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Book Section: Dobney, K., Hall, A. and Kenward, H. (2000) The bioarchaeology of Anglo-Saxon Yorkshire: present and future perspectives. In: Geake, H. and Kenny, J., (eds.) Early Deira: Archaeological studies of the East Riding in the fourth to ninth centuries AD. Oxbow Books , Oxford, UK , pp. 133-140.

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[email protected] https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/ 11 The Biomchaeology of Anglo-Saxon Yorkshe: present and future perspectives

Keith Dobney, Allan Hall and Harry Kenward

The Anglo-Saxon period in Yorkshire - in terms uf our There is, bowever, rather more information from ver- knowledge of hose questions which bioarcbaaologicnf tebrate remains from one of the ~ites,46-54 Hahergate. studies are conventiondly used to address - remains very Depodts associated with Anglo-Saxon occupation nt much an unknown quantity, Wecan hardly claim even to Fishergate (AlIison er al 19%) gave dixappointingly Iittie know whether thae questions are indeed appropriate in evidence for invertebrates, despite extensive sampling, the Anglo-Saxon period. To some extent this reflects the The samples were, in addition, subjected to large-scale nature of the Anglo-Saxon deposits so far encountemd, =view for biolapal remains, on the grounds that any in which preservation of the less durable organic remains substantial evidence of this date would be ofthe pest has been very limited. The nature of Anglo-Saxon jrnportanm in undarstanding the use of the site and occupation, with a bias towards mral settlements of a prhaps the wider nature of York at the period. Preserva- kind whicb have generally left only faint traces in the tion by nnoxic waterlogging was ~xxtraordinarilyrare, and ground, means that there are no deeply stratified richly charred and minetalked mated (other than dog wpm- organic deposits of the kind revealed in some Roman and Iites) was net much commoner. Viking Age phases in major urban centres, of which only Objects idcntifid as dog coproliks (or fragments of York is weIl known in the region. such) were quite numerous at Fishergate, particularly in The angloSaxon period thus presenw exceptional the earlier Anglo-Saxon phases. Some proved to contain challenges to the environmental arebaeologist, and ones eggs of the intestinal parasitic nematode worms Trichuris which closely parallel thoso for the Iron Age. It is a (whipworm) and (more rarely] Ascarls (roundworm), period for which the khd of assemblages traditionally proMly present ss a mu1 t of dogs eating human faeces. provided by bioarchaeologica1 studies m8 most urgently Only two insect assemblages of any useful sirs were needed. to define envim~lmcntand land use, resource detected. One was a ditch fill with aquatics (insects and expIoitation, living conditions, trade and exchange, as ephippia of Dapknih, Ceriadapkniaand at least one other well as aspects of craft-working and industrial activities, cladoceran),but there were no indications of mora than a In addition, the period in Yorkshire pmsents special few herba~usplants and thinly-dispe& organic problems concmning the status of individual rural or detritus in the mrrounding contexts. The second small ecclesiastical settlements, particularIy henature of York group of insects was raovered from a pit there were as a possible wk. rare occutfenees here of a limited fauna assdted with For the pnrposes of this paper (and in view of the human occupation. A modest numbw of other deposits at complexities of the archaeology of the 5th to l Jth Fishergate gave small numbof parasite. ew(Trichrk, centuri~s).we have dected to discuss only such biological Ascaris, or both), but only occrasiondly were the numbers material as .falls after the end of the Roman period (as suficiant to give clear evidence of the disposal of faces. generally accepted) and before the first significant waves The only 0th invertebrates were odd records of beetles of Scandinavian invasion in tfre mid Pth century. or fly puparia, and some Hde- type (soil nematode) cysts in one pit. Plant remains fkom Anglo-Saxon fishergate wera sparsa, and proservation was often only by chdng w York (in a fu W cases) though mineralisation.Few food plants Deposits of Anglo-Saxon (or putative Anglo-Saxon) date were ftcod,hough barley was present in 27 contexrs tit a small number af sites in York have been investigated (21%)and charred hazelnut in 16 (12%). Other cereals bioarchamlogieaily, but the evidence recovered is sligbt included oats and wheat, some of the latter being so far as invertebrates and plant remains are concerned. identified as bread wheat. There was also one context 134 Keith Dobney, Allan Hi xll and Harry Kenward with uncharred wheatlrye 'bran'. Pulses were represented indicates only limited exploitation of inshore coastal by mineralised remains of pea and field bean; hits were fishing (O'Connor 1991). few and included apple, sloe, blackberry and elderberry. At another site in York, the Bedern, the fills of a series" Two possible sources of oil were linseed and opium of pits cut through late Roman surfaces were investigated poppy, each recorded from single contexts. The remaining by Kenward et al. (1986, 268-2881. They are discussed taxa included a few weeds and wetland taxa; the rarity of here at some length in view of their considerableg the former is remarkable for an occupation site. Although implications for land-use in central York; the site is wi$n poor preservation may be an important factor here, even the areaof the Roman fortress, little more than 200 m from where there was 'waterlogged' preservation, remains of the Minster, the precursor of which was presumably close weeds - as remains of invertebrates - were still very by at the time these deposits were forming. Two of these scarce. pits were 'bell-shaped', around a metre in depth and It is not clear why this site gave so little preservation diameter, with distinctly undercut sides. One seemed to of uncharred non-vertebrate remains, bearing in mind its have been recut. Although the lowest primary fill of this low elevation and close proximity to the River Foss. pit was aImost barren of invertebrate remains, and yielded Anoxic waterlogging, although expected to have been only small numbers of plant remains of no particular widespread in such a situation, was in fact rare; the interpretative value, the upper one (radiocarbon dated to contrast in quality and quantity of preservation with other, ad 740-1-30, firmly within the Anglo-Saxon period) gave later, riverside sites at 6-8 Pavement and 16-22 Copper- a large and very unusual assemblage. This deposit was gate (Hall et al. 1983; Kenward and BaII 1995) is described as a 'peat', probably formcdfromgrasses, sedges remarkable. It is tempting to suggest that, in addition to or rushes, and contained seeds of Juncus spp. (rushes), the lack of waterIogging, there may have been a very low Carex spp. (sedges), Eleocharis palustris (spike-rush) rate of input of organic matter at Fishergate. Perhaps and Runanculus flammula (iesser spearwort), strongly most waste disposal here was into the river, or perhaps suggesting adamp groundlwaterside community. Aquatic the site was close enough to farms for waste to be removed beetles in modest numbers, together with some caddis as manure. Alternatively, if (as discussed by Kemp 1996) cases and Daphnia ephippia, indicated that there were this was a trading post, the nature, density, and perhaps periods when the pit held open water. There were many timing of occupation may have been such that little waste plant-feeding insects, including numerous individuals of was produced, the numerous pits perhaps being short- the froghopper Conornelus anceps, which feeds on Juncus. lived cesspits (in which the organic component was slight Beetles associated with decomposing plant remains were and able to decay rapidly) or dug originally for some abundant. It was suggested in the original report (Kenward other purpose entirely. Subjectively, the invertebrate and et al. 1986,273) that these decomposers may have lived plant remains from Fishergate suggest a low density of in plant litter on the surrounding ground surface, as true occupation, but the evidence relies too heavily on the synanthropes (species favoured by human activity) were negative to be reliable. absent. The vertebrate remains from the Anglo-Saxon deposits Re-examination of the species lists (Kenward et al. at Fishergate add much to the interpretation of the nature 1986, fiche table 120) with the benefit of hindsight and a of the site based on the excavationnl and artefactual revised classification of synanthropes among the beetles evidence. One of the most striking features of the suggests alternative origins. Mycetaea hirta and Ptinus vertebrate assemblage is the narrow range of animals fur were both rather common, and there was distinct represented, with very few birds (wild or domestic) or indication of a 'house fauna' community including, for wild mammals present. The assemblage is dominated by example, numerous Eathridius minutus group and the remains of mature cattle, which appear to have Xylodromus co~acinaus.Corticaria serrata, the most provided the basis of the settlement's subsistence. Sheep abundant species, is also favoured by artificial habitats and pig were rather less well represented. Analysis of the including haystacks. This material may have been cleared age-at-death data for the major domesticates reveals from a building of some kind which had a limited specific peaks in slaughter patterns which appear to be synanthropic fauna - as might be predicted for Anglo- the result of a consumer-driven, rather than producer- Saxon York if population density was low and the site driven, economy (O'Connor 1994), indicating the afflu- lay in an open area (see below). These species seem ence of the settlement. The presence of a full range of unlikely a11 to have invaded a natural accumulation of skeletal elements suggests that cattle arrived on the hoof, litter or a heap of material collected by humans, perhaps whereas for pigs there was significant under-represen- ns poor hay or for spreading on a house floor. It is tation of metapodials and first phalanges (lower leg and suggested that strongly established populations of these foot bones) compared with the major meat-bearing bones, species must have existed in buildings nearby. Whether suggesting the delivery of dressed carcases at the site. floor sweepings or natural litter was concerned, re- Fish bones, recovered in moderately large numbers, were interpretation of these remains places a building of some mostly of eel and other river fish, with some herring, kind containing plmt debris or other habitats for house cod, salmon and'shd also present. The marine component fauna (for example a thatched roof) nearby. The Bioarchaeology of Anglo-Saxon Yorkshire: present and future perspectives 135

Such a re-interpretation of one component of the fauna pit was cut. The biota of these deposits were essentially does not alter the original conclusion that the Iand in similar, indicating an area of disturbed ground with annual which this pit stood was 'a largely neglected and and perennial weeds and an associated insect fauna. There somewhat marshy area'. It is very difficult to believe that was foul matter, perhaps dung, and litter on surfaces the whole of the non-synanthropic fauna in this fill was amongst the plants. There was nothing to suggest that the transported over a long distance. In addition, the fills of pit had been used for waste disposal, although there were the last recut of the pit gave an assemblage of insects small quantities of plant and animal remains which must with a large proportion of aquatics including a range of have originated in or around buildings. Aquatic and beetles and numerous Dupsphnia ephippia. Aquatic de- aquatic marginal species seem likely to have arrived as position also seemed likely on the basis of the sediment 'background noise' or in floodwater. It was suggested, type. There was little evidence for decomposing matter particularly on the evidence of the invertebrate remains, at this stage, but a range of plant-feeding beetles indicated that the pit was open for a long time, with gradual dockslknotgrasses (Rumex spp.) and nettles (Ur~icaspp.), accumuIation of insecb. It was perhaps a shallow we11 (it suggesting some disturbance by human activity such as appeared to have been truncated during earlier building cutting, trampling, or putting livestock out to gmze. works), dug and lined in the Anglo-Saxon period, in The second of the bell-shaped pits at the Bedern gave prirnaty use for an unspecified period, then abandoned. insect faunas dominated by 'outdoor' forms (primarily During abandonment, and perhaps as late at the Anglo- plant-feeders) suggesting weedy waste ground, and this Scandinavian period, the helmet was dropped or placed was supported by the plant remains. This pit gave a single in the pit, which was Iater backfilled with surface deposits crichurid (intestinal parasite) egg, not regarded as from nearby. Although the development of this hypothesis sign&cant in view of the likely dispersal and redeposition concerning the history of the pit was very much the result of such remains. There was therefore nothing in the fills of a full integration of all the evidence, stratigraphic, of the recut of the first pit, or in the fills of the second artefactual and biological, the insect remains were a one, to suggest dense occupation nearby. particularly important component, providing the most As well as the evidence for wetland plant remains reliable picture of the surroundings and evidence that the from the 'peat' in one of the pits at the Bedern, there was pit was open for a long time. quite a rich flora from the deposits taken overall, and it On the south-west side of the Ouse, assessment of included hemp, celery seed, ?summer savory, oats, some eighth century layers at North Street unfortunately ?barley, (?bread) wheat, hazelnut, elderberry, and Rvbus revealed that there was virtually no preservation of seeds tentatively identified as raspberry and blackberry. biological remains (Carrott et al. 1993); similarly, A large proportion of the taxa could be classified as deposits of fourth to ninth-century date nearby at Rougier weeds of various kinds, and in fact most of the taxa Street gave no useful invertebrate remains (Allison et al. recorded from more than half the samples were weeds. A 1990) and plant remains were sparse and uninformative. few probable grassland taxa were present throughout the Although moderate-sized vertebrate assemblages from samples examined; these may indicate nothing more than deposits of this date were recovered from excavations in wasteland grassland habitats in the vicinity, although both Rougier Street and Wellington Row -material which some might be indicators of imported cut grassland was apparently simiIar in character to those reported from vegetation (as in the case of the especially well-repre- late Roman deposits at Tanner Row - they remain sented group in the 'peat') or even dung. unstudied. Similarly, biological remains from deposits These pits remain as the best evidence for conditions dated as broadly Anglo-Saxon from excavations at the within the area of the Roman fortress during the Anglo- Queens Hotel site (1-9 Micklegate) have yet to be studied Saxon period; clearly occupation was sparse and possibIy properly. Lack of funding for work on these sites has aImost rural in character. There hns been some suggestion undoubtedly inhibited progress in understanding the that (despitc the radiocarbon date) the deposits are Anglo- Anglo-Saxon period in York. Scandinavian in date; if so, they remain extremely significant for different reasons, since this period is also poorly represented in this part of York, despite abundant sites evidence from some other areas of the city. Rural The deposits associated with the eighth-century helmet Preservation of biological remains other than bone and discovered at the Coppergate development site, York charred plant remains on rural sites of most periods, and (Tweddle 1992) present an interesting dating challenge. therefore also for the Anglo-Saxon period, is generally The bioIogicaI remains in the pit may have been of Anglo- poor, and even charred plant remains tend to occur in Saxon date, or Anglo-Scandinavian date, or both. Two rather IOW concentrations. The durability of charred lmge samples from this important but enigmatic feature material means that it easily survives in redeposited were examined, one from the sediment within a lining of material, and it therefore may have limited interpretative oak planks giving an Anglo-Saxon date, and one from value. Evidence for charred plant remains from deposits between the lining and the natural clays into which the other than primary contexts is thus particularly prob- 136 Keith Dobney, Allan Hall and Hurry Kenward lematic. As a result, by far the greatest volume of ment, dating from the mid-seventh to tenth centuries AD. bioarchaeological evidence from rural sites of this period The discoveries included all or part of the foundations of is the corpus of vertebrate remains (Table 11.1). approximately twenty buildings, boundaries, and oth& Table l 1.l includes brief summaries of studies of plant structural features, together with an extremely rich and animal remains from these rural sites in Yorkshire. It collection of artefacts and a vast quantity of animal Wnes is clear from this that the only large assemblage of plant (approximateIy 35,000 complete bones and a furthy and vertebrate remains is that from West Heslerton, a 140,000 bone fragments). By contrast, prescrvati$n of site which has been excavated more or less continuously plant remains, even by charring, was limited and in- over a long period and for which a large volume of vertebrates, other than a few molluscs, were almost non- sediment has been sampled and processed. There is at existent. The wealth of the inhabitants of Flixborough, as present no detailed account of the bioIogical evidence, indicated by the vast number and quality of the artefacts although a full analysis programme funded by English from the site and the large overall size of the buildings, Heritage is under way. Limited information can be is suggestive of a high-status centre (Loveluck and gleaned from an assessment report (Powlesland 1996). Dobney forthcoming). Most of the West Heslerton samples examined for plant Analysis of the biological remains is currently in remains by Carruthers are from fills of Grubenhuuser progress, but some preliminary observations can be made. (with further material from a malt kiln and further As at West Heslerton, and again in contrast with Fisher- Grubenhauser studied by S. Mrozowski). Those reported gate, the range of mammals and birds recovered from on by Carruthers (in Powlesland 1996) represent 5% of Flixborough is broad. As can be seen from Table 11.2, about 3000 samples. Most of this plant material is charred, cattle, sheep and pig are well represented and, from the although one sample contained some waterloggedremains analyses of material from two major contexts, there including flax seeds. Charred material mostly comprises appear to be differences in their proportions between the cereals (with very little chafE), with other taxa, including middle and late Anglo-Saxon periods of occupation. Birds further flax and a small range of arable weeds, indicative are particularly well represented, with large numbers of of cultivation on the light sandy soils downslope of the chickens and wild and domestic geese. The presence of settIement but above the wetlands in thevaleof Pickering numerous crane bones (either the modern European to the north. Evidence from cereals suggests some of the species or an extinct form), together with those of various Grubenhiiuser might have served inter alia for grain ducks, wild geese and wading birds, indicates wild- storage; there may also be some evidence for differences fowling, probably on the Trent floodplain directly below in function between different parts of the site on the basis the settlement. Bones of freshwater, migratory and marine of the plant remains (see also Powlesland this volume). fish, and the unusual number of cetacean remains The presence of heather (perhaps for fuel, bedding or (porpoise or dolphin and whale, not as yet identified to roofing) is taken to indicate the importation of material species), all reflect access to foodstuffs from the Trent, from the North York Moors, some distance to the north, the Humber estuary, and the open sea. Small numbers of although charred wood from gorse (Figuerial in fish remains and fragments of 'whale' have been reported Powlesland 1996) may have been growing more Iocally. from West Heslerton @erg in Powlesland 1996, 101). To judge from fig. 44 of Powlesland's assessment An interesting absence from the Flixborough record to document (1996), concentrations of remains seem gen- date is that of dog. This is an unusual feature for my erally to be low. occupation site of any date, although evidence of canid The vertebrate assemblage from Anglo-Saxon West gnawing is present on some bone from the site. Heslerton, on the other hand, is very large, comprising over half a million fragments @erg in Powlesland 1996, 99-100). On the basis of the limited information available Discussion in the assessment report, it appears that a wide range of The Anglo-Saxon period in Yorkshire is poorly known taxa was exploited, in marked contrast to the picture at through bioarchaeology, although the remains of plants Fishergate, York (see above). Large quantities, and a and animals should have particular potential to address wide variety, of birds are represented. More detailed problems in a period when structural and arkfactual information about age-at-death, biomew, skeletal ele- evidence tends to be thin. The biological remains are of ment representation and spatial patterning of rubbish particular value for the investigation ofthe different facets disposal and craft activities will doubtless emerge as the of the economy of settlements, especially animal hus- analysis phase is completed. bandry, dietary preferences, exploitation of wild animal Although it lies just outside the limits ofthe area under and plantresources, craftworking and industrial activities, discussion, the site at Flixborough (formerly South socio-economic status and trade and exchange links. Data Humberside, now in north-east Lincolnshire) must be could dso be used to establish archaeological criteria for mentioned. Excavations by the Humberside Archaeology defining the nature, character and status of middle to late Unit (now Humber Archaeology Partnership) in 1989 Anglo-Saxon settlements within the region. revealed exceptional remains of an Anglo-Saxon settle- With the ongoing analyticd phases of West Heslerton The Bioarchaeology of Anglo-Saxon Yorkshire: present and fusm perspectives 137

Table 11.I: List of sites with known or supposed Anglian deposits in Yorkshire for which bioarchaeological shdies have been carried out. The table includes entries for a number of sites for which the amount of evidence is too small to warrant discussion in the text (BS: bulk sieved. GBA: general biological analysis. P: plant remains. I: invertebrate remains. V: vertebrate remains.?: no known evidence. +: little evidence. ++: some evidence. +++: much evidence. U: unknown. n: not appropriute fur category).

Site and Reported date Types of deposits Mnterial exnmined Commenfs on biologicnl evidence PIV rcference(s) (within An~an examined for for pcriod) planuinvertebrate planuinvertebrate remains remains --- Bevcrley: Lurk A single context, Primary ditch fill One BS sampte Small numbers of a limited range of +U+ Lane (McKenna dated late 8th to examined. plant taxa, probably mostly from IocaI 1991) early 9th century vegetation; not enough to make a definite interpretation.

Cntterick: 'presumed A single A single sample Richardson's Saxon' Grtrbmhaus fill examined for plant heather twigs; some cereal gains but no Depot (HuntIey and other biological chaff and no weed seeds, most grains 1997: Gidney remains hulled barley, but oati and ?bread wheat 1497) also present

Cnythorpe: Gas 'AngIian' Deposits associuted No details in Barley and hexaploid wheat 'co- +?+ Pipeline (see with settIement publishd report dominant'; the lnttw may well hnve been reports in bread wheat. Few weed seeds. Abrnmson 1996) A small vertebrate asxmblage. Cottorn, nr 'Anglim' 1993 excnvations: a 1993: only a few (?modem)weed seeds + ? -1- Sledmere (Carrott variety d deposits and poorly preserved charred cemds in et al. 1494; investigated very IOWconcentrations. Dobney et al. 1995 - a single 9th- 1995: afew modern weed seeds and 1444;nnd century deposit traces of cl~nrredcereals including ?oats unpublished {ditch fill) and also barley student project Both excavations yieldsd small repons) vertebrate assemblages with much fragmentation md pwr preservation. --- -P--- Doncaster: North Excavatur's A single context, One 1 kg GBA A smdl wemblage of chmd and +?? Bridge (Cpl~ottet Phase 2, dated described as n day subsarnpIe and a BS uncharred plant remains from the GBA al. 1997) '?Saxon'. dump in pitlriver sample of about 30 kg subsample, and tram of chnrred cereals silt. (including cultivated oats) mdcharred and uncharted hazelnut from a buk- sieved sample. The GBA assernbluge included afew weed tma and possible grmsland plants. The presence of tenlatively identified mud-rush (JWCM gerurdz) seeds perhaps points to wet meadows (with some brackish influence.?) nenrby, but the assemblage is too small and diverse to be interpreted with any confidence.

n GMon Station (nr 'Anglian' Currosion material Thhtee samples Moderately god polIen preservation; -E + DriEfieId) (reports from inside and examined for pollen assemblages dominated by gnsses and in Stead 1991) out~idea hanging cereals with some Pkmtag0 Ianceolniu. bowl, and from Cerals appeared to include wheat and inside a cauldron barley types a well a< ?rye; one grain of flax and one of field bean. Pollen perhaps incll~dessome from foodtdrink (though discussion of this with some samples from an Iron Age cauldron appears to consider all the muterid as Iron Age). Animal bone Crom gmve offerings. --- Betuln (birch), Pomoideae +nn '9thRibbIebead Deposits from Charcoal farmhouse kitchen (hawthomlapple, etc.), CoryIus (hazel), (Donaldson 1977; Franan~tus(ash) and Prunw (blackthorn, Rackham 1977) cherry, plum) charcoal all identified

Most impressions were of barley and oat + n Sancton I (Green c~~gl~-~~~~~~plantimpressions 38 latex casts, 17 p]mter casts of latex grains - the lntter prDbably mostly 1993) on pawherd impressions and a cultivated oats, though one A. fatua single grain identified. Barley was clearly 6-IOW from a broken sherd, form (twisted grains). The one ~180unidentified grain wos also barley. One plant rnmcrial hilum fragment impression. (?tempering) noted during examination of potsherds.

The Bioarchaeology of Anglo-Saxon Yorkshire: present and future perspectives 139

Table 11.2: Prelimimry data showing thefiequetzcyof nmjur amongst those sparse remains which had survived and vertebmte rma from the two contexts from the Anglian site led, for example, to the conclusions that roofs of turf and at flixborough, North East Ei~tcolnshirewhich have so far thatch were present, and that the buildings were not used been recorded. primariIy for domestic purposes. A thoughtful exercise in predictive modeIIing may Taxa Middle Snxon Late Saxon open up many possibilities. The question to be asked is (Context 5503) (Context 3891) 'what mightremain if such-and-such waspresent or done in the past', rather than 'what do these few poor remains Bos 27.9 34.8 tell us'. Prediction and testing is as applicable to environmental archaeology as to other sciences. If we Caprovid 29.8 24.0 approach the Anglo-Saxon period, or other intractable archaeological problems, with the traditional baggage of environmental archaeology, the results may inevitably Ovis 11.6 6.7 be limited and disappointing; a fresh look at the possi- bilities, both practical and theoretical, will surely show Cnpru 0.3 0.1 that there is a way forward.

Sus 38.1 24.5 Bibliography

9.2 Abramson, P. 1996. 'Excavations along the Caythorpe gas pipeline, North Humberside* Yorkshire Archaeological Journal 68, 1-88 Allison, E. P., Hall, A. R., Jones, A. K. G., Kenward, H. K., O'Connor, T. R., Phipps, J. and Tornlinson; P. R. 1990. '5 out to an acceptable standard within appropriate research Rougier Street' in A. R. Hall and H. K. Kenward, frameworks. Environmental evidence from the Coloniu: General It appears that lifestyles in the Anglo-Saxon period AccidentartdRougier Street (The Archaeology of York 141 did not generally favour preservation of the more delicate 6, York Archneological Trust and Council for British bialogical remains by anoxic waterlogging, greatly Archaeology, London) 378-3 85 Allison, P,,Hall, A. R., Jones, A. G., H. K., reducing what can be routinely achieved. We con- E. K. Kenward, and Robertson, A. 1996. 'Rcport on plant and invertebrate seqiently need to take new approaches in the future. remains' in R. L. Kemp, Aaglian setrlemeat at 46-54 Firstly, we must ensure that the rare instances of weII- Fishergate (The Archaeology of York 711, York preserved Anglo-Saxon waterlogged plant and animal Archaeological Trust and Council for British Archaeology, assemblages are exceptionaIIy well recorded in the field York) 85-105 and that they are meticu~ouslyand extensively sampIed. Brothwell, D., Cnrrott, J., Dobney, K., Hall, A., Issitt, M., Secondly, we need to develop analytical techniques more Jaques. D., Johnstone, C., Large, F., Milles, A. and Roberts, appropriate to 'barren' deposits than those now in genera1 G. 1995. An Evaluation of Biological Remains from use. Stable manure can be recognised with ease in Excavations at Thirsk Castle, North Yorkshire (site code waterlogged deposits (Kenward and Hall 1997), for TC94) (Reports from the Environmental Archaeology Unit 95/11, York) example, but what traces will remain when humification Canti, M. 1997. 'An investigation of microscopic calcareous has been complete? The use of sediment thin-sections sphnerulites from herbivore dungs' Journal of Archaeo- (Macphail1994), of chemical techniques to identify dung logical Science 24, 21 9-23 1 derivates (e.g. Evershed et al 19971, of phycolith analysis Carrott, J., Hall, A., Issitt, M., Kenward, B., Large, F. and to recognise concentrations of grass remains, and the. Milles, A. 1994. An Assessment of Biological Remains from identification of sphaerulites derived from herbivore dung Excavations af the Anglian site at Cotta~n,North Humber- (Canti 1997) spring to mind, and perhaps if an array of side (sire code COT931 (Reports from the Environmental methods is applied the sum of the evidence will be Archaeology Unit 94/32, York) convincing. Similar approaches may be possible for the Cnrrott, J., Ball, A. R., Issitt, M., Kenwnrd, H, and Lancaster, S. 1993. Assessment of Biological Remains front Roman to identification of the trace evidence of other materials Medieval Riverside Deposits at North Street, York (YAT/ and activities. The current state of ignorance of the ~eriod Yorkshire Museum code 93.1) (York Archaeological Trust. under considerdtion would surely justify the expense York) incurred by such intensive study. A recent example of Cnrrott, I., Dobney, K., Hall, A., Issitt, M., Jaques, D., what may be achieved at sites with poor preservation of Johnstone, C., Kenward, H., Large, F, and Skidmore, P. delicate biological remains is ~rovidedby the study of 1997. Envirumnent, Land Use and Activily at a Medieval medieval and post-medieval occupation deposits at a site and Post-Medieval Site at North Bridge, Doncaster, South in Doncnster (Cnrrott et al. 1997) where intensive Yorkshire (Reports from the Environmental Archaeology sampling and analysis revealed consistent patterns Unit 97/16, York) 140 Keith Dobney, Allan Hall and Harry Kenward

Carruthers W. 3993. Charred and Mineralised Plant Macro- Kenward, H. K., Hall, A. R. and Jones, A. K. G. 1986. fossils from Paddock Hilill, Octon, Thwiag, Yorkshire Environmental Evidence from a Roman Well and Anglia (Ancient Monuments Laboratory Report 14/93, London) Pits in the Legionary Fortress (The Archaeology of York Dobney, K. Jaques, D, and Brothwell, D. 1994. Assessment of 14/5, York Archaeological Trust and Council for British

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