Acknowledgements

The project would not have been possible without the hard work and enthusiasm of all those listed above who contributed in some way: writing, reading, commenting and discussing. Although it is invidious to single out an individual, Rob Hosfield deserves particular mention for leaping to the project’s aid at the start of the first seminar when he was plucked from the audience to give a presentation on the Palaeolithic following the non-appearance of the then group convenor Nick Barton. Rob subsequently took over the group and has been a stalwart of the project ever since.

The two seminars were hosted by Bristol University and Blaise Castle House Museum and we are grateful to Mark Horton and his staff (particularly Alison Johnson) at the University and to Gail Boyle of Bristol City Museums for the venues and providing catering.

We are particularly thankful to Bronwen Russell of the Archaeological Investigations Project who provided information from their database of recent archaeological activities and to the staff of the National Monuments Record of English Heritage who provided data for many of the maps in Chapter 1.

The project has been made immeasurably easier by the presence in Taunton of the Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society’s comprehensive library and its Honorary Librarian, David Bromwich.

In addition to the facilities of the SANHS library, the collection of information to produce the radiocarbon date tables was facilitated by Lesley Freke (Wiltshire HER), Jan Grove (Somerset County Council), Tim Grubb (Gloucestershire HER) and Naomi Payne (Somerset and Dorset Finds Liaison Officer) who provided details or lent reports. Chris Gerrard kindly provided dates from the forthcoming Shapwick report. Derek Hamilton of English Heritage provided the error terms for the radiocarbon dates in Rodwell (2001), which are not quoted in the report.

Photographs were kindly supplied by Toby Catchpole and Jon Hoyle (Gloucestershire County Council), David Dawson, Charles Johns (Cornwall County Council), Tom Mayberry (Somerset County Council), Joshua Pollard (University of Bristol), and Andrew Pye and Gary Young (Exeter City Council). Talya Bagwell of Somerset County Council may be the only person other than the editor who has read the entire report and we are very grateful to her for her comments and proof-reading of earlier versions.