Junior Archaeology Finds Lab at Pontefract Castle

Do you have a budding Lara Croft or Indiana Jones in the family? Take them along to Pontefract Castle for their Junior Archaeology Finds Lab event – trowels provided! Real archaeologists will be on hand to help you make some fabulous finds, and to reveal what and how artefacts teach us about the past.

The event is part of a much bigger programme of activities taking place at the castle over autumn. The DigVentures team are descending to try to discover more about a previously unknown structure that was unearthed at the castle in 2016.

DigVentures is a social business that specialises in crowdfunding archaeological research and heritage projects. They’re all about connecting the public with archaeology and inspiring young people to find out more about history. This event should do just that, as families will get an incredible insight into the lives of the people who once lived at Pontefract Castle and get hands on with real artefacts, many of which are thousands of years old.

Neil Redfern, Principal Inspector of Ancient Monuments at Historic England, said:

“Archaeology isn’t just for academics; it’s a wonderful way of bringing communities together through the discovery and celebration of the rich history of their local area.”

Booking is essential and we think it’s going to be popular, so if you’re interested don’t wait! You can sign up for the Junior Archaeology Lab half day, or a full day – whichever your prefer. The morning session runs from 10am – 12pm and provides a very hands-on introduction to archaeological finds. You’ll learn about all the different types of finds, what they can tell us, and how archaeologists preserve them so we can learn all they have to tell us.

In the afternoon session, which runs from 2pm – 4pm, you’ll get a broader introduction to archaeological finds. As well as the freshly-dug discoveries, they’ll also look at other ancient artefacts from Pontefract.

This fabulous event will give children a rare hands on education in what objects can teach us about the past. Maybe they’ll come away wanting to add a trowel to the Christmas list this year…

This is a free event, but booking is essential.
Recommended for ages 6-11 years.