Replicating a unique Roman key handle

Blog by Gavin Speed and Andrew McLeish. A unique – and fragile – Roman key handle portraying a ‘Barbarian’ grappling with a lion will soon go on display in the newly refurbished Jewry Wall Museum in Leicester. It was once a high-status Roman item, and no other quite like it has ever been discovered. Because…

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The archaeology of menstruation

Blog by Isobel Johnson-Moss and Rachel Small. The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is ‘accelerate action’ and emphasises the importance of taking decisive steps to achieve gender equality. It calls for increased momentum and urgency in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres. With this…

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Kathleen Kenyon and the Jewry Wall

Blog by Mathew Morris. Today we celebrate the renaming of the Archaeology and Ancient History Building at the University of Leicester after the pioneering archaeologist Dame Kathleen Kenyon. The Kathleen Kenyon Building is the first academic building to be named after a woman on the University of Leicester’s campus. To mark the occasion, archaeologist Mathew Morris, revisits a blog he…

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Monument, Memory and Myth

Blog by John Thomas. On 25 January 2025, a new exhibit celebrating identity, memory and community opens at Charnwood Museum, inspired by the amazing Bronze Age Cossington Necklace. The necklace was found by ULAS archaeologists in 1999. To coincide with the exhibition, ULAS Deputy Director John Thomas explores the Bronze Age setting of the discovery….

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Leicester Cathedral Revealed – Secrets from the Cess Pit!

When most people think of archaeological excavations, tangible artefacts such as pottery and coins spring to mind. Also of importance, yet often overlooked, are plant remains, such as cereal grains and seeds, and the remains of wood and charcoal. These can survive by mineralisation, charring or waterlogging, and are vital for archaeological study as they…

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The Midlands – Birthplace of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot

Blog by Robbie Mabbett. “Remember, remember, the 5th of November, gunpowder, treason and plot.” Tonight is Bonfire Night, the annual commemoration of the foiled plot to blow up King James I and the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament in London on 5 November, 1605. It was hoped it would be a prelude…

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Leicester Cathedral Revealed – The Living Churchyard

We have talked a lot about the remarkable archaeological discoveries from Leicester Cathedral. About the Roman cellar ‘shrine’ and the altar stone, and about the thousand medieval and post-medieval burials, and we will talk about them further as new information comes from the analysis of the archaeological material and the human remains. Meanwhile, the assessment…

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Leicester Cathedral Revealed –Roman pottery discoveries

During the excavations at Leicester Cathedral, a total of 5,540 sherds of Roman pottery were recovered dating from the beginning of Roman Leicester during the 1st century, through to the 4th century and the end of the Roman town. The pottery has all been assessed to determine how it can contribute to our understanding of…

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Leicester Cathedral Revealed – Animal Bone Discoveries

In our latest blog from the Leicester Cathedral Revealed project, Environmental Supervisor William Johnson-Moss, tells us about the assessment of the animal bones and what they tell us about life in Leicester in the past. During the excavations at Leicester Cathedral a total of 10,516 fragments of animal bone were recovered. These came from features…

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Leicester Cathedral Revealed – The story is in the stratigraphic sequence

Saying it’s been a wet winter is an understatement! It’s been terrible for archaeological excavations, with flooded sites, high water tables and mud, glorious mud! For Leicester Cathedral Uncovered, this has been a bit of a blessing, with staff, rained off other projects, devoting a considerable amount of their winter cleaning the skeletons from the…

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Stepping out of the Dark: Anglo-Saxon Settlement at Eye Kettleby

In the mid-1990s, one of the largest known early Anglo-Saxon settlements in the country was excavated by University of Leicester Archaeological Services at Eye Kettleby in Leicestershire. Now the results of the work have been published in a new book titled The Anglo-Saxon Settlement at Eye Kettleby, Leicestershire. The book forms the latest addition to…

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