In 2023 SOAG joined MTAP. This page outlines what MTAP is and provides links to current MTAP activities that are of interest to SOAG and its members.
What is MTAP?
Established in 2018, the Middle Thames Archaeology Partnership seeks to enhance, protect and harness the archaeological heritage of the Middle Thames region through partnerships and collaborative research between the University of Reading and governmental, commercial and third sector organisations.
The reference website for MTAP is:
https://research.reading.ac.uk/middle-thames-archaeology/projects/
The Partnership’s core geographic focus is the prominent loop of the River Thames embracing the modern town of Maidenhead, nested within a wider canvas of riverine parishes extending from Goring Gap in the west to the river’s upper tidal reaches in the east. This micro-region offers a powerful lens for exploring how the River Thames has shaped human narratives and cultural trajectories in the past. But that potential remains largely untapped because it has not benefitted from the same level archaeological research and synthesis as adjacent stretches of the river.
The key aims of the project are threefold:
- To improve access to information on archaeological heritage within the partnership region as a basis for research, education, outreach and protection
- To utilise archaeological heritage to pursue research questions that are grounded in the specifics of the partnership region, but look beyond the local context
- To create opportunities for stakeholders to come together to co-design and co-deliver initiatives that maximise the public and academic benefit of archaeological heritage
Current activities of interest to SOAG members
Through SOAG’s membership of MTAP, SOAG members have priority access to the excavations and projects organised under the MTAP banner.
Cookham Church Paddock excavations
https://research.reading.ac.uk/middle-thames-archaeology/projects/cookham-excavations
Initiated in 2021, this University of Reading research project is excavating the site of an Anglo-Saxon monastery in the vicinity of Holy Trinity church in village of Cookham, Berkshire. Cookham forms one of a network of Anglo-Saxon monasteries established along the route of the River Thames and its tributaries.
This is a multi-year project represents its summer field school for undergraduate archaeology students at Reading University. Volunteers from local archaeological societies are also invited to participate and several SOAG volunteers have excavated there in the last five years. The summer school typically begins in late July.
Thames Riverine deposition project
This project is the subject of a PhD being undertaken by Miles Clifford at Reading University, beginning in 2023. It provides opportunites for volunteers to assist, mainly with desk-based research. The following document explains the opportunity and how to be involved. More about the project.
