3D Scanning Neolithic, Iron Age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon Artifacts from Streethouse and Norton
Dr. Stephan Sherlock pictured reading Street House sign at the site in Loftus, UK.
Week three of the work term for members of the DRAGEN Lab team led them to North Yorkshire, to engage with artifacts discovered during archaeological excavations at Streethouse from 1979 to the present day. Finds from this site range from Neolithic, Iron Age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon periods. A true spectacle of historic significance, Streethouse is home to thousands of years of saltwork production across various time periods, historic settlements, as well as a significant Conversion period Anglo-Saxon cemetery which contains the grave of an Anglo-Saxon princess found lying on a bed.
Under the supervision of co-investigator of the Environments of Change project, Dr. Stephen Sherlock, the DRAGEN Lab team was invited in week 3 to visit the Kirkletham Museum to collect 3D Scans of artifacts found in the Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Streethouse. Items of importance that were analyzed, catalogued and scanned by the team included various brooches, jewellery, geological finds, and knives. Additionally, they were provided with an opportunity to generate 3D scans of treasures found within the Anglo-Saxon princess’ grave.
Creating opportunities to digitally reconstruct and reimagine the impressive finds discovered in the sites at Streethouse, and a second site at Norton, has allowed members of our team to further engage with different historical contexts and research areas beyond their specializations. This experience has bridged together areas of various interests, by taking a multi-disciplinary approach to understanding and supporting archaeological research, while making marvellous finds accessible to public audiences via the creation of a digital artifact library.
““Having an opportunity to explore the sites at Street House and getting to 3D scan items that were unearthed beneath our feet has been incredible. In conversations that we’ve had with many people during our time here, we’ve learned that more people want different, more accessible ways to view artifacts that sit in museums or archived collections. This project is the first step of many to making history and science more accessible to those who want to view artifacts that were found locally, but relocated and housed in other areas,” Kian Drew, MSc Candidate, Waterloo University and co-investigator with Environments of Change project.”
Through the creation of a digital archive of 3D Iron Age, Anglo-Saxon Neolithic and Roman artifacts, various researchers, members of the public and institutions will have barrier-free access to collections of spectacular finds from across historic England. Additionally, as artifacts continue to age and deteriorate, these 3D records will remain timeless in their current form.
Stay tuned for a supplementary article which will cover a variety of artifacts that our 3D scanning team has digitized, as well as further details about the context for all these finds including where they were unearthed and the (pre) historical periods they represent so marvellously.
Shannon Blackmore is a digital communications, social media, and community specialist. She received an Master of Arts (MA) in Communications and Media Studies from Wilfrid Laurier University in 2020. As part of the Environments of Change Project and DRAGEN Lab, Shannon works to communicate specialist work to a general audience.
With contributions from Dr. Stephen Sherlock.
This blog post is part of the Environments of Change project.