Reconnecting with the River: Two cases studies of engagement through artefacts
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2019-07-14

The Thames Discovery Programme is a community archaeology project that monitors and records the fast eroding archaeology of the Thames foreshore. Over the last two years, project funding from the City Bridge Trust and Tideway has enabled the TDP to expand the audiences of its work, focusing on Londoners over 75 and with schools and young people. This paper will focus on how finds handling sessions have been used with both of these new strands of the project. In particular it will focus on how events for older Londoners have used finds to encourage reminiscence, conversation and engagement with local heritage, inspiring both participants and staff new insights. It will also discuss the importance of tactile learning for children in their engagement with archaeology and the heritage of their city, alongside visits to archaeological sites along the Tidal Thames.

Helen Johnston and Joshua Frost (Thames Discovery Programme)