Archaeologists are finding it increasingly difficult to locate museums and/or local authorities who are willing to accept the artefacts and accompanying records from important rescue excavations undertaken across Britain. This leaves their future survival in doubt, whether for display or for future study and it undermines one of the key purposes of undertaking rescue archaeology.
The majority of rescue archaeology is undertaken as a condition of planning permission imposed by local planning authorities. This ensures that our nation’s heritage is not lost or destroyed by development. Long-established best practice suggests that the archives from these excavations – often comprising a wide range of artefacts and environmental information together with the photographs and written descriptions of the excavations – should be homed in a local or national museum. This allows them to be given long term protection, to be made available in museums for local communities to see, and to be kept for future research.
However, there is frequently no legal requirement for museums or the local planning authority to accept the archaeological archives and the problem is made worse when the ownership of the material is left unresolved. The Federation of Archaeological Managers and Employers (FAME), which represents commercial archaeological units, believes that this is a fundamental flaw in the current process.
“In a major change to accepted practice, commercial archaeological organizations are now being expected to hold archaeological archives indefinitely by because too few museums or local authorities stores have space, curators or the inclination to accept them” says Tim Malim, Chair of FAME. “However, very few if any commercial archaeological units have developed the facilities for long term storage or display of such material as this has been the preserve of the museum.”
FAME undertook an extensive survey of the problem of long-term storage for archives in 2012 and identified 9000 ‘homeless’ archives where no local museum with space or expertise to accept the archives existed. FAME believes that without action by the national agencies and government departments responsible for heritage and museums within the constituent countries of the UK the current system for long-term preservation, display and research on archaeological material recovered by rescue excavations will collapse.
“Archaeological archives cannot be stored by the organizations that have excavated them once studies have been completed, because these organisations are not the legal owners and do not have facilities for long-term curation and display” says Tim Malim. “Unless matters can be resolved, we will have no option but to recommend to our members that when they have completed their excavations, analysis and publication, they return the excavated material and associated records to the developer as the legal owners of the material. We recognise that this may lead to the dispersal of archives and concerns for their survival but this is a task for registered museums or other suitably qualified and funded bodies. Our members cannot continue to take the commercial and professional risk of holding this material in the long-term and we believe that the national agencies responsible for heritage and museums must act with speed and decisiveness if this crisis is to be resolved.
Notes to Editors
- The Federation of Archaeological Managers and Employers (FAME) is a trade association which brings together and supports the commercial archaeological sector and represents its views to government and other key organisations. It provides a unique voice both within the heritage sector and more broadly to support and protect the interests of commercial archaeological organisations.
- Rescue archaeology takes place when archaeological remains are likely to be disturbed or destroyed by development and construction. Since 1993, under the land-use planning legislation developers may be required by the local planning authority to fund and allow time for rescue excavation in advance of development.
- A complicated and protracted process requires the Transfer of Title from the owner of the archaeological archive, and this process needs to be the responsibility of the planning authority, imposed directly on the developer as one of the conditions of planning permission. As part of this agreement a long-term home for the archive, with a local museum or other appropriate body should be identified by the local authority. However local museums are increasingly reluctant to accept this material, leaving commercial archaeological units with a long-term professional and commercial problem.
For further information please contact Tim Malim, Chair of the Federation of Archaeological Managers and Employers on 01743 850170 or email tmalim@slrconsulting.com.
