A snow woman outside Gap Filler Headquarters, the 10 square metre office building in Sydenham. In the background a mural can be seen, reading, "The things which I have seen I now can see no more".
A photograph of the cordon on the Gloucester Street bridge near Cambridge Terrace. Wire fencing has been placed across the bridges with signs reading, "Extreme danger, keep out" and "Warning, no public access beyond this point".
A man stares at an enormous roadsign reading 'Cleanup' that dwarfs a smaller one pointing to Canterbury. Refers to the damage resulting from the Christchurch earthquake of 4th September 2010. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
A woman sits reading beside the "University of Canterbury" sign on Clyde Road. In the background are the tents used while lecture theatres were closed for structural testing. The photographer comments, "From Clyde Rd, all seemed intact".
For a change of pace, a group from Underground Overground Archaeology spent last week out of the office, and out of Christchurch at the New Zealand Archaeological Association Conference on Stewart Island. The New Zealand Archaeological Association (known affectionately as … Continue reading →
A photograph of the former Central Library on Gloucester Street. The entrance has been boarded up with plywood and the footpath is covered in dead leaves. To the left, a sign reading 'Library Open' is still standing outside.
A photograph of a sign reading, "Please save High Street, the heart of Christchurch city". The photograph is captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Sign seen on a fence near the corner of St Asaph Street and High Street".
A photograph of tape reading "Danger, keep out", draped around the entrance of Peaches and Cream on the corner of Manchester and Tuam Streets. Bricks from the façade above have fallen and landed on the awning and footpath.
A photograph of a spray-painted message on a fence reading, "4 sale - handy mans dream. Mild reno's needed. Easy indoor/outdoor flow - with water feature!" The photograph is captioned by Paul Corliss, "New Brighton by QEII Drive".
Reinforcement steel protrudes from a bank which is supporting a walkway on Sumner Road. Excavators are lined up on the left-hand side of the road. A sign reading, 'Rebuilding for our future' hangs on the security fence.
A photograph of a spray-painted message on a fence reading, "4 sale - handy mans dream. Mild reno's needed. Easy indoor/outdoor flow - with water feature!" The photograph is captioned by Paul Corliss, "New Brighton by QEII Drive".
A photograph of the opening of the Think Differently Book Exchange. In the centre of the photograph, two people are browsing the books in the fridge, and to the left people are sitting at a picnic table reading.
A photograph of a spray-painted message on a fence reading, "4 sale - handy mans dream. Mild reno's needed. Easy indoor/outdoor flow - with water feature!" The photograph is captioned by Paul Corliss, "New Brighton by QEII Drive".
A photograph of a protest sign reading, "Pillage People" and showing the faces of key figures in the Christchurch rebuild superimposed on the bodies of the Village People. The photograph is captioned by Paul Corliss, "Woodham Road, Linwood".
Food, in all its myriad forms, can be one of the most intrinsic and expressive aspects of culture and society – throughout time and across the world. From the customs surrounding the preparation and consumption of food to the ingredients … Continue reading →
People have lived in the Christchurch area for at least 700 years, and one of the earliest large settlements was at Redcliffs – Raekura – where a wide variety of naturally occurring foods could be obtained. There were shellfish on … Continue reading →
Today on the blog we are discussing my favourite site of 2019. We already talked about part of the site’s history last fortnight on the blog- that it contained the store and offices for Walton, Warner and Co. and their … Continue reading →
It’s been a busy month for Underground Overground Archaeology as we’ve been actively involved in New Zealand Archaeology Week 2018 running displays, historical tours, and talks – all of them highly successful thanks to history and archaeology lovers across the … Continue reading →
The pen is mightier than the sword – and before the days of ball-points, one needed ink bottles to fire up their weapon of choice – that being the quill, the dip pen or the fountain pen. Ink bottles are … Continue reading →
As a researcher for Underground Overground Archaeology, I spend my time searching written and visual sources for historical information on the sites the archaeologists are working on. The newspapers available on Papers Past are some of the best sources for rediscovering … Continue reading &...
He is bed maker to the dead. The pillows which he lays never rumple. The day of interment is the theatre in which he displays the mysteries of this art. Thomas Lamb 1811. Nothing in this would can be … Continue reading →
And just like that another year has passed us by. 2018 has been a year of changes here at Underground Overground. It’s with a very heavy heart we’ve said a few goodbyes to some tremendously talented archaeologists; Chelsea, Shana, Matt, … Continue reading →
It’s been a while since we last did one of these, so here are some of our most interesting finds from the past six months. Clara Watson References Coysh, A., & Henrywood, R. 1982. The Dictionary of Blue and White … Continue reading →
Every year on the 14th February we celebrate St. Valentine’s day with the exchanging of small tokens of our love and affection with our significant others. As so often is the case, the exact origins of this holiday are clouded … Continue reading →
Every January I find myself saying the phrase “new year, new me” any time I do anything remotely healthy or out of the ordinary. Ate a salad: new year, new me. Went to the gym: new year, new me. Read … Continue reading →
In the beginning there was no Te Wai Pounamu or Aotearoa. The waters of Kiwa rolled over the place now occupied by the South Island, the North Island and Stewart Island. No sign of land existed. Before Raki (the Sky … Continue reading →
Lyttelton is a fun and exciting place to do archaeology. I’ve been lucky enough to get to do a bit of archaeology in Lyttelton in the last few months, mainly out in the road, because of the digging that’s been … Continue reading →
“It must have been a happy household,” was the remark made by one of our team members when she saw the artefact assemblage we are discussing on today’s blog post. Whilst children’s artefacts are relatively common finds on New Zealand … Continue reading →
If you walk along the Avon River by Cashel Street you might catch a glimpse of the small gondolas taking their fares for a leisurely punt through the city and botanical gardens. Today this attraction is aimed largely at tourists, … Continue reading →
Anyone in the office will tell you that I have a keen interest in military history, especially anything related to the World War 2 period. I like my airplanes, yes (hats off to the de Havilland Mosquito, that twin engine … Continue reading →