June 2009
30 June
The past week of recovery operations has allowed the retrieval of more than two dozen soldiers' remains. Over a period of almost two months, the meticulous work being undertaken by Doctor Louise Loe and her Oxford Archaeology team has exposed well over 50 sets of remains that will be reinterred with military honours from 30 January 2010. Remains continue to traverse the rigorous onsite archaeological and anthropological assessment.
','714','474') "Click to enlarge in new window") |
| Cigarette Holder |
Grave Two continues to reveal more sets of remains. Despite approximately a dozen sets being recovered this week, at least a similar amount must be recovered before this pit can be considered completely empty.
A variety of artefacts have been recovered this week, including those of a personal nature. Several pencils have been recovered, including indelible ones, particularly useful in the wet conditions on the Western Front.
Previously a crucifix was collected with a soldier. This week another crucifix and a medallion were discovered on an individual. The medallion, which depicts Saint Stanislaus (a Polish Patron Saint) on the front, has the word 'Roma' on the reverse. It is thought that it is likely to have been a souvenir from Rome. Also uncovered was a finely made cigarette holder made of wood, bone and silver. The individual with the cigarette holder also had an Australian belt buckle.
A particularly interesting badge was recovered from another individual. Initially it was thought to be a regimental badge, but it could not be traced in a catalogue of regimental badges and buttons. On closer inspection, it was recognised that the coat of arms was that of a local town, Estaires. It is thought that this badge is a souvenir badge, collected by soldiers billeting in the town.
The scope of work for next week includes mechanical excavation of Graves Three to Six, while the archaeological teams continue to work on Graves One and Two. It is anticipated that Grave Two will be completely excavated by early in July. Grave One has about two more weeks work before completion.
)
Estaires Badge |
)
Indelible Pencil |
)
Medallion & Crucifix |
)
Site in late June |
22 June
The sixth week of recovery operations was punctuated by the excavation of remains from the second layer of Graves One Two. Recovered remains can now be counted in the many dozens.
','858','570') "Click to enlarge in new window") |
| Stamped Toothbrush |
Grave One now has all remains in the uppermost layer exposed - with each set well preserved. Interestingly, Grave One has produced fabric, hair and leather remnants. A leather boot was found in association with one individual, another solider was found with a toothbrush and a sewing kit.
In Grave Two remains were removed from the second layer. It appears that there is not a third layer in this pit, as undisturbed clay has become visible in the central area of the grave that may be the pit's floor. Overall, remains in the lower layer seem to be in slightly better condition than those from the uppermost layer. This may be a result of wetter conditions. It is anticipated that excavation of Grave Two will be into its final phase late in the week. Plans are underway to commence mechanical excavation of Graves Three to Six from Monday 29th June.
Artefacts associated with seven individuals were cleaned, photographed, identified and conserved this week. All of these have yielded information indicating the force in which the individual may have served. In several cases, uniform adornments, such as belt hooks and vegetable ivory buttons (particular to certain uniforms) were recovered. Other finds included buckles and press studs from the pattern 1908 webbing equipment and, of particular interest were a toothbrush stamped with '51 S', an 'INF' Australian infantry badge and a small religious amulet (possibly gold plated).
In addition, cemetery construction continued with piling operations this week and Mr Lambis Englezos AM paid his respects at the graveside at Pheasant Wood.
){kind=icon}
Australian Rising Sun Badge |
)
Cemetery Cut and Fill |
)
Cemetery Piling |
)
Lambis at Recovery Site |
15 June
Over the last week, steady work recovered a substantial number of remains from Graves One and Two. Grave Eight was fully excavated; confirming that the pit was empty.
','374','446') "Click to enlarge in new window") |
| Australian Buckle |
There are significant differences between the state of remains found in each grave. In general, Grave One has better preservation. The differences are likely to be a consequence of the distance of each grave site from Pheasant Wood itself and the slope of the terrain in that area. That said, anthropological analysis is not being hampered by the level of preservation of remains or ground conditions and a great deal of information which may assist in the identification process has been collected.
The base of Grave Eight was reached at approximately 1.4m below modern ground level. No remains were found. The pit has now been refilled.
Artefacts continue to be found in association with the majority of remains. This week braces, buttons, buckles and hooks from uniforms and webbing were found. One Australian jacket buckle has been identified, while others from webbing are not particular to either British or Australian uniform.
Finds that were identified by GUARD last year (but left in the graves) have now been fully processed and documented. They include a Swastika amulet and bayonet scabbard that were found in Grave One. Interesting discoveries for the week include a small brass monkey, used by soldiers that were pipe smokers to push tobacco into their pipes, and a small vial of iodine that was intact.
Construction of the cemetery foundations are underway. Security and safety hoardings were erected outside the construction site early in the week. Decorative and informative artwork adorning the hoardings are now on display. These were created with the assistance of school children from both Camberwell Primary School in Melbourne and Stonyhurst St Marys Hall in the United Kingdom.
)
Australian Hordings Artwork |
)
Grave 8 - Confirmed Empty |
)
In the Pits |
)
Recovered Scabbards |
)
Working in the Pits |
 |
| Excavation - Working with spoil |
9 June
Aside from the intense work of continuing to remove the remains from Grave One and Grave Two, excavation work commenced to confirm that no remains existed in Graves Seven and Eight. Some metalwork was found in one of those pits, but no other finds of any significance were identified. The pit has now been refilled.
Oxford Archaeology has made significant progress into the recovery of the remains from the first two pits over the last week. Their systematic approach has resulted in a steady flow of sets of remains being brought to the surface. An Australian Army rising sun badge was the most significant artefact found in the period.
1 June
As was expected to be the case in a Northern European spring, heavy rain has been a feature of the fourth week of Oxford Archaeology's excavation operations. OA's inclement weather mitigation strategies proved commendable and as a consequence they remain on schedule. They are making methodical progress with teams working in the two westernmost burial pits, known as ‘Grave One' and ‘Grave Two'. The remaining six burial pits remain covered and will be uncovered in turn after all remains have been recovered from the first two pits.
Since commencing operations, the opened pits have been excavated by machine to just above the burials, using a careful and slow process involving the removal of soil in 20 cm ‘spits', with each spit scanned for unexploded ordnance and artifacts. Remains were revealed at approximately 1.20m (Grave One) and 1.30m (Grave Two). From this point, all excavation work continued by hand, with procedures in place to control the potential for contamination of DNA. These measures include wearing full personal protective equipment such as Tyvek (white) suits, masks, gloves and hair nets.
The final exposure and removal of remains is intricate work that involves very small archaeological tools and hand held metal detectors. As they are recovered, the soldiers' remains are X-rayed and taken through the on-site temporary mortuary for scientific analysis and cataloguing.
Numerous artifacts have been found in association with the remains. The majority of these are buckles, buttons, press studs and fragments of fabric from the 1908 pattern webbing equipment that both Australian and British soldiers wore at the Battle of Fromelles. Significant finds include:
- large shell fragments;
- a complete gas mask;
- a soldier who had a full set of webbing equipment, large fragments of jacket, socks and leather ends to trouser braces, has again be uncovered. He had previously been uncovered by GUARD during their May 2008 limited excavation;
- a British general service button associated with a set of remains in Grave Two;
- A Rising Sun badge adjacent to the clavicle of an individual in Grave Two.
- Australian jacket belt buckles.
It is anticipated that DNA pilot testing will commence in the coming week, subject to final contractual arrangements being agreed. It is hoped that this process will significantly assist in the identification of the soldiers and allow as many of them the dignity of a named headstone as possible.
May 2009
26 May
The archaeological excavation of Pheasant Wood is in its fourth week. Oxford Archaeology are making methodical progress in the two open burial pits; the remaining six pits will be uncovered in turn after remains have been recovered from the first two. Unfortunately, torrential rain hindered work for a few hours early in the week, but work has since caught up with the original schedule.
Skeletal remains have been found throughout both open pits and work to remove them has commenced. As they are recovered the soldiers remains will be X-rayed and then taken through the on-site temporary mortuary for scientific analysis and cataloguing. To date, artifacts found within the burial pits include a gas-mask, pins and buttons, fragments of an artillery shell and a full set of webbing.
It is anticipated that DNA operations will commence in the coming week, subject to final contractual arrangements being agreed. It is hoped that this process will significantly assist in the identification of the soldiers and allow as many of them the dignity of a named headstone as possible.