The HMS web team was formed in 2017 with the aim of managing the HMS website. We aim to keep the site up to update, while also constantly improving its content and accessibility so that it suits the needs and wants of our members. Changes in technology and web designs mean we have to constantly review our system. The team has a number of ideas which we intend to implement over the coming years but we would be interested in hearing what our members think of the current website.
If you have any thoughts, comments and/or feedback please email the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Eleanor Blakelock (Web Team Leader) Eleanor Blakelock received her PhD in 2012 from the University of Bradford studying the technology of iron knives. As part of her sandwich degree course she worked for six months with the English Heritage Technology Team studying a range of ancient materials. She was the main scientist analysing the precious metals of the Staffordshire Hoard. Her main research interest is in the archaeometallurgy of the early medieval period. |
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Jonathan Prus (Shop Manager) Has first degrees in History and Politics, then Life Sciences, followed by a Ph.D. at Cranfield University and an MBA. He has been a member of HMS Council since 2014 and Hon. Gen. Secretary since 2017. He is an active member of the Wealden Iron Research Group. His principal interests are the unresolved aspects of bloomery technology, especially relating to draught, furnace thermal properties and slag chemistry. And a recently developing interest in the interrelated issues of skill, cognition and ideology among ancient ironworkers. |
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Matt Phelps Matt Phelps joined HMS in 2010. From 2012-2017 he was part of The Crucible editorial team before joining the Web Team in Summer 2017. Matt recently finished his PhD in Archaeological Science at UCL and currently conducts freelance work on archaeological remains as a metal, slag and glass specialist. |
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Rachel Cubitt As well as serving on the Web Team Rachel Cubitt is a member of the Archives and Collections Committee and of HMS Council. She works for MOLA (Museum of London Archaeology) as a Registered Finds Specialist, assessing and reporting on metalworking debris and individual objects made of metals and non-metals. She studied Archaeology at Durham University before completing a Masters in Archaeological Science at the University of Bradford. |
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William Hawkes William Hawkes is a professional conservator and trained jeweller. His conservation practice has encompassed a wide array of work on very wide and varied projects ranging from Roman and Anglo Saxon stone-set jewellery in both precious and copper alloy metals to napoleonic field carriage guns and a D-20 howitzer from the first gulf war. Additionally, Bill regularly provides consultation services to various organisations in relation to researching historic objects and their metallurgy, providing reports for the purposes of preventative and remedial conservation. |