Work Text:
I’ve been here since the beginning. A magnetic spark, a quirk of cosmic energy, a jolt from the sun. The hardening of the earth’s molten core; the left behind of icebergs searing the land. The singularity of a universe captured in a moment powering through millennia.
Sometimes I’m a we. Sometimes an it.
But always—always—here.
—
Excerpt from the MSc in Archaeology Course Handbook:
Section 1
Section 2
Section 3
Fieldwork and Practicums
Fieldwork on a professional archaeological excavation is included as part of the course. Students must complete at least four weeks of approved fieldwork to be taken before the end of the second year, and will also have the option to attend in subsequent years.
Students will explore the relationships between humans and the natural world over time, and will develop critical skills through survey, excavation, processing, and post-excavation lab work. They will work collaboratively while developing team skills and professional competencies. The fieldwork undertaken will help students gain the fundamental skills needed to undertake their own archaeological recording and analysis for their dissertation.
Courses which include fieldwork practicums:
Early Prehistoric Britain: By the end of this unit you will have a detailed critical understanding of the archaeology of the later Neolithic and Bronze Age Britain, broadly 4000 - 750 BCE, in Britain in its geographical context. The unit will provide a broad knowledge of chronological and regional variations within prehistoric Britain and also contribute to the knowledge and understanding of the development of archaeological theory. We will discover how prehistoric societies developed from their early origins, and the rich evidence of large monuments, ceremonial, and ritual activities as well as signs of permanent settlements and agricultural advancements in the archaeological record. Particular attention will be on the shift from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age which resulted in new burial practices, objects, rites, and technologies, including the introduction of copper and gold. Key to the unit will be assessing the archaeological site within its historical and physical landscape, explaining the chronological relationship between various archaeological deposits, and being cognizant of the site’s heritage setting.
.
—
You’d think those early days were lean, but they weren’t. Lemmings sunned on my jagged surface; woolly rhinoceros brushed against me. Their energy fed me: alive one day and dead the next. They taught me patience. Moderation. I couldn't control it, then, how to feed—I wanted it all at once. Too fast, too quick, I'd gorge myself. They never noticed. Their little brains too stuck on survival to feel the danger.
The mammoths, though, they suspected. With the gentle guiding of a mother’s trunk, they tried to keep their young away, to shield them from an accidental pass.
—
Summer Itinerary, Week 01:
Dear Ms. Caroline Falkington,
We look forward to welcoming you this summer on an exciting six-week opportunity to be part of the first major excavation at the Rollright Stones complex, and specifically the Whispering Knights, in Oxfordshire.
Please confirm all waivers are signed and returned prior to arrival. Arrival and check-in before Tuesday is highly recommended; please contact your student services coordinator if you have not received your accommodation assignment.
Tuesday
7.00 - 8.30: Introductions
8.30 - 11.30: Tour of entire site and initial walking survey of Whispering Knights
11.30 - 13.00: Lunch
13.00 - 16.00: Lecture: Introduction to the Archaeological Record of the Rollright Stones
13.00 - 16.00: Free time on your own
20.00: Meet at The Red Lion to celebrate the success of your first day! Remember: Everyone is expected to be on time for 6.00 tomorrow morning so moderation is strongly suggested. (Dr. Miller needs to take his own advice!)
—
It became warmer and the air drier. The soil around me thawed, becoming moist and damp. The plants changed; they grew taller and wider, stems becoming trunks. First came birch and aspen, then pine for a few generations ceding to beech and lime. They sheltered me from the sun, dappled leaves and roots withering once they touched me beneath the earth.
Boar hid behind me, their stupid shaking bodies pressed against me, and I took their lives, giving the bodies to the two-legged hunters holding sharpened flints. And then I took their lives as well.
—
Speciality Bus Tour Audio Transcription Excerpt:
► Play
Megalithic Marvels of the Cotswolds
Guide: Next up is the Whispering Knights. Today, you can see straight to the other monuments, however carbon dating has shown that this is actually the oldest of the group. Built around 3,800 BCE, it’s probably one of the earliest funerary monuments in Britain. The buried soil profile indicates that this was originally built in a woodland so it would have seemed much more isolated, and perhaps even hidden than it is now.
—
And then came to fearing years—so full, so glorious. They built and came because they knew; they felt it, too, this sacred spot. They understood the need to feed and keep me satisfied.
Those were wet years with the rains rolling in across newly cleared land. They brought more stones here, raised them slowly, creating a threshold between me and them. There were deaths. Some bodies crushed, some hearts that couldn’t take the arduous task—I couldn’t help myself.
—
Notebook of Danny Buatsi:
- King’s Men: ca. 2,500 BCE (stone circle) (late neolithic) (date not lab confirmed?)
- King Stone: ca. 1,500 BCE (standing stone) (early-mid Bronze Age)
- Whispering Knights: 3,800-3,000 BCE (portal dolmen/burial chamber) (early neolithic)
- Classic examples of Cotswold Jurassic oolitic limestone = sedimentary spherical (ooliths) + fossilized sea creatures + calcium carbonate (see notes on geology of Cotswolds/Chipping Norton Limestone)
- Moved using rollers, ropes, ramps(?), levers, sledges. Took approx. 60 ppl. (ask Julia: Potential team building exercise next term?)
- Small stone platforms may have been along sides and back. Was the entire thing earth covered at some point?
- Tomb in use for many centuries (size would have been determined by the size of the nearby settlement = unknown):
- Neolithic, Beaker, and early Bronze Age pottery found
- Human bone radiocarbon date ca.1700 BCE
- 1835: 12 skulls found 700ft northeast —O.G.S. Crawford (1932) —Related?
- Long history in area and lots of geological disturbance: More portal dolmens, more barrows & ditches, Iron Age enclosure/permanent settlement, Roman & Saxon cemeteries. (**other remains found on site: cremations, barrows, and burials. Cairn not excavated = why not? = money and time. (Also, an over-reliance on “fucking fairytales” - Dr Miller )
- 1586: first modern description of the stones.
**WHY DO WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THIS SITE?**
- >>>To do:
- ask Ian if he found the sieve, map ground penetrating radar, note any ground slippage
- >>>GROCERY SHOPPING:
- milk, bread, egg, crisps, beetroot, apple, watercress, almonds or walnuts, pims, snacking things
—
They kept coming back. They loved me. Feared me. Revered me. Gave themselves to me willingly, a cyclical sacrifice with every death, a choosing of their own doing. After death they laid them out in the chamber; loose limbs and slipped skin. I protected those bodies, kept them safe as they returned to the earth, and in return they fed me.
—
TravelRater Review:
mthrshipton
Reading, UK
★★★★ ☆
I remember being dragged here as a kid while on family holiday so was less than thrilled when my husband suggested stopping on our way through the Cotswolds. Like how much could stones change over two decades? Well, the stones haven’t changed but there’s updated signage and an informative audio tour that can be downloaded onto your phone.
There was a university field school excavating around the Whispering Knights. Very nice and informative. Definitely worth a visit while they are there. Their excitement and expertise really added to the (otherwise mediocre) experience.
Be aware! There are no bathrooms and parking could be limited if there are lots of crowds. (Are there ever?)
And then we had a delicious lunch at the Red Lion down the road. Check out that review!
—
The ones that followed gave me names and stories. Caught by a witch, they said, as if a witch were equal to me. It's laughable the fear they had for such mortal things. A group of scheming knights. A home for little folk with wings. The focus shifts; I'm now an also and in addition to, only one part of a whole. They fail to understand that everything else was built for me.
They also gave me rabbits which I enjoy tremendously, such a stupid beast.
—
Email from Julia Baker to her boyfriend:
Julia Baker ˂[email protected]˃
19:14 (2 hours ago)
to James Mackenzie▼
Three weeks down and only three more to go! If you guessed that my day was spent sifting dirt, well, you'd be correct! We’re still finding minuscule bone fragments. Dr Miller is ecstatic about that— !
Ian is driving us all batty as "self-proclaimed dj" which really just means that Dr Miller and him geek out over psychedelic rock. Ugh. Songs are not supposed to be fifteen minutes long. Caro and I are getting to be right friends, though. Remember how I told you that I thought she had a crush on Danny? I was completely correct! I’m pretty sure he likes her back, too. Anyway, when we were securing the site the other night, I dared her to press her ear against the Knights, just like the old wives tale says, in case she could hear if her future includes Danny. She said she would only do it if I did. Surprise, surprise: my future is quiet!
I’ll give you a ring this weekend. Hope your revisions are going well! Let me know if you still want to get a place together next term? xxx
—
I was never lacking, even when they took away the shelter. They kept visiting. Ignored the stench of death and pressed their hands against me, their ears, their breasts.
They asked such useless mortal questions: Who would they marry? Would a babe quicken in their womb? Did their lover love them back? When would they be successful in battle? I ignored it all; it doesn't matter. All I know are the ones that die. The ones I picked for death.
Sometimes I fed slowly, let them live until they were a wrinkly thing. Other times I cut it short, the sweet spark of an unfulfilled life.
Yet still they came.
—
Email from Ian Groves to his mother:
Ian Groves ˂[email protected]˃
20:36 (13 hours ago)
to mum▼
hi mum,
yes, i’m eating fine. the lotion is helping with the insect bites so major thanks for sending it!!!
i know you like a haunting so here’s a tale for you. dr. miller and i have been playing that traffic song on (almost) repeat since day 01. you know the one: ‘many years have come and gone/ went to see a standing stone/ some in circles, some alone/ ancient, worn and weather torn/ they chill me to my very bone/ many of these can be seen/ in quiet places, fields of green/ of hedgerow lanes with countless names/ but the only thing that remains are the roll right stones.' it’s a classic even if the girls hate it.
anyway. this morning i could have sworn something was singing along? i don’t know how to describe it, but it was like if stevie nicks sang without words. it was just miller and me on site, there weren’t even any birds hanging about. and then even though i had it on shuffle, the song started to repeat. weird, but w/e. but then right after the lyric ‘death awaits with pearly gates/ those who have been mesmerized’ the phone battery suddenly drained and shut off. really creepy.
phone seems to be working fine now, though, so idk what happened other than my music app sucks. and good news! all 22hours 45min of my rocks and stones playlist seems untouched. i wouldn’t put it out of the realm of possibility that the girls tried some sabotage. that julia looks like she could hold a grudge, you know?
continuing the good news trend: there hasn’t been a repeat of the dead rabbit last week.
ian xx
—
There was a man, once, who suspected. They are never given enough credit, the farmers. The storytellers and the mystics think they have the knowledge and can comprehend the mysteries of the universe. They can’t. No mortal can. But farmers know the earth. Notice patterns of life and death; the regularities of weather and the seasons.
I’d fed on his wife years before, and his daughter after that. He came up, and tried to take off with one of the stones– like that could stop me. I kicked up a fuss, you know, until he returned the stone to me. I didn’t kill him then, too simple, just fed from him year after year until he begged me for release.
They never tell that part of the tale, either. I don’t know why not, it’s a much better story.
—
Accident Report:
Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences
INSTRUCTIONS
- Please use this form to report all work-related injuries, diseases, ill health, and near misses. Choose the most appropriate term from the list.
- Complete the form immediately after the incident or arrange for someone to do it on your behalf.
- Submit the completed form to your supervisor without delay.
- Section 01: About The Incident
- 01a: What are you reporting?
Dangerous Occurrence - 01b: When did it happen?
— - 01c: Where did it happen?
Field or site work - 01d: What happened?
Field archaeologists were undertaking excavations near the central cavity of the Whispering Knights (4 upright stones approx. 1.5 - 3 meters in height) when the stones collapsed. - 01e: What category best describes the incident?
Hit by stationary object - 01f: Witnesses:
This is fucking ridiculous. Go read the police report. -Rob MacKenzie, Warden
—
This used to be a quiet place, just the hum of the wind across fields, the clanging of the forge, the occasional shout of terror. Now the steady roar of mechanical beasts tearing down the hardened paths is a constant, the same insipid conversations day after day. There are signs now, too, ropes and fences and meandering paths. But that doesn’t stop them. They still touch, even though they aren’t supposed to. A fence is easy to slip, easy to jump, and it doesn't take much. Tiny grabbing hands, a penknife carving out initials, the brush of shoulder all for a picture perfect moment. A memory for as long as it lasts. A happy family until the car loses a tire down the road; a teenaged adventure cut short by a lorry careening off the road.
There’s a new group, too, the students. They scratch at the dirt, dig trenches perfectly shaped for a body. But their trowels and shovels barely uncover the surface. There’s much that doesn’t remain; millennia ignored in favour for a few teeth and beads. They’ll never understand it, the truth of me, of them.
I take because I need; because I can.
—
They each wake up. Flat on their backs, terror pounding in their hearts, eyes to the sky, sucking in air in the clear moonlight.