CAU - Cornwall Archaeological Unit

04/06/2026

Pop along to meet our lovely colleagues at Penmount Crematorium at their Open Day and Service of Remembrance event on Sunday 28th June.

Please join us for our 70th Anniversary event on Sunday 28th June from 11am to celebrate Penmount Crematorium providing the people of Cornwall with a wonderful facility.
We have this year achieved a Gold standard rating from the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management for the service provided by Penmount.

Camborne Community Brass Band will be playing from 11am then we are pleased to welcome Will Keating to headline the event on the front lawn during the afternoon. Why not have a look behind the scenes, take a look at the Natural burial site or have a walk around the beautiful gardens. There will be lots more to do and see during the afternoon with a focus on the history of the Penmount site and our aims for increasing the biodiversity of the gardens. The event will conclude with a Service of Remembrance at 2.30pm for those who wish to attend.

We hope to see you on the day.

22/05/2026

Check out the Earth and Air Festival, Tregona Chapel, St Eval

21/01/2026

An initial report on CAU's recent collaboration with the University of Durham is out.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/blog/2026/01/19/excavating-the-british-tin-trade-that-shaped-the-bronze-age/?fbclid=IwY2xjawPdqslleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETBSaGZnUThjRDJTYWRNblhac3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHhBtHqg9g_x7lvpVAQzPTPHtHF1GWpY7BgzXSEEyk_kiopM7BEeCDIiR_tpZ_aem_BSJMItEAY46gf6scRXrgzQ

In 2025, we published an article in Antiquity, demonstrating through chemical and isotopic analyses that, c. 1300 BC, tin ingots made from tin ores in southwest Britain are found on shipwrecks off the coast of Israel, around 4000 km away. We also showed that the tin from the Rochelongue shipwreck, f...

23/12/2025

A new publication featuring the work of CAU!

An Investigation of Three Megalithic Quoits in Cornwall - BAR Publishing

This monograph reports upon the recent excavations of three Cornish megalithic monuments, known locally by the suffix as quoits, which were undertaken by Cornwall Archaeological Unit, with support from the Cornwall Archaeological Society, The Cornwall Heritage Trust and The Sustainable Trust. Two of...

11/12/2025

The historic Bude Storm Tower was under serious threat from coastal erosion, but meticulous historic building recording by an expert team from CAU has helped make it possible to rebuild the tower at a safer site inland.
The building is one of many celebrated by Historic England and recognised on the 2025 National Heritage List for England.
The Storm Tower was designed by George Wightwick in 1835 as a coastguard watchtower, refuge and signalling point and has been reconstructed using as much of the 19th century fabric as possible.

BBC News - 'Remarkable diversity' of heritage sites celebrated
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87l412v0pqo