Monday 18th May 2026 -
Oscar Aldred - The Multiple Histories of Wandlebury Hillfort - an archaeological perspective.
Abstract:
Wandlebury lies just outside of Cambridge, on a chalk outcrop, and is considered to be a multivallate Iron Age hillfort - constructed in the middle Iron Age and enlarged in the late Iron Age. However, the locale of the hillfort was a focus of activity before it was constructed. Furthermore, the hillfort continued to have resonance for communities afterthe Iron Age. Challenging the single period focus of Wandlebury, in this talk I will offer some insights into new information derived from recent archaeological excavations at Wandlebury contextualised by its earlier research history, that bring a biographical perspective to Wandlebury's multiple histories from an archaeological perspective.
Bio:
'Oscar Aldred is a landscape archaeologist at the Cambridge Archaeological Unit, University of Cambridge, where he is a Project Manager. Oscar is also a member of the University of Cambridge's McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, and the Centre for Landscape Regeneration. His primary research interests are in archaeological method and theory, past and present landscapes, human-environment entanglements and mobility. And is co-director of the Wandlebury project, a 5-year research project and training excavation for 1st year undergraduates, investigating the multiple histories of Wandlebury.
Oscar Aldred - The Multiple Histories of Wandlebury Hillfort - an archaeological perspective.
Abstract:
Wandlebury lies just outside of Cambridge, on a chalk outcrop, and is considered to be a multivallate Iron Age hillfort - constructed in the middle Iron Age and enlarged in the late Iron Age. However, the locale of the hillfort was a focus of activity before it was constructed. Furthermore, the hillfort continued to have resonance for communities afterthe Iron Age. Challenging the single period focus of Wandlebury, in this talk I will offer some insights into new information derived from recent archaeological excavations at Wandlebury contextualised by its earlier research history, that bring a biographical perspective to Wandlebury's multiple histories from an archaeological perspective.
Bio:
'Oscar Aldred is a landscape archaeologist at the Cambridge Archaeological Unit, University of Cambridge, where he is a Project Manager. Oscar is also a member of the University of Cambridge's McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, and the Centre for Landscape Regeneration. His primary research interests are in archaeological method and theory, past and present landscapes, human-environment entanglements and mobility. And is co-director of the Wandlebury project, a 5-year research project and training excavation for 1st year undergraduates, investigating the multiple histories of Wandlebury.