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Dr Ian Friel

@drianfriel.bsky.social
325 followers 325 following 317 posts

Independent historian, FSA and FRHistS, specialising in maritime, local and house history, based in UK. Author of five books on maritime history, multiple research papers and house histories. www.ianfriel.co.uk Rep: @donaldwin.bsky.social

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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
Part of the 'Fame' of Hoorn (lost off Poole 1631) uncovered by a storm on a beach in Studland Bay... www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Timbers from 17th Century shipwreck appear on Dorset beach
Experts believe timbers found at Studland Beach form a missing piece of the Swash Channel wreck from 1631.
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Dr Rebecca Tyson @tyguson.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
I’ve now caught up on last night’s #DrawingDiggingforBritain and decided to draw the stone anchor found in the River Wear while @toriherridge.bsky.social was filming.
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Another #shipwreck uncovered by a storm, this time in New Jersey, USA. www.popsci.com/science/ship...
popsci.com
Winter storms uncover 19th-century shipwreck on New Jersey beach
The ‘Lawrence N. McKenzie’ sank in 1890 loaded with oranges from Puerto Rico.
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Rutger Bregman @rutgerbregman.com · 29/01/2026
ICE's $100M ad campaign is using the same playbook as the Gestapo & Stasi. The goal? To make repression sound reasonable and patriotic.
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Lloyd's Register Foundation Heritage Centre @lrfheritage.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
An interesting find from our rare book collection this week 🧐 Marine architecture: or directions for carrying on a ship, from the first laying of the keel to her actual going to sea. (author unknown). Published by William Mount 1736
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Very interesting talk about the #Roman arena & #gladiators on 'In Our Time' this morning (BBC Radio 4). The site of the Roman amphitheatre at Chichester (West Sussex, UK) is still mostly open, marked by a large encircling bank: it was built very close to the Roman city. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...
Aerial photo of Chichester, taken from the north. The site of the Roman East Gate is marked, as is the site of the Roman amphitheatre or arena, which was a short distance outside the city walls. Part of there amphitheatre was lost to a 1930s building, but most of its encircling bank survives.
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Great talk last evening by Prof Dave Parham @buarchanth.bsky.social about the Swash Channel Wreck/'Fame' of Hoorn (1631) excavation & its place in the story of UK maritime archaeology. Glad to have been part of the project & to have identified the Wreck! Free pdf of report @archaeopress.bsky.social
This carving of a Roman warrior's head was at the top of the rudder (rudderahead) of the Dutch Westindiaman 'Fame' of Hoorn, lost off Poole (Dorset, UK) in 1631. The original can be seen in the stunning new maritime archaeology gallery at Poole Museum.
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Cheryl Fury @tudorwench.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
When it’s extremely cold from a polar vortex but you’re a Canadian cairn who identifies as a husky:
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Cheryl Fury @tudorwench.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
Sussex, New Brunswick has great ice cream & dairy products. Sussex ice cream might be worth invading for.
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Cheryl Fury @tudorwench.bsky.social · 18/01/2026
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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 15/01/2026
JOIN US: our Associate Fellowship category is for those at an earlier stage their research careers - for example, completion of a #History PhD, or history professionals (teachers, curators, archivists etc) who make research possible. Applications welcome at any time bit.ly/44r8NTg #Skystorians 1/2
bit.ly
Apply for Associate Fellowship - RHS
Closing dates for next applications: Mondays 9 March and 11 May 2026   Associate Fellowship recognises the contribution made by a wide range of historical researchers and advocates for History with es...
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
'This year, one of the aims of the conservation charity will be to make people feel more at ease in its grand houses and, where practical, allow them to sit on historic chairs and use libraries and reading rooms rather than simply peer into them.' Excellent initiative.
theguardian.com
‘We want people to sit, pause, relax’: National Trust to open its libraries for public use
Charity plans to make stately homes more welcoming by inviting visitors to use furniture and reading rooms
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Cambridge Archaeological Unit @cambridgearch.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
The 2018 volume Riversides: Neolithic Barrows, a Beaker Grave, Iron Age and Anglo-Saxon Burials and Settlement at Trumpington has been released as a free Open Access download here: doi.org/10.17863/CAM...
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National Library of Scotland @natlibscot.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
This #MapMonday we're taking you back in time ⌛ We've just added over 9,000 out of copyright Ordnance Survey maps published in 1975 to our Map Images website. What did your neighbourhood look like fifty years ago? 🗺️ 🔗: maps.nls.uk/additions/#191 #MoreMaps
map of United Kingdom showing coverage of Ordnance Survey maps, with maps just added to the website shown in orange.detail from historic Ordnance Survey map with copyright statement crown copyright 1975
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
OK, the Pompeii comparison may be overcooking it a bit, but this is clearly a really important discovery and I look forward to hearing more about it. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Margam park Roman villa find could be 'Port Talbot's Pompeii'
The largest Roman villa ever found in Wales lies less than a metre under Margam Country Park.
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David Veevers @davidveevers.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Wow 2026 has been exhausting. So glad it’s almost over. WAIT HOW LONG??!!
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Cheryl Fury @tudorwench.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Awkward family photos. 😂
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Governor Tim Walz @governorwalz.mn.gov · 09/01/2026
I invite all Americans to join Minnesota in a day of unity tomorrow.
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Brodie Waddell @brodiewaddell.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Birkbeck is hiring a Lecturer in Medieval Studies (c.1300-1500), full-time and open-ended. They will be formally based in English but expected to be able to contribute about 0.5FTE to History, including teaching and supervision. Closing date Feb 23rd: cis7.bbk.ac.uk/vacancy/lect...
Birkbeck, University of London, is seeking a Lecturer in Medieval Studies to join our dynamic team within the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Autumn 2026. 

As Lecturer in Medieval Studies you will contribute to the teaching of Medieval English literature and Medieval history across the Faculty, within our School of Creative Arts, Culture and Communication, and School of Historical Studies - this includes our BA English and BA History programmes, as well as postgraduate taught programmes in the two subject areas.

This post is offered on a permanent contract at Birkbeck, full time 35 hours per week, with a salary of £44,247 rising to £60,858 per year. Teaching hours will vary from 6pm - 9pm, Monday to Friday. 

To be successful, you will bring research expertise in the literature, history and culture of the Late Medieval period (c.1300-1500), and demonstrate a capacity to contribute to interdisciplinary research and teaching, participate actively in curriculum development, supervise doctoral students, and help shape the intellectual life of our vibrant academic community.

We would also welcome applicants who would be able to contribute to collaborative teaching programmes or research in the Faculty, in areas such as identity, race/ethnicity, or gender - experience of collaboration with cultural institutions, whether through research or teaching, is also welcome.

Core responsibilities will initially include programme/module administration, teaching, supervision, assessment, student support and pastoral care.  You will also be equipped to supervise doctoral students.

With a PhD in any area of Medieval Studies, you will contribute the Faculty’s and Schools’ research impact and culture, and to the intellectual and cultural life of the institution and the various communities and partners with whom we work and serve.
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Naja Bentzen 🇩🇰🇪🇺🇬🇱🌻 @najabentzen.eurosky.social · 09/01/2026
Are you writing about #Greenland and looking for expertise on the tense geopolitical situation? (unless you trust US AI chatbots to do the trick, of course 🙃) The University of Southern Denmark @sdu.dk has a team of experts ready to help 🔽
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Dinah Rose KC @dinahrose.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
My niece in Stonehaven, near Aberdeen, has made a snow dalek that's featured in the Aberdeen Press and Journal. #proudaunt
A magnificently detailed dalek made of snow, complete with sink plunger.
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Seb Falk @sebfalk.com · 05/01/2026
JOB ALERT! 3-year postdoc at @girtoncollege.bsky.social - research anything you like in History, Archaeology or Anthropology in a wonderful, welcoming scholarly community. PLEASE SHARE! Closes 12 January www.girton.cam.ac.uk/job-vacancie...
Here's what it looked like on my return to work this morning - beautiful red brick gabled building of Girton's Hall, with a dusting of snow on the grass in front.
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Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick @mrcwarwick.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
We're back, rested and ready for more archive exploration in 2026! As we balance precariously on the metaphorical penny farthing of time, here's hoping for a healthy, happy and peaceful New Year for us all - wobbling slightly but still upright and speeding onwards (fitted sportsing shorts optional)
19th century New Year's card with the caption 'A bright New Year'. It includes a picture of a man in sports gear (red fitted shorts and a stripy top) bent double on a penny farthing bicycle, speeding along a country road. A flattish green field is in the background with a town or city with smoky chimneys far in the distance. The precariously hurtling cyclist is described as 'Making the Pace'.
This card is one of a series of cycling postcards and greetings cards in the archives of the Cyclists' Touring Club / Cycling UK (document reference: MSS.328/C/5/5/2).
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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 05/01/2026
The Society invites applications for the following three funding programmes, with deadlines 23 to 31 January 2026 bit.ly/3LbxDQb > RHS Workshop Grants > Applied History Fellowships, in association with @ihr.bsky.social > Fellowships, for completion of a History PhD, also with the IHR #Skystorians
bit.ly
Calls for research funding from the Royal Historical Society: current programmes - RHS
The Society currently invites applications for the following six schemes — open to historians across a range of career stages and backgrounds — with closing dates from 23 January to 6 March 2026. For ...
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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 05/01/2026
Applications are also invited for a new RHS programme for 2026, co-hosted with @ihr.bsky.social and @chalkefestival.bsky.social. 'Pitch my Project' is for early career historians to present their research at the Chalke History Festival in June bit.ly/44kfUMM. Closing date: 6 February. #Skystorians
bit.ly
Pitch my Project: an opportunity for early career historians to present their work at the Chalke History Festival 2026 - RHS
Have you ever wanted to share your research with a wide audience? Would you like to gain experience in public speaking, and be supported to develop imaginative ways to communicate your research to the...
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Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
The Sphinx and the Pyramids of #Giza, photographed by Maxime du Camp in 1849. The chest area of the Sphinx had only recently been uncovered, previously the statue was covered with sand up to the shoulders.
The black and white photo shows the Sphinx covered up to the chest with sand. The pyramids of Giza can be seen in the background
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Katie Parker @kparkerhistorian.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
If Mexico City is on your travel card for early 2026, this exhibition looks great! #Pacifichistory #museums #exhibition 🗃️
mexicoescultura.com
Somos Pacífico
EL GALEÓN DE ACAPULCO-MANILA SOMOS PACÍFICO EL MUNDO QUE EMERGIÓ DEL TRÓPICO La exhibición recupera la profunda he...
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Gillian Branstetter @gbbranstetter.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
Love this from Guillermo del Toro
“Be kind, be involved, believe in your art,” he said. “At a time when people tell you art is not important, that is always the prelude to fascism. When they tell you it doesn’t matter, when they tell you a fucking app can do art you say, if it’s that important, why the fuck do they want it so bad? The answer is because they think they can debase everything that makes us a little better, a little more human. And that, in my book, and in my life, includes monsters.”
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
A brief and light flurry of overnight snow in Chichester (West Sussex, UK), which hasn't seen much very much snow in recent decades.
The photo shows an upturned blue and white bowl on a wooden bench, with grass and plants behind - all with a light dusting of snow. The bowl and bench are picked out by the morning sunlight.
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
Wishing everyone a happy and hopeful New Year!
Lights inside a blue glass jug, next to a Chinese-style pot, both sitting on a window sill with a closed Venetian blind behind.
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 29/12/2025
Major #shipwreck discovery in Denmark- largest medieval cog (merchant ship) ever found. Built c1410, with 300-ton cargo capacity. Biggest contemporary English vessel was Henry IV's royal ship 'Trinity', also of 300 tons #maritimehistory #maritimearchaeology www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk/en/about-us/...
vikingeskibsmuseet.dk
Archaeologists reveal a medieval super ship: "It's the World’s largest cog"
For 600 years, the waters off Copenhagen have hidden an exceptional secret. Now, maritime archaeologists from the Viking Ship Museum in Denmark reveal the discovery of the world’s largest cog – a medi...
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Must be cargo from a wreck that is eroding off the South Wales coast - #maritimehistory #maritimearchaeology #shipwreck www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Mystery as hundreds of Victorian shoes wash up on Ogmore beach
More than 400 leather hobnailed boots, thought to date back to the 19th Century, have been found.
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Dr Rebecca Warren @drrjwarren.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
#ArtDD2025 Yawning or laughing? My final painting (from my archive) for #ArtAdventCalendar Day 24 Happy Christmas friends, followers & passers-by🎄 @saocousins.bsky.social @holnicotenh.bsky.social @stevecobbin.bsky.social @andykaitken.bsky.social @mayfieldbirder.bsky.social @indikon.bsky.social
Fox looking to left with mouth open, tongue curled and eyes shut.
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Dr Ian Friel @drianfriel.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
A Happy Christmas and a great New Year to everyone! (appropriately #maritime Christmas 'tree' composed of lobster pots, on the quay in the fishing port of Emsworth, Hampshire, UK, 24 December 2025).
A Christmas tree shape decorated with streamers and baubles, on the quay at Emsworth, 2025. It has been built from black lobster pots and is topped with the outline of a star. A swan and a ?coot can be seen in the water below, and small boats are visible in the background.
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Marc Morris @marcmorris.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
The complete Bayeux Tapestry has finally been released and proves that Bishop Odo had absolutely nothing to do with the illegal Norman invasion of England.
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Fishbourne Roman Palace @romanpalace.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Saving a museum would be a pretty cool thing to do for Christmas, wouldn't it? You know what to do, you awesome bunch....
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Private Eye Magazine @privateeyenews.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Following the controversy over the edited Trump speech, the BBC has been lambasted for its negative and biased portrayal of the leader of a prominent right-wing government… An Evening with Private Eye 2025, out now on YouTube.
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CBHC / RCAHMW @rcahmwales.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
Archaeologists don't just care about what's in the ground, they care about the ground itself too! This beautiful plan was made during the excavation of Pen Dinas, Aberystwyth, in the 1930s. It labels the different types of soil found in different parts of the hillfort zurl.co/dtD9i #WorldSoilDay
coflein.gov.uk
English – Coflein
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Dr Wendy Morrison @hillfortian.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Wait, so you DON'T hold the Ark of the Covenant?
media.tenor.com
a warehouse filled with lots of boxes and a person walking through it
Alt: a warehouse filled with lots of boxes and a person walking through it
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Dr Jo Edge 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 @hagenilda.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
Just got the news to say I’ve been elected as a Fellow of the @royalhistsoc.org! With many thanks to my referee @adamchapman.bsky.social
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South Downs National Park @southdownsnp.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
This way or that way?🤔 Looking for walk ideas? You’ll find plenty of inspiration in our Walking Hub. Take a look: southdowns.gov.uk/walking🌲 📸: Colin Mitchell
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Durotriges Dig @durotrigesdig.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Beneath the #Wiltshire Medieval hilltop town of Malmesbury lies a 9ha Iron Age hillfort Here looking east: Now (© Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard) and then (© Athelstan Museum) A wee thread for #HillfortsWednesday 🧵👇
Aerial photograph of Malmesbury town today looking west showing houses surrounded by rivers and green fieldsReconstruction painting of a hillfort from the air looking west with interior roundhouses surrounded by rivers and fields
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British Association for Local History @balhnews.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Join us tomorrow for our Annual Dymond Lecture. This year's speaker is Dr Mike Esbester, who will be exploring the hidden human stories behind Britain's railways. Find out more: www.balh.org.uk/dymond2025 #WeAreLocalHistory #LocalHistoryForAll
1920s posed railway staff safety image, showing a railwayman leaning out of a carriage, but his head is about to hit a signal post. The caption reads ‘Heads – you lose! Is it safe to lean out of or open the doors of vehicles in motion where there are pillars, ladders, walls or bridges, unless you are satisfied there is sufficient clearance?’
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Dr Rebecca Warren @drrjwarren.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
😄
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Richard Baker @bakerart.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
Another on-the-spot watercolour (with pen work) from a sketching trip to Winchester in 1997. I regret parting with this one though I hope the buyer is still enjoying it. This is typical Winchester with the cathedral in the background. See Alt text for more info. #art #watercolour #winchester
This watercolour is typical Winchester with water gurgling out of the ground and the cathedral looming up in the background. I know Winchester well from art school in the '60s and for these paintings in the '90s I stayed in Southampton and drove over to paint every day. I also painted in the divine Water Meadows on an earlier visit and one or two of those found buyers.
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Ulla Rajala @ullamr.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
The Päijälä hillfort rises 45 metres above Lake Saaresjärvi, c. 8 kilometers from the Kuhmoinen village in Finland. It is one of the refuge sites used by local population from the 11th century until the latter half of the 13th century. #HillfortsWednesday
A view to the lake from the hillfort
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Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
New discovery: A late Archaic marble head of a Kore discovered at Vulci represents a rare instance of Greek statuary found within Etruscan territory. uni-freiburg.de/freiburger-u...
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Spencer Wells @spwells.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
Ancient Egyptian pleasure boat found by archaeologists off Alexandria coast 🤿⛏️🇪🇬 www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
theguardian.com
Ancient Egyptian pleasure boat found by archaeologists off Alexandria coast
First-century luxury vessel matches description by the Greek historian Strabo, who visited city around 29-25BC
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Drew @drewavery.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-4x...
youtube.com
Muppet Songs: Harry Belafonte - Day-O (Banana Boat Song)
YouTube video by Muppet Songs
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Alison @finger-post.blog · 08/12/2025
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBp2...
youtube.com
Whisky Galore - drinking song
YouTube video by M Shanghai
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