Department of the Environment: Directorate of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings:...

AT 12

1961-1976

This series consists of reports produced by the Ancient Monuments Laboratory.

The reports comprise investigations undertaken at archaeological sites and analyses of material obtained from them. They are made up of manuscript and typewritten papers together with, where necessary, photographs, drawings and plans.

Early reports were not numbered but in 1976 a numerical series was introduced, new reports being numbered from 2000 onwards and existing ones being allocated numbers from 1999 backwards. This series contains reports of the earlier period but has been listed in normal numerical order (i.e. 1493-1999).

Reports from 1976 (numbered from 2000 onwards) are in AT 15

For reports of the laboratory after it transferred to English Heritage, see FM 1

Public Record(s)

English

• Department of the Environment, Directorate of Ancient Monuments and Special Services, Ancient Monuments Laboratory, 1972-1984
• Ministry of Public Building and Works, Ancient Monuments Laboratory, 1962-1970

15 files and volumes

Subject to 10 year closure

The Ancient Monuments Laboratory was founded in 1950. It operated on a very small scale until 1966, when J W G Musty as first Chief Laboratory Officer began steadily to extend the Laboratory's scope to include most aspects of science applied to archaeology.

The modern function of the Laboratory was to provide scientific support for the rescue archaeology and guardianship activities of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission (English Heritage), which prior to April 1984 were carried out by the Directorate of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings of the Department of the Environment. It was the only institution in Great Britain which deals with the whole breadth of archaeological science on a service basis.