Rob Hedge

@robhedge.bsky.social

1511 Followers 506 Following

Archaeologist. PhD research at University of Leicester: peasant perspectives and medieval settlement in the Severn Valley. Freelance artefact analysis, education & illustration. Scribbles a lot. MCIfA 🏺 https://incurablearchaeologist.wordpress.com/

A man standing in front of a brick wall wearing navy cap and shorts, and a grey t-shirt with ‘Hello Kitty Cricket Club’ design
India supporters celebrate a Richa Ghosh boundary in the Hollies stand, Edgbaston
Photograph of two adults and two children standing in front of Edgbaston cricket stadium. The children wear purple foam fingers.
Medieval Settlement Research Group M.S.R.c. John Hurst Memorial Prize Open to all postgraduate students Present a 15-minute paper on any theme related to medieval landscape and settlement in the British Isles or Europe To be delivered at the MSRGWinter Seminar, December 5th 2026 in person or online The author of the winning paper recieves £200 and can submit a short article based on their paper for inclusion in our journal, Medieval Settlement Research. Image by Rob Hedge. Inspired by MS. Bodl. 264, fol. 109v Current postgraduate students (or those within 1 year of completion) of landscape archaeology, history, geography and other cognate subject areas, whose research relates to medieval rural landscapes and settlements, are warmly encouraged to apply Applicants should complete the regulations and application forms with an abstract (max 500 words), to be returned to the Hon. Secretary: secretarymsrg@gmail.com The closing date for abstracts is 30th June 2026. Up to four shortlisted speakers will be invited to present either in person or online on 5th December 2026. Finalists are eligible to apply for a bursary to offset travel expenses. Full details can be found at: https://medieval-settlement.com/grants-awards/dissertation-award/
Time-lapse video of a person colouring on sketches in a notebook, using watercolour pencils
Selfie of a man in purple running top and green cap on top of a large hill, with Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth in the background.
Photograph of two cricketers dressed in grass-stained whites standing side-by-side against the backdrop of a cricket pitch.
Photograph of a cricketer in whites playing a shot on the front foot, with the wicketkeeper standing up to the stumps. In the background is a fence topped with flowering hawthorn
A timelapse video showing a double page of a sketchbook with ink line sketches of images summarising conference papers, being coloured with watercolour pencil.
Photograph of a sketchbook page with a pencil and ink sketch of a ruined medieval building.
A windswept 3-legged dog on the beach watches the surf with a stick in her mouth
Photograph of a sunlit sea against dark cliffs
Photograph of a tired-looking man in purple sports kit standing next to a sign saying ‘Worcester Pitchcroft Parkrun PB Bell’, underneath which is a brass cowbell.
Screenshot detail of a Gen-AI image showing what appears to be a blanket flowing out of a pile of rocks, standing on two bird-like legs clad in teeny shoes.
Photograph of a sketchbook page showing an illustrated summary of sessions at the TAG DEVA conference 2018
Photograph of a 3-legged Irish terrier supervising work on an archaeological excavation.
Selfie of a man in a blue coat and glasses, crouching next to a scruffy dog, on a woodland path
Selfie of a man standing against a wooden wall and bookshelves, wearing a black T-shirt with the image of a Roman copper alloy statuette of a cockerel, with coloured enamel inlay on its wings and chest
Selfie of a bespectacled man in sports kit in a sports hall, next to a black banner that reads ‘Worcestershire Cricket Foundation #CricketForAll
Photograph of a wiry-haired Irish terrier in a faded red harness, watching runners come up the hill at Worcester Woods Parkrun
Photograph of a sketchbook page with a pen and graphite illustration adapted from a medieval manuscript, showing a crane on the right, alert, holding a rock aloft. Facing her are four sleeping cranes. Text reads: A crane keeps careful watch over her flock while the rest sleep. She holds a rock aloft: if she drifts off, the stone will fall and the sound will wake her. This is a common theme in medieval bestiaries, which celebrated cranes' vigilance and fortitude. Sketch based on Gerald of Wales' Topographia Hibernica , c1200, Salisbury. BLMS Harley 4751,f.39r
Video showing the author’s hands leafing through an 8-page zine made from cutting and folding an A4 sheet
Photograph of a sign on a bench saying “Teifi Marshes Nature Reserve Parkrun”, with the nature reserve in the background
Photograph of an elderly Irish Terrier lying in a dog bed.
Ink and graphite sketch of a dagger and arrowhead. Text reads: #ArchInk The early Bronze Age was a time of remarkable transformation in material and social lives. People and materials came together in new ways. I’m interested in how early observers interpreted these changes. The early-19th century excavators of these artefacts, Colt Hoare and Cunnington, were not afraid to draw parallels with continental Europe. “Some may think it derogates from the dignity of our country to allow a Gaulish (i.e. foreign) original; but, be the consequences what they will, whenever we are in search of truth, although we discover her in ruins and rubbish, we must acknowledge and revere her.” Richard Colt Hoare, 1812 *Colt Hoare and Cunnington were, by the standards of the day, pretty good at recording. But in a sheepish footnote in their discussion of barrows in the severely area of Wiltshire, Colt Hoare admits that he’s not sure which of the barrows this dagger came from! #5 flint One of four arrowheads within a burial in a bowl barrow: Which Show affinity with those from Armorica, NW France. FLINT ARROWHEAD, WIMBORNE ST GILES. 4: Bronze BRONZE DAGGER, SILK HILL MILSTON* 9: ivory The pommel is ivory from a marine mannal, possibly a walrus. It is very worn, suggesting it might have adorned other artefacts before this dagger The wooden handle was re-constructed based onCunnington's dig notes. * Or is it ? Colt Hoare and Cunnington - and their illustrator /surveyor Philip Crocker- were pretty good at recording their f, by the standards of the day. But in a sheepish footnote in their discussions of barrow-digging in the Everley area of Wiltshire, Colt Hoare admits the dagger was "in one of these, but I cannot specify which!'
#ArchInk Ink and graphite sketch of a grave. Accompanying text labels read: The Cockleshell Pilgrim In 1986-7, Excavations within Worcester Cathedral uncovered the body of a man wearing woollen clothing and leather boots, and artefacts suggesting an association with pilgrimage. Research by Katherine lack points to his identity: Robert Sutton, c15th Worcester dyer 6: horn Decayed remnants of a horn tip were found at the top of a 1.55m wooden staff buried next to the body. 8:stratigraphy The burial post-dates construction of the choir wall in 1374. The head and neck were missing: cut by a brick wall that truncated the west end of the grave. 3: residue Remnants of soft tissue, skin, spinal cord, ligaments and muscle were found on the spine and pelvis. 2: Shell Next to the Staff, and a bronze lace end, was a 5cm cockle shell, pierced at the top. Shells were a common Symbol of pilgrimage, but usually Scallop Shells associated with St James'Shrine at Santago de Compostela. The cockle is therefore odd - it may have been intended as a general SymboLof pilgrimage 7: textile He was buried wearing an undershirt and a fine cloak made from a type of woollen cloth called 'worsted' They were of good quality, but plain and undyed -Befitting a pilgrim. Sutton's 1454 will contained a wish to be buried “before the image of StJames in the cathedral.” The man was in his sixties, at least - but had been fit and active before arthritis set in. After anillustration by Helen Lubin, 1990
Ink and graphite sketch showing a woman in medieval dress, holding writing implements in each hand and an expression of intense focus, sat in front of a writing desk with an open manuscript. Text reads: # archink I: pigment Medieval writers and artists used a huge range of compounds & colours - you can find out more abort their techniques at fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/illuminated. The staple of the medieval manuscript was the deep purple-black of iron gall ink, made by mixing iron sulfate with tannic acid, usually sourced from fermented oak galls. MARIE DE FRANCE, LATE CI2th WRITER After a late c13th illustration of her from BnF Arsenal Library, MS 3142 fol 256
Panel from comic strip: 8 Image of Len Garrison as a young man, on a residential street, dressed in a suit and tie, opening the door of a blue Ford Anglia. Text reads LEN GARRISON, FOUNDER OF THE BLACK CULTURAL ARCHIVES, STUDIED FOR AN MA IN LOCAL HISTORY AT LEICESTER. HIS WORK - COLLECTING, WRITING AND SHARING STORIES OF BLACK BRITISH LIVES - WAS CRUCIAL IN EDUCATING THE NATION IN BLACK HISTORIES AND INSPIRING BLACK VOICES. THE CENTRE FOR REGIONAL AND LOCAL HISTORY OFFERS MA SCHOLARSHIPS IN HIS NAME. HISTORY AT LEICESTER TEACHES PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE AT ALL STAGES OF UfE. BECAUSE THE KEY TO OUR PRESENT LIES IN OUR PASTS. BY ROB HEDGE, UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER HISTORY PAD STUDENT
Panel from comic strip: 7 Top right: image of three young South Asian women, striking workers at the Imperial typewriter factory in 1974. The woman on the left holds a megaphone. Bottom left: three Sikh men at a Vaisakhi procession, 2006. Text reads: HISTORY AT LEICESTER REFLECTS THE CITY. TELLS STORIES THAT NEED TO BE HEARD. ASKS THE DIFFICULT QUESTIONS. WE ARE CITIZENS OF CHANGE. VAISAKHI, 2006 FROM A PHOTO BY COLIN HYDE STRIKING WORKERS AT THE IMPERIAL TYPEWRITER FACTORY, LEICESTER, 1974 HISTORY AT LEICESTER IS THE HOME OF THE EAST MIDLANDS ORAL HISTORY ARCHIVE, WHICH COLLECTS, PRESERVES AND STUDIES THE STORIES OF THOSE WHOSE VOICES DESERVE TO BE LISTENED TO.
Panel from comic strip: 6 Top left: Image of 'Shoes on the Danube Bank', a Holocaust memorial in Budapest Bottom right: image of KS Ranjitsinhji, posing in cricket whites and pads at the crease. Text reads: IN 1990, AUBREY NEWMAN ESTABLISHED THE STANLEY BURTON CENTRE -THE FIRST DEDICATED RESEARCH FACILITY IN BRITAIN FOR HOLOCAUST AND GENOCIDE STUDIES. SHOES ON THE DANUBE BANK, BUDAPEST HISTORY AT LEICESTER HAS ALWAYS MADE GLOBAL CONNECTIONS -FROM BUCKLERS EARLY CRITIQUE OF COMPANY COLONIALISM TO PRASHANT KIDAMBI'S WORK ON POLITICAL UNDERTONES OF ANGLO-INDIAN SPORTING RELATIONSHIPS. KS RANJITSINHTI
Panel from comic strip: 5 image of historian Joan Thirsk, in wartime uniform. Text reads: JOAN THIRSK'S WARTIME WORK AS A BLETCHLEY PARK INTELLIGENCE ANALYST INSPIRED HER INTEREST IN CAUSATION. AT LEICESTER IN THE 1950S AND 1960s, HER CLOSE ANALYSIS OF REGIONAL PATTERNS REVOLUTIONISED AGRICULTURAL HISTORY. HER METHODS INFLUENCEO GENERATIONS OF HISTORIANS OF EVERYDAY LIFE, INCLUDING LEICESTER'S CHRIS DYER & RICHARD JONES. HER FOCUS ON THE UNWRITTEN LIVES OF ORDINARY WOMEN WAS TRAILBLAZING, AND IS CARRIED FORWARD BY TODAY'S LEICESTER SCHOLARS LIKE ANGELA MUIR & ELIZABETH HURREN
Panel from comic strip: 4 Image of WG Hoskins, in front of a rural landscape, holding papers, dressed in a jacket and tie. Text reads: WG. HOSKINS CAME TO LEICESTER IN 1931. A CHAMPION OF THE ORDINARY AND OVERLOOKED, HE FOUNDED THE COUNTRY'S FIRST DEPARTMENT OF LOCAL HISTORY HERE IN 1947. A PIONEERING LANDSCAPE HISTORIAN, HOSKINS' 1954 BOOK 'THE MAKING OF THE ENGLISH LANOSCAPE' WAS A KEYSTONE OF THE DISCIPLINE AND CONTINUES TO INSPIRE.
Panel from comic strip: 3 Image of historian Rosalind Hill in her later years, wearing a green cardigan. Text reads: LEICESTER'S REPUTATION GREW IN THE 1930s, ATTRACTING BRIGHT YOUNG SCHOLARS. AMONG THE FIRST WOMEN TO TEACH HISTORY WAS ROSALIND HILL, WHO HAD A PROFOUND EFFECT ON HER STUDENTS: "SHE WAS VERY YOUNG AND NERVOUS... YET SHE MANAGEO TO BRING THE MEDIEVAL WORLD ALIVE. SHE KNEW THE PROBLEMS IT WAS VITAL FOR A YOUNG HISTORIAN TO KNOW ABOUT " JOHN H PLUMB
Panel from comic strip: 2 Image of historian FW Buckler in academic dress FW BUCKLER WAS LEICESTER'S FIRST HISTORIAN. HE WAS ONE OF THE UNIVERSITY'S FIRST TWO PERMANENT LECTURERS IN 1922. BORNIN GROBY... "A SCHOLAR OUT Of HIS TIME" -T.R. TRAUTMANN ... MADE IN CHENNAI. BUCKLER WAS A BOLD, RADICAL CHOICE HE HAO TAUGHT IN INDIA... ...AND IN 1922, HE SHOCKED THE ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY WITH A LECTURE - 'THE POLITICAL THEORY Of THE INDIAN MUTINY'- EMPHASISING INDIAN PERSPECTIVES, WITH A SHARP CRITIQUE OF THE EAST INDIA COMPANY.
Panel from comic strip: 1 Image of the appearance of 'University College Leicester' in the 1920s Text reads: THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER WAS FOUNDED IN 1921. INITIALLY A COLLEGE OF THE UNIVERSIM OF LONDON, IT WAS INTENDED TO BE A LIVING MEMORIAL TO THOSE THE CITY LOST IN THE GREAT WAR. FOR OVER A CENTURY, LECESTER'S HISTORIANS HAVE HONOURED THAT LEGACY, RESEARCHING THE EVENTS, PEOPLE AND FORCES THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD, COMMITTED TO THE UNIVERSIM 'S MOTTO: UT VITAM HABEANT "SO THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE"
An 8-panel comic illustrating the history of teaching and research in History at the University of Leicester since the university's foundation in 1921
Photograph of a tattered Puffin paperback edition of Brian Patten’s ‘thawing frozen frogs’.
Phone video of three glossy ibis feeding in the shallow margins of the lake at NT Croome, S Worcestershire.
Photograph showing back of head of small child standing on a path at bottom right. In centre left of image are two glossy ibis feeding in the shallow margins of a lake. One is just taking off.
Photograph of a cast of the skull of Ninjemys oweni, a giant horned turtle that would have weighed circa 200kg. One of many impressively oddball megafauna species that roamed Pleistocene Australia. And yes, it is named after the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Two small girls in Worcestershire cricket shirts. One holds aloft a home-made sign reading ‘Go Rapids’.
Photograph of a honey-coloured flint artefact, a blade about 22mm long with the two long edges retouched to form a point. It is balanced on the photographers index finger. In the background are a set of calipers and an open notebook.
Two men in running kit on top of a hill. They are dry. They look happy.
Photograph of a sweaty man in running kit standing in front of a sign reading ‘Parkrun Fountains Abbey’. In the background is the ruins of Fountains Abbey, a medieval Cistercian monastery.
Photograph of a tired-looking man trundling towards middle age, wearing sweaty running kit, standing next to a horse racetrack fence ringing a bell. A sign says ‘Worcester Pitchcroft Parkrun PB Bell’.
Photograph of a small child sat at a dining table, enthusiastically adding purple to the picture from the previous post.
Photograph of an A3 sketchbook page with a rough ‘mood’ sketch in oil pastels, showing an archaeological excavation of one of several undulations in a pasture field. A single archaeologist fills orange buckets. In the background, the land rises to a range of hills.
Selfie of a red-faced, sweating bespectacled man in a running vest, standing in front of the dead tree that is a landmark at Worcester Pitchcroft Parkrun
Photograph of Mesolithic lanceolate point held in a hand: it is a point in light grey flint, 25mm x 7mm, with ‘nibbling’ retouch along both edges to form the point.
Screen shot of email. Text reads: Morning Rob, Attached is the finalised [site name redacted] report, which you dated some Iron Age scored ware for us, we had some C14 back from the same fill/feature and you were pretty bang on and [name redacted] thought you may like to see the final report.
Photograph of a sketchbook page showing a pen and ink sketch adapted from a medieval illustration of a crane holding a rock whilst watching over her sleeping flock. If she drifted off, the rock would fall and the sound jolt her back to wakefulness. Cranes were thus celebrated in the medieval imagination for their vigilance and loyalty.
Photograph of cricketer Isaac Mohammed in black and blue Worcestershire Rapids kit, in mid-shot as the ball leaves the bat
A brown-coated Irish Terrier with greying eyes and muzzle reclines in a dog bed in the corner of a wooden garden office, front paw resting on a chew. In the foreground, placed on a patterned rug, is an electric fan.
Photograph of Sir Jimmy Anderson, cricketer wearing a red top, standing at the edge of the New Road pitch signing autographs for adoring public. Worcester cathedral in the background.
Selfie of a sweaty, bespectacled man in running kit standing in a park with the University of Leicester’s Attenborough Tower in the background.
Photograph of the cover of a book: The Cuckoo’s Lea, by Michael J Warren. The cover has an illustration of a cuckoo against a rural backdrop.
Photograph of a line from a medieval manuscript. It reads ‘De Henrico Imaginatore — 6d’ in brown ink on parchment. and is struck through with a horizontal pen stroke.
Poster shows cartoon of a group of medieval characters clustered around a Macbook. Background image of an English rural landscape. Text reads: Medieval Settlement Research Group John Hurst Memorial Prize Open to all current and recent postgraduate students Present a 15-minute paper on any theme related to medieval landscape and settlement in the British Isles or Europe To be delivered at the MSRG Winter Seminar, December 6th 2025 at the University of Leicester or online The author of the winning paper receives £200 and can submit a short article based on their paper for inclusion in our journal, Medieval Settlement Research. Current postgraduate students (or those within 1 year of completion) of landscape archaeology, history, geography and other cognate subject areas, whose research relates to medieval rural landscapes and settlements, are warmly encouraged to apply. Applicants should complete the regulations and application forms with an abstract (max 500 words), to be returned to the Hon. Secretary: secretarymsrg@gmail.com The closing date for abstracts is 30th June 2025. Up to four shortlisted speakers will be invited to present either in person or online on 6th December 2025. Finalists are eligible to apply for a bursary to offset travel expenses. Full details can be found at: https://medieval-settlement.com/grants-awards/dissertation-award/
Scan of an ink and graphite sketch of the porch at Castle Acre Priory.
Photograph of a sketchbook with a pen and graphite sketch, in progress, of the porch at Castle Acre Priory, and the ruined priory either side. Held up against the subject.