The Visigoth settlement in the Iberian Peninsula and its relationship with the archaeological record of the 5th-6th centuries AD continues to be one of the most controversial issues in Spanish archaeology. The controversy relates to politics as much as it relates to archaeological research with two points remaining particularly controversial: the alleged use of the Visigoth past by the Francoist intelligentsia as an ideological affirmation of the regime and the contribution of archaeologist Julio Martinez Santa-Olalla in supporting and enabling this re-interpretation of Visigothic archaeology. The purely archaeological aspect of the controversy relates to an archaeological interpretation, stemming from the ranks of the so-called New Archeology, of the Castilian necropoleis containing grave goods of Pontic-Danubian type. This interpretation places special emphasis on social and cultural phenomena above the ethnic criteria defended by the Vienna School. This volume approaches the ideological question that underlies these controversies, as well as their repercussions in the direction adopted by later archaeological investigations in relation to the history of Spain. The author attempts to deconstruct the work of Martinez Santa-Olalla and places it in the context of the scientific production of his time. At the same time, it relativizes the role played by the Visigoth period in the Francoist ideological construction. Once the discussion is framed in these terms, the author dedicates his study to a refutation of the cultural interpretation of the phenomenon of the Visigothic necropoleis of the Castilian plateau based on the archaeological data and by comparing this data with literary sources. The study also addresses two other historical problems that could be related to the Gothic settlement in the Castilian plateau: the creation of the bishopric of Segovia and the flourishing of the city of Toledo. | El asentamiento visigodo en la Peninsula Iberica y su relacion con el registro arqueologico de los siglos V-VI d.C. continua siendo en la actualidad una de las cuestiones mas controvertidas de la arqueologia espanola. Gran parte de esa controversia tiene que ver con aspectos que trascienden a la propia investigacion arqueologica y nos situan en el plano de la politica. Asi, a la hora de abordar el problema hay dos puntos que han resultado especialmente polemicos: la presunta utilizacion del pasado visigodo por parte de la intelectualidad franquista como afirmacion ideologica del regimen y la contribucion del arqueologo burgales Julio Martinez Santa-Olalla en la fijacion del esquema de arqueologia visigoda. Por otro lado, el aspecto puramente arqueologico de la controversia tiene que ver con la interpretacion que desde las filas de la denominada New Archaeology se viene realizando de las necropolis castellanas con ajuares de tipo pontico-danubiano. Dicha interpretacion hace especial hincapie en fenomenos sociales y culturales por encima de los criterios etnicos defendidos por la Escuela de Viena. El presente estudio aborda de forma lucida la cuestion ideologica que subyace detras de la polemica, asi como las repercusiones que ha tenido en la posterior direccion adoptada por la investigacion arqueologica en relacion con la propia historia de Espana. En este sentido, el autor realiza un ejercicio de deconstruccion de la figura de Martinez Santa-Olalla y lo situa en el contexto de la produccion cientifica de su epoca. Al mismo tiempo, relativiza el papel desempenado por el periodo visigodo en la construccion ideologica franquista. Una vez situada la discusion en estos terminos, el autor dedica su estudio a una refutacion de la interpretacion en clave cultural del fenomeno de las necropolis visigodas de la meseta castellana desde los propios datos arqueologicos y a partir del cotejo de estos datos con los testimonios que proporcionan las fuentes literarias. Ademas, el presente estudio aborda tambien otros dos problemas historicos que podrian estar relacionados con el asentamiento godo en la meseta castellana: la creacion de la sede episcopal segoviana y el auge de la ciudad de Toledo.

Tra Esino e San Vicino offre una lettura completamente nuova dell'architettura religiosa che, a cavallo tra il romanico e il gotico, si afferma al centro delle Marche, in un'area denominata Valle di S. Clemente. Qui, a partire dall'XI secolo, si assiste ad una straordinaria fioritura di insediamenti costituiti da abbazie, eremi, pievi, di cui spesso si conservano le strutture piu antiche, la maggior parte ancora leggibili nella loro stratigrafia. Attraverso un'analisi dettagliata delle strutture murarie, condotta secondo i piu moderni criteri metodologici dell'archeologia dell'architettura, e una rilettura critica delle fonti scritte, e stato possibile ricostruire le diverse fasi edilizie che hanno segnato la storia delle chiese esaminate, attestante le trasformazioni subite nel tempo a causa delle mutate esigenze liturgiche e dei frequenti eventi distruttivi. Sono cosi riemerse le articolate configurazioni architettonico-liturgiche di alcuni tra i piu importanti edifici religiosi dell'Italia centrale, a cominciare dalla cripta di S. Salvatore di Valdicastro, prima tomba di S. Romualdo, di cui e stato possibile recuperare il "funzionamento" liturgico, fino ad alcune strutture complesse ed estremamente rare - ma non inedite nel panorama architettonico marchigiano - di cui la documentazione scritta non porta traccia, come i matronei di S. Elena all'Esino o i balconi interni di S. Urbano e S. Elena all'Esino. Inoltre, la rielaborazione della documentazione raccolta esaminando le strutture sopraelevate ha permesso di produrre una classificazione delle tecniche murarie e delle tipologie di aperture, organizzate nei relativi atlanti. In questo modo e stato possibile mappare il percorso di alcune maestranze edili, e piu in generale e stato possibile determinarne i caratteri specifici e stabilirne la circolazione, che ha fatto emergere il ruolo determinante di alcuni 'magistri' e delle relative officine nell'elaborazione del paesaggio architettonico di questo territorio.

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER & THE TIMES HISTORY BOOK OF 2021 'Astonishing and compelling' Bernard Cornwell 'This superb book is like a classical symphony, perfectly composed and exquisitely performed' THE TIMES Books of the Year Follow bioarchaeologist Cat Jarman - and the cutting-edge forensic techniques central to her research - as she uncovers epic stories of the Viking age and follows a small 'Carnelian' bead found in a Viking grave in Derbyshire to its origins thousands of miles to the east in Gujarat. 'This superb book is like a classical symphony, perfectly composed and exquisitely performed' THE TIMES Books of the Year Dr Cat Jarman is a bioarchaeologist, specialising in forensic techniques to research the paths of Vikings who came to rest in British soil. By examining teeth that are now over one thousand years old, she can determine childhood diet, and thereby where a person was likely born. With radiocarbon dating, she can ascertain a death date down to the range of a few years. And her research offers new visions of the likely roles of women and children in Viking culture. In 2017, a carnelian bead came into her temporary possession. River Kings sees her trace its path back to eighth-century Baghdad and India, discovering along the way that the Vikings' route was far more varied than we might think, that with them came people from the Middle East, not just Scandinavia, and that the reason for this unexpected integration between the Eastern and Western worlds may well have been a slave trade running through the Silk Road, and all the way to Britain. Told as a riveting story of the Vikings and the methods we use to understand them, this is a major reassessment of the fierce, often-mythologised voyagers of the north, and of the global medieval world as we know it.

Tres usurpadores godos es un estudio sobre tres famosas usurpaciones de epoca visigoda. Se analiza en primer lugar la naturaleza del levantamiento del principe Hermenegildo (579-585), la guerra civil y el complejo contexto politico del momento, asi como las importantes implicaciones que se derivaron del conflicto. El segundo estudio aborda la rebelion del duque Argimundo a comienzos del reinado de Recaredo y las consecuencias que esta tuvo en el recien conquistado reino suevo. Destacado miembro del Aula Regia y dux prouinciae, Argimundus inicio una rebelion en la provincia Gallaecia que pudo haber arruinado la obra politica construida por Leovigildo y Recaredo. Por ultimo, se analiza la figura del duque Theudemirus, uno de los grandes magnates del reino de Toledo de finales del siglo VII, su actuacion dentro de la complicada situacion politica visigoda y el papel que desempeno en la transmision del poder entre visigodos y arabes a la caida del reino de Toledo.

The qsar corresponds to a type of human settlement widely distributed in the Sahara desert, including many examples located today in southern Morocco, southern Algeria, southern Tunisia, Libya, Mauritania and Mali. This architectural model is characterised by its use over a wide-ranging time span - probably since the early first millennium BC according to ancient structures recorded by the archaeologist Mattingly in the Libyan Fazzan. This volume, through the systematic analysis and comparison of some qsur of southeastern Algeria (Rig, Mzab, Miya and al-Mani'a), reveals common architectural features that can be used to identify a common type of qsar in this region. The analysis of the construction material shows the primary use of limestone with a local mortar (timchent) and date palm trunks (phoenix dactylifera) for the structural elements (ceilings, doors, arcs, domes). Adobe bricks (tub) are used in the housing and the defence systems punctuated by towers and pierced doors. Despite a discontinuity within the historical narrative, the establishment of populations in this area of the Sahara appears to be much earlier than the medieval period and the qsar is certainly not a creation ex nihilo of the modern era. Because of their numerous modifications and extensions over several centuries, the qsur problematise the dating of such settlements. However, the comparison of its main components encourages the development of a typology to identify some common characteristics that would help position the qsar among the urban planning of the dar al-islam.

The island of Sant' Andrea, situated on the road that since ancient times has linked the Adige Valley with the Lake Garda, once rose impressively from the green expanse of water, but now is a small hump on the edge of a vast marshy basin. Fifteen centuries ago it was the fortified seat of a contingent of soldiers and their families. In 1998, after a long series of sporadic discoveries that started way back in the 19th century, the Archeaology Section of the Rovereto Civic Museum began a research and study project that involved a series of summer excavations, that brought to light a multi-layered archeological site with finds ranging from the prehistoric age to late antiquity, medieval times and right through to even the First World War. Along the northeastern side and the southern edge of the island the remains have been found of some buildings that can be traced to a fortified settlement and on the top part of the hump the remains of a Romanesque church have been investigated. The buildings that made up the settlement illustrate a complex series of construction periods; so far these have been dated between the 5th and 7th centuries. Numerous examples of armoury and military clothing have been found in the settlement area and this clearly suggests the military function of the site. The volume is devoted to the results of the research in the castrum: A general overview of the site is followed by a part devoted to periodization and stratigraphic analysis of the dig; then there is a large section that includes contributions on the small finds; the fourth part contains some concluding remarks.

The central theme The Ubaldini and the City is the classic confrontation between feudal society and a resurgent urban form as the central instrument of organisation of European society, which is crucial to the origins of Europe as we know it today. The analysis starts from a reconstruction of the historical role played by the Ubaldini on the basis of a critical reconsideration of the available documentary evidence, and the results appear to be perfectly consistent with the general pattern for the Florentine aristocracy. The theme is one of 'boundaries': between historical and archaeological evidence, between the late Middle Ages and the birth of modernity; it concerns space with the establishment of new 'borders' which evolve from Terra Nuova and become completely territorial. The book takes as its subject a turning point in the history of the late Middle Ages on the threshold of the modern world: the crisis and collapse of the traditional feudal and rural world and the emergence of new territorial states based on the cities.

This book presents the study of pottery in two medieval contexts, Pisa (a city) and San Genesio (a central rural settlement in the Arno Valley). The research focusses on specific issues observed in the two contexts, like characters of production (type of workshops, technological characteristics and characterization of ceramic bodies), specialization of pottery and circulation of the products; characters of consumption (similarities and differences in the composition of the pottery equipment and their modification); the role of social-economic indicator of some pottery classes to verify how much and when imported products from the Mediterranean were considered luxury items, if some types of local or regional pottery could have the same role, if the consumer wealth could be reflected in the specialization of ceramic forms used on the table and in the kitchen, if the desire to emulate aristocracy could be read even in the use of particular forms or pottery equipment; movement to understand in what way (whether by land or water), by what means and by what logic (market, pay census, barter) the pottery would move. The data from this research helps define a picture of relations between town and countryside in the Arno Valley between Xth and XIVth century.

Information regarding epigraphy, both early Christian and medieval, in the province of Burgos was scarce and spread around in inaccessible publications. This Corpus contains and analyses all entries between IV and XIII centuries, located in the province of Burgos in various monuments like Quintanilla de las Vinas, San Pedro de Arlanza, Santo Domingo de Silos, The Real Huelgas, Burgos Cathedral, etc. To this end, starting from a review of the bibliography which has been published, a detailed fieldwork was performed resulting in the collection of 326 entries, 45 of which have never been published before, providing new and corrected readings to many of them. Indeed, the description of each item; its edition, both epigraphic and paleographic; its translation; the metric study of the inscriptions; its historical context; the paleographic study of its characters and analysis of the literary texts, All of that gives the ability to specify many dates in history of the creation of the corresponding monuments the inscriptions are part of, and the recognition of numerous analogies among several of these constructions. Therefore, this work stands as a valuable landmark and touchstone for the fields of History, Art and Medieval Studies.

This PhD thesis discusses the practices of wealth depositing in the 1st-9th century AD eastern Baltic (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania). Wealth deposits are one or more valued object/s that is/are hidden deliberately as an intended separate deposition in a selected place in a specific, distinguishable manner. Wealth depositing is regarded as an important cultural practice which relates to and derives from various past social phenomena and changes respectively in spatial and temporal terms. It is emphasised that wealth deposits should be analysed as a cohesive corpus of material, regardless of specific artefact types, functional groups, production material, environment of concealment, and most importantly without any predetermined interpretation categorisations. The dissertation presents different patterned practices of concealing valuables in the 1st-9th century AD eastern Baltic through a detailed contextual analysis of their main material characteristics: artefacts, their assemblages and appearance, environment of concealment, chronology and location in the cultural landscape. The study demonstrates how depositional practices change in time and space, and analyses relations between specific depositional practices and developments on a wider social scale. A comparative analysis of wealth deposits and important social changes in contemporary society based on overall archaeological material is presented. The key regional and cross-regional practices of wealth depositing in the 1st-9th century AD eastern Baltic are identified. Additionally, further comparisons are drawn between depositional practices in the eastern Baltic and other parts of the Baltic Sea region, especially Scandinavia. This thesis contributes to the discussions of concepts of value and depositional practices in a long-term and cross-regional perspective. A further aim is to look beyond the problematic 'why?'-questions posed in the studies of wealth deposits, and move instead to more comprehensible questions of 'how?': how do depositional practices change in time and space, and how are these processes related to developments in a broader social context? The book contains a catalogue of all the 1st-9th century AD Eastern Baltic deposits analysed in the dissertation with descriptions of objects, environments of concealment, find circumstances, illustrations/photos and further references.

This volume explores the importance of Norwich as the second city of England for 500 years. It addresses two of the most ambitious Romanesque buildings in Europe: cathedral and castle, and illuminates the role of Norwich-based designers and makers in the region.

This volume presents the proceedings of the workshop 'Archeologia a Firenze: Citta e territorio', organized by CAMNES, Centre for Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies, in collaboration with the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana, in April 2013. This event experienced an extraordinary participation by experts in the field, and resulted also in a significant success in terms of public archaeological awareness. Almost twenty years after the exhibition 'Alle origini di Firenze' and the publication of its Catalogo, which is considered a signal point in Florentine archaeology, the workshop provided an opportunity for discussion between all those who conducted research, protection and enhancement of the archaeological heritage of Florence thanks to the presentation of the most recent excavations. Moreover, the origins of the city that took the leading role during the Renaissance were discussed, finding in its roots the very reasons for its glorious destiny. The sessions, organized in chronological order - from prehistoric to medieval topics - were supplemented by contributions concerned with conservation and enhancement of the historic landscape whose reconstruction through research and excavation activities constantly requires new discussions and often additional reflections.

In this book an analysis of over 300 animal bone assemblages from English Saxon and Scandinavian sites is presented. The data set is summarised in extensive tables for use as comparanda for future archaeozoological studies. Animals in Saxon and Scandinavian England takes as its core four broad areas of analysis. The first is an investigation of the diet of the population, and how food was used to establish social boundaries. Increasingly diverse diets are recognised, with high-status populations distinguishing themselves from other social sectors through the way food was redistributed and the diversity of taxa consumed. Secondly, the role of animals in the economy is considered, looking at how animal husbandry feeds into underlying modes of production throughout the Saxon period. From the largely self-sufficient early Saxon phase animal husbandry becomes more specialised to supply increasingly urban settlements. The ensuing third deliberation takes into account the foodways and interactions between producer and consumer sites, considering the distribution of food and raw materials between farm, table and craft worker. Fundamental changes in the nature of the Saxon economy distinguish a move away from food renders in the middle Saxon phase to market-based provisioning; opening the way for greater autonomy of supply and demand. Finally, the role of wics and burhs as centres of production is investigated, particularly the organisation of manufacture and provisioning with raw materials.

This volume is the definitive account of the excavation which led to the discovery of the magnificent hoard of 28 pieces of Pictish silverware on St Ninian s Isle, Shetland in 1958. It includes a reassessment of the original archives and finds, including an ogham stone found on the site in 1876 and a fantastic collection of glass beads, as well as several new small-scale excavations on the site of the chapel and its burial ground. Taken together, this work reveals a long sequence of settlement beginning in the Iron Age. The first church was built on the site in the 8th century, and accompanied by a long cist cemetery with cross-incised stones and shrine sculpture. The church may have continued in use into the 9th or 10th centuries, and the recent work has confirmed that the famous hoard was buried into its floor. There was a degree of continuity between the pre-Christian and Christian burials, with evidence that the site was a special place for burial before the advent of Christianity. The report describes these burials in detail, ending the story sometime between the 11th and end of the 12th centuries, when an adult male who had died a violent death was moved to be buried on the site. Thereafter the site was inundated with wind-blown sand. A new chapel with an accompanying long cist cemetery was then built above the earlier church, and a chancel was added later. The associated graveyard continued in use until around 1840, long after the building was demolished."

The Medieval Chantry in England is a special themed issue of Volume 164 of the Journal of the British Archaeological Association. Subscribers to the journal will receive a paperback version of the issue as part of their subscription. The subject is one that has attracted considerable attention from archaeologists and historians of art, architecture and music over the last two decades, though relatively little has been published. Chantries were religious institutions endowed with land, goods and money. At their heart was the performance of a daily mass for the spiritual benefit of their founders, and the souls of all faithful dead. To Church reformers, they exemplified some of medieval Catholicism s most egregious errors; but to the orthodox they offered opportunities to influence what occurred in an unknowable afterlife. The eleven essays presented here lead the reader through the earliest manifestations of the chantry, the origins and development of stone-cage chapels, royal patronage of commemorative art and architecture, the chantry in the late medieval parish, the provision of music and textiles, and a series of specific chantries created for William of Wykeham, Edmund Audley, Thomas Spring and Abbot Islip, to the eventual history and the cultural consequences of their suppression in the mid-16th century."

The British Archaeological Association's 2007 conference celebrated the material culture of medieval Coventry, the fourth wealthiest English city of the later middle ages. The nineteen papers collected in this volume set out to remedy the relative neglect in modern scholarship of the city's art, architecture and archaeology, as well as to encompass recent research on monuments in the vicinity. The scene is set by two papers on archaeological excavations in the historic city centre, especially since the 1970s, and a paper investigating the relationships between Coventry's building boom and economic conditions in the city in the later middle ages. Three papers on the Cathedral Priory of St Mary bring together new insights into the Romanesque cathedral church, the monastic buildings and the post-Dissolution history of the precinct, derived mainly from the results of the Phoenix Initiative excavations (19992003). Three more papers provide new architectural histories of the spectacular former parish church of St Michael, the fine Guildhall of St Mary and the remarkable surviving west range of the Coventry Charterhouse. The high-quality monumental art of the later medieval city is represented by papers on wall-painting (featuring the recently conserved Doom in Holy Trinity church), on the little-known Crucifixion mural at the Charterhouse, and on a reassessment of the working practices of the famous master-glazier, John Thornton. Two papers on a guild seal and on the glazing at Stanford on Avon parish church consider the evidence for Coventry as a regional workshop centre for high quality metalwork and glass-painting. Beyond the city, three papers deal with the development of Combe Abbey from Cistercian monastery to country house, with the Beauchamp family's hermitage at Guy's Cliffe, and with a newly identified stonemasons' workshop in the 'barn' at Kenilworth Abbey. Two further papers concern the architectural patronage of the earls and dukes of Lancaster in the 14th century at Kenilworth Castle and in the Newarke at Leicester Castle.

This volume celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Society for Medieval Archaeology (established in 1957), presenting reflections on the history, development and future prospects of the discipline. The papers are drawn from a series of conferences and workshops that took place in 2007-2008, in addition to a number of contributions that were commissioned especially for the volume. They range from personal commentaries on the history of the Society and the growth of the subject, to historiographical, regional and thematic overviews of major trends in the evolution and current practice of medieval archaeology in Britain. Critical overviews are presented of the archaeology of medieval landscapes, buildings and material culture; new developments in the scientific study of medieval health, diet and materials; and, innovations in social approaches to medieval archaeology. A series of papers on southern Europe provide a comparative perspective, featuring overviews on medieval archaeology in Italy, Spain and southeastern Europe.

Al-Andalus, the Iberian Islamic civilization centred on Cordoba in the tenth and eleventh centuries, has been a 'lost' civilization in several respects. Its history suppressed or denied for much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it was regarded as a kind of 'historical parenthesis' with no lasting influence. Over the past twenty-five years, however, the history and archaeology of the Islamic period in the Iberian peninsula has undergone a complete transformation. Lost Civilization presents an introduction to this debate as it has played out in archaeology, taking a comparative civilizations approach that puts the formation of al-Andalus in context with corresponding developments elsewhere in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

The papers in this collection explore the medieval art, architecture, and archaeology of the city of Mainz and of the middle Rhine valley. They were delivered in 2003, at the first annual conference the Association held in Germany. The contributors embrace a wide range of subjects. Some consider the architecture and archaeology of the early medieval and Romanesque period, including the Carolingian monastery of Lorsch and the cathedrals of Mainz, Speyer, and Worms. Other authors look at high and late Gothic architecture in the region, such as the collegiate church at Oppenheim and the Wernerkapelle at Bacherach. There are, moreover, papers on castle architecture, sculpture, panel painting, liturgical furnishings, and medieval inscriptions. At the centre of discussion stand questions of cult, patronage, iconography, and style. New light is shed particularly on the relationship between the art and architecture in the Rhine valley and France. This collection brings together British, German, and French scholars to discuss the art and architecture of this major centre of artistic creation in medieval Europe and will hopefully be of lasting value to scholarship.

Excavations at Dryslwyn between 1980 and 1995 uncovered a masonry castle, founded in the late 1220s by Rhys Gryg for his son Maredudd ap Rhys, the first Lord of Dryslwyn. The first castle was a simple round tower and polygonal walled enclosure, within which were constructed a kitchen, prison and wood-framed, clay-floored great chamber beside a great hall. In the mid 13th century a second ward was added and the great chamber rebuilt in stone. This castle was greatly expanded in the period 1283-87 by Rhys ap Maredudd, the second and final Lord of Dryslwyn, who built an Outer Ward and gatehouse. He also rebuilt much of the Inner Ward, adding an extra storey to the great hall and great chamber, apartments and a chapel. At the end of the 13th century a large three-ward castle stretched along the eastern and southern edge of the hill while the rest of the hilltop was occupied by a settlement defended by a wall and substantial ditch with access through a gatehouse. This castle and its associated settlement were besieged and captured in 1287 by an English royal army of over 11,000 men following damage inflicted by a trebuchet and mining of the walls. Throughout the 14th century the English Crown garrisoned and repaired the castle, supervised by an appointed constable, before it was surrendered to Owain Glyn Dwr in 1403. During the early to mid 15th century the castle was deliberately walled up to deny its use to a potential enemy and it was subsequently looted and demolished. By the late 13th century, the castle had a white rendered and lime-washed appearance, creating a very dramatic and highly visible symbol of lordship. Internally, the lord's and guest apartments had decorative wall paintings and glazed windows. Evidence from charred beams still in situ, the sizes, shapes and distribution of nails, sheet lead, slates and postholes recovered during excavation has enabled some of the wooden as well as masonry buildings to be reconstructed. Waterlogged deposits had preserAt just 132 hectares (325 acres) the parish of Caldecote is one of the smallest parishes in Hertfordshire. Today the settlement comprises the manor house, until recently surrounded by a range of traditional farm buildings, together with six labourer's cottages and the church. To the north lies the site of the old rectory and the earthworks of a medieval settlement. In 1973 the Department of Environment and the Deserted Medieval Village Research Group arranged a rescue excavation to examine the earthworks of the medieval village before they were levelled and ploughed. Five crofts, the old rectory site and much of the moated enclosure were investigated in one of the largest excavations ever conducted on a later medieval rural site in Britain. Though the excavations did recover a Bronze Age beaker burial and small quantities of Roman and Iron Age pottery, the medieval settlement at Caldecote was probably founded in the 10th century, and by the time of the Domesday Survey there was a church, a priest and nine villeins. A moated site was added in the 13th century. A century later, Caldecote was granted to the abbots of the Benedictine monastery in St Albans, at a time when there were seventeen householders. Early in the second half of the 14th century, the estate and demesne were subdivided into six farms, each complete with a hall-house and two or more barns. Following the dissolution of the monastery in 1539, the manor was again held by an absentee lord and the farms continued to prosper. However, the late 16th and early 17th centuries, for which there are several surviving wills and inventories, saw their gradual abandonment.After the desertion of Caldecote Marish in 1698, Caldecote was farmed as a single unit until 1970, when the estate was attached to that adjoining the manor of Newnham. Of particular importance from Caldecote is the archaeological evidence for medieval peasant structures, the development of the later medieval domestic plan and the structural tra

Hulton Abbey was a minor Cistercian monastery in north Staffordshire (England), founded in 1219 and finally dissolved in 1538. This is the final report on the archaeological excavations undertaken there between 1987 and 1994. In particular, the chapter house was uncovered and re-assessed and the eastern part of the church and north aisle were completely excavated, together with the eastern half of the nave. The excavations are described by area and chronological phase with detailed specialist reports including architectural stonework and decorated floor tiles. An extensive programme of sampling and analysis of pollen remains from burials was also completed. The remains of 91 individuals, mainly men but also women and children, are reported on in detail, with sections on abnormalities and pathology as well as medieval burial goods such as a wax chalice and wooden wands. Comparisons with other published monastic sites in the region help to place Hulton into a wider context. An important element of the project was education and community involvement and today the site lies in a small urban park in Stoke-on-Trent.

This volume describes the most extensive modern excavations undertaken at any Scottish cathedral. These investigations revealed traces of two 12th century cathedrals which preceded the present gothic structure. Too little was exposed of the first cathedral to allow it to be reconstructed with any confidence, but there was more evidence of the second cathedral which was begun in the late 12th century. Though never completed, this building was intended to house the translated remains of St Kentigern (Mungo), and the recovery of a number of brightly painted stones allows us to appreciate the rich decoration of the cathedral interior for the first time. Medieval wall paintings from Scotland are rare, so these discoveries are of particular significance for the study of 12th century Scottish architecture. Considerable evidence relating to the 13th and 14th century construction of the cathedral and its post-medieval remodelling has also been assembled. The report provides an historical context for the various periods of activity examined and acts as a powerful reminder of Scotland's lost ecclesiastical glory.

The excavations at South Witham in Lincolnshire produced the most complete archaeological plan of the preceptory of the Military Orders so far seen in Britain. Before 1965 there had been only limited investigation of Knights Templar houses and evidence for day-to-day activities was almost non-existent. Never before had the different components of a preceptory been examined in detail using modern archaeological techniques. This monograph presents the final publication of results, beginning with separate chapters dedicated to the three main phases of occupation.Land in South Witham was first acquired by the Templars between 1137 and 1185 and thereafter a series of buildings was constructed throughout the late 12th and 13th centuries. The preceptory may already have been in decline before the final arrest and dissolution of the Order in the early 14th century. All the well-preserved buildings are described in detail by the excavation director, including the barns, blacksmith's forge, brewhouse, chapel, gateshouse, granaries, Great Hall, kitchen ranges, watermill and workshops.The text is enriched by many photomosaics and aerial photographs. This archaeological evidence then provides the basis for a well-illustrated discussion of architectural reconstructions by John Smith while the documentary background is summarised by Eileen Gooder. Among the finds discussed by a range of specialists are coins (Rigold), metalwork (Goodall), a prehistoric flat axe (Davey), objects of bone and antler (MacGregor), pottery (Johnson), architectural fragments (Gee) and painted wall plaster (Rouse). Environmental and industrial evidence are also considered, including animal bone (Harcourt), metal-working residues (Morgan) and human skeletal remains (Manchester).

Twelve papers from the 1996 conference of the British Archaeological Association at Bristol University. All the contributions focus on Bristol and they include: The medieval defences of Bristol revisited; The rebuilding of St Augustine's Abbey Church; A new approach to the Harrowing of Hell' relief in Bristol Cathedral; Bristol misericords and their sources; Paintings from St Mark's Hospital.

Almost the richest city of all in the country with a harbour for a thousand ships may well be an exaggerated description of Bristol by the writer Gesta Stephani but it sums up the twelfth-century view of the city as second to London in status with an important international port, producing wealth that directly influenced the art and architecture of the city throughout the Middle Ages. Bristol, according to Sir Nikolaus Pevsner 'shortly before 1300suddenly jumped onto the front rank of English and indeed European architecture', with the early eastern arm of the abbey church being 'superior to anything else built in England and indeed Europe at the same time'. The abbey church alone would have been sufficient reason for holding a conference in Bristol, but St Mary Redcliffe and the other parish churches, together with many other aspects of the city's medieval art and archaeology, provided justification for arranging a conference in the city in July 1996. The articles in this volume were delivered as lectures during that conference. These studies explore the international trade of Bristol and its documentary and archaeological evidence, and offer a radical new interpretation for its early development. Architectural studies provide fresh insight into the links between the Elder Lady Chapel of the abbey and Wells Cathedral, a re-evaluation of the eastern arm of the abbey, setting it into a regional context and revising its international importance and prodigy status, and a new study of St Mary Redcliffe, which assesses the contribution of the Canynges family and clarifies the reconstruction of the church in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Other important articles examine the 'Harrowing of Hell' relief, mesericords and the Lady Chapel glass in the cathedral, the monumental effigies of Bristol and the early sixteeth-century paintings in St Mark's hospital. Of additional interest is the first modern appraisal of the Roman mosaic from Newton St Loe, in the care of the City Museum: fragments of the pavement were especially displayed in the Museum for the conference. The volume provides a much needed assessment of Bristol's artistic and architectural status and its historical and archaeological importance.