Well not quite, but this week was my first time digging on a sandy site which presented a whole set of challenges that I haven’t encountered before. The site was in rural north Nottinghamshire which was quiet and peaceful giving me a chance to train my eye to see the Roman field boundaries that traversed the area. Trying to trowel straight section edges was difficult as the glorious sunshine dried the sand making it crumbly although I wouldn’t want to complain and make it rain! The site didn’t produce that many finds although I got my first chance to half section some ditch terminals. The site had been stripped of the topsoil by machine which gave an interesting perspective of land use in the area, as opposed the smaller evaluation trenches that I have worked in on other sites.
On Tuesday there was an event hosted by Santander who have supported and facilitated the internships for Emma (archives) and I (field). It was a good opportunity for the interns, Wessex managers, Santander representatives and university coordinators to meet up and celebrate the successes of the internships and identify areas for improvement in the future. It was good to see that the internships have worked well for everyone and to take the time out to talk about the internships as well as the archaeology.
By Hannah Holbrook