Earlier this week skilled craftsmen came to Stanwick Lakes to complete part of our new Heritage Trail. Once it is finished the Trail will reveal to visitors the fascinating history of the Lakes; uncovered during a major archaeological excavation in the 1980s and 90s. The Trail has been created by the Rose of the Shires project, which is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund to help people explore, record and celebrate their local heritage.
Project Manager, Stuart Taylor, laying the one of the Heritage Stones with Luke Johns our Head Ranger
During the excavations, archaeological teams from Northamptonshire County Council and English Heritage were joined by people from local towns and villages. Together they uncovered treasures such as medieval keys (pictured) neolithic arrow heads and a bronze age skeleton. The Heritage Trail already has a special feature, theIron Age Roundhouse, which was constructed last year by the local community and it will now be joined by 6 carved marker stones.
Each stone marks the site of a former settlement (one of the excavation sites) and has 3 resin plaques inset showing artefacts dug up from there or scenes from that era. The marker stones have been carved by Stone Masonry students from Moulton College who donated their time to the project. On Monday the students came to Stanwick Lakes to complete their work and to insert the plaques into the stones. Neil Carter, the plaque sculptor, joined them to witness his sculptures become part of the Trail.
Students from Moulton College apply the finishing touches to the plaques
The Trail will be accompanied by a free leaflet which will be available in early April from the Visitor Centre and a children’s pack will be produced in time for the summer. For anyone wanting to try their hand at stone masonry, Moulton College offers a variety of full and part time courses, enabling its students to gain the required skills and attributes required to go into employment in the industry. To find out more, get in touch with Craig Murphy, Stone Masonry Curriculum Leader at Moulton college enquiries@moulton.ac.uk
– Liz
