Archaeology Awards

Archaeology Awards
Archaeologist of the Year 2011
Awarded for	Annual archaeological achievements: The Jeffrey May Award; Book of the Year; Research Project of the Year; Rescue Dig of the Year; and Archaeologist of the Year.
Country	United Kingdom
Presented by	Current Archaeology
First awarded	February 2009
Official website	archaeologyawards.org

The Archaeology Awards is an annual awards ceremony celebrating achievements in the field of archaeology.

The Archaeology Awards was founded by the British magazine Current Archaeology, with the first ceremony hosted by Francis Pryor, and attended by leading figures from the archaeology world, taking place in Cardiff, 2009. The ceremony itself was incorporated into the Archaeology Festival held at Cardiff University, with speakers including television broadcaster and historian, Bettany Hughes, who lectured on Helen of Troy. The awards were supported by English Heritage, and the Royal Archaeological Institute.

The first ever ceremony saw a generally positive reaction from the British archaeological community, including David Connelly of the British Archaeological Jobs Resource and Bryan Ward-Perkins of Oxford University. It was also reported in the press of many counties with nominated projects. As one article noted, 'Conesby moat... was shortlisted for a prestigious award with Current Archaeology... As part of their Archaeology Festival 2009 in Cardiff, the first-ever Current Archaeology Awards took place, with Conesby moat just one of five finalists in its category.'

The main prizes are awarded in the following five categories: The Jeffrey May Award (for best new article by a new writer for Current Archaeology or Current World Archaeology); Book of the Year; Research Project of the Year; Rescue Dig of the Year; and Archaeologist of the Year.

The Jeffrey May Award is named in honour of the late head of archaeology at the University of Nottingham and major contributor to Current Archaeology, 'who oversaw a decade's work at Dragonby in Lincolnshire'. His obituary in The Times notes that 'He followed the principle that the aim of archaeology was not to solve problems for one’s own satisfaction or to impress colleagues, but to provide accurate information about the past for the enlightenment of all.'

The 2010 ceremony, brought in conjunction with the Portable Antiquities Scheme, was hosted by Current World Archaeology columnist Brian Fagan of the University of California, with support from the Ermine Street Guard. 2010 also saw the scope broadened to incorporate awards from other major archaeological organisations, representing work from amateur to academic and professional endeavours. This included the Awards for the Presentation of Heritage Research, sponsored by English Heritage, Historic Scotland, Cadw, the Royal Archaeology Institute and government bodies from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Nominees for the 'Rescue Dig of the Year' included two Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) projects: 'This Wooden O: Discovering Shakespeare’s First Theatre' and 'Water-power in Medieval Greenwich'. The category was won by 'The Staffordshire Hoard'.