Lees Court Estate Update
Upcoming fieldwork
In September 2018 the Society will be conducting a major excavation, under the supervision of Keith Parfitt ably assisted by Richard Taylor. Following on from the discovery and rescue of three bronze age hoards in Woods Court Field, Lees Court Estate, a significant excavation will take place in the areas in which the hoards where found. The aim is to gain better knowledge as to why and how these hoards came to be in this particular location? There is a possibility that there might be more hoards in this area. We also want to try and understand the relationship between the hoards and the burial site that is about 500 meters to the west of Woods Court Field. All Society members are most welcome to come along and take part. The site will be open to you from Wednesday 5th September 2018; we will be on site seven days a week from 9 o’clock onwards. We look forward to your participation in our Society’s exciting and important project.
News & future work in 2019
An evaluation excavation was conducted by the Society at Stringmans Field in May 2018 to look at a possible ring ditch that appears on both aerial images and geophysical survey data. The excavation revealed a probable prehistoric monument structure approximately 25 metres in diameter surrounded by a large, deep ditch. Evaluation slots cut into the ditch fill revealed stratified pottery and lithic material, the earliest of which dates from the Mid Neolithic. The Society plans to return to this intriguing structure next year armed with additional geophysical survey data to help determine its function in the wider landscape. More details regarding participation will appear in future issues of the Newsletter.
Sky’s the Limit with the Society’s Quadcopter Drone
The Society can reach for the skies with its newly acquired professional video and photography drone – the Phantom 4 Pro version 2 from the world’s leading drone manufacturer, DJI. It was purchased in May 2018, and it has already been put to use on the recent Ring Ditch excavation on Lees Court Estate. For the Society’s needs this drone is perfect because:
[fg]png|Fig 1: Phantom 4 Pro photography drone.|Image[/fg]
[fg]png|Fig 2: Drone image of evaluation excavation at Stringmans Field.|Image[/fg]
• It has a 1-inch sensor which is much larger than most fixed-lens drones, allowing it to take higher quality images with more detail and sharpness.
• The Society needs to take videos that will not be obsolete as technology improves. Currently, most households (72%) use HD television and the next generation is 4K television. This drone can take 4K video at 60 frames per second. In other words, it is future-proofed.
• The Society’s digs are often in large open fields where wind causes problems for drones. This drone is larger than any other fixed-lens drone means it is also the most stable.
• It has a flight time of 30 minutes, a range is 4.3 miles and it can return to base automatically using GPS at a push of a button.