Archaeology Experience Weekends
WEAG on behalf of the Copped Hall Trust Archaeological Project (CHTAP) offers Archaeology Experience Weekends to absolute beginners who would like an opportunity to:
- Excavate on a ‘live’ site, where they can make an actual contribution to archaeological investigation, and handle real artifacts from that site.
- Learn about several geophysics techniques, including setting up the equipment, preparing the survey area, the surveying process and reviewing the results of the survey.
The weekends, which take place during the Festival of Archaeology run by the Council of British Archaeology, are held in July.
WEAG ran its 2025 Archaeology Experience Weekends at Copped Hall on three weekends in July and these were a great success. Information, photographs & images from these digs can be found on the Gallery page. Extensive geophysics & magnetometry experience was given to students and we also operated a large wet sieve as well as finds processing and finds cleaning.
Some reports of previous weekends can be found on the Informal Reports page.
WEAG will be running three Experience Weekends in 2026 on the following dates:
Saturday 11th & Sunday 12th July 2026
Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th July 2026
Saturday 8th & Sunday 9th August 2026
To express an interest in next year’s digs, please contact us at coppedhalldigs@outlook.com
When booking onto a weekend course, if you haven’t received communication from WEAG, please check your spam / junk folders or download from this page.
Please add coppedhalldigs@outlook.com to your safe senders email list.
Professional archaeologists & experienced volunteers will introduce you to excavating, stratigraphy, methods of archaeological investigation and to the geophysics processes, and you can expect to spend most of your time actually digging or surveying, assisted by supervisors who will help you as and when needed.
People of all ages (13 years and above) and backgrounds are welcome. To make the most of the weekend you need to be reasonably physically fit. If you are below the age of 16, you will need to be accompanied by a responsible adult who has also signed up for the weekend.
Starting time each day will be 9.30; finish at 5.00 pm. All tools will be supplied, including trowels. You will need to bring a sandwich lunch each day; tea, coffee and drinking water will be provided. Flushing toilets and wash basins are a 250 metre walk from the site. Wear suitable clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty, and strong footwear (preferably boots).
Accommodation is not available at Copped Hall, but details of nearby B&B / hotel / hostel / camping accommodation can be viewed here.
The site is just off the M25 motorway and easily accessible by car or bicycle. Though not directly on any public-transport route, the local bus 13/13A runs between Epping Underground Station & Waltham Cross Bus & Rail Stations. It runs Monday to Saturday (but not on Sundays) approximately once per hour. The nearest stop to Copped Hall is Waltham Abbey Crown Hill which is just down the hill from Copped Hall. See here for further details.
A local taxi firm operates a service from Epping Station on the London Underground’s Central Line.
Archaeology Experience Weekend – gift to friend
Are you looking for a different sort of gift for a friend or relative? Then why not treat them to an Archaeology Experience Weekend in July for only £75. Vouchers are now available.
To purchase them please contact our coppedhalldigs@outlook.com.
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