FAQs

The Main Archaeology Contract

• To make a record of archaeological and historic sites along the road route.
• To piece together the stories about those living and working in Glasgow and it’s surrounding areas in the 19th & 20th centuries.
• To discover information about past industrial processes and living arrangements.
• To provide a link between our past and our present.

• Award June 2007
• Winning Contractor, Headland Archaeology / Pre-Construct Archaeology JV
• Value of Contract circa £4.9M
• Site Start July 2007
• Investigations complete in April 2008
• Public Archaeology Programme July 2007 – Spring 2009
• Post-excavation and publication - the first reports were submitted in late 2008. These summarise the main findings and outline a timetable for publishing the full results in academic and popular formats. This process, which pulls together the finds, site records, oral history and historic maps, will probably take about 2 years to complete plus a further year to publish results.  This should be available to the public in 2011.

• Trial trenching to assess archaeological survival below existing structures.
• Large scale open area excavations where archaeological survival has been confirmed
• A public information programme – The M74 Dig
• Post-excavation analyses and publication.
• Monitoring of deep excavations on specified land parcels during the main road construction contract.

Where did excavations take place?
The investigations took place on mixed urban, industrial and “brownfield” archaeological sites along the M74 Corridor.
Sites from west to east are:

Kingston / Tradeston:
A Mix of predominantly 19th century industrial and domestic premises.
Port Eglinton:
• The former Glasgow – Paisley - Ardrossan Canal
• Falfield Mill and the mill-owner’s house,
South Laurieston:
A range of different types of 19th century tenements and neighbouring commercial sites. Includes Alexander “Greek” Thomson tenements on Eglinton St.
Dixon’s Blazes:
Early 19th foundry and adjacent domestic buildings (“tied houses”) built for workers.
Rutherglen:
The internationally important 19th century Caledonian Pottery.
Fullarton:
Site of formal gardens of a former country house.

What happened to artefacts unearthed during the excavations?
Finds were referred to the Scottish Archaeological Finds Allocation Panel (SAFAP).  SAFAP advised the Queen’s and Lord Treasurer’s Remembrancer (QLTR) as to which museum should retain and preserve the finds.

Historic Scotland & WoSAS (West of Scotland Archaeology Service)

What role did Historic Scotland have in the M74? 
• Participation in pre-qualification process for tender lists
• Quality assessment of tender submissions
• Advice and guidance on the archaeological impact of the scheme
• Advice on mitigation strategy.
• Approval of mitigation strategy
• Approval of all post-excavation analysis and publications.

What role did WoSAS have in the M74? 
• Participation in pre-qualification process for tender lists
• Participation in quality assessment of tender submissions
• Preparation of tender documents
• Review of all post-excavation analysis and publications.
• Acting as Consultant’s Representative during main archaeology contract.

Archaeology on a roads project

What is the legislative background?
• The Environmental Impact Assessment (Scotland) Regulations 1999.
• Obliged to assess the potential impact of the project on both the natural and built environment.
• Obliged to undertake programme of archaeological investigations to mitigate against any adverse effects of the project on archaeology along the M74 corridor.

Who decided what is archaeologically important?

GUARD  (Glasgow University Archaeological Research Division) were commissioned in 2004 to:

• identify archaeological sites and historic buildings likely to be damaged or destroyed by the construction of  the motorway
• assess the cultural and historical significance of the affected sites
• recommend a programme of mitigation for the culturally significant sites

GUARD’s recommendations were accepted by the M74 Project Partners.