August 31, 2010
The lightly built defensive enclosure, which emerged from parched barley fields, provided basic protection for Roman soldiers on maneuvers in the first century AD
Dry conditions in England this summer have left the outlines of historic sites in fields like Etch A Sketches from the air.
Known as crop marks, the faint outlines of unseen buried structures emerged because of the length of the dry spell, leading the national conservator to label 2010 a vintage year for archaeology.
The outlines show up when crops grow at different rates over buried structures. Shallower soils tend to produce a stunted crop and are more prone to parching, bringing to light the new features.
“It’s hard to remember a better year,” said Dave MacLeod, a senior investigator with English Heritage.
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I like that. 2010 is a vintage year for archaeology.
dry and chalky, like silt. with a barley nose. finishes burnt.
Aw, hell, don’t we know enough already about Roman Britain?
enough with the learnin and the fax.
He said fax.
Shelia, you cannot tell me you are tepid about this. Ancient buried structures Shelia. Relics. Antiquities. Bones. Spirits disturbed after eons of rest.
What if there is a CHARIOT?
oh, that’s an inside joke.
I posted a ‘from someone else’s comments’ on Egyptian archeology, I think, where someone was like — don’t we already know enough about the Egyptians?! Enough already.
I didn’t know it was an inside joke, but I knew it was kidding. I was carrying on too. Then I went all Shakespeare with the notions of what could be under there.
well fuck me with a carbon dating.
Carole is a biiiiiird.