The Hare #13 [March 2026]
An Oxford event, the 'oldest northerner', ancient footprints and more…
Your monthly round-up of landscape discoveries, archaeological news, historical mysteries and folkloric curiosities, brought to you by Northern Earth magazine. Welcome to the March Hare! 🐇
News from Northern Earth
The Spring issue of Northern Earth (#183) is now with the printer and will be going out to subscribers (only £12 a year!) and shops in the next week or so. Inside we celebrate the 400th anniversary of John Aubrey, follow the footsteps of Merlin and the stone-throws of the Devil, run from the Baum Rabbit and go on a European pilgrimage (and much more) besides.
And an announcement: the first Northern Earth presents… event will take place on Friday 22 May in Oxford. We have four great speakers lined up, including archaeology/landscape YouTube supremo Paul Whitewick. Details are here – grab your tickets now!
One of the speakers is award-winning film-maker and novelist C.M. Taylor, a big supporter of Northern Earth. He has a new novel out, Floaters, set around the pollution of the River Thames and described by the Guardian recently as ‘a coming-of-age revenge caper’. 50% of the profits will go to the charity Surfers Against Sewage, and the special limited edition is exclusively available through our shop. They’re selling out fast, so do get one while you can.
And now on with the regulars…
Season’s gleanings: 19 recent news stories
(Other recent news can be found in the printed magazine.)
Anglo-Saxon children discovered buried with warrior gear in UK [Live Science]
Trepanned skull of giant Viking-era man found in mass grave [BBC News]
Ancient burial ground revealed during sewer construction [BBC News]
‘Oldest northerner’ cave remains are of young girl [BBC News]
Roman mosaic in Britain reveals a 2,000 year old Trojan War secret [ScienceDaily]
Mysterious origins of migrants who replaced Britain’s Stonehenge builders revealed [The Independent]
Cumbrian hill could hide Viking grave of Ivarr the Boneless [BBC News]
Demolition work to start at Marlborough Mound Neolithic monument [The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald].
Dog walkers discovered 2,000-year-old beach footprints [BBC News]
Extraordinary discovery at Ness of Brodgar: new 3D Scans could rewrite Neolithic history [Arkeonews]
T rex breath and Queen Elizabeth’s car: scientists creating ‘time machine for the nose’ [The Guardian]
Unusual 60,000-year-old engravings found on ostrich eggshells [Ancient Pages]
Stone Age boy in Sweden was buried in deerskin and a woodpecker headdress, archaeologists discover [Live Science]
History books need rewriting after archaeologists crack 40,000-year-old code [Daily Express]
The Old Irish Goat is a living link to Ireland’s Bronze Age [The Irish Times]
14,000-year-old ivory tools found in Alaska hint at how Clovis ancestors first arrived in the New World [Live Science in Archaeology]
Neanderthals mysteriously collected horned skulls in a cave, but why? [ScienceAlert]
Mysterious humming noise has been plaguing Welsh city for months [Wales Online]
And finally… ‘I’m a witch and I know the answers to the UK’s most grim murder’ [Daily Express]
Events on in March
March 4 Massaged to death by mermaids, with Elizabeth Hopkinson. Online talk from the Folklore Centre.
March 7 Tales in the Tiles: talk and Malvern tile workshop from the Folklore Centre, Wholefood Cafe, Todmorden.
March 8 Landscape Stories: Johnny Campbell + Right to Roam. The Holloway, Norwich.
March 12 Circular arguments? – developing new understandings of the Neolithic monument of Avebury. Council for British Archaeology, M Shed, Bristol.
March 13 Stones, portals and bogeymen, from Stone Club and Odditorium. Speakers include Andy Burnham of Megalithic.co.uk. Horatio’s Bar, Brighton Pier.
March 15 The memory of things: archaeology and storytelling workshop by the Folklore Centre. Wholefood Cafe, Todmorden.
March 17 Story, song and strange happenings. Justin Hopper and Sharron Kraus. Caper, Oxford.
March 18 The Melsonby Hoard, Professor Tom Moore. East Riding Archaeological Society. Wilberforce Building, University of Hull.
March 21 East Anglian Landscape Network moot, Dice & A Slice, Colchester.
March 24 Early findings from the National Folklore Survey for England. Online talk from the Folklore Society.
Selected exhibitions
Until mid March Exhibition of archaeological finds at Buckler’s Hard, Hampshire.
21 March until 16 May Scientific Rambles: The Wild Between. Collection of work by four artist-antiquarians inspired by archaeology, cartography and storytelling. Silk Museum, Park Lane, Macclesfield.
Until 19 April ‘Don’t Let’s Ask for the Moon...’: Nocturnes and Atkinson Grimshaw. Leeds Art Gallery.
Until 2027 Viking North, showcase of best collection of finds outside London. Yorkshire Museum, York.
Until 19 April ‘Don’t Let’s Ask for the Moon...’: Nocturnes and Atkinson Grimshaw. Leeds Art Gallery.
Until 10 May Un/Common People: Folk Culture in Wessex, Salisbury Museum.
Until 20 May A View of One’s Own: Landscapes by British Women Artists, 1760-1860. Courtauld, London.
Until 31 May Delaine Le Bas: Un-Fair-Ground. Solo exhibition exploring magic, folklore and witchcraft. The Whitworth, Manchester.
5 things to read, watch, listen to…
[Article] Folklorist Lizzie Bickerstaff reminds us of the need to get out there in the landscape.
[Article] Which humans first made tools or art – and how do we know? [New Scientist]
[Video] YouTuber Allotment Fox (who combs through Anglo-Saxon charters) has made a series of recent videos about newly discovered evidence for the reality of the ancient route the Harrow Way.
[Article] Why some people are more drawn to conspiracy theories than others [The Independent]
[Film] A Wanderer’s World is Kamil Trzebiatowski’s meditative, philosophical reflection on long-distance walking across Britain’s lonely moors.
Thanks to various readers for the tipoffs! Do reply to this newsletter or email Northern Earth if you have useful links to share. (If your suggestion hasn’t appeared yet, it may well next time!)