Following on from the success of last year's event, Perthshire Archaeology Week is being run once again. A collaboration between local and national organisations, it aims to offer the general public an insight into the world of archaeology.
     Beginning on Saturday 29 May and ending on Sunday 6 June, the week comprises of special events, open days, exhibitions, guided tours and walks, lectures and archaeological digs in which the public can participate. One of the digs is on a Roman road, under the supervision of the Roman Gask Project. Involvement is free, but must be booked in advance.
     Amongst the special events is the chance to make Iron Age clothing at the Crannog Centre on Loch Tay, or to experience underwater archaeology at nearby Kenmore. Exhibitions in Aberfeldy, Perth, Alyth and Crieff will look at underwater archaeology, the Ben Lawers Historic Landscape Project, the ancient archaeology of south-east Perthshire, as well as archaeological material from Prehistoric, Roman and Medieval times.
     Guided tours and walks will take in sites such as the hill forts of Dunsinnan and Barry Hill, cup marks at Moulin and Loch Tay, a boat tour around Loch Tay's crannogs,  the famous 5,000 year old axe factory at Killin, and a visit to the Cleaven Dyke, a Neolithic cursus dated to before 3600 BCE.
     Archaeologists will also be giving lectures on subjects including how archaeologists excavate a site, the interaction between the Romans and the indigenous population of Perthshire, and the Bronze Age log boat discovered in the River Tay.
     Many of the activities are free, but some need to be pre-booked to guarantee places. Details of the individual events can be found in the Perthshire Archaeology Week brochure, which is available from tourist information centres or libraries across Perthshire, or by looking at the website:

http://www.perthshire.co.uk/archaeologyweek

Source: Perth & Kinross Heritage Trust (22 May 2004)