Throughout 2005–06 the Explanation Team and key members of the Exploration Team worked on the development of DIG, which replaced the ARC, following a successful bid to the Millennium Commission within their Rediscover fund for a grant of £746,700. This was matched by a further £250,000 of funding, from a combination of YAT resources, the Garfield Weston Foundation, Yorkshire Bank, the R M Burton Foundation and the Noel G Terry Charitable Trust. DIG opened on 23rd March 2006 on time and within budget.

The programme of refitting works required the ARC to close in July 2005 and relocate to Barley Hall from July 2005 to February 2006. During this period it successfully operated a condensed version of ARC and continued to offer visits to school parties, working in co-operation with the team at Barley Hall. To enable ARC to operate from Barley Hall a number of small-scale improvements were made to the spaces by the technical team from the Explanation Division.

The DIG project was formally tendered to a number of design firms during early 2005. The contract was won by RMA Ltd, who began the formal design process in May 2005.

During the initial design phases the Explanation Team worked with the Exploration staff and groups of both primary and secondary school teachers. Throughout the development period the main challenges for the project were:

• To develop an exciting and unique exhibition within a relatively small space, approximately 375sqm on the ground floor and 200sqm on the first floor, with a capacity of 200 people at any one time.
• To use innovative interactive techniques to explain the processes of archaeology
• To show some of the collection of artefacts held by the Trust
• To create spaces that can be used for a variety of different purposes
• T o make the exhibitions appeal to a diverse range of visitors, from pre-school children to adults with very little knowledge and those who specialise in archaeology.

The starting point for the attraction was to take inspiration from earlier visitor feedback which revealed that many people have a desire to become involved in archaeology, particularly in an excavation. To address this, the aim was to create a reproduction of an excavation that allowed people to have a go. DIG asks the questions: “Have you ever wanted to take part in an excavation, discover real objects from ancient civilizations, and understand how archaeologists recreate the past?”

At DIG visitors have the opportunity to take part in a replicated excavation and find both real and replica objects from four of the most important excavations undertaken in the City by the Trust. Evidence from Blake Street, Coppergate, Fishergate, and Hungate is used throughout the attraction. By examining these four key sites DIG shows how York has developed over time and explains how archaeologists use the evidence they discover to interpret the past. Visitors are given an introduction to archaeology within a ‘site hut’; a handling session looking at real objects with a trained member of staff; and explore three free-flow themed areas designed to demonstrate the different types of work undertaken by archaeologists, including conservation, research and curation. Contained within these areas are a series of audio-visual presentations which use cutting-edge technology to show how archaeologists interpret the past from the evidence that they unearth, and how a specific street in York developed from prehistoric times to the present day. Other displays include talking holograms; graphics panels; object cases containing artefacts from York across the time periods, a recent finds case; and a bank of computers offering access to the web.

On the upper floor DIG offers a series of areas that can be used as classrooms for children, so that more in-depth workshops can be presented. A resource room is available for the use of individuals who want to pursue their own research, and teachers who want to plan their visits. A free space is also offered in the Tower area.

To run DIG, the Trust recruited a number of new individuals to work as front-of-house staff. These personnel combined into a very effective and welcoming team that adapted well to the operational challenges, undertaking a series of structured training sessions to equip them for the task ahead.

DIG gained a large amount of press coverage during the pre-launch stage in early 2006, and an extremely successful launch event in March 2006 was attended by representatives of the Millennium Commission and special guests Dan and Peter Snow. Broadcast coverage included Go For it! on Radio 4, CBBC, BBC Radio York and Minster Radio, whilst national press coverage has included The Daily Mail, The Sun, The Times, The Sunday Express, The Daily Mirror, and The Telegraph plus magazines such as Tesco Magazine, Bella, Education Today, Good Housekeeping, Woman and Home, BBC History magazine, BBC Homes and Antiques and Heritage Magazine. Further marketing is planned for the 2006 summer season including a TV advertisement, bus rears and bus shelters.

DIG aims to attract initially over 40,000 visitors in the first year and admission fees have been set to cover operating costs. DIG can be hired for private parties, with birthday parties being particularly popular. Numerous additional educational resources are planned for the future to enhance DIG (and JORVIK) such as loan boxes and educational resource packs. DIG also hopes to extend the outreach offer to include a wider variety of topics and end users. The new web site includes downloadable teacher’s resources and information about the time periods covered by DIG.

Informal feedback received from a number of visitors has been very encouraging. One early letter received includes the following:

‘DIG was a fantastic experience for us. Not only were we made to feel welcome, our baby was included in what we were doing and the staff talked to him as well as to us. The staff were also available to answer questions at any time and on a couple of occasions we were asked if we were alright. Importantly, we learnt a great deal about archaeology and the history of York in an interactive way. It is suitable for everyone of any age and when our son is older, we will definitely be back with him.’

Looking to the future DIG aims to capitalise on its early success and create additional exciting and innovative opportunities to explore archaeology in the future, whilst maintaining the integrity of the initial project.

Copyright © 2003–2006 York Archaeological Trust