A PREHISTORIC skeleton, Old King Coal and the hidden past of the Chatsworth estate – all will feature in the annual Derbyshire Archaeology Day on Saturday, January 16.
The day-long event at the Pomegranate Theatre, Chesterfield, will include archaeologists and historians giving presentations for the public on their latest investigations across Derbyshire and beyond.
"Old King Coal," a talk by Jon Humble of Engli
sh Heritage, will cover the archaeological heritage of Derbyshire's coal mining industry. A skeleton thousands of years old will feature in "Fin Cop: solving a Derbyshire mystery" - about a community-led excavation of Fin Cop hillfort by the Longstone Local History Group and Archaeological Research Services.
John Barnatt, an archaeologist with the Peak District National Park Authority, will trace previously unknown features including burial mounds in "Chatsworth and beyond - the archaeology of a great estate."
Industrial heritage will be explored in "Biwater and the CXC - the archaeology of a pipe foundry" by Oliver Jessup, of Wessex Archaeology.
Ian Wall of the Creswell Heritage Trust will go all the way from the Ice Age to the 21st-century in his talk on the Trust's new museum building, displays and facilities.
Other speakers include Daryl Garton on the hidden past of the high peat moors, Richard O'Neill on the Cromford and High Peak Railway and Tim Allen on Heritage at Risk.
The Archaeology Day will also be marked with the launch of the latest edition of "Archaeology and Conservation in Derbyshire," an annual magazine featuring recent heritage initiatives in the county and Peak District.
Archaeology Day, from 9.15am-5.15pm, is organised by the Peak District National Park Authority, Chesterfield Borough Council and Derbyshire County Council.
Pre-booking is strongly recommended. Tickets are £10 (£6 for the unwaged) from Chesterfield Museum, St Mary's Gate, Chesterfield, Derbyshire S41 7TD or call 01246 345727.
