Corpus is delighted to announce that Sorcha Tisdall (2018, Classics) has been awarded the 2024 Royal Archaeological Institute Tony Baggs Undergraduate Dissertation Prize for her dissertation, ‘Miniature Axes in Roman Britain – Symbolism and Substitution in Ritual Dedication’.
The Institute awards a dissertation prize each year for either an undergraduate (the Tony Baggs Prize) or master’s dissertation on an alternating basis. The prize goes to the best dissertation on a subject concerning the archaeology or architectural history of Britain, Ireland and adjacent areas of Europe. The chief criteria considered are quality of work and appropriateness to the interests of the Institute as reflected in the Archaeological Journal. The winner receives £500, a one year’s membership subscription, and the opportunity for a paper based on their dissertation to be published in the Archaeological Journal.
Anthony Paget Baggs was an archaeologist and architectural historian. Through his work with the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments for England and the Victoria County History, he wrote accounts of many thousands of buildings all over the country. He was always ready to exchange views and explain techniques with colleagues of all ages.
Sorcha says: "I am thrilled to have been awarded this prize, particularly for a piece of work of which I am so proud. What started as a lingering curiosity over the sparsely detailed label attributed to a miniature axe housed in the Ashmolean Museum, has led to a great deal of hard work being recognised by the Royal Archaeological Institute. I could not be happier with what I have achieved. My thanks go to the Classics Faculty and everyone at Corpus for providing such a supportive environment throughout my studies, and without whom this would not have been possible. I am now working with the RAI to adapt the work into a published article, so I am looking forward to that next project!"