Partner organizations (inside or outside Oxford): British Museum, University of East Anglia
Project Description:
This project aims to investigate the artefacts found in Britain between about 300 BC and 150 AD which have come to be known as ‘Celtic Art’. The project seeks to understand why Celtic Art objects were made in the first place, how they were used and why they often seem to have been intentionally deposited in rivers or under the ground. The first task has been to compile a comprehensive database (in Excel) of all Celtic Art ever found in Britain. The database includes not only excavated finds, but also those recently reported by metal detectorists to the Portable Antiquities Scheme. The database was constructed in such a way that each object occupies one 'row', whilst the information around that object is contained in multiple 'columns'. The information relating to each object is divided into three categories: the object description, including the form and use of an object and the materials from which it is made; the location, using a co-ordinate system compatible with GIS as well as categorising the site types according to type of environment (lake, hillfort, Roman fort/ camp etc); and sources/ references, giving information about previous publications relating to the objects.
Other projects the participants have been involved in:
