The Shindig - An Archaeology Podcast Red River Archaeology Group

This weeks episode features James Eogan & James Hession. They spoke to us ahead of the book launch of the incredible "Places For The Living Place For The Dead - Archaeological discoveries on the N25 New Ross Bypass".
In this episode they discussed the archaeological significance of the new Ross Bypass for the N. 25, with a focus on the area's medieval history and the importance of minimizing the impact of infrastructure projects on archaeological sites. They also explored the findings from the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods in Ireland, as well as the archaeological evidence of Bronze Age burials. Lastly, they highlighted the discovery of a well-preserved late medieval farmstead and the potential insights it offers into the daily lives of ordinary people during this period.
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https://wordwellbooks.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=2107
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In this episode, Dr. Jane Kershaw and Prof. Rory Naismith discuss the origins, sources, and circulation of a revolutionary silver coin currency during the ‘long 8th century’ in early medieval northwestern Europe.
Jane and Rory are co-authors of a transformative new study, which can be read about in the Antiquity Open Access paper, ‘Byzantine plate and Frankish mines: the provenance of silver in north-west European coinage during the Long Eighth Century (c. 660–820)’ – Jane Kershaw, Stephen W. Merkel, Paolo D’Imporzano and Rory Naismith (2024).
Jane and Rory explore the remarkable provenance of this silver, its composition, and sources, including the initial use of recycled Byzantine metal from the Eastern Roman Empire and the subsequent dominance of Frankish mined silver. Speaking with Dr. Tom Horne and Luke Barry, Jane and Rory highlight the importance of their research in shedding light on this fascinating period of northwestern European history, with its huge characters like Charlemagne and Offa and its vital economic and exchange developments, and the potential of their new, minimally-destructive, analytical methodology for future study.
Read the Antiquity Open Access paper: ‘Byzantine plate and Frankish mines: the provenance of silver in north-west European coinage during the Long Eighth Century (c. 660–820)’ – Jane Kershaw, Stephen W. Merkel, Paolo D’Imporzano and Rory Naismith (2024) https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.33
Watch The Video version of the Shindig on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLt4Lz_ocPm7DQTJY8W9riTET_Zf66BWiV
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In this episode, our own Dr. Enda O Flaherty talks about heritage infrastructure preservation in Ireland, with a particular focus on the fascinating development of 'greenways', which can be defined as linear active-travel paths, parks, or areas of cultural interest that often incorporate historic (linear) infrastructure like defunct railway lines. We explore the challenges of balancing the needs of new and rejuvenated infrastructure with the heritage value of existing environments and delve into the impacts of infrastructure projects on rural Ireland and the potential of greenways to provide alternatives to car reliance. Importantly, Enda discusses the importance of the distinction of creating a culturally and historically resonant 'place' versus a mere 'space'.
Watch The Video version of the Shindig on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLt4Lz_ocPm7DQTJY8W9riTET_Zf66BWiV
Follow us on X:
Red River Archaeology: https://x.com/ArchaeologyRed
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In this episode, we talk to Dr. Rebecca Boyd about the fascinating topic of Viking-Age towns in Ireland, from how Vikings helped create the first urban settlements, to discovering the smells, sights and sounds of daily life within a home. For the big picture, we chat about Scandinavian-influenced urbanism across Viking-Age Ireland and Europe, but balance this with a focus on the microscopic patterns and cadences of life and work in Viking-Age town houses in towns like Dublin. The vital role of developer-led archaeology in the study of Viking-Age towns in Ireland is key to much of Rebecca's research and Rebecca's new book, Exploring Ireland's Viking-Age Towns: Houses and Homes, which is a brilliant exploration of towns and urban life and one we heartily recommend to all of our listeners!
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In this episode, Dr. Tom talks with Kenneth and Kirsty from the Caithness Broch Project, a pioneering scheme to build a ‘broch’ – massive Iron-Age drystone towers concentrated in Caithness, northern Scotland – for the first time in 2,000 years.
Brochs are the tallest prehistoric structures found in Britain or Ireland, with these ‘pinnacles of prehistoric Scottish architecture’ potentially reaching over 15m in height! Their use is not certain – community-centred domestic use seems most likely – but the monumental scale suggests they were built to impress and act as highly-visible centres of their farming communities.
The challenge of building a broch in the modern day is huge, but the Project has now selected the perfect site for the Big Broch Build and its mission to ensure heritage-based regeneration of Caithness, a region facing massive depopulation and job losses, can now continue apace!

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The Devil's Dollar: In this US Civil War episode, Dr. Ryan K. McNutt talks about the Union's attempted naval blockade of Confederate ports. More than this, however, Ryan discusses the dark secret at the heart of official British neutrality: Clyde-built 'blockade runners', fast and agile shallow-drafted paddle steamers that could evade Union patrols on their short dashes to and from the Caribbean, were key to the Confederate war economy, bringing in European arms and luxury goods to Southern ports in exchange for the slave-harvested cotton that kept the British economy growing. Shocking and fascinating in equal measure, Ryan talks about his research into the dark dealings of the Glasgow and Clyde shipbuilders and discusses the remarkable range of British, Irish and Continental industries kept afloat by the devil's dollar.
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