I'm all for that. It needs some kind of national coordination, or at least communication, so that we don't waste too much time duplicating other people's work, or conversely neglecting opportunities, or priorities, to record something that might soon be lost.
Mike Worsfold
Shropshire Mines Trust
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Now is this an area where NAMHO could help? Is there potential for training
sessions on archaeolocial recording and interpretation underground (and I
don't mean excavation)? Perhaps archaeological recording as a NAMHO
conference theme? Or, even better, a field weekend to introduce basic
techniques - I'm sure we could draw upon the skills of a number of
archaeological units, English Heritage or the Welsh and Scottish Royal
Commissions? Maybe even use those NAMHO funds we've been hearing about to
bring over some of our French counterparts.
Above ground mining remains are now accepted as a genuine and important
element of British archaeology (for instance the Monuments Protection
Programme and the survey work carried out by the Clwyd-Powys Archaeolgical
Trust). But few people outside the narrow confines of NAMHO and mining
history groups know of or realise the huge potential of the underground
remains. If we can develop a more rigorous recording system coupled with a
better presentation of of our findings then we stand a greater chance of
persuading others (local authority archaeologists and planners, government
agencies etc) of the importance of underground remains. And that will go a
long way to ensuring the long term preservation of those remains.
John Pickin
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