The Durotriges Big Dig 2012 (Archaeology field school) (Short Course)

In the news

The 'Big Dig' featured on the BBC ...

The Big Dig was featured on the BBC's new series 'Digging for Britain’, hosted by TV scientist Dr Alice Roberts. See highlights on YouTube.

Dr Miles Russell from the School of Applied Sciences explains why the BBC was interested in the dig: “They were looking for current projects producing exciting results that challenged the accepted view of life in the past.”

The project certainly did yield interesting results. Archaeological evidence showed natives living in the area during this period were thriving on Spanish wine, olive oil and other Mediterranean goods introduced to Dorset by the Romans. Miles explains why this is so revealing: “Traditionally this is viewed as a time of conflict; the Roman army forcing its way across Dorset, the native Britons conducting a brave but ultimately futile resistance, large numbers dying in the process. Whoever lived here saw Rome as a good thing and was already part of a long distance trade network before Rome invaded Britain. This, of course, flies in the face of the traditional and rather entrenched view of native relations.”