Bronze Age landscape dynamics: spatially detailed pollen analysis from a ceremonial complex

The late Neolithic and early Bronze Age are periods marked by the construction of conspicuous concentrations of ‘ritual’ complexes, used for funerary rituals, seasonal gatherings and communal activities. Understanding the environmental context of monuments may provide detailed insights into relationships between the physical environment and the activities undertaken at individual monuments. Raised burial mounds (barrows) are generally assumed to have been constructed in open landscapes (the so-called ‘landscape openness’ hypothesis) thus rendering them highly visible in the surrounding landscape. This paper seeks to test to what extent vegetation (and in particular openness) around a dense concentration of barrows was actively managed, using three pollen sequences in close spatial juxtaposition to the archaeology. The local vegetation histories, supported by radiocarbon dating, demonstrate spatial differences in vegetation pattern both during the time of monument construction and use (c. 2000–1500 cal BC) and during subsequent periods. They do not support the ‘landscape openness’ hypothesis. This suggests that there is no single ‘blueprint’ for vegetation structure on and around these types of monument complexes. There is no evidence for major restructuring of the landscape during the early Bronze Age. The data describe a major transformation of the vegetation around 1500 cal BC (the Middle Bronze Age) in an area not known for archaeology of this date. This serves to emphasize the role of palaeoecology in augmenting the archaeological record of landscape re-organisation and transformation in prehistory.     

Historical context and chronology of Bronze Age land enclosure on Dartmoor,UK

The upland of Dartmoor, southwest England, is one of the flagship prehistoric landscapes within Britain owing to the excellent survival of extensive prehistoric coaxial field systems. Archaeological surveys and rescue excavations during the 1970s and 1980s did much to further the understanding of this landscape; however, much remains to be explored, in particular the chronology of enclosure, the nature of the pre-enclosure landscape and the relationship between Bronze Age communities and their environment. Reconsideration of this landscape is important, given the place it holds in our understanding of subdivision of the landscape across northwest Europe during prehistory. This paper presents new palaeoecological data recovered as part of an integrated archaeological and palaeoecological project on northeast Dartmoor. The sequences detailed here include the first dated Neolithic period palaeoenvironmental data from within the prehistoric enclosed land on the moor, providing a longer-term context for enclosure. Neolithic groups are implicated in the first establishment of heathland in the study area at around 3630–3370 cal BC. During the early Bronze Age, reestablishment of hazel scrub in the study area implies reduced use of the upland, although it is not clear whether this is local or indicative of the wider landscape. A combination of pollen and fungal spore data indicates a substantial shift to species-rich grassland with grazing animals at c.1480 cal BC in a phase that lasted 400 years. The later Bronze Age and early Iron Age are characterised by low intensity use of the upland. These data provide new chronological data for land cover change on Dartmoor and whilst they broadly confirm existing models of upland land use in later prehistory, their proximity to the standing archaeology affords a more nuanced interpretation of local change.     

Osteological and paleodietary investigation of burials from Cova de la Pastora,Alicante, Spain

We present results of osteological and isotopic analyses of human remains from Cova de la Pastora (Alcoi, Alicante, Spain) and discuss the implications in light of a new sequence of radiocarbon dates indicating that the cave was used as a burial site in the Late Neolithic (ca. 3800–3000 cal BC), Chalcolithic (ca. 3000–2500 cal BC), Bell Beaker Transition (Horizonte Campaniforme Transicional - HCT; ca. 2500–2200 cal BC) and the Bronze Age (ca. 2200–1500 cal BC). Similarities in stable isotopic values of C and N indicate little variation in subsistence between men and women, and a similar nutritional base from the Late Neolithic to the Bronze Age. This pattern of stability is augmented by evidence of trauma and disease found on numerous skulls in the collection. Since no clear associations of specific grave goods with certain individuals based on sex or age could be determined, the only suggestion of social inequality lies in the burial practice itself, where certain individuals were interred in caves while others were not.     

Climate deterioration and land-use change in the first millennium BC: perspectives from the British palynological record

Climate deterioration at around the time of the Bronze Age/Iron Age transition has for long been argued to have resulted in upland abandonment in northern and western Britain, and recent research has provided evidence that a major climate downturn from 850 cal BC caused settlement abandonment in western Europe and potentially worldwide. It is, however, unclear to what extent only ‘marginal’ sites were affected, due to the lack of any systematic attempt to view the evidence for settlement and land-use change across a range of landscape types with differing sensitivities to environmental change. This paper addresses this issue by an evaluation of 75 pollen sequences spanning the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age in Britain to assess whether climatic deterioration was sufficient to cause widespread land abandonment. The results provide no evidence for wholesale land-use change at this time; the overall picture is one of continuity of land use or even increased agricultural activity. There are, however, hints of regional variability, with a greater tendency to abandonment of upland areas in Wales, and signs of woodland regeneration in agriculturally productive areas of lowland central southern England. The latter pattern may reflect a combination of rising ground-water levels affecting local land-use in the immediate vicinity of the mires which provide the source of the pollen data, against a backdrop of regional-scale social and economic changes at the Bronze Age-Iron Age transition.     

Vegetation history at the multi-period prehistoric complex at Ballynahatty,Co. Down,Northern Ireland

Palaeoecological methods can provide an environmental context for archaeological sites, enabling the nature of past human activity to be explored from an indirect but alternative perspective. Through a palynological study of a small fen peatland located within the catchment of a multi-period prehistoric complex at Ballynahatty, Co. Down, Northern Ireland, we reconstruct the vegetation history of the area during the early prehistoric period. The pollen record reveals tentative evidence for Mesolithic activity in the area at 6410–6220 cal BC, with woodland disturbance identified during the Mesolithic–Neolithic transitional period ca. 4430–3890 cal BC. A more significant impact on the landscape is observed in the Early Neolithic from 3950 to 3700 cal BC, with an opening up of the forest and the establishment of a mixed agricultural economy. This activity precedes and continues to be evident through the Mid-Neolithic during which megalithic tombs and related burial sites were constructed at Ballynahatty. Due to chronological uncertainties and a possible hiatus in peat accumulation in the fen, the contemporary environment of the Ballynahatty timber circle complex (constructed and used ca. 3080–2490 cal BC) and henge (dating to the third millennium cal BC) cannot certainly be established. Nevertheless, the pollen record suggests that the landscape remained open through to the Bronze Age, implying a long continuity of human activity in the area. These findings support the idea that the Ballynahatty prehistoric complex was the product of a gradual and repeated restructuring of the ritual and ceremonial landscape whose significance continued to be recognised throughout the early prehistoric period.     

A multi-proxy palaeoenvironmental investigation of the findspot of an Iron Age bog body from Oldcroghan,Co. Offaly,Ireland

In 2003, the remains of an Early Iron Age bog body, known as ‘Oldcroghan Man’, were recovered during the cutting of a drainage ditch in a bog in the Irish Midlands. Only some fingernails and a withe fragment remained undisturbed in situ in the drain face, providing the sole evidence for the original position of the body. A detailed reconstruction of the depositional context of the body has been undertaken through multi-proxy analyses of a peat monolith collected at the findspot. The palynological record shows that the surrounding area was the focus of intensive human activity during the Later Bronze Age, but was largely abandoned during the Bronze Age–Iron transition in the mid-first millennium BC. In the mid-4th century BC, a bog pool developed at the site, evidenced in the stratigraphic, plant macrofossil, testate amoebae and coleopteran records. Plant macrofossil and pollen analysis of peat samples associated with the fingernails suggests that the body was deposited in this pool most likely during the 3rd century BC. The absence of carrion beetle fauna points to complete submergence of the body within the pool. Deposition occurred shortly before or around the time that the surrounding area again became the focus of woodland clearance, as seen in the extended pollen record from the peat monolith. This period corresponds to the Early Iron Age in Ireland, during which renewed cultural connections with Britain and continental Europe can be seen in the archaeological record and widespread forest clearance is recorded in pollen records from across Ireland. The palaeoenvironmental results indicate, therefore, that the demise of Oldcroghan Man took place at a pivotal time of socio-economic and perhaps political change.     

Can't find a pulse? Celtic bean (Vicia faba L.) in British prehistory

Archaeobotanical research on prehistoric crops in Britain has primarily focussed on cereals and the potential importance of alternative crops, such as pulses, has often been overlooked. This paper reviews evidence for Celtic bean (Vicia faba L.) in British prehistory, using a database of archaeobotanical assemblages from 75 sites. Celtic bean is rare in the Neolithic – Early Bronze Age and it only becomes frequent from the Middle Bronze Age (ca. 1500 cal BC) onwards, particularly in southern England. Though there is a paucity of evidence at many sites, it is suggested that this reflects a preservation bias and in some areas at least, Celtic bean formed an important element of past agricultural systems.     

Recent Excavation and Recording at the New Neolithic Rock Art Site of Vallée Aux Noirs,Buthiers (Seine‐et‐Marne,France)

Following the exceptional discovery of Neolithic engravings on a boulder at Vallée aux Noirs in the Fontainebleau forest, south of Paris, an excavation trench was opened in order to access the buried part of the decorated rock panel and explore the stratigraphic context of the artwork. A palaeosol was found two metres below the modern ground level, underneath multiple layers of sterile sandy soil forming a very compact sequence from which only one archaeological artefact was recovered – an Iron Age fibula (c.200–300 BC). Dating of the palaeosol was attempted through two different methods: AMS dates from charcoal suggest a significant span from the Early Bronze Age to the Iron Age, while two more consistent OSL dates point to formation of the palaeosol during the Late Neolithic (3500–3000 cal BC). The entire engraved rock surface (16 m²), including its buried part, was fully recorded. Four main semiotic groups were identified: a typical fifth‐millennium crook‐hafted axe with a ring, two boats with steering oars, and a central, very tall human figure dominating the composition from its 3.5‐metre height.     

Settlement and environmental history of a multilayered settlement mound in Niederröblingen (central Germany) – a multi-proxy approach

A multi-disciplinary palaeoecological approach on a sequence of dated archaeosediments was accomplished. The sediments derive from a multilayered prehistoric settlement mound in central Germany, representing the remnants of a prehistoric village. Based on the analysis of biological remains and geochemical/physical analysis of the settlement layers its environment was reconstructed. There is a trend to increasing anthropogenic activities and impact on the environment represented through a rise of indicators for productive surplus from the Early Neolithic (5300–4900 BC) until the Roman Times (400 AD). During the Early Neolithic, shifting flat settlements were situated in a locally opened landscape. The immediate surrounding of the floodplain was used by the settlers for their economic requirements (e.g. wood from the riparian forest). After a hiatus of ca. 1900 years, a multilayered settlement mount rose from Late Neolithic Times (3000 BC) to Roman Times. Since the Middle Bronze Age (approximately 1500 BC) the riparian forest was obviously replaced by agricultural fields and meadows and henceforward the hinterland used by the settlers probably grew in size. The continuing demand of wood was maintained by the acquisition of more distant sources. The onset of house constructions substituting wood by loam (wattle and daub) might be a possible societal response to this shortfall. This is reflected in the growing thickness and composition of the settlement layers, as well as in the archaeological record (e.g. tumbled wattle and daub house walls). The rising of the groundwater table and the start of severe floods of the adjacent river Helme during pre-Roman Iron Age (approx. 800–100 BC) might reflect a geomorphological response to the increased land use intensity at a regional scale.     

Palaeogeographical reconstructions of Lake Maliq (Korça Basin,Albania) between 14,000 BP and 2000 BP

Since the early 1990s, excavations of a protohistoric lakeside settlement in the Korça basin carried out by a French–Albanian archaeological team have induced geomorphological and palynological studies about the sedimentary records of Lake Maliq. These studies allow us to distinguish a series of centennial-scale high and low lake level events between 4200 and 4000 cal BP (2899–2637 BC/2843–2416 BC) and 2600 cal BP (822–671 BC), probably due to large-scale climate changes (in the Mediterranean basin). In addition, the sediment sequence also gives evidence of a millennial-scale trend of lake level rise. It appears to be an interplay between lake level rises and falls against tectonic subsidence of the basin allowing accommodation space for sediment deposition.The variations of the lake's level and the lake's surface area influenced the development and the abandonment of the nearby lakeside settlements (like the tell of Sovjan). In order to prepare an archaeological survey around the now dried up lake, we made a 3D model of the Holocene deposit from the lake including these lake level results, geomorphological mapping, excavation data, numerous core logs, AMS ¹⁴C dating and SRTM DEM data. The GIS model allowed us to propose four palaeogeographical reconstructions of the extension of Lake Maliq: around 14,000 BP, during the Mesolithic (around 9000 BP – 8781–8542 BC), the Early/Middle Bronze Age transition (around 3800 BP – 2310–2042 BC) and the Iron Age (2600 BP – 822–671 BC). A map of the thickness of the sediments above potential archaeological layers is also proposed.     

Agricultural and household activities in Vestfold,Southeast Norway,as illustrated by pollen data and the charred remains of crops and wild plants

This paper presents and interprets two data sets from Vestfold, Southeast Norway: the pollen record is from a small lake basin, isolated from the sea in Mid Mesolithic (8100–6400 cal BC), and with a record of sediment deposition up to recent time. Charred plant remains from six settlement sites ranging in date from the Late Neolithic (2400–1800 cal BC) to the Merovingian Period (cal AD 570–800). Soil from archaeological contexts that was recovered from several prehistoric settlement features (two- and three-aisled houses, a rock shelter and a pit) has also been investigated. The number and concentrations of identifiable charred macro remains are low from all features except one, but the records contribute to the interpretation of agriculture and wild plant use. Carbonised cereals dated to the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age are reported from a two-aisled house. Naked barley was the main cereal identified and a few weed seeds were found with the cereal grains. In a rock shelter nearby, cereals and seeds of flax were found, demonstrating cultivation in the Late Bronze Age. Pollen of ribwort plantain recorded in lake deposits in Nordbytjern, 0·5?km to the southwest, also indicates agricultural activity in the southern part of Vestfold during the Late Bronze Age. Archaeobotanical samples from Early Iron Age houses contained low concentrations of carbonised cereal remains, mainly hulled barley, but also wheat and oat. Seeds/fruits of weeds, plants of moist/wet habitats and grasses increase in abundance from the end of Roman Period. The high concentration of hulled barley found in a pit at the site of Ringdal 13 confirms that hulled barley was a cereal used in the Iron Age. Throughout the Iron Age, cereal pollen has a continuous curve in the Nordbytjern pollen diagram, demonstrating the significance of cereal cultivation in Vestfold. Flax was also cultivated in the vicinity of and probably processed in Nordbytjern. Large numbers of rush seeds and sedge nutlets indicate a possible involvement in basketry and cordage making and/or as animal fodder.     

A Bayesian C chronology of Early and Middle Bronze Age in Sicily. Towards an independent absolute dating

This paper proposes a Bayesian model for the ¹⁴C chronology of Sicilian Early and Middle Bronze Age, with a specific focus on the northeastern sector of the island. Building on the available ¹⁴C determinations, the model allows addressing a number of chronological questions left open in literature, making a first step towards an independent absolute chronology. The analysis put the start of the earlier part of Early Bronze Age (Capo Graziano 1-Casa Lopez phase) between 2400 and 2175 cal BC, and the end at about 1960 cal BC. The advanced stage of the same period (Capo Graziano 1-Filo Braccio phase) is likely to have started and ended around 1960 and 1730 cal BC respectively. The model indicates that the time slot with the highest posterior probability for the start of the Middle Bronze Age–Milazzese (Portella phase) is between 1490 and 1460 cal BC. This turns up to be earlier than held to date. Notably, the model enables for the first time to bracket the development of the later stage of Early Bronze (Capo Graziano 2-M. di Capo Graziano phase) between 1730 (end of Filo Braccio phase) and 1490/60 cal BC (start of Middle Bronze Age–Portella phase). The latter date is earlier than usually held for the end of Capo Graziano 2. The existence of a narrow gap between the end of the latter and the start of Middle Bronze Age-Portella phase is tentatively proposed only on stratigraphic grounds. Further, the analysis enables for the first time to pinpoint and quantify the lag that is likely to have existed between the start of those Sicilian prehistoric phases and the appearance of Late Helladic imports. The comparison with the Aegean ¹⁴C Bayesian chronology indicates that a time lag (about 45 yr) is likely to have occurred between the start of Capo Graziano 2 and of the Late Helladic period. A time lag between 20 and 70 yr is likely to have existed between the start of the Sicilian Middle Bronze Age and of the Late Helladic III. Arguments tentatively supporting the narrower interval are also discussed.     

Long-term agrarian landscapes in the Troodos foothills,Cyprus

We investigate the temporal and environmental relationships between the terraced hill slopes of Politiko-Koloiokremmos and the adjacent Bronze Age settlement of Politiko-Troullia in foothills of the Troodos Mountains, central Cyprus. Mapping of 102 stone walls on Koloiokremmos is compared with 66 walls farther afield on Cyprus to create a six-part terrace typology. Sherd counts from 174 2-m radius collection circles over approximately 20 ha on Troullia and Koloiokremmos were used to create interpolated sherd density surfaces revealing distinctly different patterns of land use for four major archaeological eras between the Cypriot Bronze Age and Medieval Period. We compared sherd density patterns according to terrace types, length, slope and vegetation cover determined by SAVI (Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index) from Ikonos and Quickbird satellite imagery.The most robust sherd patterning indicates Prehistoric Bronze Age settlement at Troullia, as confirmed by soil resistivity and excavation, and multi-period land use on Koloiokremmos immediately upslope of the village that may be associated with agricultural terracing. Scattered sherd concentrations indicate later use of this landscape as an agricultural hinterland for the Iron Age city of Tamassos. Sherds and a down slope spread of roof tiles from the Roman through Medieval periods suggest an isolated structure near the crest of Koloiokremmos. Longer terraces correlate with greater vegetation cover and are interpreted as agricultural, while shorter terraces, apparently for erosion control and arboriculture, are significantly related to Prehistoric Bronze Age sherd patterns. Our results suggest that coordinated analysis of archaeological, geographical and remotely sensed environmental data associated with terraced landscapes can be used to infer long-term patterns of agricultural land use.     

Mid- to late-Holocene vegetational and land-use change in the Hadrian's Wall region: a radiocarbon-dated pollen sequence from Crag Lough,Northumberland, England

Pollen, charcoal and sedimentological analyses of a radiocarbon-dated sediment sequence from Crag Lough, by Hadrian's Wall, northern England, are used to reconstruct vegetational and land-use change since ca. 3000 cal BC. Clearance of Quercus and Corylus avellana woodland began at ca. 2600 cal BC, followed by a substantial decline of Alnus glutinosa and spread of Calluna vulgaris at ca. 400 cal BC. Local cereal cultivation occurred sporadically from ca. 2200 cal BC, with a decline (perhaps associated with climatic deterioration) at ca. 900 cal BC, then an increase at ca. 600 cal BC. Secale cereale was grown in the area from approximately the first to fifth centuries AD, followed by a second phase from ca. AD 1250–1700, when it was accompanied by Cannabis sativa.The sequence is interpreted in the light of the archaeological record, particularly in relation to the impact of Roman military activity in the area. The most significant episodes of woodland clearance occurred in the late Neolithic/early Bronze Age period and then in the middle Iron Age, creating a patchwork of woodland, heather moorland, pasture and arable land by the Roman period. The main changes in the Roman period were a decline in the extent of Betula woodland and perhaps the local introduction of Secale cereale cultivation. Local land management practices involving fire seem to have been suspended in the Roman period, but resumed afterwards. The end of the Roman period may have been accompanied by a shift towards pastoral land-use and abandonment of less favourable agricultural land, but the effect was minor compared to that at other sites in the region. Later shifts in land use may relate to climate variability, as reconstructed from several mires in northern England.     

Stable isotope dietary analysis of prehistoric populations from the Minusinsk Basin,Southern Siberia,Russia: a new chronological framework for the introduction of millet to the eastern Eurasian steppe

We report the results of stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of 354 human and faunal samples from five archaeological cultures of the Minusinsk Basin, Southern Siberia – Afanasyevo, Okunevo, Andronovo, Karasuk and Tagar (ca. 2700–1 BC) – a key location in Eurasia due to its position on a northern corridor linking China and central Eurasia. The results indicate that the diet of Eneolithic to Middle Bronze Age (Afanasyevo to Andronovo) populations was primarily C₃-based, with C₄ plants only becoming an important component of the diet in the Late Bronze Age Karasuk and Early Iron Age Tagar cultures. Freshwater fish seems to have been an important constituent of the diets in all groups. The findings constitute the earliest concrete evidence for the substantial use of millet in the eastern Eurasian steppe. We propose that it was probably introduced from Northwestern China during the Karasuk culture at the start of the Late Bronze Age, ca. 1500 BC. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for the nature of pastoralist economies on the steppes.     

Palaeolimnological impacts of early prehistoric farming at Lough Dargan,County Sligo,Ireland

This study provides a unique method of inquiry for archaeological investigation with an aim to assess the intensity and effects of Neolithic and Bronze Age farming practices at Lough Dargan, northwest Ireland, through a multi-proxy analysis of a lake sediment core. Chironomid (non-biting midge fly) subfossils and lake sediment geochemistry (δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N and C:N ratios) were used to assess changes in limnological conditions through time. The limnological data were compared with macroscopic charcoal concentration and pollen data to examine the potential influence that early farmers had on a freshwater lake system within a prehistorically active catchment. Results from the chironomid analysis show that the first substantial period of agricultural activity in the early Neolithic (c. 3730–3190 BC) resulted in a temporary shift to more eutrophic lake conditions. There is evidence of animal husbandry with substantial levels of animal waste reaching the lake, leaving an imprint in the geochemical record of increased δ¹⁵N values and decreased δ¹³C values and C:N ratios during this time. The chironomid community reverted back to its pre-impacted state c. 3190 BC in response to a period of reduced farming (c. 3390–3000 BC) which eventually led to a distinct lull in activity, with possible cessation of farming from 3000 to 2700 BC. A return to eutrophic conditions coincided with the gradual return of agriculture, with more permanently altered lake conditions dominating from 2400 BC, even during a 250-year period of reduced human activity commencing at c. 1440 BC. Increased sedimentation rate, along with increases in δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N and C:N, the presence of chironomid taxa indicative of erosion, more eutrophic lake conditions and high concentrations of macroscopic charcoal all point to more intensive land use practices during the Bronze Age. Palaeolimnological data exhibited an immediate response to intensified farming during this time, and were especially responsive to pastoral farming due either to scale of activity or proximity to the lakeside. The success of this study demonstrates the effectiveness of palaeolimnological analysis in the investigation of prehistoric farming. This approach will help inform Neolithic and Bronze Age land-use practice and human–environment relations in the region, and highlights the potential for chironomid-based archaeological research.     

Dynamics of pioneer colonisation in the Early Iron Age in the Duero basin (Central Iberia,Spain): Integrating archaeological and palynological records

Abstract

This study addresses the earliest strategies of permanent occupation in the mountainous regions bordering Northern Meseta in inland Iberia. This piece of work gathers together and discusses archaeological information about settlement in the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age and previously published high-resolution palynological cores from three study areas. Its major goal is to assess both archaeological and pollen records in order to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of occupation and transformation of these upland settings. Until cal 700 BC there are no clear signs of permanence in the highlands surrounding the Duero basin, but from that point onwards various initiatives of small-scale spontaneous colonisation have been identified. Colonisation in the Iron Age involved pastoralism, cereal agriculture and a significant use of forestry resources, causing a major anthropogenic impact with irreversible consequences. The outlined account constitutes the first synthetic overview at a macro-regional scale on the beginnings of the integrated and diversified strategies implemented in these upland regions.     

The Bronze Age landscape of the Bjäre peninsula,southern Sweden,and its relationship to burial mounds

Palaeoecological analyses from a small fen deposit, combined with pollen analysis from buried soil profiles under prehistoric burial mounds, have been used to investigate the timing and vegetation change associated with the Holocene development of a cultural landscape in southern Sweden. Traditional pollen analysis is complemented with plant macrofossil analysis and soil pollen analysis from within and in close proximity to the burial mounds in the coastal Bjäre peninsula, well known for its high density of well-preserved Bronze Age monuments. The vegetation development is linked to the construction of the burial mounds. A marked increase of cultural impact on the landscape is recorded during the Neolithic–Bronze Age transition and estimates of landscape openness suggest that by the onset of the Bronze Age, forest cover was only 20–40%, falling to 10% in the immediate vicinity of the burial mounds themselves. The coastal strip appears to have been affected by human activity to a greater extent and at an earlier date than sites from further inland in southern Sweden and the Bronze Age burial mounds were most likely designed to be visible in a largely deforested landscape.     

Fields,Ritual and Religion: Holistic Approaches to the Rural Landscape in Long‐Term Perspective (c.1500 BC–AD 1086)

This paper discusses the relationship between agricultural activity and ritualized/religious practices in England from the middle Bronze Age to the early medieval period (c.1500 BC–AD 1086). It is written in the context of the ERC‐funded, Oxford‐based ‘English Landscapes and Identities project’ (EngLaId), which involved the compilation of an extensive spatial database of archaeological ‘monuments’, finds and other related data to chart change and continuity during this period. Drawing on this database alongside documentary and onomastic evidence, we analyze the changing relationship between fields, ritual and religion in England. We identify four moments of change, around the start of the middle Bronze Age (c.1500 BC), in the late Bronze Age (c.1150 BC), the late Iron Age (c.150 BC) and the middle/late Anglo‐Saxon period (c.800 AD). However, despite changes in both agricultural and ritual/religious practices during this extensive timeframe, a clear link between them can be observed throughout.     

Exchange patterns,boundary formation,and sociopolitical change in Late Bronze Age Southern Caucasia: preliminary results from a pottery provenance study in northwestern Armenia

In the South Caucasus—roughly the territory of today's Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan—the transition from the Middle Bronze Age (MBA) to the Late Bronze Age (LBA) is equated with fundamental shifts in settlement patterns, subsistence economy, and political strategies. During the mid-2nd millennium BC, nomadic pastoral societies that had dominated the region began to settle down and construct stone fortresses along the foothills of the Lesser Caucasus; these fortifications largely replaced the expansive and often opulently adorned kurgan burials as the most prominent expression of political dominance on the landscape. After a decade of intensive archaeological study at various fortifications, very little remains known about the political and economic relationships among fortresses on a regional scale that might improve our understanding of the roots of these sociopolitical transformations. In this paper, we highlight the results of a recent neutron activation analysis (NAA) of ceramics from elite and non-elite contexts at a selection of LBA fortresses on the Tsaghkahovit Plain in northwestern Armenia, and offer some preliminary interpretations about political and economic organization and boundary formation. Most strikingly, the NAA data suggest that the fortresses on the Tsaghkahovit Plain appear to have isolated themselves economically from surrounding valleys, perhaps in an attempt to forge boundaries and legitimating ideologies attendant to new political formations that were quite distinct from their nomadic predecessors in the MBA.