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Public Archaeology York Style: The Hungate Project

Posted on March 10, 2007 | Filed Under Articles

We were promised public archaeology, cutting edge research driven archaeology, community archaeology and inclusive archaeology by the developers when they were seeking permission to develop this site. So what do we finish up with.

Looks much like the traditional building site hoardings. And what is going on behind them? Apparently for several months now the York Archaeological Trust have been beavering away behind these hoardings. At least that is what rumour says. And what have they been finding? Well your guess is as good as anyone elses.

This is some of the archaeology which came out of the ground before the development began.

What have we missed during the last several months? Why not ask the York Archaeological Trust 01904 663000 or the developer on 0113 265 2000? I assume they know the answers.

Hungate is the biggest single development within the historic core for many decades. Its like will never happen again. An opportunity to examine the city’s long and rich history in detail and on such a scale will never happen again. A chance for the people of York to experience their long and rich history first hand will never happen again on this scale. So why can’t we see what is going on?

A building site is undoubtedly a potentially dangerous place but has no-one involved in the project heard of web cams. They could give access to parts of the site the public can’t safely reach. Linked to a web page, now there is novel thinking, you could even have what is being found explained to you on a regular basis.

Has no-one involved with the project ever heard of public talks? A bit old fashioned maybe but a way of disseminating information to an interested public. The developer was pleased when before the planning application was submitted a public talk attracted an enthusiastic audience of over 300 people.

Has no-one involved with the project visited the inside of a local museum? York has many suitable venues where the archaeological finds could be displayed free of charge to an enthsiastic audience of interested residents and visitors.

Has no-one involved in the project ever visited an open archaeology day on a building site? Most building sites don’t operate throughout the weekend period so why hasn’t an opportunity been taken to allow the public to visit at the weekends?

The archaeology of York is a treasure house of information from its earliest occupation by the IX Legion to the recent past. Hungate has been shown to contain archaeology from almost every period of that long history and through a combination of circumsatnces the preservation is exceptional.

So what is happening to the treasure? I really wish I knew so that I could tell you.

Better still I wish that you could just pop along to your local library, your local museum, damn it your local archaeological site and find out. After all it is your archaeology. Oh yes if you pay Council Tax in York you made a substantial, if indirect, contribution to the archaeological costs of developing the Hungate site.

Archaeological remains are a precious asset which cannot always be left in the ground. They provide us with a window through which we can examine our past, see our roots and perhaps understand a little better who we are. The trouble at Hungate is that the blinds are down and the shutters are closed.

Well for one I think it is time that the citizens of York were given an unfettered opportunity to see their archaeology. The developers gained the active and vociferous support of many who thought the development was made acceptable by the archaeological benefits they were promised. They need to see it in the ground, as it comes out of the ground and as it is being evaluated. Anything less represents a betrayal of the promises given by the developers as they pushed forward their scheme.