This workshop will introduce you to one of the most intriguing and beautiful materials in British archaeology – Roman glass. With a combination of presentations and practical sessions using excavated material, you will discover how Roman glass was produced and decorated and how to recognise different vessel forms from all periods of Roman Britain. There will also be useful tips on glass excavation, conservation and illustration.

The Romans used glass in every aspect of their lives and glassworkers produced vessels, windows and objects in all shapes and colours, using complex and innovative techniques. This workshop will bring you up close with an extraordinary material and tell the story of its place in the day to day lives of the people of Roman Britain.

Flint tools are a common archaeological find and are amongst the most easily misidentified. This workshop will cover a brief history of the use of flint from the Palaeolithic to the modern period and how this material contributes to our overall understanding of a site or landscape. The session will include handling of a variety of original and reproduction tool types and a practical session, enabling participants to gain first-hand experience of the key identifying features of worked lithics and how they are recorded. A handout including key information and recommendations for further study will be provided as part of the session.

This will be a hands-on session looking at pottery. The session will focus on Roman pottery and how to identify the most significant types of fabrics and forms. We will also think in overview about pottery to explore how it helps archaeologists to date and characterise sites.

This workshop will introduce the principles, practice and practicalities of archaeological stratigraphy. Stratigraphy is the method used to understand the sequence of archaeological units in the history of a site, based on observation and recording during excavation. In this workshop we will use practical examples from Teffont project sites to develop our understanding of stratigraphic recording (drawing plans and sections, and filling in context sheets), the creation of Harris matrices (sequence diagrams of archaeological units), and the dating and phasing of sequences. These skills are important for understanding how your excavation recording should be undertaken, and how your excavation work contributes to the overall narrative of a site.

Building materials (stone, CBM, fired clay, plaster) are frequently found on high status Roman sites, with the stone assemblage at Teffont being one of the most extensive categories of materials from the site. This workshop will introduce participants to the geology of local and non-local types of stone used at Teffont and cover the range of ways in which they were used across the shrine complex and adjacent support areas. The basics of identifying different types of CBM, fired clay and plaster will also be explored, along with their potential for contributing to our understanding of Roman Wiltshire.

Animal bone is one of the most common finds recovered on archaeological sites. But how do we identify these bones, and what can they tell us about our history? This session will introduce methods of working with archaeological animal bone, and how we can use it to explore the various roles animals played in human lives, including in diet, ecology, and craft practices, with a case study on animal bone recovered from recent excavations at the Teffont Roman shrine complex.

Animal bone is one of the most common finds recovered on archaeological sites. But how do we identify these bones, and what can they tell us about our history? This session will introduce methods of working with archaeological animal bone, and how we can use it to explore the various roles animals played in human lives, including in diet, ecology, and craft practices, with a case study on animal bone recovered from recent excavations at the Teffont Roman shrine complex.

This will be a hands-on session looking at pottery. The session will focus on Roman pottery and how to identify the most significant types of fabrics and forms. We will also think in overview about pottery to explore how it helps archaeologists to date and characterise sites.

Excavating objects from the relatively stable burial environment puts them in danger of deterioration from sudden exposure to the moisture and oxygen in the atmosphere. This Conservation Workshop will provide an introduction to cleaning and consolidating different materials, and having a go at ceramic reconstruction and gap-filling. You will get to take home a booklet of the information provided.

Media reports often glamorise the presence of coins and metal objects within archaeology, but their ability to inform us about how people in the past lived and worked is where their true potential lies. This workshop will include an introduction to Roman coins, dress accessories and ironwork, as well as a practical session for each where you will be taught how to carry out basic identifications and dating. An update as to how these finds fit into the wider Teffont picture will also be provided.