People: Jake O’Donohoe – Archaeologist and Symbolic Ecclesiastical Graffiti

With a BA in Archaeology at Winchester, and an MA in Archaeology at Durham, Jake specialises in what he calls ‘symbolic ecclesiastical graffiti’; that is, actual carvings made on the stone of buildings (usually Churches) by normal everyday people.

“So, I did my degree in Winchester” he began, “and I was walking about the cathedrals – trying to find the idea for my dissertation. I had seen these symbols all over – etchings on the stone. I spoke to my tutor about it and we got that going. I had to obviously research more to see if anyone had actually talked about it. It’s quite niche, not a really well developed part of archaeology.

“My favourite part of it was finding them, knowing I was the first person trying to understand what was going on here for hundreds of years”.

Jake’s love for the archaeological began with Terry Deary’s Horrible History Books which later became, with university training and study, more of an academic practise and interest beyond “the shiny objects that we associate with archaeology”. Yet, curiosity and “the sense of anticipation when you’re trying to find something” still play a major part in his passion for the discipline.

Gibraltarian Graffiti

Archaeology is “all around Gibraltar”, which Jake admits to have been “massively” influenced by. Currently at the Museum he – were it not for Covid’s interference – would have taken part in what is called ‘Watching Briefs’. “Watching briefs means watching construction work dig through soil and making sure no archaeological evidence is being disturbed or being destroyed”.

He would have also been involved in desk based assessments which are essentially an “assessment of what archaeology is to be expected on the site. So, this is going through, you know, primary sources, what’s written about the site maps, and what’s been found in the nearby area”.

Graffiti in Gibraltar is rich with history, though sparse. Gibraltar “was seen as the frontier between Islam and Christianity with the reconquest of Spain, so this place was seen as a spiritual landscape. When the Spanish did retake Gibraltar they made sure to cement that Christian foundation”. The British occupation quite clearly changed that given the significant weight the Catholic church had for Spanish politics and history. Jake mentions that at least over a dozen churches were built here whose remnants can still be seen today: “convents, monasteries… but you can only see the architecture, you can only tell with a trained eye or with information from a primary source”.

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15-07-2020 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR