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The Open Fields of Northamptonshire
Chapter 3 Methods of reconstruction of open field plans Dating of ridge and furrow It has been assumed, so far, that all the sUIviving ridge and furrow is ofpre-enclosure date, and medieval in origin. The validity of this assumption must be considered; because it was much debated in the recent past, with little agreement being reached as to whether the ridges did or did not have a close relation to the open-field strips. Recent historians took it for granted that ridge and furrow was to be equated with medieval cultivation. Tate identified Sir John Lubbock, in 1892, as the first (post ' enclosure) author to equate ridge and furrow with former open-field husbandryl, and Maitland, in 1897, referred to 'the practice of ploughing the land into 'beds' or ridges, which has but recently fallen out of use. : . Anyone who has walked through English grass fields will know what they look like, for they triumph over time and change2• Trevelyan3 wrote in 1944: 'the outline ofmany ofthese strips ploughed by farmers of Saxon, mediaeval and Tudor-Stuart times can still be clearly seen. The 'ridge and furrow' of pasture fields that once were arable is one of the common features of the·English landscape today ... Often, though not always, the 'ridge' or 'land' ... reproduced a 'strip' that was ploughed and worked long ago by a peasant farmer.' This accurate statement was followed by the work of Beresford4, who, in 1948, again drew attention to ridge and furrow, linking ground observations with the evidence of maps and written records. Beresford was convinced of the pre-enclosure origins of much ridge and furrow, and made detailed comparisons of surviving examples with large scale open-field maps in eight parishes. -
'From India to Ireland', Marx on the Agrarian Commune: the Internal Dynamics of the Irish Rundale Commune
9 200 The Ecological Dynamics of the September Rundale Agrarian Commune – 51 Eamonn Slater Eoin Flaherty No NIRSA Working Paper Series The Ecological Dynamics of the Rundale Agrarian Commune. Eamonn Slater and Eoin Flaherty∗ Department of Sociology and NIRSA ABSTRACT: In the following account we apply a Marxist ‘mode of production’ framework that attempts to create a better understanding of the complex relationships between society and nature. Most of the discussion of the dualism of nature/society has tended to replicate this divide as reflected in the intellectual division between the natural sciences and the social sciences. We hope to cross this analytic divide and provide an analysis that incorporates both natural and social variables. Marx’s work on ecology and ‘mode of production’ provides us with the theoretical framework for our examination into the essential structures of the Irish rundale agrarian commune. His analysis of modes of production includes not only social relations (people to people) but also relations of material appropriation (people to nature) and therefore allows us to combine the social forces of production with the natural forces of production. The latter relations are conceptualized by Marx as mediated through the process of metabolism, which refers to the material and social exchange between human beings and nature and vice-a-versa. However, what is crucial to Marx is how the natural process of metabolism is embedded in its social form – its particular mode of production. Marx suggested that this unity of the social and the natural was to be located within the labour process of the particular mode of production and he expressed this crucial idea in the concept of socio-ecological metabolism. -
Ridge-And-Furrow in Kent
http://kentarchaeology.org.uk/research/archaeologia-cantiana/ Kent Archaeological Society is a registered charity number 223382 © 2017 Kent Archaeological Society RIDGE-AND-FURROW IN KENT PROFESSOR W. R. MEAD AND DR. R. J. P. KAIN Ridge-and-furrow is a landscape feature which continues to claim popular interest especially among local historians. It attracts most interest where it is most apparent. It is arguably no less significant where it is least evident since the reasons for its absence in one place may help to explain its presence elsewhere. The total distribution of this relict feature of the British landscape is unknown. Interest in it was generated in Britain in the immediate post-war years by M. W. Beresford1 and Eric Kerridge.2 In brief, Beresford is the protagonist of the school of thought which identifies ridge-and-furrow w i t h the open field system and equates the pattern of ridges with that of former strips and furlongs. Kerridge considers the feature to be essentially the product of ploughing for drainage purposes. Debate about the origins of ridge-and-furrow usually leads to the conclusion that there is no single explanation. The only constant in the equation is that it is the product of the plough; but, since the plough is a variable in its own right, it also enters the area of debate. The first extended map of ridge-and-furrow was initiated in the late 1940s.3 It covered the county of Buckinghamshire, a territory which spans a variety of geological formations and soil types. It was predictable that a major contrast would be evident between the occurrence of the feature on the chalk lands in the south and the clay lands of the north. -
1 Neolithic Population Crash in Northwest Europe Associated With
Neolithic population crash in northwest Europe associated with agricultural crisis Sue Colledge1*, James Conolly2, Enrico Crema3 and Stephen Shennan1 [email protected]; [email protected]; Institute of Archaeology, University College London, London WC1H 0PY, UK [email protected]; Department of Anthropology, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario K9J 7B8, Canada 3 [email protected]; McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3ER, UK *corresponding author: [email protected]; +44 (0)20 7679 4771 Abstract The focus of this paper is the Neolithic of northwest Europe, where a rapid growth in population between ~5950 and ~5550 cal yr BP, is followed by a decline that lasted until ~4950 cal yr BP. The timing of the increase in population density correlates with the local appearance of farming and is attributed to the advantageous effects of agriculture. However, the subsequent population decline has yet to be satisfactorily explained. One possible explanation is the reduction in yields in Neolithic cereal-based agriculture due to worsening climatic conditions. The suggestion of a correlation between Neolithic climate deterioration, agricultural productivity and a decrease in population requires testing for northwestern Europe. Data for our analyses were collected during the Cultural Evolution of Neolithic Europe project. We assess the correlation between agricultural productivity and population densities in the Neolithic of northwest Europe by examining the changing frequencies of crop and weed taxa before, during and after the population ‘boom and bust’. We show that the period of population decline is coincidental with a decrease in cereal production linked to a shift towards less fertile soils. -
Legitimating the Traditional Hamlet in Ireland
TDSR VOLUME XXIX NUMBER II 2018 23 “A Shower from the Sky”: Legitimating the Traditional Hamlet in Ireland BARRY O’REILLY Traditional hamlets constitute a largely unacknowledged component of Ireland’s settle- ment pattern. The reasons include a lack of clarity about their nature and origins, issues of nomenclature, and a longstanding misperception of their “formlessness.” Stigmatized by an association with poverty and the Great Famine (1845–49), as well as by government and landlord efforts to rationalize or eradicate them, a great number of these traditional settle- ments have disappeared from the landscape. Yet, at the same time, public discourse today fails to acknowledge them, polarizing discussion of rural settlement between dispersed (“ancient”) and urban (“alien”) modes. Research by the present writer, however, confirms that, far from being exceptional, Irish traditional hamlets have recognizable forms and types, and indeed fit well into the mainstream of European settlement. Ironically, a recent policy shift toward encouraging clustered rural housing attempts to bridge the divide, but could end up adversely affecting the distinctiveness of these historic nucleations. Perhaps the most striking aspect of reaction [in the wake of the Great Famine] is to be found in the expressed desire of most country people to have an isolated dwelling- house. The clachan or hamlet, once the centre of communal life and tradition, is despised, a symbol of squabbling poverty, and it is the wish of nearly everyone to have a house where he cannot be overlooked.1 This statement from 1957 by the eminent geographer Emyr Estyn Evans is just as rel- evant sixty years on. -
Trials to Identify Soil Cultivation Practices to Minimise the Impact on Archaeological Sites (Defra Project Number BD1705) Effec
Trials to Identify Soil Cultivation Practices to Minimise the Impact on Archaeological Sites (Defra project number BD1705) Effects of Arable Cultivation on Archaeology (EH Project number 3874) Known collectively as: ‘Trials’ Appendix 4: Studying the effects of different cultivation systems on archaeological earthworks December 2010 Client: English Heritage and Defra Issue No: 2 OA Job No: 1879 Appendix 4 The effects of different cultivation systems on archaeological earthworks By K Spandl, C Champness, M L Dresser, M J Hann, and R J Godwin Edited by P Booth and K Spandl Oxford Archaeology and Cranfield University i 14/12/10 Oxford Archaeology and Cranfield University Final report Appendix 4 The effects of different cultivation systems on archaeological earthworks 1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background .................................................................................................................................1 1.2 Introduction to the project...........................................................................................................2 1.3 Aims of the project.......................................................................................................................2 2 Agriculture and earthworks - background ................................................................... 4 2.1 Affects of cultivation on earthworks ............................................................................................4 -
AERIAL ARCHAEOLOGY and the EVIDENCE for MEDIEVAL FARMING in WEST CHESHIRE R. Williams, M.A.. R.I.B.A., F.S.A
AERIAL ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE EVIDENCE FOR MEDIEVAL FARMING IN WEST CHESHIRE R. Williams, M.A.. R.I.B.A., F.S.A. Aerial archaeology, or the use of aerial photographs to interpret the landscape, is not new. The first aerial photo graphs were taken from balloons in the 19th century, but it was aerial reconnaissance during the first World VVar that made archaeologists appreciate the possibilities of this techni que for their own research. Aerial archaeology had not been seriously attempted in Cheshire until it was realised that the prolonged drought during 1976 was revealing hitherto un known ancient features throughout Britain. The unusual conditions were producing the well-known crop mark phenomenon, where a buried feature is made 'visible' on the surface by premature ripening or differential growth in the crop immediately above it. The conditions obtaining in 1976 were exceptional, but they do occur to a sufficient degree to produce some crop marks in any dry summer in most English counties. In most counties, but not in all; some counties, Cheshire among them, have for many years been pastoral rather than arable, and there have been few crops in which such marks could appear. Crop growing involves ploughing and this, too, can reveal ancient features which appear as lines or patterns of discol ouration in the soil. Unfortunately, for the aerial observer, soil marks, as these features are called, are as rare as crop marks in Cheshire, so that another method of discovery has to be used. This makes use of a very low sun which brings into sharp relief even minor declivities and protuberances on the ground. -
Natural and Historical Environment Introduction
Natural and Historical Environment Introduction Landscape, geology and setting Arnesby is a hilltop village at the northern edge of the ridge that is central England’s main watershed, between the Soar/Trent, the Welland and the Avon. This position gives the parish an elevated aspect, with extensive northward vistas across the Midland to Charnwood Forest, and more intimate views into the rolling country of south Leicestershire in other directions. Geologically, the whole Plan Area is underlain by Jurassic clay and siltstone, but this is only Topographical map of Arnesby revealed in the valley bottoms where streams have cut through the thick covering of glacial till, a mixture of heavy clay, sand and gravel. Outcrops of sand and gravel within the glacial clay determined the original (Anglo-Saxon) locations of settlements in the area because of the associated combination of freshwater Topographical map of Arnesby springs and dry ground for building sites. Generally, soils in the Plan Area are heavy and fairly fertile; in the 18th century this part of the country was renowned for its ’champion’ grazing land, although much has been converted to arable since the mid-20th century. Geological map of Arnesby. The whole parish is mapped at Grade 3 in the Brown - Jurassic clay; blue - glacial till, national agricultural land classification scheme; cream – alluvium. Source: British Geological Survey detailed post-1988 mapping is not available to distinguish 3a (which is the lowest of ‘best and most versatile’ classes) from 3b, which is not specially protected under National Planning regulations. The parish is located in National Character Area NCA 94 Leicestershire Vales, as defined by Natural England for planning purposes. -
Buckinghamshire County Council
Part 4: Further Information - Accessing Historic Landscape Characterisation The Bucks HLC Project produced the The analytical archive and full GIS data set Data for Milton Keynes is held at the Milton following outputs: are held at the Buckinghamshire Sites and Keynes SMR. Contact: Monuments Record. Contact: • A non-technical summary report The Archaeology Officer, (this document) The Sites and Monuments Record Officer, Milton Keynes Council, County Archaeological Service, Design and Conservation, • A series of ten technical appendices County Hall, Aylesbury, PO Box 112, Civic Offices, (listed adjacent) Bucks HP20 1UY. 1 Saxon Gate East, • An analytical archive Milton Keynes MK9 3HQ. Tel: 01296-382072. • A GIS data set as an ArcGIS Shapefile email: [email protected] Tel: 01908-691691. The non-technical summary and technical Information is made available in accordance appendices are available via the Archaeology with the Sites and Monuments Record Service’s pages on Buckinghamshire County Access and Charging policy of the Council’s web site. relevant authority. It is intended that selected GIS data will be made available on-line. Web address: http://www.buckscc.gov. uk/archaeology/index.htm 24 25 37HH artwork version2.indd 26 25/9/06 11:18:27 Contents of the Technical Appendices Title Content Appendix 1 Historic Landscape Types Standardised description of each Historic Landscape Type (HLT) Appendix 2 Project Methodology Detailed description of the project method Appendix 3 Project Design The original project design Appendix 4 Landscape Period Summaries Period by Period maps and description assessment of time depth Appendix 5 Analysis - Settlement Maps and brief discussion of differing settlement types Appendix 6 Analysis - Enclosure Maps and brief discussion of enclosure patterns Appendix 7 Analysis - Woodland Maps and brief discussion of woodland patterns Appendix 8 DataTables 1. -
Land Enclosure in England Illustrated Through Archive Material from the Collections Held at the Museum of English Rural Life
Why does the countryside look the way it does? Land enclosure in England Illustrated through archive material from the collections held at The Museum of English Rural Life UPPER PRIMARY | LOWER AND UPPER SECONDARY The landscape of Britain has been shaped by human hands since prehistory. Two hundred years ago, the enclosure of open-fields and commons across the country was one of the most significant movements that changed how the rural landscape looks in modern times. Its impact can still be seen today both in the shape of fields and the scale of farmsteads, as well as the surviving common land we use for recreational purposes. The medieval landscape During medieval times each manor or village had two or three large fields which were divided into many narrow strips of land. This was known as the open-field system and you still see examples of it today in parts of eastern Europe such as Poland. These fields had little or no boundaries and were cultivated by individuals or families. One field would be growing arable crops such as wheat, one field would be grown as a meadow to store hay for farm animals in the winter and the third was used as grazing by sheep and cattle. Everyone grew the same crops at the same time and harvested them together. Book of Hours Early illustrations of medieval farming practice can often be found in what are known as Books of Hours. Such books were often highly decorative and contained miniature illustrations showing the work of peasants and farmers. It is from these small images that we see the farming methods used in medieval times as well as the clothing worn and tools used in the processes of farming. -
The Medieval Borderland: Geophysical Analysis of a Later Medieval Deserted Settlement and Cultural Landscape from Western Ireland
University of Denver Digital Commons @ DU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 1-1-2019 The Medieval Borderland: Geophysical Analysis of a Later Medieval Deserted Settlement and Cultural Landscape from Western Ireland Andrew Ryan Bair University of Denver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd Part of the Anthropology Commons, and the European History Commons Recommended Citation Bair, Andrew Ryan, "The Medieval Borderland: Geophysical Analysis of a Later Medieval Deserted Settlement and Cultural Landscape from Western Ireland" (2019). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1561. https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/1561 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. THE MEDIEVAL BORDERLAND: GEOPHYSICAL ANALYSIS OF A LATER MEDIEVAL DESERTED SETTLEMENT AND CULTURAL LANDSCAPE FROM WESTERN IRELAND ______________ A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of Social Sciences University of Denver ____________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts ____________ by Andrew Bair June 2019 Advisor: Lawrence B. Conyers ©Copyright by Andrew Bair 2019 All Rights Reserved Author: Andrew Bair Title: The Medieval Borderland: Geophysical Analysis of a Later Medieval Deserted Settlement and Cultural Landscape from Western Ireland Advisor: Lawrence B. Conyers Degree Date: June 2019 Abstract This thesis investigates the archaeological remnants of an early 14th century settlement at Ballintober, Roscommon County, Ireland. An innovative methodology combining ground-penetrating radar, magnetic gradiometry, and archaeological excavations is utilized to reconstruct the medieval built environment, which wa s comprised of a masonry castle, nucleated settlement and wider arable agricultural landscape. -
Historic England Research, Which Showcases the Wide Variety of Work Undertaken in the Heritage Sector
Discovery, innovation and science in the historic environment Building Buddhism Issue 03 | Summer 2016 As a Commissioner of Historic England, a member of its Advisory Committee and an economic and social historian, I am delighted to introduce the third issue of Historic England Research, which showcases the wide variety of work undertaken in the heritage sector. This issue looks at work carried out across the country into Sikh, Quaker and Buddhist faiths, highlighting how research is bringing a new understanding of heritage to both traditional and new audiences and indicating the importance of the reuse, renewal and adaption of faith buildings. It also provides updates on partnership work which looks at the landscapes of Wiltshire and the North West, as well the much publicised excavation at Must Farm, jointly funded by Historic England and the brick manufacturer Forterra. Previous issues of the magazine are available to download from the Historic England website. Martin Daunton Commissioner, Historic England In this issue... Buddhist buildings in England .........3 Must Farm Bronze Age timber platform ...................33 Understanding Sikh places of worship ........................8 Revealing past landscapes in Cumbria and Lancashire ....................38 Quaker Meeting Houses assessed .....12 The changing historical landscape of The church interiors of John West Wiltshire .....................45 Loughborough Pearson .............16 Local Authority asset management Early fabric in Chipping Norton .......21 plans: what don’t they know? ........50 Reginald Farrer’s private Historic England’s Introductions to rock garden .......................24 Heritage Assets ....................53 England’s shopping parades .........30 Historic England publications ........55 2 | Historic England Research | Issue 3: Summer 2016 Buddhist buildings in England A faith that has repurposed a significant number of historic buildings.