A flock of sheep,goats and cattle: ancient DNA analysis reveals complexities of historical parchment manufacture

Parchments comprise one of the most common and valuable sources of archaeological and historical data. Previous studies have shown that parchment also preserves genetic data. These data could be valuable for population studies, to understand past animal husbandry, the development of breeds and varieties and to comment on the provenance of parchments. To improve our understanding of DNA contained in parchments, we analysed genetic data, including both mitochondrial and autosomal loci, from 18th to 19th century English parchments which stable isotope analysis had indicated were well-preserved. DNA results were unexpected. All but one of the parchments produced multiple sequences matching several different species. Ion beam analysis ruled out surface treatments of the parchments (including ink and animal glues) as the origin of these multiple sequences. Our results suggest that the DNA content of parchment is more complex than previous research has suggested and that multiple stages of parchment manufacture, treatment and storage are preserved in parchment DNA extracts.     

The composition of ‘naturally coloured’ late Roman vessel glass from Britain and the implications for models of glass production and supply

Naturally coloured, blue or green are the most common glass colours found in assemblages from the Roman world from the end of the 1st century BC onwards. In the 4th century two different compositions have come to dominate this group, ‘HIMT’ and ‘Levantine 1’ glasses, both of which are now thought to have been produced in the eastern Mediterranean. Using Romano-British glass assemblages from the 4th and 5th centuries, it is shown here that although the two naturally coloured glass types predominate, by far the most common composition in British assemblages is HIMT, although older, earlier blue-green compositions are still present. The earliest date HIMT could be identified in these assemblages is around AD 330, although two distinct compositions can be identified within this group which relate to changes in composition over time. A similar change over time is seen in the Levantine 1 glasses. The reasons for these patterns within the assemblages are explored within the archaeological evidence currently available for glass production and consumption in the Roman world.     

Admirable and delectable gardens: uiridaria in early medieval Italy

This article will chart the usage of a rare term, uiridarium, in the documents of early medieval Italy in order to explore the history of decorative or pleasure gardens between c.600–c.1000. Property documents and placita, alongside a small body of archaeobotanical evidence, suggest a significant change in the planting of cultivated spaces in Italian cities during the early Middle Ages. A few charters refer to enclosed gardens called uiridaria attached to houses of the highest‐status people in Italy: dukes, kings, emperors, and bishops. We have a glimpse of how they were used and this article makes the case that decorative gardens played a role in the urban performance of the highest echelons of power.     

Re-writing Protestant history in the novels of Glenn Patterson

This article considers the representation of the history of Belfast in Glenn Patterson's 2012 novel The Mill for Grinding Old People Young. It situates this novel within the context of Patterson's previous work and the history of the Northern Irish novel, as well as with the representation of maritime Belfast in the Titanic centenary year. This novel will be read as a recovery and rehabilitation of a Protestant history which could be problematic for Patterson, an avowedly liberal writer, but instead this context allows for an exploration of the uses of history in contemporary Northern Irish cultural and political discourse.     

“This is how I want to live my life”: An Experiment in Prefigurative Feminist Organizing for a More Equitable and Inclusive City

This paper aims to think differently about possibilities for feminist organizing in cities. We use a current experiment with city‐based feminist organizing to explore how it can be possible to work with the local state while at the same time challenging and disrupting understandings and practices that marginalize the diversity of women's needs, contributions and concerns. Trying to work “inside” the local state while maintaining an “outside” critical perspective involves a tricky balancing act between being inside enough to have credibility and effectiveness within the business of city politics and administration, and outside enough to maintain strong connections with the community and grassroots support. In managing this balancing act, we argue that the organization enacts a strategic use of prefiguration both within the organization and when engaging the local state.     

Idealists,Pragmatists and ‘Simple-Minded’ Scamps: The Tasmanian Mental Deficiency Board and State ‘Care’ in the 1920s

This article uses case files to trace the negotiations that took place in the early 1920s between officials at the Tasmanian Children of the State Department and the Mental Deficiency Board about the training and employment as farm labourers of sixteen boys in state care who were diagnosed as ‘feeble-minded’. It explores the ways in which the boys attempted to improve their work conditions through negotiation and protest, finding that the Department supported them against the Board over the need for fair treatment and wages. Australian studies of children’s protest while in state care have concentrated on girls and do not address intellectual disability or the agency of officials. This investigation addresses that historiographical gap.