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pastparticipate.bsky.social
Past Participate
@pastparticipate.bsky.social
190 followers 370 following 38 posts
Archaeology for You. We specialise in delivering high quality research-led heritage investigations with and for communities. Current project is Living Amongst the Sarsens (made possible with the National Lottery Heritage Fund).
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pastparticipate.bsky.social
Dorset Archaeology Day 2025 looks to have an interesting line up
April 22, 2025 at 10:34 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
Susann Palmer was a women of multiple talents. She ‘retired’ to Portland in the 1980s and successfully set about uncovering it's prehistory.

Amanda Wallwork will be talking about her at Female Foundations: The Lives and Legacies of Women in Earth Science.

#IWD2025 #Portland #Dorset #archaeology
March 3, 2025 at 4:45 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
Come and join us in celebrating the significant contributions women have made to our understanding of the past on #IWD2025

Female Foundations: The Lives and Legacies of Women in Earth Sciences
8th March 2025
Dorchester

To book tickets email sec.doras@gmail.com
How did women contribute to our understandings of the past? What was their legacy, and what can we learn from that? With a day of talks from academics and authors covering notable women such as geologist Mary Anning and archaeologists Peggy Piggott, Tony Cyriax, Susann Palmer we invite you to come and join us in celebrating their achievements in #IWD2025! Speakers include Tracy Chevalier, Anya Pearson, Rachel Pope, and Helen Wickstead.
February 26, 2025 at 12:34 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
Do you like looking at old maps? Would you like to help us with some ‘quick fire’ desk-based mapping to look for potential sarsens?

ww.pastparticipate.co.uk/things-to-do

#dailysarsen #archaeology #geology #prehistory #farminginprotectedlandscapes
An old map showing a rectangular earthwork/ enclosure. The word stone is written inside the enclosure An old map showing a cross roads. The word 'stone' is written in three places on the map. Each of these words has a red square around it An old map showing Tenants Hill. A stone circle is depicted and labelled
January 31, 2025 at 10:56 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
Past Participate have joined forces with Reach Equality CIC and The Dorchester Associate for this Day School.

Booking details in the image.

www.reachequality.org/events

#women #geology #archaeology #earthsciences #IWD2025
Female Foundation: The Lives and Legacies of Women in Earth Sciences. 8th March 2025. Dorford Centre, Dorchester. Female Foundations: The Lives and Legacies of Women in Earth Sciences. 8th March 2024 10am -16.30pm Dorford Centre, Dorchester DT1 1RR How did women contribute to our understandings of the past? What was their legacy, and what can we learn from that? With a day of talks from academics and authors covering notable women such as geologist Mary Anning and archaeologists Peggy Piggott, Tony Cyriax, Susann Palmer we invite you to come and join us in celebrating their achievements on #IWD2025! Speakers include, Tracy Chevalier and Anya Pearson. Archaeologists include Rachel Pope and Helen Wickstead and geologists Tom Sharpe. For more info and booking please see www.reachequality.org/events
January 23, 2025 at 10:17 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
The Hell Stone is a Neolithic Long Barrow that had a ‘make-over’ in the mid C19th. It would have originally looked similar to the Grey Mare and Her Colts. For more on Dorset barrows visit www.pastparticipate.co.uk/post/long-barrows #25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen #southdorsetridgeway#TombTuesday
Several large stones have been placed upright, with another balanced on top of them. They are situated in farmland, with a hedge and farm buildings behind
December 24, 2024 at 1:41 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This stone appears isolated and is standing on its head. Look at the orientation of the banding. What happened to the other stones from this field?
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#sarsen #valleyofstones #southdorsetridgeway #FarminginProtectedLandscapes
A pyramid shaped stone, with it's point upwards. It is in a flat grassy field, with some trees in the background
December 24, 2024 at 1:36 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
The Nine Stones, near Winterbourne Abbas is a small stone circle made with sarsens, probably from the #valleyofstones.
#25sarsensofchristmas
#dailysarsen #stonecircle #solstice
December 21, 2024 at 11:42 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
One of our volunteers surveyed this stone in the summer. It looks as though it might have been used for grinding something, at some point!
#dailysarsen #25sarsensofchristmas
#valleyofstones #grindingstone
#fundinginprotectedlandscapes #heritagefunduk
December 20, 2024 at 11:54 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
Some of the features/banks are huge, and we have a working theory that they were first formed when sarsens were moved as part of prehistoric field clearances. Over time the soil has built up over the stones, which has led to such large banks.
December 18, 2024 at 11:30 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
These sarsens appear to be underneath a field lynchet. There has long been speculation over the date of the field systems in the Valley of Stones?
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen #valleyofstones
@NaturalEngland

@heritagefunduk.bsky.social
A grassy bank with a 2 stones just visible
December 18, 2024 at 11:30 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
A rather large sarsen was used for the grave stone of John Galpin, a vicar in Portesham who died in 1681. I think it's this one currently covered in ivy. Does anyone have photos before the ivy grew?

#25sarsensofchristmas
#dailysarsen #tombtuesday #portesham #dorset
A mound covered in ivy is visible in the centre of the photo. It is surrounded by grass and there is a war memorial with poppy wreath in the background
December 17, 2024 at 11:05 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
6 stones were recorded by Piggott at the Hampton Stone circle in 1939. In 1965 Wainwright were recorded 28 during excavation, none were in their original settings!
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#prehistory #megalithicmonday
A black and white photo showing a series of large stones arranged in a semi circle. There is also a fence cutting across the front of the image. Photo: Colley March, H. 1908a 'The Third Summer Meeting: Portesham and Bridehead District', Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History & Antiquarian Field Club, vol 29, lxxiii-lxxix. A plan showing how the stone circle changed between 1939 and 1965
December 16, 2024 at 9:36 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
These stones are on the top of the ridge. They must have been brought up here by people but we don't know when. They have been left in this arrangement by a modern farmer!
#25sarsensofchristmas
#dailysarsen #FarminginProtectedLandscapes #StandingStoneSunday
2 people are standing pointing into the distance. They are surrounded by some large stones, in a grass field with blue sky behind.
December 15, 2024 at 5:18 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This is a map showing the extent of the natural sarsen field on Tenants Hill. People may have moved large stones across significant distances for specific purposes but they were unlikely to have carried the smaller ones.

#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen #FarminginProtectedLandscapes
December 14, 2024 at 4:37 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
What should you expect to find when digging around sarsens? More sarsens!
We excavated a small area near the polissoir, and found many, many, small sarsens underneath the topsoil.
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#sarsen #Neolithic #valleyofstones #FarminginProtectedLandscapes
A large stone with an excavated area behind it. There are lots of small stones in parts of the excavated area
December 13, 2024 at 4:27 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
Sarsen Street Furniture?
We think these kerb stones in Abbotsbury are made out of sarsen stone. If anyone is walking past, give them a poke and let us know. Very hard probably = sarsen.
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#sarsen #FarminginProtectedLandscapes #Abbotsbury #HeritageFundUK
A high kerb, with large long flat stones running along the edge of the pavement and on top of a small wall built from small stones
December 12, 2024 at 9:55 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
We’ve focused our research so far on the Valley of Stones, but there is also a natural deposit of sarsen stones in Portesham, just down the way. These have been built into the infrastructure of the village
#25sarsensofchristmas
#dailysarsen #FarminginProtectedLandscapes #portesham #HeritageFundUK
A stone wall, mostly built with small bricks but some large sarsen boulder can be seen lower down. There is a stream in front of the wall and a graveyard visible behind
December 11, 2024 at 11:09 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
In 1908 these stones were described as ‘a collapsed dolmen’ by the Dorset Field Club. We hope to investigate further-it is an unusual location for this type of monument.

#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen #valleyofstones #FarminginProtectedLandscapes #TombTuesday @heritagefunduk.bsky.social
Several stones lying at different angles are visible in the foreground. In the background there are lots of stones scattered across a grassy field A large stone is lying on an angle, with smaller stones either side. It is in a grassy field, with a hill behind.
December 10, 2024 at 2:14 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This is one of the stones that kicked off Jim’s thinking about sarsens on Tenants Hill. It is buried at the bottom of a hedge bank.
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen #FarminginProtectedLandscapes @heritagefunduk.bsky.social
December 9, 2024 at 1:46 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This small circle of stones in the Valley of Stones is the remnants of a bronze or iron age house. The house itself would have been built out of wood, just using the stones for additional external support.
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#sarsen #valleyofstones #FarminginProtectedLandscapes
A circle of large stones in a grassy field
December 8, 2024 at 3:57 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This is a typical sarsen stone in the Valley of Stones. You can clearly see the different layers of geological deposits.
#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#sarsen #Livingamongstthesarsens #valleyofstones #FarminginProtectedLandscapes @heritagefunduk.bsky.social
A large stone with visible banding
December 7, 2024 at 3:56 PM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
When is a circle of stones not a stone circle?
When it forms a D shape and has house platforms nearby. This is probably a medieval sheep enclosure.

#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen #sarsen #valleyofstones #FarminginProtectedLandscapes
A semicircle of stones in a grassy field. There are also other stones nearby In a grass valley some banks are visible near a collection of large stones
December 6, 2024 at 11:11 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This stone is huge. It’s a contender for the largest stone in the Valley of Stones. Interestingly it has avoided being broken up. Why has it survived?

#25sarsensofchristmas #dailysarsen
#sarsen #valleyofstones #dorset #FarminginProtectedLandscapes @naturalengland.bsky.social
A large stone, with moss A large stone partially covered in bramble, with stones and trees in the background
December 5, 2024 at 10:14 AM
pastparticipate.bsky.social
This is a stone we have affectionately called ‘the turtle stone’. It is one of 18 in the Kingston Russell Stone Circle.

#25sarsensofchristmas
© Rebecca Pullan
#sarsen #Neolithic #southdorsetridgeway #FarminginProtectedLandscapes @englishheritage.bsky.social
Part of a stone that looks a bit like a turtles head An irregularly shaped sarsen stone that looks a bit like a turtle
December 4, 2024 at 10:54 AM