Native Enclosed Settlement and the Problem of the Irish 'Ring-fort'

Abstract

One of the most sustained monolithic traditions of Irish archaeology is the classification of a wide variety of earthen and stone enclosures (ráth and caisel) as 'ring-forts'. This is an impediment to understanding the significant changes that native enclosed settlement underwent through time since it encourages archaeologists to fit their evidence to the category rather than to assess each enclosed settlement on its own merits. It also conceals differences between various forms of enclosed settlements inhabited from the 7th to the 17th century AD, occasionally later. The proposal is therefore that the 'ring-fort' is a chimera and that the use of that term should be discontinued so that study of native enclosed settlement can be liberated from its insular base and used to explore social change in Ireland. A field study from the Burren, Co Clare is used in support of this argument.     

The accuracy of enclosure estimates: some evidence from northern England

Michael Turner's edition of Tate's Domesday draws upon the uneven estimates provided in enclosure acts and awards. For 35 sample acts and awards in Cumberland, Durham, Northumberland and Westmorland estimates of the acreages enclosed are compared with actual acreages of land allotted. Estimates in early acts are less accurate than in later acts, and estimates for parishes where only small areas were enclosed are proportionately less accurate than those for which large areas were enclosed.     

清嘉道以来伯都讷围场土地资源再分配

位于吉林的伯都讷围场,在清代围场中放垦最早,也是嘉道以来清廷对所控有的围场封禁土地资源进行的第一次招民而非旗丁的开垦,是在人口增加、农耕土地资源紧缺情形下,国家不得不对所控制的土地资源重新调整、加以分配的一个特例。整个过程中,不仅显现出农耕土地资源私有化的局面,也涉及官民双方在资源分配中的利害关系。清代中国的人与自然环境系统中,对资源环境的调控是在国家权力支配下完成的,国家权力和政策是这一环境系统发生改变的主要动力。     

关于王国维的《古史新证》和唐兰先生的《序》

本文认为 ,王国维的讲义名称还是《古史新证》 ,此由来薰阁手稿影印本可资证明。文后附有唐兰先生为手稿影印本写的序。     

邢台南宫普彤塔明代铜造像

普彤塔位于邢台南宫市西北1.5公里,旧城村东北约200米处,原普彤寺内(图一)。1966年3月8日,邢台大地震时从普彤塔上震落观音铜造像3尊(NW006、NW040、NW047)。1990年10月,河北省文物局拨款对四层以上普彤塔进行落架重修时在塔身佛龛内又发现铜造像39尊。     

ON THE STUDY OF SETTLEMENT SYSTEMS BY MATHEMATICAL METHODS

Two Soviet regional planners test several spatial interaction models with particular reference to the Kuznetsk Basin (Kemerovo Oblast), the southern belt of West Siberia and a portion of the North Caucasus (Krasnodar Kray). Existing techniques, such as gravity and potential models, are found to work well in areas with relatively uniform settlement patterns, such as the steppe zone of Krasnodar Kray or the southern Ob'-Irtysh subregion of West Siberia, but not in areas with sharp contrasts in settlement patterns, such as the Kuznetsk Basin, where a linear highly urbanized belt is enclosed between sparsely populated mountains. In such contrasting settings, a combination of methods is required.     

合肥市三国新城遗址的勘探和发掘

2004～2006年,安徽省文物考古研究所对合肥三国新城进行全面钻探与发掘。新城呈不规则长方形,城内有大面积夯土建筑基础,还有房址、铸造作坊、夯土台、车道和马面等。出土遗物主要为板瓦和筒瓦,其次为铁镞、铜镞和礌石。根据文献记载结合出土遗迹、遗物分析,三国新城应为军事城堡。     

Investigation Techniques for the Seismic Response Assessment of Buildings Located in Historical Centers

ABSTRACT

It is an acknowledged fact that historical centers, given its significance from the cultural and architectural viewpoint, bring further challenges in terms of maintenance planning, survey, and safety assessment. The preparation of an adequate investigation plan and the extent of data to be collected is highly reliant on many aspects, such as the category of the architectonic asset, the importance of the heritage site, or the resources available, for example. In what regards the seismic response assessment of urban cultural heritage assets located in historical centers, the amount and detail of data also depend on this article, scale of assessment, and current state of conservation and occupation. Within this framework, this article provides an overview of the state of the art of investigation techniques currently used in survey operations, which are currently available for improving the knowledge level of urban cultural heritage assets within historical centers, as a supporting tool for the seismic response assessment of such singular assets. Finally, acknowledging the lack of accuracy when evaluating the seismic response of an asset enclosed in aggregate as an isolated structure, this article also focuses on the identification of the main particularities inherent to buildings enclosed in aggregate.     

汉阳陵地下博物馆遗址表面白色物质分析研究

土遗址表面泛白与保存环境湿度有很大关系,在干燥的环境中保存的土遗址常发生表面泛白现象.汉阳陵外藏坑展示厅是我国首个全封闭式的地下展厅,展厅内13号遗址坑内湿度(RH)常年100%,在这样高湿的环境中遗址表面仍然泛白严重.为了说明汉阳陵土遗址表面泛白原因及白色物质来源,本工作利用XRF、FT-IR、XRD和离子色谱对13号坑遗址表面白色样品元素组成、离子和物象组成进行了分析.结果表明,白色物质主要成分为石膏(CaSO4·2H2O),根据白色物质离子色谱的分析结果推测泛白原因可能为土壤可溶盐的迁移富集的产物.     

羊马城考——兼考成都羊马城

羊马城是一种修造于大城与城濠之间的辅助性城防建筑,由于筑城技术的发展与复杂严峻的政治、军事形势,唐末五代及宋代掀起了修筑羊马城的高潮;明清时期,因爆炸性火器的大规模应用和砖城的广泛修筑,羊马城逐渐退出历史舞台。后唐孟知祥曾建造成都羊马城,其城筑于清远江(今府河)与罗城之间,距罗城并不远,符合当时的筑城理论;其长度也仅约九里,只是包围罗城北墙。这一形制与当时孟知祥所面临的威胁主要来自北方密切相关。     

West Highland and Hebridean landscapes: have they a history without runrig?

This paper questions the history of runrig townships in the western Highlands and Islands of Scotland. It challenges assumptions still held about their archaism and draws attention to the fact that many townships in the region show signs of having once been enclosed. It argues that these systems of enclosure, together with evidence for a more diffused system of settlement, constitute the pre-runrig landscape and further argues that the shift into runrig did not begin until the closing years of the medieval period.     

Rudston 'Cursus A'– Engaging with a Neolithic Monument in Its Landscape Setting Using GIS

Summary. Cursus monuments are one of the most functionally enigmatic of prehistoric structures. Surrounding Rudston, East Yorkshire, a cluster of at least four cursuses converges on a bend in the Great Wold Valley. Of these monuments, Cursus A, or the ‘Woldgate Cursus’, is particularly unusual, with a curving morphology that forms a ‘dogleg’ plan. The unique shape of this structure provides an opportunity for studying cursus morphology with the aim of interpreting its function – essentially, why does the structure curve in this way? A GIS‐based approach is used which demonstrates a compelling visual relationship between the area enclosed by the cursus and the positions of two long barrows lying on its western horizon. The results of this study are considered in relation to the broader question of cursus function.     

Problems of spatial and temporal continuity of rural settlement in Ireland,A.D. 400 to 1169

In Ireland the period A.D. 400 to 1169 is characterized by an abundance of field evidence for dispersed enclosed homesteads known as ring-forts. This paper examines a number of hypotheses concerning the spatial characteristics of ring-forts in an attempt to explain puzzling discontinuities in their distributional pattern. Environmental constraints and evidence for alternative settlement forms are discussed. The significance of place-name elements in the understanding of social organization and settlement is critically examined; and attention is focused on the relationship between indigenous Irish settlement and alien settlement forms introduced at the time of the Norman conquest.     

Caught in a trap: landscape and climate implications of the insect fauna from a Roman well in Sherwood Forest

Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire is often considered a well-preserved ancient landscape, subsequently having survived by way of centuries of management as a hunting preserve. Archaeological evidence suggests otherwise, with an enclosed landscape beginning in the pre-Roman Iron Age and continuing through the Roman period. Due to the nature of the region’s soils, however, there is little empirical, palaeoecological evidence on its environmental history prior to the medieval period. This paper presents an insect fauna from a Roman well in a small enclosure in north Nottinghamshire, on the edge of Sherwood Forest, and its interpretation in terms of contemporary land use. Wells and small pools act as large pitfall traps and may effectively sample aspects of the local and regional insect fauna. The Wild Goose Cottage fauna and its environmental implications are also compared with a number of archaeologically and geographically similar contexts.     

探险旅游者认知行为及性别差异分析——以北京地区为例

近年来我国参与探险旅游（Adventure Tourism）的人数呈增长态势,“自助探险游”开始由精英旅游向大众旅游过渡。本文采取抽样调查法,对北京地区的213名探险游客进行问卷调查。通过描述统计分析、频数分析、交叉分析、无序列联表卡方检验等方法,分析了探险游客的认知行为,并对不同性别的游客认知差异进行了比较。本文认为,目前探险游客以参与休闲型探险项目为主;对远程探险旅游目的地选择呈现资源导向性;游客出游的关键影响因素分别为时间限制、安全考虑和消费水平约束;环境因素、组织者与旅游者自身为诱发安全事故的重要原因;探险游客参与活动具有自发性且依赖网络;男性与女性对探险项目的偏好与要求存在差异。     

Alabaster Beehive-Shaped Vessels from the Arabian Peninsula: Interpretations from a Comparative Study of Characteristics, Contexts and Associated Finds

This paper catalogues seventy-two vessels of one typologically distinct'beehive-shaped'form commonly found on sites in the Arabian peninsula. It shows that they are dated principally from the third century BC to the first century AD and are predominantly from burials. The majority have been found in southwest Arabia which is most probably their area of origin and many can be traced back to the Royal Tombs of'Awsan in Wadi Markha. Of interest are a pair of almost identical'double'vessels from Thaj and Mleiha in eastern Arabia and a group of'large'vessels indicating a temple context. From a study of their characteristics and contexts conclusions indicate that the original contents were tightly enclosed, of a dry or stain-free nature and that they were highly prized. The evidence together with some written sources give clues as to what these receptacles may have contained.     

CELTIC SHRINES IN CENTRAL EUROPE: A SCEPTICAL APPROACH

Summary: This paper deals with the archaeological manifestations of religious activities of the Central European Celts. Until recently, the rectangular enclosures in Central Europe ('Viereckschanzen') were considered solely as sanctuaries, though present evidence allows other interpretations of the function of these sites as well. the criteria for recognizing the wooden structures situated inside the enclosed areas as shrines are far from being unambiguous and in some cases a profane, i.e. non-religious purpose may be presumed. the questions put forward here were prompted by the find of an unusual structure in the enclosure of MšeckéŽehrovice in Bohemia.     

基于极限学习机的汉阳陵外藏坑遗址温度预测研究

作为我国首座全封闭式遗址博物馆,汉阳陵外藏坑遗址博物馆已积累超过700万条各类监测数据。然而,受限于海量数据挖掘能力,目前研究中存在监测数据利用率不足和预测模型准确率较低的问题,针对这一问题,引入大数据机器学习领域的极限学习机方法对遗址温度进行系统分析和建模预测。研究结果表明,该方法具有良好的大数据发掘和处理能力,能够有效分析温度的变化规律及特征,并对未来温度变化趋势和细节变化特征实现较为准确的预测。本方法的引入可为遗址预防性保护和管理提供参考。     

Gold Fibula,Found at Odiham,Hampshire

A cropmark complex of ring-ditches and square-plan ditches in the Vale of Clwyd, North Wales has been partially excavated. Mesolithic activity is represented predominantly by lithic waste in local cherts. A small bronze age cemetery, dated to between about 1660–1400 b.c., comprises a large and small ring-ditch and a ‘flat cemetery’ associated with Beaker inhumation burials, and by cremation burials, of which some were found with Food Vessel Urns. The larger ring-ditch was superseded by an undated rectangular enclosure with causeways at the centre of each side. An early medieval inhumation cemêtery, with associated dates of about a.d. 510 and a.d. 860, was established to one side of the larger ring-ditch. A small proportion of the graves are enclosed by square-plan ditches, two of which had a causeway at the centre of the eastern side. Generalized parallels are drawn with other sites in eastern and northern Britain and within Wales itself.     

SOME THEORETICAL PROBLEMS IN GEOMORPHOLOGY

The author takes issue with a number of theoretical issues discussed in a recent book by Yu. G. Simonov, fellow Moscow University geomorphologist. A definition of the central problem in geomorphology as encompassing the interaction between endogenic and exogenic forces is said to leave out the role played by the landforms themselves in exerting an impact on those outside agents and, through them, on surface relief itself. Spiridonov favors a systems approach to geomorphology, but questions the suitability of the term “morphosystem” proposed by Simonov as a substitute for morphosculpture, signifying the impact of exogenic processes on landforms. Surface relief should be investigated as an open system, although some simplified situations, such as an enclosed drainage system, might be studied in terms of closed systems, making possible the use of mathematical techniques. The importance of the application of formal logic in geomorphic classification is stressed, and the use of synthetic parameters is favored for purposes of landform classification.