Durham E-Theses A contextual analysis of the landscape of Cambridgeshire in the early Anglo-Saxon period Taylor, Barry How to cite: Taylor, Barry (2003) A contextual analysis of the landscape of Cambridgeshire in the early Anglo-Saxon period, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/3155/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 A CONTEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF THE LANDSCAPE OF CAMBRIDGESHIRE IN THE EARLY ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD Barry Taylor A copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotatimn from it shouDdl be panblisl:nedl witD:nout his prior wJritteJrn co~rnsent and! information dlelrivedl from it should be acknowDedlged. Submitted for the degree of M.A. Department of Archaeology, University of Durham July 2003 A CONTEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF THE LANDSCAPE OF CAMBRIDGESHIRE IN THE EARLY ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD Barry Taylor Abstract This projects seeks to characterise the landscape of Cambridgeshire during the Early Anglo-Saxon period. In particular it aims to re-assess existing models of landuse and test the traditional views of continuity and change between the Roman and Anglo­ Saxon periods. These aims will be accomplished through a contextual study of the archaeological information, the underlying methodology of which will consist of the following: • Examining the ways in which different sites are recovered and assessing the extent of any biases within the data set. • Identifying and categorising different forms of settlement by examining evidence for surviving features. • Analysing the pattern of settlement through space and time by placing sites within their own cultural and historic landscapes. In particular, the extent of localised variation in land use, site abandonment and settlement shift will be assessed in order to appreciate the dynamics of the landscape and to examine critically the narratives of this period. Research will concentrate on the modem county of Cambridgeshire, drawing upon all available data from both published and unpublished sources. The archaeological data for this period forms a rich and varied resource, many aspects of which are now well understood. However, research is typically conducted within a framework of historical periods, each of which has its own agendas. This has left certain aspects of the archaeology relatively under studied and makes an examination of the relationships between periods problematic. The proposed project will adopt a more uniform approach to the data, examining both the nature of settlement sites and their cultural and historical context. This will allow a re-evaluation of historical narratives relating to the changes in the cultural landscape through time. Submitted for the degree of M.A. Department of Archaeology, University of Durham July 2003 But when this material is properly understood, and its limitations respected, there remain wide aspects of the period which can be strongly illuminated by its use. J.N.L. Myres. 1937. P. 331 2 PROJECT BACKGROUND ...................................................................................... 8 1.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 8 I .2 Research aims ..................................................................................................... 9 1.3 Methodology ..................................................................................................... 12 1.3.1 The extents ofthe project .......................................................................... 12 1.3.2 Data collection and management.. ............................................................ 13 1.3.3 Dating and terminology ............................................................................ 15 1.3.4 Site definitions .......................................................................................... 16 1.3.5 System of referencing ............................................................................... 17 1.4 The Research Area ............................................................................................ 18 1.4.1 The physical landscape ............................................................................. 18 1.4.2 History of fieldwork .................................................................................. 19 2 ANALYSIS OF THE DATA .................................................................................... 23 2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 23 2.2 Sample bias, representativity and archaeological source criticism ................... 24 2.3 Problems of dating in the Anglo-Saxon sample ............................................... 28 2.4 Over and under-representation within the data set ........................................... 31 2.4.1 Settlements ................................................................................................ 31 2.4.2 Cemeteries ................................................................................................. 36 2.5 The data set through time .................................................................................. 38 2.5.1 The Nineteenth Century ............................................................................ 39 2.5.2 1900-1949 ................................................................................................. 40 2.5.3 1950-Present ............................................................................................. 40 2.6 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 44 3 INTERPRETING THE DATASET .......................................................................... 62 3.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 62 3.2 Method .............................................................................................................. 62 3.3 Settlement sites: overview ................................................................................ 63 3.3.1 Distributions and site densities ................................................................. 63 3.3.2 Building types and functional interpretations ........................................... 66 3.3.3 Settlement morphology ............................................................................. 70 3.4 Early Anglo-Saxon Settlement sites in Cambridgeshire ................................... 73 3.4.1 General distributions in the county ........................................................... 73 3.4.2 Spatial analysis .......................................................................................... 76 3.4.3 Analysis of sites with settlement characteristics ....................................... 79 3.4.4 Conclusions ............................................................................................... 86 3.5 Funerary sites: overview ................................................................................... 87 3.5.1 Early Anglo-Saxon cemeteries ................................................................. 87 3.5.2 Cemetery morphology .............................................................................. 88 3.6 Early Anglo-Saxon funerary sites in Cambridgeshire ...................................... 91 3.6.1 General distributions ................................................................................. 91 3.6.2 Spatial analysis .......................................................................................... 92 3.6.3 Analysis offunerary sites .......................................................................... 94 3.6.4 Conclusions ............................................................................................. 101 3.7 Interpreting metalwork finds ........................................................................... 103 3 3.8 Early Anglo-Saxon metalwork finds in Cambridgeshire ................................ 105 3.8.1 General distributions in the county ......................................................... I 05 3.8.2 Spatial analysis ........................................................................................ I 06 3.8.3 Analysis of metalwork finds ................................................................... I 07 3.8.4 Conclusions ............................................................................................. 113 3.9 Summaryofresults ......................................................................................... 115 4 RE-CONSTRUCTING THE LANDSCAPE .......................................................... 145 4.1 Saxon settlement in the Late Roman landscape .............................................. 145 4.1.1 Explaining the change: current