Theatre of Power: The Anglo-Norman Park at Earlspark,Co Galway,Ireland

Abstract

THIS PAPER EXAMINES the archaeological and historical evidence for a 13th-century park at Earlspark, Loughrea, Co Galway. This is the first detailed study of an Irish Anglo-Norman-period park to be published, and the site, which lies c 2 km south-east of the town of Loughrea, is exceptionally well preserved. It is documented in 1333, along with its deer, and field survey in the area has identified the park, which is defined by a mortared stone wall extending for 7.4 km and standing up to 2.6 m in height.     

The unification of archaeological sites of Athens: The birth of an archaeological park?

Abstract

Recently, there has been a growing trend to present archaeological resources in the form of archaeological parks. These are an innovative way of presenting vast archaeological sites that contain a number of monuments, as a single entity, using components of the environment as interpretation features and creating an ‘invented’ integrity of the landscape. Even though the overall concept of an archaeological park emerged in Scandinavia at least three decades ago, only recently has it taken on a wider character and been applied to a variety of archaeological sites. But no clear criteria exist for them.

The current project of the Unification of the Archaeological Sites of Athens involves creating an archaeological park that includes most features considered essential for a park of this kind. However, the special characteristics of Athens (the over-built urban landscape, environmental pollution, and the mystical relationship between the ancient and modern cities), give the future park a rather individual character.     

Animal Resource Exploitation among the Virgin River Puebloans in the American Southwest

Abstract

A review of the literature documenting faunal remains recovered from 16 archaeological sites attributed to the Virjin River Puebloan (VRP) tradition (ca. 300 B.C.–A.D. 1200) of the American Southwest was conducted to identify the importance of wild animal resources to the subsistence strategy. The Number of Individual Specimens (NISP) was counted (NISP = 16,386) and sorted by taxa and animal size categories to explore differences in the distributions of faunal remains by archaeological recovery strategy, site type, physiographic location, and chronology. The most significant factor in the differential use of animal resources among the VRPs was physiographic location. Desert lowland sites had greater species diversity. Sites in the intermediate St. George Basin had more large mammals such as deer, and sites located on the higher plateau had more small mammals such as lagomorphs. These results indicate that the subsistence strategy varied across diverse environmental conditions, but animal resources were always an integral part of the VRP adaptation until their abandonment of the region in the early 13th century A.D.     

Excavations on the Site of the Tudor Manor House at Micheldever,Hampshire

Abstract

Trial excavations prior to building development on the site of Thomas Wriothesley’s important manor house built about 1537 suggest a continuous succession of large houses on the site from the 14th century to the 18th. The earliest structures may represent a country retreat for the Abbots of Hyde.     

Insane Innocents: Mad Children in Benedict of Peterborough’S Miracula Sancti Thomae Cantuariensis 1

Abstract

This article discusses the setting up and operation of the Kingston Local History Project, emphasizing, in this process, the active co-operation between Kingston University and the local community. The Project aims to construct a comprehensive database on the people of Kingston between I850 and I900 and to subject the data collected to rigorous analysis. This will provide an extensive longitudinal socio-economic profile of an important market town in transition and, via techniques of record linkage, details of the life-cycles of thousands of Kingstonians. The core of the database is the decennial census enumerators’ books I85I-I89I, plus details from other sources, including parish registers and cemetery records. Data on female domestic service are then analysed to demonstrate how the database enables some important research questions to be tackled.     

Building Non-Commercial Soil-Separation Equipment

Abstract

Because of the scarcity of printed information on building equipment for archaeological excavations, this paper provides instructions and plans to build the basic equipment required, using standard-size and readily available lumber and hardware.     

Excavations at Bishop's Street Without: 17th Century Conflict Archaeology in Derry City

Abstract

Excavations on this site, undertaken by Paul Logue for EHS: Built Heritage DOE: NI, produced evidence for at least two phases of occupation outside Bishop's Gate, Londonderry during the 17th century. This occupation came to an end with a phase of activity dated to the commencement of the Jacobite siege in A.D. 1689. Further evidence of that siege was uncovered in the form of a ravelin ditch 2.8 m wide and 0.57 m in depth, constructed in early 1689 to front Bishop's Gate. The extant remains of a sally port interrupted the ditch. A nearby larger ditch, scarped from the sloping ground outside Double Bastion, measured a maximum of 8.4 m in width and 1.4 m in depth. This larger ditch may have been part of efforts to improve the City defences in the wake of the 1641 rebellion. Further evidence of conflict archaeology was recovered in the form of lead shot, weapon furniture and flint gunspalls.     

Thirty-Second Annual Meeting,Evesham, 1875

Abstract

This paper considers the sculpted capitals in Wells cathedral. Although integral to the early Gothic fabric, they have hitherto eluded close examination as either a component of the building or as an important cycle of ecclesiastical imagery in their own right. Consideration of the archaeological evidence suggests that the capitals were introduced mid-way through the building campaigns and were likely the products of the cathedral's masons rather than part of an original scheme for the cathedral as a whole. Possible sources for the images are considered. The distribution of the capitals in lay and clerical spaces of the cathedral leads to discussion of how the imagery might have been meaningful to different audiences on either side of the choir screen.     

The Wortley Park Poachers and the Outbreak of the English Civil War

Abstract

On the eve of the Civil War, Sir Francis Wortley's deer park near Sheffield attracted the persistent attention of well armed plebeian poachers. The killing of Wortley's deer was an act of defiance that slighted his honour. His reputation was further undermined by the verbal abuse of several yeoman, prompting him into defending his reputation in the West Riding Quarter Sessions and the High Court of Chivalry. An examination of this litigation leads into a discussion of Sir Francis's concept of honour, distrust of popular politics and identification with the ideology of Charles I's personal rule. A micro-history approach to Sir Francis and his poacher enemies addresses the historiographical debate over whether deference or defiance defined plebeian attitudes to the ruling elite. It also impacts upon the formation of popular allegiance at the outbreak of civil war, and Wortley's brief notoriety as a national figure when he drew his sword for the King at York on 30 April 1642.     

Sasanian period drop-tower gristmills on the Deh Luran Plain,southwestern Iran

Abstract

The nature of the Deh Luran gristmill system is described, and archaeological and ethnohistorical observations provide insights into ancient rural technology, economics, and socio-politics. Optically Scanned Luminescence, ceramics, and other archaeological associations, date the Deh Luran gristmills to the Sasanian period (A.D. 225–700). A Middle East/Mediterranean origin as early as 250 B.C. is suggested for the drop-tower side-shot water wheel technology used.

The Deh Luran gristmill technology was well adapted to the topography and limited, variable water supply. Currently farmed lands, and their productivity, are found to be far less than projected grain surpluses for an expanding Sasanian Empire in Deh Luran. Population estimates based on gristmill productivity contradict those from archaeological data. Data suggest that Deh Luran, and similar rural areas, were relatively autonomous.     

The rock art of the Côa valley,Portugal: Significance,conservation and management

Abstract

The Côa river valley is the largest open-air Palaeolithic art site currently known. Some 150 decorated panels have already been found, spread along 17km. The whole complex would have been submerged under 100m of water if construction of the large Foz Côa dam, begun in 1992, had been allowed to continue. The dam project was halted in 1995 and a 200km² archaeological park is being established in this area, which is now legally protected at the highest level as a National Monument. Public access to selected sites is organized through four-wheel drive. tours of groups of eight people accompanied by guides appropriately trained in archaeology and rock art studies. Visitor Centres have been set up in restored traditional houses located in the villages around the periphery of the park. A Museum of Rock Art and Archaeology and associated research facilities is to be established at the site of the now abandoned dam.     

Prehistoric Survey in Central Afghanistan

Abstract

In August of 1976 the authors made an initial archaeological survey of the Dasht-i-Nawur, a highland volcanic-tectonic basin in Central Afghanistan. Two Epi-Paleolithic surface sites and one later hill fortification of uncertain date were discovered and investigated. An outstanding feature of the Epi-Paleolithic sites was that the source of virtually the entire tool industry was a locally available obsidian, a material that has not been found before in archaeological context in Afghanistan or nearby regions. The Dasht-i-Nawur, therefore, must be added to the short list of obsidian sources in Southwest Asia.     

The Changing Vernacular: archaeological excavations at Temple End,High Wycombe,Buckinghamshire

Abstract

Excavations beneath and around the late Georgian Glinester House at Temple End, in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, revealed the presence of at least three major phases of building. Dating from the 16th century these structures appear to be a succession of farmhouses lying at the centre of wider farm complexes. While these buildings are located within the former lands of Temple Manor, from which the area and farm name derives, no evidence of a medieval manor complex was located within the excavation area. Rather the pattern of development is more indicative of wider transformations in vernacular housing and domestic life between the 16th and 19th centuries.     

Recently Discovered Remains of a Roman Bridge in the River Trent

Abstract

The early Donjon at Langeais is among the best-known early medieval buildings in Europe, but has not been systematically studied; this paper is based on a stone-by-stone record and archaeological analysis of the standing building, and presents an interpretation of its structural and functional history. Three major structural phases have been identified. Most of what remains is original (Phase I); the ruin can be reconstructed as a main block of two floors with two tower-like attachments to the east side, probably linked by a gallery. A date of c. 1000 is proposed, but does not allow definite attribution to Fulk Nerra. Considerations of comfort and convenience were more important to the original design than security, although the building had some defensive capacity, and could have been incorporated in a walled circuit; it may have been an entire residence of a type ancestral to the mature multi-storeyed residential donjon, or have been included in an assemblage of low-level buildings, representing an alternative form of domestic planning. In the later 11th or early 12th century (Phase II), the annexes were reduced and the building deprived of any defensive character by the insertion of ground-floor doorways. The 15th century saw the demolition of the west wall, followed by consolidation of the remains, and other modifications (Phases IIIa, IIIb and IIIc). A combination of archaeological observation, recording, remote sensing and historical research shows that the fortified area extended at least to c.200 m west of the donjon in the 11th century, and contained a collegiate chapel.     

Geophysical and Aerial Prospecting Techniques at Valley Forge National Historical Park,Pennsylvania

Abstract

A survey of Valley Forge National Historical Park was carried out by MASCA in 1978 for the National Park Service utilizing, among other techniques, aerial photography, the cesium magnetometer, and ground penetrating radar. The aim of the project was to locate evidence of the encampment of 1777–78 using for the most part non-destructive methods. Hut sites and offal pits dating from the Revolutionary War period were identified and a comprehensive survey of previous archaeological work at Valley Forge was carried out. A major problem in interpreting the data from the various techniques employed was the amount of modern disturbance at the park, mostly dating from the three Boy Scout Jamborees held there in 1950, 1957, and 1964. Despite these problems valuable information about the Revolutionary War remains was recovered, and a comprehensive plan for future research was formulated.     

Evidence for variability among squash seeds from the Hoxie site (11CK4), Illinois

Uncarbonized Cucurbita pepo L. (squash) seed coats were recovered from the base of a fortification ditch in water-saturated contexts at the Hoxie Farm site (11CK4) in northeastern Illinois. A direct date on one specimen indicated association with the Huber phase occupation, or about 1600 A.D. Sizes were highly variable, suggesting the presence of two or more squash varieties. To explore that possibility, length and width measurements were obtained for 21 specimens. A simple hierarchical cluster analysis revealed the presence of three distinct seed size groups. The two smaller conform to sizes displayed by modern varieties of subspecies ovifera which is the type domesticated in North America. Sizes for the third group of large seeds fall outside the range of any modern subspecies ovifera and within the range for the Mexican domesticate subspecies pepo. Similar large sized seeds first appear in the archaeological record from the Midwest during the Late Mississippian times. The potential for long-term prehistoric cultivation of two distinct lineages in the Midwest, and problems inherent in the scenario are discussed.     

Archaeological Watching Brief and Metal Detector Survey at Gill House Farm,Long Marston,North Yorkshire

Abstract

On 5 August 2005 Tim Sutherland carried out an archaeological watching brief during trenching for the foundations of a new barn by contractors acting on behalf of Mr P Barnitt, of Gill House Farm, Long Marston, York (NGR SE 449450 451750). Prior to this work, on 24 July, 2005 a metal detector survey was conducted over the same piece of land in order to assess whether or not any metal artefacts from the battle of Marston Moor, which took place in this location, could be located within the topsoil. No archaeological features were present. A total of 88 artefacts were recorded during the metal detector survey, 26 of which were lead shot. The survey confirmed that part of the battle of Marston Moor (1644) took place on the ground disturbed by the development of the barn.     

The Concepts of imitatio and translatio: Perceptions of a Viking‐Age Past

The author presents the results of excavations at Mare Church, North Tr?ndelag. Medieval sources indicate that Mære was the religious centre for Inner Tr?ndelag in pre‐Christian times. It was also the place where the first church (shire church) in Sparbyggjafylke was erected. At Mære if anywhere, therefore, it should be possible to test archaeologically the theory about cult continuity from pagan to Christian times.

Under the present church, which dates from the end of the twelfth century, the remains of an early wooden church surrounded by a churchyard were found, together with vestiges of at least two buildings from pre‐Christian times. On the evidence of loose finds, the oldest of these can be dated to the Migration Period (c. A.D. 500). A series of gold plaquettes were found associated with the later of the two buildings. This find is interpreted by the author as indicating that the building may have been a pagan cult building.     

Mata'uvave and 15th Century Ha'apai: Narrative accounts and historical landscapes in the interpretation of classical tongan history

Abstract

Mata'uvave is a minor chiefly title from the northern Ha'apai Islands, Kingdom of Tonga. Traditional Tongan history, however, suggests this chief held a pivotal role in the assertion of political authority over this region by Tu'i Tonga Kau'ulufonuafekai in the mid‐15th century A.D. Published narratives and genealogies, recently collected oral accounts, place names, and archaeological sites, provide a basis from which this history is interpreted. These sources reveal much about the events and socio‐political processes of pre‐contact chiefly polity in Tonga. The account of Mata'uvave further illustrates the potential of historical landscapes as a supplementary order of data for traditional history in general. Through construction of monumental archaeological sites and through commemoration of associated activities in place names, Mata'uvave transcribed himself onto the cartography of northern Ha'apai. This landscape composes a mnemonic index by which oral accounts may be accessed and evaluated.     

Archaeological Investigations at Swalwell Ironworks,Tyne and Wear

Abstract

A programme of archaeological investigations was undertaken at Sands Road, Swalwell in Gateshead to examine part of the Swalwell Ironworks founded by Ambrose Crowley in 1707, ahead of the redevelopment of the site as a supermarket. The well-preserved sub-surface remains of buildings dating from the earliest phase of the ironworks were revealed including the eastern part of the Grand Warehouse, constructed by 1713, which was divided into two parts by an undercover keel dock, with the eastern portion functioning as a wharf building for keels to load and unload goods. The combined archaeological, documentary and cartographic evidence demonstrated that this building had been used until the latter part of the 20th century and had been subject to a series of modifi cations throughout the life of the ironworks and during subsequent activity at the site. Also revealed was a forge building, parts of which dated back to the earliest phase of the ironworks, although this building had evidently been subject to many phases of alteration, repair and rebuilding. Within the forge was a chimney dated to the second half of the 19th century by stamped fi rebricks. Archaeometallurgical analysis of slags from within the chimney suggested that this was from a puddling furnace. Comprehensive historical research was also undertaken and this revealed a very rich documentary and cartographic archive, which generally corresponded very well with the archaeological remains.