This is the official site for Cardiff University’s Department of Archaeology and Conservation centenary, also known as #CUArch100. Since we have postponed our in-person festival (originally scheduled 6 June 2020) due to COVID-19, we have moved our events online! We kicked off the festivities on 6 June 2020, and have planned a full week of activity and reflection.
Why are we celebrating our centenary?
Well, 100 years is a long time, and we’ve done quite a bit since Mortimer Wheeler became the first lecturer in archaeology at Cardiff University (then University of Wales). We’d like to dedicate time to:
- Celebrate our alumni, students, staff, and fellows – and their impact on the world of archaeology
- Reflect and remember with our alumni, and foster our widespread alumni community
- Examine the past, present, and future of archaeology as a discipline
How are we celebrating?
A few ways, actually!
Throughout the year, we’ll be sharing alumni memories, current student projects, and past digs (#GreatExcavations) on our social media pages and here. All of our research seminars (Thursdays at 5pm during term-time) are given by alumni, and as always, open for all to attend. For the autumn semester, we will be looking to host these seminars virtually, so anyone cant attend from anywhere in the world!
We hosted a week of online events from 6-12 June 2020.
This was to supplement our postponed festival, and we want YOU to get involved! We organised online versions of many of our festival activities, themed by days. All the content is still available on this website.
Saturday, 6 June 2020: ‘Cardiff Memories’ – we want to see and share your photos from your time at Cardiff!
Sunday, 7 June 2020: ‘Life After Uni’ – we’ll be sharing stories of what our alumni have been up to since graduation, from digging to IT, to teaching at all levels, to running museums!
Monday, 8 June 2020: ‘Experimental Archaeology Day’ – follow along to with our alumni demonstrators as they show you how to bake Neolithic Welsh cakes, make a bone dice, and fashion your own chainmaille!
Tuesday, 9 June 2020: ‘Archaeological Illustration @ Cardiff’ – Remember your own archaeological illustration class? Reminisce with highlights from our illustration department; you’re guaranteed to want to try it again!
Wednesday, 10 June 2020: ‘Community Day’ – archaeology can’t occur on its own, and on this day we’ll feature activities and blog posts from our community partnerships.
Thursday, 11 June 2020: ‘Conservation Take-Over’ – the department expanded to include archaeological conservation in the 70s, and Cardiff conservation alumni have gone on to work all over the world! We’re celebrating them this day and some of their interesting and important work.
Friday, 12 June 2020: ‘Tiny Talks’ – we’ll be hosting a mini-conference online for our current staff and students to share the best, most interesting parts of their work and the department’s legacy. You can read the talks here, or engage in “real time” at our Twitter account!
‘Future of the Past‘ will be our final event for the year, 17 December 2020. We hope you’ll join us in person for this Question-time style discussion, featuring our alumni:
Dr Kathryn Roberts, Head of Archaeology at Cadw
Professor Carl Heron, Director of Research at the British Museum
Professor Robin Skeates, Durham University
Ms Siobhan Stevenson, Director of Legacy Conservation, fmr Icon Chair
Mr Duncan Brown, Head of Archaeological Archives at Historic England
We look forward to seeing you online and in December. Please get in touch with your photos, your memories, and tell us about your life since Cardiff! Please email us with pictures, memorabilia, and questions!
Celebrating 100 Years of Archaeology 