Program Overview

Session I: June 9-July 13

Session II: July 14-August 17

The excavations take place at a 13^th century Dominican friary in Trim, Co. Meath. The Blackfriary was the third religious house built in Trim in the 12^th - 13^th Centuries. During the 16^th century, the friary fell into disrepair following the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII. In the 18^th Century, the building was sold as a live quarry, servicing a building boom in the town. In its construction and destruction, the friary reflects the growth and decline, and modern development of the town of Trim. The Blackfriary Project is a community based research and teaching excavation, including mortuary excavations. The project includes an outreach and education program developed in conjunction with the Blackfriary Project Committee, the Town Council, and the Heritage Office in Meath County Council. 

Instructor Bio

Dr. Stephen Mandal (stephen.mandal@crds.ie) is director of the Irish Archaeology Field School. He is professional member of the Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland, the Institute of Geologists of Ireland, and the European Federation of Professional Geologists. In 2009 Stephen was elected to the Royal Irish Academy Committee for Archaeology and was subsequently elected as Vice Chairperson of the Committee.

Dr. Conor Brady is a lecturer in archaeology in Dundalk Institute of Technology and has been carrying out landscape based archaeological fieldwork in the Brú na Bóinne area for the last 15 years. He has expertise in the archaeology of the area has been acknowledged in his election as Chair of the Earlier Prehistoric Working Group. Conor is a member of the Royal Irish Academy Committee for Archaeology.

Ms. Finola O’Carroll (finola.ocarroll@crds.ie) is the site Director for the Irish Archaeology Field School and the Principle Investigator on behalf of the National Monument Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht. Finola is a full member of the Register of Professional Archaeologists and a full member of the Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland (board member since 2006; Chairperson 2009-2012); she has full archaeological excavation licence eligibility.

Professor Rachel Scott Rachel is Assistant Professor with the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Her areas of specialization are bioarchaeology, social identity (especially gender and religion), social construction of disease and disability, and European archaeology (especially early and late medieval Ireland), mortuary practices, and paleopathology.  She has undertaken field work in Ireland, France, and Iceland.

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Student Fees

Program Costs

All fees are payable to the Institute for Field Research. Eight semester credit units are provided through Connecticut College. Program fee includes registration, accommodations, program activities, meals on workdays, and health insurance.

Airfare, weekend meals, and optional excursions are additional.

Financial Aid

Please inquire about Financial Aid at your home institution. For details about the financial aid application process, please visit the Financial Aid section of this web site.

Budgeting

How much to budget depends on your travel, entertainment and souvenir choices. It is always best to overestimate your spending. We recommend that you budget accordingly to cover optional sightseeing, laundry, internet cafes, emergencies, etc.

Expenses NOT Covered:

-Airfare to/from the pre-designated meeting place for the field school.
-Food on weekends when away from the site.
-Miscellaneous expenses.
-Sightseeing outside formal field school excursions as outlined on the syllabus.

Accommodations

Students will reside at the Knightsbrook Hotel, a local accommodation in the town of Trim, a 30 min. daily walk from the excavation site. Staff members will be staying with the students for the duration of their stay, with responsibility to ensure that the accommodation maintains an adequate standard.

MEALS:

Breakfast and dinner will be provided at the accommodation site, and a packed lunch will be provided for.

Please let us know when you apply for this program if you have special dietary needs, as well as any medical or physical conditions. We will advise you accordingly. The project is used to catering for vegetarians, those with gluten intolerance etc.

EXCURSIONS:

A field trip will occur once every week for the five weeks to sites or archaeological importance such as the UNESCO Brú na Bóinne World Heritage site. Other field trips will include visits the regional Neolithic monuments and ecclesiastical sites.

The weekends are free for independent sightseeing and travel.

Travel Information

You are responsible for making your own travel arrangements. Please plan to arrive Trim by Sunday, June 9^th for those attending Session 1 and by Sunday, July 14^th for those attending Session 2

Dublin International Airport (DUB) is the nearest airport (40 minutes drive from Trim); for a list of airlines that fly into Dublin visit the Dublin Airport website by clicking here.  Students will be met at Dublin International Airport.  Since students will arrive on different flights at different times of the day, we will collect all students on the Sunday, first day of arrival at 3:00pm.  Students will be met at the designated Meeting Point, located adjacent to the Information Desk in the Arrivals Hall of Terminal 1 (Session 1 – June 9^th; Session 2 – July 14^th).

Students can make their way to Trim on their own and will be met at Trim Castle Hotel (www.trimcastlehotel.com) by Sunday at 6:00pm.  Please consult the syllabus for details how to travel between DUB and Trim. 

If you fail to make any of the designated meetings, please call or text Ms. Finola O’Carroll.  Students will get her phone number once they are enrolled in the class.

VISA REQUIREMENTS:

A valid US passport (valid until after completion of the trip) is required when traveling to Ireland. US citizens do not require a visa for tourist stays of up to 3 months. For further information, please visit the US State Department website by clicking here.

HEALTH ISSUES:

For specific information regarding travel health issues pertinent to Ireland, please read the Centers for Disease Control Website. Click here to be directed to the CDC website.

Student Testimonials

“I’m from Canada, I’m a student, my second year in anthropology is done. I want to specialise in archaeology, probably more bio-archaeology but I’m not sure yet, all that I know is that I really love archaeology and I found out while doing that field, which gave me a good idea what’s going on in the field, so I really, really like it. I kind of feel like home while doing that and I don’t want to leave.”

-Marye-Claude, Université de Montréal (2011)

“I would really like to return next year to see what’s different, we only have a week and a half left of Blackfriary, and even though I’ve learned a lot it doesn’t seem like I’ve learned that much at the same time; there’s so much to do, so much to learn in four weeks and its all gone by way to quickly. But I found that I really like osteo-archaeology, I found I really like finding bodies, discovering if it’s human or not, how old it night be or what bone it is. So it’s all very interesting and I’d love to come back next year.”

-Malika, Western Washington University (2011)

“The first time I went to Ireland to participate in the Irish Archaeological Field School was my first time travelling out of the country alone, as well as my first real excavation experience. I had no idea where I was or what to expect. The second time I went, I could barely contain my excitement because, in a sense, I was going home….both times, I have been amazed (but welcomed) how quickly the students bond with one another. All aspects of the excavation are taught, from excavation techniques to surveying techniques, recording techniques and onward. The practical knowledge that comes out of an excavation such as this, along with the memories that come alongside it, is a unique and beneficial experience I would recommend to any archaeology student or even any person merely interested in this field. Thanks to my IAFS experience, I have made friends from all over the world and from all across my native United States. It was for that reason, even, that I found myself in Australia this past semester on a study abroad experience, taking university classes with team members and friends from my first field school group."

-Emma, Hofstra University (2010)