The Kent Archaeological Society was founded in 1857 to promote the study and publication of
archaeology
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
and
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
, especially that pertaining to the ancient county of
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. This includes the modern administrative county as well as areas now subsumed by south east
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and in the district of
Medway
Medway is a unitary authority district and conurbation in Kent, South East England. It had a population of 278,016 in 2019. The unitary authority was formed in 1998 when Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with the Borough of Gillingham to for ...
.
It carries out
archaeological survey
In archaeology, survey or field survey is a type of field research by which archaeologists (often landscape archaeologists) search for archaeological sites and collect information about the location, distribution and organization of past human c ...
s and
excavations
In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...
funded through membership subscriptions as well as being involved in the protection and recording of historic buildings and churches. In addition, it organises lectures, excursions and other education projects and can make grants or loans of equipment to archaeological projects. A library in the museum at
Maidstone
Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the c ...
is available for members' use and a field school, the Kent Archaeological Field School, is often run in the summer.
It publishes an annual journal, ''Archaeologia Cantiana'', and a quarterly newsletter. Through its Record Series, it publishes editions of
archival texts relating to the county, and it therefore functions as the
record society for Kent. It publishes other occasional volumes on specific topics.
Recent projects have included assisting in the excavation of the
Ringlemere barrow
The Ringlemere barrow is an archaeological site near Sandwich in the English county of Kent most famous as being the find site of the Ringlemere gold cup.
Because the metal detectorist reported finding the gold cup, professional archaeologists ...
and an edition and translation of the
Kent Hundred Rolls
The Kent Hundred Rolls are the documentary result of a 13th-century Crown inquiry or census into the rights of the English monarchy over land and property in the Hundreds (regional sub-divisions) of the county of Kent. The Rolls are preserved in t ...
. A number of local societies are affiliated to it and it has links with national and county archaeological organisations.
External links
*
Online resources published by the Society
Archaeological organizations
Organizations established in 1857
History of Kent
History organisations based in the United Kingdom
Organisations based in Kent
Text publication societies
1857 establishments in England
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