There’s not a lot of space to build in a densely populated country like the Netherlands. To get round this, construction is increasingly taking place underground. Motorways, railway lines, gas pipes, high-voltage cables, car parks, shops and offices all can neatly disappear under street level. Lots of room. But what if the construction work reveals a rare Roman settlement?
There are all sorts of rules about what has to happen if there is an archaeological discovery during construction work above ground. However, if the work is being done underground, archaeology has to give way to construction. Even the scientists agree that the interests of society come first in such circumstances.
Rebury and preserve
Archaeologists have strict rules: if they find something, research should be carried out and then the object should be if possible replaced where it was. For example, a Roman ship which is reburied after being studied will carry on being protected by the ground water, preserved intact for future generations and scholars. Research archaeologist Jasper de Bruin from Leiden University says this may not be possible in the case of underground construction:
“We’ve still got to dig up the archaeological finds in most cases. Of course, that gives us more information and, as a scholar, I find that naturally very interesting, but it means that there are less finds being left in the ground. We are heading towards a situation in the Netherlands in which there’s no more archaeology to be done here. That worries Dutch archaeologists.”
Major delays
Every Dutch construction project has to set aside an amount of money to cover the cost of researching possible archaeological finds made during the building work. Even so, project managers are not happy if discoveries are made. Despite the financial risks being covered, archaeological research inevitably causes major delays. Nevertheless, Mr De Bruin thinks the system generally works well.
“The construction industry is not so very happy with the situation. On the other hand, I think you’ve got to see it like this - here in the Netherlands we think it’s important to do environmental studies before building work and that the ground should be cleaned up before construction starts if any contamination is found. It’s hardly any extra trouble to do the archaeological inspection at the same time. You have to see it as part of the same process.”
Mediaeval village
At the moment, Mr De Bruin is leading a team excavating a Merovingian settlement. The dig is next to the motorway connecting Amsterdam and The Hague. It is a perfectly example of cooperation between construction project managers and archaeologists. What is left of the early mediaeval village is quickly being charted and covered up again so a new residential development can be built over it.
Mr De Bruin says it is a nice research project but hardly “the holy grail of Dutch archaeology”. That might be the discovery of the capital of the Frisiavones, a tribe which, in Roman times, lived in the south of what is now the Netherlands. Archaeologists know the city lies under the ground somewhere but do not know its precise location. It is to be hoped that this ‘Dutch Atlantis’ is not discovered during the construction of an underground six-lane motorway. Then the story would be: Sorry, what a shame.
Source: Radio Netherlands Worldwide