ARCHAEOLOGY
We meet on the third Wednesday of each month, 10.00 am to 12.00 noon, at a member’s house. We start the meeting with having a look at what has been found and brought in, whatever it is … a strange old bottle, a frozen charlotte doll, an old pipe bowl, a greenish coin, a piece of old jewellery or something so unusual it really isn’t clear what it might be. We even slip outside archaeology and look at interesting rocks and fossils that appear. We’re interested in what happened in the past and like picking up things, handling them and talking.
After we’ve had a break for tea, coffee, and excellent biscuits, we look at our topic for the meeting. This can be anything linked to archaeology, an item from the news, Stonehenge, the Southend Iron Age Hillfort, the history of someone’s house etc. Sometimes we don’t quite get to the topic as what was brought in can be so interesting.
From time to time we carry out local investigations. We came across some little-known facts about The Lawn and made discoveries about the Hockley Laundry, set up to provide employment for women from the Workhouse.
Most of our meetings are indoors but we do get outside. We’ve done beachcombing and had visits and each summer we do a day’s practical work at a small archaeological site where we always find things. Here, you can do some digging if you want or try your hand at surveying, but most of us just sit down and handle the “finds” while gazing out over the countryside, stroking the cats and watching out that the chickens don’t pinch our biscuits.
Group Leader – Ian Haynes