Peterborough archaeology has been in the news again with the announcement that the Must Farm excavation (between Peterborough and Whittlesey) has provided two of this year’s award winners at the 2017 Current Archaeology awards ceremony.
The prestigious Archaeologist of the Year award went to site director, Mark Knight. This is a seriously contested honour and Mark needed to see off both an Emeritus Professor of Archaeology at the University of Reading, and the MD of Museum of London Archaeology (one of Europe’s largest heritage practices).
Mark’s enthusiastic approach and ability to communicate the detailed “ordinariness” of those Fen edge residents living here 3,000 years ago certainly won him the vote of local people who have visited the Must Farm site or heard his talks at Peterborough cathedral and elsewhere.
The second local success was in the category “Rescue Project of the Year”. This provided kudos for the wider Cambridge Archaeological Unit team. Their submission was under the banner “The Must Farm inferno: exploring an intact Late Bronze Age settlement”.
The 2015-16 excavation at Must Farm focused on 3 stilted round houses which had been destroyed by fire, collapsing into the river sediments. Finds include complete sets of pots, poppyhead cups, part prepared food, wooden utensils and finely woven fabrics.
The awards are voted for by Current Archaeology subscribers and by members of the public. They recognise the outstanding contributions to our understanding of the past made by people, projects, and publications featured in the pages of Current Archaeology.
Featured Image Above – Joe Giddens/PA
