie, FCS)

Archaeological measured survey on Scotland's national forest estate Monday 28 January, 7.30pm at Dingwall Community Centre Matt Ritchie, Archaeologist for Forestry Commission Scotland, presents a number of recent archaeological measured surveys, laser scans, geophysical surveys and LiDAR surveys - and describes the objectives in terms of conservation management. The whistlestop tour of Scotland's national forest estate will include late Neotlihic four poster stone circles, Iron Age duns and vitrified forts, medieval mottes and 18th century military bridges. The evening will be based on the latest FCS publication - free copies available on the day - or as a pdf from http://www.forestry.gov.uk/website/forestry.nsf/byunique/infd-5xfmdu.

Wartime remains in Easter Ross Wednesday 20 February: Cornerstone Cafe, Evanton at 7.30pm. Allan Kilpatrick will talk about Wartime Remains in Easter Ross, including some of the remains in Evanton which will feature in ARCH’s Evanton Wartime Remains project.

Mapping memorials to Women in Scotland Monday 25 February, Alness Heritage Centre at 7.30pm. The Women of Scotland website, part of a project run by the Glasgow Women’s Library and Women’s History Scotland, is encouraging people to find and record memorials celebrating women in Scotland, contributing to their map on the website  www.womenofscotland.org.uk. Morag Smith from the Glasgow Women’s Library will be coming up to give an ARCH workshop on what the project would like to achieve and how you can get involved.

Not "just some old huts in the hills!" - Shielings in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland  Talk by Steve Boyle of the RCAHMS. Monday 25 March, Dingwall Community Centre at 7.30pm. Until the early nineteenth century, shielings - upland summer pastures - were an indispensible part of the farming cycle right across the Highlands and Islands. Livestock were taken inland and uphill to make the most of remote pastures, and to protect growing crops lower down. We sometimes have an image of the shieling as symbolic of the freedom of the hills, a place for romance and poetry, but in reality this was a tightly-managed system of land use, where rights were defended robustly. This talk will look at the history of shielings, at the archaeology of shieling settlements across Scotland, and examine how and why the system finally came to an end. There will be an opportunity to explore some shielings and other sites with Steve on the Tuesday and Wednesday (26th and 27th March). Contact the office if you want to be kept informed.

Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk Project (SCH@RP). Monday 29 April, Dingwall Community Centre at 7.30pm. Jo Hambly, Director of SCAPE, will talk about their new Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk Project (SCH@RP) which encourages local people to record and monitor sites which are subject to coastal erosion. She'll discuss findings so far and how you can get involved with the project.

Suggested donation for talks £3