02/07/2009

Issued by: JORVIK Viking Centre

Have you ever wanted to dig deep into the past and discover exciting archaeological artefacts that most people will never get the chance to see?

Now's your chance.  York residents and visitors can have their very own archaeological adventure as York Archaeological Trust brings the fun and excitement of archaeology and discovery to the city during this year's Festival of British Archaeology (18 July - 2 August).

The Trust is holding a whole host of events at its attractions in York that will bring out the archaeologist in everyone.  And those with a Young Archaeologist membership card will get free admission to the JORVIK Viking Centre, DIG and Barley Hall for the duration of the festival.

Young archaeologists will have the rare opportunity to handle finds excavated by the Trust that are not normally on display at the DIG archaeological adventure (St Saviourgate, 11am - 12pm and 2pm - 3pm on 21, 23, 28 and 30 July - these sessions are on a first come first served basis as places are limited).

And, on DIG's doorstep, York's largest city centre excavation for 25 years will be opening its doors for free on Saturday 1^st August, giving you the chance to experience a live archaeological dig and meet the archaeology team working on site to answer questions about their work and their discoveries so far.  The Hungate excavation in York city centre will be open from 10am until 3pm.

Throughout the festival there's free entry for kids at medieval townhouse Barley Hall, where everyone can discover more about medieval life.  On Saturday 18 July and 1 August, resident barber surgeon will be on hand to talk about gruesome treatment methods and grizzly cures including leeches, wound stitching, maggots, spiders and medicines made from weird and wonderful ingredients at the Plague, Poverty and Prayer exhibition. 

The exhibition is also home to a remarkable collection of grotesques.  People visiting Barley Hall in July can see the exquisite stone carvings up close for the first and only time before they are installed in the heights of York Minster.

York Archaeological Trust has been investigating the history of York and surrounding areas for three decades and is looking forward to sharing its experience with visitors during the festival.

Says Sarah Maltby, director of attractions, "Archaeology is great fun, and teaches us so much about how the world we know today was shaped. 

"For us, the Festival of British Archaeology is all about bringing the excitement of archaeology and our finds to as wide an audience as possible and encouraging more people to get involved.  We've got a very varied programme this year that really does offer something for everyone." 

The festival was established by the Council for British Archaeology to encourage everyone to visit sites of archaeological and historical interest; museums, heritage and resource centres; to see archaeology in action and to take part in activities on-site. The festival is a celebration of British archaeology and the presentation of archaeology from around the country.

To find out more about what is happening in York throughout the festival visit www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk.

-ENDS-