The Belfast Hills have a rich history; the evidence of such may be seen by the remains left in the landscape.  Much of this history is as yet undiscovered.  When the National Trust bought the Divis and Black Mountain site in 2004 only one historic monument/feature was identified, to date 223 have now been uncovered.  This provides a taster for what else must be out there in similar surrounding hill sites.

 

The Belfast Hills Partnership has already carried out four successful community archaeology projects at Ballyaghagan, Divis Mountain, Carnmoney Hill and Slievenacloy Nature Reserve.

 

We hope to continue this voyage of archaeological excavation by surveying new sites and giving young people the chance to really get their ‘hands on’ history. For the older age group we intend to involve QUB archaeology students, providing them with opportunities to carry out initial site surveys to enable them to feed into the excavation plans, then providing excavation experience in undertaking the dig.

 

We aim to:

 

  • Inspire young people to become passionate about their local heritage.
  • Encourage young people to explore and discover the rich history on their doorstep.
  • Empower young people to develop new skills relevant to developing their future careers, volunteering and contributing towards the green economy.
  • Encourage young people, residents and local communities to value and protect their built heritage and cultural environment.
  • Bring the past to life through archaeology and creative engagement.