At the beginning of the year the Archaeological Publications programme comprised 90 projected publications. Many of these were still in the early stages of preparation, but a substantial number had target manuscript delivery dates which were imminent. In the past, projected delivery dates have proved unreliable, making forecasting work-load and longer term planning and programming a difficult process. Improvements in the planning, management, and execution of archaeological projects over the past few years (MAP2) are now being reflected in the completion and delivery to Publications Branch of a larger number of high quality manuscripts on or around predicted delivery dates. Improved internal liaison has also meant that we are well informed about the progress projects are making towards completion. In March 1995 new production methods were devised and implemented in order to increase output of the EH Monograph series to 12 volumes a year.
Unfortunately a significant reduction in the publication budget allocation early in the financial year made it necessary to modify our work programme. It was clearly undesirable to delay publication of completed reports for which there was no publication funding in the short term and it was therefore necessary to consider alternative publication outlets for a number of monographs (supported by the Archaeology Commissions Programme).
Six volumes were published this year, 14 are scheduled for publication in 1996-97 and 1997-98, 28 are investigating other options or have been accepted into external series, 27 will follow into our programme after 1997-98, and 15 proposals are at too early a stage for decisions to be reached by the Publication Panel.
An extremely successful sale of monograph reports published before 1990 was part of an initiative to address the funding short fall, and will be followed by other initiatives aimed at increasing sales and generating increased revenue. Plans include a number of targeted sales promotions and the production of more general works and co-publication aimed at a wider target readership. It seems unlikely that there will be change in the current level of funding for our publication programme and we lack the resources to increase the number of academic publications above the present level of between 5 and 7 per year.
Despite all the operational changes the following publications were successfully produced: Balksbury camp, Hampshire, excavations 1973 and 1981 by G J Wainwright and S M Davies. These excavations contrast with the important Danebury hillfort site nearby and show a Late Neolithic/Beaker burial, an Iron Age plateau enclosure with a sequence of defences constructed and modified between the Late Bronze and early Iron Ages, and internal occupation from Early Iron Age to Late Roman date.
The highspot of the year was the publication of Stonehenge in its landscape, 20th century excavations by R M J Cleal, R Montague, and K E Walker (with a significant number of other contributors). This important publication was prepared and brought to press in a commendably short time by staff at Wessex Archaeology. It brings together and assesses for the first time all the available evidence from a sequence of excavations conducted on the site from 1901 to 1964. It is a reappraisal of previous interpretations of this evidence, and suggests a revised phasing of the site's development, supported by a new suite of radiocarbon determinations. The volume is over 600 pages long and with over 300 plans, drawings, and photographs, with effective use of colour to clarify the inter-relationships of features. A meeting of the Society of Antiquaries in October provided a memorable launch for the volume, and substantial sales have already been achieved.
Equally welcome is the publication of Ships of the Port of London: 12th-17th centuries by Peter Marsden with drawings by Caroline Cauldwell. This companion volume to Ships of the Port of London; 1st11th centuries also by Peter Marsden and Caroline Cauldwell. These reports document the evidence for the form, development, materials, and techniques used in ship construction in each period, derived from wrecks and ships timbers recovered in excavations in the Port of London. The innovative method of publishing this material, with measured drawings of the timber work and computer generated reconstruction's of vessels, provides a more detailed analysis of the material than has been possible in the past, with the intention that this will further advance ongoing international research into the development of shipping and ship construction.
Another milestone was the publication of 3 volumes resulting from the Assessment of Assessments project, a study of the implementation of procedures recommended in PPG-16 on planning and Local Government commissioned by EH from Southampton and Bournemouth Universities, as a basis for the development of future practice within the profession, and policy within EH. Planning for the past: vol 1. A review of archaeological assessment procedures in England 1982-91 by EH sets out the background and general conclusions arrived at as a result of the studies described in the 2 companion volumes.
Planning for the past: vol 2. An assessment of archaeological assessments, 1982-91 by T Darvil, S Burrow, and D Wildgust published by EH in association with Bournemouth University, reviews the approaches, sources, and methodologies used in desk based assessments and field evaluations carried out by archaeological contractors and curators over a 10 year period.
Planning for the past: vol 3. Decision-making and field methods in archaeological evaluation by T Champion, S Shennan, and Paul Cuming, published by EH in association with Southampton University, describes the development and current state of the process and methodology of evaluation and uses the systems operating in Berkshire and Hampshire as case studies to discover the reasons why sites are selected for evaluation, the correctness and consistency of such decisions and the quality of the ensuing work.
Other publications intended to present and develop EH policy in various areas include: Industrial Archaeology: a policy statement by EH; Conserving the inheritance of industry: English Heritage grants for industrial archaeology 1984-93; and Scheduled monuments: an English Heritage guide for owners and occupiers.
To inaugurate a campaign to raise awareness of the potential and heritage implications of coastline management and development. England's coastal heritage: a statement on the management of coastal archaeology was produced in partnership with the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments for England. This will be followed in 1996-97 by a more detailed survey report in the EH Archaeology monograph series.
The successful EH series published by Batsfords produced a further 7 titles this year, covering a range of general works and more detailed site studies, bringing the overall series total to 36. A further 20 volumes are in preparation but no other new titles are planned and the series is expected to be completed in c 1998-99. Books published this year are: Iron Age Britain by Barry Cunliffe which surveys the period from about 700 BC until the Roman conquest of AD 43, and looks particularly at the land and the people, the emergence of tribal entities, the role of chiefs and kings, and war and religion in Celtic society. Its period 'successor' Roman Britain by Martin Millet which takes up the story from AD 43, covering 4 centuries of Roman interaction with 'Natives', settlement patterns, the social and economic framework, the culture embodied in art, religion, and burial practice, and the decline of Roman rule. Books on specific sites provide opportunities to amplify the scene setting of the more general books, for example Roman London by Gustav Milne discusses Roman city life in the province providing new interpretations from the latest excavation evidence, providing descriptions and reconstruction drawings of the harbour, streets, buildings, and defences, while in Housesteads, James Crow provides a different perspective of Roman Britain, looking at the building and layout of the fort, everyday life in the garrison, the decline of Roman rule, and subsequent occupation in the area. In Lindsifarne by Deirdre O'Sullivan and Robert Young the scene shifts to a later period, when in AD 635, St Cuthbert founded his monastery on a small tidal island, still an evocative place of pilgrimage in the present day. This book brings together information abut all periods of the island's past, its human occupation, and its natural environment. In Dover Castle Jonathan Coad looks at the development of an extensive site which has provided a major strong point and played a significant role in the defence of the realm down to the present day. In Victorian Churches James Stevens Curl offers a fascinating glimpse into the social history of the Victorians as well as the developing architectural taste, liturgy, architecture of different denominations, and churches in their urban context.
