Robert M Chapple, Archaeologist

As many readers of this blog are aware, I run a small project where I collect radiocarbon &dendrochronology dates into a single catalogue . Back in 2006 it started out as a personal resource for my own research needs, but I found that other people also saw value in it and it has been publicly downloadable since 2010. I’m currently in the process of updating the catalogue for release (hopefully) later this year. One innovation I introduced a few years back was to provide a geolocation (as decimal Lat/Long) for every date. The work of getting the geolocation and then checking its accuracy is painstaking, hugely time consuming, and frequently boring. But sometimes, just sometimes, it reveals a gem. Cropmarks in Shannaragh I use a number of sources to get the geolocation that include data provided in the original paper or report, or (more frequently) the information supplied by the wonderful excavations.ie site. However I get it, I always end up checking it by putting it in...

In the past while I’ve published two pieces on this blog about some of the exhibits on display at The Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin, TX [ here | here ]. For some time I’ve wanted to ‘round out’ the series with a third post about another exhibit that made an impression on me. I have, however, hesitated to tackle this piece and – on a few occasions – scrapped the draft post, considering it a topic best left alone. The reason for my hesitation is obvious enough from the photos – the exhibit that caught my attention was a set of Ku Klux Klan robes, specifically those worn by the Grand Dragon, the highest KKK official in Texas. Previous to walking into the space where they’re displayed, my closest encounter with Klan robes was seeing them on TV and in movies like Alan Parker’s Mississippi Burning and the Coen’s O Brother, Where Art Thou? I’ll admit that coming ‘face to face’ with these robes was quite an experience – it knocked the wind out of my sails and I came to s...

The British Museum holds 35 items identified as coming from Co Armagh, along with one item assigned to either Armagh or Meath. The majority of these (14) are assigned to the Neolithic/Bronze Age, followed by the Early Medieval period (12). The most common object type represented are axes (11), followed by penannular brooches, pins, and ringed pins (4 each). The most common material types are represented in this assemblage are: Metal (19) and Stone (13). < Table of Contents Neolithic/Bronze Age: Stone items Armagh axe 19151208.281 Flaked flint axe with flat, slightly angled butt. http://britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1388912&partId=1 Armagh axe 20050501.289 Flaked stone axe. http://britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1569835&partId=1 Armagh axe 20050501.3 Large polished stone axe with rounded butt, dappled colour. http://brit...