Portsmouth Heritage Hub

The Portsmouth Heritage Hub was set up by Dr Sam Robson, Dr Robert Inkpen and Dr Garry Scarlett, and aims to provide a centralised hub for researchers within the University of Portsmouth currently working on projects involving preservation, conservation, interpretation and education about our local cultural heritage.

The Solent, and the surrounding Wessex area has a rich array of history. Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard, home to world famous ships such as the Mary Rose and HMS Victory, attracts thousands of visitors from around the world, and provides a window into the life of sailors throughout the ages and how this has shaped the City today. The Isle of Wight has proved to be one of the richest sources of dinosaur fossils in all of Europe, and has earned it the title of the UK’s Dinosaur Capital. Fishbourne Roman. Palace in Chichester is the largest Roman residential building to have been discovered in Britain, and offers a unique glimpse into the life of Britons following the Roman conquest. And of course, Portsmouth will today play host to Royalty and international leaders to celebrate its part in the D-Day landings in Normandy, one of the most important operations in World War II.

The skills and expertise of researchers throughout the University are multifaceted and span a wide range of themes and fields. These include (but are not limited to) expertise with ancient DNA analysis to understand our past, identifying novel ways to preserve monuments and buildings, interpretation of ancient texts and oral histories, and using modern technology such as virtual reality to provide interactive ways to engage the public with their past.

There are many more projects besides, and our aim is to provide a framework for these researchers to work together with local stakeholders in historical monuments, buildings and other sites to identify ways to improve the heritage of our local area, to interpret our history to better inform our understanding of our past, and to provide new and interesting ways to engage the local area with our history.