Artisans are helping a research project determine whether the eye sockets of some ancient carvings were filled with glass.

Fearn sculptor Barry Grove and Tain glass artist Brodie Nairn are working with the National Museum of Scotland and Aberlady Heritage in a project to see if empty eye sockets in historic carvings could have been filled with a form of glass eye. And Mr Grove is attempting to re-create a 14ft Pictish carved stone, working with a 2ft fragment of the original found at Aberlady, East Lothian.

He said: “From research it is thought the original was about 14ft high and there have been many discussions with academics to ensure it is as accurate as it can be.”

Once completed the piece will be on display at Aberlady.

Mr Nairn said it was an exciting project. He said: “We are applying the old traditional skills with new technologies to see how things were done in the past.

“Some of these skills have been lost in time.”

Alice Blackwell, a research officer from the National Museum of Scotland, who has been for three years working with the Glenmorangie Partnership which is exploring the area around Tain, said: “We are exploring the archaeology of the area from 300AD to 900AD, from the Romans to the Vikings.

“We find many pieces with drilled eye holes but haven’t ever found anything in them. It has been exciting experimenting with different colours and finishes of glass.”

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More details have been announced regarding the archaeological excavation about to begin at William Shakespeare’s New Place. [Related story]

The archaeological dig will take place at New Place, the house that Shakespeare owned for 19 years and occupied at the time of his death in 1616. The ‘Dig for Shakespeare’ will see a team of archaeologists from Birmingham Archaeology, along with a hardy crew of volunteers, excavate three locations within the grounds of New Place in a dig where visitors will be able to interact with the archaeological team. A special scaffolding walkway and viewing platform is being installed so that visitors can have a close view of the trenches and will be invited to talk to the archaeologists as they work.

Shakespeare’s house at New Place was built on three sides of an open courtyard on the corner of Chapel Street and Chapel Lane. The largest trench to be dug will stretch from the servants’ quarters in the Chapel Street wing – where the foundations of the later 1702 building will be uncovered – across the courtyard to the rear wing, which is where Shakespeare and his family would have worked and lived.

A further trench will explore the area thought to have been his pantry and brewery, and one quarter of the 19th Century knot garden will be dug – into what would have been Shakespeare’s backyards. This is where archaeologists believe they might find defunct wells, filled in with refuse and waste when they ceased to be used.

Archaeologists often find that old wells hold all kinds of secrets, with the anaerobic (waterlogged) conditions preserving organic waste and detritus. It is hoped that these will give the Trust a real insight into the lives of the property’s occupants

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A Buddhist-era site has been found in Pakistan’s Swat valley.

Initial excavations by an Italian archaeology mission at Kandak and Kota in the Barikot area have apparently revealed treasures that include prehistoric rock carvings, paintings of social and hunting scenes and pottery specimens “preserved in good condition,” according to the mission’s director. The Italians deserve kudos for continuing their work under the most trying circumstances during the past many years since Swat became the scene of utter lawlessness because of militancy in the area. Indeed, Italian archaeologists are no strangers to the valley where they have had a presence since the discovery of the riveting Butkara site in the late 1950s in the backyard of the administrative capital, Saidu Sharif.

No doubt, the many foreign archaeologists, particularly the Italians in Swat and the French in Mehrgarh, Balochistan, have played an important role in preserving Pakistan’s historical treasures. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the role of the national archaeology department as the custodian of these and other historical sites. For instance, we have not heard of the fate of the artifacts housed in the Swat Museum at Saidu and the Chakdara Museum on the road to Dir.

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A fourth gate has been found which leades to the tomb of China’s first emperor, Qin Shihuangdi.

The People’s Daily Online says the north gate is huge, some 93 metres (about 280 feet) tall by seven (21 ft) metres and was built in the north facing wall of the tomb’s outer city, and is more than 400 metres (about 1,200 feet) from the east and west walls.

A platform made of rammed earth has been found at both eastern and western sections of the northern wall, the western one being 4,4 metres long (13,5 ft). The gate itself, presumably made of wood, has collapsed and so far, the archaeologists have found only earth.

Until now, scholars were unsure whether the north gate really existed and the orientation of the tomb was not clear. The report speculated the first emperor’s tomb could run from south to north.

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The skeleton of a mongrel who went down with the Mary Rose on July 19, 1545 has been pieced together.

The dog, now preserved as an almost complete canine skeleton, acquired the nickname Hatch after divers discovered her remains near the sliding hatch door of the Mary Rose’s carpenter’s cabin.

Experts believe the hound, estimated to have been between 18 months and two years old, earned her keep as the ship’s ratter – superstitious Tudor seafarers did not have cats on board ship as they were thought to bring bad luck.

And she was probably very good at her job – only the partial remains of rats’ skeletons have been found on board the Mary Rose.

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