British Archaeological Awards for Coastal Heritage Project

The St Andrews School of History is delighted to hear that SCAPE (Scottish Coastal Archaeology and the Problem of Erosion) has won two of five awards at the biennial British Archaeological Awards 2014. The Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk Project won the category of Best Community Archaeology Project, and the ShoreUPDATE app was rewarded with the category of Best Innovation. The ShoreDig project at Wemyss Caves was also Highly Commended in the Best Presentation of Archaeology Category.

A sample of the SCAPE map of sites at risk.

SCAPE works towards researching and conserving the archaeology of the Scottish coast, with a special interest in areas threatened by coastal erosion. Its projects seek to take advantage of local knowledge and community involvement by providing members of the public with the means and opportunities to become involved in cataloguing sites of archaeological and conservational significance. The new ShoreUPDATE app allows anyone with a smart phone or other mobile device to access an interactive map of at-risk sites and to submit reports on their current condition, and even to suggest new sites for consideration.

The University of St Andrews has contributed funding towards the Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk Project, and Tom Dawson, a Research Fellow in the St Andrews School of History, manages the activities of SCAPE. Tom attended the British Archaeological Awards ceremony, hosted in the British Museum, to accept the awards on behalf of the SCAPE team.

More information on the awards, and how to get involved with the community projects, can be found on the Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk website.