Welcome to GlosArch

The website of Gloucestershire Archaeology

GlosArch (Gloucestershire Archaeology) is a local amateur archaeology society with a mission to widen public knowledge of the fabulous archaeology and history of the county of Gloucestershire. Between September and April we hold an monthly series of public lectures by guest speakers on a range of archaeological and historical topics and in the summer we run a programme of visits to sites of interest. In addition, we have an active programme of archaeological fieldwork for members, both excavation and geophysical surveying, and run an osteoarchaeology recording group. No previous experience is needed to take part in these activities.

We publish a newsletter twice a year and our annual journal, Glevensis, which is in its 55th edition, carries reports on archaeological and historical topics by professional and amateur researchers.

If you share our passion for the past, why not join us?

Latest News

Frocester Fund Grant 2024 – Call for applications

Applications are invited for the 2024 Frocester Fund Grant. The grant, thanks to a bequest from past President Mr Eddie Price, is for up to £1000 towards work leading to publication of a piece of archaeological work.

Applications close on 30th September 2024.

For more information and to download the application form click here

Subscriptions

Membership subscriptions fell due on 1 March 2024. Please ensure that you are making your renewal payment to the correct bank account:

Gloucestershire Archaeology; Sort code 08-92-99; A/c no. 67285787.

Current subscription rates are: Full Ordinary member £20; Student and Associate member £10.

Activities


Forthcoming Activities


Winter Lectures and Summer Visits

March lecture. Monday 25th March at 7:30pm.
For this lecture we return to the hybrid format with the lecture at St. Andrew’s URC church hall, Montpellier St., Cheltenham which will be broadcast live on Zoom.

The speaker will be Tim Copeland, Visiting Fellow in Landscape Archaeology at the University of Gloucester and Editor-in-Chief of GlosArch’s annual journal Glevensis. Tim’s topic will be “Cold case archaeology: Gambier Parry Gardens, alias Coppice Corner or 9/83”  He will be describing the painstaking process of piecing together the findings of AP Garrod’s unpublished watching brief and the excavation at this potentially important site of a 1980s housing development in Kingsholm, Gloucester, from the records in the Gloucester City archive.

The zoom link will be sent to members near the time. Non-members may request the free link by emailing mailbox@glosarch.org.uk

April Lecture and Annual General Meeting. Monday 29th April at 7:00pm

The 56th Annual General Meeting of Gloucestershire Archaeology will take place at 7.00pm and will be in hybrid format as before. Members can attend in person at St Andrew’s Church Hall or on Zoom.

This will be followed at 7:45pm (note the slightly later start time) by our final lecture of this series which will by Tony Roberts of Archaeoscan who will present an Update on the latest results from excavations on Medieval and Roman sites around Gloucestershire.

The papers for the AGM and Zoom links for the AGM and lecture will be sent to members nearer the time. Non-members can request the link for the lecture by emailing: mailbox@glosarch.org.uk

2023-23 LECTURE SERIES

Below is the revised programme for the 2023-24 lecture series, with talks ranging from the Neolithic to the Medieval periods. Lectures are free to members and non-members (non-members are invited to make a small donation towards the cost of running the talks – £5 is suggested). Payment can be made by bank transfer to Gloucestershire Archaeology; Sort code 08-92-99; A/c no. 67285787.

Talks can be attended in person or via Zoom. For the Zoom link please email mailbox@glosarch.org.uk

Click here to see the revised schedule for 2023-24

Recordings of this, and previous years’ lectures are available to GlosArch members. To access recorded lectures , log in to your website account and go to Resources>Recorded Lecture Archive

Fieldwork

To take part, email fieldwork@glosarch.org.uk (members only).

Excavation

Excavation on Cleeve Hill 14th-15th and 19th-20th April 2024

Following geophysical surveys performed over the last couple of years, GlosArch and the Cleeve Common Trustees have received consent from Natural England to undertake an excavation of the grandstands of the original Cheltenham Racecourse, which operated on the Common between 1819 and 1842. We aim to find out more about the structure of the grandstands and gain some insight into early 19th century horse racing.

The dig is open to all GlosArch members, although spaces are filling up. To take part email fieldwork@glosarch.org.uk or message dig director Neil Cathie on 07802 272035. No previous experience of excavation is required.

Excavation at Brookthorpe, 12-13th and 17-18th November 2023

This activity is now complete. In very muddy conditions the team located the probable courtyard of the villa and recovered substantial further amounts of building materials, pottery and tesserae. Neil Cathie will be providing a short summary of the findings at the meeting on Monday 18th December. For details see ‘Winter Lectures and summer visits’ on this page.

Excavation at Minsterworth, 6-8th August 2023

The excavation at Minsterworth is now complete. A short report appears in the Autumn newsletter. Neil Cathie presented a summary of the findings at the fieldwork update meeting on December 18th. A recording of this talk is available to members in the Recorded Lectures Archive page in the members’ area of the website.

Geophysics

Magnetometry Surveying at Castlemeads, Gloucester 

This activity is now complete.

In rather wet conditions and after having to abandon the original survey due to flooding (it is on a flood plain after all) we managed to complete the magnetometry survey on a chilly, slightly damp December day.

The results show a number of underground electricity cables but also features which appear to correspond to the LIDAR images. The findings were presented at our members update meeting on 18th December.

Geophysics Training

If you are interested in receiving training on our geophysics equipment, please contact Phil Cox via: fieldwork@glosarch.org.uk as a further session can be arranged if there is demand.

Uncovering our Past Together

Download our latest Newsletter to find out more

New Members Welcome


From students to seasoned experts, GlosArch welcomes people of all ages and experience to join us!
Benefits of becoming a member include...

Regular Newsletters

Expert Insights

Hands On Experience

Access to GlosArch Publications

Fieldwork Opportunities

Informative Walks

Become a GlosArch Member


If you are interested in the archaeology or local history of Gloucestershire, join us, at GlosArch (Gloucestershire Archaeology), and help to discover the past.

Whatever your experience you can participate in excavations, fieldwalking, geophysical surveying, document research and historic building recording. There are lectures and site visits to attend and help and advice given on finds processing and pottery, coin and artefact identification and recording.

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