Coastal
& Marine Heritage and Archaeology Seminar
Saturday
21 May 2005
Over 90 people were present and Susannah
Bleakley, Morecambe Bay Partnership Officer and one of the organisers
said, “The meeting had a real energy, people have clearly enjoyed the
day and are expressing an enthusiasm to get on, do more and get
networking. It seems we have
inspired people
Richard
Newman, Cumbria’s County Archaeologist, and one of the speakers, said
“There is unanimous agreement from Saturday’s seminar to form a
network for progressing our knowledge of Morecambe Bay’s Coastal
Heritage & Archaeology.
Cumbria County Council will be pleased to be part of this and
support it.”
Richard
Newman addressed the seminar about the threats to our coastal heritage.
He highlighted features such as the Pepper Pot on the shore near
Jenny Browns Point, Silverdale. The shoreline here is currently eroding, which if it
continues, may threaten to undermine the structure itself. He also reflected on the predicament of a wharf and pier
structure on the coast between Bardsea and UIvertson. This feature is known about, but has not been adequately
studied or recorded and is highly vulnerable as it is in the inter-tidal
area. It is likely to
pre-date the mid Nineteenth Century.
The very dynamic nature of the inter-tidal area means that any
features that appear may be rapidly covered again, or quickly eroded.
Jack Manning spoke about the work of his Comp
Scar Research Group who have been making a record of the remains of a fish
trap on Cartmel Warf. No
definite age has been assigned to this feature, it might be relatively
modern, but is perhaps more likely to have been constructed when the
monasteries were powerful in the area.
Until scientific dating is done we cannot know.
The fish trap might be even older, as it has clear similarities to
one on the Severn Estuary which was radiocarbon dated as late Saxon.
If
you'd like a copy of the speakers' presentations, we can print these off
as handouts, but we request a £10.00 donation to cover the administration
and postage. Please make cheques payable to Morecambe Bay
Partnership and sent these with your details to 32 Market Place, Kendal,
LA9 4TN.
Speakers
Barbara
Blatchford, Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquities & Archaeological Society
Susannah
Bleakley, Morecambe Bay Partnership
Dorothy
Bruns, Cumbria & Lancashire Finds Officer
Dave Coward, National
Trust Volunteer
Daniel Elsworth,
Morecambe
Bay Archaeological Society
Peter Iles, Lancashire County Archaeologist
Barry Kaye,
Kaye and Cook
Kendal
Metal Detectors Club
Jack Manning
Ged
McAllister, Lancaster City Council Engineers
Richard
Newman, Cumbria County Archaeologist
Sue Stallibrass, English
Heritage
Lorraine Weeks,
Local Heritage Initiative
SPONSORS
Arnside/Silverdale AONB,
Cumbria
County Council,
English Heritage, Lancashire County Council
|
