Dear Volunteers,
Grampus Heritage is delighted to invite you to join our exciting new community archaeology project. Dust off your thermals and grab a flask because this time we are ‘going to the wall’!
Funded by Defra through Solway Coast National Landscape’s Farming in Protected Landscapes programme, we will undertake a geophysical survey (resistance and magnetometry) on farmland at Drumburgh in Cumbria. The survey area (map image attached) sits within the Solway Coast National Landscape, within the Hadrian’s Wall World Heritage Site and includes a scheduled area covering the projected route of Hadrian’s Wall to the east of the fort, leading to the proposed location of milecastle 76. It is hard to imagine a more ‘protected landscape’, and yet, our survey can add greatly to our understanding of the archaeology in this area. The survey will cover the eastern extent of the scheduled area from the fort ‘Congavata’ to the proposed location of Milecastle 76. By covering the whole area highlighted, the survey is an exercise in prospection to identify archaeological remains from all periods.
We have a Section 42 license to enable our survey to cover the area of the scheduled monument. You can view the Historic England List Entry by clicking this link: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1014699?section=official-list-entry
It can be tempting to think that such an iconic monument as Hadrian’s Wall is fully understood, but this is not always the case. The listing acknowledges that: “Drumburgh Roman fort, known to the Romans as Congavata, commanded an outlook to the north and east over the Inner Solway. There has been very little archaeological work carried out on this fort, and it remains one of the least well known Wall forts.”
The survey will aim to cover the whole fields highlighted, rather than just the scheduled monument. This is because we always aim to look at the bigger picture and we may well encounter features associated with pre or post-Roman activity. Once again, this is a landscape-level survey with high archaeological potential.
If you are able to join us for any of the days listed below please reply to Emma at: emmagrampusheritage@gmail.com
Survey Location: The Grange, Drumburgh, CA7 5DW
Please note that the survey is based at The Grange with parking available in the yard. The Grange is located on the opposite side of the road to the castle (north side of the road) and accessed by a driveway from the main road through the village (images attached).
Previous Survey’s Dates:
2024: Monday 25-30 November / Monday 2-4 December / Monday 9-14 December / Monday 16-19 December
2025: Monday 6-11 January / Monday 13-18 January
Working hours 10am to 3:30pm
Parking in the yard of The grange (please car share if possible)
Toilet facilities and indoor lunch area available at The Grange yard.
Results from previous survey’s: Geophysics report
Forthcoming excavation:
Dear Volunteers,
We are delighted to invite you to take part in an exciting archaeological excavation taking place at Drumburgh from 6th to 25th October 2025 (excluding Sundays).
This fieldwork follows on from the successful completion of a geophysical survey over the winter of 2024/2025, completed by many of you. The survey results raised many interesting questions regarding the arrangement of Hadrian’s Wall, the fort of Congavata and Milecastle 76 at Drumburgh and we hope that you can join us in the search for answers. The project is funded by Defra through Solway Coast National Landscape’s Farming in Protected Landscapes programme and is a great opportunity for us all to increase our understanding of the UNESCO designated Hadrian’s Wall World Heritage Site.
Aims and objectives of the project:
The overall objectives of the project are to:
1. Engage the local community in active and valuable archaeological research on Hadrian’s Wall at Drumburgh.
2. Search for evidence of the fort of Congavata at Drumburgh (Fig 1. Area 1)
3. Investigate the course of Hadrian’s Wall to the east of Congavata (Fig 1. Areas 2 and 3)
4. Search for evidence of Milecastle 76 to the east of Congavata (Fig 1. Areas 2 and 3)
5. If Milecastle 76 is identified, determine if the wall continues to the east into Burgh Marsh, terminates or turns to the south to take a more inland route across slightly higher ground (fossil marsh edge).
Scheduled monument consent has been granted for the excavation and the permitted excavation areas are shown in the attached image (fig 1).
WSI document (Written Scheme of Investigation for Archaeological Evaluation at Drumburgh Castle Farm)
Volunteering
Working hours for volunteers are from 09:30 – 16:00 each day. Days may be cancelled or cut-short in the event of extreme weather.
Please bring your own lunch, waterproof clothing and wear sturdy boots for excavation. Tools, equipment and training will be provided and no previous experience is necessary to participate.
Google Earth images are attached to show the location of Drumburgh and the parking area at: The Grange, Drumburgh, CA7 5DW. To access the Grange, enter the village of Drumburgh and take the turning opposite the signposted turn to the RSPB reserve. Follow the track around to the left to enter the parking area.
Toilet facilities and a covered area for lunch break are available at the Grange. We are extremely grateful to Sarah Hodgson and family for making these facilities available.
Parking Location what3words: crumbles.quicker.even
Please find the parking area displayed on the image below:
We aim to work with 10 volunteers per day throughout the excavation and to give as many people as possible the chance to participate. We would particularly like to encourage volunteers from Drumburgh and the surrounding area so please feel free to share this email with anybody who may be interested.
Excavation dates are
Week 1: 6th to 11th October
Week 2: 13th to 18th October
Week 3: 20th to 25th October
To register please email to: emmagrampusheritage@gmail.com
