Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 3d

The curious case of the tombstone of Sextus Congenius Veras and it’s journey to a New Orleans yard

New Orleans couple discovers ancient Roman grave marker in their yard

Discovery of 1,900-year-old headstone dedicated to Roman sailor sets off effort to repatriate item to Italy

www.theguardian.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 4d

This from @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social on possible means of human extinctions past and future "If Slimak is right, then it may not be our consumption of fossil fuels that ultimately results in the demise of Homo sapiens; it will, rather, be our annihilation of meaning that annihilates us."

Humans outside time

Some reflections on Ludovic Slimak's 'The Last Neanderthal'

drfrancisyoung.substack.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 4d

Anas, we believe what is happening in Gaza is horrific and needs to stop. We give what we can afford to MSF to try to help as many people as we can. We hope the war ends soon and you can live in peace

Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 4d

“Embrace autumn! 20 reasons to be cheerful – from red wine to sensational star-gazing” featuring Worcester’s two day October light festival

Embrace autumn! 20 reasons to be cheerful – from red wine to sensational star-gazing

From light festivals and Bonfire Night to spectacular forest walks and mushroom foraging, there’s plenty to enjoy. Or if you’d rather stay in, sip mulled wine as you take in a fantastic season of TV

www.theguardian.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 5d

It used to be that reflecting on life choices ‘Nobody wishes they’d spent more time in the office’ was the go to. Maybe we should move on to ‘Nobody wishes they’d spent more time shouting at people online who they’ve never met’. Spawned from this excellent @theguardian.com article on enshitification

Way past its prime: how did Amazon get so rubbish?

Sick of scrolling through junk results, AI-generated ads and links to lookalike products? The author and activist behind the term ‘enshittification’ explains what’s gone wrong with the internet – and ...

www.theguardian.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 10d

If you're near Bishop's Castle in Shropshire this event in early October organised by the Middle Marches Community Land Trust in support of their White Grit Meadows appeal sounds wonderful

MARCHES ARTISTS FOR NATURE

araneoides.eocampaign1.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 14d

We believe what is happening in Gaza is horrific and Palestine needs to be free. We give to MSF to try to help as many people as we can.

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 16d

A12 month archaeological Manpower Services Commission contract did the same for me. Opened up opportunities for work and education I couldn’t otherwise have imagined. A cheap investment in me at 100 times the price.

Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 16d

A rare good news story. Proof that investing time and energy as well as money in young people can turn lives around. Your access to university should not be predicated on your ability to pay

‘It changed my view’: the letter campaign urging pupils in deprived areas to try university

Personalised notes from students who share similar backgrounds are designed to make higher education feel more accessible

www.theguardian.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 17d

“I would say that Malvern pudding is most worthy of rehabilitation” Worcestershire crème brûlée! A pudding worth saving - unlike some others 👇 from @timdowling.bsky.social

Steam, stodge – and so much suet: I made 10 endangered British puddings. Are any actually worth saving?

With many classic puddings on the verge of dying out, I set out to discover which should be back on the menu. It was a journey through some of the heaviest desserts in history

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Mel Roxby-Mackey

Jennifer Ouellette @jenlucpiquant.bsky.social · 18d

A Lively Medieval Tavern Cover of Green Day’s ‘Basket Case’ Played on Instruments From the Middle Ages laughingsquid.com/green-day-ba...

A Lively Medieval Tavern Cover of Green Day's 'Basket Case' Played on Instruments From the Middle Ages

Algal the Bard performed a lively Medieval tavern cover of the Green Day song "Basket Case" on instruments from the Middle Ages.

laughingsquid.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 18d

I very much enjoyed reading and reflecting on this recent free-to-read post from @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social on Upon a White Horse by @peteralanross.bsky.social For archaeologists context is everything and the book and the review provide many thought-provoking prompts. Looking forward to my copy.

Peter Ross @peteralanross.bsky.social · 18d

"Upon A White Horse is a moving, compelling, heart-achingly beautiful book." I'm grateful to Dr Francis Young for that kind remark, of course, but even more so for his deep and insightful engagement with the themes and ideas of my book.

Dr Francis Young @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social · 18d

Over on 'All Old Strange Things' I've written a new free-to-read post reflecting on @peteralanross.bsky.social's thought-provoking book 'Upon A White Horse': substack.com/home/post/p-...

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 18d

This kind of trauma speaks through the ages. 'Records of deadly 1934 pit explosion in Wrexham to be displayed near site'

Records of deadly 1934 pit explosion in Wrexham to be displayed near site

Documents include letters calling for recovery of bodies and a falsified safety log that was part of a cover-up

www.theguardian.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 19d

Something to lift our Sundays. Three Austrian nuns have broken out of their nursing home and returned to their convent. They have started an Instagram account @nonnen_goldenstein and are crowdfunding for supplies. Go sisters Regina (86), Rita (81) and Bernadette (88)!

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 19d

The skills in creating this piece from #Shropshire are all the more remarkable in light of its being just 3.6 x 4.7 cm! Thank you for sharing @drnwillburger.bsky.social

Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 19d

The 3,000-year-old gold Shropshire sun pendant was dicovered in 2018.
Crafted with incredible skill and decorated with intricate geometric patterns, it symbolizes the importance of the sun in Bronze Age society.
As scientific analysis has indicated, the pendant...🧵1/2

📷 me

#archaeology 🏺

A gold half-disc pendant decorated with intricate geometric patterns of triangles and lines, displayed upright against a dark background with a soft circular light in the distance.

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 19d

I’d missed this one. Thank you!

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 20d

““All this cannot come in so fast on a duck’s bottom,” Ancient seeds and their potential for pond restoration

‘It’s resurrection’: 1,000-year-old seeds could grow ancient plants in England’s ice-age ghost ponds

An expert team are resurrecting ice age ponds and finding rare species returning from a ‘perfect time capsule’

www.theguardian.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 21d

I've been reminded of the campaign that the Woodland Trust are running to rescue the ancient forests hidden in modern plantations in Cymru and England. Please consider helping to support their campaign to protect these precious resources www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/protecting-t...

Rescue our Forgotten Forests - Woodland Trust

www.woodlandtrust.org.uk

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Reposted by Mel Roxby-Mackey

Jo (unfunded hobbyist) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 @hagenilda.bsky.social · 22d

Fun fact; my Dad’s family are Lancashire Edges and therefore my surname likely derives from Alderley Edge. Mythic history indeed.

Surprised Eel Historian, PhD @greenleejw.bsky.social · 22d

This week I've been doing a fun map for the Invisible Worlds project that's connecting storytelling & placemaking in Alderley Edge in England:
invisibleworlds.ac.uk

The team wanted something that would reflect the Edge's mythic history. I like when academic projects get creative with their maps!

Art. Colored map showing the locations of Alderely Edge, done in a fantasy style. The map is drawn to look like an old map done on parchment, with torn edges curling up. Two bars with ribbons wrapped around them form a frame at the top and right sides of the map. The ribbon on top is blue, the one on the right is a dusty red. On the right side of the map, between the frame and the edge, the map is colored turquoise and does not show any land forms. Written in large vertical letters in this space is the maps' title: "The Edge".

The main part of the map is cut with forests and cliffs, and has 13 locations noted. Each location name is in a small frame that looks like a torn piece of parchment. Two roads cut across the map, one labeled Macclesfield Road and the other labeled Artists Lane. They meet in the bottom 3rd of the map by a location called "The Wizard Tearoom." An arrow at the top left points up one of the roads and has a label reading "to Alderely Edge (village). An arrow a the other end of the road, at the bottom of th emap, reads: "To Macclesfield."

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Reposted by Mel Roxby-Mackey

Claire Boardman @claireboardman.bsky.social · 22d

It's exciting to see these older design essays online for the first time. I wonder what ideas or lessons they have for us?

Places Journal @placesjournal.bsky.social · 22d

Left behind in the digital era is a rich store of essays on design that have limited cultural presence because they aren't online. In our ongoing series "Future Archive," we republish these texts, with new introductions.

Here's Nancy Levinson, on the simple yet radical ideas of James Marston Fitch:

Architects in Wonderland

Decades ago, James Marston Fitch argued that reuse of existing buildings should be prioritized over new construction. His thesis is more relevant than ever.

placesjournal.org

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 22d

This free online event in October from Dig Ventures looks like a wonderful opportunity for anyone with an interest in archaeology, gaming or technology in general 👇 digventures.com/product/reim...

Reimagining Archaeology: Play, Immersion, and Cultural Connection | DigVentures

digventures.com

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 23d

Congratulations @justrena.bsky.social

(Dr) Rena Maguire @justrena.bsky.social · 23d

Here it is.
The newborn book.

My thanks as always to #Trivent Publishing for a beautiful job.

trivent-publishing.eu/home/214-404...

Knock Iveagh: Memory and Materiality in a Community Landscape Cover eBook

Edited by Rena Maguire, Veronica Kelly, Arlene Pattison, Anne Harper Publication date: September, 2025 Pages: 159, 29 images ISBN 978-615-6696-92-2 Paperback, €31.00 ISBN 97...

trivent-publishing.eu

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 23d

So excited to receive a copy of the first Annual Review of the Offa’s Dyke Association. There is so much going on. Conservation work, conferences and research all feature!

Front cover of the Offa’s Dyke Association Annual Review

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 26d

Woo hoo @repaircafeworcs.bsky.social are on here! This post has reminded me we both need to take our teddies in. In my case, my ancient pal had his nose chewed off by my much-loved English Mastiff, Luggage - so more pet-related attempted ‘teddycide’ I’m sure they can help ❤️

Repair Cafe Worcester @repaircafeworcs.bsky.social · 27d

This is Mr Ted, he’s 59 years old and been rudely eaten by pet rats who used his insides as bedding. Mr Ted has come in for some r&r

#repair #teddy #worcester #repaircafe

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Mel Roxby-Mackey @archaeoborders.bsky.social · 28d

A big thank you to the Middle Marches Community Land Trust for the link to the call to contribute to the Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin Local Nature Recovery Strategy 👇

Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin Local Nature Recovery Strategy | Shropshire Council

next.shropshire.gov.uk

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