Post-excavation work is a vital component of all archaeological excavations and necessary to fulfill the archaeological planning conditions where these apply.

Post-excavation essentially deals with the ‘product’ of the fieldwork, or put another way, the archaeological archive. The archive may be a combination of artefacts such as pottery, glass, building materials, stone, coins, animal bones and environmental samples as well as the paper and other records comprising descriptive text, plans, sections and photographs of the excavated remains. Analysis of these in combination allows us to understand better the activities and culture of the people whose activities the archaeological remains represent. Information can be recovered on culture, diet, economy etc. and environmental evidence can tell us about past climatic conditions.

We work with various specialists to ensure the highest standard of artefact and material analysis. For example, Dr Eileen Murphy(QUB) (osteoarchaeology); Dr Peter Woodman (lithics); Dermot Moore (lithics); CM Dunne (ceramics); Dr Fred Hamond (industrial/post-medieval/buildings).