Renowned Bronze Age archaeological site Flag Fen in Cambridgeshire (England) will host a first-of-its-kind dig combining both 'crowd-funding' and 'crowd-sourcing'; for contributions starting at GBP 125, donors can get their hands dirty and dig for a day.
     For those who cannot visit in person, contributors of GBP 10 or more will gain access to a wealth of resources on the Digventures web site - including live streaming video from the dig, 'find of the day', as well as lectures and interviews with experts and 'super-star archaeologists'.
     Flag Fen was discovered in 1982 by archaeologist Francis Pryor, who uncovered part of an ancient 1600 metre long wooden causeway across the marshes. The site lies largely beneath the surface, preserved for 3,000 years by a layer of peat that preserves organic materials which at other Bronze Age sites will have long since been consumed. "It's the only place in Europe where you can see this kind of archaeology exposed," said Lisa Westcott Wilkins, managing director of Digventures.
     The aim is to fully explore the site before it dries out and is destroyed. The water that has kept Flag Fen preserved until now is seeping away, due in part to climate change but largely to active drainage and the growth of neighbouring Peterborough, which nearly reaches the borders of the site. So, the team at Digventures chose Flag Fen to try a new kind of archaeology. "This is for people who have always wanted to try it... [who] don't want to just turn up and look at stuff. The dig will take place between 23 July and 12 August.

Edited from BBC News (1 March 2012)