News | Historic Jamestowne

brick church, low wall, statue, wooden building frame, and palisade covered in snow

February 2021

The combination of wind chill and precipitation the past month caused the crew to split their work between their excavations and their at-home projects. While several […]

March 1, 2021

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Dig Updates Dig Updates 2021

Conserving a Jack of Plate

In 2005, while excavating a soldier’s pit (Pit 8), archaeologists came upon a mass of these small iron plates. Called a jack of plate, this artifact […]

January 26, 2021

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Conservation Blog

James Fort site photographed from a river

January 2021

Though the holiday season may slow down our excavations for a short time, there are still plenty of projects to complete across the island! For the […]

January 14, 2021

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four archaeologists lifting a large cover over an excavation unit

December 2020

This holiday season we have a lot on our plates! The team is still hard at work at both the Ditch 8 and Seawall sites, and […]

December 16, 2020

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three archaeologists excavating in a large unit

November 2020

Autumn is rolling into Jamestown and the team is absolutely loving the milder temperatures! Since the Dead Shed site has been fully backfilled, everyone is now […]

November 23, 2020

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two archaeologists kneeling in a large unit covered with a wooden platform

October 2020

As summer draws to a close, so do our excavations at the Dead Shed, located behind the Nathalie P. & Alan Voorhees Archaearium. While exploring the […]

October 23, 2020

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three archaeologists excavating in front of a wooden structure

September 2020

The weather, aside from a major rainstorm last week, has been very pleasant lately here at Jamestown, allowing us to consistently dig on the island. We […]

September 15, 2020

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Pick being used to remove corrosion on a backplate

Back to the Backplate

In 2007, a substantial piece of armor was recovered from Structure 183, the Blacksmith Shop/Bakery. The artifact is a backplate, a piece worn with a breastplate […]

September 9, 2020

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Conservation Blog

One archaeologist screening artifacts and another excavating with a shovel in a churchyard

August 2020

July and August have been busy months for the Jamestown Rediscovery team. Since our last Dig Update, we have opened two new excavation areas—along the Seawall […]

August 14, 2020

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July 2020

On the 29th of last month, Historic Jamestowne opened to the public for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. We were thrilled to see […]

July 15, 2020

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The Knight’s Tombstone

The Knight’s Tombstone was discovered by APVA excavators in 1901 prior to the 1907 construction of the Memorial Church. Carved from Belgium limestone, the tombstone is […]

June 19, 2020

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Conservation Blog

Black and white photograph of excavators working along a road

June 2020

The Jamestown Rediscovery team recently returned to Jamestown Island, after spending the last several weeks working remotely. While we have not been able to excavate on […]

June 16, 2020

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Dig Updates Dig Updates 2020