Masterclass: Buildings Archaeology (Phasing)
Added 2021-06-15 14:11:13 +0000 UTCWhat exactly is buildings archaeology? And what is the best way to approach it? Dani Wootton speaks with Time Team regular guest, Richard K Morris, to shed some light on the subject.
Richard, who provided invaluable insights on some of our key digs, shares his three 'O's and three 'F's of buildings archaeology. He also makes a compelling case for the importance of his own specialism.
As Richard explains in this masterclass, one of the fundamentals of his job is to make sense of the building's 'phasing'. Typically, older buildings have been altered, added to, extended or reduced, and put to different uses over their lifespan. If you can get an understanding of these stages in a structure, then you're well on your way to revealing its secrets!
Comments
Summary missed a key point! Fabric, form, FUNCTION. Just because it looks like a chimney does not mean it is one. We visited a National Trust House a few years ago that had many more chimney-looking adornments than it did fireplaces, because it made the owners appear richer than they were! Only rich people could afford the coal and staff to keep fires lit.
2022-05-07 07:54:01 +0000 UTCFascinating..
2022-05-07 07:50:11 +0000 UTCMore to come from Richard soon. Watch this space...
Time Team
2021-06-28 20:22:04 +0000 UTCThat was great. Lots of information but well presented. On to Part 2: Dating!
John Matthew IV
2021-06-16 12:02:46 +0000 UTCMy M.A. was Conservation, Vernacular and Historical Studies in Architecture, under "Uncle" Ron Brunskill , many, many moons ago. This is EXACTLY what we did. It's enriched my life ( and made me a tad dangerous when spotting something interesting while driving.. ) . The tricky bit is dating things, I found. What came hot foot to one up market area could take 200 years to get to rural mid Wales.
Susie Stockton-Link
2021-06-15 20:38:16 +0000 UTCI thought I knew about Building Archaeology ! Wow, learned lots more. My G'g'father was a Prussian Stone Carver aka sculptor of decorative memorial and funerary monuments. He came to Texas 1851 after failed 1848 German Revolution. He had education & resources, but I've had difficulty convincing his descendants that he was considerably more than a "stone chopper". Prof. Morris has given me excellent perspectives to convey.--why Stone Guilds were special, the accumulated knowledge of method and geometry and history, and why those insights were special.
Martha Berryman
2021-06-15 16:51:44 +0000 UTCAwesome! I'll need to watch this one several times. So much to take in...
Diane S Ratliff
2021-06-15 16:48:00 +0000 UTCSurprised to see in ATLAS OBSCURA.com e-ltr that BARROW Construction has had a Revival in UK. All you Brits no doubt know about this new Funerary Practice, but it's very intriguing to rest of us Earthlings. Lots to ponder on this: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/buried-in-prehistoric-barrows
Martha Berryman
2021-06-15 16:38:31 +0000 UTCHistoric structural engineering in context and looking for the masons' secrets. Huumm.
Ann H
2021-06-15 15:57:03 +0000 UTC
