The Festival of British Archaeology, an annual nationwide event, takes place this year from Saturday 16 until Sunday 31 July.  The Archaeology Service are keen to build on the success of their events last summer and are running two further days for the public this year.  All events in The Festival aim to promote archaeology and are usually very well attended. To book your place or to find out more information, please see the contact details below via 'read more'.
 

Mere Castle and White Sheet Hill – Guided Walk

The first event is an exciting guided walk from Mere Castle, which is located just north of Castle Street in the village of Mere.  Mere lies at the extreme south western tip of Salisbury Plain, close to the borders of Somerset and Dorset.  The walk takes in the medieval castle and it’s adjacent Bronze Age round barrows as well as the prehistoric monuments of the down edge.  Surrounded by an incredibly beautiful landscape, the walk will continue across to the spectacular Neolithic Causewayed Camp of White Sheet Hill.

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With the eyes of the world’s media currently focussed on the momentous events unfolding in Egypt I thought it would be interesting to see how this country is represented in Wiltshire’s museum collections.

Museums across the county exist to preserve and display the history of Wiltshire and its people as seen through objects, images and documents.

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 We recently had an enquiry regarding the origins of the road Sally In The Wood, which can in fact be found just over the border in the parish of Bathford, Somerset. It forms a section of the A363 as it journeys through Home Wood towards Bathford.

The explanations of the road name are both varied and intriguing, and as they are also closely related to the parish of Monkton Farleigh in Wiltshire, I thought I’d share them with you.

 
OS 1st edition, 1887, Ref: 32/5
Warleigh Manor can be seen in the top left corner, with the road Sally in the Wood running through Home Wood immediately to the right of the Manor.

John Chandler in his book ‘The Reflection in the Pond’, gives us three versions of the tale. The first is of a supernatural nature, and was published by Kathleen Wiltshire in 1984. It tells the story of a young couple who knocked down a girl dressed in white when she ran from trees across the road in front of their car. Another version, this time by Maggie Dobson and Simone Brightstein relate that Sally was murdered in the woods or imprisoned in nearby Brown’s Folly, or that she was an actual road accident victim. Interestingly, the name of the small section of woodland immediately below Home Wood is called 'Dead Man Wood'. Katy Jordan in her book ‘The Haunted Landscape’ mentions that Sally in the Woods does have the reputation of being an eerie place, where ‘no birds sing’, so you never know...
To find out more about the other versions of the tale, please 'read more'.

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The World Cup in South Africa is almost upon us and I’m sure all you avid England supporters are already debating which players should be picked for the squad. As Wiltshire is not well known as a county that ‘sports’ England players; it may surprise you to know that we have produced a few over the years…

John Atyeo's England Shirt, c.1950s

Harold Fleming from Downton was born in 1887 and excelled at all kinds of sport, but was spotted playing football for his local church team by Swindon Football Club’s secretary/manager Sam Allen and invited for a trial. He played for Swindon Town, ‘drifting’ at inside right towards the forward line, balance and ball control being his main attributes.  In his time, Swindon Town were playing in an Edwardian version of today’s premier league. Harold played eleven times for England, but his official total was nine; quite impressive for his day. His best known achievement was in 1912 when he scored a hat-trick against Ireland. He remains the only full international England player to have played for Swindon Town.


George Marks' Baptism Entry, 1915

George Marks was born in Figheldean in 1915 and began his career at his local club, the Salisbury Corinthians, before joining Arsenal as an amateur (and later professional) in 1936. During World War II he served in the RAF but still managed to gain eight caps for England as their goalkeeper. After the war he was sold for £5,000 to Blackburn Rovers, a record fee for a keeper in those days.


Salisbury football match in Victoria Park, Salisbury, early 20th century
Ref: P7957

Peter John Walter Atyeo was born in 1932 in Standerwick, Somerset, moving to Dilton Marsh aged five. He played junior football for Wiltshire Schools and also for Westbury United FC, becoming semi professional at Bristol City FC in 1951 (where he has a stand named after him). He obtained offers from Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham, and AC Milan whilst at City; reputedly the Italians were willing to pay £50,000 for him. He played at inside right for England, his first match being against Spain in 1955 when England won 4-1. Whilst playing football Atyeo worked as a quantity surveyor and a trained mathematician, teaching at Kingsdown School, Warminster for 20 years. He also wrote for a Plymouth based newspaper, the Sunday Independent. To find out about our other England players, please 'read more'...

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