Lecture
Archaeology of Fishponds and Fishing in Oxfordshire
Speaker: Stephen Wass
Tue, 7 May 2024
About the lecture:
Fishponds have featured in the Oxfordshire landscape since Roman times and throughout the middle ages fulfilled a several different purposes as well as simply containing fish. However in the seventeenth century, at a number of key sites, fishponds featured as important elements in gardens that were considered to be the wonders and marvels of their age and that were connected to the rise of scientific thinking in Oxford.
As a freelance archaeologist with over thirty years of experience, Stephen’s primary research interests are in landscape archaeology as applied to historic gardens and parks with a special focus on water features. He is currently following up on a programme of doctoral research with the University of Oxford centred on the little-known Jacobean gardens of Hanwell Castle, Oxfordshire. He also undertakes a variety of commercial projects mainly for the National Trust including being the lead archaeologist on the current extensive programme of restoration at Stowe Landscape Gardens.