The grid goes down. The Wi-Fi dies. Somewhere in a field, an experimental archaeologist calmly lights a fire with horse dung and flint.

Trenchsmart A smart archaeological trenching tool that uses Bayesian probability to optimize archaeological testing. App components. Total project cost using LLM to generate code and Developer to stitch together €3000-€4000.

Imagine being by the side of Duke William

A bakery near me needs to make this

Classic

Our worldview is shaped by how we compare what we know to recorded history. But history has unknown unknowns we don’t even realize exist, making our worldview provisional.

Agatha Christie was married to Max Mallowan for 46 years. She once said, "An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have. The older she gets, the more interested he is in her."

Why was this Irish house abandoned? Modernity trumps tradition, city jobs outshine rural life. Kids left this generational farm for cities—maybe the US or Australia. Parents gone, no one stayed to tend it. A grand two-storey stone house, abandoned but ripe for restoration, if anyone cared.

Achill, Co. Mayo, Ireland, overlooking Purteen Harbour and the Atlantic.

My son won’t acknowledge the relationships between Indo-European languages. I feel like I’ve failed as a parent😞

Ireland faces a seemingly unsolvable housing crisis, yet thousands of abandoned homes sit empty. Peering inside feels like glimpsing another world.

How your email reaches me. I said I’d write the report, but I didn’t say when I’d finish it.

New drone arrived DJI Mini 4 Pro🤩. It feels like Christmas. Every boy should have their own drone.

The universal belief in the supernatural has been a defining aspect of all human cultures and societies. Like language and tools it is one of the defining characteristics of humanity.

Ireland has so many abandoned churches, falling into decay and ruin. This is St. Schiria’s Church, Crossakeel, Co. Meath, built with a loan of £466 given by the Board of First Fruits in 1822.

Ireland stands apart with its abundance of abandoned and ruined churches, a poignant testament to a complex history.

Pretty sure I’ve got age dysphoria—I don’t identify with my birth-assigned age. So I’m coming out as 25.

I can’t believe Winston Churchill didn’t wear a suit while he was fighting WWII.

Who doesn’t love mills? This is the corn mill at Foulkesmill, on the River Corach, Co Wexford. Built in 1851 it still has its water wheel and mill race.

Forget freaking out over AI outsmarting us—let’s just dumb it down. Swap the training data for astrology charts, TikTok dances, and Love Island. Problem solved.

One of the things I love about Ireland is the early spring when clumps of Narcissi suddenly burst into flower along the hedgerows and roadside.

If ChatGPT as the the Oracle of Delphi.

Grallagh Castle, Co. Tipperary. This imposing 15th-16th century tower house near Horse and Jockey was held by the Butler family.

Drone view of the great five-storey tower house of the Laffans and their two-storey slate-roofed house at Graystown, Co. Tipperary.

I got some drone footage of this early medieval Ringfort nr Oldcastle, Co. Meath, last week. The interior was used for agriculture & there’s a collapsed souterrain. This would have housed a well off farming family with perhaps a few slaves. 🏺

The Children of Lir sculpture by Richie Clarke at Lough Derravaragh is truly magnificent under today's spring sunshine. Imagine if some of the trees felled by Storm Eowyn were transformed into art like this. #ArtFromNature #IrishMythology #LoughDerravaragh

Off to the Royal County today to assess potential archaeology. Must bring some treats in case I meet any donkeys 😂

The way things are going recently I’m not liking those odds.

I’m wondering what would be a good substitute for ‘cultural heritage’ that would pass the censors in the US?

People will need AI to replace all these key words in their grant applications and translate them to MAGA-speak.

This list is complete bonkers.

Ever wonder how people made change before precise coin minting? They literally cut up coins! The UK Portable Antiquities Scheme has records of 8,700 cut halfpennies & 2,500 cut farthings. This wasn't vandalism; it was how you made do when exact change didn’t exist. finds.org.uk/medievalcoin...

After the prolonged power outage comes the archaeological investigation of the freezer drawers. Layer by layer the partly thawed contents have to be assessed to work out if they can be salvaged. The ice cream has to go but what about the broccoli?

If they remove the chimneys how will Santa Claus get into the house to put the presents under the Christmas Tree 🤷🏻

This is the new reality of the Irish all electric home, sitting in the cold trying to make tea with an old camping stove.

After helping my son add poor grammar & punctuation to his school essay to pass the AI detector (bad writing comes naturally to me it seems), I tried the detector on my pre-AI publications. I was so embarrassed, they all score 100% human. I had no idea they were so badly written.

Our power is out in Kildare, but every hour, just before the hour, it switches on for a few seconds and cuts out again. What’s going on?

I’d be playing this record now if there wasn’t a power cut. RIP Marianne Faithfull.

I met this proud Mom and her young lamb in Co. Offaly this afternoon.

Can anyone help a friend of mine out, trying to get Post Medieval Archaeology Journal article, Vol 19, 'The excavation of a brick-lined shaft and its contents at Oxburgh Hall, Norfolk' by Edwin J Rose and Sarah Jennings, pp 35 - 47 ? would be incredibly grateful for a PDF, if poss

The brooding silhouette of Clonony Castle, Co. Offaly, stands against the steel-grey January sky. This 16th-century, three-storey tower house was a stronghold of the MacCoughlan family, who wielded significant influence in West Offaly throughout the 16th century. #IrishHistory #OffalyHeritage 🏺

I met these lads when I was doing fieldwork in Clonboley Bog, Co. Roscommon this week.

I'm not sure what has the bigger impact on my health as a parent: the fact that my children bring home every virus currently in circulation, or their veto power over including vegetables in any meal.

I think I better postpone fieldwork tomorrow 😂🏺

Dumpster diving in Greece results in a rare find. A Hellenistic-era statue was found inside a garbage bag near a trash container in Thessaloniki. 🏺

Did you know? The first solar array was developed and installed by Charles Fritts on a New York City rooftop back in 1884. Before the invention of the gasoline powered car.

Wow, these are the sunken submarines recorded in Ireland’s Designated Maritime Boundary by the National Monuments Service Wreck Viewer. How did all get there? 🏺

I’m out on Attymon Bog, Co. Galway on this bright January afternoon. Spring feels close at hand.

The suffering of Patrick Kennedy. Silo does Caravaggio.

What working in January feels like.