SLP Co-ordinators Meeting March 10th 2017 South West Region Report
Three new SLPs reported to me over the last 12 months.
1. Malmesbury and District U3A. Roman Coin Hoard with Athelstan Museum, Malmesbury.
Training received Basic guidelines for photography and guidelines for packaging and handling archive material and objects.
Sessions to record and package coins Seven members involved in packaging, recording and photographing initial tranche of 284 coins, now sent for cleaning. Approx, 1200 coins in all.
Presentation session One member gave presentation to local primary school.
Future plans Further presentations to schools, visits to museums to see how other hoards are displayed, fund raising for final display of coins.
2. Minehead and District U3A. Researching and recording the town’s Maritime History for Minehead
Museum.
Subjects researched.
Quay Town Families
The Harbour
The History of Minehead Shipping
Smuggling in Somerset
The Old Pier and Paddle Steamers
I will be attending a presentation of the project by Minehead U3A members on March 22nd.
3.Saltash U3A Reading the Hurlers in conjunction with Cornwall Archaeological Unit, Caradon Amateur Geology group, Dartmoor National Park and Exeter University’s Camborne School of Mines.
Volunteers spent nearly 1000 hours collecting data from granite on Bodmin Moor identifying quartz, feldspar and mica crystals and learned to distinguish between Bodmin Moor granite and Dartmoor granite.
In September there was a dig on a possible fourth circle which was thought to be present following earlier geophysical work. This did not exist but a prominent standing stone was identified.
On May 26th there will be a presentation of the results at Carnglaze Caverns a local slate mine, the owner having donated the venue as part of the matched funding.
The remaining HLF money will be spent on the U3A volunteers making a trip to Stonehenge on June 9th.
Len Haysom
March 9th 2017