Open Country

Original version

BBC Radio 4 FM

BBC Radio 4 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced BBC Home Service.

BBC Radio 4

Radio 4

Radio 4 (FM)

Factual: Science & Nature: Nature & Environment

Countryside magazine featuring the people and wildlife that shape the landscape of Britain

Countryside magazine featuring the people and wildlife that shape the landscape of the British Isles

BBC Radio 4 LW

Open Country: Unearthing the past at Vindolanda

Unearthing the past at Vindolanda

BBC Radio 4 - Open Country, Unearthing the past at Vindolanda

Archaeologist Rose Ferraby visits the Roman site of Vindolanda in Northumberland.

Rose Ferraby visits the Roman site of Vindolanda in Northumberland, to find out about the lives its residents led. She also hears how climate change is affecting archaeology.

At the major Roman site of Vindolanda, just south of Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, excavations have unearthed artefacts from nearly two thousand years ago. In this programme, archaeologist Rose Ferraby visits the site and asks what we can learn about the people who lived here and the kind of lives they led. She hears about the five thousand pairs of shoes which were left behind by the departing Romans, from marching boots to baby's bootees, with another 30-40,000 more pairs believed to still lie buried on the site - along with several tonnes of pottery, ceramics and animal bones.

At Vindolanda's sister site, Magna, archaeological work is being directly affected by climate change. The peat bog on which it sits is drying out, exposing ancient structures to the air. It’s a race against home to find out as much as possible and to preserve the past in the face of the changing climate.

Produced by Ruth Sanderson

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Open Country

Unearthing the past at Vindolanda

Genres

Brand

BBC Radio 4 FM

About BBC Radio 4