A team from the University of Birmingham, as well as archaeologists from around the world, was involved in the discovery. An article on the Guardian website describes the second henge as ‘the most exciting find at Stonehenge in a lifetime.’ In the article, Professor Vince Gaffney from the university says:  

“This finding is remarkable. It will completely change the way we think about the landscape around Stonehenge…Stonehenge is one of the most studied monuments on Earth but this demonstrates that there is still much more to be found.”

The find is fantastic, and all the more exciting for the University of Birmingham’s involvement in the project!

Read the Guardian article here. There’s also a press release on the university’s website – find it here.

CAMRA did just this and undertook a National Inventory of Pub Interiors of Outstanding Interest and of the 60 000 pubs in the United Kingdom, 293 of those were of significant importance. The inventory is in two parts: part one covers interiors which are essentially intact since they were originally created which holds 195 entries 8 of which are in Birmingham and part two lists pub interiors whilst not intact contain features or rooms which are of truly national significance of which there are 98 entries 4 of which are in Birmingham.

A series of pubs built in Birmingham between 1896 and 1904 by James and Lister Lea are truly unique to Birmingham. These pubs are named ‘tile and terracotta’ so-called from the red terracotta facing on the frontage and extensive use of tiles for decoration inside.

Ceramic tiles found in The White Swan, Digbeth

The Anchor, Digbeth: A red brick and terracotta building built by James and Lister Lea.

However, over the past three or four decades the public house has seen massive changes through changing fashion tastes, economy and benign neglect which has resulted in many nationally important interiors currently at risk. If you want to know more Licensed to Sell – The History and Heritage of the Public House by Geoff Brandwood, Andrew Davison and Michael Slaughter explains how pubs took their present form and examines the exceptional interiors that can be found.

Festival of History 2010

Prepare for the ultimate historical adventure as the Festival of History thunders back for 2010. Experience over 2000 years of history and watch as over 1,000 re-enactors march out of history and into the heart of England. Hear the thud of Roman soldiers as they march in unison, the thunder of charging horses, swords clash as Knights engage in battle and the roar of vintage fighter planes as they soar overhead. With more than 50 different shows each day this is an action packed weekend for the whole family.

The event is taking place on Saturday 17^th and Sunday 18^th July at Kelmarsh Hall, Northampton.

Go to www.festivalofhistory.co.uk to find out more.

Argent Centre, courtesy of Keshvala

The list of applications for the UK’s new Tentative List of sites for World Heritage status has been published, and includes Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter on the list.

Click here for the full 38.

John Penrose, Tourism and Heritage Minister, said:

“We wanted a strong and varied list to eventually put to UNESCO and I’m delighted that so many wonderful, diverse places have been put forward. Any list that includes Jodrell Bank, the Forth Bridge, Blackpool and the Turks and Caicos Islands certainly doesn’t lack variety.  But what all 38 sites have in common is a wow factor and a cultural resonance that makes them real contenders to sit alongside The Pyramids and Red Square in this most distinguished of gatherings.”

Fingers crossed for Birmingham!

The full list is

• Arbroath Abbey (Scotland)
• The Birmingham Jewellery Quarter (England)
• The Birth of the Railway Age serial nomination (England)
• Blackpool (England)
• The heroic period of civil and marine engineering in England 1822-1866, Bristol (England)
• Bronte Landscape and Haworth Village (England)
• Brunel’s Great Western Railway (England)
• Buildings of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Glasgow (Scotland)
• Chatham Dockyard and its Defences (England)
• Chester Rows (England)
• Colchester, Camulodunum and Colonia Victricensis (England)
• Creswell Crags (England)
• The Hill of Derry (Northern Ireland)
• The Dover Strait (England)
• The Flow Country (Scotland)
• The Forth Bridge (Scotland)
• The Fountain Cavern (Anguilla)
• Gorham’s Cave (Gibraltar)
• Gracehill Conservation area (Northern Ireland)
• Jodrell Bank Observatory (England)
• The Lake District (England)
• The Laxey Valley (Isle of Man)
• Historic Lincoln (England)
• Malone and Stranmillis Historic Urban landscape (Northern Ireland)
• Merthyr Tydfil (Wales)
• Merton Priory (England)
• Mousa, Old Scatness and Jarlshof: The Crucible of Iron Age Shetland (Scotland)
• The Royal Sites of Ireland – Navan Fort (Northern Ireland)
• The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads (England)
• Slate Industry of North Wales (Wales)
• Offa’s Dyke (England/Wales border)
• St Andrews, Medieval Burgh and Links (Scotland)
• Island of Saint Helena (Saint Helena Island, South Atlantic Ocean)
• Turks and Caicos Islands (Caribbean)
• Tynwald Hill and environs – Norse assembly sites of North West Europe (Isle of Man)
• Former RAF Upper Heyford (England)
• Wye Valley and Forest of Dean (England/Wales border)
• City of York (England)

Unfortunately, Birmingham Conservation Trust has itself seen some of the results of the recession.

The problem doesn’t end with listed buildings. The Register includes conservation areas at risk, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, registered battlefields and protected wreck sites.

Chief Executive of English Heritage, Dr Simon Thurley, said: “Cuts in both private and public spending are currently inevitable, but armed with our Heritage at Risk Register English Heritage is well-equipped to guard against the loss of the nation’s greatest treasures and to suggest effective and economical strategies to protect our national heritage.”

To search the Register click here, view the press release here, click here for the national analysis report and click here for a summary of key statistics.  For the regional reports, click here.

Old Yardley Park and Village by Robert C Jones

At the heart of Yardley is the historic church of St Edburgha’s a Grade I listed building built in stone which dates back to the 13^th Century and has been a centre for worship for over 1000 years.

Ian Lane ‘The Stone Mason’ who can be seen below carving Rev William J Sands name onto the  Tablet  at  St Edburgha’s  Church. Using almost exactly the same methods as those used by the Romans, the lettering is marked on the stone by hand and carved into the stone using nothing more than hammer and chisels.

The Stone Mason by Robert C Jones

Friends of Old Yardley Park are a group of local people who aim to protect the ancient parkland in Yardley. The society have recently created a blog to tell the story of what happens at Old Yardley Park which can be viewed here.

Image courtesy of The Stirrer

Members of the public have a chance to delve into Birmingham’s industrial past this month when a series of  archaeological lectures reveal the findings of last year’s excavation works at the site of the new  Library of Birmingham in Centenary Square.

The lectures, delivered by William Mitchell and Chris Hewitson of Birmingham Archaeology, will take place at Library Theatre, adjacent to the current Birmingham’s Central Library, on Wednesday July 7^th (12.30-1.30pm) and Saturday July 24^th (1-2pm), and are set to reveal in detail the significance behind the discoveries made at the new site prior to the start of construction in January.

Both William and Chris were part of the archaeology team from the University of Birmingham which carried out the excavation work between July and December 2009.

The dig uncovered a plethora of intriguing links to history, including remains of Gibson’s and Baskerville Canal Arms, as well as remnants from Robert Winfield’s Cambridge Street Works, one of Birmingham’s premier brass manufacturers that flourished in the 19th century.

Tickets for the lectures are available free of charge from www.birminghamboxoffice.com, by calling 0121 303 2323, and from Central Library reception.

Church in Cheshire, courtesy of the English Heritage website

Two recent articles on the Guardian website highlighted a survey of our churches and other places of worship by English Heritage. The survey uncovered an urgent repairs backlog of an estimated £900m, with the current condition of one in 10 churches causing serious concern.

One article, published prior to the release of the survey, said:

…The report, to be released on Wednesday, is not as bleak as many feared. It is expected to show that one in nine (11%) of all places of worship are in poor or very poor condition and therefore at risk, based on a representative sample survey of almost 1,500 buildings. The remainder are in fair or good condition, greatly valued both by the worshippers and the surrounding community, and often well supported and maintained through heroic efforts by tiny regular congregations.

The article goes on to say that the type of building often has much bearing on its condition – higher graded listed buildings are often in poor condition, as are isolated rural churches. Inner-city churches are often found to be in better condition than those in rural areas, but the survey found that 28% of places of worship in Birmingham are at risk – St. Barnabas on Erdington High St is one of these.

However mammoth the task of caring for our crumbling places of worship may seem, English Heritage is very positive about what congregations can do to help. Dr Simon Thurley (Chief Executive of English Heritage) said:

“I urge everyone who cares about their local church, chapel, synagogue or other place of worship to lend a hand. Don’t be put off by what might seem like an impossible challenge – the key is to do small things really well. Finding somewhere to serve cups of tea might achieve just as much as a major building project. Clearing gutters could save the need for a whole new roof or renewing damp walls at a cost of thousands of pounds. Brambles cleared in a Cornish churchyard last year made way for a host of primroses this year and an influx of visitors as a result. Get hold of one of our Caring for Places of Worship booklets and get going!”

You can find the Guardian articles here and here. The Birmingham Mail have also covered the survey, focusing on the places of worship at risk in Birmingham – find that article here.

There are a couple that have appeared recently which seem to attract mixed responses from people. Below are some picture of one, The Cube (all from a great series taken by The Development of Birmingham on flickr – well worth following here.

The enormous new Queen Elizabeth Hospital could well be another:

Click on the image for find the orginal, courtesy of Ell Brown on Flickr

I wonder which historic Birmingham buildings once received the same response?

Before Marmite was patented (1902) were we creating other builders that led to a similar response?  Did some Victorian Brummies say  “yeurgh”  and some “yay” in 1891 when the Victoria Law Courts went up?

Victoria Law Courts Birmingham courtesy of Joe Dunckley on Flickr

J.R.R Tolkien is best known as the author of The Hobbit and its sequel The Lord of the Rings. It is believed that areas in Birmingham may have provided the inspiration for some of the settings in these works.

Tolkien’s parents were both from Birmingham, however, they moved to South Africa in search of a better life. Tolkien and his younger brother went to visit their grandparents in Birmingham with their mother. Unfortunately, during this visit news reached them that their father had died.

Tolkien’s mother decided not to return to South Africa and settled at 5 Gracewell, a cottage in the hamlet of Sarehole. Tolkien and his brother were known to explore this area and it is widely thought that the village is the inspiration for Hobbiton and The Shire. More specifically the Sarehole Mill was the inspiration for The Old Mill at Hobbiton and Moseley Bog (which has recently been granted £376,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund) otherwise known in LOTR as Fangorn and the Old Forest.

The Folly photographed by Si Hammond in 2005 - during the stabilisation work we carried out.

When Tolkien’s mother died he went to live with his aunt (for a short time) in Edgbaston. Edgbaston has two distinctive towers:  Perrott’s Folly and the tower at Edgbaston Waterworks which have been suggested to be the Two Towers of Gondor (Minas Morgul and Minas Tirith). A further tower, the clock tower of Birmingham University, has also been suggested to be Orthanc, the fortress of the corrupted wizard Saruman.

It’s a good few years ago now but one of our projects was to stabilise the Folly – at the time we started work English heritage feared it may collapse.

Work uncovered a critical problem at the point where the square base meets the main part of the hexagonal tower. The oak beams, which had supported the tower, were decayed and little was holding up the brickwork.

Money was diverted to replace the beams and stabilise the structure.

At the same time a problem was detected with the brickwork. The two skins of brick on the tower were free floating. When it was built nothing had been done to tie them together. Grouting was applied and the brickwork re-pointed.

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The Black Country is said to have inspired Tolkien’s ideas of the dark land of Mordor from the industrial revolution which transformed the physical appearance of the area.

J.R.R. Tolkien was also influenced by other places in later life, and the horrors and joys that were to come as he matured to manhood, experienced war, and settled into happy married and academic life.

For more on J. R. R. Tolkien: A Biography by Humphrey Carpenter offers a wealth of information about the life and work of Tolkien.