Our June session took place out in the fields near Martock to carry out a geophysical survey to locate a Roman building! After an introductory talk about the equipment we would be using, we headed over to the field where the buried building was. We knew it was there because of previous archaeological work at the site and the purpose of our survey was to check its state of preservation after being partly excavated.
We split into two groups, one of which would carry out a resistivity survey over the building and the other group would learn about gradiometry surveying. Both groups were given an explanation of how the different types of machines worked and then MAYANS themselves carried out the resistivity survey, taking it in turns to use the resistivity meter. For practical reasons we couldn’t actually survey with the gradiometer but the MAYANS could hold the machine and were shown how it worked.
After lunch the groups swapped over so everyone had the opportunity to take part in the survey. We ended the day with a guided walk around the area to learn about the archaeological work that had been carried out in the past on this rural Roman site. Once the results of the survey have been processed they will be sent out to the MAYANS so everybody can see what they discovered!
A big thank you Neil for organising and supervising the resistivity survey, and to James, Margaret and Richard for allowing us into their field. This was a great opportunity for the MAYANS to be out in the field doing practical archaeology!
Recent Comments