Archaeology Legacy Grants Scheme

Overview

The Royal Irish Academy, together with the National Monuments Service are pleased to invite applications for post-excavation research for Archaeological Research Excavations which were previously funded by the Royal Irish Academy and whose RIA excavation funding ended at least five years ago.

What you need to know to apply

The maximum award available to a project under this round of funding is €30,000.

All queries can be sent to grants@ria.ie with the subject line ‘Archaeology Legacy Projects’

Applications are accepted for the following:

Proposals for post-excavation work on RIA-funded excavations that took place over five years ago, including post-excavation assessment, analyses, reporting, publication and archiving, as follows:

• Post-excavation Assessment – a thorough assessment of the outstanding post-excavation needs of the project, and a programme for completion of same; including a description of the site record, production of artefacts and ecofact catalogues, a structured stratigraphic account of the archaeological remains excavated, and a clear picture of the intended post-excavation analyses, interpretation and dissemination to follow.
• Further post-excavation to lead to completion of a final excavation report as per licence/consent and grant condition, including the production of plans/sections for publication, illustration of finds, specialist reports on artefacts and ecofacts, radiocarbon dates and other scientific analyses.
• Necessary conservation work on artefacts and preparation and listing of finds according to National Museum of Ireland guidelines to enable their accession to the National Museum
• Publication and dissemination of the project (distinct from final excavation report as per licence/consent condition) including editing and production of additional illustrations as necessary.
• Completion of the project, including archiving and accession of project records and artefacts to NMS and NMI as appropriate.

Aims and Priorities

• The completion of legacy archaeological excavation projects in a timely and managed way
• The furtherance of archaeological knowledge in the context of the finite nature of the archaeological resource

Assessment Criteria

In order to make a decision, each application will be assessed on the following weighted criteria:

1. The relevance of the proposal to the furtherance of archaeological knowledge, in the context of the finite nature of the archaeological resource. (30%)
2. The ability of the applicant to carry out the proposed research, demonstrated through a track record of relevant competencies (30%)
3. The design, resources and methodologies that are being brought to this project to enable its success, including personnel, skills, equipment, facilities, technologies and materials. Highlight those that are innovative or State of the Art (20%)
4. Evidence of plan for impactful and relevant dissemination (20%)

Costs and activities which are eligible

• Post-excavation costs including staff*, post excavation running costs, specialist consumables travel and subsistence expenses, specialists’ fees, and scientific analyses.

*Salary costs of grant recipients are considered an eligible cost if, in order to participate in the project they must have their time ‘bought out’, or they must take time out from their usual employment, or would not be financially supported to do this work without the grant funding and are not simultaneously in receipt of another income. As the Academy can only reimburse costs which are supported by evidence of payment any request to reimburse salary costs must be supported by evidence that the salary has been paid (in the form of payslips, paid invoices etc.) from the employing body.

Costs and activities which are ineligible

• Institutional overheads, or any element that should properly be ascribed to institutional overheads (e.g. computer hardware including laptops, electronic notebooks, digital cameras, etc., lab / bench fees, books and other permanent resources).
• Applications from any applicant with one or more excavation reports outstanding to the Licensing Authority unless they have agreed a submission date for outstanding licenses and have an official Compliance Letter from NMS agreeing to this.
• Applications from any applicant who has previously been funded by the Academy for projects which have not been completed to the standard required by the grant and/or licence conditions.

Who can apply

• This scheme is only open to post-excavation research (including publication and/or archiving) for Archaeological Research Excavations which were previously funded by the Royal Irish Academy and whose RIA excavation funding ended at least five years ago, here termed RIA-funded Legacy Project.
• This scheme is open to archaeological researchers/archaeologists for work in Ireland (not including Northern Ireland). Undergraduate, postgraduate students, or PhD candidates may not be the lead applicant but may be involved in an application.
• The Committee does not normally consider projects where the applicant is not the excavation licence holder (unless there are exceptional circumstances which will be examined on a case-by-case basis). If the applicant is not the original licence holder, the applicant must demonstrate that they have full access to all the surviving records, finds and samples from the excavation and the approval to carry out this work from the licence holder or, if the licence holder is not in a position to carry out the work, from the institution to which they belonged.

Ineligible Applicants

• Applications from any applicant with one or more excavation reports outstanding to the Licensing Authority unless they have agreed a submission date for outstanding licenses and have an official Compliance Letter from NMS agreeing to this.
• Applications from any applicant who has previously been funded by the Academy for projects which have not been completed to the standard required by the grant and/or licence conditions.

How to apply

Applicants are asked to read the guidelines for applicants carefully before submitting an application.

A completed application form is required, including:

• A letter from one named referee who is independent of the project, verifying the applicant’s
  competence to undertake the research.
• Detailed costings of proposed project (using template form provided).
• A clear outline of all efforts made to obtain additional funding from other sources and details
  of plans for both funding which is already secured and funding requested in this application.
• A justification for funding the project again, including an explanation of the renewed
  commitment or altered circumstance for the project. Please ask your referee to confirm this.

If the applicant is not the licence holder, correspondence from the licence holder confirming approval for the application to be submitted or where the original licence holder is deceased or not in a position to provide approval, such approval should be from the institute to which the licence holder belonged confirming that the applicant has full access to all the surviving records, finds and samples from the excavation. Where relevant, a copy of a detailed quotation received from proposed specialist/s.

An application will be deemed ineligible if it does not include all required supporting documentation and confirmations listed in the guidelines document.