The Environment of Man: the Iron Age to the Anglo-Saxon Period 9780860541288, 9781407323602

Table of contents :
Front Cover
Copyright
Table of Contents
List of Figures
List of Plates
List of Contributors
Introduction
Part I: The Context of Environmental Studies
1. Social Landscapes: Pattern and Purpose?
2. New Approaches to Familiar Problems
Part II: The Evironmental Setting
3. Climate from 1000 BC to 1000 AD
4. The Vegetation
5. Valley Sediments and Environmental Change
Part III: The Exploitation of Environmental Resources
6. The Development of Crop Husbandry
7. Iron Age, Roman and Saxon Crops: The Archaeological Evidence from Wessex
8. Iron Age, Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon Animal Husbandry - A Review of the Faunal Evidence
9. The Significance of Deer Remains at Occupation Sites of the Iron Age to the Anglo-Saxon Period
10. Fleece Changes in Sheep
11. Disease as an Environmental Parameter
Part IV: The Ecology of Settlement
12. The Iron Age to Early Saxon Environment of the Upper Thames Terraces
13. Crop Husbandry and Environmental Change in the Costal Area of The Feddersen Wierde, Near Bremerhaven, Northwest Germany
14. Soil and Botanical Studies of the "Dark Earth"
Concluding Remarks

Citation preview

The Environment of Man: the Iron Age to the Anglo-Saxon Period edited by

Martin Jones and Geoffrey Dimbleby

BAR British Series 87 1981

B.A.R.,

B.A.R.

122

Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7BP, England

GENERAL EDITORS

A. R. Hands, B.Sc., :\1.A., D.Phil. D. R. Walker, 1\1. A.

B.A.R. 87, 1981, "The Environment of Man" © The Individual Authors, 1981 The authors’ moral rights under the 1988 UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act are hereby expressly asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, stored, sold, distributed, scanned, saved in any form of digital format or transmitted in any form digitally, without the written permission of the Publisher. ISBN 9780860541288 paperback ISBN 9781407323602 e-book DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9780860541288 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library This book is available at www.barpublishing.com

CONTENTS

P age Mart in J ones

I ntroduct ion

THE CONTEXT OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 1 . 2 .

S oc ia l L andscapes:

P a ttern a nd P urpose? Dav id M i les

New Approaches t o F am i l iar P rob lems

P eter J . R eyno lds

THE ENVIRONMENTAL S ETTING

1 7 -49 9 1 9 5 1-91

3 .

C l ima te f rom 1 000 BC t o 1 000 AD

Huber t H . L amb

5 3

4 .

The Vegeta t ion

J ud i th Turner

6 7

5 .

Va l ley S ed iments a nd Env ironmenta l Change Mart in Be l l

THE EXPLOITATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES 6 .

The Deve lopment o f Crop Husbandry

7 .

I ron Age, Roman a nd S axon Crops : Ev idence f rom Wessex

8 .

Mart in J ones The Archaeo log ica l F . J . Green

7 5 9 3-247 9 5 1 29

I ron Age, Romano-Br i t ish a nd Ang lo-Saxon An ima l Husbandry : A R ev iew o f t he F auna l Ev idence Mark Ma ltby

1 55

The S ign if icance o f Deer R ema ins a t O ccupa t ion S i tes o f t he I ron Age t o t he Ang lo-Saxon P er iod Ann ie Grant

2 05

1 0 .

F leece Changes i n S heep

M . L . Ryder

2 15

1 1.

D isease a s a n Env ironmenta l P arameter Don Brothwe l l

2 31

9 .

THE ECOLOGY OF S ETTLEMENT 1 2.

2 49-331

The I ron Age t o E ar ly S axon Env ironment o f t he Upper Thames T erraces Mark Rob inson

2 51

1 3 .

Crop Husbandry a nd Env ironmenta l Change i n t he F eddersen W ierde, n ear Bremerhaven, North West Germany Ude lgard Körber-Grohne 2 87

1 4.

S o i l a nd Botan ica l S tud ies o f t he ' Dark E arth ' R ichard Macpha i l

Conc lud ing r emarks

G eoffrey D imb leby

3 09 3 33

L IST OF F IGURES F igure

P age

2 .1

Tr i t icum d icoccum s tand h e ights

2 7

2 .2

T r i t icum s pe lta s tand h e ights

2 8

2 .3

Tr i t icum a est ivum s tand h e ights

2 9

2 .4

Agrostemma g i thago s tand h e ights

3 0

2 .5

C entaurea c yanus s tand h e ights

3 1

2 .6

Remanent

s eeds i n e mmer whea t s traw

3 5

2 .7

F oxho le F arm c orn d r ier

3 9

2 .8

Barton Court F arm c orn d r ier

4 1

2 .9

Exper imenta l e arthwork

4 5

2 .10

Exper imenta l e arthwork, e as tern a rm

4 5

3 .1

Mean who le-year t empera tures, Eng land a nd Ch ina

5 4

3 .2

Character o f s ummers a nd w inters i n Europe

5 8

3 .3

Swiss l arches :

6 2

5 .1

Types o f c o l luv ia l d epos i t

7 6

5 .2

D is tr ibut ion o f c o l luv ia l d epos its

7

5 .3

Cha lton :

s ect ion t hrough s ed iments

8 0

5 .4

K i lne Combe : s ect ion t hrough s ed iments, a nd d istr ibut ion o f B eaker s herds

8 2

5 .5

K i lne Combe:

8 3

6 .1

D istr ibut ion o f I ron Age s i tes w i th c rop r ecords

6 .2

D istr ibut ion o f Romano-Br i t ish s i tes w ith c rop r ecords

1 00

6 .3

D istr ibut ion o f Ang lo-Saxon s i tes w i th c rop r ecords

1 02

6 .4

I nnovat ions i n c rop husbandry

16

6 .5

Chrono log ica l r e lat ionsh ip b etween c rop husbandry a nd c entra l p laces

1 19

P resence d iagrams o f i mpress ions a nd c arbon ised r ema ins

1 34

7 .2

P resence d iagrams o f t he ma in c erea ls

1 35

7 .3

P resence d iagrams o f wheat s pec ies

1 36

7 .4

P resence d iagrams o f b ar ley s pec ies

1 37

7 .5

P resence d iagrams o f whea t a nd b ar ley c omb ina t ions

1 38

7 .1

r ing w id ths a nd l a te-wood d ens i t ies

d istr ibut ion o f med ieva l p o ttery

9 8

F igure

P age

8 .1

Age ing d a ta, I ron Age s heep/goat mand ib les

1 73

8 .2

Age ing d ata, Romano-Br i t ish mand ib les

1 76

8 .3

Age ing d a ta, m idlate S axon mand ib les

1 77

8 .4

Age ing d a ta, I ron Age & Romano-Br i t ish c att le mand ib les

1 80

8 .5

Age ing d a ta, Romano-Br i t ish & Ang lo-Saxon mand ib les

1 81

8 .6

I ron Age & Romano-Br i t ish c a tt le a stra lag i :

1 86

8 .7

Romano-Br i t ish c att le metatars i :

8 .8

Romano-Br i t ish s heep / goa t t ib iae:

l eng ths

p rox ima l w idths

1 88

d ista l w idths

1 91

1 0.1

C oat s tructure o f w i ld a nces tor o f s heep

2 16

1 0.2

Woo l f ibre d iameter :

2 19

1 0.3

Evo lut ion o f f l eece t ypes

2 23

1 1 .1

Husbandry f actors a nd a b i l i ty t o w i ths tand d isease

2 32

1 2.1

Map:

Upper Thames Va l ley

2 52

1 3.1

Map:

North S ea Coast

2 88

1 3 .2

Env irons o f t he F eddersen W ierde

2 90

1 3.3

Uncharred a nd c harred e conom ic p lant r ema ins

2 96

1 3.4

Change i n t he p r incipa l v egeta t ion g roups

3 05

1 4.1

Phyto l i ths

3 11

1 4.2

Phyto l i th p ercentages

3 20

c hanges dur ing e vo lut ion

L IST OF PLATES

P late

P age

2 .I

Sheath o f emmer wheat s traw

3 4

2 .11

Reconstructed F oxho le F arm c orn d r ier

3 8

2 .111

S ect ion o f t he BAFDA e arthwork

4 4

5 .1

K i lne Combe:

7 8

5 .11

Cha lton:

d ry v a l ley e xcavat ion

d ry v a l ley e xcavat ion

7 8

1 0.I

Woo l s tap les o f d ifferent f l eece t ypes

2 17

1 0.II

D ifferent b reeds o f Br it ish s heep

2 21

1 1.I

Bov id p e lv is s how ing d is location

2 34

1 1.1 . 1

Congen ita l d eformity i n l umbar v ertebrae

2 36

1 1.III

Retarded g rowth i n p ig f ore l imb

2 37

1 1.IV

Ora l p atho logy i n s heep

2 38

1 1.V

Bov id t ibia s howing f racture a nd h ea l ing

2 40

1 1 . VI

F ractured a nd s emi-hea led n eura l s p ine

2 42

1 1.VII

Broken a nd s em i-hea led c aprov id p e lv is

2 43

1 1.VIII

Dog p e lv is w ith b roken f emura l h ead

2 44

1 1.IX

Horse mand ib le s howing i nf lammatory r eact ion

2 45

1 3.I

F eddersen W ierde:

3 00

v iews o f t he e xcavation

L IST OF CONTRIBUTORS

Mr Mart in Be l l Dept o f G eography , Br isto l Un ivers i ty Dr Don Brothwe l l I nst itute o f Archaeo logy, L ondon Un ivers i ty P rof . G eoffrey D imb leby 3 4, House L ane, S andr idge,

S t. A lbans

Ms Ann ie Grant 2 6, Beckw i th Road, L ondon S E24 Mr F . J . Green T est Va l ley Archaeo log ica l Comm i ttee, Romsey, Hants Mr Mart in J ones Botany S choo l, Oxford Un ivers i ty P rof . Dr Ude lgard Körber-Grohne I st itut f ür Bo tan ik, Un ivers ität Hohenhe im ( Stuttgart) P rof . Hubert H . L amb C l imat ic Research Un it, Un ivers i ty o f E ast Ang l ia Dr R ichard Macpha i l I nst itute o f Archaeo logy, L ondon Un ivers ity Mr Mark Ma ltby Department o f Archaeo logy, S outhampton Un ivers i ty Mr Dav id M i les Oxford Archaeo log ica l Un i t Dr P eter J . Reyno lds Butser Anc ient F arm P ro ject, Rookham L odge, E ast Meon, Hants Dr Mark Rob inson Oxford Archaeo log ica l Un i t Dr M . L . Ryder ARC F ie ld L aboratory, Ros l in, M id loth ian Dr J ud i th Turner Dept o f Bo tany, Durham Un ivers i ty

I NTRODUCTION Mar t in J ones

The e nv iron men t o f man h as c o me t o o ccupy a p ro m inen t p os i t ion i n a rchaeolog ica l s tud ies .

The c lose r e la t ionsh ip b etween h uman a c t iv i ty a nd

c hanges i n c l ima te , v ege ta t ion a nd s o i ls h as b een r ecogn ised , a nd s uch c hanges h ave b eco me p ar t o f t he s truc ture w i th in wh ich d evelopmen ts i n p reh is tory a re v iewed .

The b e t ter k nown a ppl ica t ions o f e co log ica l s tud ies , s uch a s

t hose r ela t ing t o t he emergence o f a gr icu l ture , b elong t o p er iods o f p reh is tory p receed ing t he I ron Age , a nd h ave b een f or mu la ted w i th in c ons iderable c ons tra in ts i n t he f orm o f s carc i ty o f s et t le men t e v idence a nd t he r e la t ive i mp rec is ion o f t he a ssoc ia ted c hronolog ica l f ra mework . S tuden ts o f t hese e ar l ier p er iods wou ld d e l igh t i n t he a bundan t s et t le men t o f I ron Age a nd l a ter d a te t ha t t he r ecent g row th o f r escue a rchaeo logy h as p roduced .

They wou ld b e o verwhe lmed b y t he r ich a nd wel l-da ted a sse mb lages

o f b io log ica l ma ter ia l r ecovered f ro m t hese s et t le men ts .

The r escue ' boo m '

h as i ndeed l ed t o t he e s tab l ish ment o f an u mber o f e nv iron men ta l s pec ia l is ts i n a rchaeo log ica l u n i ts a nd u n ivers i t ies , t he f ru i ts o f whose l abours a re b eg inn ing t o s ee t he l i gh t o f d ay i n p ub l ica t ion . H owever , f or a l l t he d i l igen t w ork t ha t h as b een c onduc ted o n r e la t ive ly f avourab le ma ter ia l o f I ron Age t o A ng lo-Saxon d a te , t h is p er iod s ee ms t o l ack t he g enera l e co log ica l p erspec t ive t ha t e x is ts f or e ar l ier p er iods o f s tudy.

Much o f t he i n forma t ion p roduced i s

s t i l l s i te s pec if ic r a ther t han r e la t ing t o g enera l e co log ica l q uest ions .

A n

u nderstand ing o f t he p er iod a s a whole , a nd i ndeed t he e nv iron men ta l q uest ions t he mse lves a re s t i l l s truc tured e n t ire ly a round p o l i t ica l e ven ts , i n p ar t icu lar t he mag ica l d a tes o f 4 3 a nd 4 10 A . D.

Th is c onserva t is m o f a pproach i s p er-

h aps r e la ted t o t he r a te a t wh ich ma ter ia l i s b e ing p roduced .

The p oss ib i l i ty

o f f resh t hough t o n t he s truc ture o f e nv iron men ta l s tud ies h as d isappeared b eh ind b oxes o f b one s tacked t o t he c ei l ing , a nd b enea th s acks o f e ar th b y t he h undredwe igh t , a l l wa i t ing t o b e ' processed ' b y o verworked s pec ia l is ts .

The

p er i ls o f t h is means o f a ccumu la t ing d a ta , a re we l l e xpressed b y Ma l tby i n t h is v o lume ;

h is a ssess men t o f t he sma l l f rac t ion o f t he e x tan t b one d a ta t ha t c an

b e u sefu lly a ss im i la ted i n to r e l iab le i deas o n a n i ma l h usbandry i s i ndeed a c au t ionary t a le. The c lear n eed f or s o me a ppra isa l o f e nv iron men ta l s tud ies i n t he p er iod i nq ues t ion l ed t o t he i dea o f b r ing ing t oge ther a g roup o f r esearchers i n v ar ious f i e lds .

Each w ou ld a t te mp t t o s yn thes ise t he i n for ma t ion t hey f e l t r e levan t t o

t heir own f i e ld , a nd s ugges t mode ls a nd d irec t ions f or f ur ther r esearch . T h is was u nder taken a t ac onference i n O xford e n t i t led " The E nv iron men t o f Man ;

The I ron Age t o t he A ng lo-Saxon P er iod" .

s t em f ro m t ha t c onference .

1

The p apers i n t h is v o lu me

Wh i ls t t he o p t ion o f c on tr ibu t ing t o t he v o lu me was made a va i lab le t o a l l r esearchers i n t he f i eld , t hrough t he r ecen t ly f or med A ssoc ia t ion f or E nv ironmen ta l A rchaeo logy , t he i n i t ia l s e lec t ion o f c on tr ibu tors i nev i tab ly r ef lec ts my own i deas a bou t p oten t ia l ly f ru i t fu l d irec t ions i n e nv iron men ta l r esearch . P rofessor D imb leby r igh t ly o bserves i n h is c on tr ibu t ion t ha t av o lu me w i th t he s ame n ame c ou ld i nc lude a n e n t irely d i f feren t s er ies o f p apers .

I t i s

t here fore a ppropr ia te t o o u t l ine my s en t imen ts h ere . Man i s n o t ap ar t icu lar ly amenab le o rgan is m f or s c ien t i f ic s tudy , a nd g enera l p r inc ip les o f e co logy h ave i n t he p as t b een d eveloped o n t he b as is o f o ther , more amenab le s pec ies .

The v a lue o f s tudy ing t he e co logy o f man l i es

n o t i n r evea l ing t hese g enera l p r inc ip les , b u t i n r evea l ing t he f ea tures t ha t

'

a re d is t inc t ive , t he e co log ica l ly u nusua l a spec ts o f t he r e la t ionsh ip b e tween man a nd h is e nv iron men ts .

Th is u nusua l n a ture o f h u man e co logy mus t t o a

g rea t e x ten t l i e i n t he c ons iderab le i n f luence p layed b y s oc ia l f ac tors i n h uman d eve lopmen t a nd b ehav iour . The p er iod u nder s tudy i s u n ique i n o f fer ing b o th a we l l d ef ined l ong-term r ecord o f s ubs tan t ia l e co log ica l c hange , t oge ther w i th a we l l d ef ined l ong t erm r ecord o f s ubs tan t ia l s oc ia l c hange.

O ther p er iods

may p resen t o ne o r o ther o f t hese r ecords , b u t p er iods t ha t p resen t b o th w i th s i mi lar c hrono log ica l p rec is ion a re h ard t o f i nd .

Iwou ld s uggest t ha t i ti s i n

t he o ppor tun i ty o f c o mpar ing t hese r ecords , o f c o l la t ing v ar ia t ions i n manp lan t a nd man-an i ma l r ela t ionsh ips w i th v ar ia t ions i n s oc ia l s ta tus a nd s truc ture o f s e t t le ment h ierarchy w i th in a d eve lop ing s oc iety , t ha t t he i mpor tance o f t h is p er iod t o t he s tudy o f h uman e co log y l i es . I ft hese s en t imen ts a re r ef lec ted i n t he g enera l s truc ture o f t he v o lume , t hey a re b y n o means t he u n iform d ogma o f t he c on tr ibu t ions .

The v ar ious

a u thors h ave t aken i nd iv idua l a nd o f ten c on tras t ing a pproaches t o t he s ub jec t , a nd t he v o lu me h as b enef i ted a s ar esu l t .

B y way o f i n troduc t ion t o t he p apers ,

Ih ave s u m mar ised wha t s tr ike me a s t he s a l ien t t he mes t ha t emerge f rom t he c on tr ibu t ions . I n t he s ec t ion e n t i t led " The C on tex t o f E nv iron menta l S tud ies" , R eynolds a nd M i les v iew t he d irec t ion o f e nv iron men ta l s tud ies f ro m t he s tandpo in t o f t wo r e la ted f i e lds t ha t h ave a lso c o me t o p ro m inence i n t he s tudy o f t h is p er iod , e xper i men ta l a rchaeo logy a nd l andscape a rchaeo log y.

B o th a u thors emphasise

t he i mpor tance o f r esearch q ues t ions i n t he d es ign o f a n a rchaeo log ica l s tra tegy , a nd l a men t t he l ack o f t h is e le men t i n p ast work .

R eyno lds c ons iders i n d e ta i l

t he t rans for ma t ions t ha t o ccur b e tween t he i n i t ia l e le men ts o f a n e cosys te m , a nd t he r esu l tan t d ebr is t ha t i s r ecovered b y a rchaeo log is ts . i s a lso r a ised b y Be l l a nd Ma l tby ,

Th is q ues t ion

M i les d raws a t ten t ion t o t he p rob lems

i nheren t i n t he c oncep ts o f ' t he s i te ' a nd ' comp le te e xcava t ion ' , a nd t here was ag enera l c onsensus a t t he c onference t ha t ap roper s tudy o f t he e nv ironmen t o f man s hou ld i nvo lve t he e xam ina t ion o f a r tefac tua l a nd e nv iron men ta l d a ta f ro m b eyond t he c onf ines o f c onven t iona l s i tes .

R eyno lds , f or e xamp le ,

l a men ts t he l ack o f ac o mprehensive e xcava t ion o f a' cel t ic f ie ld '.

B e l l

d e mons tra tes a dm irab ly t ha t s uch e xerc ises c an b e s uccessfu l ly moun ted . Be l l 's c on tr ibu t ion f a l ls i n t he s econd s ec t ion e n t i t led " The E nv iron men ta l S e t t ing" .

The t hree p apers o n c l ima te , v ege ta t ion a nd s o i ls a re n o t t o b e

t hough t o f a s s tr ic t ly e qu iva len t s yn theses , o r t o e xc lude c ons idera t ion o f h u man i n terven t ion a s migh t b e i n ferred f ro m t he s ec t ion h ead ing . L amb

2

d raws t oge ther a va i lab le e v idence o n c l ima t ic c hange , a nd h is p aper i l lus tra tes h ow b road a r ange o f d a ta , g eo log ica l , b io log ica l , a rchaeo log ica l a nd h is tor ica l , may b e d rawn o n i n e nv iron men ta l s tud ies o f t h is p er iod .

C l i ma t ic c hanges

i n Br i ta in a re r ev iewed i n t he c on tex t o f c hanges f ur ther a f ie ld , a nd i n p laces r e la ted t o c on te mporary h is tor ica l a nd c u l tura l d eve lop men ts .

Turner d ea ls

w i th o ne s pec if ic f orm o f d a ta , p o l len , a nd s tresses t he f ac tors i nvo lved i n t he s e lec t ion o f s u i table s i tes f or a na lys is , a nd i n t he i n terpre ta t ion o f a ssoc ia ted r ad iocarbon d a tes .

A s w e l l a s o u t l in ing t he n a t iona l t rends d ur ing t he p er iod ,

b o th Lamb a nd Turner d raw a t ten t ion t o r eg iona l d ivers i ty.

The p oten t ia l f or

s tudying r eg iona l d ivers i ty a nd t he i mpor tance o f a dequa te r eg iona l c overage was a l luded t o b y s evera l a u thors .

B e l l , d ea l ing w i th t he s pec i f ic q uest ion o f

v a l ley s ed i men ta t ion , c onsiders t he i mp l ica t ions o f h is d a ta , b o th i n t he i n terp re ta t ion o f p r i mary e v idence f ro m f i e ld s urvey , a nd i n t he s ubsequen t u nders tand ing o f c oncurren t c hanges i n s e t t le men t p a t tern i nd ica ted b y s uch s urveys . The l a t ter a spec t i s a lso e xp lored b y J ones i n t he f o l low ing s ec t ion . I n t h is s ec t ion , e n t i t led " The e xp lo i ta t ion o f E nv iron men ta l R esources" , J ones a nd G reen d ea l w i th e v idence f or c rop h usbandry i n t he p er iod .

J ones

c o l la tes t he e v idence f ro m p lan t macrofoss i ls w i th e v idence o f a gr icu l tura l i mp le men ts , b u i ld ings a nd f arm l ayou t , a nd a t te mp ts t o i so la te p er iods o f c hange.

A model i s t hen p roposed t o r e la te t hese c hanges t o c oncurren t

d eve lop men ts i n s e t t le men t h ierarchy.

G reen l ooks i n more d e ta i l a t t he

i n terpre ta t ion o f c rop p lan t r e ma ins f ro m a s pec i f ic r eg ion , g iv ing g rea ter c ons idera t ion t o me thodo log ica l p roble ms t han J ones , a nd s tresses t he i n terna l d iversi ty a nd c omp lex i ty o f t he c rop r ecord .

Ma l tby 's p aper o n a n i ma l h us-

b andry d ea ls s peci f ica l ly w i th t he e v idence f ro m p reserved b one .

The a sse m-

b lages f or wh ich u sefu l q uan t i ta t ive d a ta e x is ts a re i den t if ied , a nd t he f or m , a bundance a nd a ge s truc tures o f t he k ey d o mes t ica tes a re c ons idered , b o th i n r e la t ion t o d i f feren t p er iods o f t ime a nd t o d i f feren t t ypes o f s e t t le men t c ont ex t .

C er ta in c lear t rends emerge , p ar t icu lar ly i n r e la t ion t o a ge s truc ture ,

a nd Ma l tby c onc ludes b y i nd ica t ing t he k inds o fq ues t ions t ha t may u sefu l ly b e d irec ted t o t he d a ta , a nd t he metho log ica l i mprove men ts t ha t a re n ecessary f or t he a nswers t o b e f or thco m ing . Ma l tby d raws a t tent ion t o t he c ons iderable d iversi ty o f i nfor ma t ion t ha t c an b e d er ived f ro m v er tebra te r e ma ins , ap o in t wh ich i s amp l if ied i n t he r e ma in ing p apers i n t h is s ec t ion .

G ran t c ons iders

t he s oc ia l i mp l ica t ions o f t he o ccurrence o f w i ld a n i ma l b ones i n p er iods t ha t a re p redo m inan t ly a gr icu l tura l .

R yder d raws a t ten t ion t o af orm o f a ni ma l

s ub-foss i l l ess f am i l iar t han b one , f ragmen ts o f woo l a nd a ssoc ia ted f i bres , a nd r ela tes t he ir o ccurrence t o t he micro-evo lu t ion o f s heep i n t he p er iod u nder s tudy. Brothwe l l r ev iews t he f orms o f d isease t ha t man i fes t t he mse lves i n t he b one ma ter ia l , a nd d iscusses h ow t h is may b e r e la ted t o s uch t op ics a s t he m icro-evo lu t ion o f d o mes t ic s tock , h ea l th a nd n u tr i t ion , a nd t he t rea t men t o f a n i ma ls i n c ap t iv i ty. Three a u thors d escr ibe s pec if ic c ase-stud ies i n t he s ec t ion e n t i t led " The Ecology o f S e t t lemen t" .

Each s tudy i s c onduc ted w i th in a l ong-term

a rchaeo log ica l p rogram me , a nd t he t hree p apers d isp lay v ar ious ways i n wh ich a n e nv iron men ta l s tudy may b e i ncorpora ted i n to s uch p rogram mes .

K örber-

G rohne d escr ibes a n i n tens ive s tudy o f as ing le e xamp le o f at ype o f s i te t ha t o ccurs a l l a long t he Nor th G er man c oas t .

C hanges i n t he e nv iron men t a re

r e la ted t o t he i n i t ia t ion , d eve lopment a nd d ec l ine o f t ha t i nd iv idua l s e t t le men t

3

i n a manner t ha t may b e e x tended t o o ther s im i lar s i tes .

R obinson d ea ls w i th

an u mber o f s i tes i n t he u pper Thames V a l ley , s ca t tered i n s pace a nd t ime , a nd f ormu la tes a p ic ture o f t he e nv iron men t o f e ach s i te .

The c hang ing e n-

v iron men t i s t hen a na lysed i n t erms o f t he e co log ica l d i f ferences b e tween e ach s i te.

Macpha i l a lso d ea ls w i th a n u mber o f s i tes , b u t c onf ines h is a t ten t ion

t o ap ar t icu lar p o in t i n t he s tra t igraph ic s equence o f e ach s i te , c orrespond ing t o t he s o-ca l led " dark e ar th" i n l a te R o man s e t t le men ts .

The d epos i t ion o f

t he l ayer i t sel f i s i nves t iga ted f ro m a n e co log ica l p o in t o f v iew , a nd i mp l ica t ions a bou t t he u se o f t he s et t le men ts i n l a te R o man Br i ta in d iscussed . A l l t hree a u thors a rgue o n t he b as is o f av ery b road r ange o f e co log ica l d a ta , p o l len , p hyto l i ths , mo l luscs , i nsec ts , s oi ls , e tc ., i n e ach c ase l ead ing t o af ar more p owerfu l a rgumen t t han wou ld h ave b een d er ived f ro m o ne f orm o f d a ta a lone . K örber-Grohne 's d iscuss ion o f p lan t a ssoc ia t ions r a ther t han i nd iv idua l s pec ies a lso b r ings s treng th t o h er c ase . Each o f t he c on tr ibu tors was a sked t o c ons ider t he r elevance o f t he c hrono log ica l f ramework b ased o n t he R o man O ccupa t ion t o t he ir own s ub jec t ma t ter .

Wh i ls t o vera l l d i fferences b etween t he I ron Age , R o mano-Br i t ish

a nd A ng lo-Saxon p er iods a re r ecogn ised b y v ar ious a u thors , t he t im ing o f t he v ar ious c hanges i s o ccas iona l ly b rough t i n to q ues t ion .

G reen i sola tes t he 3 rd

a nd 2 nd c en tury B . C . a s at rans i t iona l p er iod i n t er ms o f t he Wessex c rop r ecord , whereas J ones w ou ld l oca te a t rans i t iona l p er iod e ar l ier i n t he mi l lenn iu m f or S ou thern Br i ta in a s a whole .

M i les , J ones a nd Rob inson p lace em-

p has is o n t he l a te I ron Age a s ak ey p er iod o f c hange , a nd t here was a g enera l c onsensus a t t he c onference t ha t more e co log ica l i nves t iga t ion o f t he p er iod migh t l ead t o t he b ackda t ing o f many s upposed Ro man i nnova t ions.

Ag rea t

d ea l o f c hange i n l a te R o man Br i ta in i s e v idence f ro m t he p apers o f J ones , G reen , Ma l tby , G ran t a nd Macpha i l .

The v o lu me i n g enera l i nc ludes a n umber

o f p oin ts a bou t t h is p er iod a nd t he e nsu ing Dark Ages .

I ti s i n teres t ing t o

c o mpare Turner 's c essa t ion o f wood land c learance a nd G ran t 's r esurgence i n t he e xp loi ta t ion o f w i ld a n ima ls w i th J ones ' s us ta ined i n tens i f ica t ion o f l ow land a gr icu l ture , Ma l tby 's s us ta ined i mprove men t i n S tock r ear ing , a nd Macpha i l 's h or t icu l tura l a c t iv i ty i n t he t owns . Th is i s c lear ly a p er iod t o wh ich e nv ironmen ta l a rchaeo logy h as e xc i t ing c on tr ibu t ions t o make. These a re t he t he mes t ha t p resen t t he mse lves mos t c lear ly t o me.

Iam

g ra tefu l t o P rofessor D i mb leby f or c as t ing a more e xper ienced e ye o ver t he p roceed ings i n h is ' conc lud ing r e marks '. The p apers a re d ensely p acked w i th n ew i n forma t ion a nd i deas , a nd many o ther t he mes w i l l u ndoubted ly emerge i n d ue c ourse.

The e xecu t ion o f t he c on ference a nd t h is v o lu me h ave a lready

b een a s ource o f g rea t s t imu lus t o me , a nd Is hou ld l i ke t o a cknow ledge t he many p eop le who a l lowed t he m t o h appen .

The c on ference was o rgan ised u nder

t he a usp ices o f O x ford U n ivers i ty Depar t men t o f E x terna l S tud ies a nd t he O x ford Archaeo log ica l U n i t , a nd my t hanks g o e spec ia l ly t o Trevor R ow ley , S h ir ley H erman a nd R ichard C hambers f or t heir h elp . men t o f t he c onference

Throughou t t he d eve lop-

n d v o lu me , a nd e spec ia l ly d ur ing t he e d i t ing , t he e x-

t ens ive a nd c arefu l g u idance g iven b y P rofessor D imb leby h as b een i nva luab le. My t hanks a lso g o t o a l l t hose who b y a t tend ing t he c onference made b o th i t a nd t h is v o lu me p ossib le , a nd i n p ar t icu lar t o t he c on tr ibu tors t he mse lves , whose t asks o f s yn thes is were n ever e asy.

T o t hose who s pen t o n t h is t ask s o

much o f t he ir p rec ious t ime-of f f ro m t he b oxes o f b ones a nd s acks o f e ar th ,

4

o n ly t o b e r ewarded b y my b u l lying p hone-ca l ls a nd h ear t less e d i t ing , may Ie x tend my g ra t i tude. Mar t in J ones , Ox ford , N ove mber 1 980

NOTE ON DATING Throughou t t h is v o lume , t he f o l low ing c onven t ion h as b een u sed : i )

' be ' a nd ' ad ' a re u sed t o d enote d a tes measured i n r ad iocarbon y ears , c a lcu la ted u s ing t he c onven t iona l L ibby v a lue o f 5 568 y ears f or t he h a lf-l i fe o f r ad iocarbon .

i )

' BC ' a nd ' AD ' a re u sed t o d enote d a tes measured i n c a lendar y ears .

5

THE CONTEXT OF ENV IRON MENTAL S TUDIES

7

1 .

SOC IAL LANDSCAPES :

PATTERN AND PURPOSE?

Dav id M i les

' The g rea t ma jor i ty o f t he E ng l ish s e t t lers f aced a v irg in c oun try o f d amp o ak-ash f ores t , o r b eech f ores t o n o r n ear t he c ha lk ;

a nd wha t was n o t

t h ick ly f ores ted was l i kely t o b e c o ld , h igh , mis t-wrapped moor land , o r wa ter-logged w et h ea th , d rowned marshes o r e s tuary s a l t ings , o r s ter i le t h in-so i led , d ry h ea th .'

( Hosk ins 1 955 : 4 4 )

Th is e voca t ive p ic ture was c on jured u p o ver t wen ty f i ve y ears a go i n t ha t c lassic o f h is tor ica l g eography The Mak ing o f t he Eng l ish Landscape . S ince t hen t he s cene h as c hanged d rama t ica l ly t hanks t o t he w ork o f a rchaeo log ists , h is tor ica l g eographers , a nd p a leoeco log is ts .

I t wou ld b e u nsa fe t o

s ay h owever t ha t t he p ic ture h as y e t b een b rough t i n to s harp f ocus .

S t i l l l ess

u nderstood a re t he h u man s oc iet ies wh ich l ay b eh ind a man- made l andscape wh ich was a lready a nc ien t , c o mplex a nd w ide ly e xp loi ted when t he S axons a rr ived i n Br i ta in .

N o l onger c an we g o a long w i th t he v iew c urren t i n 1 955

t ha t ' t he Eng l ish l andscape a s we k now i tt oday i s a l mos t e n t ire ly t he p roduc t o f t he l as t f i f teen h undred y ears , b eg inn ing w i th t he e ar l ies t A ng lo-Saxon v i l lages i n t he midd le d ecades o f t he 5 th c en tury '. Br i t ish a rchaeology h as a l ong , v enerab le t hough o n ly i n ter m i t ten t ly v igorous t rad i t ion o f f i e ldwork , r unn ing f ro m Camden t o C raw ford , a nd i n t he p as t f ew d ecades c arr ied c h ief ly o n t he s hou lders o f t he v ar ious R oya l C o mmiss ions.

S ince a t l eas t 1 844 when L ord A lber t C onyngham , ' dressed i n a n

e xp lor ing c os tume ' , s uperv ised t he ' excava t ion ' o f e igh t b arrows wa tched b y t wo h undred s pec ta tors i n t he ir c arr iages , mos t a rchaeo log is ts h ave b een c arr ied away b y t he g lamour o f d igg ing , e ncouraged b y museums i n s earch o f t he ' morb id o r t he a es the t ic '.

F ie ldwork i n t he s ense d ef ined b y Taylor

( 1972 ) h as u sua l ly t aken a b ack s ea t . The 1 930s s aw s o me th ing o f ar ena issance i n f i eld a rchaeo logy w i th t he s urveys o f C raw ford , F ox , Dan ie l , G r inse l l a nd o thers . The d ecade a lso s aw t he i mpress ive r esu l ts o f a er ia l p hotography b y f l iers s uch a s Ma jor A l len . The a er ia l p ho tographs w ere a m ixed b less ing ; r a ther t han s t i mu la t ing f i e ld work o n t he g round t hey p oss ib ly s t i f led i t . O n ly a f ew p eop le s uch a s C raw ford a nd C . W. Ph i l l ips i n t he F ens s aw t he i mp l ica t ions f or e xpand ing a rchaeo logy b eyond t he s upposed ly u n ique s i te t o t he l andscape a s a who le .

The F en land

p ro jec t i n p ar t icu lar , c u lm ina t ing i n The F en land i n R o man T i mes ( ed . C . W. Ph i l l ips 1 970 ) was a model o f i n ter-d isc ip l inary c o-opera t ion , p ioneered a t C a mbr idge b y G rahame C lark a nd Harry G odw in , S tar C arr b e ing a g ood e xamp le.

U n for tuna te ly i t was n o t a mode l t ha t p roved c a tch ing .

The emphasis o n e xcava t ion l ay v ery much b eh ind t he Br i t ish r escue b oo m o f t he l a te ' 60s a nd e ar ly ' 70s .

A t t he s ame t ime t he o bserva t ion o f

9

mo torways a nd g rave l p i ts a nd t he i ncreas ing u se o f a er ia l p hotography g enera ted a g row ing a wareness t ha t a rchaeo log ica l s i tes w ere n o t r are a nd i so la ted p heno mena .

O n t he M5 i n G louces tersh ire a nd S o merse t , f or e xa m-

p le , a bou t 1 30 s i tes were f ound a long t he r oad 's f i f ty y ard w ide c orr idor t hrough s o me o f s ou thern E ng land 's more i n trac tab le c laylands ;

where o n ly

t en s i tes i n t o ta l h ad b een k nown b efore t here was n ow a n a verage o f t wo s i tes p er mi le.

S im i lar i ncreases w ere f ound i n t he ma in r iver v a l leys a s ar esu l t

o f a er ia l p hotography.

I n t he N ene Va l ley , i n N or tha mp tonsh ire a nd H unt ing-

d onsh ire where 3 6 s i tes were k nown i n 1 931 , t here were 4 34 b y 1 972 . I n t he 1 940s t he a n thropo log is t C lyde K luckhohn ( 1940 ) v o iced h is f amous c r i t ic is m o f Amer ican a rchaeo log is ts

s hou ld l i ke t o r ecord a n o verwhe lm ing

i mpress ion t ha t many s tuden ts ( o f M idd le Amer ican p reh is tory ) a re b u t s l igh t ly r efor med a n t iquar ies .. t here s ee ms a g rea t d ea l o f o bsess ive wa l low ing i n d e ta i l o f a nd f or i t se lf .. p ro l i fera t ion o f minu t iae i s n o t i t s own j us t i f ica t ion '. The c r i t ic is m c ou ld e qua l ly b e a pp l ied t o much o f t he e xcava t ion t ha t was c arr ied o u t i n t he 1 970s i n Br i ta in . t ened ;

S i tes w ere d ug b ecause t hey w ere t hrea-

t here w ere i nd iv idua l d iscover ies b u t t he o vera l l r esu l ts were d isap-

p oin t ing . I n t he l i gh t o f t he g row ing e v idence t ha t a rchaeo log ica l s i tes were n o t r are , l i p s erv ice was p a id t o t o ta l e xcava t ion a nd l andscape a rchaeo logy. Bo th were wel l- mean ing a nd i n as ense p rogress ive , ar eac t ion a ga ins t t he k ey-ho le e xcava t ion o f h igh ly s elec t ive ' impor tan t ' s i tes .

O f c ourse t he t o ta l

e xcava tors were p red isposed t o ' re leva te ' s o me d a ta a t t he e xpense o f o thers ( t h is u sefu l n eolog is m , f i rst c o ined b y t he p hys ic is ts Bohm a nd S chu macher , i s u sed b y t he m t o p oin t o u t t he way s c ien t if ic t heory ( o f ten u nexpressed ) w i l l p ush c er ta in t h ings i n to t he f oreground a nd ' i rre leva te ' o ther f or m o f e v idence , l eav ing i ti gnored . ( See Tho mpson 1 979 : 2 1 ). O ne e xcava t ion o f t he e ar ly ' 7 0s , f or e xamp le , was n o ted a t t he t ime f or t he met icu lous t hree-d i mens iona l r ec ord ing o f a l l i t s f i nds —excep t a n ima l b ones .

T o ta l e xcava t ion t ended t o

c oncen tra te o n t he p roduc t ion o f l arge-sca le s i te p lans , t hough e ven i n t h is r espec t w i th t he u se o f h eavy mach inery f or s i te c learance t he a d jec t ive was o f d ub ious a pp l ica t ion . L andscape a rchaeo log y was a nother a t te mp t t o a pproach t he mirage o f t o ta l i ty ;

t o s ee s i tes i n c on tex t r a ther t han i n i so la t ion .

I tg rew p ar t ly o u t

o f t he much a dmired h is tor ica l g eography s choo l o f H osk ins a nd F inberg , c omb ined w i th t he e co log ica l s tra in wh ich r an t hrough Br i t ish a rchaeo logy v ia t he f i e ldwork t rad i t ion a nd f ue l led b y t he t re mendous i ncrease i n d a ta i n t he l a te ' 60s a nd ' 70s .

Landscape a rchaeo logy h ad a r o man t ic a nd a es the t ic q ua l i ty

wh ich a ppea led b oth t o t he e nv iron men t g enera t ion a nd t he t rad i t iona l l overs o f t he Br i t ish c oun trys ide , t he Na t iona l Trus t j o iners a nd t he C oun try L ife r eaders .

I t was a lways p er i lous ly c lose t o b e ing a n ew f or m o f a n t iquar ian is m ;

c o l lec t ion a nd c lass if ica t ion w i thou t t he s tudy o f p rocess .

Books o n t he s ub-

j ec t ( e .g . Taylor 1 974 , A s ton & R ow ley 1 974 ) t ended t o b e b as ic manua ls o f ' h ow t o d o i t ' r a ther t han ' why d o i t?' o r ' wha t t o d o w i th i t when y ou 've g o t i t ' . The g row th o f i n teres t i n t he l andscape a nd c onserva t ion was b eh ind t he s udden b urgeon ing o f S i tes a nd Monu men ts R ecords i n Museu ms a nd P lann ing Depar tmen ts .

Wh i le t he ir c rea t ion was a nd i s whol ly a dmirab le t hey o f ten

1 0

s ee med t o e ncourage a t ra in-spo t t ing men ta l i ty :

a t o ne t ime b eco m ing t he

f irst c oun ty t o h ave 1 5 ,000 s i tes s ee med t o b e al ead ing p r ior i ty.

A s i n

l andscape a rchaeo logy s i te c o l lec t ion c ou ld b eco me a n e nd i n i t se lf ; t ha t was n o t a lways d one v ery we l l .

a nd e ven

T oday t he b es t S i tes a nd Monu men ts

R ecords a re i n t he C u l tura l Resource Manage men t b us iness , a d iv is ing l oca l a u thor i t ies o n p ro tec t ion , b u t f ew i ns t iga te s ys te ma t ic a nd i n tens ive s i te l oca t ion o r a na lys is i n t he ir own r igh t . The f l agsh ips o f Br i t ish f i e ld a rchaeo log y a re t he R oya l C omm iss ions f or H is tor ic Monu men ts , RCH M , f or E ng land , Wa les a nd S cot land .

I t may

b e more a ccura te t o c a l l t he m r oya l b arges a s t heir p rogress h as b een d esc r ibed b y o ne o f t heir d eck-hands a s ' l e isure ly ' ( Taylor 1 978 ).

There i s more

t han a h in t i n t he t i t le o f Taylor 's a r t ic le t ha t t he i ns t i tu t ion h e w orks f or i s s o me th ing o f as acred c ow i t se lf .

C er ta in ly i t s a i ms , me thods a nd f orms o f

p ub l ica t ion h ave u n t i l r ecen t ly a vo ided o ver t c r i t ic is m s ince i ts tar ted o n i t s r ega l way i n 1 908 .

I n t ha t t ime s urveys o f o n ly s even teen Eng l ish t owns o r

c oun t ies h ave b een p ub l ished a nd n ot a l l o f t he m c o mp le te ly. Two p ioneer ing RCH M s urveys h igh l igh ted t he t hrea t t o a rchaeo log ica l s i tes A Ma t ter o f T i me ( 1960 ) a nd Monumen ts Threa tened o r D es troyed ( 1963 ). They w ere e v iden t ly a head o f t he ir t ime f or a l l t he i mpac t t hey h ad .

S urveys o f N ewark ( 1 961 ) a nd

P e terborough New T own ( 1969 ) were a lso t hrea t-or ien ta ted . O n t he who le t hough RCH M s urveys s ee ms t o h ave b een p roduced i n a v acuu m , f ree f ro m t heoret ica l , me thodo log ica l o r p rac t ica l c oncerns . Their o bv ious a im i s t o p rov ide b as ic d a ta w i th r e la t ive ly l i t t le c o m men t a nd t hus a void t he wh ims o f c urren t f ash ion .

Th is i n t he C o mm iss ion 's work h as b een

n orma t ive r a ther t han p rogress ive ;

t rapped i n a n u ndef ined a nd i nv is ib le

c ocoon o f a ge ing a t t i tudes .

The c on ten ts o f t he v o lu mes a re n ot a s u nchang ing

a s t heir r ega l b ind ings s ugges t .

H er tfordsh ire ( 1910 ) b ears t he s tamp o f i t s

t ime , a s d oes D orse t : Eas t ( 1975 ) o r N or tha mp tonsh ire : C en tra l ( 1979 ). The Dorse t : Eas t v o lume i s c ur ious ly o ld-fash ioned f or t he mid ' 70s : o n ly 3 2 I ron Age a nd R o mano-Br i t ish s e t t le men ts a re r ecorded , i nc lud ing h i l l for ts i n a n a rea o f o ver 1 10 s quare mi les a nd t he v as t ma jor i ty a re o n t he c ha lkl ands .

The c lay a nd Bagsho t S ands a re a l mos t emp ty o f s e t t le men t .

p a t tern emerges i n Dorset : Nor th ;

The s ame

2 2 p reh is tor ic a nd Ro mano-Br i t ish

s e t t le men ts , a l l o n c ha lk b e tween t he 2 00 a nd 4 00 f oo t c on tour .

O pu len t ly

p roduced s urveys wh ich f oss i l ise t h is k ind o f b iased i n for ma t ion a re o f d ubious v a lue. The l a tes t RCH M v o lume Nor thamp tonsh ire :

C en tra l r ef lec ts t he r ecen t

e xp los ion i n s i te n umbers , 2 00 l a te p reh is tor ic/Ro mano-Br i t ish s i tes i n t ota l . 1 5 a re c oncen tra ted a round Bra f ie ld-on-the-Green , b u t , i n c on tras t , o n ly o ne s i te i s r ecorded i n t he whole o f t he n or th wes t p ar t o f t he s urvey a rea .

The

d ens i ty o f l a te p reh is tor ic o ccupa t ion i n s o me p ar ts a t l eas t , i s af ac tor wh ich h as o n ly r ecen t ly c o me t o b e a pprec ia ted .

S t i l l we a re q u i te r igh t ly t o ld i n

t he e ar l ier Nor tha mp tonsh ire v o lume ( RCH M 1 975 , XX IV ) ' The v a lue o f d ist r ibu t iona l a na lys is i s o pen t o q ues t ion s ince t he d is tr ibu t ion p a t tern i s c ont rol led b y t he methods b y wh ich t he e v idence h as b een c o l lec ted .

Thorough

e xam ina t ion o f e very f ea ture o f t he l andscape a nd o f c urren t a l tera t ions t o t he t erra in , a nd a lso o f a ir-pho tograph ic c over u nder v ary ing c ond i t ions o ver a l ong p er iod , i s n ecessary b efore t he e x ten t o f e ar ly o ccupa t ion c an b e f u l ly u nders tood . S uch i s at ask f or t he f u ture '.

1 1

The ma in r eason f or t he l arge i ncrease i n s i tes i n Nor thamp tonsh ire ( as ide f ro m a er ia l p ho tography ) i s t he a c t iv i ty o f a sma l l n u mber o f d ed ica ted a nd s k i lfu l ama teur f i e ldworkers .

F or t he mos t p ar t p rofess iona l a rchaeo lo-

g is ts s pend t heir t ime c a ta logu ing k nown s i tes o r d igg ing t he m .

As a r esu l t

f i e ld a rchaeo logy 's t echn iques h ave n o t i mproved much o n J ohn Aubrey 's , a nd i t s p rac t ice i n Br i ta in i s n o t u sua l ly i n tegra ted i n to t he g row ing b ody o f a rchaeo log ica l t heory. Wh i le a ppea l ing f or more a nd b e t ter f i e ldwork Taylor ( 1978 ) q ues t ioned t he g row ing i n teres t i n s urvey w ork i n t he mid t o l a te ' 70s .

' I t i s , i t s eems

t o me , l argely t he r esu l t o f t he b urs t ing o f t he r escue b ubb le f o l low ing t he r es tra in ts o n e xcava t ion '.

There i s a n e le men t o f t ru th i n t h is , b u t i ts hou ld

n ot b e a l lowed t o c loud a g enu ine n eed , n or t o e ncourage t he u nfor tuna te d iv is ions t ha t a lready e x is t i n a rchaeolog y , b e tween f i e ldworkers , ' rugged ' d iggers a nd t heore t ic ians .

A rchaeo log is ts a t te mp t ing t o c rea te a r eg iona l r esearch

f ramework i n wh ich t o o pera te h ave n ot h ad t he d ecades n ecessary t o a wa i t t he d ock ing o f t he RCHM i n t he ir p ar t icu lar p ond ; s i tes w i th p lann ing p erm ission f or r edeve lopmen t c an h ave d isappeared b y t he t ime RCH M v o lumes a ppear ( f or e xamp le i n G louces tersh ire 's C o tswo ld wa ter p ark ) a nd many a rchaeo log is ts f ee l t ha t u nsys te ma t ica l ly c o l lec ted d a ta a re o f l i t t le u se t o t he m a nyway f or t ack l ing q ues t ions o f c urren t i n teres t ( Cherry & S hennon 1 978 ). A s Renfrew ( 1978 : 1 64 ) h as r igh t ly s a id ' Rura l a rchaeo logy i n Br i ta in i s b eco m ing a t o ta l d isas ter '.

I n c on tras t u rban a rchaeo log ica l p roble ms h ave

b een t ack led more c oheren t ly , w i th i mp l ica t ions s tud ies , b o th l oca l a nd n a t iona l , b e t ter f und r a is ing a nd l ong t erm u rban e xcava t ion u n its .

The f orma t ion o f

p r ior i t ies h as p roved r ela t ive ly s tra igh t forward i n s pa t ia l ly a nd t e mporar i ly l im i ted a reas w i th a s trong s ense o f i den t i ty l i ke W inches ter , Ox ford , N orw ich a nd Y ork .

The a rchaeo logy o f t he r ura l a reas h as p resen ted a much more

o pen-ended p rob le m :

ad a ta b ase c ons tan t ly g row ing a t o ne e nd a s ar esu l t o f

u nsys te ma t ic d iscover ies b u t e roded a t t he o ther b y modern a gr icu l ture , q uarrying a nd s uburban e xpans ion , c o mbined w i th a l ack o f s pec if ied p r ior i t ies a nd means o f t ack l ing t he m .

Many i l l-conceived r ura l s urveys p roduced i n t he

' 70s r ef lec ted t he u ncer ta in ty o f t he ir a i ms ( C leere 1 978 ).

A s ar esu l t s urveys

b ecame u npopu lar w i th t he D oE a nd t he b aby was t hrown o u t a long w i th t he murky b a th wa ter . A r ap id g lance o ver t he C urren t Research P ro jec ts o f a ny e d i t ion o f Amer ican A n t iqu i ty w i l l s how t ha t i n t he U n ited S ta tes s urvey i s a ssu med t o b e t he l og ica l f irst s tage i n t he i mp lemen ta t ion o f ar eg iona l r esearch d es ign . Th is i s p ar t ly t he r esu l t o f t he n a ture o f f edera l ly f unded p ro jec ts ( Sch i f fer & G u mer man 1 977) b u t a lso t he w idespread n ot ice e ven tua l ly t aken o f B inford 's warn ing 1 6 y ears a go ' Under c urren t p rogram mes o f s a lvage a rchaeo log y a nd i ncreased f ounda t ion s uppor t f or a rchaeo log ica l r esearch w e a re b eing g iven t he o ppor tun i ty t o s tudy ma jor r eg ions i n tens ive ly.

I n s p i te o f t he o ppor tun i t ies

c urren t ly a va i lab le , i ti s my i mpress ion t ha t v ery l i t t le t hough t h as b een g iven t o r esearch d esign .'

( Bin ford 1 964 ).

I n l arge r e la t ive ly u nexam ined p ar ts o f t he U n i ted S ta tes , p ar t icu lar ly i n t he s ou th wes t w i th i t s d ry c ond i t ions a nd l ow modern p opu la t ion , f i e ld s urvey i s t he o bv ious f i rs t e le men t i n r eg iona l a na lysis . b e t ter f or t he s ur face l oca t ion o f s i tes t han i n Br i ta in ;

1 2

C ond i t ions a re o f ten e ven s o t he p oss ibi l i ty

o f o bta in ing a c o mp le te i nven tory h as b een q ues t ioned ( House 8 zS ch i f fer 1 975 : 4 1 ).

The s ame d oubts h ave b een r a ised i n Br i ta in ( Taylor 1 972 ) b u t Amer ican

a rchaeo log is ts h ave t aken a more p os i t ive a nd s ys te ma t ic a pproach t o t he p roble ms o f s i te d ef in i t ion a nd l oca t ion , s urvey i n tens i ty , s amp le s ize a nd t he v ar iab les wh ich c an e f fec t t he d iscovery p a t tern ( see t he d e l igh t fu l ly o no ma topoe ic P log , P log & Wa i t 1 978 ). I n r ecen t y ears Br i t ish a rchaeo log is ts h ave a t temp ted t o mod i fy t he f ramework i n wh ich t hey o pera te t o d eve lop c oheren t r eg iona l p rogram mes o f t he k ind a dvoca ted b y B inford ( 1964 ).

The d ef in i t ion o f r eg ions ' wh ich c an

b e e xpec ted t o h ave s uppor ted c u l tura l s ys te ms ' i s n o e asy t ask f or t he a rcha eo log is t . S yste ms w i l l h ave f l uc tua ted o ver t ime : t he h i l l-for t t err i tory o f t he e ar ly I ron Age v arying f ro m t ha t o f t he l a ter I ron Age o pp idum f or e xamp le . Ap ragma t ic s tra teg y r esor ted t o i s t he o ne a dvoca ted b y C herry & S he rman ( 1 978 : 1 03 ) ' The a l terna t ive t o s pec i fying s ys te ms o f i n teres t a nd t hen s tudying t he m i s t he o ne u sua l ly a dop ted :

w e t ake ab lock o f l and a nd s tudy b i ts o f

c hang ing s ys te ms w i th in i t .. h owever w e s pec i fy o ur s yte m o f i n teres t , i t s b oundar ies a re b ound t o b y f uzzy a nd a rb i trary , s o t here i s n o h ar m i n l ook ing a t a n a rb i trary s eg men t ;

f ur thermore , i fo ur i n teres t i s , a s w e

b el ieve i t s hou ld b e , i n p rocesses o f c hange a nd e vo lu t ion t hrough t ime , t hen t ak ing a p ar t icu lar a rea a s t he o b jec t o f s tudy c u ts t he G ord ian k no t o f c hang ing s yste m b oundar ies .' A f ter t he i n it ia l g a ther ing o f k nown d a ta t he l og ica l f i rs t s tage i n t h is k ind o f p ro jec t i s t o s elec t ar ando m s amp le o f t he a rea i n q ues t ion f or f i e ld s urvey ( e .g . S chad la-Ha l l 8 /S hennan 1 978 ). U nfor tuna te ly t h is i s e xac t ly t he p hase wh ich i s miss ing f ro m mos t e xcava t ion b ased work .

I n s p i te o f t he g row ing

i n teres t i n t he l andscape t he i dea o f t he u n ique s i te h as p ers is ted a nd w i th i t ar e luc tance t o g enera l ise . O n t he o ther h and t here h as b een a w e lco me i f l im i ted g row th o f r eg iona l s tud ies : i n Dar tmoor ( Wa inwr igh t , F le m ing & Smi th 1 979 ) , v ar ious r iver v a l leys a nd mos t r ecen t ly t he c o l labora t ion o f t he RCH M ( Eng land ) w i th t he Wessex Archaeo log ica l U n i t o n S a l isbury P la in , There h as a lso b een aw i l l ingness n o t o n ly t o b lurr t he b oundar ies o f a nc ien t s ys te ms b u t a lso t hose o f modern a rchaeo log is ts .

The O x ford Archaeo log ica l

U n i t o pera t ing w i th in t he U pper Tha mes r eg ion h as t ranscended c oun ty b ound ar ies t o i mp le men t ar esearch s tra teg y s pec if ica l ly a i med a t t he s tudy o f I ron Age a nd R o mano-Br i t ish s e t t le men t a nd t he p rocesses a f fec t ing c hange i n t he f irs t mi l lenn ia BC/AD ( Jones & M i les 1 979 ). There i s g enera l a gree men t t ha t ' rescue i s r esearch o r i t i s n o th ing ' ( Renfrew 1 978 : 1 78 ) ( excep t p erhaps o n t he p ar t o f s o me o f a rchaeology 's a dm in is tra tors ). e n t ly a s p oss ib le .

The p resen t f a i lure i s t o i n tegra te t he r esources a s c oherI n p ar t icu lar t heor is ts , f i eld a rchaeo log is ts , e xcava tors ,

e nv iron men ta l is ts a nd c u l tura l r esource managers n eed t o c o :ord ina te r eg iona l r esearch d es igns s o t ha t o ur r aw ma ter ia l c an b e b o th p reserved a nd c ol lec ted i n a way wh ich w i l l p rov ide ab as is f or p resen t a nd h opefu l ly f u ture p rob le m s o lv ing .

The n eed f or t ea mwork i s s o o bv ious a s t o b e p rac t ica l ly a c l iché

b u t t he f ragmen ta t ion i n to s epara te i ns t i tu t ions a nd i so la ted s pec ia l is ts i s c urren t ly o ur b igges t h and icap . The s tudy o f l a te p reh is tory , t he Ro man a nd e ar ly med ieva l p er iods i n B r i ta in h as b een b edev i l led b y h is tor ica l s pec ia l iza t ion . A s er ies o f i nvas ions

1 3

b y e ar ly I ron Age C el ts , Be lgae , R o mans a nd S axons h ave p rov ided n ea t d iv is ions a nd r eady- made e xp lana t ions .

The l imi ta t ions o f t he i nvas ion

h ypo thes is were h igh l igh ted b y C lark ( 1966 ) , b u t n ever the less t he d iv is ions e f fec t ive ly r e ma ined , i ns t i tu t iona l ised i n Br i t ish a rchaeo log y.

The move-

men t a way f ro m i nvas ion b ased e xp lana t ions h as b een mos t p ronounced among p reh is tor ians a nd a mod i f ied s ys te m ic a pproach h as p erco la ted i n to s o me o f t he t ex tbooks ( Cunl i f fe 1 974 ) , t hough e ven w i th t he more p rogressive o f t hese ( Brad ley 1 978 ) t he a rr iva l o f t he R o man l eg ions i n AD 4 3 h as g enera l ly t erm ina ted t he ir s pecu la t ions . As ub jec t o f t rad i t iona l i n teres t h as b een t he s o-ca l led c on t inu i ty q ues t ion . Th is h as mos t o f ten e xerc ised t he minds o f t hose c oncerned w i th t he 5 th c ent ury AD i n Br i ta in . i n forma t ive l eve l :

I th as o f ten b een a pproached a t ab asic a nd n o t e spec ia l ly ' Con t inu i ty i s c urren t ly t hough t o f a s c on t inuous e xp lo i ta t ion

o f r esources i n ag iven a rea , r ang ing f ro m t he u se o f as ing le f i eld o r h ouse t hrough t o t ha t o f ma jor s ec tors o f Br i ta in ' ( Rah tz 1 978 : 3 5 ).

H owever i th as

o ccas iona l ly s educed r esearchers a round t he Mag ino t l i nes o f p er iod b ased a rchaeo log y.

E ven s o t here h as s o me t i mes b een a s trange l ack o f d ia logue

b etween , f or e xamp le , h is tor ica l g eographers who h ave p os tu la ted I ron Age h i l lfor ts a s t he c en tre o f mu l t ip le e s ta tes e x tan t i n t he S axon l andscape a nd t he p reh is tor ians o f t he I ron Age w i th t he ir Th iessen p ö lygons . I f med ieva l is ts h ave p ushed b ackwards t o e xp la in t he o r ig ins o f t heir p er iod , t hen p reh istor ians h ave b egun t en ta t ive ly t o i nvade R o man Br i ta in , i n t he b e l ief p erhaps ' t ha t Ro man Br i ta in i s t oo i mpor tan t t o b e l ef t t o t he Ro man is ts ' ( Cun l if fe 1 979 : 3 59 ) , s evera l o f who m h ave ' made c lear t he ir d is l ike o f t he i n trus ion o f s oc io log ica l a nd e cono mic c oncep ts i n t he ir s ub jec t ' ( Jones & Mi les 1 979 : 3 15 ).

I ft o t he C lass ica l H istor ian Ro man Br i ta in i s

o n ly a m inor p rov ince , t o t he a n thropo log ica l ly- m inded a rchaeo log is ts i ti s ar ich t es t ing g round f or t heor ies o f t r iba l d evelop men t , t he g row th o f u rbani sa t ion a nd c hange , t he i mpac t o f a n i mper ia l w or ld s ys te m a nd many o ther q ues t ions.

K e mp ( 1976 ) h as d escr ibed t he p reh is tor ians r esponse ' t o s ome

v ar ian t o f aP ark inson l aw a bou t t echn iques d evelop ing t o f i l l t he s pace c rea ted b y p ar t icu lar ly mu te e v idence '.

I ti s n o b ad t h ing t ha t t he t echn iques a re n ow

b eg inn ing t o b e a pp l ied i n t he more t es tab le p ro to-h is tor ic a nd h is tor ic p er iods where t here i s ag row ing b ody o f s e t t le men t d a ta . I ron Age , Ro man a nd S axon s tud ies h ave b een b edev i l led b y o ver-s impl is t ic s e t t le men t t ype-foss i ls :

L i t t le Woodbury , Ro man v i l las , S u t ton C our tenay

h ave a l l i l lus tra ted t he p ast w i l l ingness t o a rgue o n t he b as is o f t he p ar t icu lar a nd t he p ar t ia l .

The CBA 's Rura l S e t t le men t i n R o man Br i t ian ( Tho mas 1 966)

emphas ised t he n eed f or d e ta i led r eg iona l s tud ies t o s hed l igh t o n t he c o mp lex i ty o f p as t s oc ie t ies ;

H ogg ( 1966 ) f or e xamp le s howed t ha t t he H igh land

Z one c anno t b e r egarded a s au n iform e n t i ty a nd t he s a me i s c er ta in ly t rue o f t he l ow lands.

F our teen y ears a go t h is t ype o f d e ta i led work was i n i t s

i n fancy , a nd s ince i th as g rown more s low ly t han w e migh t h ave w ished .

T o

t ack le t he p rob le ms r a ised a l ong term e f for t i s n eeded o n t he p ar t o f at eam o f r esearchers c o mbin ing s pec ia l ised s k i l ls .

A t t he s ame t ime t he a i ms o f

r eg iona l r esearch n eed t o b e a greed o n i n o u t line a nd s pe l led o u t ( see t he SARG p ro jec t G umerman 1 971 ; w ider b ackground :

Cherry & S henna ,n 1 978b ) a nd s et a ga ins t a

Fr iedman & R ow lands ( 1977 : 2 04 ) h ave emphas ised ' As

p roduc t ion o f e xchange s ee ms t o b e ac ons tan t f ac tor i n e vo lu t ion we mus t 1 4

d ea l w i th a s yste m l arger t han t he l oca l p o l i t ica l u n i t , whe ther i tb e t r ibe o r s ta te , i f we a re t o u nders tand i t s c ond i t ions o f e x is tence a nd t ransforma t ion .' C un l i f fe ( 1978 , f ig . 1 3 ) h as p roposed a s imp le mode l f or t he d eve lop men t o f I ron Age s oc ie ty i n wh ich t hree s ign i f ican t p hases a re i den t i f ied d ur ing wh ich p opu la t ion e xpans ion c an b e c orre la ted w i th s oc io-econo m ic c hange . The mode l h as b een e x tended i n o u t l ine i n to t he R o man p er iod ( Cun l if fe 1 979 : 3 63-84 ) w i th a s ugges t ion o f a2 nd-3rd c entury p opu la t ion d ec l ine a nd s ubsequen t l a te 3 rd-ear ly 4 th c en tury r ecovery.

Th is may h ave b een f o l lowed b y af ur ther

l a te 4 th c en tury d ec l ine , ap heno menon wh ich i s c urren t ly b e ing e xam ined i n R o mano-Br i t ish t owns ( see Macpha i l t h is v o lume ).

The p opu la t ion mode l o f

t wo s teps f orward , o ne s tep b ack a nd t wo f orward a ga in i s a n a ppea l ing o ne ( Braude l 1 967; p r i me mover :

Wynne Edwards 1 966 ).

P opu la t ion s hou ld n o t b e s een a s a

af eedback p rocess i nvo lv ing p opu la t ion , c o m merc ia l t rends ,

p o l i t ica l c ontro l , a gr icu l tura l p roduc t iv i ty , r ed is tr ibu t ion o f p roduc t ion , b e l ie f s ys te ms a nd u ncon trol lab le f ac tors s uch a s c l ima te a nd t he s lowness o f t ransp or t o r t he c hron ic p ower s hor tage mus t a l l p lay a p ar t .

Bu t p opu la t ion i s a

v i ta l f ac tor a bou t wh ich t here h as b een much s pecu la t ion , s o me o f i t mer i t ing Braudel 's c r i t ic is m ( 1967 : 1 6 ) ' H is tor ians who p ers is t i n t he o ld way o f e xp la in ing Wes tern d emograph ic move men ts b y t he f a l l i n u rban mor ta l i ty , t he a dvance i n h yg iene a nd med ic ine , t he d ec l ine i n sma l lpox , t he n u merous d r ink ing wa ter s upp ly s ys te ms , t he d ev is ive f a l l i n i n fant mor ta l i ty , p lus a g enera l f a l l i n t he mor ta l i ty r a te a nd ay ounger a verage a ge o f marr iage , s hou ld a bandon i ta s i nadequa te a nd o u t moded '. S yste ma t ic s amp l ing o f r eg iona l s e t t le men t p a t terns i s l i ke ly t o b e t he b es t means o f t ack l ing t he p opu la t ion p rob le m :

a t p resen t o ur s ta t is t ics a re

w oefu l ly i nadequa te. These s e t t le men t p a t terns s hou ld a lso g ive r ise t o t estab le h ypo theses r e la t ing t o mode ls s uch a s t hose p roposed b y C un l if fe ( 22 .c i t .).

I n t he Thames Va l ley a t te mp ts a re b eing made t o c ons truc t ah ier-

a rchy o f r eg iona l s e t t le men t i n wh ich i n i t ia l t rends a re a pparen t .

The midd le

I ron Age , f or e xamp le , i s c harac ter ised b y h i l lfor ts , s et t le men ts o r g rea ter t han e x tended f ami ly s ize o n t he v a l ley s lopes a nd h igher g round , ( Parr ing ton 1 978 ) wh i le o n t he f l ood p la in t here a re s easona l ly o ccup ied h erdman 's c o mp ounds ( Lambr ick 8 . zR obinson 1 979 ).

Th is r ange o f s i tes d oes n o t c harac ter ise

t he l a te I ron Age b y wh ich t ime t here i s a n i ncrease i n s ing le e nc losed f ar ms teads o n t he g ravel t erraces ( M i les e d . 1 981 f or thco m ing ) , b an jo e nc losures o n t he C otswo lds s lopes , e x tens ive t rackway s ys te ms a ssoc ia ted w i th e nc losures a nd n ew c en tra l p laces a t t he j unc t ion o f c o m mun ica t ions r ou tes .

The r ad ica l

c hanges i n t he l a te I ron Age s e t t le men t l ayou t may r ef lec t t he s oc ia l a nd e conom ic c hanges p roposed b y C un l i f fe a nd o bserved a lso o n t he C on t inen t ( f or e xamp le i n G ot land , L indqu is t 1 974 ). I ti s p robable t ha t t hese t ransfor ma t ions i n C el t ic s oc ie ty i n S ou thern B r i ta in made p oss ib le t he s ubsequen t R o man isa t ion o f t ha t p ar t o f t he p rovince ( Groen man v an Waa ter inge 1 980 ) j us t a s t he i n terna l p roble ms o f Ro man Br i ta in o pened t he way f or S axon s e t t le men t .

I ft he b ow-wave o f p re-Conques t

R o man isa t ion h ad i t s g rea tes t i mpac t i n t he s ou th-eas t o f Br i ta in , t he r ipp les may h ave e x tended much f ur ther .

Expans ion a nd i n tens if ica t ion i n t he l a te

I ron Age h as b een d etec ted a s f ar n or th a s C umbr ia , f o l lowed b y c on trac t ion i nt he midd le p er iod o f R o man o ccupa t ion ( H igham 1 978 ).

La te I ron Age e x-

p ans ion h as a lso b een d etec ted i n n or th e as tern E ng land f ro m p o l len d iagrams 1 5

( Turner 1 979 ).

The Ro man C onques t a s s uch d oes n o t s ee m t o h ave h ad a

ma jor i mpac t , n or were t here d rama t ic c hanges i n t he 5 th c en tury AD. I n s p i te o f t he p rob le ms p ro to-h is tor ic Br i ta in i s we l l s uppl ied w i th s e t t le men t d a ta , e ven i n t he s o-ca l led d es truc t ion z one .

A more s ys te ma t ic

a pproach t o t h is e v idence w ou ld l ay t he b as is f or b e t ter q ua l i ty e xcava t ion a nd e nv iron men ta l w ork a nd more f eedback b e tween s pec ia l is ts .

I fp reh is tor ians

h ave h ad t o r e ly o n t he s o mewha t mechan is t ic a nd d e ter m in is t ic t echn iques s uch a s s i te c a tch men t a na lys is , p ro to-h is tor ians h ave a n o ppor tun i ty t o t es t h ypotheses o f more c o mp lex h ierarch ies r a ised b y d i f feren t s pec ia l is ts ( Flannery 1 976 ).

Even w i th in a c lose k n i t t eam s pec ia l is t i n terests w i l l a nd

s hou ld d eve lop , b u t s o me b as ic c o m mon t he mes migh t d iscourage t he f i e ld a rchaeo log is t who s imp ly p u ts d o ts o n ad is tr ibu t ion map , t he e xcava tor who d igs ' b ecause i ti s t here ' , t he e nv iron men ta l is t who j us t p rov ides s pec ies l i s ts a nd t he k lep to man iac t heor is t who i ndu lges i n u n tes table f an tas ies. a im s hou ld b e t o u nders tand t he d eve lopmen t o f s oc ia l l andscapes .

O ur c o m mon

B ib l iography B inford , L . R . ( 1964 ).

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I n :

S amp l ing i n C on te mporary Br i t ish Archaeo log y

( eds . C herry , J . F ., G amb le , C . &S hennan , S .) BAR 5 0 C lark , J . G . D . ( 1966 ). A n t iqu i ty 4 0 C leere , H . ( 1978 ).

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AS urvey o f S urveys .

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New A pproaches t o o ur P as t :

( eds . Darv i l l , T . C ., e t a l .) S ou thamp ton

p p . 8 9-100 . C un l if fe , B . W. ( 1974 ). L ondon :

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( rev ised 1 978 )

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C un l if fe , B . W. ( 1978 ).

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The Ear ly Mesoa mer ican V i l lage

( ed. F lannery, K . V .) New York : Fr ied man , J . a nd R ow lands , M. J . ( 1977 ).

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Model o f t he Evo lu t ion o f C iv il iza t ion. S oc ia l S ys te ms

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The Evolu t ion o f

( eds . Fr ied man , J . a nd Row lands , M. J .)

p p . 2 01-276. G roen man v an Waa ter inge , W. ( 1980 ).

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Fron t ier o f t he Roman Empire. 1 979

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( eds . Hanson , H . W. & Keppie , L . 3 . F .) BAR I .S. 7 1

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The D istr ibu t ion o f Preh is tor ic P opu la t ion

Prescot t C o l lege Anthropolog ica l Repor ts No . 1 .

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C on t inu i ty S tud ies i n t he f irs t mi l lenn iu m AD i n

Nor th C umbr ia . Hogg , A . H . A . ( 1966 ).

N orthern H istory 1 4

1 -18.

Na t ive S e t t le ment i n Wa les.

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( ed . Tho mas , C .) CBA Research Repor t 7

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The Cache R iver Archaeolog ica l Pro jec t :

e xper i men t i n c ontrac t a rchaeology.

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Arkansas Archaeolog ica l

S urvey, Research S er ies 8 3 7-53. J ones , M. & Mi les , D . ( 1979 ).

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A pproaches t o Cu l ture Change. t he Case o f Ro man Br i ta in H . B .) BAR 7 3 Ke mp , B . J . ( 1976 ).

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( eds. Burnha m , B . C . &J ohnson ,

3 15-325.

Rev iew o f Ma the ma t ics a nd C o mpu ters i n Archaeology

b y J . E . Doran 8 1F . R . H odson .

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3 1 88-9 . K luckhohn , C . ( 1940 ). I n :

The C oncep tua l S truc ture i n Midd le Amer ican S tud ies.

The Maya a nd t he ir Ne ighbours

( ed . Hay , C . L . e t a l .)

p p . 4 1-51 . La mbr ick , G . & Robinson , M. ( 1979 ).

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men ts a t Far moor , Ox fordsh ire . L indqu is t , S . 0 . ( 1974 ).

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CBA Research Repor t .

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Advances i n Archaeolog ica l Method a nd Theory

( ed . S ch if fer ,

M. B .) 3 83-421 . Rah tz , P .,

( 1978 ).

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Med ieva l V i l lage Research G roup : Renfrew , A . C . ( 1978 ).

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Archaeology a nd S oc ie ty i n 1 978.

t o o ur P a s t :

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I n :

3 5-6. New Approaches

( eds . Darv i l l , T . C . e t a l .)

1 57-178 . S chad la-Ha l l , R . T . &S hennan , S . J . ( 1978 ).

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a pproach t o a rchaeo log ica l s urvey i n Wessex . C onte mporary Br i t ish Archaeo logy C . &S he rman , S . J .) BAR 5 0

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( eds. Cherry , J . F ., Gamble ,

8 7-104 .

S ch i f fer , M. B . & G u merman , G . J . ( 1977 ).

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g u ide f or c u l tura l r esource manage men t s tud ies.

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The s tudy o f s et t le men t p a t terns i n p re-Saxon Br i ta in .

Man , S et t le men t a nd Urban is m

( eds . Ucko , P. J . e t a l .)

1 09-118. Taylor , C . C . ( 1978 ).

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CBA Research

Repor t 7 . Tho mpson , M. ( 1979 ). v a lue

Rubb ish Theory :

Oxford :

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OUP .

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t imes a s s hown b y p o l len a na lysis .

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S c ience 6 2 85-290. Wa inwr igh t , G . J ., F le ming , A . & Sm i th , K . ( 1979 ). P ro jec t : 4 5

F irs t Repor t .

The S haugh Moor

Proceed ings o f t he Preh is tor ic S oc iety

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Ed inburgh :

O l iver & Boyd .

1 8

2 .

NE W APPROACHES TO FA M ILIAR PROBLE MS P e ter J . R eyno lds

Th is c onference c ou ld p roper ly b e c a l led a ' Convoca t ion o f A ppend ices ' a nd a s s uch i t makes a mos t i mpor tan t s tep f orward i n t he p rac t ice a nd p h i los ophy o f a rchaeo logy t oday.

I t was , t here fore , ag rea t p r iv i lege t o b e i nv i ted

t o g ive t he o pen ing l ec ture o f t h is c onference a nd t o a t te mp t t o i n troduce t he t heme a s e xpressed i n t he t i t le ' New A pproaches t o Fam i l iar P roble ms '. T rad i t iona l ly a rchaeo logy a nd i n as ense more s pec i f ica l ly a rchaeo log ica l r epor ts , h ave c oncen tra ted u pon t he h ard e v idence , t he r ea l t ang ible f ea tures o f p i ts a nd p os t-ho les , g u l leys , d i tches a nd b anks , a r tefac tua l ma ter ia l a nd t he ir s ee m ing ly i nev i tab le t ypo log ica l a na lys is .

I ndeed s o c o m mon a re t hese

l as t t ha t t he s tandard i mpress ion o ne g a ins f ro m f l ick ing t hrough a lmost a ny a rchaeo log ica l r epor t a re t he i n term inab le p ages o f d raw ings o f s herds , t he ir b lackened s ec t ions l ean ing i n s err ied r anks i n n ot d iss imi lar f ash ion t o t he m i l i tary p rocess o f ar igh t marker . a re w i thou t v a lue .

N o t , i t mus t b e a dded t ha t s uch p ages

Ra ther o ne q ues t ions p ropor t iona l v a lues .

W i th in a n e n-

v iron ment p o t tery i s u ndoub ted ly s ign if ican t b u t h ard ly d iagnos t ic . e ven t he s o-ca l led h ard e v idence i s e lus ive e nough .

S im i lar ly

Wh i le t here i s ac oncen-

t ra t ion u pon wha t i s a va i lab le t o a na lyse a lmos t t o t he p oin t o f c loak ing a l ack o f u nders tand ing w i th massed d a ta b anks , t here i s a lso a n a ssump t ion t ha t ' hard e v idence ' c an b e c ursor i ly d ea l t w i th u pon v ir tue o f i t s c lar i ty a nd u namb igu i ty.

The c o m mun ica t ion c oncen tra tes u pon t he i n terpre ta t ion , t he

s e lec t ion a nd more o f ten t han n o t e n t ire ly s ub jec t ive p resen ta t ion o f t ha t wh ich i s r egarded b y t he e xcava tor a s s ign i f ican t .

Aga ins t t h is b ackground , w i th

a l l i t s i nev i tab le s hor tco m ings , i s t he r ecogn i t ion o f t he ' o ther ma ter ia l p rod uc ts ' o f a rchaeo log ica l e xcava t ion .

T oday we s ubsume t h is ma ter ia l u nder

t he umbre l la t erm o f ' env iron men ta l e v idence '.

U nder t h is umbre l la t erm we

c an f i nd t he b one a sse mb lages , c arbon ised s eed l i s ts , s oi l a na lyses , p o l len a na lyses a nd a l l ied ma ter ia ls .

U nder n orma l c ircums tances t h is ma ter ia l i s

l odged a t t he e nd o f t he r epor t , a l l i n d ue o rder a s as er ies o f a ppend ices . C om mon ly i t i s n o t r eferred t o i n t he ma in t ex t o f t he r epor t o ther t han t o i nd ica te i t s p resence a s as pec ia l is t c on tr ibu t ion .

There a re , o f c ourse , a

mu l t i tude o f r easons f or t h is p rac t ice n o t l eas t o f wh ich i s t he d i f f icu l ty o f c o mmun ica t ion b etween e xcava tor a nd s pec ia l is t . I ti s n ot u nusua l , f or e xamp le , f or a n a sse mb lage o f b ones t o b e s en t t o t he s pec ia l is t , a l l d u ly marked w i th a n i nco mprehens ib le s er ies o f l e t ters a nd n umbers , w i th a c over ing n o te ' Herew i th t he b ones f ro m Nother b y

p lease a na lyse a nd s end r epor t

( da te c oinc iden ta l w i th p ubl ishers d ead line ).

ma ter ia l f ro m a s i te i s a n embarrass men t .

I n r ea l i ty t he b one

L ia ison b e tween e xcava tor a nd

s pec ia l is t i s c o m mensura te w i th t he f or mer 's s y mpa thy f or t he ma ter ia l a nd t he l a t ter 's c omm i t men t .

The e nd p roduc t r egu lar ly c o mpr ises a l i s t c o m-

p rehens ible t o a nother b one s pec ia l is t a nd g enera l ly o f r e markab ly l i t t le v a lue b eyond a s i mp le s ta te men t o f p resence a nd a bsence .

1 9

E nv ironmen ta l ly we a re

n o f ur ther f orward a t a l l .

The s a me c an b e s a id o f s eed l i s ts , s oi l s amp les

a nd e ven r ad iocarbon d a t ing r esu l ts .

A l l s ee m t o b e r egarded a s a ddenda

r a ther t han f undamen ta l . O ver t he l as t t en y ears t h is p a t tern o f a c t iv i ty h as b een s ub jec t t o a g radua l a nd o ccas iona l ly a lmos t i mpercep t ib le c hange .

The a dvent o f i mproved

d a ta r ecovery , w e t a nd d ry s iev ing mach ines , t he u n i t ' env iron men ta l is t ' , t he i ns t i tu t ion o f s ub-depar t men ts i n U n ivers i t ies t o d ea l s pec if ica l ly w i th f auna l a nd f l ora l ma ter ia ls a nd t he e s tab l ish men t o f c o mpara t ive c o l lec t ions h ave a l l s erved t o b u i ld u pon t he e ar ly w ork o f t he p ioneers. t rend i n p rocess .

There i s u ndoub ted ly a

S i te o r ien ted a rchaeo logy g ave way t o c a tch men t a reas ,

l oca t iona l a rchaeo logy t o t he a rchaeo logy o f al andscape —ef fec t ive ly n o th ing n ew i n t ha t most o f t hese a spec ts h ave b een e xam ined i n t he p ast . The p ar t icu lar t rend wh ich c oncerns u s h ere , h owever , i s an ew o ne a nd w i th i tt here l i es a g rea t d ea l o f d anger .

Env iron men ta l a rchaeo log y i s

a lready a ccep ted a s ac o mprehens ib le p hrase w i th c onnota t ions a nd d eno ta t ions wh ich h ave n o t y e t b een f u l ly t hough t o u t o r a pprec ia ted . The d anger l i es i n t he o versw if t a dop t ion o f an ew t echn ique .

Regu lar ly t he r esu l t o f s uch a r ap id

a ccep tance , o nce i ti s r ea l ised t ha t e normous a nd e ven p roh ibi t ive l im i ta t ions a re i nheren t ly p resen t i n t he ma ter ia l e v idence , i s d is i l lus ion men t a nd s ubseq uen t r e jec t ion .

E nv ironmen ta l a rchaeo log y , ap hrase wh ich i s l i ke ly t o d o

more h ar m t han g ood i s e ven n ow i n i t s i n fancy.

I t s i mpor tance i s f ounded i n

t he b e lief t ha t i tw i l l p rov ide t he a nswers t o f unc t ion , t o o pera t ion , t o l and manage men t a nd s i te o rgan isa t ion .

I n e f fec t t hese a nswers a re t he p r ime

o b jec t ives o f e xcava t ion a nd c onsequen t ly e nv iron men ta l a rchaeo log y i sb u t a n i n tegra l p ar t o f e xcava t ion a nd n eeds t o b e v iewed a s s uch a nd n o more .

I t

i s , a s ap ursu i t , n o more i mpor tan t t han t he r esu l ts i tw i l l y ie ld i n g iv ing g rea ter s ubstance t o t he b as ic a rchaeo log ica l d a ta .

There i s ac ase t o b e

made t ha t i tw i l l i nsp ire n ew q ues t ions a nd t he e nsu ing t echn iques t o s a t isfy t hose q ues t ions .

Th is i s a n o b jec t ive t o b e a c t ive ly p ursued i n t ha t t he s ca le

o f o ur i gnorance o f t he p as t i s b u t u nder l ined b y t he r esu l ts a lready o b ta ined . I n o u t l in ing t h is c avea t , my p urpose i s t o e ncourage t he i n i t ia l e s tabl ishmen t o f ab a lance o f d isc ip l ines a vo id ing t he n orma l a nd i nc iden ta l ly t ime was t ing a nd e xpens ive e xcesses o f e x tre mes wh ich u sua l ly p resage a c o mp ro m ise . I n p h i losoph ica l t erms c o mpro m ise i s t he worst o f a l l wor lds . I n a rchaeo log ica l t er ms c o mpromise wou ld l ead t o l ess a nd l ess b eing a ch ieved . B y i n troduc ing a s ac o mpa t ib le l evel t he d isc ip l ines o f t he s peca l is t t o c o mp lemen t t he work o f t he e xcava tor t he p r ime o b jec t ive mus t b e t he h ighes t s tandards o f e xce l lence .

O ne s eed i mpress ion d oes n ot e qua l ah arvest a nd t wo d i f feren t

v ar ie t ies d oes n o t e qua l c rop r o ta t ion ! There i s at e mp ta t ion , s ince a na lys is o f e nv iron men ta l ma ter ia l l ends i t se lf t o s ta t is t ica l a na lys is , t o u t i l ise n umbers a s ad ef ini t ive r a ther t han a n i nforma t ive f unc t ion .

I t i s t oo s i mp le t o d isregard t he macros ta te o f ap re-

h istor ic e nv ironmen t b y d eta i led a na lys is o f t he m icros ta te o f a n e nv iron men ta l s amp le .

I ti s v i ta l ly i mpor tan t t o r eta in t he c on tex t a nd s amp le s ize i nb a lance

a nd a ccord a ppropr ia te ly a t en ta t ive c onc lus ion .

Fro m t he r esu l ts o f e nv iron-

men ta l a na lyses a n a bundance o f ' accep tab le d a ta ' w i l l a ccrue wh ich u n less c hecked a t t he o u tse t w i l l a l low y e t a no ther n ew b ranch o f a rchaeology , t he p red ic t ive s ta t is t ica t ion , t o d es troy b y s elec t ive r ando m isa t ion t he who le p urp ose o f t he a na lyses . 2 0

The p os i t ive o b jec t ives o f a na lys is o f e nv iron men ta l ma ter ia l a re t o c o mp le men t t he p hys ica l e xcava t ion r esu l ts .

I n s o d o ing , a nd t h is i nc ludes t he

r ef in ing a nd t es t ing o f t echn iques o f b oth d a ta r ecovery a nd s ubsequen t a na lys is , t he a im i s t o i ncrease o ur u nderstanding o f p reh is tor ic a nd h is tor ic s e t t le men ts . Even t oday o ur k now ledge i s w oefu l ly s l im b u t t he o ppor tun i ty t o i ncrease t ha t k now ledge , p rov ided i ti s h and led w i th c are , i s p resen t .

I t wou ld b e at ragedy

s hou ld ' env iron men ta l a rchaeology ' p rove t o b e j us t a no ther f ash ionable p hase a nd p hrase . The i n troduc t ion t o t h is p aper i s b ased i n l arge measure u pon t he r esearch f i ndings o ver t he l as t e igh t y ears a t t he Bu tser A nc ien t Farm R esearch P ro jec t . The o b jec t ives o f t he p ro jec t a re p ub l ished e lsewhere ( Reyno lds 1 979 ) b u t i n b r ief i ti s a n o pen a ir s c ien t if ic r esearch l abora tory d evo ted t o p reh is tor ic a gr icu l ture a nd a rchaeo logy.

I n e f fec t i ti s a n e nv iron men ta l r esearch s ta t ion .

I t s p urpose i st o r ep l ica te t he p rocesses a nd p rac t ices a s e v idenced b y t he a rchaeo log ica l d a ta i n o rder t o t es t f u l ly t he h ypo theses a dvanced b ased u pon t hose d a ta .

The t es t ing p rocess i t se l f r evea ls n ot o n ly i nadequac ies i n t he d a ta

a nd i t s a cqu is i t ion b u t a lso i n t he h ypo theses i n s uch a way a s n o t o n ly t o p rof fer s yste ms f or i mprovemen t b u t a lso b y a c tua l ly c arrying o u t r ep l ica ted t es ts o ver ap er iod o f t ime t o l earn b y o bserva t ion o f p rev ious ly u nexpec ted a nd u npred ic ted o ccurrences a nd t hus t o f rame s pec i f ic q ues t ions t o t es t f ur ther t hese n ew d a ta . The r angeand

s cope o f t he r esearch p rogram me a t t he f arm a re c onsiderab le

a nd t here h as b een g rea t p ressure b rough t t o b ear t o p ub l ish t he r esu l ts o f t hese p rogra m mes a l mos t a s s oon a s t hey a re a ch ieved . Th is p ressure h as g enera l ly b een r es is ted b ecause o f t he r easons o u t l ined i n t he i n troduc t ion .

B ecause t he

r esearch w ork i s p r i mar i ly i nvo lved w i th a gr icu l ture , e ven n ow i ti s t oo s oon t o p ubl ish a ny f i rm r esu l ts a nd t he mos t p os i t ive o bserva t ions c an o n ly b e r eg arded a s t rends .

Ap er iod o f a mere e igh t y ears i n a n a gr icu l tura l r esearch

p rogra m me i s p i t ifu l ly s hor t .

I ti s at ru is m t o s ay t ha t n o o ne y ear i s l i ke

a nother a nd o ver t he l as t e igh t y ears t he c l i ma te , t he ma jor v ar iab le a f fec t ing a gr icu l tura l p rac t ice a nd c ond i t ions , h as b een s ub jec ted t o t he w i ldes t e x tre mes. I ti s q u i te r e markable h ow c o m mon h ave b een t he s uper la t ives amongs t t hose mos t c onserva t ive o f men , t he me teorolog is ts.

The h ot tes t , d r ies t , c o ldes t ,

we t test s ince r ecords b egan t yp if ied t he w ea ther r epor ts .

Wh i le t he e x tre mes

e xper ienced h ave b een o f t he g rea tes t v a lue i n t ha t t hey h ave o ccurred a nd t heir e f fec ts h ave b een mon i tored , n o t e nough t ime h as e lapsed t o a l low f or a n o vera l l s ta t is t ica l v a l id i ty. f i ve y ears .

A min i mum p er iod w ou ld s ee m t o b e s o me t wen ty t o t wen ty-

Th is r e luc tance t o p ub l ish d a ta , h owever , i s c rea t ing i t s own p ro-

b le m i n t ha t i n d ue c ourse t he s heer q uan t i ty o f d a ta w i l l b e a l mos t p roh ib i t ive . E ven i n t he f o l low ing e xamp les d rawn f ro m t he r esearch p rogram mes c urren t w i th in t he A nc ien t Farm i ti s i mpor tan t t o s tress t ha t f or t he mos t p ar t a ny r esu l ts q uo ted a re i n ter im a nd s ub jec t t o o vera l l c hange a s t ime g oes b y , a nd s econd ly t o u nder l ine t ha t u n less s ta ted e lsewhere t he p rogram mes a re r est r ic ted t o as pec if ic g eo log ica l a nd c l ima to log ica l z one . To i l lus tra te t he w ork o f t he A nc ien t Farm a nd t o s how h ow i ti s i nex tr ic ab ly i nvo lved i n e nv iron men ta l r esearch Ih ave s e lec ted f our e ssen t ia l ly d isp ara te t op ics .

Three o f t hese a re d rawn f ro m t he c ore r esearch p rogram mes ,

t he f our th i s as pec if ic e xper imen t c arr ied o u t f or a t h ird p ar ty u t i l is ing t he l abora tory f ac i l i t ies a nd e xper t ise a va i lab le a t t he Anc ien t Far m .

They i nvo lve

r espec t ive ly t he s torage o f g ra in i n u nderground p i ts , t he p er formance o f

2 1

p reh is tor ic t ype c erea ls a ga ins t a rable weed c o mpe t i t ion a nd t he i mprobabi l i ty t ha t t he ma jor i ty o f c arbonised g ra in r ecovered f rom a rchaeo log ica l e xcava t ions i s o f s ign i f icance i n g ross h arves ting t er ms , t he e ros ion p a t tern o f a n e xper imen ta l d o mes t ic e ar thwork a nd f i na l ly t he t es t ing o f as o-ca l led Ro mano-Br i t ish G ra in Dr ier .

The methodo logy o f e xper imen ta l w ork a s c arr ied o u t a t t he

Anc ien t Farm i s p ub l ished e lsewhere ( Reyno lds 1 979 ).

The o n ly n ecessary

e le men t o f t ha t me thodolog y wh ich n eeds t o b e u nder lined h ere i s t he c onv ic t ion t ha t s o f ar a s p ossib le t he h u man e le men t mus t b e d isregarded w i th in t he e xp er imen ta l mi l ieu . C oncen tra t ion i s e n t ire ly f ocused u pon f unc t ion a nd t he i n terac t ion o f o ne e le men t w i th a nother a nd g iven t he e qu ipmen t a va i lab le t he c o l lec t ion o f a s much d a ta a s p ossible e ven t hough t he ir r e levance may b e i n s o me d oubt a t t he t ime .

I th as b een t he e ar ly e xper ience o f e xper i men ta l w ork

a t t he Farm t ha t s elec t iv i ty o f d a ta c o l lec t ion d en ied s ubsequen t a nd u n foreseen q ues t ions . c edure.

Th is a rgumen t c ou ld w i th a dvan tage b e a pp l ied t o e xcava t ion p ro-

P i ts There i s l i t t le d oub t b u t t ha t t he ma jor a rchaeolog ica l v est ige o f t he I ron Age p er iod t hroughou t t he c ha lk l ands a nd t he s and a nd g rave l t erraces o f s ou thern E ng land i s t he p i t ( Bowen a nd Wood 1 968 ).

I t s s heer f requency a s a

f ea ture i mp l ies a s pec i f ic t echno logy wh ich u t i l ises t he p i t f or a n u mber o f d if feren t a nd v ar ied p urposes .

B ecause o f i t s p redo minance i th as b een t he

s ub jec t o f c ons iderable i n terpre ta t ive e f for t w i th v ar ious b lanket e xp lana t ions b eing o f fered r ang ing f rom p i t dwe l l ings ( Wheeler 1 943 ) t hough t o g ra in s torage ( P i t t R ivers 1 887 , B owen a nd Wood 1 968 ).

Th is l as t h as g a ined w idespread

a ccep tance t hough n ot u n t i l r ela t ive ly r ecen t ly h as t ha t a ccep tance b een s uppor ted b y emp ir ica l e v idence .

N ot u n t i l e xper imen ts were c arr ied o u t i n t he n ine teen

s ix t ies ( Bowen a nd Wood 1 968 ,

R eyno lds 1 967 , R eyno lds 1 969 ) was t he p rocess

o f g ra in s torage i n a n u nderground p i t a ccep ted b y t he a gr icu l tura l wor ld .

I t

i s , p erhaps , wor th mak ing t he o bserva t ion t ha t a n i n terpre ta t ion wh ich i nvo lves ap rocess o r f unc t ion wh ich i s b eyond t he s tr ic t l im i ta t ion o f a rchaeo log y s hou ld s a t isfy t he e xper ts o r p rac t i t ioners o f t ha t d isc ip l ine o r p rocess . The d oi ty ourse lf a pproach h as n o t e xac t ly e nhanced e xper imen t i n a rchaeology. The a rgu men ts l ead ing t owards t he p re m ise t ha t c er ta in t ypes o f p i ts were u sed p ar t icu lar ly f or t he s torage o f g ra in a nd t he r esu l ts o f t we lve c ons ecu t ive s easons o f e xper imen ta l s torage o f g ra in i n u nderground s i los a re a va i lab le ( Reyno lds 1 978 - u npub l ished P h .D . t hes is , U n iv . o f L eices ter ) . I n b r ief t he p rocess i s r e la t ive ly s imp le t o u nders tand .

G ra in d ur ing i t s n or-

ma l r esp ira t ion p rocess u t i lises o xygen a nd g ives o f f a s a was te p roduc t c arbon d iox ide .

When p laced i n as ea led c on ta iner t he r esp ira t ion c yc le c on t inues

u n t i l t he a va i lab le o xygen i s e xhaus ted a nd t he a t mosphere h as b een c hanged t o o ne c harged w i th c arbon d iox ide .

A t t h is p oin t t he g ra in e n ters a s ta te o f u n-

s tab le d ormancy , t he i ns tabi l i ty b e ing c aused b y t he p resence o f mircoo rgan isms f ung i a nd b ac ter ia ,

c apab le o f s urv iv ing a nd i n c er ta in c ases

t hr iv ing i n a naerobic c ond i t ions . P rov ided a l ow t e mpera ture i s ma int a ined a nd n o f ur ther o xygen a dm i t ted e ven t he micro-organ is ms c an b e k ep t l argely i n a beyance .

The p i t e f fec t ive ly a c ts a s s uch a s ea led c on ta iner .

F or b rev i ty r eference c an b e made t o Tac i tus who d escr ibed t he G erman p rac t ice o f s ea l ing u nderground c aches w i th f imus ( Tac i tus ) a nd P l iny who d escr ibed a s imi lar p rac t ice i n s ou thern S pa in .

There a re n o d irec t c lass ica l

r eferences t o Br i t ish p rac t ice n or i ndeed , i n c on tras t t o c on tinen ta l a nd A fr ican 99

c oun tr ies , a re t here a ny e thnograph ic h is tor ica l p ara l le ls .

I n e f fec t t he r ef-

e rences q uo ted r efer t o t he i mpermeab le s ea l n ecessary f or t he c on ta iner t o f unc t ion p roper ly.

C on trols where p i ts were l e f t o pen t o t he e le men ts h ave

b een c arr ied o u t w i th t he i nev i tab le r esu l ts ( Bowen a nd Wood 1 968 ). Tha t I ron Age t ype p i ts c an b e u sed s uccessfu l ly f or t he u nderground s torage o f g ra in h as n ow b een p roved c onc lus ive ly.

Research i s n one the less

c on t inu ing i n o rder t o g a in a nswers t o s upp le men tary q ues t ions , t he mos t i mp or tan t o f wh ich i s t he a ssess men t o f t he l ong t erm v iab i l i ty o f ap i t .

H owever ,

wha t i s o f p ar t icu lar i n teres t w i th in t he c on tex t o f t h is p aper i s n ot t he e f f ic ie ncy o f t he p rocess , i t s e cono m ic i mp l ica t ions o r e ven t he f unc t ion t races wh ich t he p rocess l eaves u pon t he wa l ls o f t he p i t , b u t r a ther t he was te p roduc t o f t he p rocess i t se lf .

W i th in t he e xper i men ta l p rogra m me ma jor a t ten t ion was

f ocused u pon u n l ined p i ts where g ra in was l i tera l ly s tored i n a n u n trea ted p i t . The p roduc t ion o f c arbon d iox ide g as wh ich a c ts a s t he ma in p reserva t ive a gency i s t he was te p roduc t o f t he g ermina t ion o f t he s eed a t t he i n ter face b et ween s tored b u lk a nd t he s ea l o ver t he mou th o f t he p i t a nd t he p i t wa l ls . B ecause t he s ea l i s d amp i n o rder f or i tt o b e i mpermeable t he i dea l c ond i t ions f or g ermina t ion e x is t a t t he i n ter face l ayer .

I ti s d ark , mois t a nd war m a nd

t here i s a bundan t o xygen a va i lab le t o a cce lera te g er m ina t ion .

T o al esser

e x ten t t he s ame i s t rue o f t he p i t wa l ls where t he mo is ture c on ten t o f t he r ock e ncourages g erm ina t ion .

The b u i ld-up o f c arbon d iox ide g as t o al evel wh ich

i nh ib i ts f ur ther g ermina t ion i s r e la t ive ly s w if t t ak ing o n a verage n o more t han t hree weeks .

A t t h is p oin t d irec t ly b enea th t he c lay s ea l t he g ra in h as g er-

mina ted t o ad ep th o f s o me 0 .05 m.

S i mi lar ly t he g ra in h as g ermina ted n ex t

t o t he p i t wa l l c rea t ing a s k in a verag ing s o me 0 .03 m t h ick .

The s k in o f g er-

mina ted g ra in i s at h ick ma t t o f i n ter tw ined s prou ts a nd r oot le ts wh ich e f fec t ive ly a c ts a s af ur ther b arr ier t o mois ture p ene tra t ion i n to t he s tored g ra in b u lk n ow i n ad orman t s ta te.

H owever , t he g erm ina t ion p rocess h as b een a rrested b e-

f ore t he s tarch r eserves o f t he ma jor i ty o f s eed a re f u l ly u t i l ised .

The ma t t

o f s prou ted g ra in a dheres q u i te f i rm ly t o t he p i t wa l l d ur ing t he r ecovery o f o f t he g ra in b u lk a f ter s torage . I n i t se lf i ti s u se less , d ead , d amp a nd r idd led w i th f ung i a nd b ac ter ia a nd q u i te u npa la table e ven a s p ig f odder .

C lear ly i t

n eeds t o b e r e moved f ro m t he p i t a s f ur ther d e ter iora t ion w i l l t ake p lace o nce i ti s o pen t o t he a t mosphere .

Na tura l ly i tc ou ld f ind i t s way t o a midden b u t

amore p rac t ica l a nd s imp le p rocess i s t o p ee l i ta way f ro m t he wa l ls o f t he p i t a nd b urn i ti n s i tu .

The n a ture o f s uch a f ire , t he ma ter ia l i t se lf b eing

d amp w i th in t he c onf ines o f ap i t p erhaps a s d eep a s 2 .00 m , i s s low b urn ing a nd t o al arge e x tan t ar educ ing a t mosphere.

S evera l t es ts h ave b een c arr ied

o u t s how ing t ha t c arbon isa t ion r egu lar ly t akes p lace i n t h is t ype o f f i re .

A s

men t ioned a bove t he s eeds w i th in t h is was te s k in h ave g erm ina ted p ush ing o u t r oot lets a nd s prou ts b u t g enera l ly g ermina t ion h as n ot s u f f ic ien t ly a dvanced f or t he s tarch t o h ave b een t o ta l ly c onsu med a nd t he s eed t o h ave l os t i t s s hape. I ndeed o n a verage h a l f o f t he s eeds i n t h is ma t t h ave o n ly l ost t he g erm e le men t a nd t hus r e ta in t heir b u lk a nd morpho log y.

Their c arbon iza t ion i s ama t ter

o f c hance a nd q u i te i mposs ible t o q uan t i fy g iven t he v agar ies o f s uch a f ire . Na tura l ly e nough r oot le ts a nd s prou ts a re u t ter ly d es troyed . Recen t ly a na lys is o f c arbon ised s eed r ecovered f ro m a s o-ca l led I ron Age s torage p i t r evea led e xac t ly t h is c ond i t ion ( M . J ones , p ers . c o m m.). I ti s a t trac t ive t o s ee t h is d iscovery a s ac lear c onf ir ma t ion o f t he p rac t ice o f

2 3

s tor ing g ra in n o t o n ly i n u nderground p i ts b u t i n u n l ined p i ts .

I ti s s im i lar ly

a t trac t ive t o u se t he d iscovery a s as tra igh t v ind ica t ion o f t he emp ir ica l a pp roach o f h ypo thesis t est ing .

I td oes i l lus tra te , h owever , t he i m mense v a lue

o f c lose c o -o pera tion b e tween s pec ia l is ts .

A s a f ina l p os tscr ip t t o t h is s ec t ion

o n p i ts i ti s w or th r ecord ing t ha t t he ma t t o f g erm ina ted g ra ins r eferred t o a bove d oes a lso a f fec t t he n a ture o f t he p i t wa l ls c u t i n to c ha lk . C lose e xam ina t ion o f t he ma t t a s i ti s p ee led a way f ro m t he wa l ls r evea ls t iny g ranu les o f c ha lk r ock e n meshed i n t he r oo t le t s truc ture .

The wa l l i t se lf a f ter t wo t o t hree

w in ter s easons o f c onsecu t ive s torage b eco mes q u i te smoo th e ven i nc lud ing t he i n ters t ices i n t he r ock where t he r oo t le ts h ave p ene tra ted i n t heir q ues t f or mo is ture a nd s tabi l i ty.

Th is e f fec t h as b een n oted o n I ron Age p i ts b y t he a u thor

o n n umerous o ccas ions b u t a s y et h as n ot b een o f f ic ia l ly r ecorded a rchaeo log ica l ly. S u f f ice t o c o m men t t ha t t he wa l ls o f as ubterranean s truc ture l i ke a p i t s hou ld b e a f forded t he s a me c lose s cru t iny a s t ha t l av ished u pon a n u ps tand ing c onstruc t ion . Al og ica l p ro jec t ion f ro m t he s torage o f g ra in i n a n u nderground s i lo i s t he p hys ica l g row ing a nd h arves t ing o f t he c erea l c rops t he mse lves .

F or t he

p as t e igh t y ears a nd b efore t ha t f or a p er iod o f t hree y ears e x tens ive c ropp ing t r ia ls h ave b een c arr ied o u t r espec t ive ly a t t he A nc ien t Farm a nd Avoncro f t Museu m o f Bu i ld ings , Bro msgrove , Worces tersh ire . Broad ly t he p r ime o bj ec t ive h as b een t o e s tabl ish t he p ara meters o f c rop y ie ld o f t he p reh is tor ic t ype c erea ls a ga ins t mon i tored c l i ma t ic a nd s oi l c ond i t ions .

A nc i l lary o b jec-

t ives r ange t hrough s tand h e igh t v ar ia t ion , a rable w eed c o mpet i t ion , p o ten t ia l i nd ica t ion o f s ow ing s easons , d isease r es is tance a nd a ph id r es istance .

I n

d irec t a ssoc ia t ion w i th t hese t r ia ls a s er ies o f p lough ing e xper i men ts u t i l is ing r ep l ica p reh is tor ic a rds h as b een c arr ied o u t i n o rder t o a ssess t he r ea l i ty o f s o-ca l led ' ard- marks v r ecovered b y e xcava t ion .

I n p rac t ica l t erms t he s tudy

i nvo lves b o th t he e f fec t o f p lough ing u pon t he a rd a nd u pon t he s o i l .

Af ur ther

a nc i l lary p rogra m me i s c oncerned w i th s herd/ar tefac t move men t i n t he p loughs oi l u nder p reh is tor ic p lough ing c ond i t ions .

T o e xe mp l ify a l l t he a bove , o ne

f ie ld d es igna ted V I I o n t he d e mons tra t ion a rea o f t he A nc ien t Far m i s u sed f or a l l o f t he a bove t r ia ls. C arbon ised S eed Our p urpose h ere , h owever , i s t o e xam ine t wo f ac tors wh ich h ave emerged f ro m t he t r ia ls o ver t he p as t e leven y ears a nd t o o f fer t he m a s ad irec t c on tr ib u t ion t oward a n a na lys is o f c arbon ised s eed a s r ecovered f ro m I ron Age s i tes i n p ar t icu lar .

O rd inar i ly o ur p r i me d a te f or h ypo thes is f orma t ion o f c erea ls

g rown i n t he I ron Age s te ms f ro m t wo b as ic s ources , s eed i mpress ions f i red i n to p o t tery , p resumab ly b y a cc iden t , a nd , more i mpor tan t ly , c arbon ised s eed . A s t echn iques o f r ecovery h ave i mproved s o t he q uan t i t ies o f s eed r ecovered h ave i ncreased .

Ye t i ti s n ecessary t o i n troduce a t t he b eg inn ing a c avea t

wh ich i s n ot o rd inar i ly a pprec ia ted .

Fro m t he c ons iderab le d a ta b ank a ccru ing

f ro m t he e xper imen ts , a na lys is o f em mer whea t ( Tr i t icum d icoccum ) s pikes i nd ica te a n a verage o f t h ir ty s eeds p er s p ike .

Fur ther , a ccep t ing t he l ow

e s tima te o f ay ie ld o f t en h undredweigh ts p er a cre t he p oten t ia l y ie ld o f s eeds wou ld b e s o me t h ir tytwo mi l l ion .

When we c ompare t h is f igure w i th t he

a verage f ew p ounds o f c arbon ised s eed t he p i t i fu l ly minu te n a ture o f t he u sua l s amp le i s u nder l ined a nd a ny s ta t is t ica l a na lysis o f i ti s b rough t i nto s er ious d oub t .

None the less f ro m t he mu l t i tude o f p a laeobotan ica l r epor ts n ow a va i lable 2 4

t he v as t ma jor i ty o f s amp les c o mpr ise a n a dmix ture o f c erea l a nd a rable weed s eed w i th t he l a t ter n o t i n frequen t ly o u tnu mber ing t he f or mer . I tf ur ther g oes a l mos t w i thou t s aying t ha t v ir tua l ly w i thou t e xcep t ion t he s amp les a re d rawn f ro m e xcava t ions —par t ia l , s a mp le o r ien ted o r t o ta l o f s e t t le men t s i tes . I ti s i ron ic t ha t a t t h is t ime d esp i te u nques t ioned a gree men t t ha t a gr icu l ture f or med t he b as ic e cono my o f t he p reh is tor ic p er iod , p ar t icu lar ly t he I ron Age , t here h ave b een n o e xcava t ions o ther t han b y f or tu i tous a cc iden t o f ' Cel t ic f i elds ' o r o u t lying l and o r c lose i nves t iga t ions o f f ar m o rgan isa t ion ( Cf . B e l l , t h is v o lume ). S ince i t mus t b e l og ica l t o a ccep t t ha t s e t t le men t i s af unc t ion o f f arming r a ther t han t he r everse t hen a p r ime p o ten t ia l s ource o f i n forma t ion h as b een l arge ly i gnored .

There i s a lso l i t t le d oub t g iven t he i ncreas ing n um-

b ers o f I ron Age s e t t le ment s i tes b e ing f ound e spec ia l ly i n v a l leys a nd o n t he p rev ious ly u nfash ionab le c lay s o i ls t ha t t he c oun trys ide was e f fec t ive ly s haped a t t h is t ime .

The l andscape was i n f ac t av er i tab le a groscape where a gr icu l-

t ure a nd s i lv icu l ture w ere t he n or m a nd was teland a t ap re m iu m.

I n a l l p ro-

b abi l i ty t he l andscape was b e t ter t ended e ven t han t oday a nd p resen ted a ' man icured a ppearance '. i n d ue c ourse .

Th is p ar t icu lar h ypo thes is w i l l b e e xp lored f ur ther

I ti s s u f f ic ien t h ere t o emphas ise t ha t t he b us iness o f a gr i-

c u l ture i s t o b e f ound i n f i e lds a nd f ences .

The ma ter ia l r ecovered f ro m a

s e t t le men t , a lready s ub jec ted t o c hance s urv iv ia l , c an a t b es t s erve t o i nd ica te ma ter ia l t aken i n to t he s e t t le men t wh ich h as p o ten t ia l ly b een p rocessed p r ior t o i t s a rr iva l o r wh ich h as b een s ub jec ted t o p rocess ing w i th in t he s e t t le men t . I ti s i n t h is c ontex t t ha t t he s a mp les o f c arbon ised s eed n eed t o b e v iewed . Are t hey r epresen ta t ive o f ag ross p roduc t i n troduced i n to t he s et t le men t a s , f or e xamp le , t he h arvet t , o r a re t hey t he was te p roduc t o f as upp le men tary p rocess i nvo lv ing t he h arves t o r y e t a ga in , d esp i te t heir b e ing c erea l a nd a rable weed s eeds , h ave t hey a nyth ing t o d o d irec t ly w i th a c erea l h arves t a t a l l .

There a re c lear ly a n i ncreas ing n umber o f v ar iables i n p ropor t ion t o

t he c o mprehens ion o f t he a gr icu ltura l a nd d o mest ic r equ ire men ts o f a n o perat i ona l e cono my. P rec ise i n forma t ion o f h arves t ing t echn iques a s emp loyed b y t he I ron Age p eople a s o pposed t o t he Ro man s ys te ms ( Wh i te 1 970 ) i s d i f f icu l t t o i so la te . We d o h ave t he c o mmen ts b y S trabo a nd D iodorus S icu lus t ha t t he C e l t ic p ract i ce was t o r eap t he e ars o r s p ikes o f t he c rops .

S uppor t o f t hese s ta te men ts

c an b e f ound i n t he u biqu i tous a r t is ts ' i mpressions o f p reh is tor ic h arves t ing where t he s o-ca l led s ick le i s t o b e s een n ea t ly c u t t ing o ff c erea l h eads . P rac t ice , h owever , h as l i t t le i n c o m mon w i th imag ina t ive r epresen ta t ion . F ro m t he o bserva t ion o f s o me e leven s easons o f g row ing t he p reh is tor ic t ype c erea ls o f em mer a nd s pe l t whea ts , b el ief i n t he d e ter m ina t ion o f t he t yp ica l sma l l ' s ick le ' h as r ad ica l ly waned t o t he p oin t o f o f fer ing a n a l terna t ive f unc t ion —th is b e ing t he s p l i t t ing o f h aze l g ads t o make i n to t ha tch ing s pars f or wh ich t he t ool i s a dm irably s u i ted .

Th is i s n ot t o s ay t ha t t hey c annot b e

u sed f or c u t t ing whea t e ars b u t r a ther t ha t t hey a re g ross ly i nef f ic ien t a nd f ar t oo s low . The p rob le m l i es i n t he n a ture o f t he c rop i t se l f . Accep t ing t he c lassica l s ources a s b e ing a r easonab le d escr ip t ion o f t he a c tua l h arvest ing p rac t ice , b o th a t Avoncrof t Museum a nd a t t he A nc ien t Farm a l l t he c rops h ave b een h arves ted i nt h is way.

Each y ear r ep l ica s ick les a re p rov ided f or

t he p urpose , e ach y ear t hey a re u nan i mously r e jec ted b y t he r eapers .

The

a nswer i s s imp ly t ha t i ti s much e as ier t o r eap t he e ars b y h and p ick ing .

2 5

I t was r ea l ised f ro m t he v ery f irs t s eason t ha t t he p reh istor ic c erea ls h ave t wo c harac ter ist ics wh ich a re n ot o rd inar i ly t o b e f ound i n modern h ybr id whea ts.

The f irst ma jor d i f ference l i es i n t he d ispar i ty o f s tand h e igh ts

a ch ieved b y t he t i l lers o f t he s ame p lan t .

I n t he c ase o f b oth em mer a nd s pel t

whea ts t h is d ispar i ty c an b e a s much a s a me tre f ro m t he s hor tes t t o t he t a l lest s p ike , wh i le i n a modern h ybr id i tr are ly e xceeds 0 .40 m . o f t h is c harac ter is t ic w i l l b e d eve loped b elow . i s t he ' n eck ing ' o f t he p reh is tor ic t ypes .

The i mpor tance

The s econd c harac ter is t ic

A s t he e ars r ipen s o t hey d roop

g racefu l ly d ownwards f ro m t he ma in s ta lk i n t he f ash ion o f modern b ar ley . The e f fec t o f t h is n o t o n ly i nh ib i ts wa ter r e ten t ion w i th in t he s p ike a nd c onseq uen t l odg ing p o ten t ia l , t h is b e ing t ruer o f em mer t han s pe l t where l odg ing c an b e ap rob le m , b u t a lso e xposes t he s ta lk t op t o t he e le ments o f w ind a nd s un .

O nce r ipe t h is s ec t ion o f t he s ta lk b eco mes e x tre me ly b r i t t le a nd i s v ery

e asy i ndeed t o b reak o f f .

I fa l lowed t o r each ma tur i ty t he n a tura l r esu l t i s

f or t he s p ike t o b reak a way f ro m t he s ta lk a nd s eed i t se lf .

T he s k i l l o f f arming

i s , o f c ourse , t o p re-e mp t t h is p oin t b y a s s hor t at ime a s p oss ib le . O bserva t ions o f t h is d ispar i ty o f s tand h e igh t h ave l ed t o t he d irec t r ec ord ing o f e ach s uccess ive c rop .

A nnua l ly a t housand measure men ts o f e ach

c rop v ar ie ty a nd t rea tmen t a re made a cross r ando m t ransec ts w i th s amp le p o in ts 0 .30 m a par t .

The r esu l ts o f j us t o ne y ear a re p rov ided t o s ubs tan t ia te

t he p resen t a rgu men t . f igures 2 :1 a nd 2 :2.

These c an b e s een r epresen ted i n h is togram f orm i n T o p rov ide a d irec t c o mpar ison f igure 2 :3 s hows t he

r esu l ts f ro m a modern c erea l c rop g rown u nder e xac t ly t he s a me c ond i t ions . The s elec t ion o f e xamp les i s f ur ther d e l ibera te ly p o in ted i n t ha t t hey a re d rawn f ro m a f i e ld wh ich h as b een c on t inuously c ropped f or t he p as t e igh t y ears w i thou t a ny a dded n u tr ien t wha tsoever .

The f arm i s , o f c ourse , f ree f rom

a l l modern h erb ic ides , p es t ic ides a nd f er t i l isers . The p r i me d a ta c o mpr ise a n a dm ix ture o f c erea l a nd a rab le weed s eeds. Throughou t t he c ropp ing p rogram me t he c o mpe t i t ive weed f l ora h as b een mos t c arefu l ly mon i tored .

I n e leven s easons a l l t he h arves ts h ave b een e f fec t ive ly

p ure w i th b u t t wo c on tam inan ts .

B y way o f e xp lana t ion t he h arves t i s t aken

t o b e t he s p ikes t ha t a re c o l lec ted f ro m t he c rop .

The c on tam inan ts , i n t urn ,

a re a rab le weeds wh ich c an b e f ound w i th in t he g a thered s p ikes . t ing p rocess c ons is ten t ly f o l lows t he c lass ica l d escr ip t ion .

The h arves-

H owever , t he

c rop i t sel f i s r egu lar ly i n fes ted w i th a n a bundan t w eed f l ora a nd d ur ing t he mon ths o f J une a nd J u ly p ar t icu lar ly i s ar io t o f c o lour . The p r i mary e ne my o f f armers o f a l l p er iods p r ior t o t he i n troduc t ion o f h erb ic ides i s c har lock ( S inapis a rvensis ).

I t i s v i ta l ly n ecessary d ur ing t he e ar ly p ar t o f t he s eason

i n A pr i l a nd May t o h oe t he c rop c arefu l ly i n o rder t o k eep a t b ay t h is mos t p ern ic ious c o mpe t i tor .

I n t h is c en tury i t was n o t u nco m mon t o h ear o f c rops

b e ing p loughed b ack i n to t he s o i l b ecause o f c har lock i n fes ta t ion .

Farm ing b y

d ef in i t ion i s t he p rov is ion o f ap referred h abi ta t f or a s pec if ic p lan t .

H owever ,

o nce t he p lan t i s e s tab l ished a nd c an o u tgrow i t s c o mpe t i tors , t here i s n o a dv an tage i n f ur ther h oe ing a nd i ndeed t here c an b e d irec t d isadvan tages i n t ha t t oo much s o i l d is turbance i n t he s econdary s tages o f c rop d eve lop men t a n d a mage t he s pread ing r oo ts o f t he c rop i t se lf .

C onsequen t ly a t h arves t t ime

t here i s a n a bundance o f o ther p lan ts amongs t t he c erea l c rops .

C arefu l n o te

h as b een made o f t hose c o mpet i tors wh ich r each t he r eap ing h eigh t .

Tha t i s ,

t hose p lan ts wh ich h ead o u t amongs t t he ma jor i ty o f s p ikes a nd wh ich a re l i ke ly

2 6

P lant

n umbers

2 00

1 55

1 00

5 0

5 0 c ms S tand

F ig . 2 .1

H eights i n

1 00 c ms

c entimetres

S tand h eigh ts o f Tr i t icu m d icoccu m . F arm .

F ie ld I , 1 978 B utser Anc ient

1 50

c ms

3 0LL

P lant n umbers

' i tanc i H eights

F ig . 2 .2

5 0

c ms

i n

c entimetres.

1 00 c mc

S tand h eigh ts o f Tr it icu m s pe lta . F arm .

2 8

1 50 c ms

F ie ld I , 1 978 B utser Anc ien t

P lant n umbers

2 0 r j

1 5 1 1

1 0 1 ]

5 1 1

0

5 0 c ms S tand

F ig . 2 .3

H eights

i n

un c ms

1 5 ( 1

c entimetres.

S tand He ights o f Tr i t icu m a es t iru m v ar . Man s H untsman . I V , 1 980 B utser Anc ien t F ar m .

F ie ld

c

C ONPETITIVE

P lant n umbers -

5 0

P lant n Jmbers

N ON-COMP .C TITIVJ

5 0 H t3nd H eights

F ig . 2 .4

l _ Pr j

i n

1 00

c entimetres.

C ompara t ive s tand h e igh ts o f Agros te mma g i thago i n c o mpe t i t ive a nd n on-compe t i t ive c ondi t ions .

3 0

C OVPETITIVE

l ant n umh rs

1 00

5 1 j

1 01 - P lant n umbers

N ON-C UPETITIVE

5 n

0

5 0 S tand H eights i n

F ig . 2 .5

1 00 c entimetres.

C ompara t ive s tand h e igh ts o f C en taurea c yanus i n c ompe t i t ive a nd n on-co mpe t i t ive c ondi t ions .

t o b e c o l lec ted b y a cc iden t d ur ing t he h arves t ing p rocess .

S uch p lan ts a re

e f fec t ive ly f ew i n n u mber a nd v ir tua l ly a l l o f t he m a re s u f f ic ien t ly d i f feren t i n n a ture a nd f orm f or a vo idance t o b e a ma t ter o f c ourse .

The mos t t yp ica l

o n c a lcareous s o i ls a re t he t h is t le f am i ly ( C irs iu m ) , f a t h en ( Cheno _pod ium a lbum ) , p opp ies ( Papaver s p .) , c har lock ( S inap is a rvens is ) a nd h edge mus tard ( S isy mbr ium o f f ic ina le ).

O n a c id s o i ls a s w el l a s most o f t he a bove r ed s hank

( Polygonum p ers icar ia ) a nd p a le p ers icar ia ( Po lygonu m l apa th i fo l ium ) a re t he mos t c om mon . The t wo c on tam inan ts r e ferred t o a bove a re b lack b indweed ( Polygonu m c onvo lvu lus ) a nd s ow th is t le ( Sonchus a rvens is ). The f ormer s i mp ly e n tw ines i t se lf u p t he s traw s ta lks a nd wraps i t se lf i nex tr icab ly a bou t t he s p ike .

The r eaper r ecogn ises i t s p resence b u t c an d o l i t t le a bou t i t .

I t

h ard ly d etrac ts f ro m t he c rop i n s o f ar a s i ti s n o t ap o isonous s pec ies .

The

l a t ter i s r e la t ive ly u nco m mon a s ac on ta m inan t a nd o n ly o ccurs a s s uch s ince i t s s eed i s w ind d ispersed a nd o ccas iona l ly a s eed i s t rapped amongs t t he a wns o f t he p reh is tor ic t ype c erea ls.

I tt oo i s u n l ike ly t o c ause a ny p rob le ms i n

s ubsequen t u t i l isa t ion o f t he h arves t .

I t i s r are amongs t t he c arbon ised s eed

r ecord a s i s o n ly t o b e e xpec ted f ro m i t s n a ture b u t i th as r ecen t ly b een i dent i f ied f ro m a n I ron Age s i te a long t he c ourse o f t he M3 motorway ( p ers . c om m . P . J . Fasha m ).

E ven t hough i t s p resence w i th in t he h arvested s p ikes i s

o ccas iona l t h is i s n o t t o s ugges t i ti s r are amongs t t he c rop . The p ur i ty o f t he h arves t i s t he d irec t r esu l t o f t he r eap ing s ys tem . S ince t he a bundan t weed f l ora o ccup ies t he b ases o f t he c rop a nd wh i le i td oes n o t n ecessar i ly d etrac t f ro m i t s o vera l l p er formance , i td oes mask f rom t he v iew o f t he r eapers t hose s p ikes wh ich a re i n t he l owes t s tand h e igh t r ange. I t wou ld b e c oun ter-produc t ive t o h un t a bou t amongs t t he b ase o f t he c rop t o r ecover wha t amoun ts t o l ess t han o ne p er c en t o f t he t o ta l y ield .

I ron ica l ly

t here i s r egu lar ly n o d i f ference i n t he o vera l l s eed s ize o f t hese om i t ted s p ikes f ro m t hose o f t he r eaped h arves t .

C onsequen t ly t hey c annot b e i d en t i-

f i ed a s b eing d is t inc t i n a ny s pec if ic a na lys is p rogra m me .

S i mi lar ly t he o b-

s erva t ion n eeds t o b e made t ha t c arbon isa t ion i t se lf d oes n o t a f fec t s eeds u n i form ly a nd t hus p red ic t ive a ssess men ts o f o r ig ina l s eed s ize a re i mpossible . Throughou t t he d eve lop men t o f t he A nc ien t Far m e very e ffor t h as b een made t o s upp ly a s a ccura te a c o mpe t i t ive weed f l ora a s p oss ible .

I n many

c ases t h is h ad l ed t o s upp le men tary r esearch p rogra m mes i nvo lv ing i n d iv idua l s pec ies wh ich a re e i ther t hrea tened o r a c tua l ly e x t inc t f ro m t he U n i ted K ingdo m . I n t he l a t ter c a tegory , f or e xample , t horow-wax ( Bup leurum r o tund i fo l ium ) c an o n ly b e o bserved i n t he f i e lds a nd p ropaga t ion p lots a t t he Anc ien t F ar m . The o b jec t ives o f t hese s upp le men tary p rogram mes a re t o s tudy t he p ercen tage g erm ina t ion f ru i t ing c harac ter is t ics a nd s tand h eigh ts i n c o mpe t i t ive m i l ieux o f t hese t hrea tened s pec ies a nd t o k eep a r eserve s eed b ank i n t he n orma l s ense a s w el l a s t he ma in tenance o f l i v ing p opu la t ions .

T o u nder l ine t he n a-

t ure o f t he c o mpe t i t ive a rab le f l ora wh ich o ccup ies t he b ase o f t he c rop t wo t yp ica l s pec ies , r egu lar ly r ecorded i n c arbon ised s eed s a mples , a re s e lec ted a s p ar t icu lar e xamp les .

The f irs t o f t hese , c orn c ock le ( Agros te m ma g i thago )

i s s uf f ic ien t ly f requen t t o h ave b een c ons idered a s ap o ten t ia l f ood s upp ly a nd i t s p rote in l evels h ave b een a na lysed ( Renfrew 1 973 ) a l though , i n f ac t , i ti s p o isonous ( Forsyth 1 954 , R en frew 1 973 ) a nd s poi ls b read made f ro m f l our wh ich c on ta ins i t .

S im i lar ly i tr e ta ins i t s p oisonous c harac ter ist ics e ven

a f ter d rying a nd s torage .

I n F igure 2 :4 i t s s tand h e igh ts a re r ecorded i n

3 2

c o mpet i t ive a nd n on-co mpe t i t ive c ond i t ions .

S i mi lar ly t he r esu l ts o f t he

p erfor mance o f c orn f lower ( Cen taurea c yanus ) , a nother t hrea tened s pec ies a l though n on-poisonous , a re s hown i n F igure 2 :5.

I n b oth c ases i tc an b e

r ead i ly s een t ha t g iven t he h arvest ing s ys te m t hey a re we l l b e low t he r eap ing h e igh t a nd a re t o b e f ound l ocked w i th in t he mass o f o ther a rab le w eeds . The a rgu men t , t herefore , i s n ow c onfused i n t ha t t o a l l i n ten ts a nd p urposes t he n orm w ou ld h ave b een a p ure h arves t a nd y e t t he c arbon ised s eed s a mp les a re a nyth ing b u t p ure .

R e turn ing t o t he f i e ld s i tua t ion , o nce

t he s p ikes h ave b een h arves ted t here r e ma ins s t i l l as econd a nd e x tre me ly v a luab le p roduc t t o b e c o l lec ted , n ame ly t he s traw .

B ecause o f i t s r e la t ive ly

l ow g loss f ac tor t he s traw f ro m t he p reh is tor ic c erea ls i s q u i te p a la table t o l i ves tock . S im i lar ly i th ad g rea t v a lue a s t ha tch ing ma ter ia l , af ac t s ubs tant ia ted b y t he s tand h e igh ts a lone a nd i tw ou ld h ave b een r equ ired a s b edd ing ma ter ia l f or l i vestock a nd n o t i mprobab ly f or h umans .

There i s a lways t he

a l terna t ive t ha t t hen a s n ow t he s traw c ou ld h ave b een b urned i n s i tu b u t t h is d oes n o t d eny t he n eed f or s traw w i th in t he a gr icu l tura l e cono my a nd i ti s n o t u nreasonable t o a ssume t ha t i t was c u t , p u t i n to s heaves a nd c ar ted b ack i n to t he s et t le men t . I n a ny e ven t t he f i eld a rea wou ld h ave h ad t o b e c leared p r ior t o i t s r ecu l t iva t ion. f l ora w i th in i t s b u lk .

The s traw i nev i tab ly c on ta ined t he mass o f w eed

I n t h is way , e n t ire ly a par t f ro m t he h arves ted c erea l

t he a rable w eeds c ou ld h ave f ound t heir way i n to t he s e t t le men t .

I n o rder t o

q uan t i fy t h is e xerc ise , e ach y ear s evera l o f t he s traw s heaves f ro m t he f arm a re a na lysed f or t he s eeds t hey c on ta in a f ter a w in ters s torage w i th in a s tack . The r esu l ts f ro m j us t o ne e xamp le a re g iven i n F igure 2 :6. A t yp ica l s hea f c an b e s een i n P la te 2 :I .

Even t h is a na lys is d oes n ot g ive a t rue r ef lec t ion

o f t he f i e ld s ta te i n t ha t t he s eed r e lease mechan is ms o f t he d i f feren t s pec ies o f a rab le w eeds a re w ide ly d iverse . F or e xamp le , t he t h is t le p opu la t ion s ince i t s s eeds a re w ind d ispersed i s r are ly r epresen ted . S im i lar ly t he s eeds o f c har lock ( S inap is a rvens is ) a re e xp loded f ro m a p od a t t he s l igh tes t t ouch o f t he t r igger e le men t .

I n f ac t , j ust p r ior t o h arves t o ne c an a c tua l ly h ear t he

p ods e xp lod ing a s t he w ind b lown s ta lks o f whea t b rush a ga ins t t he s eed p ods. S o me s i mp le measure men ts c arr ied o u t a t t he f ar m h ave s hown t ha t c har lock c an d e l iver i t s s eed u p t o t hree me tres f ro m t he p aren t p lan t .

B o th t h is t les

a nd p ar t icu lar ly c har lock a re d o minan t w eeds o f t he r esearch c rops , af ac t wh ich a na lys is w ou ld f a i l t o s ubs tan t ia te.

A s h as b een s ugges ted a bove i n

r eference t o s ow th is t le ( Sonchus a rvens is ) a t ten t ion n eeds t o b e f ocused u pon t he c harac ter is t ics o f i nd iv idua l p lan t s pec ies a nd a ny a na lysis n eeds t o t ake a ccount o f t hese c harac ter ist ics .

A v iru len t weed i n t he f i e ld n eed n o t n eces-

s ar i ly a ppear i n q uan t i ty i n t he a rchaeo log ica l r ecord . H owever , t here i sy et t he p rob le m o f c arbon isa t ion f or wh ich s o me a ccoun t s hou ld b e made .

F or c arbon isa t ion t o o ccur a f i re w i th a p r imar i ly a naerob ic

a t mosphere i s r equ ired .

U ndoub ted ly s o me a re t he p roduc t o f a cc iden ta l f ires

b u t t he f o l low ing h ypothes is s eeks t o o f fer a p os i t ive a l terna t ive t o a cc iden t . Tha t h ouses w ere t ha tched i n t he I ron Age i s a t tes ted b y t he c lass ica l wr i ters a nd o ne p resumes t ha t s traw among o ther ma ter ia ls was u sed f or t h is p urpose . Wh i le i ti s r ead i ly r ecogn ised t ha t r iver weed ( Phragmi tes ) , h ea ther ( Ca l luna v u lgar is ) a nd e ven b racken ( P ter id iu m a qu i l inu m ) c ou ld we l l h ave b een u sed , t he l as t b eing a p o ten t ia l e xp lana t ion o f b racken s pores i den t if ied o n c a lcareous s i tes , s traw u ndoubted ly was a r ead i ly a va i lable ma ter ia l p roduc t o f t he

22

P la te 2 .I At yp ica l s hea th o f emmer whea t s traw .

S HElF 1 5.

T r.

N umber o f C omplete

s traws

d icoccum

1 833

s pikes

W heat)

S heaf.gross w eight

6 02

S end y ield

9 7

S PECIES

S EED N UMBERS

A chilles m illefolium I nagnllis

9 00

s rvensis

7 3

j , entaurna c yanus J nenopodium

1

a lbum

3 0

9

ou

C irsium v ulgare

6 0

C onvolvulus a rvensis

4 0

C repis

3 .6 k g.

1 4

R nchis e nds

' A EL :D

( Emmer

s pp.

1 330

F raxinus e xcelsior L eontodon

a utumnalis

2

.

O dontites v erna

5 5 , 2 60

P apaver

r hoeas

2 2

S inapis

a rvensis

1 2 ,

S isymbrium o fficinale

9 11

S onchus

4 03

a rvensis

S tellaria m edia

1 05

V eronica p ersica

3 0

v .

7 5

F ig . 2 .6

c hamaedrys

Q uant i t ive a na lysis f or r e manen t s eeds i n r ando m ly s e lec ted s heaf o f em mer w hea t s traw .

3 5

a gr icu l tura l p rocess .

The p repara t ion o f s traw f or t ha tch ing r equ ires o ne

mos t c r i t ica l o pera t ion , i t must b e c leaned o f a l l o ther ma ter ia ls i nc lud ing i t s own l eaves , a ny p i thy p lan t s te ms , a l l s eeds a nd e spec ia l ly c erea l s eeds . The r easons a re s tra igh tforward .

P i thy ma ter ia l r o ts a nd b y s o d o ing w ou ld

d ecrease t he b u lk a nd c ause t he t i es t o l oosen .

A ny s eed ma ter ia l a t trac ts

t he a t ten t ion o f r oden ts who i nt urn may w el l e a t t he b und le t i es i n o rder t o r each t he f ood s upp l ies.

Trad i t iona l ly s traw c lean ing a nd t he p repara t ion o f

b und les o r y ea l ms wh ich f or m t he t ha tch r equ ire t he we t t ing d own o f t he s traw t o f ac i l i ta te t he d raw ing o f t he s traw s ta lks .

The p ossib le i mp l ica t ions o f t he

p rocess f or t he d ispos i t ion o f p os tho les i s d iscussed e lsewhere ( Reyno lds 1 979 ). The e nd p roduc t o f t h is c lean ing p rocess i s ap ike o f d amp was te ma ter ia l c o mpr is ing a rable w eeds , s te ms a nd s eeds a nd was te c erea l h eads .

I ti sb u t

a sma l l s tep t o h ypothes ise t he d isposa l o f t h is d amp r ubbish w i th a s low b urn ing b onf ire .

S uch ab onf ire i nev i tab ly h as w i th in i ta n a naerob ic a t mosphere wh ich

w i l l a l low c arbon isa t ion t o t ake p lace. The t wo f ac tors wh ich f orm t he o b jec t ive

o f t h is a spec t o f c erea l i nves t i-

g a t ion a re , i n e f fec t , t he r esu l t o f t wo d is t inc t a pproaches , e ach o ne r e ly ing u pon t he d ocumen tary a nd a rchaeo log ica l e v idence a va i lable t o u s .

The f i rs t

i s t he p ure h arvest , t he d irec t r esu l t o f a c tua l ly g row ing t he p reh is tor ic t ype c erea ls i n C el t ic s ized f i elds a nd p rocess ing t he m a ccord ing ly.

The s econd ,

t he c o m mon ly f ound a dm ix ture o f c arbon ised s eeds i s q ues t ioned a s b eing n onr epresen ta t ive o f ah arves t a nd a n a l terna t ive h ypo thes is i s r a ised .

I ft he f irs t ,

t he p ure h arvest , i s av a l id h ypo thes is t hen t he s econd c annot b e r epresen ta t ive o f t ha t h arves t . Throughou t i t mus t b e emphas ised t ha t o ne i s d ea l ing w i th p oss ibi l i t ies a nd a t b es t p robabi l i t ies a nd i tw ou ld b e f oo l ish t o d eny o ther h ypot heses p rov ided t ha t t hey c an b e s i mi lar ly v a l ida ted .

I n e f fec t b o th t he a bove

h ypo theses a re i n as ense o f fshoo ts o f t he ma in r esearch p urpose , t ha t b e ing t o e s tab l ish p robab le p arame ters o fy ie ld f or t he p reh is tor ic c erea l t ypes g iven d i f feren t s o i l t ypes , t rea tmen ts a nd b io-c l i ma t ic z ones.

These r esu l ts w i l l

b e p ub l ished i n d ue c ourse a s i ndeed w i l l t he f u l l s ta t is t ica l r ecords f rom wh ich e xamp les h ave b een d rawn a bove . The t h ird e le men t o f t h is p aper r efers t o as er ies o f e xper i men ts c arr ied o u t a t t he A nc ien t Farm o n b eha lf o f Mr . C . P ar tr idge o f H er tford a nd f unded b y t he Rober t K i ln Trust ( Reyno lds a nd Lang ley 1 980 ).

The p urpose was t o

r econs truc t a nd s ubsequen t ly t es t t he f unc t ion o f as truc ture i n i t ia l ly i den t i f ied a s ac orn d r ier .

The p ro jec t was i nsp ired b y i t s d iscovery a t F oxho les F ar m ,

H er tford when t he f ounda t ions w ere f ound t o b e v ir tua l ly i n tac t a nd s tand ing t o ah e igh t o f a pprox ima te ly a me tre .

I ndeed t h is s ubs truc ture was i n s uch a g ood

s ta te o f p reserva t ion i th as b een r e moved i n i t s e n t ire ty t o H er tford Museum f or c onserva t ion a nd d isp lay ( Par tr idge 1 976 ).

T he a rea p lan a nd e leva t ion o f

t he s truc ture F igure 2 :7 s hows q u i te c lear ly why i th as b een p laced w i th in t he o vera l l c a tegory o f b u i ld ings i n terpre ted a s c orn d r iers . i n terpre ta t ion i s n o t e n t irely w i thou t i n teres t .

The e volu t ion o f t h is

D espi te a w ide d ivergence i n

f l ue d es ign t he ir d eter mina t ion a s c orn d r iers was i n i t i ta ted i n t he e ar ly p ar t o f t h is c entury ( Cocks 1 921 ).

Fur ther c onf ir ma t ion was p rov ided b y G oodch i ld

( 1 943 ) when h e s urveyed T -shaped c orn d rying o vens i n Roman Br i ta in .

T he

i n terpre ta t ion was i nsp ired b y t he r egu lar d iscovery o f c arbon ised s eeds f ro m f l ue a nd s toke h o le a reas o f s uch s truc tures a nd a f ew o bl ique c lassica l r efe rences ( P l iny , V irg i l ).

The i n terpre ta t ion g a thered s o much s uppor t t ha t

3 6

t he ' c orn d rying o ven ' i s p robably t he mos t e as i ly i den t if iab le a gr icu l tura l s truc ture f ound i n R o man Br i ta in ( Morr is 1 980 ).

The mot ive b eh ind t he

r econs truc t ion was , i n as ense , n ot s o much t o s ee whe ther t he s truc ture worked b u t r a ther h ow e f f ic ien t ly a nd e cono m ica l ly i td r ied t he g ra in .

Wh i le

t h is p ar t icu lar s truc ture i s u nusua l i n i t s b as ic d es ign , i n o rder t o b a lance t he r esearch p rogram me a s econd s truc ture was b u i l t b ased d irec t ly u pon a n e xamp le o f t he t rad i t iona l T-shaped f lue ( Figure 2 :8 ).

A l though t he ma in

i n terpre ta t ion h as b een b ased u pon t he d iscovery o f c arbon ised g ra in i n s toke h o les a nd f lue s ys te ms , i ti s n ot n ecessar i ly w ise t o a ss ign f unc t ion f ro m t h is t ype o f ma ter ia l a lone . I th as b een s ugges ted , f or e xamp le , t ha t f ires w ere a nd r egu lar ly a re s tar ted b y u s ing s traw a nd i n v iew o f t he p rev ious d iscuss ion i ti s n ot i mposs ib le t o s ee a r eady s ource o f c arbon ised s eeds o f b o th c erea ls a nd w eeds . The d e ta i led r epor t o f t he c ons truc t ion o f t he F oxho les d r ier a nd i t s s ubsequen t t es t ing h as a lready b een p ub l ished ( Reyno lds a nd Lang ley 1 980 ). The c o mp le ted s truc ture ( P la te 2 :I I ) was u sed t o t es t t he h ypo thes is t ha t i t i s n ecessary t o c on ta in t o ta l ly w i th in a s truc ture t he h ea ted a ir emana t ing f ro m t he f l ue s ys tem t o d ry g ra in .

The c onc lus ions d rawn f ro m t he e x tended

s er ies o f t ests , o ne e xamp le o f wh ich i s g iven i n Tab le 1e f fec t ive ly i nva l ida tes t he h ypothes is .

The ma jor b lock t o t he s truc ture f unc t ion ing i n t he s uggested

manner i s t he i mpermeabi l i ty o f t he f l oor .

There i s a bundan t e v idence o f s o l id

f l oors b eing u sed r ang ing f ro m t he s tone s lab f l oor o f t he A twor th Ro man V i l la c orn d r ier ( Shaw- Me l lor a nd G oodch i ld 1 942 ) t o t he p lank i mpress ions o bserved o n t he c ha lk s lurry f ro m t he F oxho les Farm e xcava t ion ( C . Par tr idge , P ers . c om m .).

S uch f l oors a re , i n f ac t , v ery p oor c onduc tors o f h ea t a nd r a ther

t han a l low ing h o t a ir t o r ise t hrough t he g ra in , t hey s imp ly warm t he l owes t l eve ls a nd c ause mo is ture e xchange f ro m o ne l eve l t o a no ther .

The n a ture

o f t he f l oor p reven ts a s ign if ican t i ncrease i n t e mpera ture a nd e ven were i t p oss ib le t he g ra in w ou ld i n t urn b e d amaged a nd s po i led b y o verhea t ing . A s econd s er ies o f t es ts h as b een c arr ied o u t i n 1 980 b y Mr . P . McCrone o f G lasgow U n iversi ty u t i l is ing t he s econd T -shape

c orn d r ier b u i l t a t t he f arm.

I n c on tras t t o t he F oxho les Far m s truc ture t here was n o e v idence o f f l oor ing o r b u i ld ing ma ter ia l f ro m t he e xcava t ion wh ich y ie lded t he f l ue s ys te m a t Bar ton C our t Farm ( D. M i les , p ers . c omm .).

C onsequen t ly a r ec tangu lar

o ak p lank f l oor was c ons truc ted 4 .00 x 3 .00 m wh ich c overed t he b ar a nd s hank o f t he ' T '.

A ir f l ow t r ia ls s howed h ow t he h ot a ir t rave l led a long t he f lue a nd

b ifurca ted t o t he t wo e x i t p o in ts a t t he e x tre mi t ies o f t he ' T '.

The e dges o f

t he f l oors were s ea led t o t he g round s ur face e xcep t f or t wo e x i t p o in ts o n e i ther s ide o f t he s toke h o le .

Therefore , t he h o t a ir w ou ld b e d rawn b ack u nder t he

f l oor h ea t ing i t s who le a rea .

Therea f ter , t r ia ls w ere c arr ied o u t t o e xp lore

t he v ar iab les o f s upers truc ture d es ign i n c ase f ree p assage o f a ir o ver t he g ra in wou ld e nhance t he d rying p rocess .

I n i t ia l ly a s imp le o pen-framed b u i l-

d ing was c ons truc ted b ased u pon s i l l b eams. h o le e v idence f ro m t he e xcava t ion .

There was n o c onv inc ing p os t-

The r oo f was t ha tched w i th h ea ther a nd

r idged w i th t urves. E x tens ive t r ia ls were c arr ied o u t w i th t h is o pen-s ided r oofed s truc ture i n av ar ie ty o f wea ther c ond i t ions . A l l p roduced s i mi lar r esu l ts , Tab le 2 .

I n h ot d ry wea ther g ra in was s pread o n to a p lank i n t he e

o pen a ir a s ad irec t c on tro l .

The c on tro l p red ic tably d r ied q u i te b eau t ifu l ly.

T he t r ia l r esu l ted a s b efore .

A s econd v ar iable was t he u se o f h urd les t o

p rov ide a p ermeable wa l l s truc ture .

Th is p roduced s i mi lar r esu l ts . 3 7

P la te 2 .I T he r econs truc ted F oxho les F arm C orn Dr ier .

2m s ca les .

3

F L INTS

CHALK

B LOCKS

CRUSHED

H EAV ILY

S ECTION

F ig .

2 .7

MATR IX

BURNT

N-

L ow WALLS AND R ENDERED

CHALK I C LAY

2m

CHAMBER F LOOR N UN C HALK S LURRY

Area p lan a nd e leva t ion o f t he a rchaeo log ica l e v idence f or F oxho le F ar m C orn Dr ier ( a f ter C . P ar tr idge ) .

CD

CD

c \ I cq r I

00 CO

0

CD

I -0

0

L ID

C>

ci I C D

CO

00

GO L f)

•

0 C

C 00

• 00

C> CD i f ) • • N L IZ

L IZ

C> •

•

0 C

00

CD

•

C> • *

00

00

L . C )

L f)

i f )

0

0

0

0

L C )

L IZ ( = > • •

C ' C 5 ) r I

CO

00

•

•

N e

L CZ

C \ 1

00

1 .0

c )

C

C r > T 1

CI

t r J

L C Z

00

e

C r > 1 1

00

O ' D 4 4

L C

1 .0

• • • • • • • X , a> GO N. et L CZ r I C> 00 00 L CZ L CD e C \ 1

r I

r i

c YD

t --

CD 0 L f ) c) t rz c) • . • . • • . * GO 00 L . r ) c e ) 00 c c , GO t- L r) L CZ s e t c s )

0

0

L ID 0 0 • •

C>

b . . e r i

C0 00

C \ 1 t-

C \ I

0

0

c) o • . • e CO 1)

.

e O C ) r I

c ‘D

• CD ri

00 t --

C>

e

•

e

•

e

0

t-

I ZZ e

•

. *

e

• c ' D

•

7 14

m t,

•

CV CV

• CV CV

C Y D

N

, c )

t r , CV 0.3

. *

ce

L IZ

N

e

CfD C : 7 3

L iZ

1 -0 N

co rz

00

0

0

b l d i h f t l i t i t 2 a s e n e r c r e n o r u m o r w s n o p s o ,

N

, a

0

i f )

C \ 1 LZ

C

. N

e e D o r t . . C 0 o 4 0 D 0 ) ' - e 1 4 . ) C l 1 C C r \ I -

.

•

r

C

.

1i n f l ue a bove s toke

c )c ) o o

0 • . . • • • • c \ I o i f ) CO cm 00 00 00 t' z t I e a )

I C D 0. CD 0 L cZ • • • • • M c9 M c N i CD L r J 7 11 CZ r) CO

LC

e

•

C> •

rz

C \ 1

C 'e

e

C> •

••

C `J

0

r I

•

0

L C ) • * 00 N

i f )

c d c \ I

e

t rz

c i )

d eno tes s tok ing t imes .

C> CD Le t r J 0 • • • • c r ) co 00 0 L c) c e ) CZ C Y)

z

Mo is ture C on ten t Table :

• C

C


L f) • • •

2

•

C D C \ I

r I

0

• c s1 L f)

2

Cr > e

Mois ture C on ten t

T e mpera ture i n d egrees C en t igrade a t 3 0 m inu te i n terva ls ( f ro m l e f t t o r igh t )

C> •

•

7 t, C .0 C C N I

s ca le

F ig . 2 .8

i n me tres

Area p lan a nd e leva t ion o f t he a rchaeo log ica l e v idence f or B ar ton C our t F arm C orn Dr ier ( af ter D . Mi les ) .

41

TABLE 2

Thermocoup le

Te mpera ture i n d egrees C en t igrade

No. 1

a t 3 0 minu te i n terva ls ( f ro m l e f t t o r igh t ) 1 90.0

1 72.0

1 72.5

1 52.5

1 47.0

1 69.0

1 74.0 8 6.0

2

9 0.5

7 7.0

7 9.0

7 8 ,0

' 7 3.0

7 9.0

3

8 8 .0

7 1.0

7 8.0

7 7.0

7 7.0

7 8.0

8 2.0

4

7 6.0

7 6.0

7 8.0

7 7.0

7 8.0

7 7.0

7 6.0

5

6 1 .0

7 3.5

7 4.0

7 4.5

7 4.5

7 2.0

7 4.0

6

7 1 .0

9 8.0

9 7.0

9 7.5

9 7.5

9 6.0

9 4.5

7

9 6.0

9 7.5

9 8.0

9 8.0

7 4.5

8 2.5

8 9.0

Mois ture C on ten t

P ercen tage , a t 3 0 minu te i n terva ls

S amp le

( f ro m l e f t t o r igh t )

1

2 0.9

1 9.0

1 8.0

1 5 .5

1 5.2

1 2.5

1 0.0

2

2 0 .9

1 9.0

1 8.0

1 5.5

1 2.5

1 2.0

9 .5

3

2 0.9

1 9.0

1 8.0

1 5.5

1 3.5

1 2.5

1 0 .5

Te mpera ture Tab le :

Ther mocoup le p osi t ions :

1i n f lue a bove s toke

h ole , 2 , 3 , 4a nd 5 s et a n t ic lockw ise 0 .30 m f ro m c orners o n f l oor s ur face , 6c en tre f l oor s urface , 7f lue e x i t . Mois ture C onten t Table :

S a mp le n u mbers c orre la te i n o rder w i th

f l oor p os it ions 2 , 3a nd 4 . * d enotes s tok ing t imes.

4 2

Un less t he g ra in i s a pread s o t h in ly o n t he f loor a s t o b e u necono m ic o f t ime a nd e f for t , t he mechan ics o f t hese s truc tures w i th t he ir s o l id f l oors a re s uch t ha t t hey c anno t b e c ons idered t o b e e f fec t ive f or t he p urpose a ss igned t o t he m. Ra ther t han p ropose a n ega t ive , a n a l terna t ive h ypo thes is f or t hese s truc tures was r a ised a nd e xp lored .

The a na lysis o f c arbon ised b ar ley s eeds

r ecovered f ro m t he T -shaped ' corn d r ier ' a t Bar ton C our t Farm , A b ingdon , Ox ford s howed t ha t t hey h ad a c tua l ly s prou ted ( M . J ones , p ers . c om m .). S t i mu la ted b y t h is e v idence a nd f ur ther e ncouraged b y t he h ea t ing p a t terns e xper ienced o n t he f l oors o f b o th r econs truc ted s truc tures , t he h ypo thes is s ough t t o e xp lore whe ther b ar ley c ou ld b e s uccessfu l ly ma l ted t here in a nd t ha t t he t erm ' sprou ted ' u sed a bove c ou ld b e s ubs t i tu ted b y t he b rewers t erm ' ch i t ted i.

S uccessfu l t r ia ls were c onduc ted a nd t he r esu l tan t ma l t was a na-

l ysed b y B r ian t & H arman , C onsu l t ing a nd A na lyt ica l C he m is ts o f L ondon . The ma l t was f avourably c o mpared t o t he Amber ma l ts o f 1 935-45 t rad i t iona l ly u sed b y G u inness .

I n b r ief t he ma l t was r egarded a s q u i te s u i tab le i f al i t t le

smoky , f or t he manufac ture o f a n a le a nd mos t i mpor tan t ly , i t s p roduc t ion was r egarded a s q u i te s uccessfu l . I n c onc lus ion t he a bove t r ia ls i nd ica te t ha t t he a dop t ion o f u n tes ted i n terp re ta t ions c an p re jud ice t he e v idence i n s uch a way t ha t a n a no ma ly s uch a s c orn d rying i n t he h is tory o f a gr icu l tura l d evelop men t c an n o t o n ly b e a ccep ted a l mos t w i thou t q ues t ion b u t a lso b e embraced a s ac lear ly u nders tood p henomenon . A n Exper imen ta l Ear thwork The f i na l s ec t ion o f t h is p aper i s ab r ief r eference p r ior t o i n i t ia l p ub l ic a t ion t o p erhaps o ne o f t he mos t f asc ina t ing e le men ts o f t he r esearch p rog ram me f or t he a rchaeolog is t e xcava t ing i n t he f i eld .

I nsp ired b y t he e xper i-

men ta l e ar thworks a t O ver ton a nd Wareha m Down ( Jewe l l a nd D i mb leby 1 968 ) i t was d ec ided t o i ncorpora te a n e xper imen ta l e ar thwork w i th in t he d e mons tra t ion a rea c ons truc ted i n 1 976.

E ssen t ia l ly t h is e ar thwork d i f fers r ad ica l ly f ro m

b o th Over ton a nd Wareham D own e ar thworks i n t ha t i ts eeks t o e xp lore t he s i l t ing p a t tern a nd p lan t r eco lon isa t ion s equence o f a' domes t ic ' e ar thwork . The d ist inc t ion i s d rawn q u i te c lear ly i n t ha t t he e ar l ier e ar thworks a re l i near a nd monu men ta l .

I n t he c ase o f t he Bu tser A nc ien t Farm D e mons tra t ion Area 's

( BAFDA ) e ar thwork t he q ues t ions a re r educed i n s ca le a nd c o mplex i ty a nd c oncen tra te u pon t he a bove t wo e le men ts .

I n e f fec t , a s w i th t he ma jor i ty o f

t he r esearch p rogram mes a t Bu tser , t h is e xper imen t i s ap i lo t s che me . Wh i le t he d a ta a ch ieved f ro m t he O ver ton a nd Wareham e ar thworks a re f undamen ta l ly i mpor tan t t he ir r e levance i s s o mewha t r es tr ic ted b ecause o f t heir i n i t ia l s hape a nd s ca le a nd i ti s e x tre me ly d i f f icu l t t o p ara l le l t he r esu l ts t o d a te w i th t he v as t ma jor i ty o f d i tches a nd b anks wh ich a re t he s ub jec t o f e xcava t ion .

These t end t o b e o f c ons iderably l esser s ca le a nd a re i nvar iably

a ssoc ia ted w i th s e t t le men ts b oth l arge a nd sma l l .

To u nder l ine t he d is t inc t ion

Ir efer t o t hese a s d o mes t ic a nd t he BAFDA e ar thwork i s d es igned t o s i mu la te t he t yp ica l d i tch a nd b ank wh ich were c o m mon ly c ons truc ted a round s uch s e t t lemen ts .

I ndeed , i t s g enera l p lan i s b ased d irec t ly u pon a n e x tan t a l though

u nexcava ted e ar thwork a t Eas t C as t le i n Dorset ( RCH M ).

The s e lec t ion was

d e termined b y t he t opograph ica l n a ture o f t he s i te o f t he d e mons tra t ion a rea 4 3

s ca le d iv is ions .

ö

t om a .

F ig . 2 . 9 Area p lan o f e xper i men ta l d o mes t ic e ar thwork , B utser Anc ien t F arm D e monstra t ion Area .

F ig . 2 .10

P rof i les o f s ec t ions a cross e as tern a rm o f t he e xper imenta l e ar thwork , B utser Anc ien t F arm D e mons tra t ion Area .

( Figure 2 :9 ). I ti s r ec tangu lar i n p lan w i th r ounded c orners . I t s l oca t ion i n t he v a l ley b ot to m a l lows t he n or th-sou th l i ne t o b e i t s l ong a x is. The d i tch was c u t w i th a JCB f i t ted w i th t he sma l les t s tandard t r iangu lar s haped b ucke t a va i lable.

I n p rac t ica l t erms t he b ucke t h ad a work ing c apac i ty o f b e tween

t wo a nd t hree c ubic f ee t .

The e nd p roduc t c o mpr ised a d i tch a verag ing 1 .50

m d eep w i th a f l a t b o t to m s o me 0 .30 m w ide . a cross .

T he d i tch a veraged 1 .50 m

I t was i mposs ible t o s tandard ise t h is s hape a round t he e ar thwork a s

a who le a nd c onsequen t ly p rof i les w ere t aken a t 5m i n terva ls.

Ab erm o f

0 .30 m was l e f t b etween t he i nner e dge o f t he d i tch a nd t he s i mp le d ump b ank . The t ur f c over f ro m t he d i tch s urface was p r imar ly u sed a s ac ore t o t he b ank . T he b ank was n o t c ompac ted b y t he mach ine a t a l l . h and i n o rder t o o b ta in a c ons is tan t p rof i le . s ide o f t he b ank .

A l l s hap ing was d one b y

No r eve t t ing was d one o n t he d i tch

O n t he e nc losure s ide a sma l l r evetmen t o f t urves s ome

0 .30 m h igh was made .

The b ank i t se l f was n o t measured i n d e ta i l , t he p r i-

mary i n teres t b eing f ocussed u pon t he d i tch .

The b erm w id th was c are fu l ly

s tandard ised t hroughou t . Annua l ly t he p rof i les o f t he d i tch a re r ecorded a cross t he o r ig ina l p os i t ions .

T he d i tch i s t o b e s ec t ioned e very f our y ears .

The p lan t r eco lo-

n isa t ion o f t he b ank a nd d i tch s ides was c arefu l ly mon i tored s eason b y s eason . I n t he l a te s um mer o f 1 980 t he f i rs t s ec t ion a cross t he e as tern a rm o f t he d i tch was e xcava ted w i th s urpr is ing r esu l ts .

The p rof i les c an b e s een i n

F igure 2 : 1 0 wh i le t he d e ta i l o f t he s ec t ion a ppears i n P la te 2 :I I I . N o l ess t han 0 .55 m o f b u i ld-up h ad t aken p lace i n t he b ase o f t he d i tch w i th a s er ies o f c lear ly d e f ined l ayers .

A l l t he l ayers c an b e t i ed i n to s pec i f ic t ime/c l ima te

p er iods a nd n one o f t he s ource ma ter ia l i s d er ived f rom t he b ank a t a l l . I ndeed t he d epos i t ion p a t tern o f t he i nd iv idua l l a yers n ot o n ly s ugges ts f a ir ly s tab le p er iods when s i l t ing d id n ot t ake p lace a l low ing a d ark t hu m ic ' l a yer t o d evelop b u t a lso t he a ng le o f r es t s ugges ts t he ma jor s ource o f i n f i l l ing mat er ia l t o c o me f ro m o ne p ar t icu lar s ide.

O rd inar i ly o ne wou ld a ssume t h is

t o b e ma ter ia l d er ived b y s l ippage f rom t he b ank b u t , i n f ac t , i ti s d er ived f ro m t he o ppos i te s ide . The p rocess i nvo lved , o nce o bserved , i s q u i te s tra igh t forward .

P er iods

o f i n tense c o ld , f or e xa mp le , t he mon ths o f J anuary a nd F ebruary i n 1 978 when f or many d ays t he t e mpera ture s tayed b elow 00 C , c ause t he e xposed s ur faces o f t he c ha lk r ock i n t he d i tch t o f rac ture.

T he s ubsequen t a nd i nev i tab le r a in-

f a l l l oosens t he c ha lk f ragmen ts a nd washes t hem i n to t he b ase o f t he d i tch a nd i n s o d o ing u nderm ines t he t ur f a nd r oot-bonded t opsoi l a round b o th t he o u ter a nd i nner p er ime ter o f t he d i tch .

The more i n tense t he c o ld , t he g rea ter

t he f ros t p ene tra t ion a nd f ragmen ta t ion , t he more d eep ly u ndermined t he t ops o i l b eco mes .

I nev i tab ly c o l lapse w i l l t ake p lace a nd a ga in p r i mar i ly f ro m

t he o u ts ide l i p o f t he d i tch b y v ir tue o f t he d is t trbance c aused b y t he n orma l t ra f f ic o f a n ima ls a nd p eop le .

The i nner s ide o f t he d i tch i s more f avoured

i n t erms o f s tabi l i ty n o t l eas t b ecause i ti s l ess s ub jec t t o t ra f f ic b u t p r i mar i ly b ecause t he b er m ,f ro m t he i ncep t ion o f t he e ar thwork , i s ap ro tec ted h ab i ta t f or p lan t g row th .

E ven i n t he f i rs t y ear v erdan t g row th t ook o ver t h is n arrow

s he lf a nd e f fec t ively a c ted a s as o l id b arr ier a nd p reven ted a ny s l ippage f ro m t he b ank i n to t he d i tch a t a l l .

Therea f ter p lan t c o lon isa t ion o f t he b ank f o l lowed

s w if t ly s o t ha t w i th in t hree y ears i tb ecame s tab le , b onded b y t he r oo t a c t ion o f t he h erbage .

De ta i ls o f t he r eco lon isa t ion p a t tern w i l l b e p ubl ished s hor t ly.

4 6

S u f f ic ien t h ere t o r emark t ha t t he p a t terns o f o ccupa t ion a re s ub jec t t o s teady c hange w i th t he f i na l p hase o f g rass c o lon isa t ion n o t y e t a ch ieved a f ter a p er iod o f f our y ears . I n i t ia l a na lys is o f t h is o ne s ec t ion i s s o r e markable t ha t i to f fers c ons iderab le c ause f or c oncern o ver t he i n terpre ta t ion o f d o mes t ic e ar thworks . I t wou ld f ur ther s eem t o u nder l ine t he n eed f or more c o mp lex e xper i men ta l e ar thworks b ased u pon t he f u l l r ange o f s o i l t ypes a nd l oca ted w i th in d if feren t b io-c l i ma t ic z ones .

Ad es ign f or s uch a n e ar thwork h as b een d rawn u p a nd

i ti s h oped t o i mp lemen t a t l eas t o ne i n 1 981 .

I n g enera l t erms i t wou ld s ee m

t ha t t he s ing le mos t s ign if ican t e le men t a f fec t ing a d i tch a nd b ank i s t he wea ther . Therefore , i ti s n ecessary t o c ons ider t he e f fec ts o f w ea ther u pon t he o r ient a t ion o f d i tches , b o th a rchaeo log ica l a nd e xper imen ta l , i n t ha t t he s i l t ing d epos i t ion p a t terns w i l l i nev i tab ly v ary.

The d es ign s e lec ted s eeks t o o ppose

a t r igh t a ng les a l eng th o f d i tch a nd b ank t o e ach o f t he e igh t ma jor p o in ts o f t he c o mpass .

The l eng th o f e ach a rm i s t o b e 2 0 .0 m a nd , i n c on tras t t o t he

p i lo t e ar thwork b r ief ly d escr ibed a bove , w i l l b e d iv ided i n to t wo e qua l l eng ths , o ne w i th ab erm , o ne w i thou t . The r esu l tan t o c tangona l e ar thwork w i l l n ot , t herefore , s imu la te a ny p reh is tor ic e ar thwork i n p lan b u t o n ly i n p rof i le. The o b jec t ives f or s uch a n e xper i men t a re e ssen t ia l ly t wo-fo ld a l though c ons iderab ly more d a ta c an b e g arnered t han h ere d escr ibed .

F irs t t he p lan t

c olon isa t ion o f t he r aw e ar thwork n eeds t o b e mon i tored c arefu l ly a nd t he a nnua l c hanges o f p opu la t ion r ecorded u n t i l s tabi l isa t ion i s a ch ieved .

S econd

t he c hang ing p rof i le o f t he d i tch r equ ires a nnua l r ecord ing w i th e xcava t ion o f s amp le s ec t ions s chedu led o n af our y ear b as is . The i n for ma t ion g a ined f ro m s uch a n e n terpr ise w i l l b e o f t he g rea tes t v a lue t o a rchaeolog is ts work ing i n t he f i e ld i n t ha t i tw i l l p rov ide a s er ies o f s tandards a ga ins t wh ich a rchaeo log ica l d a ta c an b e c o mpared a nd q uan t if ied . F ina l ly b o th t he p i lo t e ar thwork a t BAFDA a nd t he p roposed o c tagona l e ar thworks u nder l ine t he c on tr ibu t ion wh ich emp ir ica l e xper imen t c an make t o a rchaeo log y i n t erms o f o b jec t ive i n terpre ta t ion a t o ne e x tre me , a t t he o ther , more l og ica l a nd c os t e f fec t ive s a mp l ing p rocedures . Ih ave a t te mp ted w i th in t he c onf ines o f t h is p aper t o p resen t b u t f our e le men ts f ro m t he r esearch p rogram mes o f t he Bu tser A nc ien t Far m P ro jec t . Each s eeks t o b r idge t he g ap b e tween p r ime d a ta a cqu is i t ion b y t he e xcava tor i n t he f ield a nd t he w ork o f t he e nv iron men ta l s pec ia l is t whose p o tent ia l c on tr ib u t ion t o t he u nders tand ing o f t he ma ter ia l e v idence h as n o t y e t b een f u l ly r ea l ised o r e ven a pprec ia ted .

I ndeed t hey a lso s erve t o i l lus tra te t he v oid

wh ich e x is ts b e tween t he m a t t he p resen t t ime.

The A nc ien t Farm i s , i n f ac t

av ast o pen a ir r esearch l abora tory wh ich i s d es igned q u i te s pec if ica l ly t o i n tegra te t he e nv iron men ta l e v idence w i th t he a rchaeo log ica l e v idence.

I ti s

o n ly t o b e r egre t ted t ha t i ti s u n ique i n wor ld a rchaeo logy a nd t ha t i th as o n ly b een i n e x is tence f or a mere e igh t y ears .

The f our e le men ts a re c hosen

c arefu l ly i n t ha t e ach p o in ts a d i f feren t a pproach y e t w i th in i t se lf i s a n i n teg ra ted who le .

The f i rst , t he n a ture o f t he was te p roduc t o f a n e xper i men ta l

s equence i s a l l ied t o t he l a tes t a na lys is o f c arbon ised s eed f ro m a n a rchaeolog ica l f ea ture , t he p i t , wh ich i n i t ia l ly i nsp ired t he h ypo thes is t he e xper i men t s ough t t o t es t , n ame ly t ha t c er ta in p i ts were u sed f or t he s torage o f g ra in . The s econd e le men t e xp lores t he c orre la t ion o f p a leobo tan ich l ma ter ia l w i th d ocu men tary r eferences a nd u nder l ines t he d angers o f s imp l is t ic a na lysis . 4 7

The t h ird e xp lores t he r ecrea t ion o f as pec i f ic s truc ture , i t s s ubsequen t t es t ing w i th in t he p arame ters o f n orma l i n terpre ta t ion a nd b r ings i n to q uest i on t he who le p rob le m o f n on-va l ida ted h ypo theses b e ing u ncr i t ica l ly a dop ted i n to t he l i tera ture .

The f our th e le men t i s ad irec t s i mu la t ion o f ap reh is tor ic

f ea ture w h ich embraces a l l t he a spec ts f undamen ta l ly i mpor tan t t o a rchaeolog is t a nd e nv iron men ta l s peca l is t a l ike .

The p re l im inary r esu l ts f ro m t h is

s imu la t ion , wh ich i nvo lves h u man a c t iv i ty t he l eas t a nd r e l ies u pon n a tura l p heno mena t he mos t , e choes t he c onc lus ion d rawn f ro m t he p rev ious t hree e le men ts .

A l l f our e le men ts a re , i n f ac t , a l mos t p er iphera l t o t he ma in

work o f t he A nc ien t Far m a nd a re o f fered b o th a s a n i nd ica t ion o f t he e nv ironmen ta l r esource b eing b u i l t t here a nd a s as a lu tary r em inder o f t he n eed f or f ar g rea ter i n tegra t ion b etween e xcava tor a nd s pec ia l is t . There a re many a reas where emp ir ica l t es t ing w i l l b e q u i te i mposs ib le t o a ch ieve b u t n onet he less i n t hose a reas where s uch t es t ing i s f eas ible t hen e very e f for t s hou ld b e made i nc lud ing t he p rov is ion o f f i nanc ia l r esources t o v a l ida te h ypo theses . U n t i l i n tegra t ion o f p urpose a nd p ersonne l i s a ch ieved a nd u n t i l v a l ida t ion o f t hose h ypo theses wh ich c an b e t es ted a re t he n orm , t hen a rchaeo logy a s a d isc ip l ine w i l l c on t inue t o b e s ub jec t t o t he t rends i mposed b y f ash ionab le t heore t ic ians . A cknow ledge men t Iam i ndebted t o Dr . E . S la ter o f G lasgow U n ivers i ty f or r ead ing a nd c om men t ing u pon t he manuscr ip t o f t h is p aper . B ib l iography B owen , H . C . a nd Wood , P . D . ( 1968 ).

Exper i men ta l S torage o f C orn

U nderground a nd i t s I mp l ica t ions f or I ron Age S e t t lemen ts. I ns t i tu te o f Archaeo logy Bu l le t in 7 1 -14. C ocks , A . H . ( 1921 ). B ucks.

AR o mano-Br i t ish H o mes tead i n t he Hamb ledon V a l ley ,

A rchaeo log ica l J ourna l 7 1

F orsyth , A . A . ( 1 954 ).

Br i t ish P oisonous P lan ts .

Agr icu l ture , F isher ies a nd F ood . G oodch i ld , R . ( 1 943 ).

1 41-98 . Bu l le t in 1 61 M in is try o f

L ondon :

"P-shaped C orn-Drying O vens i n R o man Br i ta in .

A n t iquar ies J ourna l 2 3

1 48 .

J ewe l l , P . A . a nd D i mb leby , G . W. ( 1 968 ).

The Exper imen ta l Ear thwork

o n Over ton Down , W i l tsh ire , E ng land :

t he f irst f our y ears .

P roceed ings o f t he P reh is tor ic S oc ie ty 3 2 Morr is , P . ( 1979 ).

HMSO

3 13-42.

Agr icu l tura l Bu i ld ings i n R o man Br i ta in .

BAR 7 0

O x ford . Par tr idge , C . ( 1976 ). 7 6.2

L if t ing a R o man C orn-Drying O ven .

Museu ms J ourna l

6 9-70 .

P i t t-R ivers , A . L . F . ( 1887 ). Excava t ions o n C ranbourne C hase . P r iva te p ub l ica t ion . P l iny.

L ondon :

Na tura l H is tory 1 8 .18 .97.

R enfrew , J . M . ( 1973 ).

Pa laeoe thnobo tany.

4 8

L ondon :

Me thuen & C o. L td .

Reynolds , P . J . ( 1967).

Exper i men t i n I ron Age Agr icu l ture.

Transac t ions

o f t he Bri t ish & G louces tersh ire Archaeology S oc ie ty 8 6 Reynolds , P . J . ( 1969 ).

Exper i men t i n I ron Age Agr icu lture .

6 0-73 .

I b id. 8 8

2 9-33. Reynolds , P . J . ( 1979 ).

I ron Age Farm:

The Bu tser Exper i men t .

L ondon :

Br it ish Museu m Pub l ica t ions. Reynolds , P . J . a nd Lang ley , J . K . ( 1980 ). O ven :

A n Exper imen t .

Ro mano-Br i t ish C orn-Drying

Archaeo log ica l J ourna l 1 36

S haw r Me l lor , A . a nd G oodch i ld , R . G . ( 1942 ). W i l tshire Archaeo log ica l Magazine 4 9 Tac i tus. V irg i l.

2 7-42.

A twor th R o man V i l la . 4 6-95.

G er man ia 1 6.4. G eorg ics 1 .267.

Wheeler , R . E . M. ( 1943 ). Repor t X I I. Wh ite , R . S . ( 1970 ).

Ma iden Cas t le , Dorse t .

London :

Research C omm i t tee

S oc iety o f A n t iquar ies.

Agr icu l tura l Imp le men ts o f t he Ro man Wor ld .

R ou t ledge & Kegan Pau l .

4 9

Ox ford :

THE ENV IRON MENTAL S ETTING

3 .

CL I MATE FROM 1 000 BC TO 1 000 AD H uber t H . Lamb

I n troduc t ion C l ima te i s f or e ver c hang ing . The d if ferences wh ich we k now f rom o ne y ear t o a no ther , a nd wh ich w e s ense f ro m o ne d ecade t o t he n ex t , a re p ar t o f a who le " spec tru m" o f v ar ia t ions wh ich i nc lude s ign i f ican t d if ferences f ro m c en tury t o c en tury a nd f ro m m i l lenn ium a nd mi l lenn ium .

J us t t en mi l lenn ia

t ake u s b ack t o t he e nd o f t he l as t i ce a ge , a nd f ro m a round 8 000 t o 4 000 y ears a go t he c l ima tes o f t he wor ld w ere mos t ly warmer t han n ow , i n wha t we n ow s ee a s t he warmes t p os tg lac ia l t imes . I t i s a lready more t han a h undred y ears s ince t he Norweg ian p a laeob o tan is t Axe l B lyt t ( 1876 ) f irs t d e tec ted t he ma in o u t l ine o f t he p os tg lac ia l s equence o f c l i ma t ic r eg i mes i n Europe i n t erms o f t he ir t e mpera ture c haract er is t ics .

S ince t ha t t ime , a nd e spec ia l ly i n t he l as t t h ir ty y ears , many n ew

l i nes o f e v idence f ro m b oth p hys ica l a nd b io log ica l s c ience a nd n ew t echn iques o f a na lysis h ave p rov ided c on f irma t ion o f t he s equence a nd a dded many k inds o f d e ta i l , i nc lud ing much more c er ta in ty a nd p rec is ion i n t he d a t ing o f t he e v idence b o th b y r ad io me tr ic methods ( e .g . r ad iocarbon ) a nd s uch t echn iques a s t ree-r ing c hrono log ies a nd t he c oun t ing o f y earlayers ( varves ) i n l ake-beds a nd i ce-sheets . Aw ide-rang ing a ccoun t o f t he mu l t i far ious t ypes o f e v idence a nd a na lys is t echn iques h as b een g iven b y Lamb ( 1977 ). Most r ecen t ly i mport an t a dd i t ions t o o ur k now ledge h ave c o me f ro m mapp ing t he s uccess ive s tages o f p ostg lac ia l v egeta t ion h is tory a nd o f t he c l i ma te i t sel f ( Bi rks e t a l . 1 975 ; Bernabo a nd Webb 1 977 ;

Wig ley 1 977 ).

Ma jor e f for ts h ave a lso b een p u t

i n to t he c o l lec t ion a nd me teoro log ica l a na lys is o f d ocumen tary r ecords o f more t han a t housand y ears o f p as t c l ima te a nd t he e ar l ies t a nd l onges t s er ies o f me teoro log ica l i ns tru men t o bserva t ions o f t he l as t 2 00 t o 3 00 y ears ( e .g . Man ley 1 974 ;

Lamb 1 977;

I ngram e t a l . 1 978 ;

Lamb e t a l ., 1 979 ).

Never-

t he less , o f c ourse , many d e ta i ls mus t e scape o ur a bi l i ty t o r econs truc t t he p ast . C l i ma te i n t he Bronze Age A s c an b e s een f ro m F ig . 3 :1 , b o th Eng land a nd C h ina o n o pposi te s ides o f t he n or thern h em isphere were e n joying a warmer c l i ma te t han n ow u n t i l a bou t 1 000 BC , a l though t here a re s o me s ugges t ions o f u ns tead iness a f ter 2 000 BC a nd g rea ter f l uc tua t ions f ro m c en tury t o c en tury t han i n mos t o f t he p reced ing f our mi l lenn ia .

I ti s t hough t t ha t t hese f luc tua t ions w ere more

p ronounced i n t erms o f r a infa l l t han o f t e mpera ture , s o me c en tur ies b eing v ery d ry a nd o thers q u i te we t .

I t was p robab ly l arge ly d ue t o t hese f luc tua t ions

t ha t , j udg ing f ro m t he r ad iocarbon d a t ing o f t ree-s tumps i n t he p ea t , t he f ores t h ad r eceded f ro m t he e xposed p laces n ear t he A t lan t ic c oas ts o f S co t land a nd f ro m t he f ormer u pper t ree l i ne a t n ear ly 8 00 m o n t he h e igh ts i n S co t land ,

5 3

L () 0

0

c \ I

0 I 1

A

% % • I' # I '

I I i •

0 c o

1 I * Ii t Ie' Ii#

L e )

it

c \ J

5 4

Wa les a nd n or thern E ng land a round 2 000 BC o r e ven a l i t t le e ar l ier ( see P ears 1 972 ).

B u t s oi l d e ter iora t ion a nd p ea t g row th h ad b egun i n many p laces i n t he

we t ter c l ima tes o f s t i l l e ar l ier t imes , o f ten b efore 3 000 BC :

t he s pread o f t h is

t endency i n t he we t ter c en tur ies a nd t he g razing o f n eol i th ic man 's a n i ma ls ( Moore a nd C ha ter , 1 969 ) were a lso mak ing c ond i t ions l ess f avourable f or t rees o n t he h eigh ts . Far ther s ou th , i n C ornwa l l , Wa les a nd I re land i n t he Bronze Age , a ccord ing t o G odw in ( 1 975 ) , f ores t s t i l l e x tended r igh t t o t he A t lan t ic s hores a nd t o g rea ter h e igh ts o n t he h i l ls t han a ny p resen t wood lands . The e x tens ion o f t he f ores ts t o t he A t lan t ic e dge a nd t he mega l i th ic monu men ts t ha t were a pparen t ly u sed a s o bserva tor ies f ro m S tonehenge , t hrough Wa les , t o L ew is a nd t he O rkney I s lands , mus t b e h e ld t o i nd ica te t wo o ther c harac ter is t ics o f t he warmer c l i ma te p hases o ccurr ing we l l a f ter 2 000 BC , n ame ly g enera l ly l i gh ter w inds a nd f reedo m f ro m s torms , a nd c learer s k ies t han n owadays .

B o th t hese a spec ts a re me teoro log ica l ly p robab le ( see

L amb 1 974 ) a nd i nd ica te a g rea ter f requency o f a n t icyc lones i n t hese l a t i tudes t han n ow .

These c ond i t ions a re a lso d oub t less r e la ted t o t he e v idence o f a

g ood d ea l o f s ea far ing a nd c u l tura l c on tac ts v ia t he I r ish S ea , H ebr idean wa ters a nd t he n or thern i s les a s f ar a s Norway , Den mark a nd t he Ba l t ic . C l ima te i n t he e ar ly I ron Age Around 1 000 BC o ne more warm a nd d ry c l i ma t ic p er iod , l as t ing a c en tury o r t wo , s eems t o h ave o ccurred ;

b u t s oon a f terwards a s harp d ec l ine o f t he

p reva i l ing t e mpera ture l eve l a nd i ncreased s torm iness s ee ms t o h ave s e t i n . A par t f ro m b r ief p er iods —in E ng land t he d a tes were a round 2 50-400 AD a nd 1 100-1300 AD —the t e mpera ture l eve ls o f 1 000 BC a nd e ar l ier h ave n ever b een a pproached s ince .

F ig . 3 :1 s hows t ha t t he t iming o f t he f luc tua t ions i n E ng land

a nd C h ina o ver t he l as t t hree mi l lenn ia h as b een q u i te d i f feren t .

The t iming

i n E ng land i s k nown t o b e r epresen ta t ive f or Europe n or th a nd wes t o f t he A lps a nd a s f ar a s I celand a nd t he n earer s ec tor o f t he Arc t ic .

The amp l itude o f

t he t e mpera ture f luc tua t ions h as b een g rea ter i n I ce land a nd t he Arc t ic a s f ar a s S pi tsbergen t han i n E ng land .

Even i n n or thern S co t land , ow ing t o t he a d-

v ance a nd r e trea t o f t he p o lar wa ter o n t he o cean s ur face ( Lamb 1 979 ) , t he c hanges o f p reva i l ing t e mpera ture h ave p robably b een t w ice a s g rea t a s i n E ng land .

The s harpened t her ma l g rad ien t b e tween l a t i tudes 5 0 a nd 6 50 N

i n t he c o lder t imes p robab ly mean t t ha t i n t hose t imes s ome o f t he w inds tor ms d eveloped t o ag rea ter i n tens i ty t han a ny e xper ienced i n modern t imes . The e s t ima ted f a l l o f n ear ly 2 ° Ci n o ver-a l l mean t e mpera ture i n Eng land , I re land , Wa les a nd s ou thern S co t land b e tween a bou t 1 000 a nd 7 50 BC , p res umably s hor tened t he ‚ g row ing s eason b y more t han f i ve weeks . S tud ies o f Tregaron Bog i n wes t Wa les ( Turner 1 965 ) i nd ica te a t t he f i rs t c l i max o f c o ld c l ima te b etween a bou t 7 50 a nd 4 00 BC , when t he p ea t was g row ing a t t he r a te o f 1 cm/4 y ears , a s c o mpared w i th t he a verage r a te f or o ther t imes o f 1 cm/20 y ears , a n e x traord inary a nd u n ma tched we tness o f t he c l i ma te i n t ha t p ar t o f t he c oun try.

B y c on tras t , i n t he e as t— in t he Eas t R id ing o f York-

s h ire ( Holderness a nd L inco lnsh ire )— the e v idence i s r a ther f or a d ry c l i ma te a t t ha t t ime .

I t s ee ms t herefore t ha t t here mus t a lso h ave b een a n e x traord i-

n ar i ly g rea t p redo m inance o f wes ter ly w inds a t t ha t t ime , u nequa l led i n a ny

5 5

o ther p er iod w e k now a bou t .

I ts ee ms r easonab le a lso t o s uppose t ha t t hese

w inds o f ten p roduced g rea t s torms ;

i t was o ne o f t he t wo ma in p er iods ( t he

o ther o ne was b e tween a bou t AD 1 300 a nd 1 800 ) i n wh ich c oas ta l c hanges a round t hese i s lands w ere wrough t b y b low ing s and . Dur ing t he we t tes t p er iod , o r p er iods , i n t he wes t d ur ing t he l as t mi ll enn iu m b efore C hr is t wooden t rackways were l a id t o ma in ta in ways a cross t he S o merse t l evels a nd a cross f ens a nd marsh lands i n s ome o ther p ar ts o f t he c oun try.

Presumab ly t he we tness o f t he l andscape c on t inued t o i ncrease

f or s evera l c en tur ies , a s b y 3 50 BC o r t hereabou ts s o me o f t hese t rackways h ad b een a bandoned i n f avour o f t he u se o f b oa ts . Around 2 50 BC c ond i t ions w ere s t i l l we t e nough i n t he w es t f or t he l ake v i l lages t o b e b u i l t a t G las tonbury a nd Meare . ( There w ere s ha l low l akes o r meres t here a ga in i n a no ther c o ld c l ima te p er iod i n t he 1 6th c en tury AD , wh ich h ave n ow d isappeared ). 4

I n n or thern E ng land , i n t he P enn ines , t he h ighleve l p laces e ven u p t o t he s um m i t p la teau , u p t o n ear ly 8 00 m , wh ich h ad b een o ccup ied w i th f or ts a nd s e t t le men ts a round 2 000 BC — l ike t he Bronze Age t i l lage u p t o o ver 4 00 m a bove s ea l eve l o n Dar t moor—were a bandoned b y , o r d ur ing , t he l as t mi l lenn ium BC .

I n t h is l as t mi l lenn ium t he g lac iers i n t he A lps were a dvanc ing

f ro m t he ir min imu m s tands a t t he e nd o f t he warmes t p os tg lac ia l t imes a nd i n s o me c ases r eached a dvanced p osi t ions q u i te n ear t hose o f a round 1 800 AD , wh i le i n S cand inav ia t he F i mbu lv in ter l egend ( wr i t ten d own b y S norr i S tur lason n ear ly 2 000 y ears l a ter ) p robably e nshr ines a f o lk- me mory o f t he s hock o f t he i ncreased s ever i ty a nd s now iness o f t he w in ter c l ima te i n n or thern Europe , where g rea t g lac ier a dvances a re n ow k nown t o h ave t aken p lace . A lso i n t he A lps d ur ing Ha l ls ta t t t imes t he u pper l im i t o f t he f ores ts s ank b y s evera l h undred me tres ( up t o 6 00 m i n t he c ase o f t he s pruce ) , a nd t he f or mer ly t hr iv ing g o ld min ing i n t he H ohe Tauern c eased a s t he mine e n trances b eca me i ncreasing ly i naccess ib le. c ame t o a n e nd ( Garns 1 937).

Mos t t ra f f ic i n a nd a cross t he moun ta ins

Around t he midd le o f t he mi l lenn iu m t he l eve ls

o f t he l akes a round t he f oo t o f t he moun ta ins r ose a nd t he l ake v i l lages t here were f i na l ly a bandoned ( Brooks 1 949 ). C l i ma te d ur ing R o man t imes A f ter a bou t 1 50 BC t he c l ima te o f Europe was b ecom ing mi lder a ga in . A nc ien t Ro man wr i ters r ecord t he e f fec ts ( Lamb 1 977: 4 a nd 4 20 ) i n t er ms o f c hanges i n t he s ou thern l im i t o f t he b eech t ree a nd t he n or thern l imi ts o f c u lt ure o f t he v ine a nd o l ive a s we l l a s i n t he i ncreas ing r ar i ty o f r epor t ing o f s evere w in ters a nd f rozen r ivers.

Never the less , o ne l as t t re mendous b ou t

o f s tor m iness i n t he Nor th S ea a bou t 1 20 t o 1 14 BC , w i th f l ood ing o f t he c oas tl ands a bou t t he G erman B igh t a nd a p ermanen t e as tward s h if t o f t he c oast o f D en mark ( Ju t land ) , wh ich s et t he C e l t ic a nd Teu ton ic p eop les migra t ing ( t he K y mbr ian F lood ) , was r epor ted b y P ytheas . The c l i ma te c on t inued t o b eco me g radua l ly mi lder , d r ier a nd l ess s tormy , u n t i l b y t he t ime o f t he Ro man c onques t o f Eng land i n t he i s t c en tury AD i t was p robab ly v ery s i mi lar t o o ur own d ay ;

a nd f ro m a bou t 1 06 AD , when t he D anube

was b r idged a t t he I ron G a tes u nder t he Emperor Tra jan , t here s ee ms t o h ave b een a v ery l ong r un o f i m mun i ty f ro m w in ters s evere e nough t o p roduce i ce t ha t c ou ld b reak t he many p iers o f t he b r idge .

A f ter o ne o r t wo n otewor thy

w in ters ( a t l eas t i n c en tra l Europe ) i n o r a bou t AD 2 50-263 , af a ir ly s teady 5 6

c l ima te , s omewha t warmer a nd d r ier t han n ow , s ee ms t o h ave ma in ta ined i t se lf u n t i l a bou t t he y ear 4 00 . Th is was f o l lowed b y ac o lder t ime w i th g rea t a dvances o f t he A lp ine g lac iers a nd g lac iers i n N orway , c omparable w i th t he p os i t ions r eached at housand y ears e ar l ier a nd r iva l l ing t hose a round t he 1 6th t o 1 9 th c en tur ies AD . J us t h ow s udden t he b reak was n eeds f ur ther i nves t ig a t ion , b u t g lac io log ica l a nd t ree-r ing s tud ies b y R äth l isberger a nd S chneebe l i ( 1976 ) , s uppor ted b y r ad iocarbon d a t ing a nd a rchaeo log ica l f i nds , s ugges t t ha t t here may h ave b een a s udden t urn t o we t ter s um mers a nd c o lder w in ters c lose t o AD 4 00 a nd more o r l ess c oinc id ing w i th t he w i thdrawa l o f t he R o man a rm ies f ro m t err i tor ies n or th a nd w es t o f t he A lps . D esp i te t he e v idence o f more o r l ess c omp le te i m mun i ty f ro m w in ters s evere e nough t o p roduce h eavy i ce o n t he r ivers o f c en tra l Europe- p ar t icu lar ly b e tween AD 1 00 a nd 2 50 a nd b e tween 3 60 a nd 4 00—repor ts h ave s urv ived i n t he l i tera ture o f a bou t ad ozen w in ters i n E ng land b e tween AD 8 0 a nd 3 59 w i th n o tab le f ros ts wh ich s o me t imes f roze t he r ivers a nd o f f our w in ters w i th g rea t s now fa l ls .* Tha t t he p reva i l ing warmth a nd d ryness i n E ng land a nd c en tra l Europe i n t he 3 rd a nd 4 th c en tur ies AD was p robab ly a n a spec t o f aw or ld-w ide p er iod o f warmth i s i nd ica ted b y e v idence o f ah igh s tand o f w or ld s ea l eve l a round AD 4 00 , w i th t he s ea f l ood ing t he E ng l ish F en land a nd a g rea t e s tuary , o r " Dan ish-type" f j ord , r each ing u p t o N orw ich , a s w e l l a s t he d rown ing o f e ar l ier h arbour w orks i n t he Med i terranean . B y c on tras t , t he l and-locked C asp ian S ea s ank t o al ow l eve l , p oss ib ly 4 me tres b e low i t s a verage l eve l i n r ecen t t imes , i mp lying r educed r a in- a nd s now-fa l l a nd s lacken ing o f t he f l ow o f t he V o lga a nd p robably i ncreased e vapora t ion . Drough ts d o n ot f igure much i n t he r epor ts s urv iv ing f ro m t he Br i t ish I s les a nd c en tra l Europe , b u t t he f req uency o f r epor ts o f f l ood ing d ec l ines s harp ly a f ter AD 2 70 . I ts eems l i ke ly t ha t t he c ond i t ion o f r ivers ide l and a nd marshes , a s a t t he e ar ly S axon v i l lage a t Wes t S tow i n S u f folk , i mproved o ver t he 1 30 y ears t ha t f o l lowed a nd b ecame we t ter a ga in i n t he 5 th a nd 6 th c en tur ies , p ar t icu lar ly a f ter a bou t AD 5 80 . C l i ma te h is tory o n i n to t he Dark Ages a nd a f ter F ig . 3 :2 p rov ides a n a t-a-g lance s urvey o f wha t i s k nown o f t he r e la t ive f requenc ies o f d ry o r w e t s um mers , m i ld o r c o ld w in ters , i nt he B r i t ish I s les a nd c en tra l E urope a nd o f f l oods a nd r a in iness i n I ta ly , b y h a lf c en tur ies o ver more t han at housand y ears. Var ia t ions i n t he c omp le teness o f r epor t ing a re a l lowed f or b y p lo t t ing t he r a t ios o f t he f requenc ies o f r epor ts o f d ry a nd w e t s um mers , a nd o f mi ld a nd c o ld w in ters , r a ther t han t he a c tua l n umbers o f r epor ts . E ven s o t he n umbers o f r epor ts a re o f ten t oo l ow t o p rov ide r el iab le r a t ios , a nd i n s o me h a lf-cen tur ies n o e s t ima tes c ou ld b e made . The g enera l r e l iabi l i ty o f t he s equence d ep ic ted i s , h owever , s uppor ted b y t he r a ther c lose p ara l le l is m o f t he c urves f or t he B ri t ish I s les a nd c en tra l Europe . The warm d ry c l ima te o f t he t ime a round AD 4 00 , a nd p erhaps f or 1 50 y ears b e fore t ha t , i si nd ica ted a l ike i n t hese c oun tr ies a nd i n I ta ly , a s i s a lso t he s harp t urn t o-

* Fros ts i n o r a bou t AD 8 0 , 1 34 , 1 53 , 1 73 , 2 20 , 2 30 , 2 51 a nd 2 52 , 2 91 , 3 29 a nd 3 59 . G rea t s now fa l ls i n AD 1 25 , 2 42 , 3 29 a nd 3 41 . 5 7

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wards c older s um mers a nd we t ter c ond i t ions b y t he l a te 5 00s .*

A s f ar a s

Br i ta in a nd I t a ly were c oncerned , t here s ee ms t o h ave b een l i t t le i mprove men t b efore 6 50 t o 7 00. The 7 00s s ee m t o h ave h ad a t ype o f c l i ma te t ha t i s o f ten d escr ibed a s "more c on t inen ta l" , w i th d r ier a nd p robably warmer s um mers a nd c o lder w in ters . p or ts .

O ther f luc tua t ions f o l lowed a nd a re a t tes ted b y more a bundan t r eThe 1 0 th c en tury s hows a no ther " con t inen ta l" p hase , w i th d ry s um mers

a nd c old w in ters , a nd s ees t he b eg inn ing o f t he b u i ld-up t o t he r emarkab le warm th o f t he e ar ly a nd h igh M idd le Ages i n Europe b e tween a bou t AD 9 80 a nd 1 300 , a ccompan ied b y a n i ncreas ing ly mois t c l ima te i n t he Med i terranean . C orrespond ing t o t he d ryness i n c en tra l E urope , t he Caspian S ea was a ga in a t al ow l evel i n t he 8 th c en tury , b u t i tb egan t o r ise b efore t he e nd o f t he 1 0 th c en tury :

c l i ma t ic d eve lop men ts a re n o t a lways i n s tep o ver a s pan

o f s ix ty d egrees o f l ong i tude .

I n Europe d rough ts a nd a g rea t h ea t w ere r e-

p or ted i n many o f t he s u m mers o f t he 1 0 th c en tury , p ar t icu lar ly i n t he 9 80s a nd 9 90s ;

a nd t he mo is ture s tress s ee ms t o b e c on f irmed b y r e markab le s e-

q uences o f n arrow t ree-r ings i n o aks t ha t g rew i n wes tern G er many i n t he e ar ly a nd l a te d ecades o f t ha t c en tury.

Moreover , F le tcher ( 1974 ) r epor ts

g ood a gree men t b etween t he G er man o ak s er ies a nd t he f ew t ree-r ing s er ies s o f ar a va i lab le f or s ou thern Eng land d ur ing t ha t t ime .

A nd b y AD 1 000 wor ld

s ea l eve l s ee ms t o h ave b een o nce more a s h igh a s i th ad b een i n 4 00 , p res umably ow ing t o t he mel t ing o f g lac iers .

F ig . 3 :2 i nd ica tes t he s a me c harac-

t er is t ics o f a" con t inen ta l" c l i ma t ic r eg i me —w i th d ry s um mers ( wh ich a re u sua l ly a lso warm ) a nd c o ld w in ters —in t he 1 0 th c en tury a s i n t he 8 th . Archa eolog ica l f i nd ings i nb o th Norw ich a nd York t end t o s uppor t t h is : t he p os i t ion ing o f t he i ndus tr ia l ( Po t ter (s ) g a te ) a rea o f S axon-Dan ish t imes i n Norw ich t o t he wes t o f t he c i ty p o in ts t o p rov is ion f or a p ol lu t ion p rob le m w i th l i gh t e as ter ly w inds i n t he w in ters , a nd i n York a n a bundance o f ( bone ) s ka tes b e longs t o t he s ame p er iod .

We may p erhaps d educe f requen t c o ld a n t icyc lon ic wea ther i n

t he w in ters , wh i le t he o ther s easons o f t he y ear t ended t o b e war m a nd s unny . The d ryness o f t he c l i ma te o f t he 1 0 th c en tury a lso p o in ts t o f requen t a n t icyc lones i n t he l a t i tude o f Br i ta in , wh ich o n s o me g rounds o f me teoro log ica l t heory i s a l i ke ly a cco mpan imen t o f at ime when g loba l mean t e mpera ture was r a ther h igher t han n ow . N o d er iva t ion o f t he p robab le t e mpera ture o r r a in fa l l v a lues d ur ing t he f irs t mi l lenn ium AD s ee ms s o f ar t o h ave b een worked o u t , b u t a n a ssess men t g o ing b ack t o AD 8 00 ( La mb 1 965 ) s ugges ts t ha t t he t e mpera tures i n E ng land * There a re many r e ferences , e .g . i n H enn ig ( 1904 ) , t o ar emarkab le r un o f w e t s um mers a nd a u tu mns c harac ter ised b y h eavy r a ins a nd f l ood ing i n France , Sw i tzer land a nd n or thern I ta ly , a nd a f ew ( desp i te l ess r epor t ing ) i n E ng land , t he s ou thern N ether lands a nd G er many b e tween AD 5 75 a nd 5 90 —e .g . 5 75 i n E ng land 5 75 o r 5 76 i n c en tra l E urope , 5 79 i n Br i ta in a nd t he Rhone v a l ley ; 5 80 i n France , Sw i tzer land a nd I ta ly ; t ra l Europe g enera l ly;

5 83 i n France , Sw i tzer land a nd c en-

5 85 , 5 87 a nd 5 90 s im i lar ly a nd i n I ta ly a s w e l l ;

5 86 e xcep t iona l r a ins i n I ta ly ;

a nd 5 90 i s a lso d escr ibed a s av ery w e t y ear

i n E ng land : a l toge ther 8 o r 9y ears o u t o f 1 6 , t hough t here a re o n ly r epor ts f or t hree o f t he m i n Eng land .

6 0

a veraged o ver t he p er iod b e tween 8 00 a nd 1 000 were p robab ly 0 .5 t o 0 .7° C l ower t han b e tween 1 200 a nd 1 300 .

A c hange a l mos t t w ice a s g rea t a s t ha t

migh t b e s ugges ted b y t he 2 00- me tre r ise o f t he u pper l im i t o f c u l t iva t ion a nd h u man s e t t le men t i n s ou thern Norway o ver t he s ame p er iod ( Ho l msen 1 961 ). Ad i f ference o f t ha t o rder b e tween t he c hange i n c en tra l E ng land i n 5 2-53° N a nd s ou thern N orway i n l a t i tude 6 0-62° N may , h owever , b e r ea l a nd was a pparen t ly r epea ted i n t he t ime o f g enera l c ool ing o f w or ld c l ima te i n t he l a te M idd le Ages b etween a bou t AD 1 300 a nd 1 700. We f i nd a lso a v ery r ough c on f irma t ion o f t he s ugges ted s equence o f c hanges d ur ing t he f i rs t mi l lenn ium , i fc o mpar isons b e made w i th s equences o f o xygen i so tope measure men ts i n t ree r ings n ear t he u pper t reel ine i n C a l iforn ia a nd i n t he G reen land i ce s hee t .*

A l though t he d e ta i ls a nd t im ing

a re man ifes t ly d if feren t i n t hose w ide ly s epara ted r eg ions f ro m wha t we d isc ern i n E ng land , a l l t hree a gree i n i nd ica t ing a warm p er iod r ound a bou t AD 3 00 o r 4 00 f o l lowed b y as harp t e mpera ture min i mum , wh ich i n G reen land o ccurs a s e ar ly a s 4 00-450 a nd i n C a l i forn ia a round 5 00 .

I n b oth t hese r eg ions ,

h owever , t he r ecovery o f warm th t o t he e ar ly M idd le Ages s ee ms t o h ave s e t i n s o me c en tur ies e ar l ier t han i n Europe . A c o mpar ison o f t he c harac ter o f t he c l i ma t ic s equence f ro m a p o in t s o c lose t o Eas t Ang l ia a nd o ther p ar ts o f e as tern E ng land a s t o b e a f fec ted b y n ear ly a l l t he s ame w ea ther s ys te ms i s o f fered b y t he s tud ies o f c oas t c hanges c arr ied o u t i n t he N e ther lands ( Je lgers ma e t a l . 1 970 ). T owards t he e nd o f t he warmes t p os tg lac ia l t imes , s o me f our t o f i ve t housand y ears a go , t he mel t ing o f g lac iers a nd o f t he f ormer g rea t i ce-shee ts a nd c onsequen t r ise o f w or ld s ea l eve l h ad e x tended t he N or th S ea t o ac oas t l ine a bou t 1 0 km f ar ther e as t t han t he p resen t c oas t o f t he N e ther lands .

I n t he s torm ier a nd c o lder c l i ma t ic

p hases wh ich c ame a t t imes d ur ing t he l as t t wo mi l lenn ia BC s and d unes b egan t o f orm , a nd i n t he c a l mer i n terva ls v ege ta t ion b egan t o b e e s tab l ished o n t he d unes .

O ne s uch c a lmer p er iod c o inc ided more o r l ess w i th R o man t imes a nd

a nother w i th t he e ar ly med ieva l warm th b e tween a bou t AD 9 00 a nd 1 100 . S tor ms a nd t he f orma t ion o f n ew s and d unes s ee m t o h ave b een i ncreas ing ly a c t ive t owards AD 7 00 a nd a ga in b e tween 8 00 a nd 9 00. S torm iness s e t t ing i n a t at ime when s ea l eve l was p ar t icu lar ly h igh a f ter s o me c en tur ies o f a n i nc reas ing ly warm r eg i me o bv ious ly t ends t o b reach a ny o lder d unes wh ich h ave f or a t ime p rotec ted a l owlying c oas t .

S o i t was a t t he e nd o f t he r ela t ive ly

c a l m med ieva l p er iod t ha t g rea t f l oods i n 1 251 , 1 287 a nd 1 421** f ormed t he Z uyder Z ee , wh ich h as o n ly b een d ra ined i n o ur own t imes .

S i mi lar ly , t he

G oodw in S ands i n t he E ng l ish C hanne l were f i rs t f or med i n s torms i n o r a bou t AD 4 00 a nd 4 19 , wh ich s ub merged p ar t o f af or mer i s land , t he p rocess b eing c o mp le ted b y f ur ther s torms i n t he M idd le Ages . The mos t v a luable f ur ther l i gh t o n t he s equence i n Europe i s t ha t s hed b y s tud ies o f t he g lac iers a nd r e la ted ma t ters i n t he A lp ine r eg ion .

A s tudy

Accord ing t o r esu l ts k ind ly made a va i lab le b y Dr . I rv ing F r ied man o f t he U n i ted S ta tes G eo log ica l S urvey a nd Dr . W. Dansgaard o f t he U n ivers i ty o f C openhagen . **

The s ame s tor ms a lso p roduced s ea f l oods i n Eas t A ng l ia .

6 1

0 " 3

1 ( 7 — C . )

C L )

L U

0

L t Z

" f

M

0

C I )

4. 4

. 2a )

L U

c d

( A f ter R o th l isberger 1 976 ) .

1 : 3

CU

L U

4U D :

6 2

( De l ibr ias e t a l ., 1 975 ) , b ased o n many r ad iocarbon d a t ings o f t rees p ushed o ver b y a dvanc ing g lac iers i n t he n e ighbourhood o f G r inde lwa ld i n c en tra l Sw itzer land , a nd l a ter e v idence o f r enewed s pread o f t he f ores t u p t he v a l ley when t he g lac iers r e trea ted a ga in , i nd ica tes t ha t t here was a g lac ia l a dvance b e tween AD 4 00 a nd 7 50 f o l low ing a l ong p er iod o f r e trea t f ro m 3 00 BC .

I n

t he Va l d e Bagnes , i n s ou th-wes t Sw i tzer land , s urvey a nd r ad iocarbon d a t ing o f o ld mora ines ( Schneebe l i

1 976 ) i nd ica tes t ha t t he G lac ier d e Brenay a d-

v anced f ro m i t s s ource o n t he e as tern s ide o f t he ma in v a l ley r igh t a cross t he c ourse o f t he r iver i n t he v a l ley b ot to m t o ap os i t ion i n AD 6 70 ( ± 8 5 y ears ) , c lose t o t he p os i t ion o f t he g lac ier s nou t i n 1 820 , i t s f ar thes t f orward p os i t ion i n r ecen t c en tur ies .

A s i n t he p er iod 1 820 t o 1 850 t he s nou t o f a no ther g lac ier ,

a dvanc ing f rom t he o ther s ide o f t he s ame v a l ley ,reached a p os i t ion b e tween AD 4 30 ( ± 6 0 y ears ) a nd 7 90 ( ±65 y ears ) w i th in 1 00 t o 3 00 me tres o f t he G lac ier d e Brenay , a lmos t c los ing o f f t he u pper p ar t o f t he v a l ley. The c loser d a t ing p rov ided b y at ree-r ing r ecord f ro m AD 2 00 t o 4 50 ( Rä th l isberger

1 976 ) , i n p ar t icu lar l arches i n t he u pper marg in o f t he f ores t

n ear Z erma t t where t he v ar ia t ions o f r ing-w id th a nd d ens i ty o f t he l a tewood f or med t owards t he e nd o f t he s eason may b e p resumed c h ief ly d ue t o v ar iat i ons o f s um mer warm th , s hows ( Fig . 3 :3 ) t he f luc tua t ing b u i ld-up t o p er iods o f warm th i na nd a round t he 4 th c en tury a nd a s harp d ec l ine s e t t ing i n i n AD 4 14 , p receded b y i n i t ia l s hocks b e tween 4 00 a nd 4 11 . a rchaeo logy a nd l egend ( R e ith l isberger

There a re h ints i n

l oc .c i t .) o f av ery i n teres t ing p a t tern

o f t he i mpac t o f t h is c l ima t ic c hange , wh ich c o inc ided w i th t he w i thdrawa l o f t he R , man a rmies f ro m Br i ta in ( and b y l a ter i n t he s ame c en tury f ro m a l l n or thwes tern a nd c en tra l Europe ).

I th as b een p oss ib le t o t race a nc ien t ways

l ead ing a cross t he A lps , a nd b e tween v a l ley a nd v a l ley o n t he Sw iss s ide , e ar l ier t han t he k nown med ieva l r ou tes a nd s t i l l k nown l oca l ly i n p ar ts b y t he La t in n ame V ia A n t igua :

a t o ne p oin t as tone b r idge o f R o man a rch i tec tura l

s tyle f e l l o n ly i n r ecen t y ears .

La t in i nscr ip t ions h ave b een f ound , a s we l l

a s t he r e ma ins o f p resumed R o man g uard p os ts , a long t h is r ou te wh ich l eads t o t he h igh C o ld 'Herens o ver i n to I ta ly.

I t s ee ms c lear t ha t t he r ou te was

i n terrup ted b y a dvanc ing g lac iers b efore t he M idd le Ages , p oss ibly s oon a f ter AD 4 00 .

Al oca l l egend o f ak ing whose k ingdo m was o verwhe lmed b y i ce i s

t en ta t ive ly i n terpre ted a s r eferr ing t o t he e xper ience o f t he l oca l c o m mander o f o ne o f t he R o man g uard p os ts . Acknow ledge men t The a ccoun t h ere g iven owes much t o t he H is tor ica l Wea ther Mapp ing P ro jec t i n t he C l ima t ic R esearch U n i t , U n ivers i ty o f Eas t A ng l ia , N orw ich , g enerously f unded b y t he R ockefe l ler F ounda t ion , N ew York . B ibl iography B ernabo , J . C . & Tho mpson Webb ( 1977 ).

C hang ing p a t terns i n t he H o locene

p o l len r ecord o f n or theastern Nor th Amer ica : Qua ternary Research 8 (1 )

6 4-96.

B irks , H . J . B ., D eacon , J . &P eg lar , S . ( 1975 ). Br i t ish I s les 5 000 y ears a go . o f L ondon , B 1 89

8 7-105 .

6 3

amapped s u m mary.

S ea t t le. P o l len maps f or t he

Proceed ings o f t he Roya l S oc ie ty

B lyt t , A . ( 1876 ).

E ssay o n t he Im m igra t ion o f t he Norweg ian F lora .

C hr is t ian ia . Brooks , C . E . P . ( 1949 ).

C l i ma te t hrough t he a ges .

L ondon :

Ernes t B enn ,

S econd Ed i t ion . D e l ibr ias , G ., Ladur ie , M. & Ladur ie , E . L . ( 1 975 ). G r indelwa ld : n ouve l les d a ta t ions . s oc ie ts , c iv i l isa t ions 1 1 37-147. F letcher , J . M . ( 1974 ). I n :

A nnua l r ings i n modern a nd med ieva l t imes .

The B r i t ish Oak ,

Farr ingdon , Berks : Br i t ish I s les

L e f or & f oss i l d e

A nn a les : e cono mies , Par is : A r mand C o l in .

( eds . M . G . Morr is a nd F . H . P err ing ) E . W . C lassey f or B otan ica l S oc ie ty o f t he

8 0-87.

G a rns , H . ( 1937 ). Aus d er G esch ich te d er A lpenwä lder . Z ei tschri f t d es D eu tschen u nd Ö s terre ich ischen A lpenvere ins 6 8 1 57-170 . S tu t tgar t . G odw in , J . ( 1 975 ).

H is tory o f t he Br i t ish f l ora .

C ambr idge U n ivers i ty P ress .

S econd E d i t ion . H enn ig , R . ( 1904 ). Ka ta log b e merkenswer ter W i t terungsereign isse v on d en ä l tes ten Z e i ten b is z um J ahre 1 800. A bhand lungen d es Kg l . Preuss . Met . I ns t ., Bd . I , N o. 4 . H o l msen , A . ( 1961 ).

N orges h istor ie .

O s lo :

B er l in . U n ivers i te ts f or lage t .

I ngram , M . J ., U nderh i l l , D . J . & Wig ley , T . M. L . ( 1978 ). Na ture 2 76

3 29-334.

L ondon .

H is tor ica l c l i ma to logy .

( See r e la ted L a mb e t a l . 1 979 ).

J e lgers ma , S ., De J ong , J ., Z agw in , W. H . &v an R eg teren A l tena , J . F . ( 1 970 ). The c oas ta l d unes o f t he wes tern Ne ther lands : g eo logy , v egeta t iona l h istory a nd a rchaeo log y. Meddedel ingen , R i jks G eo log ische D iens t ( n ieuwe s er ie ) , No . 2 1 . L a mb , H . H . ( 1965 ).

Maas tr ich t .

The e ar ly med ieva l warm e poch a nd i t s s eque l .

Pa leogeography , Pa laeoc l i ma to lo e , Pa laeoeco logy 1 1 3-37. Amsterdam : L a mb , H . H . ( 1974 ).

E lsev ier .

C l i ma te , v ege ta t ion a nd f ores t l im i ts i n e ar ly c iv i l ised

t imes .

Ph i losoph ica l Transac t ions o f t he R oya l S oc ie ty o f L ondon ,

A

1 95-230 .

2 76

L a mb , H . H . ( 1977 ).

C l i ma te :

P resen t , Pas t a nd Fu ture .

C l i ma t ic h is tory a nd t he f u ture . Lamb , H . H . ( 1979 ).

L ondon :

V o lu me 2 -

Me thuen .

C l ima t ic v ar ia t ion a nd c hanges i n t he w ind a nd o cean

c ircu la t ion :

t he L i t t le I ce Age i n t he n or theas t A t lan t ic .

Qua ternary Research 1 1

1 -20 .

S ea t t le.

L a mb , H . H ., I ngram, M . J ., U nderh i l l , D . J . & Wig ley , T . M. L . ( 1 979 ). H istor ica l c l i ma to logy.

Na ture 2 79

1 69.

Man ley , G . ( 1 974 ). C en tra l E ng land t e mpera tures : mon th ly means 1 659 t o 1 973 . Quar ter ly J ourna l , R oya l Me teoro log ica l S oc ie ty , 1 00 (425 ) 3 89-405 .

L ondon .

6 4

Moore , P . D . & C ha ter , E . H . ( 1969 ).

The c hang ing v egeta t ion o f west-

c en tra l Wa les i n t he l igh t o f h uman h is tory. 5 7

J ourna l o f Ecology

3 61-379.

Pears , N . V . ( 1972 ).

I n terpre ta t ion p roble ms i n t he s tudy o f t reeline

f luc tua t ions .

I n :

Research Papers i n Fores t Meteorology :

A berys twyth S y mpos ium.

( ed . J . A . Taylor ).

a n

Aberys twyth :

Cambr ian News p p . 3 1-45. R ö th l isberger , F . ( 1976).

G letscher u nd K l i maschwankungen im Rau m Z erma t t ,

F er iAc le u nd Arol la .

D ie A lpen 5 2(3-4 )

5 9-150 .

Luzern :

S chweizer A lpen Club. S chneebel i , W. ( 1976 ). d e Bagnes . Turner , J . ( 1965 ).

U ntersuchungen v on G letscherschwankungen im Va l I b id ., 5 2(3-4 )

5 -57.

A c on tr ibu t ion t o t he h is tory o f f ores t c learance.

Proceed ings o f t he Roya l S oc ie ty o f L ondon , B 1 61 (984 ) Wig ley, T . M. L . ( 1977). BC - 1 700 AD. D .C .:

3 43-354 .

G eograph ica l p a t terns o f c l i ma t ic c hange 1 000 F ina l Repor t ( Contrac t No . 7 -35207).

Wash ing ton ,

Na t iona l O cean ic a nd A t mospher ic Ad ministra t ion .

6 5

4 .

THE VEGETATION J ud i th Turner

I n troduc t ion There a re t wo ma jor s ources o f e v idence , o ther t han h is tor ic r ecords , a va i lable f or r econs truc t ing f ormer v ege ta t ion ;

p lan t ma ter ia l t ha t h as b een

f ound o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes a nd p lan t r ema ins t ha t o ccur i n n a tura l d epos i ts . Th is c hap ter i s c oncerned w i th t he l a t ter .

I ti s w ide ly r ecogn ised t ha t p o l len

a na lys is o f p ea t b ogs a nd l ake s ed i ments e spec ia l ly when c o mb ined w i th r ad ioc arbon d a t ing , i s o ne o f t he mos t p ower fu l methods o f s tudying t he v egeta t iona l c hanges o f p reh is tor ic a nd h is tor ic t imes .

P o l len a na lysis h as i t s l im ita t ions ,

h owever , s o me o f w h ich a re p ar t icu lar ly r e levan t t o t he I ron Age a nd A ng loS axon p er iods , a nd i ti s t herefore c ons idered f i rst . The n a ture o f t he e v idence ( a )

P o l len d iagrams Mos t p o l len d iagrams f ro m d epos i ts o f t he l as t t hree t housand y ears

s how r ela t ive p o l len f requenc ies , a nd i nd ica te h ow t he amoun t o f t ree p o l len h as c hanged w i th t ime i n r ela t ion t o t he amoun t o f h erbaceous p o l len .

De-

c reases i n t he amoun t o f t ree p o l len a re u sua l ly i n terpre ted a s mean ing t ha t f ores t was c leared .

I ncreases i n t he p o l len o f g rass a nd o f c er ta in p as ture-

w eed t axa i nd ica te t ha t p astures were c rea ted , a nd i ncreases i n t he p o llen o f c rop a nd a rab le-weed t axa t ha t more l and was b eing c u l t iva ted .

S i mi lar ly

i ncreases i n t he p o l len o f h ea ther , s edges a nd o ther h ea th a nd mire t axa mean t ha t s o me o f t he f ormer f orested a reas w ere g o ing o ver t o h ea th o r b lanke t m ire . I n many p o l len d iagrams f ro m l ow land a reas t he t ree p o l len f requency f l uc tua tes more t han o nce i nd ica t ing t ha t t he f ores t was c leared a nd l a ter a l lowed t o r egenera te , t hen c leared a nd a l lowed t o r egenera te a ga in , s evera l t imes .

Wi th s uch d iagra ms i t i s p oss ible t o u se t he t ree p o l len f requency a s

a n i nd ica tor o f t he r ela t ive amoun ts o f f ores t a nd f ar med l and w i th in t he p o l len c a tch men t a nd t o c o mpare i tw i th k nown s e t t le men t p a t terns . I n o ther d iagrams , h owever , i nc lud ing many f ro m u p land a reas t he t ree p o l len f requency d ecreases e i ther s tead i ly o r s tepw ise f ro m t he N eo l i th ic o nwards a nd t h is i s n orma l ly i n terpre ted a s mean ing t ha t t he t rees were u nable t o r egenera te a f ter c learance , p ar t ly b ecause o f c on t inued g razing p ressure , b u t a lso b ecause t he s o i l was b eco m ing p odzo l ised a nd l ess s u i tab le f or t ree g ro w th .

S uch a reas may h ave b een ma in ta ined a s r ough g razing , i nd ica ted

b y h igh v a lues f or t he g rass f requency , o r h ave g one o ver t o h ea th o r b lanke t b og , a s e v idenced b y h igh h ea ther a nd s edge f requenc ies .

I n t he E ng l ish Lake

D istr ic t , f or e xamp le , o nce t he f ores t h ad b een c leared s o i l e ros ion o ccurred , wash ing t he mor h u mus l ayer i n to t he l akes , a nd t hus a l low ing g rass land , h ea th

6 7

a nd b og t o s pread ( Penn ing ton , 1 978 ).

I t i s n ow w ide ly b e l ieved t ha t much o f

Br i ta in 's moor land f ormed i n t h is way a nd i s t hus l arge ly a n thropogen ic i n o r ig in . C learance p hases o n p o l len d iagra ms c an b e d a ted b y t he r ad iocarbon method , a l though n o t a l l p ubl ished d iagrams c over ing t he l as t t wo a nd a h a l f t housand y ears h ave b een d a ted i n t h is way.

Thus , i n r ecogn is ing p er iods

o f i n tens ive l and u se b y man o n t he ir d iagra ms many a u thors h ave a ssoc ia ted t he m w i th t he I ron Age o r l a ter c u l tures o n t he b as is o f t he l oca l a rchaeo log ica l e v idence .

S uch c orre la t ions a re o f c ourse v a luab le a nd s o me h ave s tood

t he t est o f s ubsequen t r ad iocarbon-da t ing .

Bu t n o t a l l .

I ti s c lear ly p refer-

a b le t o h ave p o l len d iagrams w i th a s ecure r ad iocarbon c hronology , s o t ha t c onc lus ions a bou t t he n a ture o f t he v ege ta t ion , whe ther i t was p rev ious ly f ores t , p as ture , c rop , h ea th o r b lanket b og e tc . a t a ny o ne t ime may b e i ndependen t o f t he l oca l a rchaeo log ica l e v idence . ( b )

The a va i lab i l i ty o f d eposi ts I ti s p erhaps s ta t ing t he o bv ious t o s ay t ha t u se fu l s tud ies c an o n ly b e

made i n a reas w i th p o l len b ear ing d epos i ts.

B u t t h is mus t b e s tressed b e-

c ause t here a re p ar ts o f Br i ta in , f or e xamp le , t he d r ier more c a lcareous s ou th-eas tern l ow lands , where t here a re f ew s uch d epos i ts f or t he p er iod a nd a bou t wh ich t herefore l i t t le c an b e i n ferred f ro m t he p a lyno log ica l e v idence . B y c on tras t a reas s uch a s t he n or th o f E ng land c on ta in n umerous s u i tab le d epos i ts a nd t hus h ave more p o ten t ia l f or s uch s tud ies . ( c )

The s ize o f ad epos i t a nd i t s s ign i f icance S u i table d eposi ts v ary a g ood d ea l i n s ize , a nd f ro m wha t i s k nown a bou t

p o l len t ranspor t i n f ores ted a reas ( Tauber 1 977 ) i t may b e a ssu med t ha t s o me p o l len d iagrams r efer t o v ery sma l l a reas a nd o thers t o l arge o nes.

L akes

o r mires l ess t han a h undred metres i n d ia me ter w i l l y ie ld d iagra ms i nd ica t ing t he l oca l v egeta t iona l h is tory o n ly , i .e . t ha t o f t he f ew h undred me tres a round t he s i te , whereas p o l len d iagrams f ro m t he c en tre o f l akes o r mires o ver a k i lo metre i n d iame ter may b e r ecord ing t he r eg iona l v ege ta t iona l h is tory , wh ich c ou ld b e o f ap o l len c a tch men t u p t o s evera l k i lo me tres a round t he s i te. I ti s v ery i mpor tan t t here fore i n i n terpre t ing a p ar t icu lar d iagra m t o k now t he s ize o f i t s p o l len c a tchmen t .

I t must a lso b e r e me mbered t ha t o ne p o l len

c a tch men t , wha tever i t s s ize , i s o n ly a s amp le o f t he r eg ion a s a who le a nd i ti s o f c ourse b est t o h ave an u mber o f p o l len d iagra ms b e fore d educ ing a r eg ion 's v egeta t iona l h is tory. ( d )

The i dea l d eposi t

The i dea l d epos i t f or t h is p urpose i s a n u nd is turbed p ea t b og wh ich h as b een , a nd p re ferab ly s t i l l i s , g row ing a t ar easonable r a te . P ea t b ogs a re p referred t o l ake s ed i men ts b ecause o f t heir more h igh ly r eso lvab le p o l len s tra t igraphy. The p o l len r a in o f s uccessive y ears a ppears t o p reserve w i th in t he m i n a more e xac t c hrono log ica l s equence t han i td oes a t t he b o t to m o f al ake where t he c urren t 's y ear 's p ol len t ends t o b ecome mixed w i th t ha t o f e ar l ier y ears b y b urrow ing o rgan isms a nd t he r esuspens ion o f s ed i men t . S uch mix ing c an o bscure , i n a way t ha t d oes n o t h appen w i th p ea t , t he e v idence f or s uch s hor t-ter m v ege ta t iona l c hanges a s e p isodes o f f ores t

6 8

c learance.

Tha t t h is i s t he c ase h as b een e legan t ly d e mons tra ted b y H . H .

B irks ( 1972 ) i n h er s tud ies o f t he v ege ta t iona l h is tory o f s ou thern S co t land , f or s he f ound i n t he p o l len s tra t igraphy o f S n ibe B og a s er ies o f sma l l t e mp orary f ores t c learances wh ich were n o t p resen t i n t he c on te mporaneous s ed imen ts o f t he n e ighbour ing l ake , L och Dungeon , o n ly 4 .8 km f ro m i t . I ti s a lso b es t t o u se b ogs t ha t a re s t i l l g row ing . b og s ur faces a re n o l onger i n t he ir n a tura l s ta te .

U n for tuna te ly mos t

They may h ave b een b urn t

r egu lar ly i n a n a t te mp t t o ma in ta in t he v egeta t ion f or r ough g razing o r d e l ib era te ly d ra ined i n l and r ec lama t ion s che mes .

L oca l i nhabi tan ts may h ave

b een c u t t ing p ea t f rom a round t he ir marg ins f or c en tur ies c aus ing n e ighbour ing i n tac t s ur faces t o d ry a nd b eco me more l i able t o e ros ion .

T oo o f ten b ogs h ave

l os t t he p o l len r ecord o f s o me o r e ven a l l o f t he l as t t wo mi l lenn ia .

Even

when t h is h as n ot h appened t here i s s t i l l as er ious r isk t ha t t he s ur face l ayers w i l l h ave b eco me s o d ry t ha t modern p lan t r oots w i l l h ave p ene tra ted r a ther d eep ly a nd r endered t he p ea t u nsu i table f or a ccura te r ad iocarbon d a t ing . may n o t a lways b e a pparen t when e xam in ing t he p ea t .

Th is

S uch was t he c ase a t

P ow H i l l B og , where t he s ur face a ppeared t o b e i n tac t b u t where a r ad iocarbond a ted h or izon f ro m 2 6-28 cm d ep th g ave a modern d a te ( Turner & H odgson , i n p ress ) when t here w ere g ood g rounds f or e xpec t ing o ne o f a bou t 2 000 r ad ioc arbon y ears b .p . ( e )

Da t ing t he v ege ta t iona l c hange 1 . The n a ture o f t he s amp le O n s ome p o l len d iagrams t he s amp le o f p ea t d a ted r epresen ts t he v ege-

t a t iona l c hange q u i te a ccura tely.

S uch i s t he c ase when t he p ea t h as b een

f orming q u ick ly , t he p o l len s amp les t aken a t c lose i n terva ls a nd t he r ad iocarbon s amp le i s t h in .

The f i rs t e x tens ive c learance o f wood land a t Tregaron d a ted

t o 2 354 b .p . +1 10 ( Q-596 ) i s ag ood e xamp le ( Turner 1 964 ). The e s t i ma ted r a te o f p ea t f orma t ion was f as t , 1 cm i n 3 .8 y ears , t he p o l len s amp les were f a ir ly c lose ly s paced a t 2 cm i n terva ls a nd t he r ad iocarbon s amp le was 2 cm t h ick .

Th is mean t t ha t t he s amp le o f p ea t d a ted mus t h ave f or med w i th in a t

t he mos t 1 5 y ears o f t he a c tua l c learance a nd t hus r epresen ts i tr easonably a ccura te ly. O n o ther d iagrams , h owever , s uch a ccuracy i s n ot p oss ib le , a s f or e xamp le w i th t he r evers ion t o w ood land a t S teward S h ie ld Meadow d a ted t o 8 40 + 1 00 b .p . ( Gak-3032 ) ( Rober ts , Turner & Ward 1 973 ). The e s t ima ted r a te o f p ea t f orma t ion was v ery s low , 1 cm i n 1 50 y ears , t he p o l len s amp les a t 2 cm i n terva ls a nd t he r ad iocarbon s amp le was 1 cm t h ick . I n t h is p ar t ic u lar c ase t he d a ted s l ice c ou ld h ave f or med u p t o 2 25 y ears a f ter t he r egene ra t ion h ad a c tua l ly o ccurred .

The p oss ibi l i ty o f s uch e rrors s hou ld n o t b e

o ver looked . 2 . The a ccuracy o f t he r ad iocarbon e s t i ma te A l l r ad iocarbon d a tes a re p ubl ished i n t he j ourna l , Rad iocarbon , w i th as tandard e rror b ased o n t he v ar ia t ion i n t he r a te o f em iss ion o f ß -part icles. Th is s ta t is t ic , i .e . ±x y ears , c orresponds t o t he 6 8% l eve l o fp robab i li ty . The d a te i s b ased o n t he L ibby h a l fl ife f or t he r ad iocarbon i so tope o f 5 568 , r a ther t han t he p resen t b es t e s t i ma te o f 5 730 .

I t i s r eco m mended t ha t d a tes

b ased o n t he L ibby h a l f-l i fe s hou ld b e mu l t ip l ied b y 1 .03 t o a ccord w i th t he 6 9

n ew e st ima te .

Da tes a re a lso u nca l ibra ted .

D iscrepanc ies b e tween t he

r ad iocarbon a nd d endro-chrono log ies a re n o t l arge f or t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod b u t may amoun t t o c en tur ies r a ther t han d ecades d ur ing t he e ar ly I ron Age.

There a re v ar ious t ab les a va i lab le f or c a l ibra t ing d a tes ( see Sw i tsur ,

1 973 a nd Wa tk ins ( Ed .) , 1 975 f or f ur ther d e ta i ls ).

Rad iocarbon d a tes s hou ld

b e i n terpre ted w i th c are b ear ing t hese f ac ts i n mind . The v egeta t ion ( a )

A t t he b eg inn ing o f t he I ron Age The v egeta t ion a t t he b eg inn ing o f t he I ron Age was q u i te d i f feren t f ro m

t oday 's a nd more c lose ly r ese mbled t ha t o f t he m id-Flandr ian o r l a te Mesol i th ic .

I n af ew p ar t icu lar ly f avourab le a reas p ermanen t f i e lds f or p as ture

a nd a rable c rops h ad l ong b een e s tab l ished , a s f or e xa mp le o n t he c ha lk lands o f t he s ou th-eas t a nd o n s o me o f t he n or thern l imes tones a nd c oas ta l a reas . A lso o n many o f t he p oor ly d ra ined u p land s o i ls b lanke t mire h ad a lready r ep laced t he o r ig ina l t rees. wood land s t i l l p ers isted .

H owever , e lsewhere n a tura l o r s em i-na tura l

Th is w ood land was a t e mpera ture mixed o ak f ores t

o ver mos t o f E ng land , Wa les a nd s ou thern S co t land , a l though a s t oday t here were b irch a nd h aze l woods i n t he n or th a nd n or th-wes t a nd p ine w oods i n t he n or th-eas t o f S co t land . F or a s much a s t wo t housand y ears n eo l i th ic a nd Bronze Age p eop les h ad p rac t ised a f orm o f s h if t ing a gr icu l ture w i th in t he m b u t t he amoun t o f c leared l and a t a ny o ne t ime a ppears t o h ave b een c o mparat ive ly sma l l a nd i n mos t l ow land a reas t he f ores t r egu lar ly r e-es tabl ished i t sel f .

The b iolog ica l e v idence f or t h is h as b een r ev iewed r ecen t ly i n S i m mons

a nd T oo ley ( i n p ress ) a nd w i l l n ot t here fore b e d e ta i led h ere . ( b )

Dur ing t he I ron Age a nd R o man p er iod Th is was a t ime o f r ap id c hange a nd b y t he e nd o f t he R o man o ccupa t ion

f ores t may wel l h ave b een a l mos t a s s carce i n s o me p ar ts o f Br i ta in a s i ti s t oday.

Much o f t he p a lynolog ica l e v idence f or t h is h as a lready b een r ev iewed

( Turner , i n p ress ) a nd t he c onc lus ions o n ly a re s um mar ised h ere .

Th is p ro-

c ess o f more e x tens ive f ores t c learance b egan p oss ib ly a s e ar ly a s t he 5 th c en tury b c i n t he s ou th a nd o ccurred p rogress ive ly l a ter i n t he n or th .

F or

e xamp le i n t he mid-Penn ines i th as b een d a ted t o t he 4 th c en tury b c , i n n or the as t Eng land t o a s l a te a s t he i s t c en tury a d a nd i n t he n or th-wes t E ng land a nd t he c en tra l l ow lands o f S co t land t o t he l a te 5 th c entury a d .

I n g enera l

t er ms t h is i ncreased amoun t o f f ores t c learance d ur ing t he I ron Age c an r ead i ly b e u nders tood i n t er ms o f t he g rea ter e f f ic iency o f i ron t oo ls f or f e l l ing t rees a nd f arming , a l though d e ta i led c orre la t ions w i th p reh is tor ic c u l tures a re b es t made a t t he l oca l l eve l .

There a re o f c ourse e xcep t ions t o t h is g enera l p ic-

t ure o f i n tens ive f ores t c learance d ur ing t he I ron Age a nd R o mano-Br i t ish p er iods .

I n a dd i tion t o t he a reas o f u p land h ea th a nd b og a lready men t ioned

t here were a lso s o me l ow land a reas t ha t a ppear t o h ave r e ta ined t he ir woodl and n a ture .

O ne s uch i s p ar t o f E pp ing f orest wh ich h as b een s hown b y

Baker e t a l ., ( 1978 ) t o h ave b een wooded t hroughou t t h is a nd t he s ucceed ing Ang lo-Saxon p er iod .

A no ther i s N easham F en i n s ou th-eas t c oun ty Durham

where t here a ppears t o h ave b een a l i t t le c learance b e tween 2 850 ± 6 0 b p ( SRR9 8 ) a nd 2 488 ± 7 5 b p ( SRR-100 ) b ut n o ma jor c learance u nt i l S axon t imes , 1 213 ± 6 0 b p ( SRR-96 ) .

7 0

( c )

Dur ing t he Ang lo-Saxon P er iod B y c on tras t w i th t he I ron Age , t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod a ppears o n

b a lance t o h ave b een o ne w i th a l ower i n tens i ty o f h uman p ressure o n t he l and . The ma jor i ty o f p o l len d iagrams i nd ica te a r egenera ted f ores t a nd a l ower p ropor t ion o f a rable a nd p as ture l and , b e ing ma in ta ined f or s evera l c en tur ies , s o me times u n t i l t he V ik ing i nvas ions o r l a ter .

S o me s how n o c hange a nd o n ly

av ery sma l l p ropor t ion i nd ica te a h igher l evel o f a c t iv i ty t han i n t he I ron Age . Th is v ar ie ty i s w e l l i l lus tra ted b y t he p o l len d iagrams f ro m t he n or the as t o f Eng land where t he f o l low ing d iagrams s how a d ecreased l eve l o f a c t iv i ty.

I n t ha t f rom F e l lend Moss , n ear Hadr ian 's Wa l l ( Dav ies a nd Turner ,

1 979 ) , a f ter i t s l ow I ron Age l eve ls t he t ree p o l len f requency b eg ins t o r ise a t al eve l d a ted t o 1 330 + 4 0 b p ( SRR-875 ) a nd i td oes n o t f a l l a ga in u n t i l j us t b e low a l evel d a ted t o 9 45 ± 4 0 b p ( SRR-874 ). S im i lar ly a t S teng Moss i n Nor thu mber land i tr ises a t al eve l d a ted t o 1 490 ± 60 b p ( Q-1519 ) a nd r e ma ins h igh u n t i l al eve l d a ted t o 1 085 ±3 5 b p ( SRR-1041 ).

A lso a t Ha l lowe l l Moss

n ear Durham C i ty ( Dona ldson a nd Turner 1 977 ) i tb eg ins t o r ise a t al eve l d a ted t o 1 355 ±5 0 b p ( SRR-413 ) a l though a t t h is s i te i td oes n o t f a l l a ga in u n t i l much n earer t he p resen t d ay. There i s a lso e v idence f ro m F en B og i n t he Nor th York Moors f or f ores t r egenera t ion a t al eve l r ad iocarbon-da ted t o 1 530

+ 130 a d ( T-1086 ) ( A therden 1 976 ).

Two d iagrams f ro m t he Nor th-Eas t s how t he f arm ing a c t iv i ty o f t he I ron Age c on t inu ing i n t he ir c a tch men t a reas t hroughou t A ng lo-Saxon t imes , t he t ree p o l len n o t r is ing u n t i l l a ter . A t Thorpe Bu l mer i n s ou th-eas t Durham ( Bar t ley e t a l . 1 976 ) i td oes n o t r ise u n t i l al evel d a ted t o 8 52 + 60 b p ( SRR4 05 ) a nd a t S teward S h ie ld Meadow i n Wearda le ( Rober ts e t a l . 1 973 ) n ot u n t i l 8 40 + 100 b p ( GaK-3032 ). A t o n ly o ne o f t he s i tes s o f ar s tud ied i n t he N or th-East d oes a ny n ew f ores t c learance a c tua l ly o ccur d ur ing t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod a nd t ha t i s t he s i te o f Neasham Fen a lready men t ioned ( Bar t ley e t a l . 1 976 ).

A t t h is s i te

t here a ppears t o h ave b een s o me c learance i n t he l a te B ronze Age , b u t t he f irst ma jor c learance , e qu iva len t t o t ha t o f t he I ron Age e lsewhere i n t he r eg ion , h as b een d a ted t o 1 213 ± 6 0 b p ( SRR-96 ).

•

Ag enera l ly l ower l eve l o f l and u se d ur ing Ang lo-Saxon t imes i s s i mil ar ly i nd ica ted i n o ther r eg ions .

F or e xamp le a d iagram f ro m Bo l ton Fe l l

Moss ( Barber i n p ress ) i n C umber land s hows t he t ree p o l len f requency r is ing s tead i ly f ro m a l eve l d a ted t o 1 860 ± 60 b p ( Hv-3085 ) t o al eve l d a ted t o 1 170 ± 50 b p ( Hv-3084 ) t he w ooded p hase l as t ing u n t i l 9 20 ± 70 b p ( Hv-3082 ) ( Barber i n p ress ).

P enn ing ton 's d iagrams f ro m n umerous t arns i n t he n or th a nd e as t

o f t he Lake D istr ic t s how i ncreased f ores t c learance d ur ing t he I ron Age a nd al a ter e p isode o f c learance , wh ich h as b een d a ted a t B le lha m Tarn t o b etween 9 10 ± 5 0 b p ( SRR-255 ) a nd 9 30 ± 50 b p ( SRR-254 ) ( Penn ing ton e t a l . 1 977 ). There was n o c learance d ur ing Ang lo-Saxon t imes . A t R ishwor th i n W. Yorksh ire t he f ores t b egan t o r egenera te a f ter ac learance wh ich h ad r eached i t s max i mu m a t 1 920 ± 8 0 b p ( GaK-2825 ) , a nd c on t inued t o d o s o t hroughout t he Ang lo-Saxon p er iod .

Fro m Derbysh ire t here i s e v idence a t F ea therbed

Moss ( Ta l l is a nd Sw i tsur 1 973 ) t ha t f ores t r egenera t ion h ad o ccurred b y 1 400 ± 50 b p ( Q-852 ) a nd t ha t r enewed c lear ing d id n o t b eg in u n t i l 1 023 ± 50 b p ( Q-851 ). 7 1

There i s s imi lar e v idence f rom A yrsh ire i n s ou thern S cot land where a t B loak Moss t he t ree p o l len f requency r ises a t al eve l d a ted t o 1 370 ± 105 b p ( Q-724 ) a nd r e ma ins h igh f or s o me c ons iderab le t ime ( Turner 1 965 ).

A t

L och P i tyou l ish i n t he Eas tern H igh lands ( O 'Su l l ivan 1 976 ) ap o l len z one i n terp re ted a s o ne r epresen t ing f ores t r egenera t ion t erm ina tes a t 1 014 ± 5 5 b p ( SRR-586 ) wh ich a lmos t c er ta in ly means i ti nc ludes t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod . F ro m T he C ha ins , Exmoor , t here i s ar ad iocarbon-da ted l eve l s how ing i ncreased t ree p o l len f requenc ies a t 1 500 ± 6 0 b p ( U G-816 ) ( Merryf ie ld a nd Moore 1 974 ). A s f or t he n or th-eas t o f E ng land a f ew d iagrams f ro m e lsewhere i n B r i ta in s how n o t ree r egenera t ion i n A ng lo-Saxon t imes .

F or e xamp le a t

Tregaron B og W . Wa les ( Turner 1 964 ) t he h igh g rass p ol len f requenc ies wh ich b egan d ur ing t he I ron Age a ppear t o h ave l as ted u n t i l j ust b e low t he l eve l d a ted t o 7 68 ± 9 0 b p ( Q-390 ). S o f ar r eference h as b een made t o r ad iocarbon-da ted p o l len d iagrams . There a re many o thers w i th e p isodes o f f ores t c learance a nd r egenera t ion wh ich h ave b een d a ted b y a ssoc ia t ion w i th k nown p reh is tor ic a nd h is tor ic e ven ts , a nd wh i ls t s uch e v idence i s n o t a s s ecure a s t ha t d iscussed i tn evert he less g ives a s imi lar p ic ture . I t may b e c onc luded t herefore t ha t f ores t c learance was t ak ing p lace o n ah i ther to u nprec idented s ca le d ur ing t he I ron Age a nd Ro mano-Br i t ish p er iod a nd t ha t i n c on trast , d ur ing Ang lo-Saxon t imes c ons iderable t rac ts o f l and were f a l ling was te a nd f ores t r e-es tab l ish ing i t se l f w i th t he I ron Age l eve l o f f arm ing b e ing c on t inued i n o n ly a f ew p laces . B ib l iography A therden , M. A . ( 1976 ).

The i mpac t o f l a te p reh is tor ic c u l tures o n t he v ege-

t a t ion o f t he N or th York Moors .

Transac t ions . I ns t i tu te o f Br i t ish

G eographers I 3 2 84-300 . Baker , C . A ., Moxey , P . A . & Ox ford , P . M. ( 1978 ). a nd c hange i n E pp ing F ores t . Barber , K . ( i n p ress ).

Wood land c on t inu i ty

F ield S tud ies 4 6 45-669.

P ea t s tra t igraphy a nd c l ima t ic c hange.

Ap a laeoeco-

l og ica l t es t o f t he t heory o f c yc l ic p ea t b og r egenera t ion .

Ba lke ma ,

R o t terda m. Bar t ley , D . D . ( 1975 ).

P ol len a na lyt ica l e v idence f or p reh is tor ic f ores t

c learance i n t he u p land a rea wes t o f R ishwor th , W. Yorksh ire. N ew Phyto log is t 7 4

3 75-381 .

Bar t ley , D . D ., C hambers , C . & Har t-Jones , B . ( 1976 ). h istory o f p ar ts o f s ou th a nd e as t Durham .

The v egeta t iona l

New Phytolog ist 7 7

4 37-468 . B irks , H . H . ( 1972 ).

S tud ies i n t he v ege ta t iona l h is tory o f S cot land I .

Two

p o l len d iagrams f ro m t he G a l loway H i l ls , K irkcudbr igh tsh ire . J ourna l o f Eco logy 6 0 Dav ies , G . & Turner , J . ( 1979 ). N ew P hyto log is t 8 2

1 83-217. P ol len d iagrams f ro m Nor thu mber land .

7 83-804. 7 9

Dona ldson , A . M . 8 1 Turner , J . ( 1977 ).

Ap o l len d iagram f ro m Ha l lowe l l

Moss , n ear Durha m c i ty , U .K .

J ourna l o f B iogeography 4 2 5-33 .

Merryf ield , D . L . 8 z Moore , P . D . ( 1974 ).

Preh istor ic h u man a c t iv ity a nd

b lanket p ea t i n it ia t ion o n Ex moor . O 'Su l livan , P . E . ( 1976).

Na ture , 2 50 , 5 465 , 4 39-441.

Pol len a na lysis a nd r ad iocarbon d a t ing o f ac ore

f ro m L och P ityou lish , Eastern H igh lands o f S cot land .

J ourna l o f

B iogeography 3 2 93-302. Penn ing ton , W. ( 1978 ). c hange.

The i mpac t o f man o n s o me E ng l ish l akes :

Po lsk i Arch iwum H ydrobiolog i i ( Warschau ) 2 5

r a tes o f 4 29-437.

Penn ing ton , W ., Hawor th , E . Y ., Bonny , A . P . 8 z L ish man , J . P . ( 1977 ). I n terpre ting t he e nv iron men ta l r ecord i n t he s edi men ts o f B le lham Tarn .

Repor t . Freshwa ter B iolog ica l Assoc ia t ion 3 7-47.

Rober ts , B .K ., Turner , J . 8 z Ward , P . F . ( 1973 ).

Recent f ores t h istory

a nd l and u se i n Wearda le , Nor thern Eng land .

I n :

Qua ternary

P lant Ecology ( Eds. B irks , H . J . B . a nd Wes t , R . G .) Ox ford : B lackwel ls S c ien t if ic Publica t ions S i m mons , I. G . 8 1 Too ley , M. J . ( i n p ress ). Preh istory 1973 ). Sw i tsur , R . (

L ondon :

2 07-221 . The Env iron ment i n Br i tish

Duckwor th .

The r ad iocarbon c a lendar r eca l ibra ted .

Ant iqu i ty 4 7

1 31-137. z Sw i tzur , V . R . ( 1973 ). Ta l l is , J . H .8 V I .

Derbysh ire . Tauber , H . ( 1977). a rea . Turner ,

S tud ies o n s ou thern P enn ine p ea ts

A r ad iocarbon-da ted p o l len d iagra m f ro m Fea therbed Moss ,

J . (1964 ).

J ourna l o f Ecology 6 1

I nves tiga t ions o f a er ia l p o l len t ranspor t i n af orested Dansk Bo tan isk Ark iv 3 2

1 -121 .

The a nthropogen ic f ac tor i n v egeta t iona l h is tory I .

Tregaron a nd Wh ixa l l Mosses . Turner , J 1965 ). . (

7 43-751 .

New Phytolog ist 6 3

A c on tr ibu t ion t o t he h is tory o f f orest c learance.

Proceed ings o f t he Roya l S oc iety o f L ondon B , 1 61 Turner ,

J . 8 zHodgson , J . ( 1981 ). n or thern P enn ines I . J ourna l o f Eco logy 6 9 .

Wa tk ins , T .

7 3-90 .

3 43-354.

S tud ies i n t he v ege ta t iona l h is tory o f t he An a typica l p o l len d iagra m f ro m P ow H i l l .

5 .

VALLEY S EDIMENTS AND ENV IRON MENTAL CHANGE Mar t in B e l l

Char les Darw in ( 1881 : 1 31 ) i n h is F or ma t ion o f V ege tab le Mou ld wro te a s f o l lows ' we s hou ld b ear i n m ind h ow many b ranch ing v a l leys i n tersec t mos t c oun tr ies , t he who le l eng th o f wh ich i s v ery g rea t , a nd t ha t e ar th i s s tead i ly t ravel ling d own b oth t ur f-covered s ides o f e ach v a l ley... ( on t he v a l ley f l oor ).., a t h ick b ed o f a l luv ium w i l l a ccumu la te r eady t o b e washed a way i n t he c ourse o f c en tur ies a s t he s tream i n t he midd le meanders f ro m s ide t o s ide '.

I n t h is s ucc inc t a nd p ersp icac ious way Darw in d escr ibed

p rocesses wh ich we n ow s uspec t w ere r espons ib le f or f undamen ta l c hange i n many p reh is tor ic a nd e ar ly h is tor ic l andscapes .

Th is p aper w i l l b r ief ly

r ev iew t hose c hanges a nd e xp lore t he r o le wh ich v a l ley s ed i men ts c an p lay i n e luc ida t ing t he e nv iron men ta l b ackground t o l a ter p reh is tory. A l though e rosion a nd v a l ley s ed imen ta t ion i s o bv ious ly t he r esu l t o f e verp resen t f ac tors , c hanges i n t he r a tes a t wh ich t hey o pera te may r esu l t f ro m c l ima t ic c hanges , n a tura l s era l c hanges i n p lan t c o m mun i t ies o r a n thropog en ic e f fec ts .

C learance , i n p ar t icu lar , i s l i kely t o l ead t o as ign i f ican t

i ncrease i n s o i l e ros ion ( D imb leby 1 976 ) wh ich w i l l h ave a n e f fec t o n t he p a tt ern o f v a l ley s ed i men ta t ion . The t ypes o f s ed imen t w i th wh ich we a re d ea l ing a re b as ica l ly t wo : a l luv ia l a nd c o l luv ia l .

A l luv ia l s ed imen ts a re t he r esu l t o f d epos i t ion b y

r unn ing wa ter a nd a re l i ab le t o b e s or ted t o s o me e x ten t .

C ol luv ia l d epos i ts

a re t hose wh ich h ave moved d ownwards u nder t he f orce o f g rav i ty a s ar esu l t o f p rocesses o f s ubaer ia l wea ther ing wh ich d o n ot i nvo lve ma jor c o mponen ts o f w ind a nd wa ter t ranspor t .

C ol luv ia t ion o ccurs b ecause a ny p rocess c aus ing

t he move men t o f p ar t ic les o n as lope i s l i able t o i ncorpora te a c d mponen t o f d owns lope move men t .

Agenc ies r espons ib le f or s e t t ing p ar t ic les i n mot ion

i nc lude r a insp lash , s easona l s o i l c reep , t he a c t iv i t ies o f b io ta a nd a n thropog en ic e f fec ts l i ke t i l lage . The r esu l t ing s ed imen ts a re c harac ter is t ica l ly u nsor ted a nd b u i ld u p b y g radua l i ncre men ts t o t heir s ur face .

The r a te a t

wh ich d owns lope move men t o ccurs w i l l o bv ious ly i ncrease e normous ly o n d evege ta ted a nd c u l t iva ted s lopes . C o l luv ia l v a l ley s ed i men ts Accumu la t ions o f c o l luv ia l s ed imen t t end t o o ccur a t t he b oundar ies o f c u l t iva t ion a nd p o in ts where t here a re p ronounced b reaks o f s lope , t hus t hey c ons is tent ly r ecur i n t he f o l low ing s i tua t ions ( Fig . 5 : 1 ) :( i ) P la teau e dge d epos i ts , s ubs tan t ia l b anks o f c o l luv ia l s o i l a t ap o in t where a g en t ly s lop ing h i l l top o f p la teau s ur face d ips a brup t ly t o a v a l ley o r s carp f ace . ( i i ) L ynche ts. 7 5

› . > 4 E)

4 3 C s )

. F 4 C i ) 0 C . ) C I D u J

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F ig . 5 .2 D is tr ibu t ion o f t he ma in d ocumen ted v a l ley b o t tom c o l luv ia l d epos i ts i n B r i ta in .

7 ,7

4 — ) c d

( i i i ) A l luv ium e dge t erraces , a ccumu la t ions o n t he marg ins o f r iver v a l leys where c u l t iva t ion h as c eased .

O f ten t hey a ccen tua te e x is t ing

g eo morpho log ica l f ea tures s uch a s r iver t erraces a nd e ros ion c l if fs . ( i v ) Dry v a l ley f i l ls . There h as b een a c er ta in amoun t o f c on troversy r egard ing t he e x ten t o f d ry v a l ley c o l luv ia l d epos i ts.

G odw in ( 1967 ) was c a tegor ica l t ha t t here was

n o e v idence o f t he m o n t he c ha lk b u t t here i s ag row ing n u mber o f d ocumen ted e xposures where v a l ley b o t to m c o l luv ium i s a ssoc ia ted w i th a rchaeo log ica l f i nds .

The mos t i mpor tan t o f t hese a re a t Brook , K en t ( Kerney e t a l . 1 964 )

a nd P i ts tone , Buck inghamsh ire ( Evans 1 966 ) where i t was p oss ib le t o e s tab l ish t he e co log ica l h is tory o f t he a rea f ro m s tud ies o f t he mo l lusc f aunas .

The

d istr ibu t ion o f t he ma in d ocumen ted c ol luv ia l v a l ley d eposi ts ( Fig . 5 :2 ) s hows t ha t t hey a re l argely e ncoun tered i n p ermeable c ha lk a nd l imes tone a reas where c o l luv ia l p rocesses p redo mina te a nd where o n ly l imi ted move men t o f ma ter ia l o ccurs d own t he a x is o f t he v a l ley . i n c l i f fs a nd q uarr ies.

Many o f t he e xamp les a re c hance e xposures

Fur ther i nd ica t ions o f t he e x ten t o f t hese d epos i ts may

b e o bta ined f ro m a er ia l p hotographs a nd a c er ta in amoun t may b e i n ferred f ro m d epos i ts marked a s Va l ley G rave ls b y t he G eo log ica l S urvey a nd f ro m t he v ar ious c o l luv ia l s oi l s er ies mapped b y t he S oi l S urvey.

These s ources d o n o t ,

h owever , d iscr imina te b e tween p le is tocene a nd p os tg lac ia l d epos i ts , wh ich i s o bv ious ly o f c ruc ia l i mpor tance t o t he a rchaeo log is t , n or d o t hey p rov ide much i nd ica t ion o f t he t h ickness o f d epos i ts . Wi th t he a im o f c onfron ting s o me o f t hese p rob le ms a nd e xam ining t he p o ten t ia l o f d ry v a l ley s ed i men ts f or s tud ies o f e ar ly l and-use , t hree s tudy a reas o n t he S ou th Downs were s e lec ted o n t he b as is t ha t t hey were a lready f a ir ly we l l k nown a rchaeolog ica l ly. The a reas were : K i ln C o mbe , Eas tbourne , f armed b y Mr . E . D . W i l l iams a nd t he s ub jec t o f ar ecen t e xhaus t ive s urvey a nd e xcava t ion p rogram me b y P e ter Drewe t t ( 1977 );

I t ford B o t to m , L ewes ,

f armed b y t he Br icke t t f ami ly a nd a d jacen t t o t he i mpor tan t s econd mi l lenn ium I t ford H i l l c o mp lex ( Burs tow a nd H o l ley man 1 957 , H o lden 1 972 ) ;

a nd C ha l ton ,

H ampsh ire , f ar med b y J ohn Budden who , w i th P rofessor C un l i f fe , h as c onduc ted a n i n tens ive a rchaeo log ica l s urvey ( Cun l if fe 1 973 ).

I n e ach a rea o ne o r t wo

mach ine c u t t renches 3 0 m l ong b y 3o r 4m w ide were made f rom t he v a l ley c en tre u ph i l l .

The t rench p rov ided a s ec t ion o f t he p os tg lac ia l s tra t igraphy

( Fig . 5 :3 ) wh ich was r ecorded o n t he s ca le 1 :10 a nd f ro m wh ich s amp les w ere o b ta ined f or mo l luscan a nd s ed i men ta log ica l a na lys is , t he a im b e ing t o e x tab l ish t he n a ture o f t he d epos i ts a nd t he e nv iron men ta l c ond i t ions u nder wh ich t hey h ad b een l a id d own . I n o rder t o d a te t he s tra ta a s tr ip was c are fu l ly h and e xcava ted a longs ide t he machine d ug t rench

( p la tes 5 :I a nd 5 :I ).

I n e very c ase t h is r evea led a

s urpr is ing amoun t o f a r te fac tua l ma ter ia l , ma in ly p ot tery s herds , f l in t f l akes a nd t oo ls , a nd c harcoa l , t he t hree d i mens iona l c o-ord ina tes o f wh ich were r ecorded .

Fro m K i ln C ombe t here w ere 3 278 a r t i fac ts , f ro m I t ford B o t to m

2 289 , f ro m Trench A a t C ha l ton , o n ly a sma l l e xcava t ion , 3 74 , a nd f ro m Trench B a t C ha l ton , a much l arger e xcava t ion ,

3 239 .

The d ens i ty o f a r t i fac ts

v ar ied b etween 7 2 a nd 2 14 t o t he c ubic metre o f h and e xcava ted s oi l .

Most

i mpor tan t f or d a t ing were p o t tery s herds wh ich , i n s o me c ases , c ou ld b e r el a ted b y f abr ic , f orm , d ecora t ion , e tc ., t o s tra t if ied a sse mb lages o n n earby

A s ec t ion t hrough t he s edimen ts i nves t iga ted b y C ha l ton ,

. d . c Q E 1

Q

P

0 r epresents t he v a l ley c en tre .

s i tes .

When t he d is tr ibu t ion o f t he v ar ious t ypes was p lo t ted o u t i tf requen t ly

s howed a f a ir ly c lear h or izona t ion i nd ica t ing t he a pprox ima te d a te o f t he v ar ious l ayers.

F or i ns tance i n t he K i ln C o mbe t rench t here was a p ronounced h or i-

z on o f B eaker s herds ( Fig . 5 :4 ) i n t he s tone a ccumu la t ion h or izon o f ab asa l p a laeoso l , a nd n o ma ter ia l wh ich was d e mons trab ly l a ter ,

H ere , i ndeed , t he

c oncen tra t ion o f s herds a nd t heir c ond i t ion was s uch a s t o s ugges t a n a c tua l B eaker o ccupa tion s i te b ur ied b elow l a ter c o l luv ia l d epos i ts .

The u pper l ayers

i n t he s ame v a l ley w ere d a ted , b y ah eavy c oncen tra t ion o f s herds , t o t he med ieva l p er iod ( f ig . 5 :5 ) i nd ica t ing t ha t t h is f or med p ar t o f a n a rab le a rea a ssoc ia ted t o an earby , r ecen t ly e xcava ted , med ieva l f arms tead ( Drewet t 1 977: 1 8 ). A t t he b ase o f t he P os tg lac ia l s tra t igraphy i n t he I t ford B o t to m t rench t here were s ubso i l h o l low f ea tures , o ne o f wh ich p roduced a g ood c losed wood land mo l lusc f auna . wood land s o i l ;

N o th ing r ema ined , h owever , o f t he c on te mporary

i ti s p resumed t ha t t h is s o i l h ad s ubsequen t ly b een e roded

d own t he a x is o f t he v a l ley .

The e ar l ies t p a laeoso l t ha t s urv ived c on ta ined

f ragmen ts o f B eaker a nd e ar ly Bronze Age p ot tery a nd a lso c harcoa l f or wh ich ar ad iocarbon d a te o f 1 770 ± 120 b c ( B M-1545 ) was o bta ined .

We c an i n terpre t

t h is d a ted c harcoa l h or izon a s ac learance e p isode wh ich was f o l lowed b y c o l luv ia t ion .

C omparable e p isodes h ave b een r epor ted a t Brook , K ent , d a ted

2 590 ± 1 05 b c ( B M-254 , Barker e t a t . 1 971 : 1 69 ) a nd P i ts tone , Buck inghamsh ire , d a ted 1 960 ± 220 b c ( HAR 327 , Evans a nd Va len t ine 1 974 ).

I n t he c ase o f

I t ford B ot tom , h owever , we a re d ea l ing w i th s econdary c learance s ince t he mol luscan e v idence i nd ica tes t ha t t he b urn ing i nvo lved i so la ted t rees a nd s hrubs i n af a ir ly o pen l andscape .

The c harac ter o f t he p o t tery f ro m t he

p a laeoso l a nd o ver lying c o l luv ia l d epos i ts makes i th igh ly p robab le t ha t t he c u l t iva t ion e p isode r e la tes t o t he s econd mi l lenn ium c o mp lex o f s i tes o n t he n e ighbour ing s pur o f I t ford H i l l .

The c o l luv iu m c on t inued t o a ccumu la te i n to

t he I ron Age d ur ing wh ich p er iod a l ynche t , i n tegra l t o as urv iv ing ' Ce l t ic ' f i e ld s ys te m , b egan t o f orm .

Prev ious ly i th ad b een a ssumed t ha t t he f i e ld

s ys te m was R o mano-Br i t ish b ecause s herds o f t ha t d a te h ave b een l oca ted w i th in 0 .5 km o f t he t rench .

I n t he e ven t i tt ransp ired t ha t R o mano-Br i t ish

ma ter ia l s i mp ly f ormed a t h in v eneer o ver t he e ar l ier c o l luv ia l d epos i t . F or t h is r eason i ti s s ugges ted t ha t s ur face s herd s ca t ters d o n ot g ive a n a ccura te i nd ica t ion o f t he d a te o f f i e ld s ys te ms , n or d o t hey e nab le u s t o d e tec t s e t t le ment s i tes i n v a l ley b o t to ms , where t hey may b e b ur ied b y b lankets o f c ol luv ium a s t he B eaker s i te i n K i ln C o mbe d e mons tra ted ( F ig . 5 :4 ). A l though c o l luv ia l d epos i ts s ee med t o f orm f a ir ly c on t inuous b lanke ts o n t he v a l ley f l oors o f e ach o f t he s tudy a reas , a s t he t renches , s o i l p i ts a nd c hance e xposures d e mons tra ted , s o me i n terest ing v ar ia t ions i n t h ickness were e ncoun tered .

C ha l ton Trench A was l oca ted i n ama jor d ry v a l ley wh ich r uns

s ou th f ro m Bu tser H i l l a nd i n wh ich i s t he d e mons tra t ion a rea o f t he e xper imen ta l f ar m .

Th is t rench e ncoun tered l i t t le more t han 5 0 cm o f c o l luv iu m ,

much o f i t Ro mano-Br i t ish o r l a ter .

C on trast ing w i th t h is i s o ne o f i t s own ,

v ery minor , t r ibu tary v a l leys s ec t ioned b y C ha l ton Trench B a nd f ound t o b e c hoked w i th c o l luv ia l s ed i men ts u p t o 1 .8 m t h ick ( Fig . 5 :3 ) .

Wha t p robab ly

a ccoun ts f or t h is c on tras t a re s easona l s treams ( l avan ts ) i n t he ma in v a l ley ; t hese a re l as t a t tes ted a bou t t he t urn o f t he c en tury a nd may h ave b een t o s o me e x ten t r espons ible f or t he r e mova l , r esor t ing a nd l oca l iza t ion o f t he c ol luv ia l

a ; 0

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r a nge d a te P robab le

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d epos i ts .

I ft ha t i s s o t he f ormer more w idespread o ccurrence , a nd g rea ter

e ros ive c o mpe tence , o f s easona l s treams i n ma jor ' dry ' v a l leys o n t he c ha lk may g o s o me way t owards e xp la in ing t he a pparen t p auc i ty o f c o l luv ia l d epos i ts i n s o me d ip s lope v a l leys . R eference h as a lready b een made t o t he p rocesses r espons ible f or c o l luv ia t ion b u t i ti s a ppropr ia te t o s ay s o me th ing a bou t i t s l i nk w i th h uman a c t iv i ty. I n e ach o f t he t hree v a l leys i t was c lose ly l i nked t o e v idence o f c u l t iva t ion . No t o n ly d o t he d epos i ts t he mse lves c lose ly r ese mb le l ynche t d epos i ts b u t t he mol lusc f auna t hey c on ta in i s ar es tr ic ted o ne o f d ry o pen c ond i t ions .

The

l i nk w i th h uman a c t iv i ty i s f ur ther s treng thened b y t he l arge n umbers o f a r t if ac ts wh ich t he d epos i ts c on ta in .

S i tes r ecorded t o d a te d o n o t s ee m t o s uppor t

t he n ot ion t ha t c o lluv ia t ion was p ar t icu lar ly p reva len t d ur ing c er ta in e p isodes , c orre la t ing , f or i ns tance , w i th e p isodes o f a pparen t ly h igher r a infa l l , s uch a s t he S ub-A t lan t ic .

N ei ther d oes t he t e mpora l r ange o f c o l luv ia l d epos i ts s up-

p or t t he f requen t ly s ta ted i dea ( e .g . Brad ley 1 978 : 1 23 ) t ha t c o l luv ia t ion was p redo minan t ly a p rocess o f l a ter p reh is tory , p ar t icu lar ly t he I ron Age . S evera l v a l ley f i l ls b egan t o a ccumu la te i n t he Neo l i th ic a nd Bronze Age , o thers a ccumu la ted i n v ar ious p er iods u p t o t he P os t- Med ieva l . The e v idence f or f a ir ly e x tens ive c o l luv ia l d epos i ts o n t he c ha lk mus t l ead u s t o c ons ider t he n a ture o f t he e roded ma ter ia l a nd i t s i mp l ica t ions i n p edo log ica l t erms .

A t t he s ur face o f t he p le is tocene s tra ta i n K i ln C o mbe was a s tr ipe o f

p redo minan t ly c oarse s i l t w i th a minera log ica l c ompos i t ion c o mparable w i th t ha t o f p le is tocene l oess.

C oarse s i l t was a lso t he ma jor p ar t ic le s ize f rac t ion i n

t he o ver lying c o l luv ia l d epos i t .

I n a l l t hree s tudy a reas t he b asa l p os tg lac ia l

s o i l h or izons were n on-ca lcareous b u t t he c o l luv ium b ecame i ncreas ing ly c a lcareous t owards t he s ur face b ecause o nce t he s uper f ic ia l d eposi ts h ad b een e roded a g rea ter p ropor t ion o f c ha lk w ou ld b e b rough t d own . There c an b e l i t t le d oub t t ha t , a s Ca t t ( 1978 ) a nd L imbrey ( 1975 ) h ave a lready emphas ised, p reh is tor ic s oi ls o n t he c ha lk were s ubs tan t ia l ly d i f feren t f rom t he s ha l low r ends inas we s ee t oday.

No t o n ly p reh is tor ic s o i ls , b u t a lso h i l l top a nd h i l l-

s lope o ccupa t ion h or izons , h ave b een e roded a way.

Th is was a pparen t f rom

e xcava t ions i n t he Y orksh ire Wo lds ( Manby 1 975 ) a nd a t B ishops tone , S ussex ( Be l l 1 977 ) where n eo l i th ic o ccupa t ion was r epresen ted o n ly b y l arge p i ts a nd h o l lows , t he I ron Age s e t t le men t b y d i tches , p i ts a nd , g enera l ly l arge , p os th o les a nd t he Ang lo-Saxon s e t t le men t b y b u i ld ings o f v ery much sma l ler p os th o les .

C ircu lar h u ts , o r o ther a bso lu te ly c onv inc ing d o mes t ic s truc tures w ere

a bsen t f ro m t he I ron Age s e t t le men t , r em ind ing u s t ha t a t Danebury t hese more e phe mera l s truc tures o n ly s urv ive where t hey a re p ro tec ted b o th b y e x tens ions t o t he r ampar ts a nd a c o l luv ia l b u i ld-up a ga ins t t he m ( Cun l i f fe 1 976 ). I f , a s Iam s ugges t ing , s ign if ican t e ros ion o f c ha lk land s o i ls h as o ccurred d ur ing , a nd s ince , p reh is tory we mus t c ons ider whe ther t h is h e lps t o e xp la in s o me o f t he b road t rends o f l and-use o n t he c ha lk a nd a d jo in ing a reas .

The

c oncen tra t ion o f p reh is tor ic f i eld monu men ts o n t he c ha lk d owns i s we l l k nown a nd i n marked c on tras t t o t he p a t tern o f s urv iv ing v i l lages i n r iver v a l leys a nd o n t he marg ins o f t he u p land .

Trad i t iona l ly i th as b een s ugges ted t ha t t he

l i gh ter c ha lk s o i ls were more a t trac t ive t o p reh is tor ic c o m mun i t ies b u t t he i n troduc t ion o f h eav ier , whee led p loughs i n t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod f ac i l i ta ted c u l t iva t ion o f t he c lay v a les .

8 4

Recen t ly Tay lor ( 1970 , 1 972 a nd 1 973 ) h as d rawn a t ten t ion t o t he a ccu mul a t ing e v idence f or p reh is tor ic s e t t le men t o n l ow lands s urround ing t he Downs a nd a rgued t ha t t he c ha lk u p lands were marg ina l l and i n p reh is tory a s t hey a re t oday.

Th is i dea h as p roved a mos t s t i mu la t ing o ne p ro mp t ing u s t o e x tend

a rchaeo log ica l r esearch b eyond t he t rad i t iona l a reas o f f i e ld monu men t s urv iva l .

The d anger e x is ts , h owever , t ha t we w i l l c o me t o o vere mphas ise t he

marg ina l n a ture o f t he c ha lk lands i n p reh is tory.

I n f ac t t he v a l ley s ed imen t

a nd l ynche t a ccu mu la t ions d o s ee m t o i mp ly f a ir ly s teady a nd c on t inuous c u lt i va t ion o f many a reas .

C onsequen t ly we a re s t i l l f orced b ack t o e nqu ire h ow

i ti s t ha t a reas i n tens ive ly u t i l ised i n p reh is tory were v ery much l ess i n tens ive ly u t i l ised d ur ing h is tor ic t imes .

S o i l e ros ion a nd p ar t icu lar ly t he r e-

mova l o f f er t i le l oess h or izons may b e ap ar t ia l a nswer .

Brad ley ( 1979 ) h as

s uggested t ha t t he o n ly a reas t o s us ta in i n tensive o ccupa t ion a f ter t he Bronze Age were t hose w i th b r ickear th d eposi ts a nd c er ta in ly i n tens ive l and-use s ee ms t o h ave g one o n l onges t i n a reas , l i ke K i ln C o mbe a nd C ha l ton , where s o me s uper f ic ia l l oess c over s urv ives .

I t may b e t ha t t hroughou t p reh is tory a nd

t he e ar ly h istor ic p er iods t here was a g radua l b u t p rogress ive r eor ien ta t ion o f t he f ocus o f a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i ty a way f ro m t he c ha lk .

Tha t s h if t f inds i t s

f irs t man ifes ta t ion i n t he l ow g round d is tr ibu t ion o f Ro mano-Br i t ish v i l las l a ter t o b e r e inforced d ur ing t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod b y t he p a t tern o f s e t t lemen ts i n t he c har ters a nd D o mesday Book , many o f wh ich s urv ive t oday a s v i l lages . As t ime wen t o n t he ma in tenance o f as uf f ic ien t d ep th o f f er t i le s o i l wou ld i ncreasing ly h ave b eco me a p roble m.

Manur ing a nd mar ling was a p ar t ia l

s o lu t ion b u t we s hou ld a lso c ons ider t he p oss ibi l i ty t ha t t he l ynche ts t he mselves r epresen t a t te mp ts a t s oi l c onserva t ion , r a ther t han a cc iden ta l a r t i fac ts o f t he e ros ion p rocess .

A s e ar ly a s 1 946 t he s o i l s c ien t is t E . J . Russel l ( 1946 : 6 2 )

wrote ' t he o ld me thod o f d oing t h is ( s topp ing e rosion ) was b y as ys te m o f t errac ing s uch a s t he e ar ly p reh is tor ic l ynchets o n t he c ha lk d owns o f Eng land .' I n H o l land a nd N or th Wes tern G ermany G roen man-van Waa ter inge ( 1979 ) h as s ugges ted t ha t c er ta in ' Ce l t ic ' f i e lds r epresen t a t te mp ts t o c oun ter e xcess ive e ros ion o f t he f i e lds .

I n t h is c oun try i nves t iga t ions o f t he med ieva l s tr ip

l ynche ts i n b o th Wi l tsh ire ( Wood a nd Wh i t t ing ton 1 959 : 3 36 ) a nd Whar feda le ( Ra is tr ick a nd C hap man 1 929 : 1 73 ) h ave i nd ica ted t ha t s o me d egree o f d el ib era te c ons truc t ion a ugmen ted n a tura l p lough e ros ion .

The s ame t h ing i s

s uggested b y t he v ery f l in ty o r s tony n a ture o f s o me l ynche t b anks wh ich f orm ' Ce l t ic ' f i e lds where i ts ee ms t ha t s tone c learance was b e ing c o mb ined w i th a n a t te mpt t o r e tard f ur ther d ownh i l l s oi l move men t . A l luv ia l v a l ley d epos i ts The f orego ing d iscuss ion o f c o l luv ia l s ed i men ts h as d rawn a t ten t ion t o t he e x is tence o f c lose l i nks b e tween c o l luv ia l a nd a l luv ia l s ed i men ta t ion .

The

p resence o f a l luv ium e dge c o l luv ia l d epos i ts h as b een men t ioned a nd c o l luv iat i on , a long w i th s heet , r i l l , g u l ly , b ank a nd b ed e ros ion , e tc ., c on tr ibu tes ma ter ia l f or s ubsequen t r iver ine t ranspor ta t ion , s or t ing a nd d epos i t ion .

The

e x ten t o f e ros ion o n t he i n ter f luves i s c ond i t ioned t o al arge e x ten t b y t he amoun t o f r unof f a nd t he d ens i ty o f t he g round c over wh ich o bv ious ly r e la tes t o l andu se .

S tud ies o f t he r ecen t g eo morpho log ica l h is tory o f r iver s ys te ms ( e .g .

Wo l man 1 967 ;

L eopold 1 956 ) s how t ha t o n many b edrocks l i t t le e ros ion o ccurs

u nder wood land c ond i t ions b u t t here i s ad rama t ic i ncrease c onsequen t u pon

c learance a nd c u l t iva t ion .

A l l t h ings b e ing e qua l i ncreased e ros ion a nd b ed-

l oad i s l i ab le t o l ead t o i ncreased s ed i men ta t ion b u t w e mus t r e me mber t ha t t he p a t tern o f d epos i t ion i s a lso v ery much d ependen t o n t he v e loc i ty o f t he s tream .

Th is may b e mod if ied n ear t he c oas t b y s ea l eve l c hanges o r e ven

f ea tures l i ke c oas ta l b ars ;

c hanges i n s a l in i ty a lso p lay a n i mpor tan t p ar t .

U ps tream l oca l c hanges i n b ase l evel , p roduced b y b eaver d ams , d ams , m i l lp onds , e tc ., m igh t a lso l ead t o t he o nse t o f r iver ine s ed imen ta t ion . An u mber o f r ecen t s tud ies o f l ess c omp l ica ted u ps tream c ourses h ave p roduced a n e ssen t ia l ly s imi lar p a t tern o f s ed i men to log ica l c hange .

A t t he

b ase o f t he F landr ian s equence t here a re o f ten f a ir ly c oarse g rave ls a nd s ands wh ich a re o ver la in b y r easonab ly o rgan ic r ich , s low ly a ccumu la ted d epos i ts i n wh ich r educ ing c ond i t ions o pera ted g iv ing t hem ab lack o r g rey c o lour . A bove t hese t here a re o f ten minera l r ich o x id ised s i l ts w i th a much sma l ler o rgan ic ma t ter c on ten t .

The b es t d ocu men ted s equence o f t h is k ind i s t ha t

d escr ibed b y S ho t ton ( 1 978 ) f ro m t hree e xposures i n t he S evern a nd Avon v a l leys . The t ransi t ion t o minera l r ich s i l ts , wh ich was p robab ly t he r esu l t o f c learance , o ccurred c . 6 50 b e a nd i n o ne c ase i t was marked b y a mass o f d r if ted t rees a nd b ranches , wh ich migh t h ave d er ived f ro m c learance.

I n t he c ase o f t he

e xposure a t P i lgr im L ock i t was e ven p oss ib le , f ro m t he c o lour o f t he r ecen t a l luv ium , t o d educe t ha t i th ad b een e roded a s t he r esu l t o f c learance o f K euper Mar l s o me 6 km o r more u ps tream.

A s im i lar t rans i t ion f ro m g rey r educed

s i l ts t o o x id ised s i l ts was o bserved b y S amue ls a nd B uck land ( 1978 ) i n as trat eg ica l ly p laced J .C .B . t rench n ex t t o a Ro mano-Br i t ish s e t t le men t a longs ide t he c ourse o f t he I d le i n S ou th Humbers ide .

There t he t rans i t ion was a ssoc ia ted

w i th f l ood ing o f t he a rchaeo log ica l l eve ls a nd mus t h ave o ccurred i n t he l a te Ro man p er iod o r s hor t ly a f ter .

They s ugges ted t ha t t he c hange o f s ed imen-

t a t ion c ou ld b e c orrela ted w i th p a lyno log ica l e v idence , f ro m e lsewhere i n t he r eg ion , f or e x tens ive f ores t c learance i n t he I ron Age a nd R o mano-Br i t ish p er iods . O n t he Thames a t Farmoor , Ox fordsh ire , t here i s e v idence o f ac ons iderab le i ncrease i n t he r a te o f a l luv ia l d epos i t ion f o l low ing midd le I ron Age s easona l o ccupa t ion o f t he f l oodp la in , a nd t he b u i ld-up o f a l luv ium wh ich s ea ls t he I ron Age h or izons s ee ms t o h ave s ubs tan t ia l ly a ccumu la ted b y t he 4 th c en tury AD ( La mb r ick a nd R ob inson 1 979 : 1 18 ).

S ed imen ts i n t he v a l ley o f t he Windrush ,

at r ibu tary o f t he Tha mes , h ave b een i nves t iga ted n ear Wi tney , Ox fordsh ire , b y Haze ld ine a nd J arv is ( 1979 ).

They r epor t s andy g ravels o ver la in b y c lay

a l luv ium w i th a lder r oo ts n ear t he t op o f t he g rave l .

These r oots h ave a

r ad iocarbon d a te o f 7 10 ± 8 5 b e ( I -9337 ) wh ich i t was s uggested i nd ica tes d epos i t ion o f t he c lay a l luv ium s ince t ha t d a te.

H owever , Mark R obinson

( pers . c o m m.) emphas ises t he n eed f or c au t ion i n i n terpre t ing t h is d a te b ecause i ti s d er ived f rom r oo t ma ter ia l wh ich may , l i ke o ther s ec t ions h e h as o bserved , h ave b een p referen t ia l ly p reserved b e low t he wa ter t able a nd h ave d ecayed t he a l luv ia l c lay t hrough wh ich i tg rew .

I n I reland M i tche l l ( 1976 : 1 50 ) h as o bta ined

d a tes f or t he o nse t o f f l oodp la in a l luv ia t ion a nd s ugges ted t ha t i t r ela tes t o c learance i n t he c a tch men t .

A l luv ia t ion a t Ba l l invegga , C o . Wex ford c o m-

menced c . 1 875 b e a nd a t S car if f Br idge o n t he B oyne C . 2 70 a d . Even i n s i tua t ions where t he s ed imen ts a re n ot v ery p rec ise ly d a ted s o me i nd ica t ion o f t he e nv iron men ta l c ond i t ions u nder wh ich t hey were l a id d own may b e p oss ib le .

F or i ns tance a l luv ium o f t he Tame a t Ta mwor th ( Sh i l l i toe 8 6

1 961 ) c on ta ined p o l len a nd Mo l lusca i nd ica t ing t ha t i th ad b een l a id d own f o l low ing c learance a nd c erea l c u l t iva t ion .

S im i lar ly t he B ourne , at r ibu tary

o f t he Tame a t S hus toke , r evea led o rgan ic-r ich d epos i ts w i th a wood land f l ora a nd f auna o ver la in b y f l oodp la in a l luv ium w i th a v ery o pen c oun try f l ora a nd f auna ( Ke l ly a nd O sborne 1 964 ).

A r a ther d if feren t s i tua t ion s ee ms t o h ave

o bta ined i n t he W i l low Brook v a l ley a t A pe thorpe , N or tha mp tonsh ire ( Sparks a nd Lamber t 1 961 ).

There was a t yp ica l s equence o f g rey/b lack s i l ty d e tr i tus

mud o ver la in b y b rown mo t t led c lay , b u t t he p o l len a nd mo l luscan r e ma ins p roduced l i t t le s ign o f more o pen c ond i t ions a ssoc ia ted w i th t he s ed i men to log ica l c hange.

I t was a rgued i nstead t ha t t he b rown c lay was t he r esu l t o f o ccas iona l

f l ood ing o f t he v a l ley p as ture a f ter t he s tream h ad b een c onf ined b y man i n i t s p resen t c ourse. I n an umber o f v a l leys t he p resence o f a rchaeo log ica l ma ter ia l u nder lying t he r ecen t minera l r ich a l luv iu m p rov ides a t erminus p os t q ue rn f or i t s d epos i t ion . A t Ear ls Bar ton , o n t he b anks o f t he R iver N ene , t here was e v idence t ha t f er t i le l oam s o i ls o n t he f l oodp la in were c overed b y a l luv ium wh ich p os td a ted a ' Wessex C u l ture ' b arrow ( Jackson 1 972 ).

Large n umbers o f R o man

s i tes , i n p ar t icu lar, a re s ea led b e low r ecen t a l luv ium .

We l l d ocumen ted

i ns tances i nc lude a l luv ium c over ing a R o man r oad a nd f ea tures a t Thornborough , Buck inghamsh ire ( J ohnson 1 975 ) , e v idence o f f l ood ing l evels a t A lches ter a nd B eck ford ( L imbrey 1 978 ) , l a te Ro man a l luv ium i n ters tra t if ied w i th c o l luv ia l d epos i ts a t Braugh ing , a nd e v idence o f p os t R o man a l luv ia t ion a d jacen t t o t he R o man f or t a t Wa tercrook , C u mbr ia ( Po t ter 1 976 , 1 979 ).

An u mber o f s im i lar

s i tes h ave r ecen t ly b een d escr ibed a nd l i s ted b y G a ter ( 1979 ). I n t he l igh t o f a l l t h is e v idence f or l a te , o r p ost, R o man a l luv ia t ion P o t ter a rgues t ha t a c onnec t ion may e x is t w i th t he c on te mporary e v idence f or i nnunda t ion o f t he F ens .

As f or t he c ause o f l a te R o man f l ood ing h e s ugges ts t here may b e a

l i nk w i th t he b road ly c on te mporary y ounger f i l l d epos i ts i n Med i terranean v a l leys f or wh ich a c l ima t ic c ause h as b een a rgued b y V i ta-Finzi ( 1 969 ). C lear ly i n v iew o f t he c l ima t ic d ispar i ty b etween t he t wo a reas , t h is l i nk i s a r a ther p rob le ma t ica l o ne .

Fur thermore r ecen t work i s b eg inn ing t o s ugges t

t ha t e ven i n t he Med i terranean t he r o le o f c l ima t ic c hange may h ave b een o vere mphas ised a nd i nsu f f ic ien t c ons idera t ion g iven t o t he r o le o f e ros ion o n t he i n ter f luves , p ar t icu lar ly a c o l luv ia l c on tr ibu t ion , a nd t he r e la t ionsh ip o f t he s ed i men ts t o h u man a c t iv i ty. S yn thes is a nd f u ture work When we c o me t o b r ing t oge ther t he e v idence f ro m c o l luv ia l a nd a l luv ia l s equences

i n t er ms o f t he ir i mp l ica t ions f or p a laeoenv iron men ta l s tud ies i n

t he I ron Age t o A ng lo-Saxon p er iods s o me i n teres t ing c on tras ts emerge. C o l luv ia t ion h as b een r eferred t o a s as ign i f ican t f eeder o f s ed imen t f or s ubs equen t r iver ine t ranspor ta t ion , y e t we h ave e v idence f or l arge s ca le c o l luv ia t ion c onsiderably p receed ing t he e v idence f or l arge s ca le d epos i t ion o f r ecen t minera l r ich f l oodp la in a l luv ium.

Th is i s p ar t ly e xp la ined b y t he f ac t

t ha t mos t o f t he c o l luv ia l s equenc ies a re i n q u i te d ifferen t g eograph ica l a reas a nd o n d i f feren t b edrocks f ro m t he we l l d ocumen ted s equenc ies o f f l oodp la in a l luv iu m .

I t may a lso b e ar ef lec t ion o f t he f ac t t ha t c o l luv ium b as ica l ly

r ef lec ts l oca l ised e ros ion whereas a l luv iu m r ef lec ts much l arger s ca le c hanges a f fec t ing a s ign i f ican t p or t ion o f t he c a tchmen t .

Even i ft he o r ig ina l c learance

o f s o me a reas t ook p lace a t ac o mpara t ive ly e ar ly d a te i t may o n ly h ave b een 8 7

much l a ter , w i th t he c rea t ion o f c on t inuous e xpanses o f a rab le l and , t ha t minera l ma ter ia l f ound i t s way i n to s treams i n c ons iderab le q uan t i t ies . S hot ton ( 1978 : 3 1 ) h as a rgued t h is i n t he c ase o f t he S evern/Avon s ed imen ts a nd p oin ted o u t t ha t t he i ncep t ion o f w in ter s own c rops w i th l a te a u tu mna l p lough ing migh t h ave l ed t o i ncreased s o i l e ros ion .

H owever , J ones ( t h is

v o lume ) h as a rgued t ha t w in ter s ow ing may a lready h ave b een p rac t ised i n t he Bronze Age .

Af ur ther f ac tor i s t ha t p edo log ica l c hange a nd s o i l e ros ion ,

c oup led p erhaps w i th i nnova t ions a nd c hanges i n a gr icu l tura l p rac t ice , may h ave l ed t o ap rogress ive r eor ien ta t ion o f t he f ocus o f a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i ty. I ft h is o ccurred , n o t o n ly o n t he c ha lk b u t i n o ther a reas , i t migh t h elp t o a ccoun t f or t he e v idence o f i ncreased a l luv ia t ion i n t he Ro man a nd P os t-Roman p er iods . Much r e ma ins t o b e d one t o r ea l ise t he f u l l p oten t ia l o f v a l ley s ed imen ts i n p a laeoenv ironmen ta l s tud ies .

The r o le o f s uch s ed i men ts i n c on tex tua l

s tud ies o f t he e nv iron men ta l o r e roded s i tes i s o bv ious .

They a lso p rov ide

o ne way i n wh ich we c an e scape f ro m t he c onf ines o f i nd iv idua l s i tes a nd c onf ron t more d irec t ly t he b roader i ssues o f l and-use a nd l andscape h is tory . I ti s p ar t icu lar ly i n teres t ing t ha t we c an d o t h is b y i nves t iga t ing a n e nv ironmen t o f d epos i t ion wh ich i t se l f w i l l o f ten h ave f ormed a k ey p ar t o f t he e xp loit a t ion z one o f n eighbour ing a rchaeo log ica l s i tes .

Many o f t he p rob le ms o f

c hrono logy a nd c ausa t ion r equ ire much r e f ine men t a nd t here i s a n o bv ious n eed f or s tud ies o f c o l luv ia l s ed imen ts t o b e e x tended t o o ther g eo log ica l a reas , p ar t icu lar ly t he l imes tone .

F loodp la in marg ins wou ld a lso r epay f ur ther

d e ta i led s tudy , h ere we migh t f i nd a r ange o f p a laeoenv iron men ta l e v idence i n ters tra t if ied w i th in c ol luv ia l a nd a l luv ia l d epos i ts wh ich wou ld e nab le u s t o a ssess t he e x ten t o f t he c o l luv ia l c on tr ibu t ion .

I n f ac t , e xcava tors o n av ar iety

o f b edrocks migh t w el l f i nd t ha t ag ood d ea l o f i n forma t ion c ou ld b e o b ta ined a t v ery l i t t le c os t f ro m a f ew s tra teg ica l ly p laced s oi l p i ts i n n e ighbour ing v a l leys . Acknow ledge men ts Th is p aper r epresen ts a n i n ter im r epor t o n as tudy o f v a l ley s ed imen ts a s e v idence o f p reh is tor ic l and-use wh ich i s b e ing p repared a s aL ondon U n iversi ty t hes is.

Iam p leased t o a cknow ledge g ran ts t owards my i nves t iga t ion o f d ry

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I

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The Cambr idgesh ire l andscape

1 09-13 .

L ondon :

H odder a nd

S tough ton . V i ta-Finzi , C . ( 1969 ).

The Med i terranean v a l leys :

h istor ica l t imes Wol man , M. G . ( 1967 ).

g eo log ica l c hanges i n

Cambr idge.

' A c yc le o f s ed i men ta t ion a nd e ros ion i n u rban

r iver c hannels '

G eogra f iska Anna ler 4 9A

Wood , P . a nd Wh it t ing ton , G . ( 1959 ).

3 85-95.

' Fur ther e xa m ina t ion o f s tr ip l ynche ts

n or th o f t he Va le o f P ewsey i n 1 958 ' a nd Na tura l H istory Magazine 5 7

9 1

Wi ltsh ire Archaeo log ica l

3 22-338.

THE EXPLO ITATION OF ENV IRON MENTAL RESOURCES

6 .

THE DEVELOP MENT OF CROP HUSBANDRY Mar t in J ones

A t t he b eg inn ing o f t he I ron Age , ar ange o f c rops t ha t a re n ow v ir tua l ly u nknown was b e ing g rown i n f i e lds t ha t were t i l led w i th a l i gh t a rd , a n i mp lemen t n o l onger s een i n t h is c oun try.

B y t he e nd o f t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod ,

h eavy whee led p loughs were b e ing d rawn a cross t he l ow lying c lay bar ns , a nd t he s pec ies o f c rop t ha t were b eing s own r e ma in i n u se o n t hose s ame s oi ls t oday. The p er iod u nder s tudy was o ne o f c ons iderab le c hange i n c rop h usb andry a nd o ne i n wh ich t he d eve lopmen t c an b e f o l lowed o f me thods o f a gr ic u l ture t ha t p reva i led t hroughou t t he Midd le Ages . These c hanges h ave b een r ecogn ised i n g enera l t erms b y an u mber o f a u thors , a nd h ave b een l i nked w i th a c oncurren t ' sh i f t o f emphas is ' i n t he s e t t le men t e v idence f rom t he l i gh ter s oi ls o n h igher g round t o t he i n terven ing v a l leys ( e .g . F ox 1 932 , E l l ison a nd Harr iss 1 972 , Be l l , t h is v o lume ). Var ious a t te mp ts t o d ef ine t hese d evelopmen ts more c lose ly i n t ime h ave b een b o th made a nd r efu ted .

C urren t a u thors a re g enera l ly r e t icen t a bou t t he n a-

t ure o f a gr icu l tura l c hange i n t h is p er iod .

C un l if fe ( 1978 ) , wh i le r ecogn is ing

t he s t i mu la t ing e f fec t o f l a te I ron Age t rade , c o m men ts :" Once t he e cono my h ad r e-ad jus ted t o t he n ew r eg i me

[ i n t he f irst

h a lf o f t he f i rs t mi l lenn iu m BC ], t here was l i t t le s cope f or s ign if i can t ly i mproved p roduc t iv i ty". A . H . M . J ones ' a sser t ion t ha t :" no c hanges i n a gr icu l tura l me thods a re r ecorded u nder t he R o man Emp ire" ( J ones 1 964 ). i s c ons idered a l i t t le e x treme b y s o me .

A pp lebaum ( 1972 ) s ta te et ha t :-

" i t i s d i f f icu l t t o h o ld t ha t Ro man Agr icu l ture was n ot a n i mprovemen t o n wha t p receded i t " . t hough i ti s q ues t ionable h ow many o f h is l i s ted i mprove men ts a re r ea l ly a ssoc ia ted w i th t he C onques t o r i ndeed t he R o man p er iod a t a l l .

P erc iva l

( 1 976 ) , t ak ing a modera te l i ne a rgues a ga ins t t he i n troduc t ion o f ar ad ica l ly d if feren t s ys te m i n t he R o man p er iod .

F ina l ly , F inberg ( 1972 ) s ugges ts :-

" There i s n o e v idence wha tsoever t ha t t he A ng lo-Saxon i mm igran ts b rough t w i th t he m b et ter p loughs o r a more a dvanced a gr icu l tura l t echnique t han t hose t hey f ound when t hey a rr ived" . I ti s d if f icu l t t o i so la te mechan is ms f or t he c hanges o u t l ined i n t he o pen ing s en tences o f t h is p aper a ga ins t t he o verv iew p rov ided b y t hese a u thors . A more r igorous a na lys is o f c rop h usbandry i n t he p er iod i s n ecessary , a nd i s n ow p ossib le a s ar esu l t o f v ar ious r ecen t d eve lop men ts i n e nv iron men ta l a nd a rcha eo log ica l r esearch . 9 5

Know ledge o f t he a ssoc ia ted a r tefac tua l a nd s truc tura l e v idence h as i mp roved , w i th f or e xamp le t he v ery u sefu l s ynopses o f a gr icu l tura l i mp le men ts ( Rees 1 979 ) f ar m b u i ld ings ( Morr is 1 979 ) a nd f i e ld s ys te ms ( Bowen a nd F ow ler 1 978 ). Deve lop men ts h ave a lso o ccurred i n t he a na lysis o f ak ey f or m o f e nv iron men ta l e v idence , t he p reserved r e ma ins o f c rop p lan ts a nd c rop i mp ur i t ies .

These a re h ere c ons idered i n d e ta i l .

R ecords o f C rop P lan ts a nd C rop Impur i t ies I n t he f or t ies a nd f i f t ies , t he Dan ish w orkers , J essen a nd H e lbaek p rod uced t wo s urveys o f B r i t ish c rop p lan t r ecords d er ived f ro m t he c harred r e ma ins o f s eeds a nd c ha f f , a nd t he ir i mpress ions i n p o t tery ( Jessen a nd H e lbaek 1 944 , H e lbaek 1 952 ).

The ir c o mp i la t ions h ave s ince f ormed t he b as is

f or a l l d iscuss ions o f p reh is tor ic a nd e ar ly h is tor ic c rop h usbandry.

S ince

t he ir work i th as b ecome a pparen t , a s t he r esu l t o f t he r ou t ine u se o f f l o ta t ion t echn iques o n s i te , t ha t c harred r ema ins i n p ar t icu lar a re c ons iderab ly more c o m monp lace t han h ad p rev ious ly b een s upposed ( Jones , M. 1 978 ).

A s a

r esu l t , t he n umber o f s i tes f or wh ich c rop r ecords e x is t h as more t han t reb led . I n a dd i t ion t he o ccurrence o f a sse mb lages o f weeds a ssoc ia ted w i th c arbon ised c rops , r icher t han a ny e xam ined b y J essen a nd H e lbaek i n B r i ta in , h as a l lowed n ew t ypes o f i n ference t o b e d rawn ( Jones , M . 1 978 ).

The w ide r ange o f s pec ies

p resen t h as p roduced h i ther to u nava i lab le e v idence o n t he p rec ise e co log ica l s ta te o f e ar ly f i elds . The i n terpre ta t ion o f t he c rop p lan t r ecord i t se lf h as b een a pproached more c r i t ica l ly b y D enne l l ( 1974 ) a nd Hubbard ( 1975 ) b oth o f who m r a ise d oubts a bou t c er ta in o f J essen a nd H e lbaek 's c onc lus ions , a nd a lso i nd ica t ing n ew p ossib le f orms o f i n ference. A l ess o bv ious d eve lopmen t o f e qua l i mpor tance i s t he more r ef ined c hrono log ica l f ramework a t ta inab le t oday.

The r ecords c o mp i led b y J essen

a nd H elbaek were o rgan ised a ccord ing t o t rad i t iona l c u l tura l g roup ings , s uch a s ' Ear ly I ron Age ' ,

' Ro man ' a nd ' Ang lo-Saxon '.

A s t he a ppearance o f n ew

c rops was a ssoc ia ted w i th t he a rr iva l o f n ew c u l tura l g roups , t h is method o f o rgan isa t ion was a ppropr ia te t o t he c urren t r esearch q ues t ions .

W i th t oday 's

more c r i t ica l a pproach t o c on t inu i ty a nd c hange ( e .g . Burnham a nd J ohnson 1 979 ) , t he d a te a nd c on tex t o f ap ar t icu lar r ecord o f ten n eeds t o b e f ar more p rec isely d efined t han i t was i n t he f or t ies a nd f i f t ies . I n t he l i gh t o f t hese d eve lop men ts , a n a t te mp t

h as h ere b een made a t a

s yn thesis o f t he i n forma t ion t ha t n ow e x ists f or t he n a ture a nd d evelopmen t o f c rop h usbandry f rom t he I ron Age t o t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod . The d is tr ibu t ion o f r ecords F igures 6 :1 , 6 :2 a nd 6 :3 s how t he d is tr ibu t ion o f s i tes f or wh ich , t o t he b es t o f t he a u thor 's k now ledge , r ecords o f p ar t icu lar c rop s pec ies h ave b een made .

The n u mber o f s uch r ecords i s c ons tan t ly i ncreasing , a nd wh i le s uch

f igures w i l l a lways b e i nco mp le te , t hey s erve t o s how t he g enera l d is tr ibu t iona l b iases i n t he e x tan t d a ta . I ti s i m med ia te ly a pparen t f ro m t he f igures t ha t s uch b iases e x is t . V ir tua l ly n o th ing i s k nown o f h igh land z one c rops i n t he I ron Age .

I n t he R o man p er iod , k now ledge o f Wa les a nd t he S ou th Wes t i s

mini ma l , a nd A ng lo-Saxon r ecords a re b iased marked ly t owards t he Eas t . These b iases a re t o s o me e x ten t i nev i table , when r esearchers a re l ook ing f or 9 6

s ecure c u l tura l c on tex ts f or t he ir b o tanica l ma ter ia l .

N one the less , ar ange

o f r ecords f ro m c on tras t ing c u l tura l z ones wou ld a l low a f ar g rea ter i ns igh t i n to t he r e la t ive c on tr ibu t ion o f c u l tura l a nd n on-cu l tura l f ac tors i n t he d eve lopmen t o f c rop h usbandry. I n a dd i t ion t o t he g aps , t here a re a reas where r ecords a re u nusua l ly c o m mon . These t oo , i fc are less ly i n terpre ted , c an l ead t o s pur ious i n ferences. T he d om ina t ion o f A ng lo-Saxon r ecords b y b ar ley may b e d ue t o al arge n u mber o f r ecords o f t h is c rop f rom a r es tr ic ted a rea i n Eas t A ng l ia .

An umber o f

e ar l ies t c rop r ecords o ccur a round a n a x is r unn ing b e tween G louces ter a nd S ou tha mp ton .

Th is may a lso b e as pur ious c onsequence o f t he c oncen tra t ion

o f r ecords i n t h is a rea .

A s pec ies t ha t i s w idely a nd e ven ly d is tr ibu ted a t a

v ery l ow c oncen tra t ion i s more l i ke ly t o s how u p where t he g rea tes t d ens i ty o f r ecords o ccurs . Hav ing made t hese p oin ts , i ts hou ld b e men t ioned t ha t c er ta in o f t hese d istr ibu t iona l b iases a re b e ing r ec t if ied i n p ar t icu lar b y t he work o f H i l lman i n Wa les , a nd Murphy i n Eas t A ng l ia , a nd t heir r esu l ts may we l l mod i fy c urr en t i deas o n d eve lop men t i n c rop h usbandry. The e conomic p lan ts I n t he p er iod u nder s tudy , av ery l arge n u mber o f e cono mic p lan ts a ppear i n t he b o tan ica l r ecord .

The l as t d ecade h as s een a n e normous i ncrease i n

t he r ecords o f f ood p lan ts f or t he R o man p er iod , l arge ly i n c on junc t ion w i th r escue a rchaeology c onduc ted a t L ondon , York , W inches ter a nd C o lches ter ( W i l lcox 1 977 , G re ig 1 976 , K enward a nd Wi l l iams 1 979 , Murphy 1 977 ).

The

l i s t c on ta ins s uch f ru i ts a s g rape ( V i t is v in i fera ) , f ig ( Ficus c ar ica ) , d a te , ( Phoen ix d ac tyl i fera ) , mu lberry ( Morus s pp .) a nd o l ive ( o lea e uropea ) , t he n u ts wa lnu t a nd p ine-nu t ( P inus p inea ) , t he v ege tables c ucumber ( Cucu m is s a t ivus ) , c abbage ( Brass ica o leracea ) , c e lery ( Ap iu m g raveo lens ) a nd f enne l ( Foen icu lum v u lgare ) , t he g ra in c rops l en t i l ( Lens c u l inar is ) a nd mi l le t ( Pan icu m Mi l iaceum ) a nd t he h erbs , c or iander ( Cor iandrum s a t ivu m ) , d i l l ( Ane thu m g raveo lens ) a nd a n ise ( P i mp ine l la a n isu m ).

The g enera l v iew i s

t ha t many o f t he n ew a dd i t ions a re l ess l i ke ly t o r epresen t c rop i n troduc t ions t han l uxury i mpor ts .

The v as t ma jor i ty o f t hese r ecords a re f ro m u rban s i tes ,

a l though c or iander , d i l l a nd o ne g rape p ip a re k nown f ro m r ura l.Ro manoB r i t ish s i tes ( La mbr ick a nd Rob inson 1 979 , J ones , A . 1 977 , Murphy 1 977 ). C er ta in o f t he s eeds h ave c lear ly b een i mpor ted . Wi l l iams h as p oin ted o u t t ha t s ince f igs g rown i n B r i ta in d o n o t s e t s eed , t he f ru i ts f ro m York w i th we l l d eve loped s eeds mus t b e o f f ore ign o r ig in ( Kenward a nd W i l l iams 1 979 ) a nd Murphy ( pers . c om m .) h as made t he s ame p o in t a bou t f igs f ro m C o lches ter . H e lbaek ( 1964 ) r o man t ica l ly s ugges ted t ha t t he l en t i ls a nd c h ickpeas f ro m a d epos i t i n t he l eg ionary f or tress a t I sca was i mpor ted b y t he Ro man t roops :" in a n a t te mp t t o p roduce b eer a nd p o len ta o f t he s ame a t trac t ive p roper t ies a s a t h o me" . The g rape s eeds f ro m York a re p robably b eyond t he n or thern l imi t f or t he s uccessfu l g row th o f t he v ine ( Addy man e t a l . 1 976 ) a nd t he e v idence f or R o mano-Br i t ish v i t icu l ture i n g enera l i s n ow c ons idered s l igh t ( W i l l iams 1 977 ). As upposed v ineyard a t N or th Thoresby i n L inco ln c ou ld j us t a s e as i ly b e a marke t g arden f or a n umber o f o ther f oods tu f fs ( Webs ter e t a l ., 1 967 ).

9 7

5 2

5 1

9 3 7

3 6

4 6 3 8

4 5 4 9 3 5 4 7

7 5

1 S ts

2 2 2 0

ENGLAND S omerse t :

B ucks .:

1 . B ier ton , MJ

C a mbs .:

2 . A b ing ton P iggo ts , HG

3 5 . C as ter ley , HH 3 6 . G las tonbury , HH

3 . A ldw ick Bar ley , HG 4 . Wand lebury , R enfrew 1 965

3 7 . Meare , HH

C ornwa l l :

5 . K i l l ibury , GH

3 8 . Sma l l Down ,

Devon :

6 . Trebarva th , 7 . H embury , HH

3 9 . Wor lebury , HH

Dorse t :

8 . C orfe C as t le , FG

S uf fo lk :

4 0 . Wes t S tow , PM

9 . C orfe Mu l len , P erc iva l

S ussex :

4 1 . B ishopstone ,

S urrey :

4 2 . H ascombe , PM

Wi lts .:

4 3 . F if ie ld B avan t ,

HH

Ar thur 1 977

1 934 1 0 . G ussage A l l-Sain ts , E vans a nd J ones 1 979

HH

1 1 . Ma iden C as t le , HH

4 4 . H ighf ie ld , HH

1 2 . P or t land , HH

E ssex :

1 3 . P oundbury , FG

4 5 . L idbury , HG

1 4 . Wor th Ma travers , HH

4 6 . L i t t le S o lsbury , HH

1 5 . L i t t le Wa ltha m , Wi lson

4 7 . S wa l lowc lif fe

1 979 G los .: H ants .:

Down , HG

1 6 . U ley B ury , GH

4 8 . To l lard R oya l ,

anebury , MJ 1 7 . D

E vans a nd

1 8 . M iche ldever Wood , PM 1 9 . O ld D own F ar m , PM

B ow man 1 968 4 9 . Wink lebury , HH

2 0 . C rwse lbury , PM 2 1 . P or tway , PM

S COTLAND 5 0 . D un Mor Vau l ,

2 2 . Winna l l Down , PM H er ts .:

R enfrew 1 974 WALES

2 3 . A shwe l l , J &H

5 1 . B re idden , GH

2 4 . P rae Wood , J &H

5 2 . D inorben , GH 5 3 . Wenvoe , GH

H unts .:

2 5 . God manches ter , HG

K ent :

2 6 . Wi lm ing ton , GH

N orfo lk :

2 7 . H uns tan ton , PM

2 8 . Mick le moor , HG N or than ts . 2 9 . Twywe l l , Ar thur 1 975 Oxon :

3 0 . Ab ingdon , MJ 3 1 . B er insf ie ld , MJ has t le ton , J &H 3 2 . C ardw ick , MJ 3 3 . H 3 4 . H ad ley , J &H

F ig . 6 .1

D is tr ibut ion o f I ron Age s i tes w i th s pec if ic c rop r ecords . Abbrev ia t ions u sed :

FG , c i ted i n Green 1 979 a nd t h is v o lu me ;

GH , H i l l man 1 978, 1 981a&b a nd p ers . c omm . ; HG , c i ted i n G odw in 1 975;

HH , H e lbaek 1 952;

J &H , c i ted i n J essen a nd

H e lbaek 1 944; MJ , J ones , M . 1 978 , i n L a mbr ick a nd R obinson 1 979 , a nd f or thco ming ; MM , c i ted i n Monk 1 978; 1 977 a nd p ers . c omm . 9 9

PM , Murphy

G I >

° J

4 6 4 94 8

4

4 5

4 3 4 4

2 0

2 7 2 1 2 4

5 4 3 8

2 5

3 7 26 3 3

3 9

5 2 5 5 5 0 5

1 0 9

3 10

1

3 22g 2 8 4 2

1 9

3 5 3 4

5

3 3 4

1 2 113

4 1

1 4 1 540 6

8

1 8

7

ENGLAND B ucks .:

1 . B ier ton , MJ

S ussex :

4 0 . F ishbourne , FG

C heshire :

2 . L indow Moss , HG

Wi lts .:

4 1 . R other ley , HH , HG

3 . Wi lderspoo l , GH Dorset :

4 2 . Wind m i l l H i l l ,

4 . I werne , JH

HH , HG

5 . S tock ton , HG Y orks .:

6 . S tud land, F ie ld 1 965 E ssex :

HG

7 . C o lchester , PM

4 4 . Y ork , Greig

8 . R ivenha l l , HH , HG G los .:

4 3 . Ma lton , J&H ,

1 976, K enward

9 . F roces ter , C larke 1 970

a nd Wi l lia ms

1 0 . U pton-S t-Leonards , C larke

1 979

1 971 Hants .:

S COTLAND 4 5 . B irrens , J&H ,

1 1. Miche ldever Wood, PM 1 2 .

HG, Wi lson

N eatha m , PM

1 975

1 3 . Owse lbury , PM

4 6 . C as t le C ary ,

1 4 . Por tchester , PM

J &H , HG

1 5 . P urbrook , PM

4 7 . E dinburgh , J &H ,

1 6 . Winches ter , PM , FG

HG

1 7 . Winna l l Down , FG H er ts .:

1 8 . S t . A lbans , HH , HG

K ent :

1 9 . K eston, GH

L ancs .:

2 0 . Ho 'crof t Moss , HG

N orfo lk :

2 1. Ash i l l , J ones , A . 1 977

4 8 . G lasgow , J&H , HG 4 9 . O ld K i lpa tr ick , J&H , HG

2 2 . C a ister-by-Norw ich , HG

Oxon :

5 0 .

C aer leon , HG

5 1 . C aerwent , HG

2 3 . C aster-on-Sea , PM

N o t ts .:

WALES

2 4 . S outhery , PM

5 2 . C a mar then , GH

2 5 . Thetford , PM

5 3 . L landough , GH

2 6 . Weet ing , PM

5 4 . N ew town , GH

2 7 . B unny , HG

5 5 . U sk , GH

2 8 . Abingdon , MJ 2 9 . Ber insf ie ld, MJ 3 0 . F ar moor , L a mbr ick a nd Robinson 1 979 3 1 . N or th L e igh , HG 3 2 . Radley , MJ

S omerset : 3 3 . C a tsgore , GH 3 4 . Meare , HH 3 5 . S tar V i l la , HG S uf fo lk :

3 6 . I ck lingha m , PM 3 7 . L akenhea th , PM 3 8 . S o mersha m , PM 3 9 . S towmarke t , PM

F ig . 6 .2

D is tr ibut ion o f R o mano-Br i t ish s i tes w i th s pecif ic c rop r ecords . Abbrev ia t ions a s i n F ig . 6 .1.

1 01

1 02

B eds .:

N or than ts . :2 4 . R othwe ll , J&H ,

1 . S andy , MM 2 . S tra t ton P ark , FG

C a mbs .:

HG Oxon :

3 . Barr ing ton , J&H , HG 5 . Has lingf ie ld, J& H , HG

2 6 . B er insf ie ld, MJ

6 . L i t t le Wi lbraha m , J &H ,

2 7 . Oxford, MJ 2 8 . S ut ton C our teney ,

HG 7 . Mi ldenha l l , J& H , HG

J &H , HG S uf fo lk :

8 . T uddenha m , J &H , HG Durha m :

9 . D urha m , MM

G los .:

1 0 . G loucester , FG

Hants .:

1 1. C ha lton , MM , FG

HG HG 3 1 . R edgrave , J &H ,

1 3 . Por ts mouth , MM

HG

1 4 . Por tway , FG

3 2 . S o mersha m ,

1 5 . S outha mpton , MM

J&H , HG

1 6 . Winches ter , MM , FG H unts .:

1 7 . B uckden Down , MM

K ent :

1 8 . C anterbury , MM

2 9 . I ck lingha m , J&H , 3 0 . L ackford, J&H ,

1 2 . C owdery 's Down , FG

3 3 . Wes t S tow Heath , J&H , HG S urrey :

1 9 . Graveney , HG , Wi lson a nd

3 4 . H awksh i l l , HG 3 5 . L eatherhead ,

C ono I ly 1 978 N orfo lk :

2 5 . Abingdon , J &H , HG , MJ

4 . C a mbr idge , J&H , HG

MM

2 0 . Downha m Marke t , J&H

S ussex :

3 6 . Wa lton , MM

2 1 . Grea t Y ar mouth , MM

Worcs .:

3 7 . F ladbury , MM

2 2 . O ld B uckenha m , HG

Y orks .:

3 8 . N ewmark , J&H ,

2 3 . S tanford , J& H , HG

HG 3 9 . York , MM

F ig . 6 .3

D is tr ibut ion o f Ang lo-Saxon s i tes w i th s pec if ic c rop r ecords . Abbrev ia t ions a s i n F ig . 6 .1.

1C 11

These i n troduc t ions a re t hen o f more r elevance t o l ong d is tance t rade t han t o Br i t ish c rop h usbandry.

I t i s o f c ourse a p o in t o f i n terest t o c ons ider

h ow f ar s uch p er ishab le f oodstu f fs a s f ig o r c ucumber c ou ld move w i th in c lass ica l t rade n etworks .

Ev idence f or c o mparable move men t o f f oods tu f fs

d oes n o t e x is t f or t he I ron Age , b u t o ne wonders - whe ther r igorous e nv ironmen ta l a na lysis o f l a te I ron Age o pp ida migh t n o t p roduce s im i lar e v idence . Turn ing t o t he p robab le h o me-grown c rops , t he ma jor p er iod o f i nnova t ion r e ma ins a s H e lbaek ( 1952 ) n o ted , i n t he f i rs t h a l f o f t he f i rs t m i l lenn ium BC . H e lbaek 's c o mp i la t ion s ugges ted t ha t s ix n ew s pec ies o f c rop a ppear a t t h is s tage , s pe l t whea t ( Tr i t icu m s pe l ta ) , b read whea t ( I . a es t ivu m/co mpac tum ) , r ye ( Seca le c erea le ) , c el t ic b ean ( V ic ia f aba minor ) , c o m mon o a t ( Avena s a t iva ) a nd b r is t le o a t ( Avena s tr igosa ). e ar l ier c on tex ts ;

An umber o f t hese c rops a re n ow k nown i n

t he n eo l i th ic d a te o f t he s pe l t whea t f ro m H e mbury h as b een

c onf irmed ( Field e t a l ., 1 964 );

Bronze Age b read whea t i s n ow k nown f rom

A b ingdon , O xon ( Jones , M . 1 978 ) i n a dd i t ion t o t he n eol i th ic r ecords k nown t o H e lbaek ;

al a te n eo l i th ic s eed i mpress ion h as b een i den t if ied a s V ic ia f aba

( H i l lman , p ers . c om m .).

I t s t i l l a ppears h owever t ha t t h is p er iod s aw a

c ons iderab le i n f lux o f n ew c rop t ypes .

The i n troduc t ion o f an ew s pec ies o f

s tap le i s ar are o ccurrence , a nd i n t hese t erms t h is p er iod i s t he ma in p er iod o f c hange b etween t he e ar ly N eol i th ic a nd t he 1 6th c en tury AD . A l though t h is i nnova t ion i s n orma l ly a t tr ibu ted t o t he o nse t o f t he I ron Age , i t s a c tua l t im ing i s d i f f icu l t t o d e ter m ine w i th a ny c on f idence.

The c rop r ema ins d escr ibed a s

' Ear ly I ron Age ' b y H elbaek a re d a ted b y a ssoc ia ted p o t tery a sse mb lages , wh ich u nder modern s cru t iny c an b e p laced a nywhere b e tween t he 9 th a nd 5 th c en tur ies BC ( Dav id K n igh t , p ers . c o m m.).

Two e ar ly o ccurrences o f t hese

s pec ies a re a ssoc ia ted w i th r ad iocarbon d a tes .

A n Ear ly I ron Age p i t a t

G od manches ter , Cambr idge c on ta ined a g ra in d eposi t t ha t i nc luded a t race o f s pe l t , a nd wh ich g ave a r ad iocarbon d a te o f 9 30 ± 8 0 b e ( Green , H . J . M ., u npub l ished t ypescr ip t ).

S pe l t whea t a nd c u l t iva ted o a ts were r ecovered b y

H i l lman ( pers . c o m m.) f ro m a d eposi t s ea led b y t he i nner r a mpar t o f D inorben f or t Nor th Wa les , w i th r ad iocarbon d a tes r ang ing b e tween 4 40 ± 4 5 b e a nd 5 45 ±65 b e .

I n t he l igh t o f t he c au t ion e xpressed b y H ubbard ( 1975 ) a s t o t he s ig-

n i f icance o f B ronze Age g ra in i mpress ions , i t wou ld b e u sefu l t o e xa m ine more c arbon ised s amp les f ro m t h is p er iod b efore s ugges t ing t oo p rec ise a d a te f or t hese i nnova t ions . Ap oin t t ha t t he i mproved r ecords s ugges t i s t ha t t hese i nnova t ions a re a ssoc ia ted w i th S ou thern Br i ta in .

A n a gr icu l ture i nvo lv ing em mer whea t a s

ap r inc ipa l c o mponent c on t inues i n N or thern Br i ta in . H owever , t he n ew s pec ies d o p ene tra te ; o a ts a re b eing g rown b y t he R o man p er iod i n t he n or th , a nd t here a re i so la ted r ecords o f o ther s pec ies .

B o th em mer a nd o a ts a re

t yp ica l ly s pr ing s own i n n or thern E urope a nd a s ys te m w i thou t w in ter s ow ing may b e e nv isaged , s uch a s c on t inued t o e x ist i n to t he 1 7th c en tury i n s ome p ar ts o f t he h igh lands ( App lebaum 1 954 ).

I n t h is l a ter p er iod , a u tu mn s ow ing

was a vo ided i n o rder t o max im ise w in ter g razing l and .

The s ame may w el l

h ave b een t rue i n e ar l ier p er iods . The r ecords a re s t i l l t oo p a tchy t o c o mpare t hese d eve lop men ts i nd i fferen t r eg ions o f s ou thern Br i ta in , b u t i ti s i n teres t ing t o n o te t he a bsence o f a ny t ime l ag b e tween i nnova t ions i n S ou thern E ng land a nd i n t he more r e mo te p ar ts o f Wa les ( Helbaek 1 964 , H i l l man 1 979 a nd p ers . c om m .). 1 04

I n a t te mp ts t o e xp la in t he i nnova t ions d iscussed a bove , a t ten t ion h as g enera l ly b een f ocused o n t he s pec ies t ha t c o mes t o d om ina te t he c rop r ecord , s pe l t whea t ( e .g . A pp lebau m 1 954 ).

Th is c erea l i s w e l l s u i ted t o a u tumn

s ow ing , t he A pp lebaum s ugges ts i t s i n troduc t ion may b e l i nked w i th t he d eve lopmen t o f t he a u tumn s ow ing p rac t ice .

The ma in a dvan tage o f m ixed a u tumn

a nd s pr ing s ow ing i s t ha t i ts preads t he l abour l oad a t s ow ing a nd h arves t t ime , t he p eak s easons o f t he y ear . The r e ma in ing s pec ies h ave r eceived l ess c ons idera t ion ; h ave o f ten b een d ismissed a s a rable w eeds .

r ye a nd o a ts

H owever t here s ee ms l i t t le

r eason t o s uppose t hey o ccur mere ly a s w eeds ;

t he c arbon ised a sse mb lages

i n wh ich t hey a re r ecorded a re v ir tua l ly f ree o f o ther w eeds a nd wou ld c orresp ond t o Denne l l 's s ys te m t o af u l ly p rocessed c rop ,

( Denne l l 1 974 ).

The

i n troduc t ion o f t he who le r ange o f c rop p lan ts i s more d i f f icu l t t o e xp la in t han t he i n troduc t ion o f s pe l t a lone , whose c rop c harac ters a re n o t s hared b y a l l t he o ther i ncoming s pec ies.

I n t he l i gh t o f ac er ta in amoun t o f c onfus ion t ha t

e x is ts a bou t t he e co log ica l p reference o f d if feren t c erea ls , af ew p o in ts a re h ere made a bou t t he c rops i n c u l t iva t ion a t t h is p er iod . Bar ley ( Hordeu m s p .) Var ious c lassica l a u thors r efer t o b ar ley b e ing g rown f or h uman a nd a n ima l c onsump t ion a nd f or b rew ing ( App lebau m 1 972 ).

A r ange o f

s ix-row

b ar leys o ccur t hroughou t t he c rop r ecord , b o th n aked a nd h u l led , a nd d ense a nd l ax e ared f orms .

C au t ion i s n eeded i n mak ing t he l a t ter d is t inc t ion , a s

e xa m ina t ion f ro m t he l arge b ody o f ma ter ia l f rom t he A shv i l le s i te , A bingdon , Oxon h as s uggested t ha t e ar ly c rop v ar iet ies may n ot h ave b een a s g enet ica l ly d iscrete a s t heir modern c oun terpar ts ,

( Jones , M . 1 978 ).

Th is p robably

a pp l ies t o many c rop s pec ies wh ich a re i nheren t ly more l i ke ly t han w i ld s pec ies t o h ave u ndergone m icro-evo lu t ionary c hange .

The c o m mon a ssump t ion t ha t

a l l c rop p lan ts e ncoun tered i n a rchaeo log ica l c on tex ts f a l l w i th in t he g ene t ic r ange o f t he mot ley c o l lec t ion o f v ar ie t ies t ha t h ave r eached modern h erbar ia a nd p lan t b reed ing s ta t ions i s a n u nsound b as is f or e xam ina t ion , a nd may o f ten l ead t o s pur ious r esu l ts .

Th is c au t ion a lso a pp l ies t o c rop e co logy.

C urren t

i deas a bou t wha t i s g ood l and f or b ar ley a re d omina ted b y t he r equ ire men ts o f t he b rew ing i ndus try , wh ich r equ ires a v ery s pec i f ic q ua l i ty o f b ar ley.

The

r ange o f c ond i t ions i n wh ich b ar ley c an g row i s e x treme ly b road : f ro m t he Arc t ic C irc le t o t he s ubtrop ics , a nd t o h e igh ts o f 1 2 , 0 00 f t i n S .E. A s ia . I tg rows we l l o n b o th h eavy a nd l i gh t s o i ls , a nd c an b e s own i n e i ther w in ter o r s pr ing ( Bel l 1 948 , B land 1 971 ).

The s upposed c orre la t ion b etween d i f feren t

f orms o f b ar ley a nd b est t ime o f s ow ing ;

i n ferred b y A pp lebaum ( 1 954 ) a nd

s ubsequen t ly q uo ted b y C un l if fe ( 1974 ) a nd Brad ley ( 1978 ) , i s b ased o n a misu nders tand ing o f Beaven ( 1947 ) a nd t here i s n o e v idence t ha t i ti s g enera l ly a pp l icable . Bar ley may p o ten t ia l ly b e g rown u n iversa l ly i n Br i ta in , e xcep t where t he d ra inage i s v ery p oor , o r where t he p H i s b elow 6 ( B land 1 971 ).

T hroughou t

t he p er iod u nder s tudy , b ar ley o ccurs w i th g rea ter f requency i n S ou thern Br i ta in a nd Wa les , a nd t he p auc i ty o f R o mano-Br i t ish s amp les f ro m t h is r eg ion i n H e lbaek 's l i s t may e xp la in t he a pparen t r ar i ty o f b ar ley i n h is R o manoBr i t ish r ecord ( He lbaek 1 952 ) .

P resen t e v idence i n f ac t s ugges ts t ha t b ar ley

c ou ld b e t he d om inan t c erea l i n t he S o merse t a rea a t t h is s tage .

I n c on tras t ,

a s men t ioned e ar l ier , b ar ley may b e o ver-represen ted i n t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod . 1 05

Whea t ( Tr i t icum s pp .) I n t he s ame way t ha t b ar ley i s n o t n ecessar i ly a c rop o f l i gh t s oi ls , n or a re a l l t he whea ts n ecessar i ly a ssoc ia ted w i th h eavy s o i ls .

The v ar ious

s pec ies o f whea t h ave v arying a nd s o me t i mes c on tras t ing e co log ica l p references a nd s hou ld b e t rea ted i nd iv idua l ly. ( a ) Em mer ( Tr i t icum d icoccum) The e co log ica l p references o f em mer whea t a re v ery d if feren t f ro m t hose o f modern b read whea t .

Whereas t he l a t ter g rows w el l o n h eavy bar ns , em mer

i s w e l l-su i ted t o t he l i gh t a nd d ry e x tre mes .

C o lume l la ( I 9 .3 ) s ugges ts t ha t

h eavy c lay we t s o i l i s s u i tab le f or f ar a doreum , wh ich i s n orma l ly t rans la ted a s em mer .

T h is i s p uzzl ing i n t he l i gh t o f t he modern e co log y o f t h is c erea l ,

a nd i ti s s ugges ted h ere t ha t C o lu me l la may b e r eferr ing t o a whea t more s imi lar t o s pe l t . Emmer i s r e la t ive ly f ros t s uscep t ible a nd f or t h is r eason , a l though w in ter s own v ar ie t ies a re k nown , i ti s p robably b e t ter s u i ted t o s pr ing s ow ing ( Perc iva l 1 921 ). Emmer i s t he p r inc ipa l whea t i n n eo l i th ic a nd Bronze Age r ecords f ro m Br i ta in .

W i th in t he l im i ts o f i n ference f ro m s parse r ecords , i t s i mpor tance

s eems t o c on t inue i n t he h igh land z one i n to l a ter p er iods . F or t he I ron Age , r ecords a re a bsen t n or th o f H er t fordsh ire a nd O x fordsh ire , a nd c rop h usbandry i s a n u nknown i n t he b u lk o f t he h igh land z one .

H owever , a s o ne moves f ro m

e as t t o wes t i n S ou thern Br i ta in , a n i ncrease i n t he o ccurrence o f em mer i s c lear ly d iscernab le . An u mber o f r ecords o f R o man d a te i n t he E d inburgh a nd G lasgow r eg ion , a nd o ne e ar ly C hr is t ian r ecord a t E d inburgh , s ugges t t ha t , a s men t ioned a bove , em mer r e ma ined t he c o m mones t whea t i n t h is p ar t o f t he h igh land z one .

I n

t he l ow land z one , i ti s n o t u nco m mon i n e i ther p er iod , b u t g enera l ly s econdary i n i mpor tance t o s pe l t whea t .

I t was s t i l l g rown i n s ca t tered l oca l i t ies

t hroughou t t he w or ld i n t he 1 9 th c en tury a nd i s s t i l l a n i mpor tan t c rop i n t he E th iop ian H igh lands . Em mer whea t p roduces f l our o f e xcep t iona l ly g ood q ua l i ty , b o th i n n u tr it i ona l a nd g as tronomic t erms .

I t s p ro tein c on ten t i s s ubs tan t ia l ly ' h igher t han

t ha t o f modern b read whea t , a nd i t was f avoured i n 1 9th c en tury G er many f or i t s f i ne wh i te f l our a nd i t s b ak ing q ua l i ty.

I n s oup i t was c onsidered s uper ior

t o p ear l b ar ley o r s pe l t ( Perc iva l 1 921 ). ( b ) S pe l t ( Tr i t icum s pel ta ) The r ecords s ugges t t ha t t h is c rop e n joyed g rea t s uccess i n S ou th Br ita in t hroughou t t he I ron Age a nd R o man p er iods , b u t d im in ished i n p ro minence t herea f ter , w i th t he g row ing o ccurrence o f b read whea t . S pel t w i l l g row o n t he h eav ier s o i ls a ssoc ia ted w i th b read whea t , a nd a lso o n d r ier a nd l i gh ter s oi ls . I t s ma in c harac ter is t ic i s i t s h ard iness t o c o ld , w ind , d iseases a nd p es ts .

Th is h ard iness a l lows i tt o b e g rown t oday

i n t he S chwabian A lps n ear S tu t tgar t t o a l t i tudes o f 3 000 f t . i dea l f or w in ter s ow ing i n NW Europe ( Perc iva l 1 921 ).

1 06

I ta lso makes i t

S pe l t h as e xcel len t b ak ing a nd mi l ling p roper t ies a nd f or t h is r eason , i t s c u l t iva t ion i n G ermany was e ncouraged d ur ing t he 3 rd R e ich , a s H i t ler was c oncerned t ha t h is f oreign h ard whea t s upp l ies wou ld b e c u t o f f .

T oday

p eop le c o m mu te f or m i les t o b uy d inke lbro t f ro m t he o ne b aker i n S tu t tgar t who s t i l l u ses s pe l t whea t . ( c ) Bread Whea t ( Tr i t icum a es t ivum/co mpac tu m ) Th is c erea l g rows we l l o n ' s trong l and ' w i th a s ign if icant p ropor t ion o f s i l t o r c lay , a nd a lso r esponds w e l l t o h igh n i trogen l eve ls ( Bland 1 97 1 ) . h as b ecome t yp ica l ly a ssoc ia ted w i th d eep c lay bar ns i n Br i ta in .

I t

Ad ense

e ared f orm n or ma l ly r eferred t o a s ' c lub whea t ' ( Tr i t icu m c o mpac tum i s k nown , a nd may h ave b een i mpor tant i n t he R o man p er iod .

H owever i ti s

g ene t ica l ly v ery c lose t o b read whea t s ensu s tr ic to , T . a es t ivum , a nd t he d is t inc t ion may n ot b e s igni f ican t . One t h ing t ha t emerges f ro m a n e xamina t ion o f t he s o-ca l led p r im i t ive w hea ts i s t ha t t hey d o h ave p os i t ive c harac ter is t ics n o t s hared b y b read whea t . T here h as b een a t endency t o r egard b read whea t , wh ich h as s ince b eco me t he mos t e x tens ive ly u sed b io log ica l r esource ,of a l l t ime , a s i nheren t ly s uper ior t o p r im i t ive c erea ls .

Th is i s c lear ly r efu ted b y t he c rop r ecord , i n wh ich

b read whea t r e ma ins n o more t han a m inor c o mponen t f or a t l eas t f our mi ll enn ia f o l low ing i t s e ar ly n eo l i th ic i n troduc t ion .

I ndeed , i td oes h ave t he

a dvan tages o f w in ter h ard iness , ah igh y ie ld p o ten t ia l a nd a l oose ly p acked e ar t ha t i s e as i ly t hreshed .

Bu t t ha t s ame c harac ter o f l oose p ack ing i n t he

e ar r enders t he s eed f ar more v u lnerab le t o a t tack , e spec ia l ly f rom b irds a nd f ung i .

Bread whea t i s a lso a p oorer c o mpe t i tor w i th w eeds a nd n eeds a

g rea ter s o i l f er t i l i ty t han o ther whea ts . I ti s t yp ica l o f a r t if ic ia l ly b red s pec ies i n t ha t d ur ing t he c ourse o f s e lec t ion f or s ing le c harac ters , i th as l os t many o f i t s n a tura l s urv iva l c harac ter ist ics , a nd t herefore d e mands f ar more c are a nd a t tent ion f or i t s h igher p o ten t ia l y ields t o b e r ea l ised . B y t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod , b read whea t h as b eco me t he mos t f requen t ly o ccurr ing whea t .

Monk ( 1978 ) a f ter c loser a na lys is o f s amp les f ro m t he

Wessex a rea , p u ts b read whea t 's r ise t o d om inance i n t he l a te R o man p er iod . H e s ugges ts t ha t t h is r ise i s d ue t o b read whea t 's g rea ter s u i tabi l i ty f or h eavy s o i l .

A l i nk w i th h eavy s oi l i s s ubs tan t ia ted b y g ra in f i nds f ro m •la te I ron Age

c on tex ts a t B ier ton , B ucks . as i te whose c a tchmen t i s d om ina ted b y c lay s o i ls . A l though b read whea t i s n orma l ly o n ly a minor c o mponen t o f a sse mb lages o f t h is d a te , i ti s e asi ly t he mos t a bundan t c erea l a t B ier ton ( Jones , M. f or thc om ing ). s o i ls .

H owever t he w hea t t ha t p recedes i t , s pe l t , i s a lso s u i ted t o h eavy

The r e la t ionsh ip w i th h eavy s o i ls i s o n ly a p ar t ia l e xp lana t ion .

I ti s

h ere s uggested t ha t b read whea t was f avoured when , a nd o n ly when i tb ecame b o th p oss ible a nd d es irab le t o i nves t t he g rea ter amoun t o f f er t i l iser , a nd man h ours i n t he f orm o f c u l t iva t ion a nd weed ing , t ha t wou ld b e n ecessary t o o b ta in t he h igh y ield p o ten t ia l o f b read whea t , a nd t ha t t h is was o nly o ne s tage i n t he g radua l s h i f t f ro m l i gh ter t o h eav ier s oi ls . G reen ( 1979 ) h as p o in ted o u t t ha t t he e ase o f t hresh ing a nd t herefore r emova l o f was te , wou ld s ubs tan t ia l ly r educe t ranspor t c os ts , a nd t h is c ou ld b e ac on tr ibu tory f ac tor i n t he c ho ice o f b read whea t a t as tage when t rade i n f oods tu f fs was e xpand ing .

1 07

Oa ts ( Avena s pp .) C u l t iva ted o a ts a re u nfor tuna te ly o n ly d is t ingu ishab le f rom w i ld o a ts when c er ta in f rag men ts o f c ha f f , t he f l ore t b ases , a re p resen t .

T hese a re r e la-

t ive ly i n frequen t , b u t e nough o ccur t o i so la te t wo s pec ies o f c u l t iva ted o a t i n a t l eas t t wo I ron Age s i tes i n D orse t , F if ie ld Bavan t a nd Ma iden Cas t le . R ecords o f o a ts f or t he I ron Age i n g enera l c luster a round t he G louces ter S ou thamp ton a x is , b u t a s o u t l ined e ar l ier , t h is may b e t he r esu l t o f u neven s amp l ing .

The s ame i s t rue o f A ng lo-Saxon r ecords o f o a ts , wh ich c oncen-

t ra te i n t he s ou th a nd e as t , a s d o t he s i tes f or wh ich r ecords e x is t .

I n t he

i n terven ing R o man p er iod , o a ts a re more e x tens ive , a nd o ccur i n v ir tua l ly a l l s amp les r ecovered f ro m t he h igh land z one .

A pp lebaum ( 1 972 ) h as s ug-

g es ted t ha t t h is h igh land c u l t iva t ion o f o a ts may h ave b een s t imu la ted b y t he mi l i tary d e mand f or h orse f odder .

The t o lerance o f o a ts t o a c id a nd i n fer t i le

s oi ls i s h igh , a nd t he i ncreas ing d evelop men t o f t hese s o i ls i n t he h igh land z one may b e as u f f ic ien t e xp lana t ion .

I t wou ld b e u sefu l t o e s tab l ish w he ther

o a ts w ere a s c o m mon i n t he h igh land z one i n t he I ron Age , b u t s u f f ic ien t d a ta h ave n ot b een c o l lec ted . O a ts p re fer a m i lder mo is ter g row ing s eason t han whea t o r b ar ley a nd a re l ess f ros t h ardy.

They a re t herefore g enera l ly b et ter s u i ted t o s pr ing

s ow ing t han w in ter s ow ing , a l though w in ter-sown v ar iet ies d o o ccur .

B ecause

o f t he ir h igh wa ter r equ ire men t , t hey g row b es t o n d eep-re ten t ive bar ns a nd c lay bar ns ( Be l l 1 948 ). R ye ( Seca le c erea le ) Th is v ery h ardy c rop c an b e g rown o n a l l s o i ls e xcep t t he v ery h eavy c lays .

I tp refers g ood s o i l b u t l i ke o a ts , c an t o lera te a c id i ty a nd l ow f er t i l i ty ,

a nd c an a lso t o lera te v ery d ry s oi ls b et ter t han mos t c erea ls i n Br i ta in . i s s u i tab le f or b o th a u tumn a nd s pr ing s ow ing ( Be l l 1 948 , B land 1 971 ) .

R ye

R ye a ppears i n f our I ron Age s i tes i n D orse t , Wi l tsh ire a nd H ampsh ire . E leven o ccurrences a re k nown t o t he a u thor f ro m R o man Br i ta in s pann ing f ro m Ows lebury i n Hampsh ire t o t he s ou th ( Murphy 1 977 ). Carmar then t o t he wes t ( H i l l man 1 978 ) a nd E d inburgh t o t he n or th ( Jessen a nd H e lbaek 1 944 ) , a nd i nc lud ing r ecords s ca t tered a round t he mid lands a nd n or th E ng land . A ng lo-Saxon p er iod , s ix r ecords a re k nown , a ga in w ide ly i ti s n ot r ecorded i n t he f ew r ecords i n N or thern E ng land .

I n t he

s c a t tered ,

t hough

C hess/Bro me ( Bromus s pp .) I n a dd i t ion t o t he c onven t iona l s pec ies u se may a lso h ave b een made o f p lan ts t ha t a re n or ma l ly c ons idered t o b e w i ld . The mos t f requen ly r e ferred t o i s t he g enus o f g rass Bro mus , a nd i n p ar t icu lar , Bro mus s eca l inus . H e lbaek n o t iced t ha t s eeds o f Bro mus o ccur f requen t ly among I ron A ge g ra in s amp les .

C hess c an o ccas iona l ly d om ina te c arbon ised a sse mblages ( Jones

1 978 : 1 01 ) , a nd Hubbard ( 1975 ) h as a rgued t ha t i t may h ave b een a c rop i n i t s own r igh t .

I t wou ld c er ta in ly b e o f i n teres t t o k now whe ther t he Bro mos

r eferred t o b y P l iny ( N .H . XV I I I : x x : 9 3 ) a nd n orma l ly t rans la ted a s ' oa ts ' i n f ac t r efers t o t h is s pec ies . To a sk whe ther o r n ot p lan ts s uch a s Bromus were c rops may b e a n i nva l id q ues t ion .

U n t i l r ecen t ly , a nd i n many p ar ts o f t he wor ld s t i l l t oday , t he d iv is ion

1 08

d rawn b etween c rop a nd w i ld p lan t was l ess s harp b y f ar t han i t i s i n t he modern wes tern w or ld .

Ah eavy r e l iance o n s pec ies o ther t han wha t was

s own i n t he f i e lds was c om mon .

I n Den mark t o t he p resen t c en tury , t he s eeds

o f c hess were c o l lec ted a nd g round t o f l our , a s af at a ine f ood i n y ears t he r ye c rop f a i led .

C hess w ou ld b e t he w eed t ha t d o mina ted t hese f a i led f i e lds .

I n

many p ar ts o f t he N ear Eas t t oday , t he c u l t iva ted g round i s n ot e xpec ted t o p roduce t he s own c rop i n i so la t ion .

I n s o me c ases t he h arves t i nc ludes a

g rea ter y ie ld o f wha t w e w ou ld c a l l t he w eeds , t han o f t he s own c rop i t sel f ( e .g . Z ohary 1 967 : 2 26 ).

O u ts ide t he modern Wes tern w or ld , t he b inary d is-

t i nc t ion b e tween c rop a nd w i ld p lan t i s t oo c oarse ;

a who le r ange o f p oss ib le

man-p lant r e la t ionsh ips mus t b e c ons idered ( c f . H iggs e t a l . 1 972 ) . C e l t ic b ean ( V ic ia f aba v ar . m inor ) Th is sma l l f orm o f b ean i s c o m mon t hroughou t p reh is tor ic E urope .

I t

a ppears i n B r i ta in i n t hree I ron Age s i tes a round t he S o merse t L eve ls , a nd t wo o ther I ron Age s i tes , i n D orse t a nd Hampsh ire.

Two l a te Bronze Age

r ecords a re c i ted b y G reen ( t h is v o lu me ) , a nd t hey a lso o ccur s porad ica l ly i n l a ter d epos i ts . L ike a l l l egumes , C e l t ic b ean h as t he a bi l i ty t o r estore n i trogen t o t he s o i l , where in l i es i t s i mpor tance t o a gr icu l ture . They may b e s own i n s pr ing o r w inter , b u t t he l a t ter o n ly i n mi ld w in ters f o l lowed b y warm d ry s pr ings ( B land 1 971 ).

I n t he l i gh t o f c l ima t ic d evelopmen ts e ar ly i n t he f irs t mi l lenn ium

BC ( Lamb , t h is v o lume ) i t s ee ms l i ke ly t ha t C e l t ic b ean was u sed a t t h is s tage a s as pr ing-sown c rop . The i n troduc t ion o f t he a u tumn s ow ing p rac t ice i s i nsuf f ic ien t a s a n e xp lana t ion o f t he i n f lux o f c rops i n t he f irs t mi l lenn ium BC .

Wh i ls t i ti s

a ppropr ia te f or s pe l t , a nd b read whea t , r ye i s e qua l ly w e l l-su i ted a nd o a ts a nd b eans a re b e t ter s u i ted t o s pr ing s ow ing .

I n a dd i t ion , t he i mproved

k now ledge o f c on te mporary weed f l oras a l lows a n i ndependen t e s t ima te o f s ow ing t ime .

Brench ley a nd War ing ton ( 1 930 ) emphas ised t ha t t ime o f s ow ing

i so ne o f t he k ey d e term inan ts o f t he w eed f l ora , wh ich c onsequen t ly b eco mes a n i dea l i nd ica tor o f s ow ing t ime ( van Z e is t 1 974 , J ones , M . 1 978 ). Au tu mn g ermina t ing weeds s uch a s G a l iu m a par ine a nd V eron ica h ederaefo l ia a re n ow k nown a s w eed i mpur i t ies i n e ar l ier d epos i ts o f c arbon ised g ra in , s uggest ing t ha t t he a u tumn s ow ing p rac t ice c an b e b ack d a ted a t l eas t t o t he B ronze Age . O ne w onders whe ther b e t ter e v idence w i l l l i nk i t s i n troduc t ion w i th t he a ppearance o f o rgan ised f i e ld s ys te ms , b u t t h is i s o u ts ide t he s cope o f t h is p aper . Wh i ls t t he ir e co log ica l p references v ary , t he c o m mon f ea ture o f t he f i rs t m i l lenn iu m c rop i n troduc t ions i s t he ir a b i l i ty t o c ope w i th u n favourab le c ond i t ions i n o ne f orm o r a no ther .

S pe l t whea t a nd b read whea t a re more f ros t-

h ardy t han em mer , a nd c ou ld p roduce a c rop o n s o i ls t oo d amp o r h eavy f or e i ther em mer o r b ar ley.

R ye a nd o a ts c ou ld b e s uccessfu l ly g rown o n t he a c id

a nd i n fer t i le s o i ls t ha t h ad b eco me i ncreas ing ly c o m mon i n l a ter p reh is tory , a nd c e l t ic b ean wou ld r ep len ish n i trogen t o s our s o i ls . The i n troduc t ion o f t h is g roup o f c rops c an p erhaps b es t b e e xp la ined a s ad ivers if ica t ion o f t he c rop r eper toire i n o rder t o a l low b o th t he s us tenance o f c u l t iva t ion o n d e ter iora t ing l and t he t he e xpans ion o n to h i ther to marg ina l l ands , i n t he f ace o f t he i ncreas ing ly

1 09

f requen t w inds a nd s torms s ugges ted b y L amb ( t h is v o lume ).

I t i s a t t h is

p er iod a lso t ha t t he r a te o f a l luv ia l s oi l move men t s ee ms t o i ncrease ( Be l l , t h is v o lume ) a nd t ha t t he r a te o f n ew w ood land c learance g a ins f resh mo ment um ( Turner , t h is v o lume ). Th is e xp lana t ion i s s uppor ted b y t he p o ten t ia l c rop t ha t d id n ot f orm p ar t o f t h is i n f lux , mi l le t ( Pan icum mi l iaceum ).

Th is c erea l o ccurs f requen t ly

i n t he c on t inen ta l r ecords , a nd i t s a bsence f ro m Br i ta in may b e e xp la ined i n t erms o f t he l ack o f d e mand f or a n ew c erea l t ha t was n ot t o leran t o f u nfavoura b le s i tua t ions i n t he s ame way a s t he o ther i nco m ing s pec ies . F ew f ur ther i n troduc t ions o ccur i n t he c rop r ecord f ro m r ura l s i tes o ver t he n ex t t wo m i l lenn ia . The f i e ld p ea ( P isu m s a t ivum ) a ppears a t I ron Age B ishops tone ( Ar thur 1 977 ) a nd R o man Ows lebury ( Murphy 1 977 ) a nd f l ax ( L inu m u s i ta t iss imum ) i n R o man d epos i ts a t Meare , S o merse t a nd t wo U pper Tha mes Va l ley s i tes ( Jessen a nd H e lbaek 1 944 , R obinson 1 979 a nd f or thco ming ) . F lax i s a lso k nown f ro m n eo l i th ic a nd Bronze Age c on tex ts ( Helbaek 1 952 ) , a nd i t s a bsence f ro m I ron Age d epos i ts may b e a ssoc ia ted w i th i t s p oor t o le rance o f f ros ts a nd h eavy r a ins ( K irby 1 965 ).

H ops ( Humu lus l upu lus ) , woad

( I sa t is t i nc tor ia ) a nd h e mp ( Cannabis s a t iva ) a ppear i n A ng lo-Sa xon c on tex ts , a nd t he l a t ter makes a n a pprec iab le c on tr ibu t ion t o t he p o l len f ro m O ld Buckenham Mere , N or fo lk ( Godw in 1 968 ). S o f ar , o n ly q ua l i ta t ive c hange i n t he c rop r ecord h as b een d iscussed . There i s c lear ly q uan t i ta t ive c hange t oo , a l though t h is i s more d if f icu l t t o a ssess s a t isfac tor i ly.

An u mber o f s ta t is t ica l a pproaches h ave b een s ug-

g es ted ( e .g . R enfrew 1 967 , H ubbard 1 975 , G reen 1 979 , J ones , G . 1 979 ) t hough n one h as s ucceeded i n mee t ing u n iversa l a ccep tance .

Denne l l ( 1 974 )

h as a rgued f or t he i mpor tance o f u nders tand ing more f u l ly t he c rop-process ing a c t iv i t ies t o wh ich a rchaeo log ica l r e ma ins h ad b een s ub jec ted , b efore c ons truc t ing s uch mode ls .

The d is tr ibu t ion o f s i tes f or wh ich r ecords o ccur i s

a t p resen t p erhaps t oo h aphazard t o a l low d e ta i led q uan t i ta t ive c o m men t . H ubbard 's p resence v a lue f or r ye r each ing z ero a t . at ime when t he S axons r eferred t o August a s Ruggern , t he mon th o f t he R ye h arves t , i s p erhaps a n e xa mp le o f t he t ype o f d i f f icu l ty t ha t c an a r ise. N one theless , d is t inc t t rends c an b e i nferred f ro m t he q ua l i ta t ive c hanges a lone .

C er ta in o f t he c rops t ha t a ppear i n t he l a ter p er iods , f lax , h ops a nd

h e mp i n p ar t icu lar , s how a p reference f or t he d eep r e ten t ive bar ns t ha t i n Br i ta in o ccur o n h eavy l ow ly ing g round ( K irby 1 965 ).

They a re a r ef lec t ion

o f t he s h i f t o f emphas is , r eferred t o a t t he b eg inn ing o f t h is p aper , f ro m t he l i gh ter u p land s o i ls t o t he h eav ier s o i ls i n t he v a l leys .

The i nnova t ions o f t he

f i rs t h a l f o f t he f i rs t mi l lenn ium BC may b e d irec t ly r e la ted t o t h is s h i f t .

I f

t hese i nnova t ions r epresen t t he a bi l i ty t o e xpand o n to h i ther to marg ina l l and , t he f o l low ing d eve lop men ts r epresen t t he i ncreasing c oncen tra t ion o n t he o ne t ype o f marg ina l l and t ha t h ad l ong t erm p oten t ia l , t he h eavy i n trac tab le s oils . O nce s u f f ic ien t means o f d ra inage a nd c u l t iva t ion were a cqu ired , t hese s o i ls c eased t o b e marg ina l , a nd t he ir g rea ter d ep th made t he m t he o p t ima l s oi ls f or a gr icu l ture .

I ti s s ign if ican t t ha t o f t he c rop s pec ies t ha t a ppear i n t he

f i rs t h a lf o f t he f irs t mi l lenn ium BC , s pec ies s u ited t o h eav ier s o i ls i m media te ly p redo mina te a nd c on t inue t o d o s o t hroughou t f ur ther d eve lop men ts .

The v ar i-

o us l i nes o f e v idence t ha t may r ef lec t b oth t he c hanges i n emphasis o n h eavy a nd d amp s o i ls , a nd a gr icu l tura l i n tens if ica t ion i n g enera l , a re c ons idered b e low . 1 10

The Cu l t iva t ion o f h eavy a nd d amp g round One c onsequence o f i mproved f i e ldwork i n r ecen t y ears h as b een t he r ea l isa t ion t ha t h eavy a nd d amp s oi ls w ere b e ing e xp loi ted i n t h is p er iod t o af ar g rea ter e x ten t t han h ad p rev ious ly b een e nv isaged . Areas o f p redo m in an t ly c lay s o i ls i n t he Wea ld , E ssex a nd N or thamp tonsh ire w ere b eing s e t t led p r ior t o t he i s t c en tury BC ( Cun l i f fe 1 976 ) a nd a t l eas t o ne i ns tance o f p reR o man a rd- marks o n c lay i s k nown ( Ever ton a nd F ow ler 1 978 ).

Brad ley

( 1978 ) h as p oin ted o u t t ha t 2 2 p er c en t o f e ar ly o r midd le I ron Age s i tes k nown t o t he O rdnance S urvey i n 1 967 were s i tua ted i n a reas o f h eavy s o i l .

The

e xpanding c u l t iva t ion o f c lay s oi ls i s r ef lec ted i n t he a ppearance i n t he c arb onised weed f l ora o f as pec ies o f mayweed .

A n the mis c otu la .

Th is weed

o f c u l t iva ted g round i s mos t f requen t o n h eavy c lay a nd c lay l oam s o i ls ( Kay 1 971 ).

I ron Age r ecords a re k nown f ro m A b ingdon a nd D orches ter-on-Thames

i n Oxon , a nd B ier ton i n B ucks , t hough o n ly a s i nd iv idua l s eeds .

I to ccurs

a bundan t ly i n i s t c entury AD d epos i ts f rom S ou th Wa les ( H i l l man , p ers . c om m .) a nd i n many p ar ts o f t he c oun try i s q u i te c o m mon i n R o mano-Br i t ish d epos i ts , a nd v ery c o m mon i n med ieva l d epos i ts .

I n York , i ti s t yp ica l o f R o mano-

Br i t ish a nd med ieva l a sse mb lages ( Addy man e t a l . 1 976 ) a nd i n Wessex i t b eco mes a t yp ica l c omponen t b y t he l a te S axon p er iod ( Green 1 979 ).

I tw ou ld

c lear ly b e u sefu l t o f o l low t he o ccurrence o f t h is s pec ies i n g rea ter d eta i l . I n as i mi lar way , t he e xp lo i ta t ion o f s o i ls , e i ther l i gh t o r h eavy , t ha t a re u nfavourab ly d amp i s r ef lec ted i n t he b ehav iour o f s pec ies o f d amp g round o ccurring a s i mpur i t ies i n c arbon ised g ra in a sse mblages .

S uch s pec ies ,

a nd i n p ar t icu lar , E leochar is p a lus tr is a re p ar t icu lar ly c o m mon i n c arbon ised a sse mblages o f aw ide r ange o f d a tes , i n v ar ious p ar ts o f N or thern Europe ( He lbaek 1 954 , v an Z e is t 1 968 ) a nd o n s i tes f ro m a v ar ie ty o f l oca t ions , f ro m r iver v a l ley f armsteads t o t he we l l-dra ined s i te o f Danebury h i l l f or t ( Jones , M. 1 978 a nd i n C un l if fe , f or thco m ing ).

The ir p resence i s p resumably a sso-

c ia ted w i th t he c u l t iva t ion o f l owlying g round ;

i n t he U pper Tha mes Va l ley

t hey a re mos t a bundan t i n s i tes c lose t o t he r iver .

I th as a lso b een s ugges ted

t ha t t he d ampness o f s o i ls i n a ny p os i t ion wou ld h ave b een e nhanced b y l ong p er iods o f s ha l low c u l t iva t ion , wh ich w ou ld t end t o c rea te i mpermeable p ans a nd s ubso i l s treams ( R . J . C hance l lor , p ers . c o m m.) wh ich may i n p ar t e xp la in t he f requency o f d amp g round s pec ies i n c arbon ised a ss mblages f ro m s uch a v ar ie ty o f c on tex ts . The e nv iron men ta l e v idence may b e s een i n t he c on tex t o f t he c on te mporary d evelopmen ts i n t i l lage t echno logy a s s urveyed b y Rees ( 1979 ). o f t i l lage e qu ip men t i s d iscussed b y R ees i n g rea t d eta i l .

Aw ide r ange

Wi thou t w ish ing t o

u nderra te t he c on tr ibu t ion o f s ubs id iary t oo ls o f t i l lage , a t ten t ion h ere w i l l b e c onf ined t o d eve lopmen ts i n t he a rd o r p lough , t ha t a re c ons idered t o b e o f mos t r elevance t o t he t i l lage o f h eavy o r d amp g round . I ti s l i ke ly t ha t v ar ious t ypes o f a rd were u sed t hroughou t t he p er iod u nder s tudy.

Wooden p ar ts o f a rds a re k nown f ro m a s l a te a s t he 3 rd c en tury

AD i n l ow land Br i ta in ( Fow ler 1 978 ) a nd l a ter o n t he c on t inen t .

The D 9 Snnerup land-

t ype s hare f ro m A bingdon , Oxon s hows t he t race o f a me ta l c app ing , a nd e qu iv a len t meta l c aps a re f ar more c o m mon t han t he wooden p ar ts t he mse lves. The c app ing o f s hares w i th i ron , wh ich wou ld g rea t ly i ncrease t he d urab i l i ty o f t he i mp lemen t , a ppears e ar ly i n t he I ron Age .

1 11

I ron s hare t i ps a re k nown

f ro m t he f irs t p hase a t G ussage A l l-Sa in ts , D orse t ( Wa inwr igh t 1 979 ) , a nd f ro m a p ro mon tory h i l l top e nc losure w i th a t imberlaced r ampar t a t Budbury ( Wa inwr igh t 1 970 ). S uch a s hare was p robably r espons ib le f or t he c r issc ross a rd- marks o n c lay a t Fa l f ield , Avon ( Ever ton a nd F ow ler 1 978 ). A s er ies o f o ne way a rd marks o f R o mano-Br i t ish d a te h ave b een r ecovered , a nd o ne g roup o n c lay a t Rudches ter f or t , s hows e v idence o f s l igh t r idg ing b e tween t he a rd f urrows . Th is c an p erhaps b e a ssoc ia ted w i th a f ur ther d eve lop men t i n t i l lage t echno log y , s ubsequen t ly d escr ibed b y Pa l lad ius ( 0 .A . I : XL I I I : 1 ) . " P loughs ;

s imp le , o r , i ft he o pen n a ture o f t he t erra in p erm i ts ,

e ared , s o t ha t w i th t he l a t ter i t may b e p oss ible t o r a ise u p t he p lan ts o n ad eeper f urrow t o c oun terac t t he h igh wa ter t ab le i n w in ter"—K . D . Wh i te 's t rans la t ion. T i l lage w i th " eared" p loughs wou ld a lso h ave b een u sefu l f or b reak ing s ubsoi l p ans t ha t may h ave d eve loped i n t he manner o u t l ined a bove . The e x is tence o f e ared p loughs i n Br i ta in i s k nown f rom a s er ies o f b ronze mode ls o f p oss ib le 2 nd c en tury o r 3 rd c en tury AD d a te. Th is n eed n ot b e t heir e ar l ies t o ccurrence ; t he Rudches ter a rd- marks a re p re-Hadr ian ic , a nd a s er ies o f w ooden s hares a re k nown , s imi lar i n f orm t o t he s hare o f t he S ussex mode l , o ne o f wh ich b ears a r ad iocarbon d a te o f 4 00 ± 9 0 b c . A s er ies o f v ery s ign i f ican t d evelop men ts h as o ccurred b y t he 3 rd o r 4 th c entury AD , when amongs t t he i nnova t ions a re c ou l ters a nd a ssy me tr ic s hares. Ev idence o f t he mou ld-board i t se l f i s s t i l l l ack ing b efore t he 1 2th c en tury , b u t R ees i s p repared t o i n fer t he e x is tence o f a mou ld b oard p lough i n t he l a ter R o man p er iod , a n a dap ta t ion c lear ly a i med a t t he more e f f ic ien t u t i l isa t ion o f d eep h eavy bar ns .

Two f ur ther d evelop men ts may b e o bserved i n 1 0 th

c en tury AD manuscr ip t i l lus tra t ions , t he o ccurrence o f whee ls a nd o f s w ings hares ( Payne 1 947 ) , s ign ifying t he e x is tence o f e ver l arger a nd h eav ier p loughs . Af ur ther a c t iv i ty c onnec ted w i th t he c u l t iva t ion o f h eavy d a mp g round i s t he w idespread c u t t ing o f d ra inage d i tches .

Robinson ( t h is v o lu me ) h as o b-

s erved t ha t al andscape i nvo lv ing d i tch-d igg ing o n al arge s ca le a ppeared i n t he U pper Thames V a l ley i n t he l a te I ron Age , a nd Mi les ( t h is v o lu me ) a l ludes t o t he s a me t rend i n t he c oun try a s awho le.

Th is may b e r e la ted t o t he t e m-

p orary d isappearance o f E leochar is p a lus tr is f ro m I ron Age c arbon ised w eed f l oras i n v ar ious p ar ts o f t he U pper Thames Va l ley a t t h is t ime ( e .g . J ones , M . 1 978 ).

The r eappearance o f t h is s pec ies i n t he l a te R o man p er iod p erhaps

s ugges ts a f ur ther a dvance o n to e ven d amper g round . Fur ther e v idence f or i n tensi f ica t ion ( a ) The ma in tenance o f s o i l q ua l i ty A n i mpor tan t a spec t o f l and p repara t ion i s t he ma in tenance o f s o i l f er t i l i ty b y s o me means o f mar l ing , manur ing o r c rop r o ta t ion . C hanges i n f er t i l i ty c an a ga in b e mon i tored b y t he o ccurrence o f p ar t icu lar s pec ies o f weeds . L eguminous weeds a re k nown t o f l our ish i n c ond i t ions o f d ecreas ing s oi l n i trogen ( War ing ton 1 924 ). The g radua l i ncrease i n t he o ccurrence o f s uch s pec ies i n c arbon ised a sse mb lages f ro m t he A shv i l le s i te , A bingdon , b e tween t he m id f i rs t mi l lenn iu m b c a nd t he 3 rd c en tury AD was i n terpre ted a s e v idence t ha t 1 12

o vercropp ing was g radua l ly l ower ing t he l evel o f s o i l n i trogen ( Jones , M. 1 978 ).

A s im i lar i ncrease i n l eguminous s pec ies , p robab ly mos t ly weeds ,

was o bserved i n s amp les f ro m t he s econd h a lf o f t he f i rs t mi l lenn ium b c a t G ussage A l l-Sa in ts ( Evans a nd J ones 1 979 ). The p rac t ice o f muck-spread ing , a s i nd ica ted b y t h in s ca t ters o f sma l l s herds o f p o t tery , g oes b ack we l l b eyond t he I ron Age .

B e l l ( f or thcoming )

h as p roduced e v idence f or t he u se o f s eaweed a s af er t i l iser o n a n I ron Age s i te 1 0 km i n land f ro m t he S ussex C oas t , i n t he f orm o f mar ine mo l luscs w i th in a f i e ld l ynche t .

I n t he l a te 3 rd c en tury AD , a more i n tens ive f orm o f

f er t i l is ing i s k nown f ro m Nor th Thoresby , L inco ln ;

ar ec t i l inear s er ies o f

t renches c u t i n c lay , w ere p acked w i th h ouseho ld r efuse a nd manure , p erhaps s erv ing a s t he b as is f or a marke t g arden ( Webs ter e t a l . 1 967 ). Af ur ther p recau t ion a ga ins t i mpover ish ing t he l and i s t he u se o f c rop r o ta t ion o r v ar ious f orms o f f a l low s ys te m , wh ich a lso h ave t he e f fec t o f c lean ing t he l and o f w eeds a nd p es ts .

S o me f orm o f r o ta t ion h as o f ten b een

a rgued i n c on junc t ion w i th v i l la f arm ing ( e .g . A pp lebaum 1 972 , Bran igan 1 977 ). The o ccas iona l s eeds o f n on-cerea l c rops t ha t o ccur i n among c arbon ised c erea l a sse mb lages may h ave r esu l ted f ro m ' vo lun teer ' p lan ts s urv iv ing f ro m p rev ious c ourses i n t he r o ta t ion . The t races o f f lax a nd c e l t ic b ean i n t he c erea l a sse mblage f ro m a c orn d rying o ven a t Bar ton C our t Farm , A bingdon i s p art icu lar ly s ugges t ive , e spec ia l ly a s f lax i s u n l ike ly t o b e mixed p urpose ly w i th ag ra in c rop , n or i s i t ap lan t c apab le o f s urv iv ing a s a weed f or many s easons . ( Jones i n M i les , f or thco ming ).

R ecords o f c u l t iva ted l egumes , ak ey c o m-

p onen t o f many r ota t ion s ys te ms , a re s t i l l r are f or a l l p er iods , t hough t hey may b e l ess l i ke ly t o e n ter t he a rchaeo log ica l r ecord f or r easons r e la ted t o a rchaeolog ica l d epos i t ion r a ther t han a gr icu l tura l t echn ique . There i s l ess i nd ica t ion o f r o ta t ion s ys te ms i n e ar l ier p er iods .

The u se

o f l egu mes may i n i t sel f i mp ly r o ta t ion , a nd f l ax , g rown a s e ar ly a s t he N eol i th ic , i s t oo d e mand ing a p lan t t o b e g rown c on t inuous ly o n t he s ame g round . H owever , o ther p ossib le s ys te ms e x is t .

Brad ley ( 1967 ) h as a rgued f or t he

e x is tence o f l ong f a l low ing i n Hampsh ire f i e lds wh ich were p robably i n u se p r ior t o t he i s t c en tury AD , o n t he b as is o f t he mo l luscan a sse mb lages w i th in as er ies o f a ssoc ia ted l ynche ts . I ts ee ms p oss ib le t ha t v ar ious s ys te ms w ere i n u se i n t he I ron Age , a nd o n ly b y t he l a ter Ro man p er iod i s t here a s trong i nd ica t ion o f f u l l c rop r ota t ion . I t may wel l b e t ha t a s w e l l a s e xper ienc ing s o i l d e ter iora t ion a t a n e ar ly s tage N or th European c o m mun i t ies a lso d eve loped me thods o f r es tor ing q ua l i ty t o t he s oi l i n a dvance o f c on te mporary c o m mun i t ies i n t he Med i terranean .

I n

c lass ica l I ta ly , af a ir ly s imp le s ys te m w i th c ropp ing y ears a l terna t ing w i th f a l low y ears was t he s tandard p rac t ice ( Wh i te 1 970 ).

A lso o f r e levance i s

P l iny 's c o m men t ( N. H . XV I I : i v ; 4 2 ) t ha t mar l ing was f irs t p rac t ised i n Br i ta in a nd G au l a nd s ubsequen t ly d eve loped i n t he Med i terranean . ( b )

Harves ting a nd c rop y ields . The h arves t i s o ne o f t he p eak s easons i n t he a gr icu l tura l c a lendar , when

b o th manpower a va i lab i l i ty a nd h arvest ing t echno logy a re l i ke ly t o b e l im i t ing f ac tors .

1 13

The o nse t o f t he I ron Age s ees t he a ppearance o f s hor t c rescen t-shaped s ick les wh ich d if fer f rom t he ir Bronze Age p redecessors o n ly i n t he me ta l o f wh ich t hey a re c ons truc ted .

The a bsence o f a ny c hange i n f or m s ugges ts t ha t

l i t t le c hange i n h arves t ing t echn ique o ccurred a t t h is s tage .

S uch a c hange

may b e d e tec ted i n t he l a te I ron Age , when b a lanced s ick les a ppear ( Rees 1 979 ). S uch s ick les a re f ar l ess f a t igu ing a nd a l low a smoother c u t t ing mo t ion ( Wh i te 1 967 ).

These b a lanced s ick les a lso o ccur i n t he R o man p er iod a nd f ro m t he

4 th c en tury l arger e xamp les a re k nown , u p t o 3 0 cm i n l eng th .

L ong s cythes

a lso a ppear i n t he R o man p er iod , b u t mos t o f t he e v idence s ugges ts t ha t t hese were u sed f or c u t t ing h ay r a ther t han a rable c rops . I th as s ugges ted o n t he b as is o f t he t ype o f s ick le i n u se , t ha t t he I ron Age h arves t was t aken j us t b e low t he e ar ( App lebaum 1 954 ).

The p resence

o f s eeds o f c er ta in l ow-grow ing weeds among c arbon ised a sse mb lages o f h arvested d ra in s ugges t t ha t t he h arves t was c u t f ur ther d own t he s traw ( J ones , M . 1 978 ) Murphy ( 1 977 ) h as s ugges ted t ha t t he p resence o f r oo t t ubers o f t he weed Arrhena theru in e la t ius i n c arbon ised d epos i ts , may i mp ly t ha t u proo t ing was u sed .

The R oman a u thors , C a to , V arro a nd C olu me l la d escr ibe a w ide

r ange o f h arves t ing me thods i nc lud ing u proot ing , c o mbing a nd c u t t ing t he s traw a t v ar ious p os i t ions ( Wh i te 1 967 ).

Each a u thor p oin ts o u t t ha t t he method

v ar ies a g rea t d ea l f ro m r eg ion t o r eg ion , a nd t here may h ave b een a v ar iety o f me thods i n u se i n B r i ta in . The p rac t ice o f c o mb ined w in ter a nd s pr ing s ow ing h as a dvan tages w h ich h ave b een men t ioned e ar l ier . I t was a lso s uggested t ha t t h is p rac t ice o r ig ina ted b efore t he p er iod u nder s tudy. D ocu men tary s ources g ive f igures f or aw ide r ange o f e ar ly y ie lds , f ro m C lass ica l Eg yp t a nd I ta ly ( Jones , A . H . M. 1 964 ) C aro l ing ian France ( S l icher v an Ba th 1 963 ) a nd med ieva l E ng land ( Ti tow 1 972 ). The c lass ica l y ields v ary b e tween 1 1 a nd 2 0 b ushe ls t o t he a cre , a nd t he med ieva l y ie lds v ary c ons iderably , a l though t he ma jor i ty f a l l b e low 2 0 b ushe ls t o t he a cre . Modern y ie lds g iven b y P erc iva l ( 1921 ) f or p r im i t ive s tra ins o f whea t r ange b e tween 4 a nd 3 0 b ushe ls t o t he a cre .

R eyno lds ( t h is v o lume ) , u s ing

s imp le a gr icu l tura l t echn iques h as o b ta ined y ie lds f ar i n e xcess o f t hese f igures u s ing p r imi t ive s tra ins .

•

I n a t te mp ts t o r econs truc t e ar ly f arin ing s ys te ms l ower r a ther t han h igher y ie lds , i n t he o rder o f 8b ushe ls t o t he a cre , h ave b een a ssu med ( e .g . B ran igan 1 977 , Rad ford 1 936 ).

A pp lebaum ( 1972 ) h as r eached a s im ilar f igure b y

e x trapo la t ing f ro m t he f l oor a reas o f t wo s truc tures o n t he v i l la a t P i tney , wh ich h e i n terpre ts a s ag ranary a nd b yre . The d anger o f a ssuming a ny p ar t icu lar y ie ld , i s t ha t t he y ield i t se l f v ar ies a ccord ing t o t he f arming s tra teg y a dop ted .

W i th c er ta in s tra teg ies i ti s e x-

p ed ien t t o i nvest t he e f for t r equ ired t o r ea l ise h igh y ie lds o n as pec if ic p lot o f l and , whereas w i th o thers i t may b e p referab le t o r ea l ise l ower y ie lds o ver l arger a reas .

F or t h is r eason , modern c erea l y ie lds v ary b y af ac tor o f o ver

t hree f ro m p lace t o p lace i n E urope a lone ( van Va lkenburg a nd H e ld 1 952 ). The s us ta ined l ow l eve l o f p roduc t iv i ty i n med ieva l E ng land i s s een a s a n u nusua l s i tua t ion t ha t i n i t se lf r equ ires e xp lana t ion ( Pos tan 1 977 ) a nd may h ave b een f ar b e low p reh is tor ic a nd c lass ica l y ie lds . 1 14

S ubs tan t ia l d rops i n p roduc t iv i ty

a re k nown ;

s uccess ive r ecords o f I ta l ian c erea l y ie lds b y C icero i n a bou t

7 0 BC a nd C o lu mel la i n t he mid is t c en tury AD s ugges t ad rop i n p roduc t iv i ty b y af ac tor o f 2 1 o ver a bou t ac en tury ( Wh i te 1 970 ). Reyno ld 's r esu l ts d o n o t n ecessar i ly s how t ha t p reh is tor ic a nd e ar ly h ist or ic p roduc t iv i ty was h igh , b u t t hey d o d e mons tra te t ha t c on te mporary a gr ic u ltura l t echn iques a nd c erea l s tra ins were i n p r inc ip le c apab le o f p roduc ing h igh y ie lds . ( c )

Process ing a nd s ubs id iary a c t iv i t ies Ad evelop men t i n a rchaeo log ica l s tud ies s ince H e lbaek 's work t ha t h as

a roused a c er ta in amoun t o f i n teres t i s t he d e tec t ion o f c rop-process ing a c t iv i t ies f ro m t he n a ture a nd c on tex t o f c arbon ised d epos i ts ( H i l l man 1 973 , D enne l l 1 974 ).

Denne l l h as t hus p roposed a mode l t o e xp la in v ar ia t ions i n t he

n a ture o f c arbon ised a ssemblages o n t he b as is o f s uch a c t iv i t ies a s t hresh ing , w innow ing a nd f ood-prepara t ion , a nd v ar ious r ef ine men ts t o t he mode l h ave b een p roposed b y H i l l man ( pers . c om m .) a nd J ones , G . ( 1979 ).

W i th c er ta in

l im i ta t ions , h is model h as p roved u sefu l o n r ura l s i tes i n Br i ta in ( Jones , M . 1 978 : 1 07 ) a nd i ti s f or e xamp le p oss ib le t o d e tec t t he o ccurrence o f t hresh ing a nd w innow ing w i th in t he h i l l f or t a t Danebury ( Jones , M . i n C un l i f fe f or thc o ming ).

There i s ac er ta in amoun t o f c orrobora t ive i n forma t ion f ro m a r te-

f ac ts a nd d ocu men ts o n t hresh ing a nd w innow ing .

We l l-worn f l in ts b el ieved

t o b e f ro m a t r ibu lum o r t hresh ing s ledge h ave b een r ecovered f rom R o man s i tes a t A twor th a nd A ngmer ing , S ussex ( Rees 1 979 ).

R eference t o f la i ls

a ppears i n The L ife o f S t . J ero me ( 4 th c en tury ) , The Exe ter R idd le ( 8 th c en tury ) a nd i l lus tra ted t oge ther w i th w innow ing b aske ts a nd weed s e ives i n The O ld E ng l ish Ca lendar ( 11 th c en tury ) ( Monk 1 978 ). The p repara t ion o f f l our i s man i fes t i n f ragmen ts o f q uerns a nd mi l ls tones . The e ar l ies t r otary q uerns a re f rom e ar ly I ron Age d eposi ts o n t he f ar ms tead a t G ussage A l l-Sa in ts .

Par ts o f mechan ica l mi l ls may b e f ound i n v ar ious

R o mano-Br i t ish s i tes ( Wacher 1 966 ) , a nd a re r eferred t o t hroughou t t he i s t m i l lenn iu m .

The c ons iderab le i ncrease i n t heir u se i n t he l a te S axon p er iod

a ppears n o t t o h ave a d irec t ly a gr icu l tura l c ause , b u t r a ther t o b e a ssoc ia ted w i th t he d ec l ine i n s lavery ( Finsberg 1 972 ). A c rop-process ing s truc ture t ha t h as r ecen t ly c o me u p f or r eassess men t i s t he c orn-drying o ven .

The t rad i t iona l i dea o f t he f unc t ion o f t hese o vens

i s f or t he d rying o f c erea l c rops i n p repara t ion f or s torage , t hresh ing o r m i l l ing .

Th is i dea h as b een c r i t ic ised b y R eyno lds ( t h is v o lume ) l arge ly i n

t he b as is o f ac on t inous f l oor s epara t ing t he c orn f ro m t he h ot a ir p roduced . H is a l terna t ive e xp lana t ion , a s ma l t ing f l oors , c oncurs w i th t he f i nd o f g erm ina ted c erea l g ra in i n t he c orn d r ier f ro m A b ingdon , Oxon ( Jones i n M i les , f or thco ming ) , a nd Ca tsgore , S o merse t ( H i l l man 1 981a ).

I ft h is s econd h ypo-

t hes is i s c orrec t , i tl essens t he d irec t r e levance o f t hese s truc tures t o t o ta l c erea l p roduc t iv i ty. e cono mic p a t terns.

H owever t hey may h ave i mp l ica t ions r e la ted t o c hang ing The g row th o f ad ise mbedded mone tary e cono my i n v ar ious

T h ird Wor ld c oun tr ies i s k nown t o h ave p resen ted s e t t led a rable f armers w i th as easona l c ash f l ow p rob le m ;

t he ir s a leab le p roduc t i s p roduced o n ly o nce

ay ear , a nd a t t he s ame t ime a s e very o ne e lse , e ncourag ing i t s marke t v a lue t o d rop .

I n Tanganyika , where t h is d eve lop men t h as b een c losely s tud ied

( Be ide l man 1 961 ) o ne o f t he r esponses o f t he a rable f arm ing Kaguru t o t h is 1 15

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p roble m , i s t he r e ten t ion o f ap or t ion o f t he h arves t f or t he b rew ing o f b eer a l l y ear r ound , wh ich t hey c an e as i ly s e l l a t t he markets .

P erhaps t he

a ppearance o f t hese o vens a s ma l t ing f l oors r epresen ts t he r esponse o f Br i t ish f armers t o as imi lar s easona l c ash f l ow p roble m , b rough t o n b y t he e xpand ing mone tary e cono my.

I t may b e r e levan t t ha t p r ior t o t he 4 th c en tury

AD , a s many s uch o vens a re k nown f ro m t he p resumab ly p oorer n a t ivetype s e t t le men ts a s a re f rom v i l las ( Morr is 1 979 ). O ne migh t a lso e xpec t c ash c rops t o f igure more p rominen t ly i n t he p a laeobo tan ica l r ecord f or t h is p er iod , b u t a s men t ioned a bove , s uch r ecords s o f ar t end t o b e f ro m u rban r a ther t han r ura l s i tes . The q ues t ion o f s torage f ac i l i t ies f or g ra in i n t he I ron Age h as b een c ons idered i n d e ta i l b y R eyno lds ( 1 974 ) a nd a n u mber o f p i ts a nd f our-pos ters a re k nown f ro m c on tex ts i n l ow land Br i ta in a s l a te a s 2 nd c en tury i n d a te ( Morr is 1 979 ).

S oon a f ter t he c onques t , v ar ious f orms o f l arger g ranary a ppear ,

i nd ica t ing t ha t h arvests a re b e ing d ea l t w i th t he r ed is tr ibu ted i n l arger q uant i t ies . A na lys is o f c hange Hav ing c ons idered t he v ar ious f orms o f e nv iron men ta l a nd a rchaeolog ica l i n forma t ion a va i lable , t he q ues t ion o f h ow a nd when t he s h i f t o f emphasis t owards a s ys tem o f c rop h usbandry a ssoc ia ted when i n tens if ica t ion o n t he h eavy bar ns may b e a pproached .

Each p iece o f e v idence t ha t h as b een c ons idered

a bove h as b een p lot ted i n F ig . 6 :4 , a f ter t he manner o f Brongers a nd Wa l ter ing ( 1973 ) l a ter a dop ted b y Brad ley ( 1978 ).

S o me o f t hese p ieces o f e v idence h ave

a more d irec t b ear ing o n me thods o f c rop h usbandry t han o thers , b u t a l l h ave b een i nc luded ow ing t o t he d if f icu l ty o f d raw ing a r ea l is t ic l i ne b etween t he m. The ' agr icu l tura l r evo lu t ion ' t ha t o ccurred e ar ly i n t he p er iod u nder s tudy i s c lear ly e v iden t f ro m ab road f ron t o f i nnova t ions .

The d iagram s ugges ts

t ha t f ur ther i nnova t ions w ere n o t e ven ly s pread , b u t i ns tead c lus ter i n t wo f ur ther p er iods o f i nnova t ion i n t he l a te I ron Age a nd t he l a te R o man p er iod . The t hree i t e ms t ha t a ppear s oon a f ter t he R o man c onques t , e xo t ic f ood p lan ts , mechan ica l mi l ls a nd l arge g ranar ies a re more c oncerned w i th d ist r ibu t ion a nd t rade t han w i th c rop h usbandry i t se l f . The P iercebr idge mode l s how ing t he a ppearance o f g roundwres ts o n t he p lough may b e o f 2 nd c en tury d a te , b u t a s a rgued a bove , t h is i n troduc t ion c ou ld we l l b e e ar l ier a nd p erhaps b e t raced b ack t o t he e ar ly I ron Age. I n at rad i t iona l a pproach , p er iods o f i nnova t ion a re r e la ted t o p er iods o f i ncreased i n terna t iona l c on tac t .

I ndeed b o th p er iods o f i nnova t ion h ave b een

a ssoc ia ted t hough n o t a ssured ly , w i th p opu la t ion move men ts .

I n t h is v e in ,

A pp lebau m h as a s r ecen t ly a s 1 972 s ugges ted t ha t R o mano-Br i t ish r efugees , b efore f l ee ing t o I re land , r e me mbered t o p ack t he ir l arge p lough c ou l ters , t hereby r evo lu t ion is ing I r ish a gr icu l ture .

H owever , wha t i s n ow k nown a bou t

c on temporary n e tworks o f t rade a nd i n forma t ion e xchange wou ld s ugges t t ha t s o me th ing a s s ign if ican t a s k now ledge o f i mproved a gr icu l tura l t echn ique c ou ld t rave l f reely t hroughou t t he p er iod , a nd t ha t t he s tre tches o f s ea c anno t b e r eg arded a s ab arr ier t o i n forma t ion t ransfer , o n ly s ur moun ted b y t he i n f lux o f an ew c u l tura l g roup .

18

C ENTRAL P LACE

C ROP H USBANDRY

1 0th - 5 th C . B C G ROWTH o f h illtop e nclosures.

I NNOVATION: D iversification o f c rops a nd s oil t ypes i n u se.

5 th - 1 st C . B C F ULLY D EVELOPED h illforts.

S TAGNATION: S oil e xhaustion e vident f rom w eeds.

1 st C . B C - 1 st C . A D G ROWTH o f l ow-lying o ppida .

I NNOVATION: C ultivation o f d amp a nd h eavy g round i ntensified . E xport o f g rain.

1 st - 3 rd C . A D F ULLY D EVELOPED R oman u rban c entres.

S TAGNATION: I nnovation c onfined t o t he r edistributional s phere.

3 rd - 4 th C . AD G ROWTH o f s mall t owns.

I NNOVATION: C ultivation o f h eavy bar ns f ully d eveloped . M ouldboard p lough i n u se. E xport o f g rain.

F ig . 6 . 5 C hrono log ica l r e la t ionsh ip b etween s uggested p hases i n c rop h usbandry a nd s ugges ted p hases i n t he c onte mporary c en tra l p laces .

1 19

I n f ac t , c ons ider ing t he d ens i ty o f e ar ly I ron Age s e t t le men t o n h eavy s o i ls , i ti s p erhaps s urpr is ing t ha t t he s h i f ts i n t echn ique t owards a s ys tem f ocused o n t hese s oi ls , w ere d e layed u n t i l t hese l a ter d a tes .

The o ccurrence

o f p er iods o f i nnova t ion i s a ccoun ted f or b y t h is e ar ly e xpans ion o n to h eavy s oi ls .

I t i s l ess e asy t o a ccoun t f or t he i n tervening p er iods o f s tagna t ion .

Tha t t hese w ere p er iods o f s tagna t ion i s emphas ised f or t he f i rs t p er iod b y t he b ehav iour o f t he weed f l ora f ro m c on te mporary s i tes .

A s o u t l ined a bove ,

t he b ehav iour o f l egu m inous w eeds a nd weeds o f d amp g round d ur ing t h is p er iod h ave b een a ssoc ia ted w i th d e ter iora t ing f i e ld c ond i t ions.

I n t he l a ter

p er iod o f s tagna t ion , t he p a laeobo tan ica l r ecord s uggests t ha t a gr icu l ture s t imu la ted b y R o man a c t iv i ty i n t he n or th was n ot b ased o n t he more d eve loped h exap lo id whea ts ( i. e . s pe l t whea t a nd b read whea t ) b u t i ns tead o n t he more t rad i t iona l em mer , a lso s ugges t ing a l ack o f i nnova t ion i n t h is a rea . A c orre la t ion may b e o bserved b etween t hese p er iods o f i nnova t ion a nd s tagna t ion , a nd c on te mporary d eve lop men ts i n s oc ie ty.

Each p er iod c o inc ides

w i th a s tage i n t he d evelopmen t o f t he a ssoc ia ted c en tra l p lace ( F ig . 6 :5 ). The t hree p er iods o f i nnova t ion o ccur d ur ing t he g row th p er iods o f d efended h i l l top e nc losures , l ow-lying o pp ida , a nd sma l l t owns o f R o man Br i ta in , r espec t ive ly. T he t wo p er iods o f s tagna t ion c o inc ide n ea t ly w i th C un l if fe 's p hase o f f u l ly d eveloped h i l lfor ts ( Cun l if fe 1 97 8 ) , a nd t he p er iod o f d om inance o f l arge R o man t owns b ased o n t he e ar l ier o pp ida . Th is a ssoc ia t ion o f d eve lopmen ts i n c rop h usbandry w i th t he c on te mporary s truc ture o f s oc iety may b e a ccoun ted f or i n t he f o l low ing way. N one o f t he i nnova t ions c ons idered i n F ig . 6 :4 i nvo lve mere ly a n ew t echn ique ; t hey e ach r equ ire a g rea ter i nves t men t o f s ome l imi ted r esource s uch a s manpower , a n ima l p ower , i ron , o r manure , t o b ack u p t he n ew t echn ique .

La te S axon

d ocumen tary e v idence c oncern ing s uch t he mes a s p lough ing , c lear ly s how t ha t t hese f ac tors were l imi t ing i n t he l a ter p er iod .

The s urv iva l o f s imp ler

t echn iques , s uch a s t he u ncapped i s t c entury BC s hare f ro m Ways land R a th ( wa inwr igh t 1 97 1 ) a nd t he 3 rd c en tury AD DSnnerup land-type s hare f ro m t he U pper Thames Va l ley ( Fow ler 1 97 8 ) s ugges t t ha t t hey were a lso l im i t ing i n e ar l ier p er iods . The a bi l i ty o f af armer t o i nves t t hese s carce r esources wou ld b e c lose ly r e la ted t o wha t h appened t o a ny s urp lus p roduced . I n e ach p er iod o f s tagna t ion , t here i s e v idence f or t he n on-agrar ian i nves tmen t o f s urp lus . C un l if fe ( 1 97 8 ) s ugges ts t ha t :" deve loped h i l lfor ts i mp ly t he c oerc ive c on trol o f s oc iety 's s urp lus i n t he i n teres ts o f d e fense" . I n t he s econd p er iod o f s tagna t ion , s urp lus was d irec ted t owards p ub l ic b u i ld ing a nd a dm in is tra t ion .

I t wou ld b e wrong t o s ugges t t ha t d ur ing t he

g row th p hases o f t he c entra l p lace t here was a ny l esser t endency t o e x trac t s urp lus f ro m t he a grar ian b ase. O n t he c on trary , C un l if fe ( 197 6 ) s ugges ts t ha t t he s i tua t ion i n t he s econd h a lf o f t he f i rs t mi l lenn ium BC i n wh ich :"Much o f t he s urp lus p roduced b y s oc ie ty was a bsorbed i n to t he d eve lop men t o f ac lass s truc ture wh ich c onsumed l abour wea l th t o s upp ly t he i ncreas ing ly e x travagan t d e mands o f t he r u l ing c lass" .

1 20

r eached a p eak i n t he i s t c en tury BC when :" the a r is tocracy o f t he S ou th Eas t h ad b eco me f u l ly d ivorced f ro m ap roduc t ive r o le i n s oc ie ty" . Aga in , t he l a ter p er iod o f i nnova t ion o ccurs i n t he c on tex t o f e veri ncreas ing i mper ia l t axa t ion ( Jones , A . H . M. 1 964 ).

H owever i n t he g row th

p hase o f an ew c en tra l p lace , w hen p rospec t ive s i tes a re c o mpe t ing f or v iab i l i ty , t he p roduc t iv i ty o f t he ir h in ter land wou ld b e k ey t o t he ir s urv iva l , a nd i tw ou ld b e t o t he ir a dvan tage t o e ncourage i nnova t ion i n c rop h usbandry , a t l eas t i n c er ta in q uar ters , b y a l low ing s urp lus t o r ema in w i th in t he a grar ian s phere.

The mechan is m f or e ncourag ing a gr icu l tura l g row th i n t he f ace o f

h eavy f i sca l d ues i s we l l-documen ted i n t he l a ter p er iod , i n t he f orm o f t axc oncess ions a nd v ar ious t ypes o f c orrup t ion ( Jones , A . H . M . 1 964 ).

I t may

b e r e levan t t ha t t he l a ter i nnova t ions o ccur i n t he c on tex t o f t he n ew ly emb e l l ished v i l las , p resumably o ccup ied b y t hose members o f s oc ie ty b est a ble t o t ake a dvan tage o f c orrup t ion . I n t he ma ture p hase o f t he c en tra l p lace , wh i ls t t he p roduc t iv i ty o f t he h in ter land r ema ins o f k ey i mpor tance , i t may n o t b e n ecessary t o s t imu la te a gr icu l tura l i nnova t ion i n t he s ame way , a nd t he s urp lus n ecessary f or i nnov a t ion may b e r e moved more c o mp le te ly f ro m t he a grar ian s phere w i thou t i m med ia tely e ndanger ing t he s urv iva l o f t he s ys te m. C onc lus ion The r ange o f e v idence f or d eve lopmen ts i n c rop h usbandry h ave b een r ev iewed , a nd t he c hanges h ave b een s een a s r e la t ing t o f irs t , ap er iod o f a rab le e xpansion i n to ab roader r ange o f e co log ica l s i tua t ions , a nd s econd ly t he g radua l f ocus ing o f t he emphas is o n t he h eavy l oams . A mode l h as b een p roposed i n wh ich t he e co log ica l c ond i t ions f or t hese d eve lopmen ts e x isted f ro m t he o nset o f t he p er iod u nder s tudy , when s e t t le men t o n h eavy s o i l was a lready s ubs tan t ia l , b u t t ha t t he s oc ia l c ond i t ions f or t hese d eve lopmen ts o ccurred o n ly s porad ica l ly i n t he f o l low ing c en tur ies . I n p laces , t he e v idence u sed i n s uppor t o f t h is mode l c ou ld b e r ef ined, g rea ter d e ta i l a nd more p rec ise d a t ing wou ld b e d es irab le .

The ,advan tage o f

t he i n terac t ions b etween man a nd h is e nv iron men ta l r esources i n l a ter p reh is tory a nd e ar ly h is tory i s t ha t t he p o ten t ia l a rchaeo log ica l a nd e nv iron men ta l d a ta b ase f or t hese p er iods i s o f s uch a q ua l i ty t ha t f ur ther r esearch may p rov ide t hese r ef ine ments .

Whether o r n o t t he p roposed mode l s tands , i ti s h oped

t ha t t h is p aper may e ncourage t h is f ur ther r esearch . A cknow ledge men ts Is hou ld l i ke t o t hank my c ol leagues , Frank G reen , G ordon H i l lman , M ick Monk a nd P eter Murphy f or a l low ing me t o u se much u npubl ished i n forma t ion a nd t hes is ma ter ia l , a nd Mar t in M i l le t t a nd Denn is Br i t ton f or r ead ing t hrough a nd c om men t ing o n t he t ex t .

The a u thor i s c urren t ly e ngaged o n r e-

s earch i n to c arbon ised a sse mb lages , f unded b y t he S c ience R esearch C ounc i l , a nd u nder t he s uperv is ion o f Dr . S . R . J . Woode l l a nd Mr . Denn is Br i t ton .

1 21

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I RON AGE , ROMAN AND SAXON CROPS :

THE ARCHAE OLOG ICAL EV IDENCE FRO M WESSE X F . J . G reen

The a im o f t h is p aper i s t o p rov ide a r ev iew o f r ecen t work u nder taken o n p lan t r ema ins f rom t he Wessex r eg ion , i n o rder t o i nd ica te t he ma jor s ources o f n ew i n forma t ion a bou t c rop p lan ts s ince t he p ioneer ing work o f J esson a nd H e lbaek ( 1944 ) a nd H elbaek ( 1940 : 1 76-178 , 1 952 : 1 94-233 ). F or t he p urposes o f t h is p aper Wessex h as b een d ef ined u s ing h is tor ica l c r i ter ia a nd c ons is ts o f t he c oun t ies o f Hampsh ire , D orset , W i l tsh ire , D evons h ire , Berksh ire a nd p ar ts o f t he c oun t ies o f S o merse t , G louces tersh ire , a nd O x fordsh ire s ou th o f t he r iver Thames . S ince mos t o f t he n ew d a ta h ave b een r ecovered v ery r ecen t ly much o f i t r ema ins u npub l ished . Th is p aper a ims t o p rov ide a s yn thes is a s ab asis f or f u ture l i nes o f r esearch a nd i n terpre ta t ion . Hard ing ( 1974 : 8 1 ) p oin ts o u t t ha t H e lbaek 's b as ic c onc lus ions a re f undamen ta l t o o ur i n terpre ta t ion o f I ron Age e conomy i n Br i ta in .

A pp lebau m

( 1 972 : 1 08-121 ) r e l ied e n t ire ly o n H e lbaek 's work a nd G odw in 's ( 1956 ) a dapt a t ion o f i tf or t he I ron Age a nd R o man p er iods .

D ocumen tary s ources h ave

b een e x tens ive ly r el ied u pon b y a gr icu l tura l h is tor ians f or a n u nderstand ing o f e ar ly t o l a te S axon a gr icu l ture a nd p o l len e v idence h as b een u sed f or a c ons iderable p er iod t o s upp le men t t h is i nforma t ion .

H owever , i ti s o n ly v ery

r ecen t ly t ha t t he e xa mina t ion o f p lan t macrofoss i ls f ro m a rchaeo log ica l s i tes i n as pec i f ic r eg ion h as b een u nder taken i n a n a t te mp t t o e va lua te I ron Age t o S axon a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i t ies ( Murphy 1 977 , Monk 1 978 , G reen 1 979 ). A r ecen t r e-assess men t o f H e lbaek 's w ork h as b een u nder taken b y Denne l l ( 1 976 : 1 1-23 ) i n wh ich a par t f rom r e-examin ing t he p o t tery f ro m W ind m i l l H i l l h e h as e ssen t ia l ly j us t r e-used t he a va i lab le i n for ma t ion i n ad if feren t way.

The work h as v ar ious l im ita t ions , Denne l l o n ly d ea l t w i th p lan t i mpres-

s ions f ro m n eo l i th ic , Bronze Age a nd I ron Age p ot tery a nd t he o vera l l s amp le t ha t h e u sed was t he s a me a s t ha t u sed b y H e lbaek .

The l u mp ing t oge ther o f

a l l t he a va i lab le i nforma t ion f ro m s i tes o f t he I ron Age b y b oth H e lbaek a nd D ennel l h as p roduced a m is lead ing i mpress ion o f n ear ly a mi l lenn ium o f p lan t u t i l isa t ion . I n t he f o l low ing e xam ina t ion o f n ew e v idence , t he I ron Age h as b een s p l i t i n to t hree d iv is ions wh ich d o n o t r e la te t o c urrent t er m ino logy f or e ar ly , m idd le a nd l a te I ron Age b ased o n c eramic c hrono logy.

I ns tead p ure ly a r t i-

f i c ia l d iv is ions h ave b een c hosen a nd c ons ist o f s i tes p r ior t o t he 5 th c entury BC , s i tes o f t he 5 th t o t he e nd o f t he 3 rd c en tury BC a nd s i tes f ro m t he 2 nd c en tury BC t o a pprox ima tely 5 0 AD .

B y d iv id ing t he p er iod i n t h is way ,

s pec i f ic t rends c an b e s een wh ich i n many ways a l ter t he i mpress ion g iven i n t he e ar l ier work .

P reserva t ion o f t he e v idence U n t i l r ecen t ly mos t o f t he e v idence f or c erea l c rops c ame f ro m t he i mp ress ions f ound i n f i red c lay ma ter ia ls , i n p ar t icu lar f ro m p ot tery .

H e lbaek

( 1951 : 2 31 ) a nd G odw in ( 1975 : 4 05 ) a rgued t ha t p lan t i mpress ions a re more r epresen ta t ive o f p roduc t ion a nd u t i l isa t ion t han c aches o f c arbon ised e v idence , s ince p lan t i mpress ions r epresen t t he c hance s amp l ing o f ma ter ia l f rom s i tes . Denne l l ( 1976: 1 2 ) h as a rgued t ha t i n f ac t t h is i sn o t t he c ase , f or i mpressions d epend o n where t he p o t tery was manu fac tured , e i ther l oca l ly o n t he s i te o r i mpor ted t o i tf ro m e lsewhere . The i nc lusion o f p lan t f ragmen ts i n to t he f abr ic o f t he p o t tery d epends a s much o n t he a va i labi l i ty o f ma ter ia ls f ro m c rop p rocess ing a s i td oes o n t he c u l tura l a c t iv i t ies a nd t he s eason o f t he y ear d ur ing wh ich t hese a c t iv i t ies may h ave b een u nder taken .

D if feren t c u l tura l

g roups i n d if feren t g eograph ica l r eg ions may h ave p ursued t hese a c t iv i t ies ( even u s ing s tored c rops ) a t d i f feren t t imes a s ar esu l t o f wh ich t he p lan t i nforma t ion r ecovered may g ive a t o ta l ly mis lead ing i mpress ion o f t he i mport ance o f c er ta in c rops .

D enne l l h as a rgued ( 1976 : 1 8 ) t ha t l arge s eeded s pec ies

s uch a s l egu mes a nd f ru i t s tones a re l ess l i kely t o b e a cc iden ta l ly i ncorpora ted i n to t he f abr ic o f p o t tery a nd o ther f i c t i les ( f ired c lay o b jec ts ) , a nd a s s uch wou ld d is tor t t he p ic ture o f t he ir r e la t ive i mpor tance t o c erea l a nd o ther sma l ler s eeded c rops. Even t hough p lan t i mpress ions i n f i red c lay o b jec ts may n ot b e r epresent a t ive o f t he p reva i l ing e cono my , t hey a t l eas t migh tt e l l u s s o me th ing a bou t a ssoc ia ted t echno logy.

F or e xamp le , when a s pec i f ic r ange o f s pec ies r egu-

l ar ly o ccurs i n ap ar t icu lar t ype o f f ic t i le , t h is e v idence c ou ld p erhaps i nd ica te ar ange o f c rop a nd c rop p roduc ts t ha t were a va i lab le , b u t were r eserved f or s pec if ic t echno log ica l p rocesses r a ther t han b e ing e xc lus ive ly u sed f or f odder , b edd ing a nd t ha tch ing .

Va luab le c om mod i t ies s uch a s s traw a nd c erea l c ha f f

wou ld s ure ly n o t h ave b een was ted i n a mixed f arming e cono my , u n less t here was a n o verwhe lm ing s urp lus o r s o me a dvan tage t o b e g a ined i n u s ing s pec i f ic p lan t r e ma ins i n c er ta in d o mes t ic o r i ndus tr ia l p rocesses . I ti s i n teres t ing t ha t d ur ing t he med ieva l p er iod d aub was p redo minan t ly t e mpered w i th whea t s traw ( Green 1 979b : 2 58 ) whereas o n s i tes o f e ar l ier p er iods o ther ma ter ia ls h ave more c o m mon ly b een r ecorded .

Bratken was

u sed i n I ron Age c ob a t l i t t le Woodbury ( Bra i lsford 1 949 : 1 59 ) , a nd d aub a t O ld D own Farm f rom t he s ame p er iod was a lso t e mpered w i th b racken .

T he

e xam ina t ion o f d aub f ro m s i tes s uch a s Danebury ( Poo le , p ers . c o m m.) i nd ic a tes t he u se o f aw ide r ange o f n on-cerea l p roduc ts . The e xamina t ion o f b r ique tage may we l l p rov ide a nother c lass o f i n forma t ion ( Brad ley 1 975 : 2 2-23 ).

The a va i lab le e v idence d oes s ugges t t ha t s pel t ( Tr i t i-

c um s pel ta ) was u sed a l mos t e xc lus ive ly i n i t s manu fac ture . The f ired c lay b el l mou lds o f 1 0 th c en tury d a te f ro m C a thedra l G reen , Winchester h ave p rod uced a v ery s pec i f ic r ange o f c erea l r e ma ins ( oa t g ra ins , whea t c ha f f a nd weed s eeds ) o n ly p ara l leled b y e v idence f ro m o ther b e l l mou lds a nd c au ldron mou lds ( Green 1 979b: 2 40-252 a nd f or thco ming c ) .

The f ired c lay l oo m w e igh ts

s o c o m mon ly r ecovered f ro m I ron Age a nd S axon s i tes may p rov ide y e t a no ther c lass o f d a ta .

T he l im i ted e v idence r ecovered d oes b eg in t o s uggest t ha t

s pec i f ic waste p roduc ts were u sed f or p ar t icu lar t echno log ica l a nd d o mes t ic p urposes a nd t ha t s uch p roduc ts may h ave b een c o l lec ted a nd s tored d ur ing

d i f feren t s tages i n t he c rop p rocess ing c yc le f or f u ture u se .

Th is may b e

c o mpared w i th t he i n tr ica te s ys te ms o f c o l lec t ing s pec if ic c rop was tes f or s pec if ic p urposes , t ha t h ave b een o bserved i n modern Turkey b y H i l lman ( p ers . c omm .) I n c on tras t t o t he w ork o f H e lbaek a nd o thers t h is p aper c onf ines i t s a t ten t ion t o t he a c tua l p lan t macrofoss i l e v idence.

A par t f ro m a naerobica l ly

p reserved p lant r e ma ins f ro m s o me R o man a nd S axon wa ter logged s i tes , a l l t he i n forma t ion d iscussed c ons is ts o f c arbon ised p lan t ma ter ia l .

N o minera l ized

( ca lc ium p hospha te r ep laced ) e v idence a s d escr ibed b y G reen ( 1979c ) h av ing b een r ecovered f ro m p re-Saxon s i tes .

I ti s i mpor tan t t o n o te t ha t , a s w i th

a ny s tudy o f p lan t r e ma ins , c arbon ised e v idence c lear ly h as l im i ta t ions ( Dennel l 1 978 : 1 5-31 , B eg ler a nd K ea t inge 1 979 : 2 08 a nd 2 09 ).

I t i s d if f icu l t

t o e s tab l ish t he r ange o f c rops g rown a nd t he p ar t s uch c rops p layed i n t he e cono my a nd d ie t o f p as t p opu la t ions .

C arbon ised p lan t r e ma ins a re e ssen-

t i a l ly i nd ica t ive o f was te d isposa l a nd c hance b urn ing .

H owever , o n a rchae-

o log ica l s i tes where e x tens ive s a mp l ing o f a l l a va i lable f ea tures h as b een u nder taken a s a dvoca ted b y D enne l l ( 1978 : 2 1 , H a ls tead e t a l . 1 978 : 1 18 ) , i t may n ow b e p oss ible t o a ssess r e liab ly t he r ange o f c rops a va i lab le f or p art i cu lar p er iods , t hough R eyno lds ( 1979 : 5 8 ) h o lds more p ess im is t ic v iews . C arbon ised e v idence c lear ly d oes i nd ica te p o ten t ia l c rops .

R ecen t work

u nder taken b y H i l l man ( pers . c om m .) h as b egun t o s how t ha t t he c arbon ised c erea ls , c ha f f a nd w eed s eeds s o c o m mon ly r ecovered f ro m I ron Age s i tes c an b e v ery c lose ly c o mpared w i th c rop p rocess ing was tes f ro m e thnograph ic p ara l le ls i n modern Turkey , where t he r ange o f c rops g rown i s s imi lar t o t hose r ecovered f ro m Br i t ish I ron Age s i tes a nd t he c l i ma t ic c ond i t ions u nder wh ich t hey a re g rown i s c o mparable . H i l l man ( f or thco m ing : aa nd b ) h as b een a ble t o s how t ha t a t l eas t t we lve c rop p rocess ing s equences c an b e d e tec ted f ro m c arbon ised e v idence o n I ron Age s i tes .

Fro m t h is a nd r e la ted s tud ies i t

i s p oss ible t o e va lua te wh ich c rops may b e u nder-represen ted a nd wh ich a re l i kely t o b e o ver-represen ted . Ah igher d egree o f c onf idence a s t o wh ich c erea ls c ons t i tu ted t he ma in c rops c an b e a t ta ined . F or t he S axon a nd med ieva l p er iods , G reen ( 1979d : 5 0 ) h as i nd ica ted t ha t c arbon ised c erea l e v idence i s t he mos t c ons is tent ly r ecovered f drm o f p lan t ma ter ia l , a nd d is t inc t p a t tern ing b e tween s i tes c an b e s een .

Wha tever t he

c ause o f c arbon isa t ion , b e i tc hance o r d e l ibera te a c t iv i ty , c er ta in p a t terns emerge wh ich i nd ica te s im i lar a c t ions a nd a t t i tudes t o was te d isposa l , a nd t herefore p oss ibly a s imi lar e cono my. S ince i ti s d i f f icu l t t o e rad ica te many o f t he p rob le ms a ssoc ia ted w i th t he e xamina t ion o f p lan t r e ma ins f ro m a rchaeo log ica l s i tes t he e v idence c anno t a nd p oss ibly s hou ld n o t b e u sed i n ah igh ly s oph is t ica ted way a t t he p resen t t ime .

The g enera l l ack o f we l l-recovered s eed s amp les f ro m a rchaeo log ica l

s i tes makes a ny s uch a na lysis d if f icu l t , s ince i ti s i mposs ib le t o b eg in t o c lus ter s i tes o n t he b as is o f t he ir b otan ica l c o mponen t .

H owever , w i th i n-

c reased work i n t h is s ub jec t more c o mp lex f orms o f a na lysis s hou ld b e p ossib le i n t he n o t t oo d is tan t f u ture .

A par t f ro m o bserv ing n ew s pec ies i n troduc t ions

t hrough t ime , t he o n ly me thod o f a na lys is a va i lable , a lbe i t f raugh t w i th p rob le ms a s i nd ica ted b y D enne l l ( 1978 : 2 4-26 ) , i s t ha t o f p resence u sed b y G odw in ( 1 956 : 1 975 ) a nd s trong ly a dvoca ted b y H ubbard ( 1975 : 1 98 ).

Th is i s t he o n ly

me thod o f a na lys is wh ich a l lows t he r e-exa m ina t ion o f d a ta wh ich h ave s o o f ten b een p ub l ished w i th n o a t ten t ion t o p rov id ing d e ta i ls o f me thods o f r ecovery , s amp l ing a nd t he me thods o f s ta t is t ica l man ipu la t ion emp loyed . Th is p roble m i s a ggrava ted s ince many a va i lab le r epor ts o n ly c ons is t o f i den t i f ica t ions t o g enus a nd n ot t o s pec ies . O n many s i tes where p reserva t ion i s p oor t h is i s u nders tandab le.

H owever , i ti s c ruc ia l t o a ny i n terpre ta t ion o f p reh is tor ic

a gr icu l ture t ha t i den t if ica t ions a re made t o a s f i ne a l eve l a s i s p oss ib le s ince d i f feren t v ar ie t ies o f ac erea l c lear ly r equ ire d i f feren t t echn iques o f h arves t ing , p rocess ing , a nd may h ave b een u sed f or w ide ly d i f fer ing p urposes .

B ecause

o f t he l imi ta t ions i mposed o n t h is w ork b y t he q ua l i ty o f t he p ub l ished d a ta , t he i n forma t ion p resen ted i n t he b ar-d iagrams ( Figures 7 : 1t o 7 :5 ) h as b een c a lcu la ted u s ing p resence a na lys is ( Hubbard 1 975 : 1 97-205 ;

a nd G reen ,

f or thco ming d ) . I n F ig . 7 : 1t he e v idence r ecovered f ro m p o t tery i mpress ions b y H e lbaek a nd J esson ( 1944 ) a nd H e lbaek ( 1952 ) , a l though a s i nd ica ted o f l im i ted v a lue , h as b een c o mpared w i th t he r esu l ts o b ta ined f ro m c arbon ised g ra in f ro m more r ecen t e xcava t ions.

Even c ons ider ing t he v ery sma l l s amp le t ha t H e lbaek

u sed t here a re s ome i m med ia te p oin ts o f c o mpar ison b e tween r esu l ts f rom t he t wo i ndependen t s ources o f d a ta .

F or e xamp le , Tr i t icum d icoccum ( E m mer

whea t ) , Tr i t icum s pec ies ( whea t ) , Hordeum v u lgare ( hu l led a nd n aked s ix-row b ar ley ) s how s im i lar i ncreases a nd d ecreases b e tween t he p er iods r epresen ted . I n F ig . 7 :2 a l l t he a va i lable i n forma t ion o n c erea l c rops h as b een p res en ted .

I tc an b e s een t ha t whea t was p resen t o n more s i tes t han b ar ley ,

o a ts a nd r ye .

H owever , i tc an a lso b e s een t ha t whea t a nd b ar ley a re n ear ly

e qua l ly r epresen ted p oss ib ly s uppor t ing D enne l l fs mode l ( Denne l l 1 976 : 1 1-23 ). The e v idence i n F ig . 7 :2 f or o a ts i nc ludes b o th t he p os i t ive i den t if ica t ions o f c u l t iva ted f orms a s we l l a s g ra ins t ha t were n o t s peci f ica l ly i den t if ied a s w i ld v ar ie t ies .

A n i ncrease i n t he p resence o f o a ts t hrough t ime c an b e s een

whereas r ye ( Seca le c erea le ) f l uc tua tes i n o ccurrence n o t o n ly f ro m I ron Age a nd R o man d epos i ts b u t f ro m S axon a nd l a ter med ieva l o nes ( Green 1 979b : 1 26 a nd 2 95 ).

Examina t ion o f t he r ela t ionsh ips o f t he ma jor c erea l c rops ,

a l though i mpor tan t , i s c lear ly c o mp l ica ted d ue t o t he w ide r ange o f whea ts a nd b ar leys t ha t were c u l t iva ted .

I ti s p robably more i mpor tan t t o ' mon i tor

t he f l uc tua t ions b e tween t he d i f feren t t ypes o f whea t o r b ar ley a nd t o s ee h ow i nd iv idua l s i tes r e la te t o t he g enera l t rends . C erea l C rops ( a )

Whea ts ( Tr i t icum s p .) There i s n o e v id e nce o f Tr i t icum monococcum ( e inkorn ) f ro m a ny s i tes

f or t he p er iod I ron Age - S axon .

Th is c rop was c lear ly n o t b eing u sed a nd

d oes n o t e ven o ccur a s a weed o f o ther c erea l c rops .

The l im i ted n a ture o f

t he c erea l e v idence f ro m Bronze Age s i tes d oes n o t make a ny d iscuss ion o f t h is s pec ies a ny e as ier .

I t may we l l b e t ha t e inkorn was o f l i t t le i mpor tance

d ur ing much o f t he Bronze Age . The e v idence f or Tr i t icu m d icoccum ( em mer ) i nc lud ing b o th g ra in a nd t he more d iagnos t ic p ar ts , s uch a s r ach is , s p ike le t f orks a nd g lume b ases ( d es ign a ted i n t he t ex t f igures a s c ha f f ) , c lear ly s how t ha t t h is t ype o f whea t was s econd i n i mpor tance t o s pe l t ( Tr i t icum s pe l ta ) a l though i tn ear ly a lways o ccurs

w i th s pe lt ( Fig . 7 :3 ).

Em mer , a l though n ever more i mpor tan t t han s pe l t ,

o ccurs more f requen t ly d ur ing t he 5 th t o 3 rd c en tur ies BC t han a t a ny o ther t ime ( Fig . 7 :3 ).

S uch a n a pparen t i ncrease may i n f ac t b e d ue t o t he l im i ta-

t i ons o f t he e x is t ing s amp le r a ther t han a c tua l i mpor tance . C lear ly more s i tes o f t h is p er iod w i l l h ave t o b e e xa m ined t o s ee i ft h is p a t tern h o lds g ood . Tr i t icum s pe l ta ( s pe l t ) , a l though r ecovered f ro m a l arger n umber o f s i tes o f I ron Age a nd R o man d a te i n Wessex t han em mer , s ee ms t o d ec l ine i n o ccurr ence p oss ib ly a s e ar ly a s t he 2 nd c en tury BC . There a re , h owever , r eg iona l v ar ia t ions , s pe l t s t i l l f or med a ma jor c o mponen t o f c erea l a ssemblages f ro m p ost-Ro man a nd S axon G louces ter ( Green 1 979a , 1 88 ).

I th as b een p o in ted

o u t b y Hard ing , 1 974 : 8 1 a nd 8 5 , Wacher 1 978 : 1 09 , a nd C un l i f fe 1 978 : 1 78 , a lbe i t w i th r eserva t ions , t ha t s pe l t was p robably i n troduced d ur ing t he I ron Age i n to s ou thern E ng land , p oss ibly b y i nvaders f ro m t he s pe l t g row ing r eg ions o f t he midd le Rh ine land .

Th is was o r ig ina l ly s ugges ted b y H elbaek ( 1 952 : 2 10 ).

The e v idence f ro m Wessex f ro m t he e ar l ies t I ron Age a nd l a tes t Bronze Age s i tes i s s ugges t ive o f c on t inu i ty t han a brup t i n troduc t ion , p oss ibly s im ilar t o c on t inen ta l e v idence o f t he s ame p er iod .

I ti s t e mp t ing t o s ugges t t ha t t he

n eo l i th ic o ccurrence o f t h is c erea l a t H embury ( Fie ld , e t a l . 1 964 : 3 73 ) i s n o t t he i so la ted f i nd t ha t i ti s s o o f ten c ons idered a nd t ha t more d e ta i led work o n l a te Bronze Age a nd e ar ly I ron Age s i tes i n Wessex may i nd ica te t ha t s pe l t was p resen t a t a much e ar l ier p er iod . I ft he a ssump t ion i s made t ha t t he o ccurrence o f as ing le s pec ies , f or e xamp le a s ing le t ype o f whea t , o n as i te o r s i tes i nd ica tes t ha t i th ad b een t aken i n to c u l t iva t ion , t hen i tc an b e s ugges ted t ha t b read whea t a nd c lub whea t ( Tr i t icu m a es t ivum a nd Tr i t icum c o mpac tu m ) w ere p oss ibly g rown a s c rops ( o r a s a mixed c rop ) f ro m a t l eas t t he R o man p er iod o nwards .

I n for ma t ion

f ro m t wo a s y e t u npub l ished 2 nd-3rd c en tury s i tes i n Winches ter , o ne s uburban , t he o ther i n tramura l , i nd ica te t ha t f ree t hresh ing whea ts may h ave b een g rown f or s o me s pec if ic p urpose p ossib ly a s pec ia l is t c rop t o s erve a p ar t icu lar u rban r equ ire men t .

These s pec ies o ccur s o mewha t l a ter o n r ura l s i tes , f or e xamp le

P oundbury ( Monk p ers . c o mm .).

I n many c ases i n o ther p ar ts o f t he r eg ion ,

i ti s n o t u n t i l t he e ar ly S axon p er iod t ha t b read a nd c lub whea t o ccur , f or e xamp le f ro m t he r ura l s i te a t S tra t ton P ark ( Murphy p ers . c o mm .).

Free t hresh ing

b read t ype whea ts h ave b een r ecovered f ro m a n i ncreasing n umber o f s i tes o f t he midd le a nd l a te S axon p er iods . The i nd ica t ion i s t ha t b y t he l a te S axon p er iod , w i th t he e xcep t ion o f t he G louces ter e v idence ( Green 1 979a : 1 88 ) , c lub a nd b read whea ts were t he ma in t ypes c u l t iva ted i n t he Wessex a rea . S evera l h ypo theses h ave b een p u t f orward t o a ccoun t f or t he a ppearance o f b read whea t i n t he I ron Age .

The a bsence o f t h is s pec ies f ro m t he f ew Bronze

A ge s amp les e xamined t o d a te d oes n o t o f i t se lf mean i t was a bsen t .

Free

t hresh ing whea ts h ave b een r ecovered f ro m n eo l i th ic s i tes a nd i t may b e r eas onab le t o a ssu me t he ir p resence a l l a long .

C on t inu i ty c anno t b e e s tab l ished

a tt he p resen t t ime a nd D imbleby 's s ugges t ion t ha t t he n eo l i th ic v ar ie t ies b ec ame e x t inc t a nd a nother v ar ie ty more s u i ted t o t he B ri t ish c l i ma te was i n trod uced ( Hubbard 1 975 : 2 00 ) r e ma ins o pen t o q ues t ion . H owever , a s H i l l man h as p oin ted o u t t here i s ac ons iderab le r isk t ha t f ree t hresh ing c erea ls a re g ross ly u nder-represen ted a t a l l p er iods ( H i l l man 1 978 : 1 69 ).

F or t h is r eason

t he s ugges t ion a bove , ( t ha t .the o ccurrence o f as ing le s pec ies i nd ica tes t ha t i t w as s pec if ica l ly c u l t iva ted ) , a l though p erhaps t rue f or s pel t a nd em mer , may n n t h o ld t rue f or t he b read a nd c lub whea ts .

1 008 06 0 4 0 2 00 I A

R

S

I A

R

S

I A

R

S

J A

R

S

I A

R

1 00 8 0 N o e v idence

6 0 B. 4 2 0 0

0 Emmer

E inkorn

B read Whea t

S pe l t

Whea t n o t f urthe r i den t if iab le

1 008 0A

6 0 4 0 • • • • ••

2 0-

••

r

I A

R

S

I A

R

S

I A

R

S

I A

R

S

1 00 8 0 6 04 0 2 0 0 N aked

H u l led

B ar ley

B ar ley

F ig . 7 .1

O a t

R ye

P resence b ar-diagrams t o s how t he d if ferences b e tween t he e v idence o fp lan t i mpress ions r ecovered b y J esson a nd H e lbaek ( A ) a nd t he r ecen t e v idence o f c arbon ised p lant r ema ins ( B ) .

N o te , t he h a tched a reas c onsis t o f a ddi t iona l l a te S axon

d a ta a nd t he d o t ted l i ne f or S pe lt r epresen ts a ddi t iona l c arbon ised e v idence r ecorded b y H e lbaek . The V er t ica l a x is r epresen ts t he p ercen tage o f s i tes e xam ined f rom wh ich t he d if feren t s pec ies were r ecorded .

O r

° I . 1 00

1 00

8 0

8 0 •

6 0

6 0 Whea t

4 0 -

4 0 -

2 0

2 0

I r on

A ge

R

E S

I r on

L S

0 / 0

1 00

1 00

A ge

R

ES

R

E S

L S

° I .

8 0 -

8 0

6 0

6 0 -

4 0 •

R ye

4 0 -

B ar ley

2 0 -

2 0 -

I ron

S i tes

O a t

5

A ge

1 2

2 9

R

E S

L S

2 9

9

1 9

I r on

A ge

L S

F ig . 7 .2 P resence b ar-diagrams o ft he ma in c erea ls , whea t , b ar ley , o a t a nd r ye .

1 00

1 00

S pe l t g ra in

1 00

Emmer g ra in

B read

W hea t

g ra in

8 0

8 0

8 0 •

6 0

6 0

6 0 •

4 0

4 0

4 0

2 0

2 0

2 0 0

I ron 1 00

A ge

R

ES

L S 1 00

S pe l t c ha ff

8 0

I ron

A ge

R

E S

6 0 •

6 0 .

4 0 •

4 0

4 0

2 0

2 0

2 0 «

I ron

A ge

R

E S

1

I r on

8 0

A ge

R

E S

L S

B re ad Whea t, S pe l t a nd Emmer

8 0 •

g ra in

6 0

4 0

4 0•

4 0

2 0

2 0-

2 0

R

ES

L S

A ge

R

E S

L S

I ron

A ge

R

S pe lt a nd Emme r g ra in

8 0

6 0

A ge

Whea t s p . ( no t f u r ther i den t i f ied)

I r on

6 0

I r on

L S

1 00

1 00 B read Whea t o n ly g ra in

ES

0

L S

1 00 -

R

g ra in B O •

6 0 •

1-

A ge

1 00

Emmer c ha f f

8 0 «

I r on

L S

E S

L S

I r on

A ge

R

ES

L S

•

F ig . 7 .3

P resence b ar-d iagrams o f whea t s pec ies , s how ing t he p ercen tage o ccurrence o f e ach s pec ies ( gra in a nd c ha f f ) a nd a lso s how ing t he p ercen tage o f s i tes where c o mb ina t ions o f t he d if feren t s pec ies o ccurred .

n o t f ur the r i d en t if iab le B ar ley

N aked a nd H u l led 2 ; 2 0

. 5 1 2 c o

o

c o

o

0

c 0

C D C O

CJ

U«) -J

c f ) L U

• 2

C

c i

0

0 0

0

0 0

c p

c o

0 c o •

0

bi — 4 a

1 . 37

1 0

1 00 -

1 0 0

B a r ley

S pe l t/Emme r a nd B ar ley

8 0 -

8 0 -

6 0

6 0

4 0 •

4 0

2 0 -

2 0

o nly

0 I r on

A ge

R

E S

L S

I r on

A ge

9 0 1 00 -

1 00 8 0 -

6 0 -

4 0 -

4 0 -

2 0-

2 0-

A ge

R

ES

I r on

L S

0 / 0 1 00 -

A ge

R

E S

B read Whea t o n ly

8 0 6 0 4 0 2 0 -

I r on

F ig . 7 .5

L S

8 0 -

6 0 -

I r on

E S

B read Wheat a nd B ar ley

S pe l t/Emme r ' only

R

A ge

R

E S

L S

P resence b ar-diagra ms t o s how t he p ercen tage o f s i tes where d i f feren t s pec ies o f whea t a nd b ar ley were r ecorded a nd a lso t he p ercentage o f s i tes where c omb ina t ions o f t he d i f feren t c erea ls were r ecovered . 1 38

L S

The e v idence f or c lub a nd b read whea ts f ro m many o f t he s i tes o n t he Hampsh ire c ha lk land , f or e xa mp le P or tway a nd O ld Down Farm , i nd ica tes t ha t f ree t hresh ing c erea ls d id n o t a ppear i n t h is p ar t icu lar a rea , whereas t he e v idence f ro m G ussage ( Evans a nd J ones 1 979 : 1 72-175 ) s hows t ha t b o th v ar iet ies were p resen t .

I tt herefore s ee ms t ha t c ons iderab le v ar ia t ion i n t he

i n troduc t ion a nd c u l t iva t ion o f t hese s pec ies e x is ted i n t he Wessex r eg ion d ur ing t he I ron Age. The t ypes o f b read whea t a nd c lub whea t c u l t iva ted s ee m t o b e morpho log ica l ly d iverse.

I ti s c o m mon t o f i nd b o th d ense e ared a nd l ax e ared f or ms

t oge ther i n a way t ha t i nd ica tes s elec t ion o f s pec if ic s tra ins c lear ly h ad n o t t aken p lace u n t i l a t l eas t t he l a te S axon p er iod . ( b )

Bar ley ( Hordeum s p .) The p ercen tage p resence o f b ar ley s pec ies c an b e s een i n F igure 7 :4.

Hu l led s ix-row f or ms a ccoun t f or mos t o f t he e v idence whereas n aked s ixr ow b ar ley n ever o ccurs o n more t han 1 5% o f t he s i tes a t a ny o ne p er iod a nd e ven a ccoun t ing f or p oss ib le u nder-represen ta t ion i s p robably o f much l ess i mpor tance t han C un l if fe s ugges ts ( 1979 : 1 78 ) , f eren t p urposes ).

( due t o i t s b e ing u sed f or d if-

Fro m t he a rchaeo log ica l i n forma t ion a va i lable i ti s d if f icu l t

t o e s tabl ish whe ther b ar ley r ea l ly was a more i mpor tan t c rop t han whea t o r v ice-versa .

C er ta in ly t here s ee ms t o b e n o g rea t c hange i n t he o ccurrence

o f t hese t wo s pec ies t hrough t ime ( F ig . 7 :2 ) a nd t h is i s a l l t he more s trange when t he c hange f ro m b r i t t le r ach is g lu me whea ts t o t he f ree t hresh ing f or ms i s t aken i n to c onsidera t ion , w i th s upposed u nder-represen ta t ion o f b read a nd c lub whea ts . The l ack o f b ar ley c ha f f f ragmen ts o n s i tes d oes i nd ica te t ha t i t was p roc essed d if feren t ly f ro m t he whea t c rops .

Th is i s t o b e e xpec ted , e spec ia l ly

d ur ing t he I ron Age a nd was s ugges ted b y L ivers idge ( 1968 : 2 13 ).

H owever ,

t he b a lance b e tween b ar ley a nd whea t c ha f f d ur ing t he l a te S axon p er iod s ugges ts l arger q uan t i t ies o f whea t . Bar ley c ha f f n ever s ee ms t o b e t he d om inan t c ha f f e le men t e ven where l arge b ar ley d epos i ts h ave b een r ecovered .

I ti s t herefore

d if f icu l t a t t he p resen t s tage i n t he s tudy o f c erea l c rops t o b e a s c a tegor ic a s A pp lebau m ( 1972 : 1 08 ) who s ta tes t ha t h u l led b ar ley was t he p redo m inan t c rop o f t he I ron Age , af ac t r ei tera ted b y o thers.

A t b es t h u l led b ar ley d oes s ee m

t o i ncrease i n f requency o f o ccurrence f ro m t he 3 rd c en tury BC o nwards a s w i tnessed b y e v idence f ro m O ld Down Farm ( Green f or thco m ing , a ) a nd a t P or tway ( Murphy 1 977 : 6 2 ).

I th as a lso b een s ugges ted t ha t b ar ley was t he

s tap le c rop d ur ing t he S axon p er iod .

O nce a ga in t he a rchaeo log ica l e v idence

d oes n ot s uppor t t h is h ypo thes is ( Green 1 979b : 1 48 a nd 2 95 ). When .e xamin ing t he r e la t ionsh ip b e tween t he b ar ley a nd t he whea t c rops ( Fig . 7 :5 ) i tc an b e s een t ha t i n t he i s t a nd 2 nd c en tur ies BC b ar ley a ppears t o b e more f requen t ly f ound o n i t s own .

Th is may b e c oup led w i th t he f ac t

t ha t b read whea t s ee ms t o o ccur o n more s i tes where b ar ley , em mer a nd s pe l t a re a bsen t .

S uch i nfor ma t ion c er ta in ly a rgues i n f avour o f h igh ly d iver-

s i f ied c rop c u l t iva t ion/u t i l isa t ion i n t he l a te I ron Age . I ti s i mpor tan t t o n o te t ha t t here i s n o e v idence f ro m Wessex t ha t t he b ar ley c rop was s pec if ica l ly g rown f or u se i n ma l t ing ( L ivers idge 1 968 : 2 15 ). Rarely h ave s prou ted g ra ins b een r ecovered f ro m p re-Saxon s i tes a nd y e t

1 39

s prou ted g ra in h as b een c o mmon ly r ecovered f ro m l a te S axon a nd med ieva l o nes .

The i mp l ica t ion i s t ha t b ar ley may n o t h ave b een e xc lus ive ly g rown

f or ma l t ing a nd t ha t o ther c rops may we l l h ave b een g rown f or t h is p urpose a t e ar l ier p er iods . There s ee ms t o b e n o s pec i f ic s e lec t ion o r p reference f or v ar ie t ies o f s ix-row h u l led b ar ley g rown i n t h is r eg ion f ro m t he I ron Age t o t he S axon p er iods .

J ones ( 1978 : 1 04-105 ) h as p o in ted o u t t ha t t he I ron Age b ar ley a t

A b ingdon c annot b e d iv ided i n to g enet ica l ly mean ing fu l v ar ie t ies i n t er ms o f e ar l ax i ty.

Th is c er ta in ly s ee ms t rue o n o ther s i tes , t ha t i s when s u f f ic ien t

e v idence ( rach is i n ternodes ) h as b een r ecovered f or a na lys is .

The i n for ma t ion

f ro m t he R o man a nd S axon p er iods s ugges ts g enet ica l ly h igh ly mixed c rops o f s ix-row b ar ley.

Bar ley c rops s ee m t o s how l ess d ivers i ty w i th in i nd iv idua l

l arge g ra in d epos i ts f ro m t he l a te S axon p er iod , whereas b e tween s uch d eposi ts d i f ferences c an b e c losely c o mpared w i th modern l ax a nd d ense e ared c rops . ( c )

O a ts ( Avena s a t iva a nd Avena s pp .) The ma in p roble m when d iscussing o a ts i s t ha t aw ide v ar ie ty o f w i ld o a ts

e x is t a s we l l a s s evera l c u l t iva ted f orms.

W i thou t d iagnos t ic p ar ts o f t hese

p lan ts ( l e m ma b ases ) i ti s v ery d if f icu l t t o s epara te p oor ly p reserved g ra ins o f w i ld a nd c u l t iva ted s pec ies .

A s p oin ted o u t a bove , ag enera l i ncrease i n t he

o ccurrence o f o a ts c an b e s een t hrough t ime a l though u n l ike many o f t he o ther c erea ls d iscussed , i ti s e ven more d i f f icu l t t o d ef ine a t wha t p er iod o a ts w ere g rown a s ac rop i n t he ir own r igh t .

The a va i lab le i n forma t ion f ro m t he Wessex

r eg ion i nd ica tes t ha t i ti s n o t u n t i l t he v ery l a te S axon p er iod t ha t s i tes b eg in t o p roduce a d om inance o f t h is s pec ies o ver o ther c rops a nd i ti s n o t u n t i l t he e ar ly med ieva l p er iod t ha t s i tes p roduce l arge c aches o f t h is c erea l . I ti s d if f icu l t t o d is m iss o a ts a s n o t b e ing a n i mpor tan t c rop i n Wessex p r ior t o t he S axon p er iod .

I ti s c once ivab le t ha t o r ig ina l u t i l isa t ion o f t h is

c rop may b e b iasing t he a rchaeo log ica l p ic ture .

I ti s p oss ible t ha t f u ture

work w i l l r evea l ap a t tern s imi lar t o t ha t n o ted b y J ones f or s i tes o u ts ide t he Wessex r eg ion ( Jones 1 975 : 1 04 ).

H owever , i ti s a lso c onceivab le t ha t t he

e n t ire e v idence f or o a ts f ro m Wessex i n t he p re-Saxon p er iod may s i mp ly r epresen t weeds o f o ther c rops o r i mpor ts f ro m o ther r eg ions where t h is c erea l i s k nown t o h ave b een c u l t iva ted . ( d )

R ye ( Seca le c erea le ) Th is s pec ies c er ta in ly o ccurs i n t he i st a nd 2 nd c en tur ies BC b u t a lways

a s av ery minor c o mponen t o f c erea l d epos i ts .

H i l l man h as i nd ica ted t ha t

t h is s pec ies i s l i ke ly t o b e g ross ly u nder-represen ted i n r e la t ion t o o ther c rops , e spec ia l ly n on f reethresh ing c erea ls ( H i l l man 1 978 : 1 69 ).

I t h as b een s ta ted

b y G odw in ( 1975 : 4 15 ) a nd o thers t ha t r ye was ama jon ,crop i n t he S axon a nd med ieva l p er iods .

The e v idence f ro m s i tes i n t he Wessex r eg ion h as c lear ly

s hown t h is n o t t o b e t he c ase ( Green 1 979b , a nd Monk 1 978 ).

C er ta in ly i n t he

l a ter med ieva l p er iod r ye i s r are ly men t ioned i n t he h is tor ica l d ocu men ta t ion a nd a t t he s ame t ime r are ly o ccurs o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes . Th is s pec ies was c lear ly g rown i n t he med ieva l p er iod i n t h is r eg ion , b u t l i ke o a ts i t may we l l h ave b een g rown o n c er ta in s o i l t ypes f or s hor t p er iods. I ti s p oss ib le t ha t r ye was s pec if ica l ly g rown f or n on-human c onsump t ion . R ye i s i dea l a s a n e ar ly b i te ( f odder c rop ) f or s heep ( Vancouver 1 813 : 1 57-158 ) , 1 40

a nd i s a lso h igh ly p r ized f or i t s l ong s traw f or t ha tch ing ( S tanes 1 969 : 5 3 ). The work o n p o l len b y G odw in ( 1975 : 4 15 ) h as p robab ly r esu l ted i n a n o veremphas is o f t he i mpor tance o f t h is c rop , s ince t he s pec ies p roduces a n a bunda nce o f a irborne p o l len , t he p o l len b e ing c arr ied f ur ther t han o ther c erea l p ol len .

A lso , t he p o l len o f r ye i s d is t inc t ive a nd i s t herefore more e as i ly

s epara ted f ro m o ther l arge G ram ineae p o l len , a nd i ti s t herefore n o t s urpr is ing t ha t t h is s pec ies a ppears t o b e more i mpor tan t a s ar esu l t o f s uch e v idence . L egumes ( Pap i l ionaceae ) L egu mes were p robably o f e qua l i mpor tance t o t he c erea ls f or p rov id ing p rote in a nd v i tam ins f or p as t p opu la t ions .

U n l ike t he c erea ls i ti s n o t p oss ib le

t o e nv isage t ha t l egumes w ere w ide ly g rown a s s pec i f ic f i eld c rops . a re s evera l g ood r easons f or t h is ; i nc luding modern b road b eans weev i l a nd a ph id a t tack .

There

t he d if feren t v ar ie t ies o f V ic ia f aba ,

a nd c el t ic b eans a re p ar t icu lar ly p rone t o

The c el t ic b ean d ue t o i t s e x treme h e igh t i s a lso

e as i ly d a maged b y s trong w ind a nd r a in .

I ti s t herefore more l og ica l t o a ssume

t ha t t hese c rops were g rown i n sma l l c u l t iva ted g arden a reas where c ons idera ble c on tro l c ou ld b e e xerc ised o ver t he m .

Ev idence f or c e l t ic b eans e x is ts

f ro m t he l a te Bronze A ge b o th i n c arbon ised f orm f ro m o u ts ide Wessex ( Murphy , p ers . c omm .) a nd a s p lan t i mpressions f ro m t he I s le o f W igh t ( Sca ife , p ers . c om m .) a nd n ot j us t f ro m t he 2 nd c en tury BC a s s ta ted b y C un l i f fe ( 1978 : 1 78 ). The e v idence f or t h is s pec ies r ecovered f ro m t he e ar ly e xcava t ions a t G las tonb ury ( Re id 1 917: 6 25-630 ) a nd o ther s i tes o f t he s ame p er iod c an n ow b e s een a s p ar t o f al onger c on t inuu m . The e v idence f or p eas ( P isu m s a t ivum ) i s l ess p rec ise .

P eas h ave o n ly

r are ly b een r ecovered f ro m l a te I ron Age s i tes i n t he r eg ion f or e xamp le a t B ishops tone ( Ar thur 1 977: 2 73-275 ).

The e v idence s ugges ts t ha t t hey may h ave

b een i mpor ted f ro m t he c on t inen t e i ther a s as pec i f ic c rop i mpor t o r a s a weed o f o ther c rop p lan ts .

P eas a re , h owever , q u i te c o m mon o n R o man s i tes , f or

e xamp le G oa th il l V i l la a nd Wookey ( Bran igan 1 976 : 1 33 ).

P eas h ave n ot b een

r ecovered f ro m e ar ly S axon s i tes , p oss ib ly a s ar esu l t o f p oor c ond i t ions o f p reserva t ion a nd t he g enera l l ack o f a l l c lasses o f d o mes t ic r efuse. L egu mes s uch a s L ens s p . ( l en t i l ) a l though r ecovered f ro m s evera l R o man a nd e ven l a te S axon s i tes , mus t b e c ons idered e i ther a s a n i mpor ted c rop o r as pec ies a cc iden ta l ly i mpor ted a s ac rop weed .

H owever , c asua l c u l t iva t ion

o f t h is s pec ies may h ave t aken p lace i n Wessex d ur ing t he Ro man , l a te S axon a nd l a ter p er iods . I ti s a lways d i f f icu lt t o e s tabl ish h ow i mpor tan t l egu mes were i n t he o vera l l e cono my o f a ny r eg ion , s imp ly b ecause t he n a ture o f p rocessing a nd u t i l isa t ion o f t he m l eaves l ess a rchaeo log ica l t race t han c erea ls ( Jenne 1 1 1 972 : 1 57 ) , i n p ar t icu lar t he b r i t t le r ach is h u l led f orms ( H i l l man 1 978 : 1 69 ).

I n t he l a ter

med ieva l p er iod where t he a rchaeolog ica l i n forma t ion c an b e c o mpared w i th t he d ocumen tary e v idence , l egu mes a ppear t o g a in i mpor tance w i th i ncreased q uan t i t ies b eing r ecovered f rom t he a rchaeo log ica l s i tes a nd i ncreased q uant i t ies b e ing g rown o n e cc les ias t ica l a nd o ther e s ta tes , a s w i tnessed b y d ocumen tary e v idence ( Ti tow , p ers . c o m m.).

O n t he b as is o f t hese t wo s ources

o f i nforma t ion i tc an b e p roposed t ha t t he i ncrease i n b eans o n s i tes f ro m t he 3 rd c en tury BC o nwards i n Wessex a lso p oss ibly i nd ica tes a r ea l i ncrease i n b ean c u l t iva t ion . The l a te I ron Age e v idence f or b eans e spec ia l ly i n Ha mpsh ire , 1 41

c an b e t aken a s f ur ther e v idence o f c rop d ivers i f ica t ion a t t h is p er iod .

I ti s

p oss ible t ha t s o me s e t t le men ts s uch a s O v vs lebury ( Murphy 1 977 : 2 27 ) may h ave s pec ia l ised i n g row ing b ean c rops o r a t l eas t s how a p reference f or t he ir u t i l isa t ion .

The o ccurrence o f V ic ia a nd La thyrus s pec ies o n s i tes a nd t he

a ccumu la t ions f ound f or e xamp le j us t o u ts ide t he Wessex r eg ion a t F ishbourne ( Gr ieg 1 976 : 3 76 ) may i nd ica te d el ibera te c o l lec t ion o r e ven c u l t iva t ion f or h u man o r more l i ke ly a nima l c onsu mp t ion . I mprove men ts i n t he s ize o f b ean a nd p ea s eeds c an o n ly b e e s tab l ished f ro m t he l a te med ieva l a nd p os t- med ieva l p er iods o n t he b as is o f t he a rchaeo log ica l e v idence c urren t ly a va i lab le . O ther V ege table C rops I ti s aw idespread b e l ief t ha t many o f t he v ege tab le c rops s uch a s t urn ip , p arsn ip , c abbage , r ad ish a nd mus tard , were i mpor ted i n to Br i ta in d ur ing t he R o man p er iod ( App lebau m 1 972 : 1 16 ).

U n t i l s uch c rops a re r ecorded f ro m

I ron Age s i tes i n Wessex i ti s i nev i table t ha t t hey s hou ld b e c ons idered a s Ro man i n troduc t ions .

H owever , f u ture work o n s i tes where p reserva t ion

c ond i t ions a re more s u i ted t o t he s urv iva l o f v ege tab le r e ma ins may w e l l c hange t h is p ic ture i n t he n ear f u ture .

I ti s h ard t o c ons ider t ha t t he d egree

o f t rad ing c on tac ts , s o c lear ly d e mons tra ted f ro m c eram ic e v idence , d id n ot a lso i nvo lve t rade i n p er ishab le f oodstu f fs , a nd t he i mpor ta t ion o f n ew s pec ies . U nfor tuna te ly i ti s d i f f icu l t t o b e a s p rec ise a bou t t he v ege table c rops r epresen ted o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes , a s i nd ica ted b y A pp lebau m ( 1972 : 1 16 ). I ti s i mpor tan t t o c ons ider t ha t s eeds o f many v ege tab le c rops a re u n l ike ly t o o ccur o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes , s ince i t may b e t ha t t he l eaves o r t he r oots o f t he c rops w ere c onsumed . I ti s o n ly where c aches o f s eeds o ccur t ha t a ny i nd ica t ion o f u t i l isa t ion a nd c u l t iva t ion a s as pec if ic c rop c an b e i n ferred . H owever , t he p roblem i s c ompounded s ince t he s eeds o f s o me v ege table s pec ies c anno t b e e as i ly s epara ted f ro m t he ir w i ld p rogen i tors o r e ven c lose ly a l l ied n on-cu l t iva ted v ar ie t ies.

Thus many v ege tab le c rops a nd p lan ts g rown i n

Wessex i n t he p as t a re b ound t o b e u nder-represen ted a nd o ur i mpress ion o f p as t v egetable c rop c u l t iva t ion i sb ound t o b e d is tor ted . S pecu la t ion a bou t p lan ts t ha t may h ave b een g rown a s v ege tab le .c rops c ou ld b e e nd less .

I t i s b est t o c on f ine d iscuss ion t o t hose s pec ies t ha t a re s t i l l b eing

c u lt iva ted o r f or wh ich t here i s e thno-h is tor ica l d a ta f ro m t he a rea b e ing s tud ied . I ti s t herefore p oss ib le t ha t many p lan ts r epresen ted b y t he ir s eeds o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes i n Wessex ( bu t b y modern c r i ter ia t rea ted a s weeds ) may h ave f ormed a n i mpor tan t p ar t o f t he o vera l l c rop a gr icu l ture. I ti s o n ly f ro m R o man a nd l a ter S axon s i tes i n Wessex where g arderobes a nd l a tr ine p i ts h ave p reserved h u man f aeca l ma ter ia l t ha t r e l iab le a na lysis o f t he n on-seed p or t ions o f v ege table c rops , p oss ibly c rops o n ly c onsumed i n d ire n ecess i ty ( c f . Akroyd a nd Dough ty 1 964 : 1 19 ) c an b e u nder taken . Brass ica s eeds ( spec ies o f c abbage , mus tard , r ape ) h ave b een r ecovered f ro m I ron Age s i tes o f ten i n v ery l arge q uan t i t ies .

Ev idence f ro m p i ts ( Green

f or thco ming , a ) a nd f ro m t he i nside o f ap o t a t O ld Down Far m ( Murphy 1 977: P la te 1 4 ) i nd ica tes t ha t d e l ibera te c o l lec t ion f or s o me p urpose was u nder taken The e v idence s ugges ts a c rop s tored f or f u ture c u l t iva t ion o r c u l inary u se .

1 42

Chenopod iu m a lbum ( Fa t H en ) a nd r e la ted s pec ies d o o ccur f requent ly o n I ron Age a nd l a ter s i tes a nd may a s i nd ica ted b y R eyno lds ( 1979 : 6 7-69 ) h ave c ons t i tu ted a c rop p lan t .

B ee t ( Be ta s p .) i s f i rs t r ecorded i n Wessex f ro m

al a te S axon c on tex t i n Winches ter ( Green u npub l ished ).

O nce a ga in wa ter-

l ogged p reserva t ion c ond i t ions a ccoun t f or t he p reserva t ion o f t h is s pec ies wh ich may r epresen t l ea f b ee t , b ee troo t o r c hard . S eeds o f e i ther w i ld o r c u l t iva ted c arro t ( Daucus c aro ta ) h ave b een c o mmon ly r ecovered f rom l a te S axon a nd med ieva l s i tes i n Wessex i n p ar t icu lar f ro m e xcava t ions i n W inches ter .

O ther v ege tab le s pec ies r ecorded f ro m l a te

S axon s i tes i n Winches ter a lso i nc ludes e v idence f or c e lery ( Green u npub l ished ). H erbs S pec i f ic p lan ts k nown t o h ave b een g rown f or t he ir u se a s h erbs h ave b een r ecorded f ro m R o man a nd l a ter s i tes.

C or iander ( Cor iandrum s a t ivum ) h as

b een r ecorded f ro m R oman d epos i ts a t B ucknow le Far m , C or fe C as t le a nd f ro m Ro man d eposi ts i n Winches ter . F enne l ( Foen icu lum v u lgare ) h as o n ly b een r ecorded f ro m l a te S axon s i tes i n W inches ter . Whereas o p iu m p oppy ( Papaver s o mn i ferum ) h as b een r ecorded f ro m aw ide r ange o f s i tes f ro m t he l a te I ron Age o nwards . Th is s pec ies may r epresen t ac o m mon w eed o r a c rop e i ther u sed a s ah erb o r g rown f or t he o i l t ha t i t s s eeds c on ta in . F ibre a nd O i l C rops F inds o f f lax s eeds f ro m l a te I ron Age c on tex ts h ave r are ly b een made i n Wessex ( Murphy 1 977 : 2 26 ).

The s parse e v idence t hough n ot s pec if ica l ly

s ugges t ing c u l t iva t ion i n t h is r eg ion d oes a t l eas t i nd ica te t ha t t he c rop was a va i lab le t hough p ossib ly impor ted f ro m n or thern Br i ta in o r t he c on t inen t . I ft he s eed h ad b een u sed f or o i l p roduc t ion i ts hou ld h ave b een r ecovered f ro m a l arger n u mber o f s i tes.

H owever , i fc u l t iva ted f or i t s f i bre , t he p ro-

c ess o f h arves t ing a nd r e t t ing ( Boase 1 918 : 1 40-147 ) r educes i t s c hances o f b e ing r ecovered .

I ti s o n ly f ro m wa ter logged s i tes o f t he S axon p er iod

( W inchester , S ou thamp ton , G louces ter ) t ha t t h is s pec ies r egu lar ly o ccurs . I ti s p ossib le t ha t t he b iases o f p reserva t ion e ssen t ia l ly c onf ined t o c arbon ised ma ter ia l f ro m I ron Age s i tes w i th i ncreas ing q uan t i t ies o f wa ter lpgged e v idence f ro m Ro man a nd S axon s i tes i s c on fusing t he o bserved p ic ture . Cannab is o r h e mp ( Cannabis s a t iva ) d oes o ccur o n c on t inen ta l s i tes f ro m t he Ro man p er iod o nwards ( W i l lerd ing 1 970 : 2 87-385 ).

I t a lso o ccurs i n t he

Br i t ish I sles f or t he f i rst t ime a t t h is p er iod a s t he 1 979 e xcava t ions a t Bucknow le Far m , C one Cas t le , D orse t , s howed ( Green u npub l ished ). Th is e v idence , l i ke a l l t he S axon i n for ma t ion o n t h is p lan t f ro m Wessex ( W inchester , S ou thamp ton , G louces ter ) , c o mes f ro m wa ter logged d epos i ts .

H e mp b eco mes

f ar more c o m mon f ro m t he l a te S axon p er iod , f or e xamp le f ro m G louces ter ( Green 1 979a : 1 86).

The p ol len e v idence a s n oted b y G odw in ( 1967 : 4 2-49 ,

1 975 : 4 15 ) i nd ica tes t ha t t he c rop was g rown f ro m a t l eas t t he midd le S axon p er iod o nwards i n t he Br i t ish I s les a nd i s i nvar iab ly a ssoc ia ted w i th f lax i n t he p ol len s pec tra .

The a va i lab le d ocu men tary e v idence s ugges ts t ha t b o th

f lax a nd h e mp may we l l h ave b een i mpor ted i n to t he r eg ion f ro m t he c on t inen t i n t he med ieva l p er iod .

H e mp was c er ta in ly i mpor ted i n to S ou thamp ton i n t he

1 3th c en tury ( P la t t 1 973 : 1 3 ).

I t i s t herefore q u i te p oss ible t ha t b o th f l ax a nd

h e mp were i mpor ted i n to s ou thern Br i ta in f ro m a t l eas t Ro man t imes o nwards .

1 43

Fru i ts a nd E xot ic C rops F or mos t p rac t ica l p urposes i ti s i mposs ib le t o d is t ingu ish b e tween t hose e xo t ic c rops g rown i n Wessex a nd t hose t ha t may h ave b een i mpor ted f ro m t he c on t inen t o r e lsewhere .

The r ange o f e xo t ic c rops t ha t were a va i lable o n t he

c on t inen t d ur ing t he I ron Age ( Knorzer 1 968 : 1 13-124 , K norzer 1 976: 6 1 , K norzer 1 966 : 1 13-124 a nd Wi l lerd ing 1 970 : 2 87-385 ) i s c lear .

The l ack o f

s uch e v idence o f s i tes i n Wessex i s p robab ly b iased , s ince r are ly h ave wa terl ogged s i tes f or t h is p er iod b een e xam ined a nd wa ter logg ing o r a naerob ic s o i l c ond i t ions a re r espons ible f or t he p reserva t ion o f mos t o f t he c on t inen ta l a s we l l a s t he l a ter f ru i t a nd e xot ic c rop e v idence f ro m Wessex .

Th is p o in t h as

b een d e mons tra ted o n many wa ter logged R o man s i tes o u ts ide Wessex ( W i l lcox 1 977 : 2 69-282 ).

Fru i t c rops a re r are ly i fe ver p reserved b y c arbon isa t ion

( Green 1 979b : 2 83 ). H owever , i t must b e c ons idered t ha t d e l ica te f ru i t c rops l i ke mu lberr ies a nd o ther s of t f ru i t r ecovered f ro m many Ro man s i tes i n Dorse t a nd Devon ( Dewar 1 955 : 5 8-60 ) mus t h ave b een g rown i n Wessex . No d irec t e v idence f or t he c u l t iva t ion o f g rapes e x is ts i n Wessex f rom R o man o r e ven l a ter s i tes .

The Ro man e v idence f ro m G louces ter ( Hurs t 1 978 :

1 62 ) h as b een r eda ted t o t he S axon p er iod .

C lear ly v ines w ere c u l t iva ted i n

S axon a nd l a ter t imes a nd t here i s n o r eason t o s uppose t ha t t hey h ad n o t b een i n troduced i n to Wessex d ur ing t he Ro man p er iod .

The e v idence f or g rapes

b eco mes a bundan t f ro m midd le a nd l a ter S axon s i tes s uch a s Winches ter , H a mw ih a nd G louces ter , t hough i nvar iab ly a ssoc ia ted w i th monas t ic s i tes a nd s i tes i nhab i ted b y i nd iv idua ls o f h igh s oc ia l s ta tus . Dur ing t he S axon a nd l a ter p er iods i n Wessex a w ide r ange o f f ru i t c rops s ee m t o h ave b een c u l t iva ted , a l though p oss ible s pec i f ica l ly c u l t iva ted i n h edgerows r a ther t han o rchards . a nd s trawberr ies .

These i nc lude s loe , b u l lace , p lums , c herr ies

A lso , b lackberr ies , a nd r aspberr ies may h ave b een s pe-

c i f ica l ly c u l t iva ted r a ther t han j us t b eing c ol lec ted i n t he w i ld .

A bundan t e v i-

d ence f or a l l t hese s pec ies h as b een r ecovered f ro m s i tes s uch a s Winchester ( Green f or thco ming c ) . The l ack o f e v idence f or h aze l-nu t ( Corylus a ve l lana ) f ro m I ro r i Age a nd Ro man s i tes h as b een c o m men ted o n ( Jones 1 980 ).

Th is s pec ies i s v ery

c o m mon ly r ecovered f ro m mesol i th ic , n eo l i th ic a nd Bronze Age s i tes i n Wessex . Broken f ragmen ts o f t h is s pec ies a lso o ccur i n l arge q uan t i t ies o n S axon a nd med ieva l s i tes .

A l though e v idence f ro m wa ter logged c on tex ts o f t he S axon

p er iod i nvar iably a lso c on ta ins who le n u ts wh ich were c lear ly d iscarded s ince t hey were o bv iously d iseased .

S ince c arbon ised a nd wa ter logged f ragmen ts

a re e qua l ly c o m mon p r ior t o t he I ron Age a nd R o man p er iods t he l ack o f I ron Age e v idence mus t i nd ica te a f undamen ta l c hange e i ther i n t he u se o f t h is r esource o r ac hange i n l and manage men t a nd t he i mpor tance o f t h is s pec ies a s ac opp ic ing c rop . C rops o f al uxury n a ture t ha t c ou ld t ravel l ong d is tances h ave b een r ecorded f ro m many Ro man wa ter logged s i tes i n Wessex a nd i nc lude f ig , wa lnu t a nd p ine-nu t .

The r ecovery o f c o mp le te wa ter logged p ine c ones o f P inus p inea

f ro m Winches ter ( Murphy : p ers . c o m m.) a nd c arbon ised p ine n u ts ( Green u npub l ished ) may i nd ica te t ha t t h is s pec ies was g rown i n Br i ta in r a ther t han

1 44

i mpor ted .

I ti s n ot u n t i l t he l a ter med ieva l p er iod t ha t many o f t he e xo t ic

i mpor ted c rops r ecorded o n R o man s i tes o nce a ga in o ccur i n t he a rchaeo log ica l r ecord , a nd f ro m t he ir o ccurrence i n d ocumen tary s ources a ppear t o b eco me i mpor tan t c onst i tuen ts i n t he d ie t ( a lbei t o f wea l thy i nd iv idua ls ) .

H e mp

( Hu mu lus l upu lus ) h as o n ly b een r ecorded f rom v ery l a te S axon a nd med ieva l s i tes i n Wessex f or e xamp le i n Winches ter .

H owever , t he s parse e v idence

f ro m Wessex a nd t he i n forma t ion f ro m t he G raveney b oa t ( W i lson a nd C ono l ly 1 978 : 1 33-150 ) p robab ly i nd ica tes t ha t t h is c rop was i mpor ted r a ther t han b e ing w ide ly g rown i n t he a rea p r ior t o t he l a te med ieva l p er iod . Many c rops o f a n e xo t ic n a ture t ha t h ave b een r ecorded f rom s i tes i n Wessex o n t he b as is o f t he ir s pec if ic c l i ma t ic r equ ire men ts , c an n ever h ave b een g rown i n t he r eg ion a t a ny p er iod u nder d iscuss ion .

I ti s i ns truc t ive

t ha t many c rops , e ven i mpor ted o nes s uch a s r ice , o n ly o ccur l a te i n t he Br i t ish p lan t r ecord a s e xe mp l if ied b y t he Wessex e v idence f ro m S ou thamp ton ( Green u npubl ished ).

C er ta in ly t rade was t ak ing p lace w i th t he c on t inen t i n w ine a nd

o ther c o m mod i t ies d ur ing t he Ro man a nd p os t-Ro man p er iods a nd i ti s a lso r easonable t o a ssu me t ha t p er ishab le f ood s tu f fs may a lso h ave b een t raded ( Fu lford 1 977 : 6 3 ).

The e v idence d oes s ugges t ar a ther c onserva t ive a pproach

t o c rop i mpor ts a nd t he i mpor ta t ion o f n ew s pec ies t ha t c ou ld h ave b een c u l t iv a ted i n Wessex . Weeds The l ast g roup o f p lan ts a l though n o t o f n ecess i ty c rops t he mse lves c ons is t o f p lan ts t ha t must h ave c ons t i tu ted t he c o m mones t weeds i n t he c erea l c rops . I ti s q u i te c lear t ha t c er ta in weed s eeds o ccur w i th mono tonous r egu lar i ty o n mos t I ron Age a nd l a ter s i tes i n t he Wessex r eg ion .

O ne o f t he mos t c o m mon ly

o ccur ing s pec ies i s Bro mus s eca l inus/ mo l l is ( Bro me g rass ).

Recen t ly H ubbard

( 1975 : 2 01 ) a nd Ar thur ( 1977 : 2 73 ) h ave s ugges ted t ha t i t was p oss ibly a t o lera ted o r u sefu l p lan t .

Hubbard b ases h is a sser t ions o n t he l ack o f c orre la t ion b e-

t ween t h is s pec ies a nd a ny c erea l c rop .

H owever , a s Murphy h as s hown ( 1977:

2 27 ) t h is i s q u i te c lear ly n ot t he c ase f or s i tes s uch a s P or tway a nd i n forma t ion f ro m o ther s i tes s uch a s O ld D own Far m ( Green f or thco ming , a ) a nd A shv i l le ( c f . J ones 1 978 : 1 06 ) b ear t h is o u t . Bro me g rass was a p ers is ten t weed o f h u l led whea t i n t he I ron Age , a nd i tf requen t ly o ccurs o n s i tes o ft he R o man a nd S axon p er iods.

The e v idence f ro m l a te S axon s i tes i nd ica tes t ha t i to ccurs

more f requen t ly a s aweed o fb ar ley c rops a t t h is p er iod ( Green 1 979d : 2 322 35 ).

The a bundance o f Bromus o n I ron Age s i tes i s d ue t o i t s b e ing w innowed

f ro m c rops a nd h ence i t s o ccurrence amongs t t he c haf f e le men ts .

The s ame

i s t rue f or i t s o ccurrence o n Ro man s i tes . H owever , t he S axon e v idence f or Bro mus h as i nvar iably b een r ecovered f ro m b u lk c erea l d epos i ts i n p ar t icu lar b ar ley c rops t ha t s ee m n o t t o h ave b een t horough ly c leaned o f s uch i mpur i t ies. I ti s e v iden t t ha t t he d isposa l o f c rop was te p roduc ts a nd me thods o f c lean ing c hanged e normously b e tween t he e ar ly Ro man a nd l a ter S axon p er iods i n Wessex . Th is p robably r esu l ts f ro m t he d i f feren t t ypes o f whea t b eing c u l t iva ted , a nd t ha t t he e v idence f ro m I ron Age s i tes c o mes f ro m s et t le men ts o f a n e ssen t ia l ly r ura l c harac ter , whereas t he l a te S axon e v idence c o mes f ro m d evelop ing u rban c en tres . Another p lan t t ha t i s o f ten q uo ted a s ac o m mon weed o f I ron-Age c rops i s Agroste m ma g i thago ( Corn C ock le ).

Exam ina t ion o f t he e v idence f ro m t he

H a mpsh ire I ron Age s i tes d oes s ugges t t ha t t h is p ar t icu lar p lan t was n o t t he 1 45

menace a s aw eed t ha t i t was t o b eco me d ur ing t he S axon a nd med ieva l p er iods . O n p resence a na lys is t h is s pec ies h as o ccurred o n a bou t 1 5% o f t he s i tes e xam ined a nd n ever i n h igh c oncen tra t ions ( i .e . o ver 1 0 s eeds p er 1 0 ,000 ml o f s o i l e xam ined ). Th is p lan t , l i ke Bup leureum r o tund i fol ium , Thorow Wax , ( Reyno lds 1 978 : 1 47 ) a nd P o lygonum c onvo lvu lus ( B lack B indweed ) d oes n o t o ccur a s f requen t ly o n I ron Age s i tes a s R eyno lds wou ld h ave u s b e l ieve ( 1979 : 6 9 ). C er ta in ly t hey s ee m t o b e n o more c ommon o n I ron Age s i tes t han t hey a re o n l a ter S axon a nd med ieva l o nes where c arbon ised p reserva t ion c ond i t ions p reva i l . S o me c o m mon weed s pec ies h ave o n t he o ther h and b een r a ther o verl ooked a nd c lear ly c ons iderab le w ork n eeds t o b e u nder taken t o u nders tand t he r o le o f w eeds s uch a s L i thospermum a rvense ( Corn G ro mwe l l ) ac ommon weed o f t he I ron Age a nd Ro man p er iods ( Jones 1 978 : 1 01 ) , b u t i n frequen t ly f ound o n S axon a nd l a ter s i tes e xcep t a s as i te s pec if ic w eed ( Green f or thcom ing , b ). D iscuss ion Weed s eeds f ro m c arbon ised d epos i ts , t he ir r e la t ionsh ip t o s pec if ic c rops a nd c hanges i n t heir d is tr ibu t ion t hrough t ime s t i l l n eed p roper i nves t iga t ion . There a re , h owever , o ne o r t wo n ot iceable t rends .

G odw in ( 1975 : 4 77-478 )

h as a lready i mp l ied a n i ncrease i n w eed a nd i n p ar t icu lar c rop weed s pec ies f ro m t he 3 rd c en tury BC i n p o l len s pec tra . The s ame p a t tern h as c er ta in ly emerged f ro m t he s eed e v idence a t s i tes s uch a s O ld Down Farm ( Green f or thco m ing , a ) a nd t he e v idence r ecorded b y J ones ( 1978 : 1 07 ) f ro m t he e xcav a t ions a t A shv i l le , Oxon . A n i ncrease i n t he r ange o f s pec ies i nvo lved c an b e d e tec ted a s we l l a s an ot iceable i ncrease i n t he a c tua l q uan t i t ies o f w eed s eeds r ecovered . I ti s i n teres t ing t o n ote t ha t t he e v idence f rom O ld D own Farm a lso s hows a n i ncrease i n t he q uan t i ty o f c ha f f f ragmen ts a nd c erea ls t hrough t ime , p oss ibly i nd ica t ing i ncreased c rop p rocess ing a c t iv i t ies , o r g rea ter a t ten t ion t o t he c lean ing o f c rops . H owever , o n t he n earby s i te o f P or tway t he e v idence s ugges ts t ha t t he o ppos i te i s t rue , o n t h is s i te a l l t he e le men ts , c rop weeds , c ha f f a nd c erea ls d ecrease i n o ccurrence t hrough t ime . S uch v ar ia t ion b etween d if feren t s i tes i n t he I ron Age p ossib ly r e f lec ts s i te s pec ia l isa t ion a nd t he c hange o n s o me s i tes f rom a mixed e cono my where a l l c rop p rocess ing a c t iv i t ies t ook p lace t o o ne where o n ly c er ta in a spec ts o f p roduc t ion a nd c onsump t ion were u nder taken p oss ib ly a s ar esu l t o f 'i ncreased p astora l a c t iv i ty. S i te s pec ia l isa t ion w i th in a r eg ion i n t erms o f a gr icu l tura l p roduc t ion o r p ossib ly s pec ia l ised a gr icu l tura l p rocess ing may i n f ac t h era ld o r r esu l t f ro m o ther e cono m ic a nd s oc ia l c hanges c u lm ina t ing i n l a ter p er iods w i th t he c lear d is t inc t ions b e tween r ura l a nd u rban c en tres . C lear ly when d a ta p erm i t , t he d i f ferences b e tween s i tes mus t b e more c lear ly e xam ined t o s ee wha t p a t terns o f v ar ia t ion may emerge f ro m s e t t le men ts i n t he s ame g eog raph ica l r eg ion , s i tes t ha t p oss ibly h ad a c o mp l imen tary f unc t ion w i th in t he o vera l l e cono my. Dur ing t he l a ter p er iods u nder d iscuss ion , o ther d if ferences c an b e o bs erved . I n t he S axon a nd l a ter med ieva l p er iods t he r ange o f c rops r ecovered f ro m s i tes c an v ary e normous ly. N o t iceable d i f ferences d o e x is t b e tween u rban a nd r ura l s i tes . F or e xa mp le sma l l r ura l a nd s em i-urban c en tres d o s ee m t o p roduce g rea ter e v idence o f o a ts a nd l egumes t han t he l arge u rban c en tres s uch a s Winchester ( Green f or thco m ing , c ) . S uch a d icho to my must r epresen t t he d i f feren t r equ ire men ts o f t hese s e t t lemen ts a nd mus t i nd ica te t he i n f luence a nd p reference p laced o n p roduc t ion w i thin t he im med ia te c erea l t rad ing a nd s erv icing a rea . 1 46

Hav ing b r ief ly d ea l t w i th i n ter-s i te v ar iab i l i ty i ti s a lso i mpor tan t t o c ons ider i n tra-si te v ar iabi l i ty.

C lear ly t he work o f D enne l l ( 1972 : 1 50 )

c ou ld b e a pp l ied more w ide ly t o s ee wha t v ar ia t ion a c tua l ly e x is ts b e tween t he d eposi ts i n d i f feren t t ypes o f f ea ture o r f or t ha t ma t ter t he s ame t ype o f f ea ture .

The o n ly i n for ma t ion a va i lable a t t he p resen t t ime ( Murphy 1 977 :

2 14-215 ) f ro m I ron Age s i tes i nd ica tes t ha t b ar ley i s c o m mon ly f ound i n p os th o les a nd t ha t whea t i s c onf ined t o p i ts a nd d i tches .

Th is i s s uppor ted b y

Wa inwr igh t ( 1968 : 1 14 ) o n t he b as is o f t he e v idence f rom T ol lard R oya l . Whe ther o r n o t Wa inwr igh t 's model o f b ar ley b e ing s tored i n a bove g round s truc tures a nd whea t i n s torage p i ts i s av a l id o ne c annot e as i ly b e p roved o r d isproved .

C lear ly , a s i nd ica ted b y R eyno lds ( 1979 : 5 8 ) , t he mechan is ms

i nvo lved b e tween h arvest ing p reserva t ion a nd f i na l d epos i t ion a re c o mp lex a nd t hus s i mp le mode ls may b e t o ta l ly i nadequa te f or i nd ica t ing t he p rocesses i nvo lved .

Wa inwr igh t 's a sser t ions c an b e c r i t ic ised o n t he g rounds t ha t t he

e v idence f ro m I ron Age s torage p i ts d oes n o t s pec if ica l ly r epresen t s tored c rops , b u t i nvar iably r epresen ts was te p roduc ts d isposed o f w i th in t he f ea ture when t he p i t was n o l onger r equ ired f or s o me o ther p urpose . U nfor tuna te ly u n t i l f ur ther e v idence f ro m we l l d a ted p os tholes i s a va i lable , a nd o n many s i tes t h is i s r are d ue t o p oor s tra t igraphy , l i t t le c an b e s a id a bou t v ar ia t ion i n t he r ange o f p lan t r e ma ins r ecovered f ro m f ea tures o n I ron Age s i tes .

F or l a ter p er iods i n p ar t icu lar ly R o man a nd l a ter S axon s i tes where

s pec i f ic c lasses o f f ea ture s uch a s c ess p i ts h ave b een r ecorded , t he d egree o f i n tra-si te v ar ia t ion i s o f ten e x tre me ly n ot iceable ( Green 1 979 : 4 1-44 ). H owever , b efore s uch d e ta i led t ransforma t ion s tud ies c an b e p u t i n to p rac t ice t here a re s evera l v ery ma jor p rob le ms t ha t w i l l h ave t o b e o verco me . I t s hou ld b e p oin ted o u t t ha t c arbon ised s eed d ens i t ies w i th in d epos i ts r are ly r ef lec t l arge mam ma l b one o r p ot tery d ensi t ies , a nd t ha t c arbon ised s eeds a re f requen t ly f ound i n f ea tures where b one a nd p ot tery i s l ack ing .

There

a re s o me v ery n o t iceab le d i fferences i n t he c harac ter o f t he s i tes b e ing e xami ned d ur ing t he t ime s pan d iscussed h ere .

The g eograph ica l s e t t ing o f many

o f t he s i tes i s d if feren t a nd o f c ourse p reserva t ion c ond i t ions v ary e nor mous ly. S i tes o f t he e ar l ies t I ron Age s uch a s p hases f ro m O ld D own Farm a re r epresen ted b y as er ies o f p i ts a nd p os tholes a nd d i tches .

The s . ame i s t rue

o f mos t I ron Age s i tes i n t he r eg ion , f or e xamp le P or tway , C owdery 's Down , G ussage a nd e ven l arger s e t t le men ts s uch a s a t W inches ter a nd D a nebury. H owever , a way f ro m t he c ha lk , f or e xamp le o n t he g rave ls i n Ox fordsh ire a nd t he l imes tone i n t he G louces ter a nd Avon r eg ion p i ts b eco me l ess c om mon . Ap r ime e xample i s t he l ack o f p i ts a t C r ick ley H i l l .

O n s o me o f t hese s i tes

t he o n ly a va i lable f ea tures t ha t c an b e s amp led a re p os t h o les , r ing g u l leys a nd d i tches .

Thus t o make d irec t c o mpar isons b e tween t hese d i f feren t t ypes

o f s i te , t hose w i th p i ts a nd t hose w i thou t , i s a l mos t i mposs ible.

P i ts i nvar iably

c on ta in most o f t he c arbon ised p lan t c o mponen t r ecovered a nd t he a bsence o f s uch f ea tures i s as evere l oss t o i n tra-s i te a nd i n ter-s i te i n terpre ta t ion . Ro man s i tes v ary c onsiderably i n c harac ter , t here i s s can t e v idence f rom ar ange o f v i l la s i tes t yp if ied b y Bran igan ( 1976 : 1 34 ) a nd F ow ler ( 1 976 : 1 911 92 ).

V i l la s i tes i n Hampsh ire h ave t o d a te r ece ived v ery l i t t le a t ten t ion

l argely a s ar esu l t o f t he p as t a nd e ven p resen t b ias o f many Ro man is ts t owards s truc tures r a ther t han e nv iron men ta l a spec ts ( c f . Frere 1 978 : i x-x ).

1 47

On ly

o ne v i l la s i te h as p een s ys te ma t ica l ly e xam ined f or p lan t r e ma ins a t Bar ton C our t Farm , A bingdon , Oxon . ( Jones , p ers . c omm .).

Added t o t h is i s t he

g enera l l ack o f i n forma t ion f rom R o man u rban s e t t le men ts .

However , s o me

u rban s e t t le men ts o f as pec if ic c harac ter h ave b een e xa m ined f or e xamp le t he i mpor tan t e v idence b e ing r ecovered f ro m t he c re ma t ion c e me tery o u ts ide t he n or th g a te a t W inches ter ( Green , u npubl ished ).

H owever , s uch e v idence a t

t he mo men t i s n ot e as i ly c o mpared w i th t he i nforma t ion f ro m t he Ro man p hases a t P or tway , Ows lebury , O ld D own Far m , a nd s i tes e xamined b y Monk a nd Murphy ( 1977 : 6 8-72 ;

Fasha m a nd Monk 1 978 : 3 63-371 ) a t M iche ldever Wood

a nd Winne l D own t o t he n or th a nd n or th-wes t o f Winches ter . S i tes o f t he e ar ly S axon p er iod o n t he H a mpsh ire c ha lk land h ave b een e xam ined i n s o me d eta i l . S i tes s uch a s C ha l ton a nd C owdery 's D own h ave b een e x tens ive ly s amp led .

H owever , when o n ly p os tho les a nd t imber s l o ts

r e ma in , t he n a ture o f t he s urv iv ing e v idence i s b ound t o b e d is tor ted a nd d i f f icu l t t o i n terpre t ( c f . Addy man 1 976 : 3 15 ). Even when g rubenhäuser h ave b een e xamined ( O ld D own Farm a nd C ha l ton ) t he e v idence r ecovered h as b een e xceed ing ly s parse . C ha l ton i s t he o n ly midd le S axon s i te i n t h is r eg ion t ha t h as s o f ar p roduced p i ts w i th c erea l a ccumu la t ions ( Green u npub l ished ) . C erea l a ccu mu la t ions h ave h owever , b een r ecovered f ro m t he s e t t le men t s i te e xam ined b y Murphy a t S tra t ton Park ( Murphy 1 977: 7 6-77 ) as i te o f e ar ly S axon d a te ( Fasha m : p ers . c o mm .). H owever , t he e v idence f ro m t hese r ura l s i tes c anno t e as i ly b e c o mpared w i th t he i nfor ma t ion f ro m t he e ar l iest c ont ex ts a t Winches ter o r a t Hamw ih , s i tes wh ich h ave p rov ided t he l arges t s amp le o f midd le a nd l a ter S axon p lan t r e ma ins f rom t he Wessex r eg ion ( i n t he c ase o f Winches ter f ro m p i ts a nd we l ls a ssoc ia ted w i th monas t ic a nd r e l ig ious o ccupa t ion ). C onc lus ion I th as n o t b een t he a im o f t h is p aper t o d iscuss t he e f fec ts o f g row ing d i f feren t c rops o n t he s oc ie t ies b e ing s tud ied .

S uch a spec ts d iscussed b y

C hamp ion ( 1980 : 3 52 ) a nd Brad ley ( 1978 : 3 2-34 ) c lear ly l i e o u tside t he s cope o f t h is p aper . The a rchaeo log ica l e v idence f or c rops f ro m Wessex d ur ing t he J ron A ge , Ro man a nd S axon p er iods i s n ow f ar more c o mp lex t han p rev ious ly i ndica ted , e spec ia l ly i n t he l igh t o f t hose s pec ies t ha t were p rev ious ly t hough t t o h ave b een l a te I ron Age i n troduc t ions , b u t t ha t were c lear ly p resen t f ro m t he e ar l ies t I ron Age . L ikew ise many c rops c ons idered a s i n troduc t ions d ur ing t he S axon p er iod c lear ly were p resen t f ro m Ro man t imes , a l though n o e v idence f or c on t inu i ty o f c u l t iva t ion h as y e t b een e stabl ished . Ma jor c hanges i n c rop a gr icu l ture , t he b a lance b etween t he d i f feren t s pec ies b e ing c u l t iva ted , c an b e o bserved d ur ing t he 3 rd a nd 2 nd c en tur ies BC .

S im i lar c hanges i n t he c erea l c rops g rown were a lso t ak ing p lace t o-

wards t he e nd o f t he R o man p er iod .

S uch c hanges i n c rop c u l t iva t ion may r e-

f l ec t w ider p a t terns o f e cono m ic c hanges a s i nd ica ted b y R eece ( 1980 : 9 0 ). I th as b een s hown t ha t w i th in t he Wessex a rea d ef ined i n t h is p aper t ha t d if ferences e x is ted n o t o n ly i n t he r ange o f c rops g rown t hrough t ime b u t t he r ange g rown t hroughou t t he r eg ion a t as ing le p oin t i n t ime.

I t i s p ar t icu lar ly

d if f icu l t t o d is t ingu ish a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i t ies p ar t icu lar ly a ssoc ia ted w ith r ura l

1 48

o r u rban a reas u n t i l t he mid t o l a te S axon p er iod .

Crops were q u i te c lear ly

g rown a nd p rocessed i n t he R o man a nd t he l a ter med ieva l t owns .

D if ferences

b e tween t he c rops r epresen ted o n t he d if feren t u rban s i tes c an b e s een b o th i n t he Ro man a nd t he l a te S axon p er iods .

D if ferences b e tween t he c rops

r epresented o n r ura l s i tes o ccupying t he s ame g eograph ica l n iche o f ten w i th in a mi le o r s o o f o ne a no ther h as a lso b een e s tab l ished f or t he I ron Age a nd l a ter p er iods . I t i s t o b e h oped t ha t t h is p aper h as i nd ica ted t he r ange a nd v o lume o f t he c urren t work i n Wessex a nd t he n a ture o f t he p roble ms i n i den t ifying a nd i n terpret ing p as t c rop c u l t iva t ion f ro m t he a rchaeolog ica l r ecord . A cknow ledge men ts Iwou ld l i ke t o t hank t he f o l low ing p eop le f or t he ir h e lp a nd a dv ice d ur ing t he p repara t ion o f t h is p aper a nd f or t he ir a l low ing me t o u se u npubl ished d a ta i n t h is s yn thes is :

G ordon H i l l man , Mar tin J ones , M ick Monk , P e ter

Murphy , a nd J ane R enfrew .

Iwou ld a lso l i ke t o t hank T im C ha mp ion a nd

J enn ie C oy f or c ons truc t ive c o m men ts .

N one o f t hese p eop le s hou ld i n a ny

way b e h e ld r espons ib le f or t he v iews a nd i nforma t ion c on ta ined i n t h is p aper . B ib l iography A ddy man , P . V . ( 1976 )

Archaeo logy a nd Ang lo-Saxon S oc ie ty.

I n :

P roble ms

i n Econo m ic a nd S oc ia l Archaeo logy ( eds G . d e G . S ievek ing , L ong-w or th , I . H . a nd Wi lson , K . E .) p p . 3 10-322. A pp lebau m , S . ( 1972 )

C rops a nd p lan ts.

I n :

The a grar ian h is tory o f

E ng land a nd Wa les 4 3-1042 A .D . ( ed F inberg , H . P . R .) C ambr idge : A r thur , J . R . B . ( 1 977 )

U n ivers i ty P ress

p p . 1 08-121 .

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S ussex ( ed B e l l , M .)

I n :

Excava t ions a t B ishops tone

S ussex Archaeo log ica l C o l lec t ions 1 15

2 73-275 . Akroyd , W. R . a nd D ough ty , J . ( 1964 )

L egu mes i n h u man n u tr i t ion .

The F ood a nd Agr icu l tura l O rgan isa t ion o f t he U n i ted Na t ions Nu tr i t iona l S tud ies B oase , W. N . ( 1 918 )

1 9 .

F lax a nd f lax f i bre c u l t iva t ion .

The S co t t ish J ourna l

o f Agr icu l ture 1 1 40-147. Brad ley , R . ( 1975 ) I n :

S a l t a nd s e t t le men t i n t he Hampsh ire S ussex b order land .

S a l t :

S tudy o f a n Anc ien t I ndus try ( ed d e Br isay , K . W.)

p p . 2 0-25. Brad ley , R . ( 1978 ) Bran igan , K . ( 1976 )

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I n :

( eds Bran igan , K . a nd F ow ler , P . J .)

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R ou t ledge .

The Ro man New ton

p p . 1 20-121 .

Beg ler , E . B . a nd Kea tinge , R . W. ( 1979 ) e cono m ies.

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p rob le ms i n t he r econs truc t ion o f p reh is tor ic

Wor ld Archaeology 1 1

1 49

2 08-226.

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1 56-168.

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Bu lgar ia .

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D ennel l , R . W . ( 1976 )

p p . 1 49-159

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The An t iquar ies J ourna l 5 6 D enne l l , R . W. ( 1978 )

1 1-23 .

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L I I M i l lenn ia B . C. D ennel l , R . W . ( 1977)

I n :

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R o mano-Br i t ish V i l la E s ta te , 1 967-1976.

( ed Bran igan , K .)

B .A .R . 4 4. D ewer , H . S . ( 1965 )

N ote o n an ew r ange o f b u i ld ings a nd a Ro man w e l l a t

L ow Ham , S o merse t . Evans , A . a nd J ones , M. ( 1980 )

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5 8-60 .

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p p . 1 72-175.

. J . a nd Monk , M . A . ( 1978 ) S amp l ing f or p lant r e ma ins f ro m F asha m , P I ron Age p i ts : s o me r esu l ts a nd i mp l ica t ions . I n : S amp l ing i n C on te mporary Br i t ish Archaeo logy ( eds C herry , J . F ., S hennan , S . a nd G amble , C .)

B .A .R. 5 0

p p . 3 63-371 .

F ie ld , N . H ., Ma thews , C . C . a nd Sm i th , I . F . ( 1964 ). N ew N eo l i th ic s i tes i n D orse t a nd Bed fordsh ire w i th a n ote o n t he d is tr ibu t ion o f N eo l i th ic s torage p i ts i n Br i ta in . S oc iety , 3 0 F ow ler , P . J . ( 1 976 )

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3 52-381 . Far ms a nd f i eld i n t he R o man wes t c oun try.

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E d i tor ia l .

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p p. 1 62-182.

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1 53

p p . 1 33-150 .

8 .

I RON AGE , RO MANO-BR ITISH AND

ANGLO-SAXON ANI MAL HUSBANDRY - A RE V IE W OF THE FAUNAL EV IDENCE Mark Ma l tby

To r ev iew t he e v idence f or a n ima l h usbandry o ver a p er iod t ha t c overs t he ma jor i ty o f t wo m i l lenn ia s hou ld b e ad aun t ing t ask .

A f ter a l l , t he c o l lec-

t i on a nd r ecord ing o f a n i ma l b ones b egan , a lbe i t s pas mod ica l ly , i n t he l a te 1 9 th c en tury a nd a f ew d eta i led a na lyses o f c er ta in a spec ts o f f auna l s tud ies were p ubl ished ( e .g . P i t t-Rivers 1 892 ).

I ti s t herefore s ad t o r e la te t ha t t he

p ast c en tury h as s een s o l i t t le a dvance i n o ur k now ledge o f t he p as tora l e cono my i n Br i ta in b etween t he I ron Age a nd t he S axon p er iods . The l ack o f p rogress h as p laced s evere l im i ta t ions u pon a ny a t te mp ts t o s yn thes ize t he i n for ma t ion f ro m a ny o f t he p er iods .

R ichard Brad ley was a ccura te w i th t h is a ssess ment

o f t he p reh is tor ic d a ta : " Despi te aw idespread r e luc tance t o t ake a ny n ot ice o f b ones , t hese r e ma in t he mos t i n forma t ive e v idence o f p as tora l a c t iv i ty. F ew s i tes h ave b een d ug w i th a ny a t te mp t t o s ecure a dequa te s amp les , a nd f or f ewer s t i l l a re t here a ny f igures f or s pec ies c o mpos i t ion , mea t we igh t , a ge o r s ex .

L i t t le a t ten t ion h as b een

p a id t o t he s oc ia l , r i tua l o r p urely p hys ica l f ac tors wh ich c an i mpede u nders tand ing o f t h is ma ter ia l , a nd t he ma jor i ty o f t he a ccep tab le d a ta r e la tes t o al imi ted p er iod a nd a l im i ted r eg ion" ( Brad ley 1 978 : 3 5 ). The b es t i n forma t ion i n f ac t c o mes f ro m I ron Age s i tes i n s ou thern Eng land . Y e t i ti s i n teres t ing t o n ote t ha t ar ecen t r ev iew o f t h is p er iod f or s ou thern Br i ta in i nc luded o n ly t en s i tes wh ich p ossessed d e ta i led p ubl ished b one r epor ts ( Champ ion 1 979 : 4 27 ). Even t hose i nc luded s evera l t ha t b y moddrn s tandards a re l imi ted i n s cope. Among t he m a re r epor ts f ro m S tanw ick , Yorksh ire ( Fraser 1 954 ) a nd t he I ron Age l evels o f C oygan Camp i n s ou th Wa les ( Wes t ley 1 967 ) , wh ich c onsis t o f b r ief s u m mar ies o f t he s pec ies p resen t b u t f ew o ther d e ta i ls .

S imi lar l im i ta t ions a re f ound i n t he s hor t f auna l r epor ts f ro m S u t ton

Wa l ls , H erefordsh ire ( Cornwa l l 1 953 ) a nd t he h i l l f or t a t Ra insborough , N or thamptonsh ire ( Banks 1 967 ). Much more i nforma t ion was p ub l ished a bou t t he a n i ma l b ones f ro m t he h i l l f or t a t G r im thorpe ( Jarman e t a l . 1 968 ) , i nc lud ing a l i st o f t he b one e le men ts i den t if ied t o t he ma jor s pec ies , as um mary o f t he metr ica l a na lysis o f s heep a nd c a t t le b ones a nd a d iscuss ion o f t he a geing d a ta .

U nfor tuna tely o n ly 7 35 f ragmen ts f ro m a l l d epos i ts were a ss igned t o

s pec ies a nd t h is a nd a l l t he o ther r epor ts men t ioned a bove were b ased o n sma l l s amp les o f l ess t han 1 ,000 f ragmen ts i den t if iab le t o s pec ies t hus l imi t ing t he amoun t o f d eta i led i n forma t ion t ha t c ou ld b e a cqu ired f ro m t he m.

The o ther

s i tes l i s ted b y C hampion p roduced l arger s a mp les b u t i n s o me c ases t he r ep or ts a re l imi ted .

The a n ima l b ones f ro m t he l a te I ron Age v i l lage a t G las-

t onbury ( Bu l le id & G ray 1 917 ) p reserved e x tre me ly we l l i n t he d epos i ts a nd i n

1 55

a reas were f ound i n g rea t q uan t i t ies .

N ot a l l t he b one , h owever , was u sed

i n t he a na lysis a nd t he s amp le was s e lec ted ma in ly f or c o mp le te a nd measurable b ones .

The r epor t was c oncerned p r inc ipa l ly w i th t h is me tr ica l a na lys is .

O ver 1 ,300 f ragmen ts w ere i den t if ied t o t he ma jor d o mes t ic s pec ies f ro m t he b ones r ecovered f ro m t he e xcava t ions a t Hawk 's H i l l , S urrey ( Car ter e t a l . 1 965 ).

The r epor t i nc luded a s u m mary o f t he r esu l ts o f a geing o f t he t eeth o f

c a t t le a nd s heep .

O n t he o ther h and , n o l i s t o f b one e le men ts was p ub l ished

n or a ny d eta i ls o f metr ica l a na lys is .

The r epor t f ro m E ldon 's S ea t , E nco mbe;

D orset ( Cun l if fe & zP h i l l ipson 1 968 ) d id i nc lude amore d e ta i led r ecord o f t he t ypes o f b one f ragmen ts r epresen ted . f ro m t he mand ib les .

I ta lso s um mar ised t he a geing e v idence

I n a dd i t ion t here i s ab r ie f d iscuss ion o f p oss ib le b u tchery

p rac t ices b u t t h is a na lysis l acks a ny c ons idera t ion o f t he r o le o f p reserva t ion i n t he f orma t ion o f t he f auna l s amp le a nd t he p oss ib i l i ty o f l a tera l v ar ia t ion o f t he ma ter ia l .

The l ack o f i n tra-s i te a na lysis c an a lso b e r a ised a s ac r i t ic is m

o f t he r epor t f rom t he h i l l f or t o f C rof t Ambrey , H erefordsh ire ( Wh i tehouse 8 , z Wh i tehouse 1 974 ).

Nor i s t here a ny r ecord o f t he t ypes o f b one i den t if ied i n

t he s ubs tan t ia l I ron Age s ample , a l though t hree me thods o f q uan t if ica t ion were emp loyed t o o bta in r ela t ive f requenc ies o f t he ma jor s pec ies .

The r epor t d id

i nc lude , h owever , ad e ta i led a na lysis o f t oo th a geing d a ta , p ar t icu lar ly o f s heep/goa t , ad iscuss ion o f b u tchery me thods a nd a l i s t o f e ach measure men t t aken . The mos t c o mprehens ive f auna l a na lysis l i s ted b y C hampion was t ha t o f t he ma ter ia l f ro m t he e xcava t ions a t t he A shv i l le Trad ing E s ta te , A b ingdon , Ox fordsh ire ( W i lson 1 978 ).

The s ubs tan t ia l s amp le was e xamined i n much

g rea ter d eta i l t han i n many o f t he e ar l ier r epor ts a nd t he a na lys is i nc luded d iscuss ions o f p reserva t ion o f t he ma ter ia l ; r ecovered f ro m p i ts a nd d i tches ; p ar ts o f t he c arcass ;

t he i n tra-s i te a na lysis o f b ones

a n e xam ina t ion o f t he f requenc ies o f d i f feren t

ad e ta i led d iscuss ion o f a ge ing e v idence ;

o f t he me tr ica l a na lys is ;

as um mary

a n e xcel len t d iscuss ion o f t he a ge ing d a ta a nd a d e-

t a i led r ecord o f a ny o bserved p a tho log y a nd c o mp le te o r p ar t ia l s kele tons . To t he a bove l i s t w e may a dd t he r epor t f ro m l a te I ron Age l eve ls a t Hard ingstone , Nor thamp tonsh ire ( G i l more 1 969 ) a nd t he o ne f or t he b ones f ro m t he e ar ly I ron Age p ro mon tory f or t a t Budbury , Wi l tsh ire ( Wes t ley 1 970 ) , wh ich i nc luded 2 ,500 f ragmen ts i den t if ied t o s pec ies , a l though t he r epor t c on ta ined l i t t le o ther i n forma t ion .

More r ecen t r epor ts h ave a ppeared n otably

f or t he h i l l f or t a t W ink lebury ( Jones , R . 1 977 ).

Th is r epor t i nc luded ab reak-

d own o f f ragmen ts i n to e le men ts o f t he b ody a nd a d eta i led d iscuss ion o f t he b u tchery e v idence.

The l arges t p ub l ished I ron Age s amp le t o d a te b e longs

t o G ussage A l l S a in ts , D orse t ( Harcour t 1 979 ) , i n wh ich 1 5 ,500 f ragmen ts were i den t if ied .

The r epor t i nc luded a s um mary o f me tr ica l a na lys is o f t he

ma jor s pec ies , ac o mpar ison o f t wo me thods o f a geing d a ta , a n a ssessmen t o f t he r e la t ive mea t we igh ts r epresen ted f or e ach s pec ies a nd a d iscuss ion o f p a tho log ica l a nd b u tchery e v idence .

U nfor tuna tely , o nce a ga in t here was n o

d e ta i led i n tra-s i te a na lys is n or a ny q uan t i f ica t ion o f t he t ypes o f b one r epr esen ted i n a ny o f t he p er iods . I n a dd i t ion t o t hese r epor ts t here a re s evera l sma l ler s amp les o f l im ited v a lue a nd s evera l more i mpor tan t a sse mb lages a s y e t u npubl ished t ha t w i l l b e i ncorpora ted i n to t h is r ev iew .

Even w i th t hese , h owever , t he d a ta b ase f or

t he I ron Age i s v er y l im i ted . 1 56

A t f irst s igh t t he p ic ture f ro m t he R o mano-Br i t ish p er iod a ppears more o p t imis t ic .

I n h is c o mpara t ive s urvey K ing ( 1978 ) was a ble t o l i s t o ver 9 0

s i tes w h ich h ad s o me q uan t if ica t ion o f Ro man ma ter ia l .

Wi th t he a dd i t ion o f

s evera l r epor ts s ince t hen , we h ave o ver 1 00 s i tes where e v idence o f a nima l b ones i s a va i lab le.

H owever , a l though we p ossess a g ood q uan t i ty o f s i tes ,

t he q ua l i ty o f t he s amp les t he mselves l eaves much t o b e d es ired .

Most o f t he

r epor ts a re l i t t le more t han c ursory a ppend ices w i th a min i mum o f d e ta i l a nd a re o f ten d ivorced f rom t he d iscuss ion o f o ther a spec ts o f t he s i te.

O f t he

r epor ts l i s ted b y K ing o n ly a d ozen a re b ased o n more t han 2 ,000 f ragmen ts i den t if ied t o s pec ies a nd o nce a ga in s evera l o f t hese a re r ecorded a nd d iscussed i nadequa tely.

Three o f t he m ( Ro ther ley , Woodya tes a nd Woodcu ts , a l l o n

C ranbourne C hase , Dorse t ) were e xcava ted i n t he l a te 1 9 th c en tury a nd t heir f auna l r epor ts w ere c oncerned ma in ly w i th me tr ica l a na lys is ( P i t t-R ivers 1 892 ). T he s ame c an b e s a id o f t he C ors top i tum ( Corbr idge ) r epor t ( Meek & G ray 1 911 ). T he p ub l ished r epor ts o f t he l arge s amp les f ro m O ld W in ter ingham a nd t he v i l la a t Win ter ton , L inco lnsh ire ( H iggs & G reenwood 1 976 ) c on ta in f ew d e ta i ls o ther t han t he n umber o f f ragmen ts i den t i f ied .

The e ar ly r epor ts f ro m t he

v i l la a t S hakenoak Farm , Ox fordsh ire ( Brodr ibb e t a l . 1 968 ;

1 971 ;

1 972 )

s u ffer f ro m t he s a me l imi ta t ion , a l though t he l a ter r epor ts b y C ram ( 1973 ; 1 978 ) a re much more c o mprehens ive a nd t he a na lyses o f i n tra-s i te v ar iabi l i ty , a ge ing d a ta , measure men ts , b u tchery a nd p a thology a re a cco mpan ied b y d et a i led t abu la t ions o f t he d a ta . The Romano-Br i t ish l eve ls f ro m C oygan C a mp c on ta ined o ver 4 ,700 f ragmen ts i den t if ied t o s pec ies a nd t he b r ief r epor t l i s ts t hese f ragmen ts a ccord ing t o l oca l i ty b u t o n ly g ives f ew o ther d e ta i ls ( Wes t ley 1 967).

The r epor t o n o ver

2 ,000 i den t if iab le f ragmen ts f ro m t he e ar ly Ro man f or tress a t L ong thorpe , n ear P e terborough i nc luded a f u l l l i s t o f t he measure men ts t aken , t he n umber o f t he d i f feren t s ke le ta l e le men ts r epresen ted a nd ab r ief d iscuss ion o f b u tchery a nd a geing e v idence ( Marp les 1 974 ).

The 1 970-75 e xcava t ions a t V indo la nda

p roduced a l arge s a mp le o f b one a nd t he a na lys is o f i tc on ta ined a d eta i led b reakdown o f t he s kele ta l e le men ts , as u m mary o f a geing d a ta , me tr ica l a nal ysis o f s o me o f t he more c o m mon ly r ecovered b ones a nd s o me d iscuss ion o f t he p as tora l e cono my o f t he s e t t le men t ( Hodgson 1 977 ).

The r epor t f ro m

F ishbourne ( Gran t 1 971 ) i s b road ly s im i lar i n r ange a nd d e ta i l .

The r epor t

f ro m P or tches ter C as t le ( Gran t 1 975 ) e xa mined t he l arges t R o mano-Br i t ish f auna l c o l lec t ion p ub l ished t o d a te ( near ly 2 9 , 0 00 f ragmen ts were i den t i f ied ). A par t f ro m o n ly a b r ief s um mary o f t he me tr ica l d a ta , t he r es t o f t he a na lys is c overs a spec ts o f s pec ies r epresen ta t ion , b u tchery , a geing a nd p a tho log y i n i mpress ive d e ta i l . S ince K ing 's p ubl ica t ion s evera l o ther f a ir ly s ubs tan t ia l Ro mano-Br i t ish f auna l s a mp les h ave b een a na lysed f ro m e xcava t ions a t Exe ter ( Ma l tby 1 979 ) , t he f or t a t Wa tercrook , C umbr ia ( Fi f ie ld 1 979 ) , Dorches ter , Ox fordsh ire ( Gran t 1 978 ) , Naze ingbury , Essex ( Hugg ins 1 978 ) a nd Froces ter C our t , G louces tersh ire ( Nodd le 1 979 ).

I n a dd i t ion , s evera l i mpor tan t c o l lec t ions

a re b eing s tud ied b u t e ven when t hese a re p ubl ished , t he b ody o f d a ta i s s t i l l d epressing ly sma l l c ons ider ing t he n u mber o f e xcava t ions t ha t h ave t aken p lace o n s uch s i tes .

Our c o mbined k now ledge d er ived f ro m a rchaeo log ica l d a ta a nd

c lass ica l s ources i s s t i l l meagre , a s i s d e mons tra ted i n s evera l c o mpara t ive ly r ecen t g enera l r ev iews o f t he p er iod ( e .g . Wacher 1 980 ;

1 57

R ivet 1 964 ).

A pp lebaum

( 1 972 ) i n h is more d e ta i led s tudy o f Romano-Br i t ish a gr icu l ture r e l ied h eav i ly o n af ew sma l l f auna l s amp les f or t he b as is o f h is e v idence o f t he p as tora l e cono my. I nforma t ion a bou t t he a nima l b ones f ro m t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod h as b een e nhanced b y t he r ecen t p ubl ica t ion o f t he f i rs t o f t he r epor ts f ro m H amw ih ( Sou thamp ton ) , wh ich w i th n ear ly 5 0 , 0 00 f ragmen ts i den t i f ied t o s pec ies c onfor tably e xceeds t he p rev ious ly p ubl ished d a ta o f t h is d a te ( Bourd i l lon g z C oy 1 980 ).

The a na lys is c overs c o mprehens ive ly a spec ts o f q uan t i ta t ive

a na lys is , a ge ing , me tr ica l d a ta , b u tchery a nd p a tho logy .

The S axon l eve ls

a t P or tches ter C as t le p roduced a no ther l arge s amp le o f n ear ly 2 3 ,000 f ragmen ts s ubd iv ided i n to t hree p hases a nd p ub l ished i n s im i lar d e ta i l t o t heir R o man c oun terpar ts ( Gran t 1 976 ).

The s ubs tan t ia l a n ima l b one a sse mblage

f ro m Nor th E lmham P ark , N or fo lk , h as r ecen t ly b een p ubl ished i n f u l l ( Nodd le 1 980 ).

Apar t f ro m t hese r epor ts t he a rchaeo log ica l e v idence f or

a n ima l h usbandry i s o nce a ga in p oor .

C lu t ton-Brock ( 1976 ) h as c ompared

a spec ts o f f auna l a sse mb lages f ro m f i ve s i tes i n s ou thern E ng land ( Nor th E lmham , The t ford a nd S edgeford i n N orfo lk , S and tun , K en t a nd Mawgan Por th , C ornwa l l ) p aying p ar t icu lar a t ten t ion t o s pec ies r epresen ta t ion a nd me tr ica l a na lys is o f t he ma jor d o mes t ica tes . Nodd le ( 1 975 ) h as a lso p roduced a c o mp ara t ive s urvey o f S axon a nd med ieva l ma ter ia l f ro m e igh t s i tes i n s ou thern E ng land , i nc lud ing N or th E lmham , H ereford a nd N ew W in t les o f S axon d a te . B one r epor ts w i th s o me q uan t i f ica t ion h ave b een p roduced f or D inas P owys ( Hag lund-Ca l ley a nd C ornwa l l 1 963 ; A lcock 1 975 ) , Maxey ( Seddon e t a l . 1 964 ) , S hakenoak Farm ( Brodr ibb e t a l . 1 968 ; 1 972 ) , G las tonbury Tor ( Harcour t 1 970 ) , C adbury C ongresbury ( Nodd le 1 970 ) , Wh i teha l l ( Chap l in 1 971 ) , Wa l ton , A ylesbury ( Nodd le 1 976 ) , C heddar ( H iggs e t a l . 1 979 ) , S t . P e ter 's S treet , Nor thamp ton ( Harman 1 979 ) , Yeaver ing ( Hope-Taylor 1 979 ) , Durham ( Rackham 1 979 ) a nd Ramsbury ( Coy 1 980 i n p ress ). C ons idering t he d ivers i ty o f s e t t lemen t t ype , t he l arge t imespan a nd t he w ide g eograph ica l r ange o f t hese s i tes , t he n u mber o f s amp les i s a ga in l im i ted . a re sma l l o r n ot e as i ly c o mparable .

I n a dd i t ion s o me o f t hese s amp les

S o me d ocumen ta t ion o f t he S axon p er iod

c oncern ing p as tora l h usbandry h as s urv ived b u t t he e v idence a ga in i s p iece mea l ( e .g . F inberg 1 972 ). / • I ti s c lear t herefore t ha t t he d a ta b ase f or t h is s tudy i s ap oor o ne. Wha t q uest ions c an s uch ma ter ia l a nswer? Tha t s or t o f h ypo theses c an b e t es ted? I ts hou ld a lready b e a pparen t t ha t t here a re s evere l imi ta t ions i mposed b y o ur i nsu f f ic ien t ly d e ta i led k now ledge o f t e mpora l , r eg iona l , e co log ica l a nd s e t t lemen t v ar iabi l i ty.

N o a rea o f E ng land o r Wa les c an c la im t o h ave a n a dequa te ly

s amp led s equence o f a n ima l b ones t ha t t ake t hese i mpor tan t v ar iables i n to a ccoun t . I n a dd i t ion , i tw i l l b e s hown t ha t v ar ious a rchaeo log ica l a nd metho do log ica l p roble ms e x is t i n t he i n terpre ta t ion o f t he ma ter ia l t ha t h ave r are ly b een c onsidered i n a t te mp ted r econs truc t ions o f p as tora l e cono m ies , whe ther o f as ing le s e t t le men t , r eg ion o rp er iod .

I nev i tably , t here fore , t he q ues t ions

we c an a t te mp t t o a nswer a t t he mo men t a re o f al im i ted n a ture .

There i s n ow

a t l eas t s u f f ic ien t e v idence t o o bserve t he p resence o r a bsence o f v ar ious d o mes t ic s pec ies i n t hese p er iods .

To s o me e x ten t i ti s p oss ib le t o moni tor

t he f luc tua t ions i n s pec ies r epresen ta t ion , o bserve t rends i n t he e xp lo i ta t ion o f t he p r inc ipa l d o mes t ic a n ima ls a nd e xamine c hanges i n s tock s ize .

I n s o me

c ases i ti s p oss ib le t o r eassess a ssump t ions t ha t h ave b een made a bou t t hese

1 58

t op ics i n t he l i gh t o f more r ecen t e v idence .

I n s o me i ns tances we c an a t

l eas t b eg in t o p lace t he o bserved c hanges ( and e v idence o f s tabi l i ty ) i n to a t e mpora l a nd r eg iona l f ramework a nd b eg in p erhaps t o c ons truc t more s oph ist i ca ted mode ls t o e xp la in d evelop men ts i n t he p as tora l e cono my b y r e la t ing t he a rchaeozoo log ica l e v idence t o o ther a spec ts o f a rchaeo log ica l a nd h is tor ica l e v idence . The r es t o f t h is a r t ic le w i l l t herefore a t te mp t t o r ev iew o ur p resen t k now ledge o f t he ma jor a spec ts o f t he f auna l r ecord a nd i n c onc lus ion w i l l t ry a nd s ugges t ways t h is i n forma t ion c an b e u sed i n t he d evelop men t a nd t es t ing o f mode ls o f a more g enera l n a ture . T he D o mes t ic S tock The a pparen t ly s imp le q ues t ion o f wha t d o mes t ic s pec ies were k ep t i n t he I ron Age , R o mano-Br i t ish a nd A ng lo-Saxon p er iods i s n ot a s s tra igh t forward a s i ts ee ms .

There c an b e n o d oubt a bou t t he i mpor tance o f c a t t le a nd s heep

t hroughou t a nd t o al esser e x ten t p ig , h orse a nd d og .

The p roble m l i es w i th

t he p ossib le p resence o f o ther d o mes t ic s pec ies , i n p ar t icu lar t he g oa t , t he d onkey , t he mu le a nd p ou l try . The G oa t I n mos t g enera l r ev iews o f t he p er iods i nvo lved where a n ima l h usbandry r ece ives a men t ion , g oa ts a re r egarded a s o ne o f t he p r inc ipa l d o mes t ic s pec ies k ep t ( e .g . B rad ley 1 978 : 3 5 ;

Wacher 1 980 : 1 09 ;

b een d e mons tra ted a rchaeo log ica l ly?

F inberg 1 974 : 7 7 ).

Has t h is

The p roble m f or t he a rchaeozoo log is t

h as a lways b een t he d if f icu l ty o f d is t ingu ish ing t he b ones o f g oa t f ro m s heep f ro m f ragmen tary ma ter ia l .

I th as b een s hown , h owever , t ha t s evera l b ones

c an b e a ssigned t o s pec ies p rov ided t he d iagnos t ic f ea tures h ave s urv ived ( Boessneck e t a l . 1 964 ;

B oessneck 1 969 ).

Me tr ica l a na lysis p ar t icu lar ly

o n t he me tapod ia h as b een u sed s uccessfu l ly t o s epara te t he s pec ies ( e .g . Payne 1 969 ).

O f c ourse n ot a l l f ragmen ts c an b e d is t ingu ished a nd t he r e-

c ord ing o f f ragmen ts d es igna ted a s " ov icapr ine" o r " sheep/goa t" w i l l r e ma in af ea ture o f f auna l r epor ts .

Never the less , i ts hou ld n ow b e p oss ib le t o o b ta in

s o me i dea o f whether g oa ts were p resen t i n a ny n u mbers a t l eas t f ro m t he l arger s amp les.

C er ta in ly f ro m e xcava t ions o f I ron Age s i tes i n E ng land ,

t he p resen t e v idence w ou ld s ugges t t ha t g oa ts w ere k ep t a t mos t i n v ery sma l l n umbers .

A l though g oa t was r epresen ted i n a l l t hree p hases a t G ussage A l l

S a in ts , Dorse t , o n ly 2 5 s pec imens w ere i den t if ied i n as amp le o f o ver 1 5 ,000 f ragmen ts a nd many o f t hese were .h orn c ores t ha t h ad b een s awn f ro m t he s ku l l ( Harcour t 1 979 : 1 53 ).

A t E ldon 's S ea t , D orse t n o c apr ine f ea tures were

n o ted o n 1 2 h orn c ores a nd 9 6 me tapod ia ( Cun l i f fe & Ph i l l ipson 1 968 : 2 27 ). Fur ther e as t i n Ha mpsh ire , s evera l s amp les c over ing a l l p er iods o f t he I ron Age , n o tably f ro m Wink lebury ( Jones , R . 1 977: 6 0 ) , Winna l l Down ( Ma l tby n .d . 1 ) , Ba lksbury 1 973 ( Ma l tby n .d . 2 ) a nd t he b an jo e nc losure i n M iche ldever Wood ( Coy n .d .) a l l p roduced n eg l ig ible amoun ts o f g oa t b ones i n s ubs tan t ia l s amp les. No g oa t b ones were i den t i f ied f ro m Hawk 's H i l l , S urrey c o mpared t o 1 8 p osi t ive ly i den t i f ied a s s heep ( Car ter e t a l . 1 965 : 4 1 ). Fro m t he A shv i l le e xcava t ions t he p resence o f g oa t was i nd ica ted b y as ing le h umerus f ragmen t a nd n one o f t he h orn c ores r ecovered were a ss igned t o g oa t ( W i lson 1 978 : 1 11 ). O n ly s heep were i den t if ied a t G r im thorpe ( Jarman e t a l . 1 968 : 1 82 ). s i tua t ion a t C rof t Ambrey i s l ess c lear .

H orn c ores a nd a c o mp le te s kele ton

o f g oa t were i den ti f ied t oge ther w i th s evera l o ther f ragmen tary b ones .

1 59

The H owever ,

t he a u thors a ssu med t ha t t he ma jor i ty o f t he o v icapr ine s amp le b e longed t o s heep , u sing t he s amp les f rom E ldon 's S ea t a nd G r im thorpe a s p ara l le ls ; ( Wh i tehouse 8 z Wh i tehouse 1 974 : 2 15 ).

F ina l ly , o n ly a bou t h a l f ad ozen g oa t

h orn c ores were s e lec ted f or measure men t f rom t he l arge o v icapr ine s amp le f ro m G las tonbury ( Bu l le id & G ray 1 917 : 6 59 ).

None o f t he l arges t I ron Age

s a mp les i nves t iga ted t o d a te h ave t herefore p roduced s ubs tan t ia l n umbers o f g oa t b ones a nd s evera l h ave n o e v idence o f t he s pec ies a t a l l .

I ti s p oss ib le

t ha t more g oa ts were k ep t b u t were n ot u t i l ised f or mea t a nd t here fore a re n o t f ound i n d eposi ts c on ta in ing b ones ma in ly d er ived f ro m b u tchery a nd c ook ing was te b u t t h is i s p erhaps u n l ike ly. I tc er ta in ly s ee ms t ha t g oa ts were e xp lo i ted f or mea t o n ly r arely a nd i n s ome c ases may n o t h ave b een k ep t a t a l l . I n t he Ro man p er iod t he p a t tern i s s im i lar , a l though g oa ts a re g enera l ly s l igh t ly b et ter r epresen ted .

Aga in , r es tr ic t ing t he r ev iew t o t he l arger

s amp les , me tr ica l a na lys is o f s heep a nd g oa t me tacarp i d is t ingu ished t wo s pec imens o f g oa t f ro m 1 9 o f s heep a t V indo landa ( Hodgson 1 977: 1 1 ).

A l l

e igh t d is ta l metapod ia o n wh ich me tr ica l a na lys is was u nder taken a t Wa terc rook , C u mbr ia b e longed t o s heep ( Fine ld 1 979 : 3 09 ).

O n ly o ne i nco mp lete

s ku l l o f g oa t was i den t i f ied a t C qrs top i tum ( Meek 8 z G ray 1 911 : 1 19 ). A par t f ro m t hese mi l i tary s i tes i n n or thern E ng land g oa t b ones h ave b een f ound o n ly r are ly e lsewhere. e v idence o f g oa t .

The v i l la a t S hakenoak F arm , Ox fordsh ire p roduced s o me I ndeed i t was s ta ted o n t he b as is o f t he n u mber o f h orn c ores

i den t i f ied t ha t s heep a nd g oa ts were k ep t i n t he p ropor t ion o f s ix g oa ts t o t wo s heep ( Cram 1 978 : 1 23 ).

Th is wou ld b e u nusua l a nd t he metr ica l p ropor t ions

o f t he f ew c o mp le te me tapod ia ( Cram 1 978 : 1 52-153 ) a re a l l more t yp ica l o f s heep t han g oa t . Rel iance o n h orn c ore e v idence a lone i n d is t ingu ish ing t he t wo s pec ies c an b ias t he r esu l ts t owards g oa t s ince a l l g oa ts p ossess h orns whereas s o me s heep d o n o t .

I n a dd i t ion t he l arger g oa t h orns may h ave b een

more h igh ly v a lued f or work ing a nd t he d is tr ibu t ion o f t he ir h orn c ores may b e i n f luenced b y t h is f ac tor .

The R o man d epos i ts a t Exe ter p roduced s ix g oa t

h orn c ores a nd t en o f s heep .

O f t he measurab le d is ta l metapod ia o n t he o ther

h and , o n ly o ne b elonged t o g oa t a nd 1 2 t o s heep ( Ma l tby 1 979 : 4 1 ).

I n t he

e xcava t ions o f t he e ar ly R o man f or t a t L ong thorpe n o g oa t b ones were i den t i f ied i n ao v icapr ine s a mp le o f n ear ly 6 00 b ones ( Marp les 1 974 : 1 23 ).

A.m in i mu m

o f s ix g oa ts w ere i den t i f ied f rom t wo l a te R o man we l ls a t Tr ipon t ium , Warw icksh ire b u t t h is a sse mblage was u nusua l a nd i nc luded s evera l c o mp lete s ke le tons o f v ar ious s pec ies ( Nodd le 1 973 ). C lass ica l r eferences t o t he i mpor tance o f g oa ts i n Br i ta in a ppear t o b e r es tr ic ted t o D ioc le t ian 's p r ice-f ix ing e d ic t , wh ich r eferred t o t he b irrus Br i tann icus —a c loak r epu ted t o b e made f ro m g oa t 's h a ir ( Rive t 1 964 : 1 23 ). The a rchaeolog ica l e v idence s ugges ts t ha t g oa ts w ere s t i l l o f l i t t le i mpor tance i n Ro man Br i ta in .

They c er ta in ly p rov ided v ery l i t t le o f t he mea t d ie t .

The A ng lo-Saxon p er iod d oes a t l eas t p rov ide s o me d ocumen tary e v idence f or t he k eep ing o f g oa ts ( Finberg 1 972 : 4 97 , 5 15 ) b u t r eferences a re r are ( F inberg 1 974 : 7 7 ).

Archaeo log ica l e v idence w ou ld s ugges t t ha t t hey c on t inued

t o p lay o n ly a sma l l r o le a s mea t p roducers , a l though i ti s c once ivab le t ha t t hey were k ep t ma in ly f or t he ir mi lk a nd s k ins a nd n o t b u tchered f or mea t . G oa t b ones were f ound c ons is ten t ly i n sma l l n u mbers a t Hamw ih ( Bourd i l lon 8 zC oy 1 980 : 1 11 ) b u t t here i s n o e v idence t ha t l arge n umbers o f g oa ts were e xp lo i ted a t a ny o f t he s e t t le men ts e xcava ted t o d a te . 1 60

Aw ider s elec t ion o f s amp les may r evea l r eg iona l v ar ia t ion i n t he g oa t 's d is tr ibu t ion o r i mpor tance b u t a s t he e v idence n ow s tands i t wou ld b e misl ead ing t o r egard t he g oa t a s ap r inc ipa l s tock a n i ma l i n a ny o f t he p er iods . Mu le a nd Donkey Mos t e qu id b ones f ound o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes h ave b een i den t i f ied a s h orse .

There i s p erhaps e v idence , h owever , t ha t b o th mu les a nd d onkeys

were p resen t f ro m a t l eas t Ro man t imes .

A mand ib le o f amu le h as b een

i den t i f ied f ro m 2 nd c en tury AD l eve ls f ro m t he e xcava t ions a t t he B i l l ingsga te Bu i ld ings i n t he C i ty o f L ondon .

A l though t h is s pec i men may h ave b elonged

t o a n i mpor ted a n ima l , i t s p resence i s i n teres t ing s ince t here i s g ood d ocumen tary e v idence f or t he mu le 's emp loy men t a s ad raugh t a n ima l a nd a b eas t o f b urden i n t he Roman Emp ire ( Armi tage & C hapman 1 979 ).

D onkey h as

a lso b een r ecorded o ccas iona l ly o n R o mano-Br i t ish s i tes , f or e xamp le a t Tr ipon t iu m ( Nodd le 1 973 ) a nd p oss ib ly a t t he v i l la a t F roces ter C our t , G loucestersh ire ( Nodd le 1 979 : 5 2 ).

B ecause o f t he s imi lar i t ies o f t he s ke le tons

o f p on ies , d onkeys a nd mu les , i ti s p oss ib le t ha t mu les a nd d onkeys h ave b een mis iden t if ied i n s o me s amp les .

Fu ture s tud ies o f e qu id ma ter ia l s hou ld h ave

r egard f or t he ir p oss ib le o ccurrence. P ou l try The p rob le m o f d if feren t ia t ing t he b ones o f t he v ar ious s pec ies o f p ou l try a nd t he ir r espec t ive w i ld v ers ions makes t h is d iscuss ion r a ther d if f icu l t . More r esearch i s n eeded o n t he me tr ica l a na lysis a nd morpho log ica l d is t inct i ons o f t he ir s ke le tons b efore a c lear p ic ture c an emerge.

B ird b ones a re

f rag i le a nd d o n o t s urv ive we l l b u t t he r are o ccurrence o f b ird b ones i nc lud ing p ossible d o mes t ica tes o n I ron Age s i tes ( Tab le 1 ) i s p robably s ign if ican t , s ince a l l t he s i tes l i s ted c on ta ined s o me d epos i ts t ha t p reserved b one we l l . O n ly Wink lebury c on ta ined s ubs tan t ia l n u mbers o f d o mes t ic f ow l b ones b u t t hese i nc lude t he b ones o f t wo s ke le tons ( Jones , R . 1 977 : 6 4 ).

O n a l l t he

o ther I ron Age s i tes o n wh ich b ird b ones h ave b een q uan t if ied , t hose o f d o mest i c s pec ies were r are o r a bsen t a nd t here i s n o c er ta in ty e ven t ha t t hey b el onged t o t he d o mes t ica ted v ar ie t ies .

J u l ius Caesar men t ioned t ha t t he Br i tons

k ep t c h ickens a nd g eese b u t h ad a t aboo o n e a t ing t he ir f l esh ( R ivet 1 964 : 1 25 ). C er ta in ly t here i s a s y e t v ery l i t t le a rchaeo log ica l e v idence t ha t p ou l try was e a ten b y t he I ron Age i nhab i tan ts o f s ou thern E ng land .

They may h ave p rov ided

e ggs a nd f ea thers b u t c on tr ibu ted v ery l i t t le , i fa t a l l t o t he mea t d ie t . I n a l l t he ma jor R o mano-Br i t ish s amp les e xamined t o d a te o n ly d o mes t ic f ow l were p resen t c ons is ten t ly i n a ny n umbers ( Tab le 1 ) . O nce a ga in i ti s n o t c lear h ow many o f t he f ew b ones o f g eese o r d uck t ha t h ave b een f ound b e longed t o d o mest ica ted b irds . p er iod .

Th is s i tua t ion h ad c hanged b y t he A ng lo-Saxon

I n a dd i t ion t o d o mes t ic f ow l , d o mes t ic g eese h ave b een f ound i n

q uan t i ty i n mos t o f t he l arger s amp les .

D o mes t ic d uck/ ma l lard h as , h owever ,

b een r arely f ound w i th t he p oss ib le e xcep t ion o f P or tches ter C as t le ( Eas tham 1 976 ).

Do mes t ic g eese w ere a lso men t ioned i n s o me d ocumen tary r ecords

( C lu t ton-Brock 1 975 : 3 88 ).

The k eep ing o r a t l eas t t he e a t ing o f g eese a ppears

o n p resen t e v idence t o h ave b egun o n al arge s ca le o n ly i n t h is p er iod .

A

g rea ter r eg iona l a nd c hrono log ica l s e lec t ion o f s amp les s hou ld b e a b le t o c lar ify t he a reas a nd d a te o f t h is d eve lopmen t .

1 61

TABLE 1 :

RECORDED OCCURRENCES OF BONES OF POULTRY

S i te

S ource

F ow l

G oose

Duck

a ) I ron Age Ashv i l le

A

Bra mwe l l ( 1978 ) A

Ba lksbury 1 973

Ma l tby ( n .d . 2 )

Budbury

Wes t ley ( 1970 )

G lastonbury

Bu l leid & G ray ( 1917 )

A

Gussage A l l S a in ts

Harcour t ( 1979 )

R?

Winna l l Down ( R17 )

Ma ltby ( n .d . 1 )

A

Wink lebury

J ones , R . ( 1977)

R?

A A

R?

R?

A

A

A

A

b ) Ro mano-Br it ish Baylha m H ouse

Ma ltby ( n .d . 3 )

C oygan Camp

Wes t ley ( 1967 )

Exeter •

Ma l tby ( 1979 )

F ishbourne

Eastha m ( 1971 )

Froces ter C our t

Bramwel l ( 1979 )

Long thorpe

Marp les ( 1974 )

P or tchester C as t le

Eastha m ( 1975 )

S hakenoak Farm

Marples ( 1972 , 1 973 )

Wa tercrook

F if ie ld ( 1979 )

c ) Ang lo-Saxon Durham

A

Rackham ( 1979 )

Hamw ih

B ourd i l lon& C oy ( 1980 )

H ereford

Nodd le ( 1975 )

Nor th E l mham

Nodd le ( 1975 )

P or tches ter Cas t le

Eas tha m ( 1976 )

Ra msbury

C oy ( 1980 i n p ress )

Fow l =d o mes t ic f ow l ;

G oose = d o mest ic g oose/grey l ag g oose ( Anser a nser );

Duck = d o mes t ic d uck/ ma l lard ( Anas p la tyrhynchos ); ( l ess t han 1 % o f i den tif ied f ragmen ts o f a l l s pec ies ) ; 1 % o f i den t if ied f ragmen ts ).

1 62

A =a bsen t ;

R =r are

P =p resen t ( more t han

Quantitative Assessments of Species Representation The interpretation of the relative number of animal bones of different species has frequently been a principal compqnent of faunal studies. Its main objectives have been the estimation of how much each species contributed to the meat diet and the assessment of the relative numbers of the different stock kept. There have been several attempts to generalise about the changes in the composition of the domestic herds in a region or within a period and these are worthy of consideration here. Cunliffe (1978: 183-185) has stated that in broad terms there appears to have been a gradual increase in the numbers of sheep relative to cattle during the first millennium BC in southern England. He compared the bone samples from the Cranbourne Chase sites of South Lodge Camp, Martin Down Camp and the Angle Ditch, in which the percentage of cattle varied between 48-67% (Pitt-Rivers 1898) and the late Iron Age village at Glastonbury (Bulleid & Gray 1917) where sheep bones were reported to outnumber cattle by a ratio of 17 to 1. Cunliffe also noted that the percentage of sheep increased in the later phase at Eldon's Seat (Cunliffe & Phillipson 1968). He linked the increase of �heep with the spread of downland arable in the Iron Age and the need to manure this land to maintain large scale grain production. In addition Cunliffe suggested that the large variation in the relative number of pig bones on Iron Age sites may be a reflection of ecological variation. The more suitable habitats for pigs would have been near woodlands rather than the open downland. Hence pig bones in assemblages on settlements on downlands were low. Bradley (1978: 37 -38) also pointed out the variability of pig remains on Iron Age sites citing Glastonbury and Croft Ambrey as extreme examples of low and high representation of the species in relation to sheep and thus ques­ tioned Clark's (1947) hypothesis that sheep gradually replaced pigs throughout prehistoric Britain as the woodlands were cleared. Like Cunliffe, Bradley suggests that regional and environmental factors were important considerations in the pig's importance. He also considered that there was a general increase in the proportion of sheep from the later Bronze Age to the later Iron Age. The most comprehensive survey of Romano-British faunal material has been published by_King (1978). His main conclusions from data from over a hundred sites can be summarised as follows. There was a distinct trend away from the keeping of sheep in the Roman period, probably due to the presence of more settlements in areas more suitable for cattle and pigs. Assemblages with more than 30% sheep bones were limited mainly to the lowland area of England and to dry, light soils. Secondly, the more "Romanised" settlements such as villas, roadside settlements, towns and forts tended to have fewer sheep than the native sites which maintained the Iron Age pattern. P ig bones were more common on "Romanised" settlements than on native sites, again partially indicating the presence of more settlements near woodland but also the probable influence of taxation and other cultural factors, such as the Roman's high re­ gard for pork. Many military deposits contained high proportions of cattle bones and, finally, Anglo-Saxon faunal material was not markedly different from Roman except for the high proportion of pig bones on a few sites. There was a trend which saw the increase in the proportion of sheep again towards the high levels attained in the Middle Ages. 163

In her compar.is9n of faunal samples from five Anglo-Saxon sites, Clutton-Brock (1976) contrasted the apparent .importance of pigs as seen in the documentary sources and their poorer representation on archaeological sites. She suggested that their carcasses may have been c ommonly boned and salted for bacon and their bones were thus not found among other kitchen waste. She also concluded that cattle and sheep became gradually more im­ por.tant during the period. Problems of Quantification

(a) Methodology

These are examples of broad comparisons of species representation. More limited assessments have often been made of data from different phases of one site or between the material from a few contemporary sites. How reli­ able are these comparisons? It is important to emphasise that the methods used in the estimations of the relative abundance of each species from arch­ aeological samples need not necessarily produce the same results. At Hamwih for example, cattle provided 52. 5% of the domestic stock fragments, 72. 1% of the weight of the identified bones and 31.4% of the minimum number of individuals estimated from the mandibles (Bourdillon & Coy 1980: 84-85). Corresponding fluctuations in the percentage of other species were found. Similar variations in results have been noted from samples from Portchester Castle (Grant 1975: 379-382) and Exeter (Maltby 1979: 6). None of the methods necessarily reflects accurately the proportion of different species kept. Indeed, as Bourdillon & Coy (1980: 86) have pointed out, any ratios derived !£om archaeozoological data reflect only the dead animals. Any re��st.ruction of the living herds must also take into account the age structures and life expectancies of the different species. Nevertheless, although absolute re­ constructions are probably impossible employing these methods of quantification, comparisons of relative proportions of animals can theoretically be attemQted provided the methods of analysis used are compatible. This has not always been the case. The use of the Glastonbury data to emphasise the importance of sheep in the late Iron Age is particularly unfortunate in this respect. A close consideration of the Glastonbury report reveals that the bones used in the estimation of species representation were selected from a much larger total sample (Bulle.id & Gray 1917: 642). Particular interest was paid to ·the metrical analysis of complete skulls and longbones. Of the 181 bones of cattle recorded, a high proportion can be accounted for in the measurement tables and it is clear from the discussion of cattle in the text that complete limb bones were preferentially selected. Yet it was previously stated that most of the cattle bones were fragmentary (Bulleid & Gray 1917: 652-654, 641). It is also clear that a large number of the 3, 013 sheep bones were complete, although many belonged to immature animals and were not subsequently used in the metrical analysis. Unlike cattle, "one noticeable feature amongst the limb-bones is the almost entire absence of breakages for the purposes of extracting the marrow" (Bulleid & Gray 1917: 655). The bias in the selection of complete bones would therefore have favoured sheep and it is misleading to compare the relative percentages of species represented in the Glastonbury sample with those from elsewhere, where more fragmentary material was counted. Similarly, Payne (1972b: 79-80) has noted that the methods of cotta-ting bones vary between individual faunal analysts and these methods are not alw3¥s explained, thus making direct comparisons between the samples difficult. 164

Payne (1972a: 1975) has also demonstrated that poor recovery techniqueE can bias faunal samples towards the collections of large mammal bones. A lthough the results from sieving experiments from Greece were much more dramatic than for example, Hamwih (Bordillon & Coy 1980: 82-83), the possi­ bility that poor of hurried rescue excavations may have biased some samples in favour of cattle and horse in relation to sheep, pig and smaller species must still be taken into consideration in the comparison of results. Problems of Quantification

(b) Intra-site variability

A nother problem in assessing the importance of individual species is that of variation of samples within a settlement. By whatever means quantification is done most excavations produce a tiny fraction of the bones originally depo­ sited and recoverable from a settlement. This can result in misleading interpretations of species representation. The case of the multiperio_ d settle­ ment on Winall Down (Rl7) near Winchester, Hampshire is a good example of where such factors can be shown to be important. The site was excavated and rigorously sampled by the M3 A rchaeological Rescue Committee under the direction of Peter Fasham. Phase 3 of the settlement was dated from the 7th century to early 3rd century BC and consisted of a subrectangular enclosure ditch with a single entrance, approximately 25 pits and a few postholes and scoops scattered mainly within the enclosure and a large area of quarry scoops and pits to the north of the enclosure. The ditch was excavated at regular intervals by 31 sections and in total 78.5 metres representing 29.4% of the circuit were removed. 21 of the pits produced animal bones and the quarry produced a large number of fragments scattered in its area. TABLE 2:

Bone Fragments of Major Domesticates from Phase 3 Deposits of Winnall Down

Species

Ditch

Pits

Quarry

Cattle Horse Sheep/Goat Pig

297(61.4%) 51(10. 5%) 105(21.7%) 31( 6. 4%)

142(25.0%) 50( 8.8%) 314(55.4%) 61(10. 8%)

245(50.9%) 60(12.5%) 148(30.8%) 28( 5.8%)

Others 15 4 • 22 3

Total 699(44.4%) 165 (10.5%) 589(37.4%) 123( 7.8%)

Table 2 lists the simple fragment counts including shaft fragments and loose teeth of the major domesticates (excluding bones belonging to partial skele­ tons) for all deposit types. Overall, cattle fragments outnumbered sheep but there was a large range of variation in their percentages in the different deposits. Cattle were much better represented in the quarry and ditch than in the pits. The contrast between the feature types was shown reasonably consistently in the individual pits and ditch sections, although two pits pro­ duced abnormal samples (Maltby n. d. 1). The reasons for the variations were a combination of differeutial preservation and disposal practices. Sheep/goat and pig bones survived Iess well in the ditch, which contained a higher percentage of eroded bones than the pits. The sample of sheep/goat from the ditch was dominated by loose teeth and shaft fragments of tibia and radius, whereas the more fragile parts of the skeleton were much under165

represented. Cattle bones survived better i.!l the ditch than sheep/goat bones because most of them belonged to mature animals and were thus more resilient to erosion. In addition there was evidence that the ditch was used in places as a depository for cattle bones that had been stripped of meat and then dumped. The bones from the quarry were of a different nature again being poorly pre­ served and containing a high proportion of unidentifiable fragments, loose teeth and other dense fragments of all species, whereas the more porous and less hardy elements were under-represented compared to other feature types (Maltby n.d. 1). This example shows how much intra-site variability can affect the overall representation of species. The final fragment percentages (Table 2) were dependent on the amount excavated from the different deposits. Had all the ditch been excavated, for example, and the densities and types of bones from the excavated samples been typical of the rest of the ditch, the estimated overall percentage figures would have changed to 53.1% cattle, 10. 5% horse, 29.4% sheep/ goat and 7. 1% pig, representing a 8.7% increase in cattle and a 8% reduction in sheep/goat. Similar variations would be found using other methods of quantification. The problems are compounded if these results are compared to the Phase 4 deposits (Middle Iron Age), from which the vast majority of the bone was recovered from pits. Excluding skeletons, nearly 4,600 bones were recovered from 83 pits. Of the major species, 29% of the fragments belonged to cattle, 9% to horse, 53% to sheep/goat and 10% to pig. As in the previous phase, there was a fair degree of variation in the faunal assemblages in the pits. There was a tendency for outlying pits to contain higher proportions of cattle and horse bones, although any intra-site compari­ sons in this phase are hindered by the problem of not knowing which pits were open contemporaneously. Was there any change in the relative numbers of animals kept? Overall, the proportion of sheep/goat fragments increased in the latter phase but if only the contents of the pits are compared there was very little difference in species representation. Clearly more detailed examination of the bone types represented is needed before the question can be resolved (Maltby n.d. 1). The example does illustrate, however, the problem of using percentages of bone fragments in comparisons of .species representation on one site, where there is clear evidence that different con­ texts are reflecting either different patterns of waste disposal or pr�senting different conditions of post-depositional preservation. There are several other instances where it can be shown that differential deposition of bones has biased samples in favour of a particular species. The late 1st century AD deposits from the infill of the legionary ditch at Exeter produced a concentration of cattle bones consisting predominantly of mandible, skull and metapodia fragments deposited as waste from primary butchery of cattle carcasses. This assemblage contrasted markedly from other samples recovered elsewhere in Roman Exeter and was heavily biased towards cattle (Maltby 1979: 11). A similar concentration of cattle jaws, skull and metapodia was found in an early 2nd century AD pit at Aldgate in London. As at Exeter, the horn cores and most of the meat bones had been removed elsewhere (Watson 197 3). A preponderance of cattle horn cores and metapodia and, to a lesser extent, other cattle bones was discovered in late 4th ce��ury levels at Angel Court, London (Clutton-Brock & Armitage 1977). 166

Cattle horn cores dominated a 4th century AD sample from Kingston Hill Farm, Oxfordshire (Wilson 197 6). A pit from a 2nd centu:ry AD military deposit at Little Chester, Derbyshire contained a high proportion of smashed bones of young cattle (Askew 1961). This assemblage ·has been interpreted as the re­ mains of bones broken up in the production of bone grease and has parallels with military sites on the continent (King 197 8: 225). Concentrations of pig metapodials and phalanges thrown away in quantity as waste have biased samples from Roman Exeter (Maltby 1979: 11-13) and Nazeingbury, Essex (Huggins 197 8). These examples all provide an interesting insight into butchery and marketing practices and there are other cases where redistribution of carcasses can be demonstrated.They are all clear cases where the bones recovered do not represent a cross-section of the animals kept. Of course, theycan be regarded as atypical samples and omitted from calculations of species representation but we are then faced with the problem of deciding what constitutes a typical sample. The number of bones of each species re­ corded is dependent upon the method of quantification used, excavation tech­ niques-,-preservation conditions, discard practices, butchery practices, redistribution of the carcasses and the ages of the animals exploited. All these processes impede the translation of the faunal data into realistic statis­ tics of spec�es present.. To understand bone samples better, we have to take all these factors into consideration by studying the types of bone represented and by taking note of the effects of intra-site variability. Problems of Quantification (c) Inter-site variability The possible incompatibility of the contents of faunal samples has to be considered_particularly when the assemblages from different sites are cornpared. The problem of sample variability is illustrated in Tables 3-4. These list the principal elements recorded for cattle and sheep/goat respectively in a selection of samples. In order to standardise the figures, the number of fragments of each element is expressed as a percentage of the most commonly occurring element. It is clear that there is a wide range of variation in the composition of the samples of both species and few are very similar. The reasons for the variability can be attributed to one or a combination of the processes outlined above. Whatever the causes, is it correct to compare the total number of fragments obtained from such heterogeneous assemblages and c!SSume that a comparison of the overall fragment figures will reflect the variation in the relative numbers of each species eaten or kept? It is possible, that in some cases such variability may not have biased the figures but this has never been demonstrated satisfactorily. It may be possible to monitor Large scale change in species representation by such methods but any subtler variations are difficult to interpret, since, as we have seen, fragment per­ centages can be affected greatly by other factors. Grayson (1980) and Dennell (1980) are perhaps correct in their suggestion that we should abandon attempts to be too precise in this type of quantification and be satisfied with obtaining some order_ of ranking of species instead. Certainly the usual methods of analysis are unlikely to produce much more accurate results. There is a need to develop a better understanding of the nature of faunal samples. Ethnoarchaeological studies have shown the complexities involved in the for­ mation of bone assemblages (Maltby 1980). Our interpretations of such ma­ terial to date have been oversimplistic and our methods inadequate. In this 167

TABLE 3 :

Var ia tion o f Ma jor Ca t t le Fragmen ts f ro m a S e lec t ion o f I ron Age , Ro mano-Br i t ish a nd Ang lo-Saxon S a mp les

S a mple/Source

MRP J aw S ep Hu m R /U Fe rn T ib Mc Mt Tar Ph i 2 9

1 00

8 6

6 6

4 8

7 2

6 9

4 1

4 8

3 1

4 1

G S 1 00-200 ( Ma l tby

3 4

1 00

5 0

7 7

8 5

5 0

9 4

3 2

4 1

2 1

2 7

CC 2 00-300 1 979 )

2 3

1 00

5 7

1 3

3 5

3 5

2 2

3 9

1 3

3 5

9 1

G S 3 00-400

5 8

1 00

8 6

6 6

7 2

8 8

8 5

3 1

6 4

5 0

8 1

TS 3 00-400

8 4

1 00

5 6

3 1

3 2

3 3

5 2

4 5

4 1

4 1

5 8

1 10

1 00

4 7

5 1

7 2

4 1

5 6

2 1

3 0

3 5

2 6

9 1

1 00

5 2

5 2

5 5

4 5

4 6

3 0

5 5

6 8

3 9

6 9

1 00

6 8

2 9

5 7

4 1

5 2

2 5

3 9

2 9

6 5

1 15

1 00

3 7

5 7

5 5

4 3

6 9

3 3

4 8

3 6

5 2

5 4

1 00

1 3

5 9

5 2

4 8

8 2

1 7

5 9

5 4

7 8

1 70

3 3

2 1

1 4

1 6

1 4

1 7

2 6

1 2

2 2

1 00

1 1

Exeter G S 5 5-75 AD

Winna l l Down Ph .4 ( Ma ltby Phase 6

n .d .1 )

Wink lebury ( Jones ,R . 1 977 ) Baylha m H ouse 1 20-200 AD P i ts Layers ( Ma l tby n .d . 3 ) L ong thorpe ( Marples 1 974 ) S hakenoak Farm S i te K G p .J

3 7

5 7

5 4

2 2

6 0

3 0

4 6

4 6

7 8

1 00

S i te K G p. 0 ( Cram

6 3

4 0

2 1

1 4

4 4

8

1 6

5 4

6 4

7 3

1 00

S i te K G p .Q

5 1

4 5

2 0

1 8

4 9

4

2 8

3 7

5 5

1 00

9 6

6 0

4 0

1 8

3 2

5

3 3

3 0

2 8

7 8

1 00

Brancaster ( Wa l l p ers . c o m m.)

2 26

7 3

5 2

1 7

3 5

1 8

2 1

4 4

4 7

2 9

1 00

V indo landa ( Hodgson 1 977)

4 45

4 9

7 7

2 0

3 1

1 2

2 0

4 9

6 4

5 7

1 00

Ha mw ih ( Bourdi l lon & C oy 1 980 ) 1 294

8 2

7 5

6 1

7 7

5 9

6 9

3 6

3 8

6 4

1 00

Mini mum p ercen tage

3 3

1 3

1 6

1 7

1 2

2 1

2 7

Max i mum p ercen tage

1 00

8 6

7 7

8 5

8 8

9 4

5 4

6 4

1 00

1 00

Mean

7 9

4 9

3 7

5 0

3 5

4 8

3 5

4 4

5 0

7 5

S tandard d ev ia t ion

2 7

2 4

2 3

1 8

2 4

2 6

1 0

1 6

2 3

2 8

1 978 )

S i te K G p.S

7

7

1 6

MRP = n u mber o f f rag men ts o f mos t r epresen ted b one . p ercentage o f most r epresented b one . Hum = h u merus ; Metacarpus ;

O ther f igures a re

S ep = s capu la ; Ti b =t ibia ; Mc = Tar = t arsa ls/carpa ls ; Ph i =p ha langes.

R/U = r ad ius/u lna ;

Mt = meta tarsus ;

J aw = mand ible ;

4

Fern = f e mur ;

1 68

TABLE 4 :

Var ia t ion o f Ma jor S heep/Goa t Fragments f ro m a S e lec t ion o f I ron Age , Ro mano-Br i t ish a nd Ang lo-Saxon S a mples

Samp le/Source Exeter G S 5 5-75 AD

MRP J aw S cp Hu m 1 3 /U Fe m T ib Mc Mt Tar Ph l 2 9

4 2

3 8

4 2

6 6

6 2

1 00

2 4

6 9

5 1

1 2

2 2

1 2

3 5

1 0

6 2

3 2

1 00

2 9

4 9

6 5

5 9

7 6

1 2

2 4 1 00

GS 1 00-200 ( Ma ltby

6 8

CC 2 00-300 1 979 )

1 7

G S 3 00-400

7 0

1 6

2 7

3 9

7 3

5 7

1 00

2 6

3 9

4

4

TS 3 00-400

1 9

7 9

3 2

3 7

5 8

2 1

1 00

3 2

2 1

0

0

1 38

1 00

2 3

1 14

1 00

Wink lebury ( Jones ,R . 1 977 )

1 75

1 00

2 4

Baylham H ouse 1 20-200 AD P i ts

1 33

5 6

1 7

8 8

7 3

1 8

Long thorpe ( I V Iarples 1 974 )

4 4

6 4

5 5

9 3

S hakenoak Far m S i te K G p .J

2 9

1 00

0

0

2 4

2 6

8 5

0

4

3 1

Winna l l Down Ph .4 ( Ma ltby Phase 6

n.d.1 )

Layers ( Ma l tby n .d .3 )

S ite K G p. 0 ( Cram S i te K G p. Q

1 978 )

6

6

3 5

8 5

5 0

8 3

5 1

6 5

2 6

3 3

4 6

1 3

7 5

3 4

5 0

1 1

1 8

3 3

8 3

5 5

9 8

3 9

5 7

3 5

8 4

3 5

3 8

4 1

1 00

3 5

4 6

3 4

4 8

2 5

9 3

9 1

6 1

1 00

8 6

6 1

4 8

4

3 5

2 8

4 1

0

7

0

4 2

5 8 1 00

4

4

0

3 6

2 9

0

5 0

5 7

7 9

4 8

0

1 4

2 9

0

1 9 1 00

7 6

Brancaster ( Wa l l p ers .co m m )

8 8

1 00

3 3

4 1

6 5

1 4

6 0

4 7

8 0

V indo landa ( Hodgson 1 977 )

9 6

1 00

7 0

3 4

5 4

2 3

4 5

4 7

3 3

8 90

6 4

6 6

5 9

1 00

5 7

8 3

4 5

4 5

1 9

1 2

2 1

6

Max i mu m p ercen tage

0

0

2 4

5

1 5

1 00

Mini mu m p ercen tage

1

5 1 1 00

1 4

Hamw ih ( Bourdi l lon & C oy 1 9 80 )

3 5 9

2 0

2 1

S ite K G p.S

6

1 4

0

2 1 0 1 6 7 3 0 0

7 5

2 1 0 4 9 5 2 4 0

1 00

7 0

9 3

1 00

6 2

Mean

7 1

2 4

3 4

5 8

3 3

7 6

4 5

5 8

1 9

2 3

S tandard d ev ia t ion

3 0

2 2

2 0

2 3

2 3

2 7

2 2

2 3

2 4

2 7

MRP = n u mber o f f ragmen ts o f most r epresented b one . p ercentages o f mos t r epresen ted b one. Hu m = h u merus; metacarpus ;

R/U = r ad ius/u lna ;

Mt = me ta tarsus ;

J aw = mand ible ; F ern

•

f e mur ;

O ther f igures a re S ep = s capu la ;

T ib - t i bia ;

Tar = t arsa ls/carpa ls ;

1 69

1 00 1 00 1 00 1 00

6

Mc =

Ph i =p ha langes.

8 4

respect much of the debate about the relative merits of fragment analysis or minimum numbers analysis is irrelevant because neither method on its own is suitable to deal with this type of data. To obtain an accurate ass_ess­ ment of species representation, we have to use .only those bone element that were butchered, distributed, disposed of and preserved in similar ways. Alternatively some kind of weighting of the figures has to be devised. In either case, the correct procedure is first to establish how the samples have been formed before any attempt is made to interpret species composi tion. How does this criticism affect the general statements that have been made about species representation cited above ? Most of those comparisons rely on figures produced by different faunal analysis, who often did not take such considerations into account. Since in some instances details of bone lements are not given nor in most cases are there any discussions of preservation or intra-site variability, it is impossible to be certain whether the samples used in the generalisations are directly comparable. Accordingly the theory that sheep became ·more important during the Iron Age remains essentially untested. The variation in the number of pig bones in Iron Age assemblages may be an accurate indicator of the amount of woodland available for pannage. It would, however, be comforting to establish that no other factors, particularly differential preservation, were involved in this varia­ bility. Several of King's (197 8) conclusions about Romano-British assemblages may well stand the test of time and more detailed comparisons of the material. Certainly the abundance of cattle and pig bones on some types of site looks at least superficially to be interesting and worthy of further research.

It is, however, apparent that the results of species quantification have

been unsatisfactory. General comparisons have employed figures of species representation that have been produced by inadequate sampling and methodology. This is the major area of faunal studies where old assumptions need to be cast aside and replaced by a new approach. Not until then shall we be able to im­ prove on the vague and sometimes misleading statements that have been made about stock numbers. The Exploitation of Domestic Stock

It is believed that animal bone studies can establish the principal reasons why the various domestic species were kept and how intensively they were exploited. Cattle, for example, can be bred mainly as working animals, or as dairy producers or simply as providers of meat or a combination of all three. The kill-off patterns and the relative numbers of males ., females and castrates kept will vary according to the particular regime oL.h.usbandry practised. By studying the ageing and sexing evidence of faunal samples, it is possible to investigate these topics. Once again there are problems in transforming the archaeozoological data into general stat�ents about herd structures and exploitation patterns. Nevertheless some general pafterns have begun to emerge from the ageing data of the major domestic species. Sheep Sheep produce meat, skins, manure, milk and wool. The relative im­ portance of each plays some part in the manner in which they are husbanded. Both Cunliffe (197 8: 183) and Bradley (1978: 36-37), using the published 170

evidence available to them, concluded that sheep _were exploited mainly for meat in some areas during the Iron Age and principally for wool in others. Rivet-(1964: 123-124) and A pplebaum (1972: 214-215) emphasised the impor­ tance of wool production on sheep rearing in the Romano-British period and Clutton-Brock (1976: 382) has suggested that large numbers of sheep were kept to pr�vide enough wool for profitable trading in the Anglo-Saxon period. Payne (197 3) has shown that the kill-off patterns of sheep populations raised principally for wool, meat or milk should be quite different from each other. A substantial number of ewes and wethers would be allowed to reach maturity if wool production was predominant, to enable several annual growths of the fleece to be collected. On the other hand, only the animals selected for breeding would be required to reach maturity in a system t.hat intensively exploited sheep for meat and the emphasis would be on the fattening and culling of young animals. Theoretically it should be possible to relate the ages of the bones found on archaeological sites to the regime of exploitation, although as Payne has pointed out, flocks are not usually kept for a single product, particularly in subsistence economies. Several methods of ageing analysis have been used on British faunal assemblages in recent years. Those which employ epiphyseal fusion data will not be considered here, since differential preservation plays a dominant role in the survivial of the fusion points and makes this method of analysing age structures most unreliable. This leaves the various methods of analysing age through the evidence of tooth eruption and wear. Three methods have been used quite frequently. Ewbank et al. (1964) divided the tooth eruption sequence of complete mandibles into 26 stages. Payne (1973) employed the evidence of tvoth wear as well as eruption in his recording method and for overall analysis divided the dental development into eight stages. Grant (1975) also used both the evidence of eruption and wear of the mandibular cheek teeth. By giving numerical values to each of five stages of eruption and 15 wear stages of the molars and by adding together the scores for each molar, an overall numerical value (n.v.) can be obtained for the mandible. A high numerical value indicates a lot of wear on the teeth and implies that the man­ dible belonged to a mature animal. None of these methods provitles an absolute estimate of age. We have only an imprecise knowledge of the rates of dental development of sheep in these periods. Modern estimates are derived fr om improved breeds whose development is much faster than the sheep studied here, although by how much is unclear. Little is known of variation in the tooth eruption of sheep during the periods themselves. Most studies have used estimates derived from the data of Silver (1969), which may not be totally applicable. Nevertheless the ageing methods do provide an opportunity to ob­ serve relative changes in the number of mandibles at the different stages of development. There are some problems in comparing the results of the three methods and Hamilton (1978) has found that the methods produced results that differed by up to 10% in the esth:nations of cumulative mortality rates when applied to the same sample. A lthough sheep and goat mandibles are very difficult to tell apart, the dominance of sheep on all these sites is so great (see above p. 159 ) it seems reasonable to consider that the vast majority of the mandibles belonged to sheep.

171

Ageing Da ta f ro m t he I ron Age S evera l s amp les f ro m I ron Age s e t t le men ts i n s ou thern Eng land h ave n ow b een e xa mined .

The a na lys is o f t wo midd le I ron Age s amp les f ro m Hampsh ire ,

Winna l l Down a nd Ba lksbury ( ma ter ia l f ro m t he 1 973 e xcava t ions d irec ted b y G eof frey Wa inwr igh t ) h ave p roduced v ery s imi lar r esu l ts ( Fig . 8 :1).

The

d iagra m s hows t he n umber o f mand ib les s cor ing e ach o f G ran t 's ( 1975 ) n umer ica l v a lues a nd i nc ludes e s t ima ted v a lues f rom i nco mp le te mo lar r ows. I t i s i mpor tan t t o emphas ise t ha t t hese v a lues d o n o t r epresen t e qua l l eng ths o f t ime . C hanges i n t he t oo thwear s tages o f o lder mand ib les a re g enera l ly s lower , a l though t ha t i s s o mewha t o f a n o versimp l if ica t ion .

As a g u ide , t he

f i rs t mo lar i s i n wear b y c . n .v . 8 , t he s econd mo lar a t C . n .v . 1 8 a nd t he t h ird mo lar a t c . n .v . 3 0 .

I n b o th s amp les , t here fore , t here was a c oncen-

t ra t ion o f v ery y oung mand ibles , v ery f ew t ha t w ere a ss igned v a lues o f 1 5-30 a nd t hen a b road c oncen tra t ion o f o lder mand ib les w i th f u l ly e rup ted t oo th r ows .

S evera l p oin ts n eed t o b e made a bou t t hese s amp les .

O n b o th s i tes

t hey were r ecovered a lmos t e xc lus ively f ro m p i ts a nd c on tex ts t ha t p reserved t he mand ib les e x tre me ly we l l .

I ti s c er ta in t ha t h ad t he s amp les d er ived f rom

d epos i ts t ha t were l ess f avourab le t o b one p reserva t ion , t he s urv iva l r a te o f t he y ounges t a nd mos t f rag i le j aws wou ld h ave b een s er ious ly i mpa ired . S econd ly , i ti s u ncer ta in whe ther t hese s a mp les , a l though q u i te s ubs tan t ia l , r epresen t a n a ccura te c ross-sec t ion o f t he s heep k ep t b y t he i nhab i tan ts o f t he s e t t le men ts .

I ti s p ossib le t ha t t here was r ed is tr ibu t ion o f s tock o r c arcasses

b e tween s e t t le ments .

I t i s a lso c once ivab le t ha t t he mand ib les i n t hese p i ts

were b iased t owards t hese a ge g roups b ecause o f t he p ar t icu lar d isposa l s tra teg ies emp loyed b y t he i nhabi tan ts .

Aw ider r ange o f s amp les f ro m c on-

t e mporary n e ighbour ing s et t le men ts i s r equ ired t o t es t t hese p oss ib i l i t ies . A ssum ing f or t he t ime b e ing , h owever , t ha t t he s amp les a re r epresen ta t ive , wha t i n ferences c an b e d rawn a bou t s heep h usbandry?

The c oncen tra t ions o f

y oung mand ib les i nc lude t hose b e long ing t o n eona ta l mor ta l i t ies a nd t hose o f l ambs w i th t he ir f i rs t mo lar n ot f u l ly e rup ted o r o n ly i n a n e ar ly s tage o f wear . A bso lu te a geing i s p roble ma t ic b u t , e ven a l low ing f or v ery s low e rup t ion r a tes , i t s ee ms l i ke ly t ha t t he ma jor i ty o f t hese mand ib les b e longed t o a n i ma ls t ha t d ied u nder ay ear o ld .

G iven t he p oor q ua l i ty o f t he s tock , ah igh l a te o f

n eona ta l d ea ths i s t o b e e xpec ted .

Payne 's mode ls ( 1 973 : 2 82-284 ) a l low f or

u p t o 3 0% o f t he l a mbs b orn e ach y ear t o d ie o f n a tura l c auses .

H igh r a tes

o f y oung mor ta l i t ies w ere p reva len t i n E ng land i n t he M idd le Ages ( M i l ler & Ha tcher 1 978 : 2 17 ).

The o lder l a mbs r epresen ted a t Winna l l Down a nd

Ba lksbury , a l though t hey were b u tchered f or mea t , were c er ta in ly n o t k ep t a l ive l ong e nough t o r each a n o p t i mum a ge a nd w e igh t f or c u l l ing f or mea t . I n f ac t t here w ere v ery f ew s heep o f t ha t a ge , a s t he l ow n u mber o f mand ibles w i th n umer ica l v a lues o f 1 5-30 i nd ica tes ( Fig . 8 :1 ) .

S uper f ic ia l ly , t he o b-

s ervable a ge p a t tern f i ts more c lose ly t o P ayne 's mode l o f mi lk e xp lo i ta t ion , i n wh ich i n a dd i t ion t o n a tura l mor ta l i t ies a h igh p ercen tage o f t he f l ock a re s laugh tered i n t heir f i rs t y ear l eav ing a f ew r ams b u t ma in ly ewes f or b reed ing p urposes a nd t he ir mi lk . A l terna t ive ly , i ti s p oss ib le t o v iew t he a ge ing p a tt ern a s e v idence f or a v ery l ow l eve l o f e f f ic iency i n s heep h usbandry , i n wh ich o n ly t he s tock s e lec ted f or b reed ing were a l lowed t o ma ture .

Th is may i nd i-

c a te t ha t t here was a s hor tage o f w in ter f odder f or s heep o r a t l eas t n o i ncen t ive n or n ecess i ty t o o verw in ter a s ign i f ican t p ropor t ion o f t he s tock .

1 72

I n e i ther c ase ,

R 17 PHASE 4 5

I

20

1 5-

I I

40

n .v .

BALKSBURY 1 973 M IA

5

I

2 0

F ig . 8 .1

1

40

Age ing d ata f ro m s heep/goat mand ib les f ro m m idd le I ron Age s a mp les f ro m Winna l l D own a nd Ba lksbury 1 973. n u mer ica l v a lue .

n .v . =

Method o f a na lys is f o l lows Gran t ( 1975 ) .

E st i ma ted v a lues a re i nc luded .

1 72

a l though w ool wou ld h ave b een p rov ided b y t he o lder a nima ls , t he a pparen t ly h igh r a tes o f i m ma ture mor ta l i t ies s ugges t t ha t w oo l p roduc t ion was n o t o f p r imary i mpor tance i n t he e xp lo i ta t ion o f s heep a t t hese s e t t le men ts. The sma l ler s a mp les f ro m t he e ar l ier I ron Age d epos i ts f ro m W inna l l D own a nd Ba lksbury p roduced s imi lar r esu l ts t o t he o ne d escr ibed a bove a nd t hese h ave p ara l lels w i th o ther s amp les f ro m s ou thern E ng land .

The l arge

s a mp les f ro m P hases 1 -2 a t G ussage A l l S a in ts c on ta ined a h igh p ropor t ion o f s heep mand ib les w i th , a t mos t , o n ly t he f i rs t mo lar i n wear , al ow p ercen tage o f j aws w i th o n ly t he f i rs t a nd s econd mo lars i n wear a nd a l arger g roup w i th f u l ly e rup ted t oo th r ows ( Harcour t 1 979 : 1 52 ).

The s amp le f ro m C rof t Ambrey

c on ta ined a l arger n umber o f a du l t s heep b u t a ga in a l ow n umber o f mand ibles a t t he s tage when o n ly t he f i rs t a nd s econd mo lars a re i n wear ( Wh i tehouse & Wh i tehouse 1 974 : 2 18-219 ).

S im i lar r esu l ts were o b ta ined f ro m t he s amp les

f ro m A shv i l le a nd t he l a te I ron Age d epos i ts a t Bar ton C our t Far m , Ox fords h ire ( Ham i l ton 1 978 : 1 29 ). O f t he o ther l arge I ron Age s amp les , t hose f ro m E ldon 's S ea t a nd H awk 's H i l l c anno t b e c o mpared d irec t ly w i th t hese s ince t he d a ta w ere g rouped i na d i f feren t way.

The a na lys is o f t he mand ib les f ro m Bar ley , H er tfordsh ire ,

p roduced r a ther d i f feren t r esu l ts ( Ewbank e t a l . 1 964 ).

A l though mand ib les

o f f i rs t y ear a n i ma ls a nd a du l t s tock s t i l l f ormed t he l arges t g roups , c . 2 0% o f t he s heep r epresen ted b y c o mp le te mand ibles w ere k i l led b etween t he e ar ly wear s tages o f t he s econd a nd t h ird mo lars.

Two l a te I ron Age s amp les f ro m

s ou thern E ng land a lso c on ta ined a h igher p ercen tage o f mand ib les a f t h is a ge . A t G ussage A l l S a in ts , 2 1% o f t he mand ib les were a t t h is s tage o f d evelopment ( Harcour t 1 979 : 1 52 ) a nd t he e xcava t ions o f t he b an jo e nc losure i n Miche ldever Wood , Hampsh ire p roduced r ough ly e qua l n umbers o f t hese a nd t hose o f t he y ounges t a ge g roup ( Coy n .d .).

Whe ther t hese s amp les p rov ide e v idence f or

ac hange i n s heep h usbandry t ha t r esu l ted i n t he c u l l ing o f r e la t ive ly more s econd a nd t h ird y ear a n ima ls r e ma ins t o b e t es ted o n o ther s i tes i n t he a rea . O bv ious ly t he n u mber o f I ron Age s amp les i s i nadequa te t o p rov ide i n forma t ion a bou t t he p ossibi l i ty o f l oca l , r eg iona l o r t e mpora l v ar ia t ion .

The

s amples t ha t h ave b een e xa mined s o f ar d o , h owever , h ave c er ta in c o mmon t ra i ts .

I n a l l o f t he m t he n umber o f f i rst y ear mor ta l i t ies r epresen ted i s h igh

c o mpared t o s amp les f ro m l a ter p er iods . S uch j aws a re sma l l a nd f rag i le a nd a re l i kely t o b e u nder-represen ted . A par t p erhaps f ro m t he s amples f ro m Bar ley , G ussage A l l S a in ts a nd M icheldever Wood , a l l t he I ron Age s i tes h ave p roduced f ew mand ib les o f s heep k i l led a t a n a ge when t hey wou ld h ave p rov ided a l o t o f mea t f or t he amoun t o f f odder t hey r equ ired .

E f f ic ien t mea t

p roduc t ion was n ot , i ts ee ms , ac harac ter is t ic o f I ron Age s heep h usbandry. H ow i mpor tan t w oo l p roduc t ion was d epends o f t he i n terpre ta t ion o f t he r e la t ive n umber a y oung a nd o ld a n i ma ls r epresen ted i n t he s a mp les .

C er ta in ly a l l

t he a du l t a n i ma ls c ou ld h ave p rov ided w oo l a nd t he o ccurrence o f s p ind le whor ls a nd l oomwe igh ts a t many s i tes t es t if ies t o t ex t i le manufac ture .

H owever , i f

f irst y ear mor ta l i t ies were a s h igh a s s ugges ted a t s i tes s uch a s Ba lksbury ( F ig . 8 :1 ) , t he emphas is wou ld h ave b een more o n t he ma in tenance o f av iable b reed ing s tock r a ther t han l arge s ca le woo l p roduc t ion . p roduced a g rea ter p ropor t ion o f a du l t a n i ma ls .

O ther s i tes h ave

I f i tc ou ld b e d e mons tra ted

t ha t t h is was n ot mere ly a r ef lec t ion o f p oorer p reserva t ion o f t he y oung mand ibles , t he c ase f or t he i mpor tance o f w oo l wou ld b e s treng thened . 1 74

I fn o t , a n

a l terna t ive h ypo thes is wou ld r egard s heep h usbandry t o b e o f al ow s tandard , g eared t owards s ubs is tence a c t iv i t ies o n ly , p rov id ing mea t , mi lk , manure a nd wool b u t n ot a t ac o m merc ia l l evel . Ageing Da ta f ro m t he R o mano-Br i t ish P er iod R o mano-Br i t ish d epos i ts h ave r evea led f a ir ly c ons is ten t ly a c hange i n emphas is i n s heep e xp lo i ta t ion .

The mand ib les f ro m P or tches ter C as t le

( Gran t 1 975 ) p rov ide a g ood e xamp le ( Fig . 8 :2 ). w i th n u mer ica l v a lues o f 2 0-30 i s h igh .

The n umber o f mand ib les

Al o t o f t he a n ima ls r epresen ted

t herefore w ere k i l led b e tween t he e ar ly w ear s tages o f t he s econd molar a nd t he f u l l e rup t ion o f t he t h ird mo lar .

Th is c orresponds r ough ly t o S tages D

a nd E i n t he method o f Payne ( 1973 : 2 93 ).

I f a ge ing e st i ma tes a re c orrec t ,

t he s a mp le s hows a n emphas is o n t he k i l l-of f o f s econd a nd t h ird y ear a n i ma ls f or t heir mea t . Much f ewer f i rs t y ear a n ima ls a re r epresen ted a par t f ro m s o me n eona ta l mor ta l i t ies wh ich were r ecovered ma in ly f ro m w e l ls ( Gran t 1 975 : 3 97-398 ).

S amp les f ro m a l l t ypes o f R o man s e t t le men t h ave p roduced

s im i lar c oncen tra t ions o f mand ibles o f t h is a ge .

These i nc lude u rban c en tres

s uch a s Exe ter ( Ma l tby 1 979 : 4 2 ) , mi l i tary s i tes , f or e xamp le V indo landa ( Hodgson 1 977 : 1 6 ) , v i l las , f or e xamp le S hakenoak Farm ( Cra m 1 978 : 1 28-135 ) a nd o ther r ura l s i tes , f or e xamp le , Ba lksbury ( Ma l tby n .d . 2 ) .

G enera l ly

f ewer c oncen tra t ions o f mand ib les b elong ing t o f irs t y ear mor ta l i t ies h ave b een f ound , a l though s o me e ar ly R o man s i tes h ave p roduced t he m i n s o me n umbers , f or e xa mp le , Winna l l D own ( Ma l tby n .d . 1 ) , Bay lha m H ouse , S u f fo lk ( Ma l tby n .d . 3 ) a nd t he mi l i tary d epos i ts a t Marg idunu m , No t t inghamsh ire ( Har man 1 969 : 1 01 ).

The c hange i n emphas is t o t he c u l l ing o f s econd a nd t h ird y ear

a n i ma ls may t herefore h ave b een a g radua l o ne , a l though t here i s an eed t o s tudy a much w ider r ange o f s amp les b efore t he p a t tern c an b e b e t ter u nders tood .

Red is tr ibu t ion o f s tock a nd a n ima l p roduc ts u ndoub ted ly t ook p lace i n

t h is p er iod a nd i ti s c once ivab le t ha t c er ta in a ge c lasses w i l l b e f ound more c o m mon ly a t s o me s e t t le men ts t han o thers .

Never the less t he p resen t i nco m-

p le te e v idence s ugges ts t ha t mea t p roduc t ion b eca me more i mpor tan t i n s heep manage men t a nd t here was a g rea ter l eve l o f e f f ic iency i n s heep f arming .

A

f ew s amp les h ave p roduced a r e la t ive ly h igh n u mber o f ma ture a n ima ls , n o tab ly t he v i l la a t Bar ton C our t Far m ( Hami l ton 1 978 : 1 29 ) , t he l a ter l eve ls a t F ishb ourne ( Gran t 1 971 : 3 84 ) a nd , t o al esser e x ten t , S hakenoak Farm ( Cram 1 978 : 1 28-135 ) a nd t he Ro mano-Br i t ish l evels a t Ba lksbury ( Ma l tby n .d . 2 ) .

O nce

a ga in i tw i l l b e i n teres t ing t o o bserve whe ther t h is p a t tern i s t ypica l o f r ura l s e t t le men ts a nd whe ther u rban a nd mi l i tary c en tres t ended t o a t trac t ah igher p ropor t ion o f y ounger a n i ma ls r a ised p r inc ipa l ly f or t he ir mea t . I ti s u ncer ta in h ow i mpor tan t woo l p roduc t ion b ecame i n t he R o manoB r i t ish p er iod . A par t f ro m t he e xamp les l i s ted a bove , t here i s n o e v idence t ha t a du l t a n ima ls were k ep t i n n umbers s ign i f ican t ly a bove t he l eve l r equ ired t o ma in ta in t he b reed ing s tock , a l though i nves t iga t ions o f o ther v i l la a nd r ura l . a sse mblages may a l ter t he p ic ture .

C hange o f emphas is i n s heep f arm ing may

h ave o ccurred w i th in t he p er iod b u t t here i s i nsuf f ic ien t ma ter ia l t o t es t t h is . Ageing Da ta f ro m t he A ng lo-Saxon P er iod Ev idence f ro m A ng lo-Saxon s i tes i s e ven more l im i ted b u t i tc an b e s hown t ha t woo l p roduc t ion b eca me more i mpor tan t i n s o me a reas d ur ing t he l a t ter p ar t o f t he p er iod .

The s amp le f ro m t he m idd lela te S axon d epos i ts a t 1 75

PORTCHESTER

CASTLE

RO MAN

1 0-

5

1 0

F ig . 8 .2

II f

3 0

1 I1

5 0

Age ing d a ta f ro m s heep/goa t mandib les i n R o manoBr i t ish d eposi ts a t P or tchester C as t le ( Groups 1 -5 ) . Da ta a dap ted f ro m Gran t ( 1975 ) . v a lue .

n . v . n u mer ica l

Method o f a na lys is f o l lows Gran t ( 1975 ) .

E s t i ma ted v a lues a re i nc luded .

17 6

n . v .

PORTCHESTER CASTLE

16MIDDLE - LATE

SAXON

8-

11 I I

11

20

I

40

I I

n.v.

Fig. 8. 3 Ageing data from sheep/goat mandibles in middle-late saxon deposits at Portchester Castle. Data adapted from Grant (1976'). n. v. = numerical value. Method of analysis follows Grant (1975). Estimated values are included.

177

Portchester Castle (Fig. 8: 3) included a concentration of mandibles with numerical values of over 30, indicating that the majority belonged to mature animals. The smaller sample from the late Saxon period at Portchester was similar (Grant 1976: 278). The contrast between this sample and the one from the Roman occupation of the fort (Fig. 8: 3) is marked. _If these jaws ac....9urately reflect the kill-off pattern, meat production was now only a secondary consi­ deration to wool production. Of course it is again possible that the sheep represented at Portchester Castle do not contain a cross-section of the sheep kept in the area. It is interesting to note, however, that the urban depQ.sits at Hamwih also produced a large proportion of mature animals (Bourdillon & Coy 1980: 87). Most of the mandibles from the late Saxon ironworking site at Ramsbury, Wiltshire also belonged to mature animals (Coy 1980 in press). Several other samples, particularly from North Elmham, Norfolk (Noddle 197 5: 257), the urban deposits from the St. Peter's Street excavations, Northampton (Harman 1979: 331), Walton, Aylesbury (Noddle 1976: 277) and Durham (Rackham 1979: 53) have produced high percentages of adult sheep. Only the sample from Sedgeford, Norfolk has not produced this pattern (Clutton-Brock 1976: 382). Although the number of samples is small, they have been derived from a wide range of settlement types in several parts of the country. It is tempting to equate this evidence with a large scale increase in the importance of wool production to enable extensive wool and cloth trading to take place. The origins of this development may lie in the early Saxon period but there is as yet little information about samples of that date, although a vast sample from West Stow, Suffolk is currently being studied. It is therefore possible to see long term changes in sheep exploitation. Once the possibility of regional, ecological and cultural variability nas been investigated the pattern will be better understood. At present there seems to have been an underlying trend from a low level of subsistence husbandry in the Iron Age, through improvements and emphasis on better meat production during the Romano-British period, to the dEi_velopment of wool production as the most important component of sheep husbandry by the late Saxon period. Cattle Ageing Data from the Iron Age Analyses of the herd structures of cattle in Iron Age faunal samples have been limited by the fact that most of the largest and best studied assemblages have produced comparatively little ageing and sexing data. The picture of cattle exploitation is therefore very restricted. To take the evidence of tooth eruption and wear only, a few samples have produced a relatively large num­ ber of immature mandibles. In particular the sample from Phase 1 (Early Iron Age) at Gussage All Saints contained a very high percentage (36%) of jaws with at most only the deciduous premolars and first molar in wear (Harcourt 1979: 151). Many of these must have belonged to calves under a year old and some were neonatal mortalities. Apart from these, most of the mandibles belonged to adult animals. Only 24 mandibles could be examined from the Ashville excavations (Hamilton 1978: 132), using the method of Grant (1975). Most of these had numerical values of less than 20 and accordingly did not have the second molar fully erupted. Sexing of the metapodia and distal radius sug­ gested that most of the adult animals were cows (Wilson 197 8: 135). Although 178

mand ib les o fy oung c a lves were r epresen ted i n b o th t he e ar ly a nd midd le I ron Age s amp les f ro m Ba lksbury , t he ma jor i ty h ad n .v . o f o ver 3 0 ( Fig . 8 :4 ) a nd mos t o f t hese h ad f u l ly d eve loped t oo th r ows , b e long ing t o a n ima ls a t l eas t f ive y ears o ld a nd p robab ly s ubs tan t ia l ly o lder i n many c ases .

As im i lar

p a t tern was d iscerned f ro m t he I ron Age s a mp les f ro m W inna l l Down ( Ma l tby n .d . 1 ) a nd E ldon 's S ea t , Dorse t ( Cun li ffe 8 1 P h i l l ipson 1 968 : 2 29 ). p a t tern o f a ge ing a ppears i n t wo l a te I ron Age s amp les .

A nother

A t Bar ton C our t Far m ,

Ox fordsh ire , t here was a c oncen tra t ion o f mand ib les w i th t he f i rs t t wo molars i n wear b u t t he t h ird mo lar u nerup ted ( Ha m i l ton 1 978 : 1 32 ) , b elong ing t o a n ima ls u nder t hree y ears o f a ge o n modern e s t i ma tes ( S i lver 1 969 : 2 96 ).

A

sma l l s a mp le f ro m i s t c en tury AD d epos i ts f ro m t he e xcava t ions a t Baylha m H ouse , S u f fo lk ( Ma l tby n .d . 3 ) a lso c on ta ined a n umber o f mand ib les a t a s imi lar s tage o f d evelop men t , i nd ica t ing t he c u l ling o f y oung c a t t le f or mea t . O ther I ron Age f auna l a sse mblages a re d i f f icu l t t o c o mpare b ecause t he me thods o f a geing a re n ot f u l ly e xp la ined .

The v ar iabi l i ty o f t hese s amp les c ou ld b e

t he r esu l t o f ac o mb ina t ion o f f ac tors a nd i t i s p rema ture t o s ugges t s ign if ican t c hanges i n c a t t le h usbandry d ur ing t he I ron Age .

O ther f ac tors s uch a s r e-

g iona l v ar iabi l i ty , r ed is tr ibu t ion o f s tock , d i fferences i n d isposa l s tra teg ies a nd p oss ible s amp l ing , p reserva t ion a nd r ecovery b iases c ou ld b e i nvo lved . These f ac tors c anno t b e e xamined o n t he e x is t ing d a ta .

Ah igh k i l l-of f o f

y oung c a lves a nd a p redo m inance o f a du l t c ows i n s o me a sse mb lages may i mp ly t ha t d a irying was a n i mpor tan t e le men t o f c a t t le h usbandry i n s o me c o m mun it i es b u t much more s ex ing e v idence i s r equ ired b efore we c an p lace a ny c onf i dence i n s uch s ta te men ts . Ageing Da ta f ro m t he R o mano-Br i t ish P er iod Ev idence f ro m t he Ro mano-Br i t ish p er iod i sb e t ter d ocumen ted , a l though t he s ame l imi ta t ions a pply w i th r egard t o t he p oss ib le e xp lana t ions f or t he o bs erved p a t terns .

A t l eas t t wo r ecurr ing p a t terns b an b e o bserved f ro m t he

s tud ies o f mand ibu lar t oo th e rup t ion .

The f irs t c on ta ins mand ibles o f c a t t le

o f a l l a ges , a l though ma ture i nd iv idua ls u sua l ly p redo m ina te . b e f ound o n v i l la a nd o ther r ura l s i tes .

Examples c an

A t Bar ton C our t Farm a s amp le o f

3 4 mand ib les o f Ro man d a te i nc luded 1 6 wh ich d id n ot h ave t he t h ird mo lar e rup ted , i nc lud ing f i ve o f y oung c a lves ( Ham i l ton 1 978 : 1 32 ).

The mand ibles

f ro m S i tes C a nd K a t t he v i l la a t S hakenoak Farm , Ox fordsh ire , d a ted ma in ly t o t he 3 rd a nd 4 th c entur ies , c on ta ined 1 2 mand ibles w i th a t mos t t he t h ird mo lar i n a n e ar ly s tage o f wear a nd o n ly s ix mand ibles w i th f u l ly e rup ted t oo th r ows ( Cra m 1 973 : 1 978 ).

The e ven sma l ler s amp le f ro m F ishbourne a lso

c on ta ined a r e la t ive ly l arge n umber o f i m ma ture c a t t le ( Gran t 1 971 : 3 85 ). The 2 nd c en tury d epos i ts a t t he r oads ide s e t t le men t a t Baylham H ouse , S uf fo lk i nc luded e igh t c a t t le mand ib les t ha t h ad n o t r eached t he s tage when t he t h ird molar was f u l ly e rup ted .

1 3 o ther j aws h ad f u l ly e rup ted t ooth r ows .

The

l a te Ro man d epos i ts a t Ba lksbury p roduced t en mand ib les w i th f u l ly e rup ted t ooth r ows b u t s even t ha t h ad n o t r eached d en ta l ma tur i ty ( F ig . 8 :4 ).

Sma l l

s a mp les o f c a t t le mand ib les f ro m t he r oads ide s e t t le men ts o f Marg idunu rn , No t t ingha msh ire ( Harman 1 969 :

1 01 ) a nd a t S co le , N orfo lk ( Jones , G . 1 977:

2 10 ) a lso c on ta ined a r e la t ive ly h igh p ropor t ion o f i m ma ture s pec i mens . F ina l ly , t he 4 th c en tury d epos i ts f ro m s evera l s i tes i n Exe ter s howed t he p resence o f as ign i f ican t n u mber o f i m ma ture c a t t le ( Ma l tby 1 979 : 3 0 , 1 55 ). Mos t o f t he y oung c a t t le r epresen ted i n t hese s amp les were o f ar easonable

1 79

BALKSBURY 1 973

3 -

E IA

1

1 0

3 0

I

8 -

M IA

J1

1 0

4 -

3 0

RO MAN

1 0

F ig . 8 .4

3 0

n .v .

Age ing d a ta f ro m c a t t le mand ib les i n e ar ly I ron Age , m idd le I ron Age a nd Ro mano-Br it ish c on tex ts f ro m Ba lksbury 1 973 .

n .v . =n u mer ica l v a lue .

Method o f a na lys is f o l lows Gran t ( 1975 ) . E st i ma ted v a lues a re i nc luded .

1 80

PORTCHESTER

15-

CASTLE

ROMAN

10-

5-

I 11

7-

I

10

I I I

30

50

30

50

I I

n.v.

MIDDLE SAXON

10

n.v.

Fig. 8. 5 Ageing data from cattle mandibles in Romano-British and middle-late Saxon deposits at Portchester Castle. Data adapted from Grant (1975, 1976). n. v. = numerical value. Method of analysis follows Grant (1975). Estimated values are included.

size for culling for meat, although not always fully grown. In most cases these were animals not required for breeding, working or dairying that were fattened for slaughter for their meat and hides. The second pattern of ageing is typified by the collection of mandibles from the Roman levels at Portchester Castle (Grant 1975). The great majority of mandibles recovered in the large sample belonged to adult animals and included very few jaws with numerical values of under 35 (Fig. 8: 5). Most of the cattle were therefore over five years of age and some had heavy toothwear which indicates that quite old animals were slaughtered. The predominance of ma­ ture cattle recurs in several other samples derived from military and urban sites. From the north of England, a large percentage (78. 9%) of the 147 ageable mandibles from the excavations at Vindolanda possessed the third molar in wear (Hodgson 1977: 12). 132 ageable mandibles from deposits dated to the 1st to 3rd centuries at Exeter included only 10 that definitely did not have the third molar in wear (Maltby 1979: 155-156). Analysis of the mandibles of 4th century date from the excavations at Angel Court, Walbrook in London produced similar results (Clutton-Brock & Armitage 1977: 92). Of the 155 mandibles of late Roman date examined from the excavations at 1, Bleachfield Street, Alcester, Warwickshire, under the direction of Paul Booth, only 10 did not have the third molar in wear (Maltby n. d. 4). Attempts to distinguish the sexes of the adult cattle by metrical analysis of the metapodia have been made on several of the samples and in each case it appears that cows were more commonly represented (Grant 1975: 401; Maltby 1979: 33-34; Clutton­ Brock & Armitage 1977: 92), although the reliability of the various techniques of metrical analysis has yet to be established. The evidence from all the Romano-British samples investigated to date would suggest that most cattle were allowed to reach maturity and it is unlikely that they were all raised simply for their meat, even allowing for slow rates of growth. Working and dairy cattle were probably important elements in the economy. Explanation of the variation in the number of immature cattle represented remains tentative. It is interesting, however, that the heaviest concentrations of aiult cattle have so far appeared only on military and urban settlements. Organisation of cattle marketing and the need to prov.i.sion these centres with meat may have resulted in the supply of particular types and age groups of cattle. Most of the other settlements may have been more self­ sufficient and therefore their deposits included a higher percentage of immature cattle not required for breeding or working but also not in demand for redis­ tribution to other centres. In Exeter, the increase in the number of immature cattle in the 4th century deposits coincided with evidence for a change in the settlement pattern and the presence of stock enclosures associated with houses within the walls, perhaps indicating an increase in the farming element of the population (Maltby 1979: 90). The evidence may also imply that there was a collapse of the former supply network of cattle brought to the town for slaughter. Most of the other settlements which contained higher proportions of immature animals were villas, rural settlem·ents or settlements that did not need to be supplied with a large number of cattle brought in for slaughter from elsewhere. The possible dichotomy between the cattle represented on rural, urban and military sites remains a topic for further investigation.

182

Ageing Data from the Anglo-Saxon Period Of the few Anglo-Saxon samples examined, the age distribution of the mandibles from the middle-late Saxon levels at Portchester Castle (Grant 1976: 276) appears typical. Most cattle were mature, some having heavy wear on the teeth and including a high proportion of working, dairy and breeding stock. There was, however, a smaller but substantial group of mandibles in which the third molar was not erupted. These probably belonged to immature animals killed for their meat possibly between three and four years of age (Fig. 8: 5). A similar distribution occurred in the large sample of mandibles from Hamwih and the sexing evidence suggested that the majority of the immature specimens were males not required for breeding or working (Bourdillon & Coy 1980: 105-108). Another example of this age- distribution has been discovered in the sample from the St. Peters Street excavations in Northampton (Harman 1979: 331). Cattle provided the most meat in all periods and it is clear that they were also much valued as beasts of burden and possibly as dairy animals. Im­ provements of ageing and sexing methods and the availability of a wider range of samples should enable a more detailed and accurate assessment of the relative importance of these bovine products to be made. Cattle were un­ doubtedly the most valuable of the domestic stock, although possibly not always the most numerous. Their importance may have resulted in the herds being regarded as objects of visible wealth and social prestige. Cattle trading no doubt took place in all periods and there is evidence from the Romano-British period at least of large-scale redistribution. The mechanisms and control of such trade remain to be considered in more detail. Pigs The number of alternative exploitation strategies for domestic pigs is limited by the fact that almost all their value lies in their meat and lard. Their high reproduction rates enable a substantial kill off of young animals to take place and consequently relatively few animals are required to reach maturity. Thus the presence of large numbers of immature bones is to be expected and indeed is a feature of all the larger quantified assID1blages under review. What is less certain is how intensive this exploitation was, how quickly the stock were fattened for slaughter, whether there were seasonal peaks in the culling of pigs and whether fattening processes relied solely on pannage or whether some sty husbandry was practised. Evidence from the Iron Age is flimsy but there seems to have been no great intensity of pig exploitation on the settlement at Ashville, where 37% of 30 mandibles had the third molar in wear (Wilson 197 8: 135) nor at Gussage All Saints, where between 33-47% of the mandibles had also reached that stage of development (Harcourt 1979: 153). The Roman liking for suckling pig is well known (White 1970: 318-320) and on some Romano-British sites it has been argued that there was a relatively high percentage of first year mor­ talities (Maltby 1979: 57; Grant 1971: 383). The better representation of pigs on most "Romanised" sites (King 1978: 216) may also be significant here. Yet, even at Exeter and Fishbourne the proportion of mandibles with thethird molar in wear was quite high and such jaws must have belonged to pigs at least two years old and possibly older, if reported 18th century tooth 183

eruption rates are a more appropriate comparison than modern estimates (Silver 1969: 298-299). At Portchester Castle, the pig mandibles from both the Roman (Grant 197 5: 398) and Saxon assemblages (Grant 1976: 279-290) included many with the permanent premolars just coming into wear and the third molar erupting and also a fair proportion with the third molar in an early stage of wear. Possibly most of these were second and third year cullings and there was certainly no very intensive kill off of younger pigs, although the smaller jaws may be under-represented. Similarly 26.6% of the pig mandibles from Hamwih had all the cheek teeth in wear (Bourdillon & Coy 1980: 112). Refinement of the ageing methods may lead to further information about the peak periods of slaughter but, apart from a few of the Romano-British assem­ blages, it appears that most pigs were not killed until at least their second year and the intensity of pig husbandry was never particularly high by modern standards. Horse The presence of horse bones is attested from archaeological sites throughout the periods under consideration. Indeed, there is now abundant evidence that horsemeat made an important contribution to the diet in at least some parts of England during the Iron Age. Horse bones butchered for meat have been re­ corded, for example, at Ashville (Wilson 1978: 119, 122, 125), Tollard Royal, Dorset (Bird 1968: 147), Winnall Down (Maltby n.d. 1) and Balksbury (Maltby n.d. 2). On some of these sites horse bones are very well represented and the importance of horses as working an� riding animals has been pointed out by several authors (e.g. Harding 1974: 87; Bradley 1978: 38). Certainly most horse bones recovered on Iron Age sites belonged to mature animals and examinations of toothwear have shown that many of them were over 10 years of age. Meat production was not the primary purpose of their exploitation. The lack of immature specimens at Gussage All Saints led Harcourt (1979: 158) to suggest that no breeding of horses was practised but that they were rounded up periodically when certain animals were selected for training. As horses are not suitable for working until three years of age, this type of round-up would have saved the expense of rearing and feeding the foals and allowed the processes of natural selection to take place. This hypothesis remains to be tested against a wider range of samples and several other explanations could account for the absence of very young horse bones from Iron Age deposits. For example, Champion (197 8: 384) has pointed out that the evidence for the production of horse gear at Gussage All Saints implies that a specialist was resident there, It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that these were also specialist horse­ breeders on some settlements. If so, only adult horses may have been redis­ tributed to other settlements. Nevertheless the importance of horses primarily as transport animals and secondarily as producers of meat appears consistent. The poor representation of horse of Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon settle­ ments may simply be the result of the decline in the horse's importance as a producer of meat. Certainly few horse bones have been found in Romano-British deposits in assemblages derived mainly from butchery waste and records of butchery on horse bones are rare. This does not necessarily imply that horses had become less important. Occasional discoveries of butchered horse bones have been made on Anglo-Saxon sites, for example, at Sedgeford, Norfolk (Clutton-Brock 1976: 383) and Hamwih (Bourdillon & Coy 1980: 105) but again, where found, adult horses predominated the samples and their value as transport and pack animals continued to be the predominant feature of their exploitation.

Metrical Analysis Measurement _gf !?ones have been made in attempts to make assessments about the relative sizes of the stock, to distinguish between the sexes and to monTtor the possible importation of new stock. Unfortunately, because of the haphazard nature of many of these studies and the variation of measurements taken by different analysts, such work has not produced the results that it has the 1)Utential to obtain. The advent of archival and �omputer recording and some attempts at standardisation of the measurements taken (e.g. von den Driesch 1976) will improve the situation. For the time being, however, any analysis of past work is limited to comparisons of particular measurements. Single measurements are themselves unreliable because a combination of genetic, nutritional and sex factors can produce variations in size. Only by the study of several measurements from one bone and by comparisons of mea­ surements from different bones will we be able to obtain a better understanding of the stature and variety of the domestic stock. That, however, is for the future. This review will concentrate on an assessment of the evidence to date. Cattle Earlier studies of prehistoric and early historic cattle bones from Britain have been made. Jewell (1962) emphasised the diminutive form of Iron Age cattle and showed that similar small cattle were present during the Roman period. He also noted that bones of larger cattle appeared in the latter period and concluded that a larger breed of cattle was imported. Hodgson (1968) found that the same trends were apparent in the samples he compared. These surveys can now be supplemented by data obtained from more recent excavations. Metrical analysis of the maximum length of the astragalus from Iron Age, Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon samples (Table 5) confirm the appearance of larger cattle in the Romano-British period. Apart from the small sample from Corstopitum and the two samples from Exeter, all the Romano-British assemblages produced a higher mean measurement than the Iron Age samples. Although the Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon samples contained some astragali as small as those from Iron Age sites, they also included others that were significantly larger than any found in the earlier assemblages. Jhe same trend can be observed on other bones. Although most of the Romano-British samples listed in Table 5 are dated to the latter part of that period, there is some evi­ dence that larger cattle were present in some areas during the early years of occupation. The astragali from Winnall Down, Hampshire, included large specimens only in Phase 6 deposits dated to the 1st and 2nd centuries AD (Fasham pers. comm.). None of the astragali from the Iron Age features (Phases 3 and 4) attained the size of the largest Romano-British specimens (Fig. 8: 6). More late Iron Age material is required for comparison but the present evidence suggests that the appearance of larger cattle did coincide with the Roman invasion. The possibility of the importation of cattle is therefore strong, although much more detailed analyses than these are needed to confirm this. Improvements in the size of the native stock may also have occurred during the Romano-British period but there may have been regional variations. Comparisons of the cattle bones from Exeter and most other Romano-British assemblages illustrate the small size of cattle brought for slaughter there. Comparisons of the maximum proximal width of metatarsi from Exeter and Alcester demonstrate this (Fig. 8: 7). Regional variation in the size of cattle 185

b r . )

e t c n

, 3

1 - 0

E I

C 1

ee C O C 2

( 1 ) C . ) 0

c . 0 c ;

1RA

4 >

* C 7 3

0

z i 1 3 2 1 ->

TABLE 5 :

METRICAL ANALYS IS OF THE MAX I MU M LENGTH OF CATTLE A STRAGAL I

S ite

Da te

Range

Mean

S ource

Exeter

5 5-300

1 4

5 0 .7-59 .6

5 5.2

Ma l tby ( 1979 )

C a tc ote

I ron Age

1 4

5 1-63

5 7.0

Hodgson ( 1968 )

G ussage A l l S a ints

I ron Age

5 4

Harcour t ( 1979 )

Winna l l Down

M IA

7

5 4-62

5 7.0

5 3.1-61 .0

5 7.3

Ma l tby ( n .d . 1 ) Wh itehouse ( 1974 )

C ro f t Ambrey

I ron Age

2 0

5 5-63

5 7.7

Ba lksbury 1 973

M IA

1 2

5 5.0-63.1

5 7.9

Ma ltby ( n .d . 2 )

A ppleford

I ron Age

8

5 5-60

5 8 .0

Wi lson ( 1978 )

Winna l l Down

E IA

8

5 5.8-61 .6

5 8 .0

Ma ltby ( n .d . 1 )

C orstop i tu m

Ro man

9

5 3-63

5 8.0

Hodgson ( 1968 )

E xeter

3 00-400

1 8

5 4.3-62.0

5 8.3

Ma l tby ( 1979 )

A shv i l le

I ron Age

1 8

5 3-64

5 8 .5

Wi lson ( 1978 )

Bar ley

I ron Age

1 3

5 4.1-62.1

5 8 .5

J ar man e ta l . ( 1968 ) J ar maneTa l .(1968 )

G r imthorpe

E IA

H a mw ih

M id S axon

Baylha m H ouse

1 00-200

5 6.3-61 .5

5 9.5

1 67

4 9 .2-71 .5

6 0 .9

Bourd i l lon& C oy ( 1980 )

1 0

5 6.0-65 .8

6 1 .3

Ma l tby ( n .d . 3 )

8

A lces ter

La te Ro man

3 0

5 3.9-67.6

6 1 .4

Ma l tby ( n .d. 4 )

S hakenoak Farm

La te Ro man

4 4

5 3-72

6 1 .6

Cram ( 1978 )

W inna l l Down

Ear ly Ro man

1 6

5 6.1-68.4

6 1 .6

Ma l tby ( n .d . 1 )

Ramsbury

Mid S axon

5 1 .5-66.5

6 1 .9

C oy ( 1980 i np ress )

A l l measure men ts i n mi l l i me tres .

6

E IA = Ear ly I ron Age ;

1 87

MIA - Midd le I ron Age.

o

E U )

E I 0

RR

in Roman Britain can therefore be demonstrated. Very small samples of measured cattle bones from Dinorben (Gardner and Savory 1964) and Coygan Camp (Westley 1 967: 193) in Wales also produced no evidence for the presence of large cattle. It is possible that there were environmental constraints on the size and type of cattle kept in some parts of Britain but the explanation may be more complex than this. It has been shown that large cattle appeared in Roman occupied territory in central and eastern Europe but were not found in contemporary settlements outside the area of Roman occupation (Bdkdnyi 1974: 128-133; Boessneck and von den Driesch 1978: 31-33). There were also variations in the number of large cattle found at different types of settle­ ment within the Roman provinces (Bdkdnyi 1974: 130). The degree of Roman influence on cattle farming in Britain may therefore account for the variability in cattle size observed in faunal samples. South-west England may have been outside the area where larger cattle were introduced or bred. Sheep The most common measurement taken consistently on ovicaprine assem­ blages has been the maximum distal width of the ,tib.ia. The significance of this measurement as an indicator of size has yet to be adequately demonstrated and the size _2f the bQ!!§ 1§ to an extent determined by sexual dimorphism (Noddle 1980: 396). Nevertheless there has been some consistency in the results obtained to date. Table 6 shows the range and means of distal tibiae measurements from 25 samples. Apart from the small sample from Grim­ thorpe, the means from the Iron Age samples fall at the lowest end of the scale, with very few specimens measuring more than 2� mm. Specimens of this size and larger have been found more commonly in Romano-British and Anglo­ Saxon samples, although the smallest specimens were as small as the earlier ones. The means from the Romano-British samples fall between 22. 8-25. 5 mm. Six of the seven samples with the highest means in the list originated from Anglo-Saxon sites in East Anglia and southern England (25-2-26. 3 mm). Other measurements of sheep bones support these observations, indicating an increase in the average size of sheep in the Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon pe.rk>ds. Possible introductions of stock could have taken place in both periods but improvements in the existing stock by better husbandry could also account for the variabil�ty. There is some evidence for an increase in the size of sheep within the Romano-British period on some sites. The average size of distal tibiae increased, for example, at Alcester and Frocester Court, although these samples are far from adequate (Table 6). There is certainly evidence for regional variation in sheep size in the Romano-British and Anglo-Saxon periods. The bones from Exeter showed only marginal increases in mean size and were consistently smaller than most of the specimens from late Roman Alcester, for example (Fig. 8: 8). Sheep i}1 the south-west may have continued to be smaller after the Romano-British period, if the small Dark Age sample from Mawgan Porth, Cornwall is typical (Table 6). The initial increase in size of some of the flocks in the Romano-British period may have parallels with the developments in cattle husbandry. The introduction or development of larger stock in some areas may be an indication of the rather nebulous concept of "Romanisation". If so, there may be a

189

TABLE 6 :

METRICAL ANALYSIS OF THE MAX I MU M D ISTAL W IDTH OF SHEEP T IBIAE

S i te Wink lebury

Da te I ron Age

Range

Mean

2 0

1 6.9-23 .9

2 1.2

S ource J ones , R . ( 1977 a rch ive )

Winna l l Down

MIA

1 2

2 1 .1-23 .7

2 2.3

Ma l tby ( n .d .1 )

Bar ley

I ron Age

1 1

1 9 .9-26.0

2 2.3

J ar man e t a l . ( 1968 )

Ba lksbury 1 973

MIA

1 9

2 0 .4-24 .0

2 2.4

Ma l tby ( n .d .2 )

Mawgan P or th

C 9-11 th .

7 2 1 .0-25 .0

2 2.6

C lu t ton-Brock ( 1976 )

Winna l l Down

E IA

7 2 1 .3-24.0

2 2.7

Ma ltby ( n .d .1 )

2 1 .0-24 .0

2 2.7

Wh i tehouse ( 1 974 )

7 2 1 .0-27.3

2 2.8

Ma l tby ( n .d .2 )

Crof t Ambrey

I ron Age

Ba lksbury 1 973

Ro man

Froces ter C our t

1 0

1 00-300

1 2

2 0 .0-25 .0

2 2.8

Noddle ( 1979 )

Exeter

5 5-100

2 1

2 1 .3-29 .2

2 3.1

Ma l tby ( 1979 )

Exeter

1 00-300

3 0

2 1 .4-25 .9

2 3.3

Ma ltby ( 1979 )

9 2 1 .1-26.0

2 3.6

Ma ltby ( n .d .4 )

2 3.9

Ma l tby ( 1979 )

A lces ter

1 00-200

Exeter

3 00-400

W inna l l Down

Ear ly Ro man

8 2 1 .9-25 .6

2 3.9

Ma ltby ( n .d .1 )

Gr imthorpe

E IA

5 2 2.0-25.5

2 4.0

J ar man e t a l . ( 1968 )

Froces ter C our t

La te Ro man

2 3.0-27.0

2 4.0

Nodd le ( 1979 )

S hakenoak Farm

La te Ro man

2 6

2 2.0-28 .0

2 4.5

C ra m ( 1978 )

Baylham H ouse

1 00-200

2 2

2 1 .6-28.8

2 4.5

Ma l tby ( n .d .3 )

S edgeford

Mid S axon

2 9

2 2.0-28 .0

2 5.2

C lu t ton-Brock ( 1976)

A lces ter

La te Ro man

5 9

2 1 .2-29 .4

2 5.5

Ma l tby ( n .d .4 )

Ramsbury

Mid S axon

1 2

2 2.7-28 .0

2 5.9

C oy ( 1980 i n p ress )

1 5

1 3

2 2.3-27.0

Hamw ih

Mid S axon

2 67

2 1 .8-30 .0

2 5.9

B ourdi l lon& C oy ( 1980 )

North E l mha m

Mid S axon

1 91

2 3.0-29.0

2 6.1

Noddle ( 1980 )

Nor th E l mha m

La te S axon

7 1

2 2.0-29 .5

2 6.2

Nodd le ( 1980 )

Thetford

La te S axon

1 3

2 1 .0-29 .0

2 6.3

C lu t ton-Brock ( 1976)

A l l , measure men ts i n mi l l i metres.

E IA = Ear ly I ron Age ;

1 90

MIA • Midd le I ron Age.

A LCESTER

1 0-

5-

n

2 5

3 0 mm

E XETER 1 0-

' 1 _

5-

2 5

F ig . 8 .8

E l

n 3 0 mm

Max i mu m d is ta l w idths o f s heep/goa t t i b iae f ro m R o mano-Br i t ish d epos i ts a t A lces ter a nd E xeter .

1 91

p ara l le l w i th t he s i tua t ion i n t he Ro man p rov inces o f c en tra l a nd e as tern Europe , where s im ilar c hanges i n s heep s ize t ook p lace ( Bökönyi 1 974 : 1 78 ). H orse I ron Age s amp les h ave c ons is ten t ly p roduced e v idence f or t he k eep ing o f sma l l p on ies r ang ing f rom 1 0-14 h ands h igh .

E xamp les h ave c o me f ro m

A shv i l le ( W i lson 1 978 : 1 35 ) , G ussage A l l S a in ts ( Harcour t 1 979 : 1 53 ) a nd W ink lebury ( Jones , R . 1 977 : 6 4 ). Me tr ica l a na lyses o f h orse b ones o f R o manoBr i t ish a nd A ng lo-Saxon d a te h ave b een l im i ted b y t he ir r are o ccurrence o n mos t s i tes . A t p resen t i ts ee ms t ha t t he sma l les t p on ies r epresen ted i n t he I ron Age s amp les d o n o t a ppear o n l a ter s i tes a nd s o me b ones o f l arger h orses h ave b een r ecovered , a l though f ew a ppear t o h ave b een o ver 1 4 h ands ( e .g . Wi lson 1 978 : 1 17-118 ;

B ourd i l lon a nd C oy 1 980 : 1 04-105 ;

C lu t ton-Brock

1 976 : 3 83 ). D ogs Harcour t 's ( 1974 ) r ev iew o f t he e v idence f or d ogs o n B r i t ish a rchaeo log ica l s i tes i nc luded a n e x tens ive s urvey o f me tr ica l a na lys is . h ave t ended t o s uppor t h is o bserva t ions .

More r ecen t s tud ies

Measure men ts o f I ron Age s pec i mens

r evea led r e la t ively l i t t le r ange i n v ar ia t ion i n t he s hape o f t he s ku l ls a nd e st ima tes o f s hou lder h eights u s ing c onvers ion f ac tors f rom t he l eng ths o f l imb b ones r anged b e tween 3 5-58 cm , mos t ly i n t he u pper r ange , o n ma ter ia l d er ived f ro m 2 8 s i tes ( Harcour t 1 974 : 1 63 ).

The r ange h as b een i ncreased

s l igh t ly b y t he d iscovery o f ap ar t ia l s ke le ton o f ad og i n al a te I ron Age d epos i t a t Ashv i l le t ha t h ad a n e s t ima ted s hou lder h e igh t o f 6 0 cm ( W i lson 1 978 : 1 25 ). A l though a r t icu la ted s kele tons o f d ogs a ppear more f requen t ly o n I ron Age s i tes t han t hose o f o ther s pec ies , t here i s n o d oubt t ha t d og mea t was c onsumed a t s o me s e t t le men ts .

Bu tchery marks o n d og b ones made d ur ing t he d isar t icu la t ion

o f t he s kele ton a nd t he s tr ipp ing o f mea t h ave b een o bserved , f or e xamp le , a t A shv i l le ( W i lson 1 978 : 1 22 ) , Winna l l Down ( Ma l tby n .d . 1 ) a nd Ba lksbury ( Ma l tby n .d . 2 ) .

The l a t ter t wo s i tes a lso p roduced a r e la t ively l arge n umber

o f b ones o f v ery y oung p upp ies , ap heno menon t ha t a lso o ccurred a t G ussage A l l S a in ts ( Harcour t 1 979 : 1 54 ).

I t i s p ossible t ha t t he n u mbers o f d ogs w ere

c on trol led b y k i l l ing s o me o f t he n ewborn p upp ies , a l though n a tura l •neona ta l mör ta l i ty c ou ld h ave a ccoun ted f or s ome o f t hese d ea ths . The R o man p er iod s aw a s ign if ican t i ncrease i n t he v ar ia t ion o f t he t ypes o f d og k ep t .

E s t i ma tes o f s hou lder h e igh ts r anged f ro m 2 4-72 cm a nd s ku l l

s hapes s howed much g rea ter v ar ia t ion ( Harcour t 1 974 : 1 64-166 ). d ogs w ere r egarded a s l ap d ogs a nd t he l arges t a s h un t ing d ogs.

The sma l les t The v ar ia t ion

i n s ku l l s hape a ppears t o h ave d ecreased i n t he A ng lo-Saxon p er iod , i ft he s pec imens f ro m t he 1 1 s i tes e xamined b y Harcour t a re t yp ica l .

The r ange i n

s hou lder h e igh ts was s im i lar ( 23-71 cm ) b u t t he ma jor i ty o f s pec i mens b e longed t o l arge i nd iv idua ls. C onc lus ions Methodo log ica l Ques t ions I t i s o bv ious t ha t a ny c onc lus ions d er ived f rom f auna l s tud ies a re h and ic apped b y t he l ack o f s u i table d a ta . t he s a me p rob le ms h ave b een f ound .

Wha tever a spec t h as b een c ons idered , There i s al im i ted n u mber o f a dequa te

1 92

s amp les a nd t here a re s ubs tan t ia l g aps i n o ur k now ledge i n s o me p er iods a nd r eg ions .

I nco mpa t ib i l i ty o f a rchaeozoo log ica l t echn iques h as made i n ter-

s i te c o mpar isons d if f icu l t .

There h as b een a g enera l l ack o f u nders tand ing

o f c ons idera t ion o f t he p roble ms o f t he f orma t ion o f f auna l s amp les a nd s tud ies o f i n tra-si te v ar iabi l i ty h ave b een f ew a nd f ar b e tween .

F ina l ly , a nd p erhaps

mos t d is turbing , t here i s t he i nadequacy o f many o f t he p as t a nd c urren t a rcha eozoolog ica l me thodo log ies t o d ea l e f f ic ien t ly w i th t he d a ta . The n u mber o f s amp les w i l l i ncrease s ign i f ican t ly d ur ing t he n ex t d ecade. Th is w i l l i mprove t he s i tua t ion o n ly i ft hey a re s tud ied i n a more r igorous way. A t te mp ts t o c o me t o t erms w i th d if feren t ia l p reserva t ion o f a n i ma l b ones a nd o ther a spec ts o f i n tra- a nd i n ter-s i te v ar ia t ion mus t b e made.

Taphono m ic

s tud ies h ave b egun t o i nves t iga te s o me o f t hese p rob le ms ( e .g . B in ford a nd B er tram 1 977 ) a nd t he p o ten t ia l c omp lex i t ies o f t he d er iva t ion o f a n ima l b ones o n a rchaeo log ica l s i tes h ave b een d e mons tra ted i n s evera l e thnoarchaeo log ica l s tud ies ( e .g . B inford 1 978 ).

I n t h is c oun try , a t te mp ts a t s tudying f auna l s am-

p les i n s uch d e ta i l ,are i n t heir i n fancy.

They i nvo lve much more r igorous

r ecord ing a nd a na lys is o f a n ima l b ones t han h as c o m mon ly b een t he c ase . T hese may b e t ime-consum ing a nd l abor ious t asks , y e t t hey a re n ecessary. A ny b one r ecovered f rom a s i te h as b een t he s ub jec t o f s evera l mod if ica t ions o f n a tura l o r c u l tura l o r ig in .

U nderstand ing o f t he c o mpos i t ion o f t he h erds

a nd t he ir e xp loi ta t ion c annot b e a ch ieved f ro m a n ima l b ones w i thou t s uch s tud ies . T hey i nvo lve t he c arefu l a na lys is o f e ach b one f ragmen t r ecovered t o o bta in i n forma t ion a bou t p reserva t ion , b u tchery a nd g naw ing .

I t i s a lso h oped t ha t

more r esearch w i l l b e u nder taken t o o b ta in more r el iable e s t ima tes o f a geing , s ex ing a nd t he t ypes o f a n i ma ls k ep t .

More d eta i led me tr ica l a na lyses h ave

ap ar t t o p lay i n t he l a t ter s tud ies b u t o ther a pproaches , s uch a s t hose o f c he mic a l a na lys is a nd o bserva t ions o f morpho log ica l c r i ter ia o n b ones ( Nodd le 1 978 ) may a lso p rove o f v a lue .

Brothwe l l ( t h is v o lume ) h as a lready s hown t he p oten-

t i a l i n forma t ion t ha t c an b e d er ived f ro m t he s tudy o f p a tho log ica l d a ta .

I ti s

i mpor tan t t o d raw u pon a s many l i nes o f i nves t iga t ion a s p oss ible , i n o rder t o make f u l l u se o f t he i nheren t ly i mperfec t d a ta s tud ied b y f auna l a na lys ts . F ro m A ppend ix t o I n tegra t ion The p urpose o f t h is a r t ic le h as b een t o s how t he s ta te o f p rogress o f f auna l s tud ies a nd t o p o in t o u t t he l imi ta t ions . a rchaeo logy.

Fauna l a na lys is i s as pec ia l is m w i th in

I t s i ndependence , r e f lec ted b y t he i nc lus ion o f s epara te a n ima l

b one a ppend ices i n many s i te r epor ts , i s u nders tandable a nd t o ac er ta in e x ten t j us t if ied .

I t i s t he l ack o f i n tegra t ion o f f auna l e v idence w i th t he r es t o f t he

a rchaeo log ica l r ecord t ha t h as b een t he ma jor d rawback o f much p rev ious work . F auna l a na lys is i s o n ly o ne s ource o f i n forma t ion t ha t c an b e d rawn u pon t o s tudy p astora l h usbandry.

Brad ley ( 1978 : 4 5-53 ) , f or e xamp le , h as d iscussed

t he e v idence a va i lab le f rom t he a r tefac ts , f i e ld e v idence a nd f ac i l i t ies t ha t may h ave b een a ssoc ia ted w i th p as tora l a c t iv i t ies i n t he p reh is tor ic p er iod . N or s hou ld p as tora l f arming b e ,l ooked a t i n i so la t ion f ro m a rab le f arming b u t f ew a t te mp ts h ave b een made t o i n tegra te f auna l a nd f l ora l d a ta f ro m Br i t ish s i tes .

An otab le e xcep t ion h as b een t he work a t G a tco mbe ( Bran igan 1 977 ) ,

w here t here h as b een a n a t te mp t t o a ssess t he p oten t ia l a gr icu l tura l o u tpu t f ro m t he v i l la e s ta te a nd a c ons idera t ion o f t he o pera t ion o f t he c o mplex i n tern a l a nd e x terna l e cono m ies o f t he e s ta te .

T o b e f a ir , s evera l c urren t p ro jec ts

a re mak ing c oncer ted e f for ts a long s i mi lar l i nes . 1 93

F or i ti s i ndeed t he i n tegra t ion o f f auna l s tud ies t ha t i s u rgen t ly r equ ired . I ti s h oped t ha t e ven t he l imi ted f auna l a na lyses t o d a te h ave s hown —or a t l eas t h ave t he p o ten t ia l t o s how—changes a nd d eve lop men ts i n s tock-keep ing p ract i ces w i th in r eg ions a nd t hrough t ime.

Exp lana t ions o f t hese c hanges o bv ious ly

c anno t b e made w i thou t r eference t o o ther a spec ts o f t he a rchaeo log ica l a nd h is tor ica l r ecords.

I n t he s ame way , d evelopmen ts i n p astora l f arm ing h ave

t o b e s tud ied w i th in t he f ramework o f b roader mode ls o r h ypotheses .

The

p as tora l e cono my h ad ab ear ing u pon a nd was a f fec ted b y many e nv ironmen ta l , e cono mic a nd b ehav ioura l f ac tors . c an b e c o mp lex .

The r ela t ionsh ip b etween t hese f ac tors

A s C larke ( 197 8 : 1 16 ) a sser ted :-

" The d ynam ic e qu i l ibr ium b etween t he e cono mic s ubsys tem a nd t he o ther s ubsys te ms i s s tab i l ized b y c on t inua l ly a d jus t ing t he mu tua l v a lues a nd s ta tes o f t hese n e tworks .

The e cono my mus t b e k ep t a s

n ear ly a s p oss ible i n e qu i l ibr ium w i th t he i n forma t ion a nd c ons tra in ts f ro m t aboos , s oc ia l o rgan isa t ion a nd d iv is ion o f l abour b y a ge a nd s ex , i nd iv idua l p ersona l i t ies , a nd t he a va i lab le c apac i ty o r r ange o f v ar ie ty o f ma ter ia l c u l ture ." Whe ther o r n o t o ne s tudies s uch p rocesses i n t erms o f c u l ture s ys te ms , t he u nder lying p r inc ip le r e ma ins t he s ame .

The a t t i tude t ha t t here a re t wo t ypes

o f a rchaeo logy —"env iron men ta l" a nd " cu l tura l"—is u nnecessar i ly d iv is ive , s ince t he t wo e le men ts h ave a lways b een i ncon trover t ib ly l i nked . I ti s a lready p ossible t o s how h ow t he r esu l ts o f f auna l a na lys is c an p rov ide u se fu l i n forma t ion a bou t many w ider i ssues .

I n ar ecen t v o lu me t he i m-

p ac t o f t he Ro man i nvas ion o n n a t ive B r i t ish c o m mun i t ies was d iscussed a nd v ar ious l i nes o f i nvest iga t ion were p ursued b y s evera l a u thors , i nc lud ing p o t tery s tud ies , i ndus try a nd t rad ing p a t terns , c oinage , u rban d eve lopmen t a nd r ura l s et t le men t p a t terns ( Burnham a nd J ohnson 1 979 ).

S i mi lar s tud ies

o n a n i ma l b ones c ou ld s hed l i gh t o n t he i mpac t t he i nvas ion h ad u pon t he p ast ora l e cono my.

The n eed t o s upp ly t he t roops o f t he i nvad ing a rmy , t he

p oss ible i n troduc t ion o f n ew s tock a nd t he i n troduc t ion o f n ew f arming t echn iques may a l l h ave h ad s ign if ican t r epercuss ions o n h usbandry p rac t ices . There i s a lready s o me e v idence f or c hanges i n t he e xp lo i ta t ion p a t tQrns o f s heep a nd c a t t le i n t he Ro mano-Br i t ish p er iod .

I n a dd i t ion , t he a ppearance

o f s o me l arger s tock a nd e v idence f or t he s upp ly o f s pec if ic a ge g roups o f c a t t le t o s o me mi l i tary a nd u rban s e t t le men ts may a l l b e s een t o b e d irec t o r i nd irec t c onsequenc ies o f t he Ro man i nvas ion , a l though t he d e ta i ls o f t he mechan is ms I nvo lved i n t hose d eve lop men ts n eed t o b e a scer ta ined .

H ow g rea t

Roman i n f luence was i n d i f feren t p ar ts o f t he p rov ince h as a lso t o b e d e term ined . I ti s i n teres t ing t o n ote , f or e xa mp le , t ha t t he a pparen t a bsence o f l arger s heep a nd c a t t le i n t he s ou th-west p en insu la o ccurs i n a n a rea where t here a re v ir tua l ly n o v i l las ( Fox 1 973 : 1 71-174 ;

Wacher 1 980 : 1 23 ) a nd t hus s uppor ts t he v iew

t ha t " Ro man isa t ion" h ad l i t t le i mpac t i n t ha t a rea ( Rive t 1 964 : 1 16 ).

I n a reas

where v i l las a nd n a t ive s e t t le men ts a re b oth f ound , i ts hou ld b e p oss ib le t o d eve lop t he w ork o f K ing ( 1978 ) t o t es t whe ther t he a pparen t d icho to my i n wea l th a nd p ower o f t he i nhab i tan ts o f R o man Br i ta in i n t he l a te i s t a nd 2 nd c en tur ies ( e .g . T odd 1 978 : 2 04-205 ) i s a lso r ef lec ted i n t he f auna l r e ma ins. The r e la t ionsh ip b etween o ther d eve lop men ts i n s et t le men t p a t terns a nd a n ima l h usbandry h as n ot a s y et b een i nvest iga ted i n d eta i l .

1 94

For e xa mp le ,

t he c hanges o bserved i n t he s e t t le men t p a t tern i n s o me p ar ts o f E ng land i n t he l a te I ron Age ( M iles , t h is v o lume ) may c o inc ide w i th c hanges i n s pec ies e xp lo i ta t ion b u t a ga in t oo f ew s amp les o f t ha t d a te h ave b een a na lysed .

S im i-

l ar ly , i ts hou ld b e p oss ib le t o u se f auna l a na lyses t o t es t t he mode ls f or c hange i n l a te R o man Br i ta in .

R eece ( 1980 ) h as s ugges ted t ha t i n t he 4 th c en tury t own

l i fe i n t he t rue s ense o f t he word h ad v ir tua l ly d isappeared a nd t ha t t here was ac hange f ro m t he t own-based e cono my p reva len t i n t he 2 nd c en tury t o av i l la a nd v i l lage-based e cono my i n t he 4 th c en tury. S uch f undamen ta l c hanges i n s e t t le ment a nd e cono m ic p a t terns mus t a lso h ave h ad s o me i mpac t o n t he a gr icu l tura l b as is o f t he e cono my.

A s Reece p o in ts o u t ( 1980 : 7 8 ) , t owns

c on ta ined a l arge e le men t o f p opu la t ion n o t d irec t ly i nvo lved w i th a gr icu l tura l p roduc t ion b u t e ngaged i n a d min is tra t ion o r t rad ing a c t iv i t ies .

There was

t herefore a g rea ter n eed f or t he o rgan isa t ion o f f ood s upp l ies.

I n s uppor t o f

t h is , a na lysis o f f auna l ma ter ia l o f i s t a nd 2 nd c en tury d a te i n Exe ter p roduced e v idence f or l arge-sca le b u tcher ing o f c a t t le c arcasses a nd c oncen tra t ions o f c a t t le a nd s heep k i l led a t s pec if ic a ges f or t heir mea t .

I n c ontras t , t he 4 th

c en tury d epos i ts f rom E xe ter h ave s o f ar r evea led n o c o mparable l arge-sca le b u tchery e v idence , ag rea ter r ange o f c a t t le k i l led a t d i f feren t a ges a nd e v id ence f or s tock e nc losures w i th in t he c i ty wa l ls .

A l l t hese f ac tors may i nd ica te

t he c ol lapse o f t he f ormer s ys te m o f s upp ly ( Ma l tby 1 979 ).

Examina t ion o f

f auna l ma ter ia l f ro m o ther u rban s i tes o ugh t t o b e a b le t o t est h ow t yp ica l t he s amp les f ro m Exeter a re . The a bove a re j us t af ew e xamp les t aken f rom t he Ro mano-Br i t ish p er iod t o s how h ow f auna l a na lys is c an b e i ncorpora ted i n to t es t ing more g enera l h ypotheses .

There a re many more e xamp les , s o me o f wh ich d er ive f ro m

o bserva t ions made o n a spec ts o f f auna l s tud ies d iscussed e ar l ier i n t h is r ev iew .

S pace p rec ludes d e ta i led e xamina t ion o f t hese t op ics , a nd i n a ny c ase

t he p resen t l imi ted a va i lable d a ta make s evera l a l terna t ive e xp lana t ions p oss ible .

I t i s h oped , h owever , t ha t t he c urren t p osi t ion o f f auna l s tud ies h as

b een s hown .

S o me o f t he b asic g roundwork t owards t he u nders tand ing o f t he

r e la t ive r epresen ta t ion , i n troduc t ion a nd e xp loi ta t ion o f d if feren t d o mes t ic s pec ies h as b een d one .

I t r e ma ins , o n t he o ne h and , t o b roaden o ur k now ledge

o f t he many p oor ly r epresen ted r eg ions , p er iods , s e t t le men t t ypes a nd t he l ess c o m mon d o mest ic s pec ies.

More i mpor tan t , h owever , i s t he i ncorpora t ion o f

f auna l s tud ies i n to t he w ider f ramework o f p reh is tor ic a nd e ar ly h is tor ic s tud ies a nd t o d eve lop methodo log ies b e t ter e qu ipped t o c ope w i th t hese b roader i ssues . T o d o t h is , w e n eed t o d evelop a p lanned r eg iona l a pproach t o f auna l s tud ies. I tw i l l t hen b e p oss ible t o c o mpare t he d a ta f ro m d i f feren t t ypes o f s i te a ga ins t ac o m mon b ackground o f e nv iron men t a nd a gr icu l tura l p o ten t ia l .

I tw i l l a lso

b e p ossible t o t ack le t he p rob le ms o f s amp le v ar iab i l i ty c ons truc t ive ly , s o t ha t a l l s amp les , i nc lud ing q u i te sma l l o nes , h ave s ign if icance .

I n s o me a reas

s uch r eg iona l p ro jec ts h ave b egun a nd o n ly b y t he i n tegra t ion o f s uch mu l t ip er iod r esearch w i th o ther a spec ts o f t he a rchaeo log ica l r ecord w i l l q ues t ions r e la t ing t o t he d evelopmen t o f a n i ma l h usbandry b e a nswered . A cknow ledge men ts Iwou ld l i ke t o t hank Pau l B oo th , P e ter Fasham , Ne i l L ough l in a nd G eof frey Wa inwr igh t f or a l low ing me t o i ncorpora te d a ta f rom t heir e xcava t ions a nd S he lagh Wa l l a nd J enn ie C oy f or t he s upp ly o f u npub l ished f auna l d a ta .

T im

C hampion , J enn ie C oy a nd C l ive G amble p rov ided v a luab le a nd c ons truc t ive c o mmen ts t o e ar l ier d ra f ts o f t h is p aper . Oake .

1 95

The f igures were d rawn b y Mar t in

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O n t he i n terpre ta t ion o f b one s a mp les f ro m a rchaeo log ica l

Cambr idge : Payne , S . ( 1973 ).

I n :

t he r esu l ts o f s o me

I n :

Ams terdam :

Archaeozoolog ica l

Nor th Ho l land Pub-

l i shing C o., p p . 7 -17. P i t t-Rivers , A . H . ( 1892 ).

Excava t ions i n Boker ley D yke a nd Wansdyke.

Excava t ions i n Cranbourne Chase , v o lu me I I .

London :

p r iva tely

p r in ted . P i t t-R ivers , A . H . ( 1898 ).

Excava t ion o f t he S ou th Lodge Ca mp .

i n Cranbourne Chase , v olu me I V . Rackham , J . ( 1979 ).

An ima l r esources.

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p r iva tely p r in ted .

I n Carver , M. 0 . H ., Three

S axo-Nor man t ene ments i n Durham C i ty. 2 3

E xcava t ions

Med ieva l A rchaeo logy

4 7-54.

Reece , R . ( 1980 ).

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Hu tch inson ; R ive t , A . L . F . ( 1964 ). Hu tch inson ;

t he e nd o f Ro man Br i ta in .

L ondon :

s econd e di t ion . Town a nd C oun try i n R o man Br i ta in

L ondon :

2 nd Edn .

S eddon , D ., Ca lvocoressi , D . a nd C ooper , C . ( 1964 ). Dark Age S et t le men t a t Maxey , Nor than ts .

I n Addy man , P . V ., Med ieva l Archaeology

8 6 9-71 . . ( 1969 ). The a geing o f d o mest ic a n i ma ls. I n : S c ience i n S i lver , I . A Archaeo logy ( eds Brothwel l , D . a nd H iggs , E . S .) London : Thames a nd Hudson ;

2 83-302.

1978 ). V i l las a nd Ro mano-Br it ish s oc iety. I n : S tud ies i n t he Todd , M. ( Ro mano-Br i t ish V i l la . ( ed Todd , M .) Leices ter : Un ivers i ty Press ; Wacher , J . ( 1980 ).

p p. 1 97-208. Ro man Br i ta in .

L ondon :

Dent .

Wa tson , J . P . N . ( 1973 ). The b ones f ro m P i t 1 5. I n C hap man , H . a nd J ohnson , T ., Excava t ions a t A ldga te a nd Bush Lane H ouse i n t he C i ty o f L ondon , ( 1972 ).

Transac t ions o f t he L ondon a nd M idd lesex

Archaeo log ica l S oc ie ty 2 4 Wes t ley , B . ( 1967 ).

5 1-53.

I n Wa inwr igh t , G . W., C oygan Camp :

ap reh is tor ic

R o mano-Br i t ish a nd Dark Age S e t t le men t i n Carmar thensh ire. C ard i f f :

C ambr ian Archaeo log ica l A ssoc ia t ion ;

Wes t ley , B . ( 1970 ).

The a n ima l b ones f ro m Budbury.

1 90-194 .

I n Wa inwr igh t , G . W .,

A n I ron Age P ro mon tory F or t a t Budbury , Bradford-on-Avon , W i l tsh ire . Wh i te , K . D . ( 1970 ).

Wi l tsh ire Archaeolog ica l Magazine 6 5 R o man Far ming .

L ondon :

Wh i tehouse , R . a nd Wh i tehouse , D . ( 1974 ). C rof t Ambrey. W i lson , R . ( 1 976 ).

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Thames a nd H udson .

The f auna .

p r iva te ly p r in ted ;

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1 52-153 .

I n S tan ford , S . C ., 2 15-221 , 2 38-242 .

I n P arr ing ton , M ., Ro man f i nds a nd

a n i ma l b ones f ro m K ings ton H i l l Farm , K ings ton Bagpu ize , Oxon . O xon iensa 4 1

6 7-69.

W i lson , R . ( 1978 ). Me thods a nd r esu l ts o f b one a na lysis/Genera l c onc lus ions a nd d iscuss ion o f t he b one s a mp le . I n : The Excava t ion o f a n I ron Age S et t le men t , Bronze Age R ing-d i tches a nd R o man F ea tures a t A shv i l le Trad ing E s ta te , A bingdon ( Ox fordsh ire ) 1 974-76. Parr ing ton , M .)

( ed

Ox fordsh ire Archaeolog ica l U n i t Repor t 1 , CBA

R esearch R epor t 2 8

p p . 1 10-126 , 1 33-139 .

2 03

9 .

THE S IGN IFICANCE OF DEER RE MA INS AT OCCUPATION S ITES OF THE I RON AGE TO THE ANGLO-SAXON PER IOD Ann ie G ran t

The p urpose o f t h is d iscuss ion p aper i s t o e xam ine t he r ela t ionsh ip b e tween t he a gr icu l tura l c o m mun i t ies o f t he I ron Age , R o man a nd S axon p er iods a nd t he a nima ls , p ar t icu lar ly t he d eer , t ha t were l i v ing w i ld i n B r i ta in .

U nfor tu-

n a te ly , t here a re a s y e t v ery f ew p ub l ished f auna l a na lyses f ro m s i tes d a ted t o t he S axon

p er iod a nd c onsequen t ly t he d iscuss ion o f t h is p er iod c an o n ly b e

v ery l im i ted . A s urvey o f t he e v idence , a va i lab le f ro m f auna l a na lyses o f ma ter ia l r ec overed f ro m o ccupa t ion s i tes d a ted t o t he p er iod u nder c ons idera t ion , s hows t ha t a t t he v as t ma jor i ty o f s i tes , d eer r e ma ins a re v ery r are o r e n t irely a bsen t .

Typ ica l a re s i tes s uch a s t he I ron Age h i l lfor t o f Danebury , i n Hampsh ire

( Gran t i n p rep .) where l ess t han 0 .5% o f t he b ones were d eer b ones , t he Ro man f or t a t S tanw ick i n Yorksh ire ( Fraser 1 954 ) where a pprox ima te ly 2% o f t he b ones were d eer b ones a nd t he e ar ly S axon o ccupa t ion a t D inas P owys i n Wa les ( Hag lund-Ca l ly a nd C ornwa l l 1 963 ) where 1 % o f t he b ones w ere d eer b ones . I t mus t b e s tressed t ha t t here a re s evera l p rob le ms i n e s tabl ish ing t he n u mbers o f d eer r e ma ins p resen t i n a rchaeolog ica l c on tex ts . t he p roble m o f t he i den t i f ica t ion o f d eer b ones.

F irs t t here i s

Red d eer a nd c a t t le b ones ,

a nd r oe d eer a nd s heep b ones may b e c onfused a nd i ti s n o t u sua l ly p ossible t o a scer ta in t he a ccuracy o f t he i den t if ica t ions , e spec ia l ly where s i tes were e xcava ted s evera l y ears a go .

S econd ly , i n many o f t he r epor ts o f a n i ma l b one

r e ma ins , e spec ia l ly i n t hose p ubl ished b efore t he 1 960s , d e ta i ls o f t he n umbers o f b ones f ound a re om i t ted a nd t he r ela t ive i mpor tance o f t he s pec ies i den t if ied i s n ot c lear .

Th ird ly , when d eer r e ma ins a re men t ioned , ad is t inc t ion i s n o t

a lways made b etween d eer b one a nd d eer a n t ler , t he s ign i f icance o f wh ich i s s hown b elow .

These p rob le ms a re f ur ther c o mpounded b y p roble ms a r ising

f rom sma l l-sca le e xcava t ions , e xcava t ions p lanned t o l ook f or d efences r a ther t han o ccupa t ion a reas a nd b y t he f ac t t ha t b y n o means h ave a l l a reas o f Br i ta in b een g iven e qua l a rchaeo log ica l a t ten t ion . Thus t h is p aper d oes n o t a t te mp t ac o mprehens ive s um mary o f t he e v idence , a l though a l arge n umber o f b one r epor ts f ro m s i tes a l l o ver Br i ta in h ave b een e xam ined .

The d iscuss ion g en-

e ra l ly u ses a s e xamp les s i tes t ha t were e xcava ted r e la t ive ly r ecen t ly a nd where t he f auna l a na lys is was a ppropr ia te ly d e ta i led . A l though a v ar iety o f w i ld a n ima ls c ou ld h ave b een h un ted i n Br i ta in , i nc lud ing w i ld b oar , wo lves , f oxes , b adgers a nd t he sma l ler w i ld mam ma ls , r eferences i n t he l i tera ture t o f i nds o f b ones f ro m t hese a n ima ls a re e x tre me ly r are .

The g enera l a ssumpt ion i s ( e .g . Megaw a nd S i mpson 1 979 : 3 52 ) t ha t

h un t ing d id n ot p lay a s ign i f ican t p ar t i n p rov id ing mea t f or a gr icu l tura l c o mmun i t ies a nd t ha t mos t mea t c onsu med was o b ta ined f rom d o mes t ic a n i ma ls.

2 05

Th is p aper d oes n o t a t te mp t t o q uarre l w i th t h is a s ag enera l a ssump t ion b u t t r ies t o e xa m ine t he i mp l ica t ions o f t ha t a ssump t ion a nd t o e xa mine t he s i tua t ion i n more d e ta i l . Deer a re l i ke ly t o h ave b een o f i n teres t t o ac o m mun i ty f or s evera l p oss ible r easons .

They c ou ld b e as ource o f f ood , as ource o f r aw ma ter ia l

( par t icu lar ly a nt lers ) , t he p rey i n s por t ing a c t iv i t ies a nd a p es t i nf l ic t ing d amage o n c rops .

A ny p oss ible mag ica l o r r e l ig ious s igni f icance o f d eer i s

n o t c ons idered h ere . The a bsence o f d eer b ones a t as i te may b e d ue t o t he f ac t t ha t t he c o mmun i ty d id n o t c hoose t o h un t f or d eer ( f or wha tever r eason ) o r t ha t t hey c ou ld n ot h un t a nd c a tch d eer b ecause t here were n o d eer l i v ing i n t he l oca l e nv ironmen t . F irs t , t hen , we mus t e s tabl ish t he l i ke ly d istr ibu t ion o f d eer i n Br i ta in i n t he p er iod u nder d iscuss ion . Fa l low d eer , a l though p resen t i n Br i ta in b efore t he l as t g lac ia t ion , s ee m t o h ave b eco me e x t inc t i n Br i ta in a nd much o f E urope b y t he p ost-g lac ia l p er iod . They were r ein troduced , b u t t he e xac t t ime o f t he ir r e in troduc t ion i s d ispu ted . A l though t he R o mans a re p opu lar ly c red i ted w i th t heir r e in troduc t ion , i n f ac t t here i s v ery l i t t le e v idence f or t he ir p resence i n s ign if ican t n umbers b efore t he N orman C onques t . C hapmans ( 1975 ).

Th is p roble m h as b een d iscussed i n d e ta i l b y t he

F or t he p urpose o f t h is p aper t he a ssump t ion h as b een

made t ha t f a l low d eer were e i ther a bsen t o r r are i n Br i ta in i n t he I ron Age , Ro man a nd S axon p er iods . R ed a nd r oe d eer a re i nd igenous s pec ies a nd , b e ing c rea tures o f t he woodl ands a nd f ores ts , w ere u ndoubted ly w ide ly d is tr ibu ted i n Br i ta in f o l low ing t he l as t g lac ia t ion .

Their p resen t more r es tr ic ted d is tr ibu t ion i s l arge ly a r e-

s u l t o f t he p rogress ive r educ t ion o f t he ir n umbers , a ssoc ia ted w i th t he d est ruc t ion o f t he ir n a tura l h abi ta t .

The c learance o f t he f ores t c over , p ar t icu lar ly

o n t he c ha lk a nd l imes tone s oi ls a nd t he Breck land s ands , i s we l l a t tes ted f rom t he n eo l i th ic p er iod o nward ( Evans 1 975 ) b u t v ery e x tens ive a reas o f f ores t mus t h ave r e ma ined , p ar t icu lar ly o n t he h eav ier s o i ls .

There c an h ave b een

f ew a gr icu l tura l c o m mun i t ies t ha t d id n ot h ave a ccess t o a reas o f wood land t ha t c ou ld h ave s uppor ted h erds o f d eer .

R ed a nd r oe d eer w i l l a d * t o more

o pen e nv iron men ts t oo , a s i s s hown b y t he ir p resence o n t he o pen moor lands o f Nor thern E ng land a nd S cot land a t t he p resen t d ay , b u t t h is i s n o t t he ir n a tura l e nv iron men t , c lear ly s een i n t he f ac t t ha t o n moor land , t he d eer r are ly a ch ieve t he s ize o f wood land a nd f ores t a n i ma ls ( Ri tch ie 1 920 ).

Fur ther e v idence o f

t heir w idespread d is tr ibu t ion i s g iven i n t he p resence o f d eer r e ma ins , e ven i fo n ly i n sma l l n u mbers , o n s i tes s ca t tered o ver much o f Br i ta in i n aw ide v ar ie ty o f e nv iron men ts .

There i s c er ta in ly n o e v idence t hen t ha t t he s carc i ty

o f d eer b ones was n ecessar i ly a r esu t t o f t he s carc i ty o f t he l ive a n ima ls. I fd eer were p resen t c lose t o o ccupa t ion s i tes , t he q ues t ion i s , why were t hey n o t h un ted a s t hey h ad b een i n f or e xamp le t he meso l i th ic p er iod i n B r i ta in? The o bv ious a nswer t o t h is q ues t ion i s t ha t when d o mes t ic a n i ma ls were i n trod uced t o Br i ta in , t he s e t t led a gr icu l tura l c o m muni t ies o r e ven t he p as tora l is ts h ad n ei ther t he n eed n or t he t ime f or h un t ing t o s upple men t t he p ro tein d iet o f t he c o m mun i ty.

I t wou ld a ppear t ha t t he a n i ma l p ro tein n eeds o f t he p opu la t ion

mus t h ave b een l arge ly s a t isf ied b y t he d o mest ic a n i ma ls t ha t t he p opu la t ion h ad t he mse lves r a ised , t ended o r t raded f or a nd t ha t t h is was a more e f f ic ien t 2 06

way o f p roduc ing f ood t han h un t ing . Mea t may h ave h ad a r ela t ive ly minor r o le i n t he d ie t i fa gr icu l ture was a b le t o s upp ly s u f f ic ien t c erea l a nd v ege tab le p roduc ts ,

The s carc i ty o f d eer b ones may t es t i fy t o t he e f f ic iency o f t he

f ar m ing s ys te ms o f t he a gr icu l tura l c om mun i t ies a nd t o t he a dvan tages o f k eep ing a nima ls t ha t p rov ide n o t o n ly mea t b u t mi lk , w oo l , manure a nd t rac t ion . I ft h is t hen i s t he e xp lana t ion o f t he a bsence o f s carc i ty o f d eer b ones a t t he ma jor i ty o f s i tes s o f ar e xcava ted , i ti s c lear ly i mpor tant t o e xamine t he r eason f or t he p resence o f more s ign i f ican t n umbers o f d eer b ones a t a m inor i ty o f s i tes . A t t he I ron Age a nd R o man s i te o f Dun Mor Vau l ( Nodd le 1 974 ) t he p erc en tage o f d eer b ones r ecovered was o ver 2 0% o f t he t o ta l n u mber o f b ones , S ubs tan t ia l n umbers o f s ea l b ones w ere a lso f ound a nd i n o n ly o ne p hase o f o ccupa t ion d id t he p ercen tage o f t he b ones o f d o mes t ic a n ima ls e xceed 6 4% o f t he t o ta l —in t he f i na l p hase o f o ccupa t ion o n ly 2 8% o f t he b ones w ere t hose o f d omest ic a n i ma ls .

Dun Mor Vau l i s s i tua ted o n T iree , a n i s land i n t he

I nner H ebr ides t ha t l i es i n ar a ther e xposed p os i t ion .

A l though t he a na lys is

o f t he p ol len f ro m t he s i te ( P i lcher 1 974 ) i mp l ies t ha t t here was a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i ty o n t he i s land a nd t he a na lys is o f t he g ra in ( Renfrew 1 974 ) g ives e v id ence f or t he c u l t iva t ion o f g ra in , i t i s l i kely t ha t s tock r ear ing a nd a gr icu l ture may n o t h ave b een a s e asy o r a s p roduc t ive a s a t t he more s he l tered a nd f er t i le ma in land s i tes .

A t S k i t ten ( P la t t 1 948 ) i n C a i thness , ac oun ty where

e ven t oday f arming i s d i f f icu l t , r ed d eer b ones were d escr ibed a s b eing more c o m mon t han u sua l .

A t t hese s i tes , i n r ela t ive ly h arsh e nv iron men ts , h un t ing

a nd p erhaps g a ther ing t oo migh t h ave b een n ecessary t o s upple men t t he f ood p rov ided b y a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i t ies .

The c ho ice o f h un ted a n i ma ls wou ld o f

c ourse d epend o n t he l oca l e nv iron men t .

A t s o me o f t he C orn ish s i tes a nd

e spec ia l ly a t s i tes o f t h is p er iod i n t he S c i l l ies , a l though s o me d eer b ones h ave b een f ound , s ea l b ones a re c o m mon .

A t N our-nour ( Turk 1 968 ) t he b ones

o f s ea l a re a s c o m mon a s t hose o f s heep .

Th is s i tua t ion i s b y n o means f ound

a t a l l c oas ta l s i tes h owever .

A t P or tches ter C as t le , ac oas ta l s i te i n Hampsh ire ,

t here s ee ms t o h ave b een v ery l i t t le e xp lo i ta t ion o f t he s ea 's r esources , a t l eas t i n t he Ro man a nd S axon p er iods ( Gran t 1 975a , 1 975b ).

H ere t he p osi t ion ,

a l though c oas ta l , i s c lose t o g ood a rable a nd g razing l and wh ich c ou ld h ave p rov ided a l l t he f ood t ha t was r equ ired . I ti s t here fore s ugges ted t ha t c o mpara t ive ly l arge n umbers o f t he b ones o f d eer o r o f o ther w i ld , h un ted a n i ma ls , may i nd ica te a n e nv iron men t where a gr icu l ture a nd s tock r ear ing were d if f icu l t , b ecause o f p oor s o i l o r as evere c l ima te. The h unted a n ima ls w ou ld b e n ecessary t o s upp le men t t he f ood p rod uced b y a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i t ies . O ther s i tes where d eer b ones were more c o m mon t han u sua l f or t he p er iod a re f ound i n i n land r eg ions i n g ood a gr icu l tura l a reas , a nd h ere a r a ther d i ff eren t e xp lana t ion i s s ugges ted . A t t he Ro man v i l la s i tes o f C ha lk ( Eas tham 1 972 ) a nd La t i mer ( Ha m i l ton 1 971 ) a nd a t t he Ro man t own o f C lausen tu m ( Cornwa l l 1 953 ) t here was a f a ir ly marked i ncrease i n t he p ercen tage o f d eer b ones f ound i n t he d epos i ts d a ted t o t he l a test p hases o f o ccupa t ion a t t he s i tes . A t b o th Cha lk a nd La t i mer , t he i ncrease i n t he p ercen tage o f d eer b ones c o inc ides w i th a p er iod o f a bandon men t a nd s qua t ter a c t iv i ty.

2 07

A t C ha lk , t here was

was a n i ncrease i n t he p ercen tage o f d eer b ones f ro m 5% i n t he p er iod o f t he f i na l o ccupa t ion o f t he v i l la t o 1 3% i n t he 4 th c en tury ,

when t he v i l la h ad

b een a bandoned , b u t r ubbish was s t i l l a ccumu la t ing , i nd ica t ing s o me s porad ic o r s qua t ter o ccupa t ion .

A t La t imer , t he p ercen tage o f d eer b ones i ncreased

f ro m 4% i n t he f i rs t p hase o f o ccupa t ion t o 1 9% d ur ing a p er iod o f a bandon men t a nd s qua t ter o ccupa t ion f ro m 2 80 t o 2 90 AD a nd t o 2 6% i n t he l as t v i l la p hases . I n t he t wo p hases o f p os t v i l la o ccupa t ion , d a ted t o t he v ery e nd o f t he R o man o ccupa t ion , t he p ercen tage o f d eer b ones was 1 4% a nd 2 1% .

A t C lausen tu m ,

d eer b ones were a bsen t i n t he e ar l ies t o ccupa t ion l ayers , b u t were p resent i n t he o ccupa t ion l eve ls o f t he 4 th a nd 5 th c en tur ies . I ti s s ugges ted t ha t d ur ing p er iods o f p ar t ia l a bandonmen t a nd c asua l o ccupa t ion , t he e stab l ished a gr icu l tura l s ys tems t ha t w ou ld h ave b een t he ma instay o f t he v i l las ' e cono mies may h ave b roken d own .

A l though much o f

t he mea t s upp ly c ou ld h ave b een p rov ided b y d omes t ic a n ima ls , p erhaps a n ima ls s t i l l l i v ing o n t he v i l la e s ta tes , o r p erhaps a n ima ls t raded f or , t here was a n eed t o s upp le men t t he mea t s upp ly b y h un t ing .

Th is p heno menon , o n

t he l imi ted e v idence a va i lab le , s eems t o o ccur mos t f requen t ly i n t he l a te R oman p er iod . There i s ab e l ief t ha t t he 4 th c en tury was a p ar t icu lar ly p rosperous p er iod f or t he Br i t ish c oun trys ide ( Frere 1 978 : 3 18 ). H owever , b y t he e nd o f t he 4 th a nd t he b eg inn ing o f t he 5 th c en tur ies , d ue t o t he w i thd rawa l o f Ro man a rms , r oads a nd d ra ins f e l l i n to d isrepa ir a nd t he v i ta l r e la t ionsh ip b etween t own a nd v i l la w ou ld h ave b eco me much more d i f f icu lt , i fn o t i mposs ib le t o ma in ta in .

Th is w ou ld h ave a n e f fec t o n f ar m ing a s much

a s o n a ny o ther a spec t o f l i fe ;

r e la t ionsh ips b e tween v i l las a nd marke ts ,

move men ts o f s tock a nd f oods tu f fs a nd t he manage men t o f t he v i l la e s ta tes may wel l h ave b een a dverse ly a f fec ted .

Thus t he n eed t o s upp le men t t he d ie t

b y h un t ing may h ave b eco me more p ress ing t han a t a ny p rev ious t ime .

I t

s hou ld b e n o ted t ha t a t s o me l a te Ro man s i tes t here i s n o e v idence f or t h is p heno menon .

A t P or tchester ( Gran t ‘o p .c i t .) , t he v ery sma l l n umber o f d eer

b ones i n t he l a te Ro man o ccupa t ion d ebr is h as a lready b een n o ted . I f a n i ncrease i n d eer b ones c an i ndeed b e s een a s a n i nd ica t ion o f d isrupt i on t o a n e s tabl ished a gr icu l tura l s ys te m , i ti s i n teres t ing t o n ote t ha t t here i s n o e v idence t o s uggest t ha t t here were a ny ma jor d if ferences i n t he r e la t ions h ip o f w i ld a n i ma ls t o d o mes t ic a n i ma ls a t s i tes o ccup ied b efore a nd a f ter t he R o man C onques t . a s O del l ( Gran t

Th is a dds f ur ther weigh t t o t he e v idence f ro m s i tes s uch f or thco m ing ) t ha t t he Ro man C onques t a nd o ccupa t ion d id n o t

d isrup t t he e x ist ing a gr icu l tura l s ys te m , b u t i n f ac t h ad s urpr ising ly l i t t le i mpac t o n t he r ura l e conomy.

U n for tuna tely , t here i s v ery l i t t le e v idence

i ndeed f or t he i m med ia te p os t-Ro man p er iod .

The p ercen tage o f d eer b ones

f ound i n S axon c ontex ts a t P or tches ter C as t le i s s l igh t ly h igher t han i n t he R o man c on tex ts , b u t a t L a t i mer , t here i s n o e v idence o f a n i ncrease i n t he p ercen tage o f d eer r e ma ins i n t he p os t-v i l la p hases , a l though t he f igures a re s t i l l q u i te h igh . We h ave s o f ar d iscussed e nv iron men ta l a nd e cono m ic f ac tors a s e xp lanat i ons f or ' a typ ica l ' n umbers o f d eer r e ma ins .

S oc ia l f ac tors may a lso b e

e xpec ted t o i n f luence t he n a ture o f t he f auna l r ema ins .

I n t h is c on tex ts i ti s

i n teres t ing t o n ote t he d if ferences b e tween t he f auna l a sse mblages f ro m p reh is tor ic a nd e ar ly h is tor ic s i tes a nd t hose f ro m t he med ieva l p er iod , where , i n many more i ns tances , d eer b ones f orm a s ign if ican t p ar t o f t he a n ima l b one 2 08

r e ma ins .

F or e xamp le , a t P or tches ter C as t le ( Gran t 1 978 ) , 1 4% o f t he

a n i ma l b ones f ro m t he l a te med ieva l l ayers w ere d eer b ones a nd a t L yveden i n Nor tha mp tonsh ire ( Gran t 1 971 ) , o ver 2 0% o f t he b ones f ound i n 1 3th t o 1 4 th c entury c on tex ts w ere d eer b ones .

I n t he med ieva l l ayers e xcava ted i n t he

t own o f B ed ford , d eer b ones were g enera l ly r are , b u t were mos t c om mon i n t he o ccupa t ion d ebr is a ssoc ia ted w i th t he c as t le ( Gran t 1 979 ).

C er ta in ly e n-

v iron men t a nd e conomy may s t i l l b e i mpor tan t f ac tors , b u t i f we c o mpare t he b one a sse mblages f ro m t he med ieva l l ayers a t P or tches ter w i th t hose f rom t he l a te Ro man a nd S axon o ccupa t ion , t he d if ferences a re s o marked a s t o b e u n l ike ly t o b e e xp la ined s o lely b y e nv iron men ta l c hanges o ver t he p er iod o f o ccupa t ion .

Docu men tary e v idence f or t he med ieva l p er iod i n E ng land s hows

u s t ha t d eer h un t ing was a p opu lar s por t a nd d eer were e ven c on ta ined i n p arks , a reas o f w ood land e nc losed b y f ences ( Can tor 1 970 ).

The d eer o f t he Roya l

p arks were p roh ibi ted t o a nyone b u t t he k ing , b u t many o f t he n obi l i ty a nd w ea l thy h ad t he ir own p r iva te p arks .

H igh p ercen tages o f d eer a t P or tches ter

a nd i n t he c as t le o ccupa t ion a t B ed ford may i nd ica te t he p ursuance o f ap as t ime t ha t wea l th a nd p r iv i lege made p oss ible .

Deer b ones a t amed ieva l p easan t

o ccupa t ion may h owever e v idence t he meagre l i v ing g a ined b y t he i nhabi tan ts . Sma l l s ca le a gr icu l ture a nd s tock r ear ing , w i th t he p rof i ts mi lked b y t he l andl ord migh t t e mp t t he p easan ts t o r isk t he h ighes t p ena l i ty t o s upp le men t t he ir d ie t . Deer h un t ing f or s por t d id n ot b eg in i n t he M idd le Ages a nd we k now f rom d ocumen tary e v idence f ro m t he G reek a nd Ro man p er iods t ha t h un t ing was a p opu lar s por t i n t he C lass ica l w or ld .

H un t ing s cenes a re d ep ic ted i n mosa ics

a nd t he C e l t ic l i tera ture a lso s ugges ts t ha t h un t ing may h ave b een p opu lar i n t he C e l t ic wor ld ( Ross 1 970 ).

H owever , a s i n t he M idd le Ages i n Europe , i t

s ee ms t o h ave b een p redo minan t ly t he s por t o f t he a r is tocracy.

We may n o t

b e s urpr ised t o f i nd l i t t le e v idence o f h un t ing a t t he sma l l I ron Age f ar ms teads o r t he sma l l r ura l R o man v i l las , b u t i ti s p erhaps s urpr is ing t o f i nd s o l i t t le e v idence f or h un t ing a t t he o bv ious ly i mpor tan t I ron Age s i tes s uch a s Danebury o r Ma iden Cas t le ( Jackson 1 943 ).

I t i s e ven more s urpr ising t ha t t here were

s o f ew d eer b ones a t R o man s i tes s uch a s F ishbourne ( Gran t 1 971 ) , where t here was s o much o ther e v idence f or t he a dop t ion o f aR o man-s tyle l i fe o f l uxury a nd l e isure ( Cun l if fe 1 971 ).

I n f ac t t he f igures f or d eer b one r eina ins a t

F ishbourne s how t ha t d eer r e ma ins a re mos t c o m mon i n t he c ons truc t ion p hase , when a ny l i ves tock r ear ing a nd a gr icu l ture may n ot h ave b een f u l ly e s tabl ished a nd t he o ccupan ts o f t he v i l la s i te may h ave b een ma in ly c ons truc t ion workers w ho c ou ld h ave h un ted d eer t o s upp le men t t heir d ie t a nd wages .

S trabo 's

much q uoted r eference t o t he h un t ing d ogs t ha t h e s ays were o ne o f Br i ta in 's ma jor e xpor ts b efore t he C onques t , i s c onfus ing i n t he f ace o f s o l i t t le mat er ia l e v idence f or h un t ing i n t he I ron Age . Harcour t ( 1979 ) h as p oin ted o u t t ha t d eer b ones may b e u nder-represen ted a t o ccupa t ion s i tes , a s o n ly t he mea t f ro m a h un ted a n i ma l may b e b rough t b ack t o as et t le men t , t he was te b ones b eing l e f t a t t he k i l l s i te .

D e ta i led

a na lys is o f t he t ype o f d eer b ones f ound a t s e t t le men t s i tes may h e lp t o c lar i fy t h is p oss ibi l i ty , b u t o ne c annot h e lp t h ink ing t ha t i t migh t b e e as ier t o t ransp or t ad ead a n i ma l who le t han a s ac o l lec t ion o f j o in ts o f mea t .

O n t he E ast

C oker Mosa ic a d eer i s s hown b e ing c arr ied o n ap o le b e tween t he s hou lders o f t wo men .

The f our l egs o f t he d eer a re t i ed t oge ther a nd t he a n i ma l i s

h ang ing f ro m t he p o le b y i t s l egs ( see Burke 1 978 :f ig . 5 7 ). 2 09

I tw ou ld t hus a ppear t ha t a l though t he p resence o f d eer b ones may b e a s oc ia l i nd ica tor , e spec ia l ly i n t he med ieva l p er iod , we h ave a s y e t , n o c lear e v idence o f t he h un t ing o f d eer p r i mar i ly f or s por t a t s i tes t ha t were e v iden t ly t he dwel lings o f p ersons o f i mpor tance i n I ron Age a nd R o man t imes .

We

may b e s ee ing i mpor tan t c u l tura l d i f ferences b e tween , f or e xamp le t he Ro man ised Br i tons a nd t he R o mans t he mse lves , b u t a lso e v idence t ha t a l though med ieva l d eer h un t ing was o s tens ib ly a l uxury , i t may h ave f u lf i l led a n i mport an t e cono mic f unc t ion t ha t was n ot n ecessary o r a ppropr ia te i n I ron A ge o r R o man Br i ta in . S o f ar , w e h ave o n ly c ons idered t he r o le o f w i ld a n ima ls i n t he f ood p rod uc ing e cono my.

D eer d o h ave a nother f unc t ion a par t f ro m t he ir u se a s p ro-

v iders o f mea t a nd s por t a nd t ha t i s a s t he s ource o f wha t may h ave b een a n i mpor tan t r aw ma ter ia l —an t ler .

I ft he f auna l r e ma ins a na lyses i n e xcava t ion

r epor ts h ave f ew r eferences t o d eer b ones , i n t he p ages o f t he sma l l f i nds r epor ts a re f requen t r eferences t o f i nds o f a n t ler p ar t icu lar ly o f r ed d eer . F ur thermore , i n t he i ns tances where s u f f ic ien t d e ta i l i s g iven b y t he a u thors a nd t he a ppropr ia te e v idence i s a va i lab le , i tw ou ld a ppear t ha t t he ma jor i ty o f t he a n t lers f ound h ad b een n a tura l ly s hed r a ther t han r e moved f ro m d ead a n i ma ls. A t B urgh C as t le i n Nor folk , 6 2% o f t he l arge c o l lec t ion o f b asa l a n t ler f ragmen ts h ad b een s hed ( Gran t , f or thcom ing ) a nd a t L ynch Farm , P e terborough , o n ly s hed a n t ler was f ound ( W i lson 1 975 ). menon c onf ined t o t he l a ter p reh is tor ic p er iod .

Th is i s n o t ap heno-

A t B lackpa tch f l in t m ine ,

C urwen ( 1922 ) r epor ts t ha t o f t he r ed d eer a n t ler p icks f ound , o n ly o ne h ad a p or t ion o f s ku l l a dher ing a nd a l l t he o thers were s hed a n t lers .

A t Durr ing ton

Wa l ls , 2 87 o f t he a n t lers f ound h ad b een c as t a nd o n ly 2 9 were f ro m d ead o r k i l led a n ima ls ( Harcour t 1 971 ).

The p ar t icu lar s ign i f icance o f t h is i nfor ma t ion

i s i n t he i mp l ied s easona l i ty o f t he c o l lec t ion o f d eer a n t ler a nd p erhaps t herefore a lso o f .t he manu fac ture o f a n t ler t oo ls a nd o b jec ts .

R ed d eer ( mos t

o f t he a n t lers a re f ro m r ed d eer r a ther t han r oe d eer ) s hed t heir a n t lers i n March a nd A pr i l a nd i t wou ld s ee m l i kely t ha t t he s hed a n t lers w ou ld h ave b een c o l lec ted a t a bou t t ha t t ime o f y ear .

I ti s k nown t ha t t he d eer w i l l t hemselves

e a t t heir a n t lers a s as ource o f e x tra minera ls a nd a n t lers a re a lso e a ten b y i nsec ts s uch a s a n ts .

They wou ld a lso b e i n f ar b e t ter c ond i t ion f og t oo l manu-

f ac ture i f c o l lec ted s oon a f ter t hey h ad b een s hed t han i ft hey h ad b een l e f t e xposed t o t he e le men ts .

I t may n o t b e t oo f ar f e tched t o s uppose t ha t e xpe-

d i t ions w ere made t o a reas o f f ores ts k nown t o b e i nhabi ted b y d eer t o c o l lec t as upp ly o f a n t lers . The p ar t icu lar a dvan tage t ha t a n t ler h as o ver b one , wh ich may a ccoun t f or t he e f for t e xpended i n c ol lec t ing a n t ler when b one wou ld h ave b een e as i ly a va i la ble f ro m s laugh tered d o mes t ic a n i ma ls , l i es i n t he i n terna l s truc ture o f a n t ler . A l though b one a nd a n t ler a re e ssen t ia l ly made o f t he s ame b as ic s ubs tance , a n t lers a re d enser a nd t herefore s tronger t han b one.

A n t lers h ave n o h ae mo-

p o ie t ic t i ssue i n t he c ance l lous b one a nd s o al arge s pace i ns ide t he c en tre o f t he b one i s n o t r equ ired ( Ha ls tead 1 974 ).

S hed a n t ler w i l l o f ten b e more

s u i table f or t oo l manu fac ture t han u nshed a n t ler b ecause i ti s o n ly when t he a n t ler h as a t ta ined i t s f i na l s hape n ear t he e nd o f t he g row th c yc le t ha t i t u ndergoes t he i n terna l r econs truc t ion a nd c a lc i f ica t ion t ha t a re n ecessary t o g ive i ts treng th .

Thus t here i s t he f ur ther p oss ibi l i ty t ha t i f , when d eer were

h un ted , b o th mea t a nd a n t lers were d es ired , t he o p t imu m t ime f or t h is w ou ld

2 10

h ave b een a f ter t he e nd o f t he a n t ler g row th p er iod a nd b efore t he a n t lers h ad b een c as t .

I n r ed d eer , t h is w ou ld b e i n t he a u tu mn a nd w in ter mon ths , t he

p er iod when o ther f ood r esources m igh t b e mos t s tre tched i n a n a gr icu l tura l s oc ie ty. I fd eer a n t ler c o l lec t ion a nd p erhaps e ven d eer h un t ing were s easona l a c t iv i t ies , t hen i ti s a lso p oss ib le t ha t a n t ler work ing may h ave b een a s eas ona l a c t iv i ty.

I n t he I ron Age , at oo l t ha t i s v ery c o m mon ly made f ro m

a n t ler r a ther t han f ro m b one i s t he s o c a l led weav ing c o mb .

These o b jec ts

h ave b een v ar ious ly i n terpre ted , b u t p erhaps t he ir mos t l i ke ly f unc t ion i s a s c o mbs f or r e mov ing t he n a tura l ly s hed h a irs f ro m s heep . I ft he a n t lers were c o l lec ted i n t he s pr ing , t hen t he t oo ls t oo may h ave b een made a t t h is p er iod s o t hey wou ld h ave b een r eady f or t he s heep 's s um mer mou l t .

O f c ourse i t

i s a lso p oss ib le t ha t t he a n t lers c o l lec ted i n t he s pr ing c ou ld h ave b een s tored f or l a ter u se — th is c ou ld b e t he e xp lana t ion o f t he f i nd o f ap i t w i th f our teen a n t lers i n i ta t C as ter ly C a mp ( Cunn ing ton 1 913 ). There a lso r e ma ins t he p oss ibi l i ty , e spec ia l ly when o n ly sma l l n umbers o f d eer b ones a re f ound a t as i te , t ha t t he d eer were k i l led b ecause t hey were d amag ing c rops.

D eer a re k nown t o r a id a gr icu l tura l l and , a l though t h is

u sua l ly o ccurs when t he d eer , b ecause o f ar educ t ion i n t he ir n a tura l h ab i ta t , h ave n o t s u f f ic ien t f ood f or t he ir n eeds i n t he ir n a tura l e nv iron men t .

Accord ing

t o d e Nah l ik ( 1959 ) r oe d eer a re e spec ia l ly f ond o f u nr ipe c orn a nd c lover a nd may i n s o me c ircumstances b e a n i mpor tan t e ne my o f a gr icu l ture .

D eer r e-

ma ins may b e i nd ica t ive o f ac on f l ic t b e tween a gr icu l ture a nd t he n a tura l woodl and e nv iron men t o f t he w i ld a n ima ls , o r e ven o f p er iods o f s evere wea ther , when n a tura l r esources were s tre tched . F inds o f d eer r e ma ins h ave n o t b een g iven t he a t ten t ion t hey mer i t i n t he ma jor i ty o f e xcava t ion r epor ts .

Their p resence o r i ndeed t he ir a bsence ,

may , a s we h ave s hown , g ive i mpor tan t i nd ica t ions o f e nv iron men ta l c ond i t ions , a gr icu l tura l e f f ic iency , e cono mic s tabi l i ty a nd o rgan isa t ion , s oc ia l s ta tus a nd s easona l a c t iv i t ies a t o ccupa t ion s i tes . B ibl iography Burke , J . ( 1978 )

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2 12

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8 2

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p p . 2 10-213 .

Everyday L ife o f t he P agan C e l ts .

Turk , F . A . ( 1968 ) Vi v

( Mack ie , E .)

The I n f luence o f Man o n t he A n i ma l L ife o f S co t land .

C a mbr idge : Ross , A . ( 1970 )

Proceed ings o f t he S oc ie ty o f A n t iquar ies

1 43-145.

J ourna l o f t he R oya l I ns t i tu t ion o f C ornwa l l ( n .s .)

2 50-265. The A n i ma l Re ma ins .

I n :

The Ro man Br i t ish F arms tead

a nd i t s C e me tery a t L ynch Far m , n ear P e terborough N or thamp tonsh ire Archaeo logy 1 0

2 13

9 4-137.

( Jones , R .)

1 0 .

FLEECE CHANGES I N SHEEP M . L . R yder

I n troduc t ion The l as t p aper Ip resen ted i n t h is d epar tmen t ( Ryder 1 980a ) was c oncerned w i th med ieva l s heep a nd t he ir wool t ypes , s o n o t o n ly were t he t erms o f r efe rence w ider , b u t more s ources o f e v idence ( i nc lud ing i l lus tra t ions a nd r ecords ) were a va i lable . The ma in s ources o f e v idence i n t he p resen t a ccoun t a re wool i n t ex t i le r e ma ins , a nd s urv iv ing p r im i t ive b reeds o f s heep . I tw i l l b e u sefu l a tt he o u tse t t o s ay s ome th ing a bou t woo l f i bre t ypes , f l eeces a nd s heep b reeds .

The w i ld a nces tor o f d omes t ic s heep h as a s hor t ,

h a iry o u ter c oa t c o mposed o fb r is t ly f i bres k nown a s k emps wh ich o bscure a n e ven s hor ter , f i ne w oo l ly u ndercoa t ( Fig . 1 0 :1 ). I n t he c hanges s ince d omest i ca t ion t he k e mps h ave b een c ons iderably r educed i n t h ickness a nd n umber , a nd a s econd t ype o f h a iry f i bre ( named h a ir ) h as e vo lved , s o t ha t t he f l eeces o f modern b reeds c on ta in k e mp , h a irs a nd w oo l i n v arying p ropor t ions . The s econd p oin t t o n o te i s t ha t d if ference b e tween t he f l eeces o f d if feren t b reeds a re a lmos t e n t ire ly g ene t ic .

I ti s t rue t ha t b e t ter f eed w i l l make a

s hor t-woo l led f l eece g row s o mewha t l onger , b u t t h is w i l l n ot c hange i ti n to a l ongwoo l t ype . P la te 1 0 :I i l lus tra tes t h is d is t inc t ion b y s how ing t ha t e ach t ype o f f l eece h as a c harac ter is t ic s tap le f orm wh ich i s b rough t a bou t b y t he i n terming l ing o f v arying p ropor t ions o f d if feren t k inds o f f i bre . D if ference i n t he s ize a nd a ppearnce o f s o me ma in modern b reed t ypes a re s hown i n P la te 1 0 :I I . Tha t f l eece d if ferences a re g ene t ic a nd n o t e nv ironmen ta l migh t l ead s ome t o i mag ine t ha t t hey l i e o u ts ide t he s cope o f t he p resen t c onference. Bu t o ne mus t r e me mber t ha t t he e nv ironmen t w i l l h ave i n f luenced t he way i n wh ich f l eeces h ave e vo lved o r b een s e lec t ive ly b red ( a l though t he i n f luence i s r are ly i fe ver o bv ious ) a nd t ha t man 's l i ves tock f orms p ar t o f h is e nv ironmen t . I ndeed , i th as b een s a id t ha t d o mes t ica t ion was t he g rea tes t i n terven t ion made b y man i n h is e nv ironmen t . The d omes t ica t ion o f s heep d id n o t t ake p lace i n Br i ta in , s o t he f i rs t d o mes t ic s heep were i n troduced b y n eo l i th ic s e t t lers a bou t 4 000 BC . The p reh is tor ic b reed o f E urope i s t hough t t o b e r epresen ted t oday b y t he sma l l , b rown S oay s heep t ha t s urv ives i n af era l s ta te o n S t . K i lda o f f n or th wes t S cot land . Ev idence f or t h is c o mes f ro m t he s im i lar i ty o f n eo l i th ic b one r ema ins w i th t hose o f t he S oay , a nd t he s imi lar i ty o f wool i n Bronze Age c loth w i th t he f l eece o f t he S oay ( Ryder 1 969 ). The p r im i t ive f ea tures s hared b y t he S oay w i th t he w i ld a nces tor a re a s hor t t a i l ( a l l modern b reeds h ave a l ong t a i l ); a c o loured f l eece i n wh ich t he b el ly i s wh i te ( mos t modern b reeds a re c o mp le te ly wh i te ) a nd a n a nnua l mou l t ( t he w oo l . o f v ir tua l ly a l l modern b reeds g rows c on t inuous ly ). To t hese

2 15

l o vu j c o a r s eh a u l s 0 0

F i n e w i d e rw o o f ,

F ig . 1 0 .1

D iagra m o f t he s tructure o f t he d oub le c oa t o f t he w i ld a nces tor o f d o mes t ic s heep ( f ro m R yder a nd S tephenson

1 968) .

P la te 1 0 . I Woo l s tap les o fd if feren t f l eece t ypes;

t he f i ne woo l led

Mer ino i s n o t an a t ive o f B r ita in ; t he Down t ype i s a modern r epresen ta t ive o ft he s hor twoo l; t he l ongwoo l h as a c haract er is t ic c ur l a nd l ustre , a nd t he f i bres a re c oarse b ut n o t h a iry ; t he mounta in t ype i s i l lus tra ted b y as tap le f rom t he S co t t ish B lackface i n wh ich l ong h a iry f i bres o bscure a n u nderc oa t o f f i ne woo l

( f rom R yder a nd S tephenson

1 968) .

ma jor a nd o bv ious d i f ferences b e tween w i ld s heep a nd modern d omest ic b reeds c an b e a dded t he c hange f rom a h a iry c oa t t o aw oo l ly f l eece , a nd t he w oo l o f t he S oay i s a lready much l ess h a iry t han t he c oa t o f t he w i ld s heep , b u t t here a re h a iry a nd w ool ly t ypes . Th is c hange i s e v iden t i n F ig . 1 0 :2 f ro m R yder ( 1969 ) wh ich s hows h is tog rams o f woo l f i bre d iame ter d is tr ibu t ions i n m icrons ( one micron , p ,m , =0 .001 m m ).

The f i bre d iame ter i s s hown a long t he h or izon ta l a x is , a nd t he

n umber o f f i bres o n t he v er t ica l a x is . The f i bre d iame ter d istr ibu t ion o f t he w i ld s heep i s s hown a t t he t op , t he b ig d i f ference i n d iame ter b e tween t he c oarse , h a iry o u ter c oa t o f f i bres k nown a s k emps , a nd t he e x treme ly f i ne w ool ly u nder c oa t b e ing v ery s tr ik ing . The f i rs t e vo lu t ionary c hange f o l loiwng d o mes t ica t ion was a n arrow ing o f t he c oarse , h a iry o u ter c oa t k emps t o p rod uce t he h a iry med ium f l eece t ype o f t he h a iry S oay. F ur ther n arrow ing o f t hese h a iry f i bres ( f ine k e mps ) p resumably d ue t o s e lec t ive b reed ing b y man , c hanged t hem i n to w oo l f i bres o f med ium d iame ter , t he r esu l t b e ing t he f l eece t ype o f t he w ool ly S oay. I n e vo lu t ionary t erms t h is i s ag enera l ised t ype f orming a n i mpor tan t l i nk b e tween more p r imi t ive h a iry f l eeces , a nd more h igh ly e vo lved modern f l eece t ypes . The d iame ter d is tr ibu t ions o f s urv iv ing s heep h ave b een s hown i n F ig . 1 0 :2 , b u t t he l ower f i ve d is tr ibu t ions h ave a l l b een f ound i n woo l f ro m a nc ien t t ex t i les . The h a iry med ium a nd g ener l ised med ium t ypes a ppeared f i rst i n t he Bronze Age , a nd were c om mon u n t i l a f ter t he M idd le A ges . The modern t ypes o n t he b ot to m r ow b egan t o a ppear i n Ro man t imes . The I ron Age A l though t here i s e v idence f ro m i l lus tra t ions a nd r ecords o f wh i te s heep a s e ar ly a s 3 000 BC i n Mesopo ta m ia a nd Egyp t ( Ryder a nd S tephenson 1 968 ) , t here i sn o e v idence o f wh ite w oo l i n A s ia a nd E urope b efore t he I ron Age , where i to ccurs a s p ar t o f a n i ncrease i n t he r ange o f c olour . V ery f ew I ron Age f i nds o f woo l a re a va i lab le f or e xa m ina t ion .

R yder

( 1969 ) d escr ibed a s ing le wh i te s pec imen f ro m c en tra l A sia d a ted a bou t 4 00 BC wh ich c o mpr ised ac o mp le te s heepsk in w i th t he w ool i n tac t f ro m t he S cy th ian b ur ia l a t Pazir ik i n t he A l ta i Moun ta ins . Th is i so f i n teres t i n h av ing a n o u ter c oa t o f h a irs i ns tead o f t he k e mps o r med ium f i bres f ound i n t he S oay s heep . The h a irs o f modern t rue h a iry b reeds ( such a s t he S co t t ish B lackface ) a re l ong , a nd a re n amed h e terotypes b ecause t hey a re i n termed ia te i n c harac ter b e tween k emp a nd w oo l :

t hey a re t h ick a nd k e mpl ike i n s um mer , b u t t h inner

i n w in ter when t hey a ppear l i ke t rue w ool f i bres . Whereas k e mps c ease t o g rown p repara tory t o mou l t ing , h a irs mere ly t h in d own a nd c on t inue t o g row . The h a irs o f t he P azir ik s amp le were l onger a nd f i ner t han k emps , b u t s ec t ions o f t he s k in s howed t ha t t hey h ad s topped g row ing . Th is a nd a l eng th c o mparab le w i th o n ly t he s hor tes t modern h a iry f l eeces ( 1 2 cm ) s ugges t a n e ar ly s tage i n t he e vo lu t ion t owards modern h etero type h a irs wh ich u sua l ly g row c on t inuous ly . The o r ig in o f h a irs a ppears t o h ave b een a ssoc ia ted w i th t he c hange f ro m a mou l t ing f leece t o o ne o f c on t inuous g row th . Mou l t ing i s ad isadvan tage i n l ead ing t o al oss o f woo l t o t he f armer . The n orma l way o f h arves t ing wool f ro m s heep t ha t mou l t i s b y p luck ing , a me thod t ha t was i n u se w i th t he n a t ive b reed o f S he t land u n t i l r ecen t t imes .

2 18

S e lec t ive b reed ing a ga inst

mode 1 4p

2 5

mean o f u ndercoat 1 2p

mean o f o utercoat k emps 1 44 , 4 . 2 mode 1 b 0

, 82 0 6 78 9 1 01 1 21 31 45 6

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0

nf l

7 0

8 0

n

9 0

1 0

n r-rt

1 0

1 2 0

1 3 0

1 4 0

5 0

6 0

7 0

n 1 9 0

1 8 0

F i bre D iameter M easurements i np

W ILD MOUFLON

N ARROW ING O F K EMP

2 5

S KEWED -TO -F INE D ISTR IBUT ION

2 0

E ) 2 0

_ o

1 5

1 5 0

V

L a, 1 0 _ 0

1 0

L OSS O F K EMP

D 5

0 1 0

5

2 0

4 0

3 0

F i bre

5 0

6 0

7 0

8 0

9 0

I C O

1 0

1 2 0

0 1 0

1 3 0

mode 2 0,u

2 0

mode 3 0/ 4

_ o 1 5

5

o1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

4 0

2 0

1 5

1 5

1 0

1 0

5

5

o

L OSS O F F INE F I BRES

2 5

2 5

2 5

L I -

3 0

G ENERA L ISED M ED IUM W OOL ( WOOLLY S OAY m ean 2 4 -4p )

H A IRY MED IUM W OOL ( HA IRY S OAY m ean 3 6 -9p )

2 0

2 0

D iameter Measurements i np

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

01 0

mode 4 4p

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0

F i bre D iameter M easurements i n

F I NEWO OL ( MER INO m ea n2 5µ )

F ig . 1 0 .2

S HOR TW OOL ( N ORFOLK H ORN m e an 2 7 -5 µ )

L ONGW O OL ( C O T SWOLD m ean 4 2 -3 1)

P robab le c hanges i n woo l f i bre d iameter d istr ibu t ion d ur ing f l eece e vo lu t ion ; 1 969 ).

o ne µ ( m icron ) =0 .001 m m ( f ro m R yder ,

mou l t ing i s u n l ikely t o h ave b egun u n t i l a n a l terna t ive me thod o f r e mov ing t he f l eece was a va i lab le , a nd c l ipp ing b ecame p oss ible w i th t he d eve lop men t o f i ron s hears i n t he M idd le Eas t a bou t 1 000 BC .

S hears o f as ize s u i table

f or c l ipp ing a s heep a re a c o m mon f i nd o n I ron Age a nd R o man s i tes i n Europe , a l though Hard ing ( 1974 ) i mp l ies t ha t t hey were i n troduced i n to Br i ta in b y t he R o mans . A s econd I ron Age wh i te f l eece s amp le o f s omewha t e ar l ier d a te f ro m Ha l ls ta t t i n Austr ia was d escr ibed b y R yder ( 1 969 ) a s h a iry , a l though t he h a iry f i bres a ppeared more l i ke k e mps .

At h ird e xamp le , a ga in a s heepsk in ,

f ro m a b og d a ted a bou t 5 00 BC i n n or thern G ermany was a lso wh i te a nd h a iry ( Ryder 1 977a ).

These t hree s amp les a re o f c ourse i nadequa te t o i nd ica te t he

r ange o f v ar ia t ion i n I ron Age woo l , a nd i n f ac t t rue h a iry f l eeces o f t h is t ype a re r are u n t i l a f ter t he M idd le Ages . Lack ing d irec t t ex t i le e v idence , o ne h as t o f a l l b ack o n c orrobora t ive e v idence f rom Ro man t ex t i les d e ta i led b elow , a nd o n s urv iv ing p r im i t ive b reeds . The b reeds i n q ues t ion mos t ly h ave a s hor t t a i l , a nd o n ly t he r ams a re h orned , b u t t he s kele ton i s o therw ise s imi lar t o t ha t o f t he S oay . There a re s t i l l h a iry med ium a s we l l a s w oo l ly f l eeces , a s i n t he S oay , a nd a s pr ing mou l t , b u t t he b reeds a re v an-co loured .

I n a dd i t ion , t o t he b rown o f t he S oay

t here a re b lack , wh i te , a nd g rey , a s w e l l a s p ieba ld , a n i ma ls . Bu t t he w i ldp a t tern wh i te b el ly i s r are , a nd s o t h is marks t he S oay a s t ru ly u n ique among d o mes t ic s heep .

Th is v an-co loured t ype a ppears t o h ave b een c o m mon u n t i l

a f ter t he M idd le Ages , a nd w idespread t hroughou t Europe , s ince sma l l p ocke ts o f r e l ic b reeds s urv ive i n i so la ted a reas ( Ryder 1 980b ).

G rey a n ima ls a re

an o tab le f ea ture o f t he t ype , wh ich c ou ld a lso b e t er med " European g rey" . The ma in s urv iv ing b reeds o f t h is t ype i n B r i ta in a re t he O rkney a nd S he t land .

Dur ing t he 1 9th c en tury t hese t wo b reeds f ormed a s ing le p opu la t ion ,.

b u t t he S het land h as s ince b een s e lec t ive ly b red f or wh i te , woo l ly f l eeces , a nd s o o n ly t he O rkney r eta ins t he f u l l r ange o f c o lour a nd f l eece t ype ( Ryder 1 968a a nd b ).

I th as a lready b een i nd ica ted t ha t t he t endency t o s hed mean t t ha t i n

t he p as t t he woo l h ad t o b e o b ta ined b y p luck ing ( Ryder 1 966 ) b u t t h is t endency h as l arge ly b een b red o u t t oday , s o t ha t mos t o f t he s heep a re s horn . I ti s p er t inen t t o a sk h ow t h is r ange o f c o lour e vo lved f ro m t he b rown S oay. F irs t , a l l b lack a nd a l l b rown a n ima ls a re f ound i n t he b reed , a nd s o t hese c an b e i ncreased i n n u mber b y b reed ing t he s ame c o lour t oge ther . o ccas iona l wh i te a n ima ls mu ta te f ro m t hose w i th awh i te b e l ly.

S econd ,

A no ther way

o f o bta in ing wh i te i s b y s e lec t ive b reed ing f or l arger a nd l arger a reas o f wh i te o n p ieba ld s heep .

G rey , wh ich i s b rough t a bou t b y a mix ture o f c o loured a nd

wh i te f i bres , mus t a lso h ave a r isen b y mu ta t ion , a nd b lack s heep h ave b een o bserved t o mu ta te t o g rey ( Ryder 1 980c ). Na tura l ly-co loured w oo ls were u sed u n t i l w el l a f ter t he Midd le Ages , d if feren t c o lours o f ten b e ing woven t oge ther t o p roduce p a t terns .

I tw ou ld

b e i mag ined t ha t a l though wh i te s heep wou ld h ave b een a n ove l ty i n t he mse lves , t he r ea l s t imu lus t o b reed s heep w i th wh i te woo l may h ave c o me o n ly a f ter t he d eve lop men t o f d yes .

2 20

P la te 1 0 .1 1

D if feren t b reed t ypes o f B r i t ish s heep : r igh t , b lack-faced , h orned h i l l t ype ( Sco t t ish B lackface ; c en tre , wh i te-faced h i l l s heep ( We lsh Moun tain ); b reed) .

l ef t , l us tre l ongwoo l ( L inco ln

The Roman p er iod Ro man t ex t i les f ro m Br i ta in , Europe a nd t he Near Eas t s how t ha t t he p redo minan t woo l t ype d ur ing t ha t p er iod , i n a dd i t ion t o b e ing wh i te , was f ine t o t he n aked e ye .

Bu t microscop ic e xa m ina t ion r evea ls t ha t t he woo l c on ta ins

med ium f i bres , a nd s o i s o f g enera l ised med ium t ype.

H a iry med ium woo ls

were s t i l l c o m mon , h owever , a t V indo landa o n H adr ians wa l l f or i ns tance ( Ryder 1 977b a nd Table 1 ) .

More c hanges w ere t ak ing p lace i n f i bre d iameter

d is tr ibu t ion a nd f leece t ype a t t ha t t ime , a nd t he n ew t ypes , a nd h ow t hey e vo lved a re s um mar ised i n F ig 1 0 :2 . I ft he med ium w oo l f i bres o f t he g enera l ised med iu m t ype h ad b eco me n arrower b y s e lec t ive b reed ing t hen t he f i bre d iame ter d is tr ibu t ion o f t he t rue f i ne woo l s een i n t he modern Mer ino wou ld h ave b een p roduced .

The

d eve lop men t o f t he t rue f i ne woo l b egan i n t he M idd le Eas t p robably s oon a f ter 1 000 BC ( Ryder 1 969 ).

B u t t he emergence o f t he Mer ino a s ad is t inc t b reed

o ccurred i n t he l a te Midd le Ages i n S pa in . I n t he European b reed s urvey a lready men t ioned ( Ryder 1 980b ) i t was e xpec ted t ha t r e mnan ts o f a n a nc ien t s heep w i th at rue f i ne f l eece migh t b e f ound i n t he Ba lkans .

I n t he e ven t t he p r i mi t ive b reeds d iscovered h ad a

f leece o f g enera l ised med iu m t ype .

Thus a l though t rue f i ne woo ls u ndoub ted ly

e x is ted i n t he Near Eas t a bou t t he i s t c en tury BC-AD ( Ryder 1 969 ) i t i s o f i m mense i n teres t t ha t t he mos t p r imi t ive s heep s urv iv ing i n s ou th e as t E urope h ave a f l eece o f t he s ame t ype a s t he v an-co loured s heep i n n or thern E urope . Re turn ing t o F ig . 1 0 :2 , i fo n t he o ther h and , t he f i ner f i bres h ad b eco me c oarser b y b reed ing , t hen t he t rue med ium woo l d ia me ter d is tr ibu t ion o f t he modern l ongwoo l wou ld h ave b een o bta ined .

Th ird ly , i fb o th c hanges h ad t aken

p lace t oge ther , a nd t he r ange o f f i bre d ia meter h ad b eco me s hor tened , w i th a mean b e tween t he f ine a nd med ium v a lues , t he d is tr ibu t ion wou ld b e c o mp arab le w i th t ha t o f t he modern s hor twoo l .

Tex t i le r e ma ins i nd ica te t ha t a

f ew med ium woo ls a nd s hor twoo ls h ad d eve loped d ur ing R o man t imes , b u t n e i ther b ecame c o m mon i n Br i ta in u n t i l a f ter t he M idd le Ages ( Ryder 1 969 , 1 974 ;

1 977a ;

1 980d ).

U sing e v idence f ro m s urv iv ing " Iron Age" b reeds a ga in o ne s hou ld men t ion t ha t i n t he p r im i t ive O rkney s heep t he who le r ange o f f l eece t ypes h as b een o bserved f ro m h a iry med ium t hrough g enera l ised med ium , t o t rue f i ne , a lt hough t he l a t ter i s r are ( Ryder 1 968a a nd b ).

I n g rey s heep o f t h is b reed i t

i s u sua l ly t he c oarses t f i bres t ha t a re b lack , a nd s uch mix tures o f p igmen ted a nd n on-p igmen ted f i bres h ave b een s een i n t ex t i les f ro m a s e ar ly a s t he R o man p er iod ( Ryder 1 977a ,

1 980d ).

A l though t here i s v ir tua l ly n o d irec t e v idence , i th as a lways b een a ssumed t ha t t he Ro mans i n troduced i mproved l i ves tock i n to Br i ta in , a nd t h is a ssumpt i on i s i ncorpora ted i n t he s um mary o f b reed t ype o r ig in s hown i n F ig . 1 0 :3 . F ol low ing t he S oay t ype , t here a re l i ke ly t o h ave b een v an-co loured s heep i n t he I ron Age , b u t t o wha t e x ten t t hese e vo lved l oca l ly o r were i n troduced i s n o t y et c lear .

I th as b een s ugges ted t ha t t he B e lgae i n troduced a wh i te , f i ne-

wool led s heep ( W i ld 1 970 ). Ro man mosa ics o n t he c on t inen t i l lus tra te wh i te-faced s heep i n wh ich t he t a i l i s n o l onger s hor t , a nd t here a re h orned a s we l l a s p o l led i nd iv idua ls 2 22

9000 B .C .

( Domes t ica t ion) — — — —

Z e '

F l

9 2 1

C Z ;

l o ss o fp ig m ent

a r row ing o fh a ir

TREE F INE WOOL

o tt ish B lackf ace)

BLACK FACED HORNED

wh ich c ou ld b e r ams a nd ewes , a s i n t he O rkney-Shet land t ype a nd s ome modern b reeds s uch a s t he Mer ino ( Ryder 1 980e p . 3 74 ). F ig . 1 0 :3 a ssumes t he i n troduc t ion o f s uch a s heep i n to Br i ta in b y t he Ro mans . C rosses o f t h is w i th t he n a t ive S oay c ou ld h ave g iven r ise t o t ypes t ha t l a ter emerged a s b reeds s uch a s t he wh i te-faced C hev io t a nd We lsh Moun ta in i n t he N or th a nd t he Wes t . These a re h orned i n t he r ams o n ly , a nd a ny p igmen t t ends t o b e b rown r a ther t han b lack . Then t he f l eece c hanges o u t l ined a bove c ou ld h ave p roduced a p r imi t ive l ongwoo l o n t he o ne h and , a nd a s hor twoo l o n t he o ther . B oth t ypes h ave a wh i te f ace a nd l ack h orns . Mos t med ieva l i l lus tra t ions s how wh i te-faced , p o l led s heep w i th s hor t woo l . Re turning t o V indo landa , t h is was t he f i rs t s i te t o y ie ld a n a dequa te s amp le o n wh ich t o b ase c onc lus ions a bou t t he r ange o f f l eece t ypes .

A l toge ther

5 6 y arns a nd o ne u nspun s tap le were measured . The l a t ter was o f i n terest b ecause o f t he r ar i ty o f u nspun w oo l , a nd i tt urned o u t t o b e t he o n ly t rue h a iry s a mp le f rom a ny Ro man s i te. Th is was 4 cm l ong a nd c o mparab le w i th t he h a iry I ron Age s a mp les l i s ted a bove , h av ing a p o in ted t i p n o t u n l ike t ha t o f s tap les i n t he modern S cot t ish B lackface b reed . The h a iry s amp le h as b een om i t ted f ro m t he p ercen tages i n Tab le 1 ( f rom R yder 1 980a ) wh ich s how t he p ropor t ion o f d i f feren t f l eece t ypes a t V indo landa a nd c ompares t he m w i th a l l o ther Roman w oo ls e xamined , i nc lud ing s amp les f rom t he C on t inen t a s we l l a s a l l S axon s amp les e xam ined ( Ryder 1 969 ; 1 974 a nd o ther minor r epor ts ). Ha iry med ium woo ls a nd g enera l ised med ium woo ls p redomina ted a t V indo landa , a nd t here was amodera te p ropor t ion o f af i ner t ype o f g enera l ised med ium w oo l. I ti s o f i n teres t t ha t t here were more f l eeces o f t he f i ne t ype t ha t l a ter emerged o n t he C on t inen t a s t he Mer ino , t han t here were s hor twoo ls a nd t rue med ium w oo ls , wh ich a re t hough t t o h ave d eve loped i n Br i ta in . Bu t t hese f i nd ings i nd ica te e vo lu t ion a s e ar ly a s Ro man t imes , whereas i t was p rev ious ly t hough t t ha t t hey a ppeared d ur ing t he M idd le A ges . S ince Wi ld ( 1 977 ) ( see R yder 1 977b ) c ons iders t ha t t he V indo landa woo ls a re u n l ike ly t o h ave b een i mpor ts , t hey p robab ly i nd ica te t he r ange o f f l eece t ypes f ound i n n or thern Ro man Br i ta in i n t he i s t c en tury AD.

C o mpar is9n w i th t he

o ther R o man woo ls i n t he t able , i nd ica tes t ha t t hese h ave ag rea ter p ropor t ion f i ner t ypes ( f ine , g enera l ised med ium a nd t rue f i ne ). The p igmen t d e ta i ls g iven i n Table 2 t hrow a dd i t iona l l i gh t o n t he b reed t ypes . The s carc i ty o f c o mp le te ly p igmen ted w oo ls i nd ica tes a move a way f ro m t he p reh is tor ic s heep e xemp l if ied b y t he S oay. O f p ar t icu lar i n teres t i s t he l arge n umber o f " grey" w oo ls o n t h is s i te . Th is a ccords w i th e v idence f ro m s urv iv ing b reeds , t ha t t he p redo minan t s heep i n Europe f ro m t he I ron Age t o t he M idd le Ages h ad a r ange o f f l eece c o lours ( see a bove ). The S axon p er iod J udg ing b y t he n u mber o f p lace n ames wh ich embody a r eference t o s heep , t hey were f ound e verywhere d ur ing t he S axon p er iod .

Excava t ions a t Wes t

S tow , S u f fo lk , i nd ica te we l l o rgan ised t ex t i le a c t iv i ty , a nd t here a re a lso i nd ic a t ions t ha t woo l c lo th was e xpor ted , a s i th ad b een d ur ing Roman t imes . O f c ourse t he e xpor t o f wool , a nd l a ter o f c loth , d ur ing t he M idd le Ages was t o b eco me t he ma jor e cono m ic a c t iv i ty o f t he c oun try. S axon i l lus tra t ions

2 24

TABLE 1 :

COMPAR ISON OF ROMAN AND SAXON WOOLS A l l o ther Ro man

S axon

( i nc l . Europe )

( Eng land o n ly )

V indo landa Ha iry

( 1 )

-

Ha iry med ium

3 4% (19 )

1 4% (12 )

2 3% (10 )

G enera l ised med iu m

3 4% (19 )

1 5% (13 )

2 3% ( 10 )

F ine ,g enera l ised med.

1 8% (10 )

3 9% (34 )

3 0% (13 )

True med ium

2% (1 )

3 .5% (3 )

S hor twool

4% (2 )

1 .5% (1 )

F ine

9% (5 )

5% (2 )

2 7% (23 )

1 9% (8 )

( f ro m Ryder , 1 980a )

TABLE 2 :

EXTENT OF NATURAL P IGMENTATION I N THE V INDOLANDA W OOLS ( ACTUAL NU MBER ) 1 00% p igmen ted

mix ture ( "grey" ) -

n o p ig men t

Ha iry

-

Ha iry med iu m

3

1 1

5

1 9

G en. med ium

1

1 2

6

1 9

F ine , g en. med ium

1

3

6

1 0

F ine

-

2

3

5

S hor twool

-

-

2

2

Med iu m

-

1

-

1

( f ro m Ryder , 1 980d )

2 25

1

t ota l 1

a re v ir tua l ly n on-ex is ten t , a l though t he Caedmon manuscr ip t h as a n i nd ica t ion o f h orned r ams a nd p o l led e wes ( Ryder 1 980e : 3 74 ). O f f our teen y arns f ro m t he S axon s i tes o f Broo mf ie ld Barrow , E ssex , C oo mbe , K en t , a nd S u t ton H oo , S u f fo lk , o n ly f i ve h ad a ny p igmen t .

The s ame

r ange o f f l eece t ypes a s t hose f ro m Ro man s i tes was f ound , b u t t here were a s many a s s even f i ne woo ls , s ix g enera l ised med ium woo ls ( ha lf o f wh ich were t he f i ner v ers ion ) a nd o n ly o ne h a iry med ium woo l ( Ryder 1 969 ).

The S u t ton H oo

s h ip b ur ia l p rov ided mos t o f t he f i ne woo ls , a nd t hese c ou ld h ave o r ig ina ted a broad . Table 1 i nc ludes l a ter s amp les f rom a dd i t iona l s i tes , e ven s o t he p rop or t ion o f f i ne o r r e la t ive ly f i ne t ypes i s s tr ik ing .

O ne o f t he t rue med iu m

s a mp les was a s heepsk in f ro m Durham d a ted a bou t AD 1 000 a nd d escr ibed b y R yder ( 1977a ). Three ma in p oss ib le i n troduc t ions o f s heep i n to Br i ta in h ave b een ment i oned , f i rs t , t he b rown S oay ;

s econd , t he I ron Age v an-co loured , w h ich

s t i l l , h owever , h ad a s hor t t a i l , a nd t h ird aR o man wh i te s heep w i th a l ong t a i l .

Af our th ma in t ype i s t he b lack-faced , h orned t ype w i th a t rue h a iry

f l eece , wh ich p ers is ts t oday i n s uch b reeds a s t he S co t t ish B lackface . Few t ex t i le r e ma ins o f t h is f l eece t ype h ave b een f ound , p oss ibly b ecause t he woo l i s t oo h a iry f or c lo th ing , b eing u sed t oday ma in ly i n c arpe ts , s o t here i s l ess e v idence o n when i ta rr ived .

I tw i l l b e r e me mbered t ha t a l l t he I ron A ge

r e ma ins ( sk ins ) a nd o ne Ro man s tap le , were o f t h is t ype ( see a bove ).

B ecause

t hese s heep a re s uper f ic ia l ly s imi lar t o many A s ia t ic b reeds , i th as l ong b een s ugges ted t ha t t heir u l t i ma te o r ig in i s As ia . t he Pazir ik s amp le was h a iry.

I ti s t herefore o f i n terest t ha t

The a rea o ccup ied b y t he D anes b efore t he N orman C onques t c orresponds v ery r ough ly w i th t he a rea i n wh ich t he b lack-faced , h orned t ype l a ter emerged i n to h is tory , a nd t h is h as l ed t o t he s ugges t ion t ha t t h is f our th ma in s tock was i n troduced b y t he Danes ( Ryder 1 972 ).

S uppor t f or t h is c an b e g a ined f ro m

t he e x is tence o f as im ilar s heep i n t he p as t i n D en mark .

The Du tch , G erman ,

a nd P ol ish " Hea th" b reeds were o nce t hough t t o b e o f t he s ame g enera l t ype , b u t t hese h ave g rey i nd iv idua ls a nd t end t o h ave a s hor t t a i l , a nd s d a ppear t o b e long t o t he v an -coloured g roup .

S o me Dan ish t ex t i les e xcava ted i n York

i n f ac t c on ta ined t rue h a iry woo l ( Ryder 1 974 ).

I ti s j us t p oss ible t ha t t he

b lack-faced h orned t ype e vo lved i n Br i ta in . Many n or thern a reas were o ccup ied b y t he V ik ings , a nd mos t N orse woo ls measured were f rom S co t land ( Ryder 1 968b ).

The g enera l i mpress ion was

t ha t t hey were more h a iry ( i .e . h a iry med ium ) b u t h ad l ess p igmen ta t ion t han Ro man a nd S axon wools .

O rkney a nd S het land w ere o ccup ied b y Norsemen

u n t i l t he 1 5th c en tury , a nd s o t he v an -co loured s heep p ers ist ing i n t hese i sland g roups may c on ta in S cand inav ian i nf luence i ns tead o f b e ing s i mp le s urv iva ls f ro m t he I ron Age. Th is p aper b egan b y s et t ing t he s cene i n t he p er iods p r ior t o t hose u nder c ons idera t ion . B y t he s a me t oken i ts hou ld e nd b y s um mar ising t he f l eece t ypes o f t he s ucceed ing med ieva l p er iod .

Desp i te t he v i ta l impor tance o f woo l

t o Eng land d ur ing t he Midd le Ages , o n ly d ur ing t he l as t d ecade h ave a pprec iab le t ex t i le r e ma ins b eco me a va i lable f or s tudy.

2 26

The f i ndings f ro m t hese a re

1 4

c • I

s . 4

T 1

0

C O

; Zr

t r J

c e

•

r

0 1"

t r z

e

1 g 1 4

. . &"i '

C ' Z t 1 3 ' N

C . 0

e

c q

eL z )

00 C I

0 0 r I

• 14

7 14

L C

C . 0 c r )

5 3 '

-

N

N

o

o

e

N

N

i t

r 4

g e i f )

c o

. . V )

. . r-1

C O

CD

c q

ri

c e

1 1

0 0

r I

00

L • • G O

c n g e

e sz , L C Z

C . 0

jZ ' «

c e j C Y Z

C \ 1

1 4

g > . 1 4

1 3 •

2 27

1 3th-14th c en t .

1 2th-14th c en t . Yorksh ire

0

Baynard 's Cas t le

London , Baynard 's Cas t le

v I

Baynard 's Cas t le

C I ) C . )

1 3th-14th c ent .

•

S ou tha mp ton

1 2th-13 th c en t .

1 4

Winches ter

G enera l ised

c o

L " -

cO

( f ro m Ryder ,

z

SU M MARY OF FLEECE TYPES I N BRITISH MEDIEVAL WOOLS

N

s ;

▪ c i p

TABLE 3 :

CD

rI

s u m mar ised i n T able 3 f ro m R yder ( 1980a ) f ro m wh ich i tc an b e s een t ha t t he g enera l ised med ium f l eece t ype p redo mina ted . S u m mary The woo l i n t he e ar l ies t t ex t i le r e ma ins ( f ro m t he Bronze Age ) i nd ica tes af l eece t ype l i ke t ha t o f t he b rown S oay s heep ( ha iry med iu m a nd g enera l ised med iu m ).

B y t he I ron Age i ta ppears t ha t t here w ere b lack , wh i te a nd g rey

s heep , i n a dd i t ion t o b rown f l eeces , b u t t hey w ere s t i l l h a iry med ium a nd g enera l ised med ium i n t ype .

The g rea tes t n umber o f f i nds c o me f rom t he

R o man p er iod , a nd t hese s ugges t t ha t t here were more h a iry t ypes i n B r i ta in t han o n t he c ont inen t . a lso e vo lv ing .

The modern t rue med ium a nd s hor twoo l f l eeces w ere

The f ew S axon r e ma ins a va i lab le h ave i nc luded a h igh p ropor-

t i on o f f i ne woo ls , b u t i t c ou ld h ave b een a bou t t h is t ime t ha t t he t rue h a iry t ype ( now u sed i n c arpe ts ) r eached Br i ta in o r e vo lved l oca l ly. B ib l iography H ard ing , D . W. ( 1974 ) R yder , M. L . ( 1 966 )

The I ron Age i n L ow land Br i ta in . S he t land s heep a nd woo l .

Tex t i le S oc ie ty 1 965-66 R yder , M. L . ( 1968a ) b iolog ie 8 5 S tud ies 1 2 R yder , M. L . ( 1969 )

9 1-99.

F leece s truc ture i n s o me n a t ive a nd u n i mproved

b reeds o f s heep . R yder , M. L . ( 1968b )

J ourna l o f t he Brad ford

Z e i tschr i f t f i lr T ierz i lch tung u nd Z uch tungs-

1 43-170 . The e vo lu t ion o f S cot t ish b reeds o f s heep

S co t t ish

1 27-167. C hanges i n t he f l eece o f s heep f o l low ing d o mes t ica t ion

( w i th a n ote o n t he c oa t o f c a t t le ).

I n :

The D o mes t ica t ion a nd

E xplo i ta t ion o f P lan ts a nd A n i ma ls . ( eds Ucko , P . J . a nd D imb leby , G . W.)

L ondon :

R yder , M . L . ( 1972 )

Duckwor th p p . 4 95-521 .

The w oo ls o f Br i ta in

C hap . 4 I n :

I ndus try o f G rea t Br i ta in ( ed J enk ins , J . G .)

The Wool T ex t i le L ondon :

R ou t ledge

8 /K eg a n Pau l . R yder , M. L . ( 1974 ) R yder , M. L . ( 1977a )

Wools f ro m A n t iqu i ty

T ex t i le H is tory 5 1 00-110 .

S o me misce l laneous a nc ien t f leece r e ma ins .

J ourna l o f Archaeo log ica l S c ience 4 1 77-181 . Ryder , M. L . ( 1977b )

The V indo la nda woo ls

I n :

V indo la nda I I The T ex t i les

( W i ld , J . P .) V indo landa Trust , H exham R yder , M. L . ( 1980a )

p p . 3 4-41 .

Med ieva l s heep a nd t heir w oo l t ypes .

C ounc i l f or

Br i t ish Archaeo log y ( i n p ress ). R yder , M. L . ( 1980b )

The p r im i t ive b reeds o f d o mes t ic s heep o f Europe .

Proceed ings o f t he 3 rd i n terna t iona l Archaeozoo log ica l C on ference , P o land 1 978 ( i n p ress ). R yder , M. L . ( 1980c )

F leece c o lour i n s heep a nd i t s i nher i tance

Breed ing A bs trac ts 4 8 3 05-324.

2 28

A n ima l

R yder , M. L . ( 1980d )

Woo ls f ro m V indo landa

J ourna l o f Archaeolog ica l

S c ience ( sub m i t ted ). R yder , M. L . ( 1980e )

" L ivestock" p p . 3 01-410 i n P iggo t t , S . ( Ed .).

The Agrar ian H is tory o f E ng land & Wa les v o l . 1 Par t I C a mbr idge U n ivers i ty P ress ( i n p ress ). W i ld , J . P . ( 1970 ) T ex t i le Manu fac ture i n t he Nor thern Ro man P rov inces . C ambr idge U n ivers i ty P ress .

2 29

1 1 .

D ISEASE AS AN ENV IRON MENTAL PARA METER Don Bro thwe l l

I ti s t o t he c red i t o f t he o rgan isers o f t h is c onference t ha t d isease was c ons idered t o b e a n a spec t o f t he e nv iron men t wor thy o f p ar t icu lar c ons idera t ion . T h is i nd ica tes n ot o n ly a n e xpand ing r ange o f s ub jec ts b eing i nves t iga ted w i th in e nv iron men ta l a rchaeo logy , b u t a lso t he f ac t t ha t ab e t ter b a lance , a more e co log ica l ly c o mplete v iew o f p as t h u man e nv iron men ts , i s b e ing a ch ieved . The s tudy o f d isease i s b oth a s pec ia l ised b io log ica l f i e ld , a nd y et a t t he s ame t ime h as u n iversa l i n teres t f or u s a l l .

Every o ne o f u s h as d irec t e x-

p er ience o f d isease , a nd i f we i nc lude t rauma ( or a cc iden ta l d a mage ) , t hen d isease i n s o me f orm o r a no ther i s o bv ious ly r espons ible f or e very d ea th . T h is i s s o f or a l l v er tebra tes , a nd i t i s t herefore s o me th ing wh ich c an b e i nves t iga ted n ot o n ly i n e ar l ier h uman p opu la t ions , b u t a lso i n r e la t ion t o t he more g enera l f i e ld o f z oo a rchaeo log y. I ti s n o t my i n tent ion h ere t o g ive a g enera l a ccoun t o f t h is v as t s ub jec t— t ime d oesn 't p er mi t t h is .

F or a nyone w ish ing t o r ead f ur ther o n g enera l v er te-

b ra te p a laeopa tho log y , o ne c an b e r eferred t o an ew b ook c a l led An i ma l D ise ases i n Archaeology ( Baker a nd Brothwe l l 1 980 ).

I n c on tras t t o t h is w ide-

r ang ing s tudy , my c oncern h ere i s t o l ook i n p ar t icu lar a t t he e v idence f or d isease i n t he l i ves tock o f e ar ly Br i t ish f armers f ro m p os t-Bronze Age t o med ieva l t imes .

Th is was a p er iod when a n e xpand ing h uman p opu la t ion was

p robably mak ing i ncreasing d e mands o f f ar m ing e cono m ies , a nd y e t t h is was a lso a t ime when s tandards o f l i ves tock ma in tenance were l i ke ly t o h ave b een e le men tary a nd p erhaps r a ther e xper imen ta l . There i s n o q ues t ion t ha t t he e ar ly f armers h ad many p roble ms t o r esolve , a nd e ven i n a dvanced f ar m ing t oday , d isease , p re ma ture d ea th ( and t herefore s er ious e cono m ic was tage ) c an o ccur .

A n e xamp le o f t h is i s s een i n t he 1 957

r epor t ( Pro jec t No. 3 45 ) o f t he 0 .E.E. C . c oncerned w i th l osses j us t i n y oung f ar m a n i ma ls .

Pre-weaning mor ta l ity a lone v ar ied i n c a t t le f ro m d if feren t

European c oun tr ies , f ro m o ne t o a s many a s t h ir ty p ercen t .

The c h ief c auses

o f mor ta li ty were g ene t ic f ac tors , i nfec t ious d isease f ro m micro-organ is ms , a nd t he d iseases p roduced b y l arger p aras i tes . I n p igs , p re-wean ing mort a l i ty was b e tween e igh teen a nd o ver t h ir ty p ercen t , a nd i n s heep a verage l osses were a bou t f i f teen p ercen t .

I t s ee ms h igh ly u n l ike ly t ha t e ar ly f arming

c o m mun it ies wou ld h ave e xper ienced p ercen tages wh ich were l ess t han t hese f igures , f or a l though i n tensive b reed ing may h ave b oos ted t he f requency o f s o me f ac tors , h yg iene g enera l ly i s l i ke ly t o b e s ign i f ican t ly b e t ter t oday. S o e ven p r ior t o weaning , e ar ly f armers wou ld b e p resen ted w i th t he c o m mon a nd p uzzling f ac t t ha t n u mbers o f y oung a n i ma ls d ied .

Added t o t h is , o f c ourse ,

a re a l l t he p roble ms o f k eep ing t he a du l t a n i ma l h ea l thy.

2 31

S he l ter Warmth V ent i lat ion Space L igh t E qu ip men t e tc . A t tendan ts G enera l S yste ms " A l lin , a l l-out" Age s egrega t ion S egrega t ion o f n ew ly-bough t a n i ma ls e tc .

F ig . 1 1 .1

B a lance o f r a t ions R egu lar ity o f f eed ing Adequacy o f t r ough s pace e tc .

1

1

P as ture manage men t

AN I MAL

P ar t icu lar S y te ms C are a t p ar tur it ion C are o f n ew b orn Wean ing C as t ra t ion S hear ing M i lk ing e tc .

C lean ing a nd d is infec t ion D isposa l o f f aeces D isposa l o f c a rcases

The c o mp lex o f h usbandry f ac tors wh ich may a f fec t t he a b i li ty o f ma m ma ls t o w i ths tand d isease ( Af ter H a lp in 1 975 ) .

Morbid i ty a nd o vera l l was tage , a s e xemp l i f ied b y modern d a iry h erds i s i n t he r eg ion o f t wen ty p ercen t , a nd t h is i s w i th r easonab le v e ter inary c are . S o wha t c ou ld i th ave b een i n t he p as t? Moreover , h ow much n o t ice was t aken o f d isease , h ow much was c aused b y man , a nd wha t h appened t o t he a n ima ls s how ing a bnorma l i ty? S o me o f t he a nswers a re c er ta in ly t o b e f ound i n t he ir r ema ins , e ven t hough s of t t i ssue i s a bsen t . A lso , i ti s n ot s imp ly a ma t ter o f a t te mp t ing t o e s tab l ish s o me k ind o f c rude e s t ima te o f o vera l l morbid i ty , f or w e c an h ope t o s epara te s o me o f t he e nv ironmen ta l f ac tors i n f luenc ing o r p roduc ing d isease. Id on t mean t ha t t he c omp lex mesh o f f ac tors i n d isease e co logy , s ome o f wh ich a re s hown i n f ig . 1 1 :1 , c an b e p rec ise ly r evea led , b u t t ha t s o me a spec ts o f f eed ing , h ousing , h and l ing , t ype o f p aras i te , a nd s o o n , migh t b e i den t i f iab le. The r ange o f s ke leta l p a tho log y wh ich may o ccur i s i n f ac t c ons iderab le a nd t he n a ture o f t he b one c hanges i s a lso h igh ly v ar ia ble , a s Ih ope t o d emons tra te i n ab r ief way. C lear ly , w i th t h is s or t o f i n for ma t ion o ne migh t g o i n f or t ha t p opu lar a rchaeo log ica l p as t ime o f model mak ing , t h is t ime i n t erms o f r econs truc t ing p oss ib le mor ta l i ty , o r d isease o ccurrence , b u t my c oncern h ere i s t o r ev iew s ome o f t he a c tua l e v idence o f d isease i n t he l i ves tock o f t hese e ar ly Br i t ish f arming c o m mun i t ies a nd u rban s amp les . Dur ing t he p as t f ew y ears , as ign if ican t s tar t h as b een made r egard ing t he c o l lec t ion o f e v idence f or l i ves tock d isease a s s hown b y c hanges t o t he b ones a nd t ee th . Th is , o f c ourse , o n ly p rov ides r es tr ic ted i n forma t ion , b u t n ever the less i ti s p oss ib le t o d e mons tra te q u i te a r ange o f e nv ironmen ta l lyl i nked p a tho log y.

Ra ther t han a t te mp t a ny d e ta i led l i s t ing o f a l l r epor ted

a bnorma l i ty , Iwan t t o c oncen tra te o n p ar t icu lar s pec imens , d isease c a teg or ies , a nd s amp les wh ich d e mons tra te w el l t he e x ten t o f t he e v idence s o f ar , a nd t he p oten t ia l o f t h is f i e ld . C ongen i ta l A bnorma l i ty We s hou ld b eg in b y c ons ider ing i nborn e rrors o f d eve lopmen t . These c an i nd ica te g ene t ic v ar ia t ion o r i n s o me c ond i t ions g row th c hanges l i nked t o a n i n tra-u ter ine e nv ironmen t . Var ia t ions i n t he n umber o f t ee th may we l l b e g ene t ica l ly p rogram med a nd t hus n o t iceable f requency d i f ferences may i nd ica te i nbreeding o r t he ma in tenance o f s pec i f ic k inds o f s tock wh ich c arry t hese v ar ian ts . ( See A ndrews a nd Nodd le 1 975 f or a g enera l d iscuss ion ). I ti s t herefore i n terest ing t o n ote t ha t f ive c ases o f a bsence o f s econd mand ibu lar p re mo lars i n c a t t le a ppear i n b oth Ro man a nd med ieva l Exe ter ( Ma l tby 1 979 ) , s ix teen c ases o f ma in ly p re mo lar a bsence o ccur a t I ron Age G ussage A l l S a in ts ( Harcour t 1 980 ) , a nd i n S axon c a t t le f rom ' Hamw ih ' ( S ou thamp ton ) 1 0 .9% o f t he l ower s econd p re molars a re a bsen t ( Bourd i l lon a nd C oy 1 980 ). A l though t hese f requenc ies a re t oo f ew a s y e t , t hey c er ta in ly s ugges t t ha t t he c o l lec t ion o f f ur ther s amp le d a ta may p rov ide e v idence o f b o th t e mpora l a nd s pa t ia l v ar ia t ion l i nked w i th t he micro-evo lu t ion o f c a t t le s tocks i n r e la t ion t o t hese e ar ly B r i t ish p opu la t ions . O ther c ongen t ia l t ra i ts may s im i lar ly d eserve more d et a i led c ons idera t ion . J ohn Baker h as k ind ly g iven me u npubl ished i n forma t ion o n t he a n i ma l p a tho logy f ro m Ro man t o med ieva l Winches ter , a nd t h is i nc luded 3 2 more n o t iceab le c ongen i ta l v ar ian ts , i nc lud ing a bnorma l p er fora t ions t hrough t he o cc ip i ta l b one o f c a t t le s ku l ls , a nd t he n ontrauma t ic c lef t ing o f t he a r t icu lar s urfaces o f s ome b ones i n c a t t le a nd s heep . Th is c lef t ing o f t he a r t icu lar s ur face

2 33

P la te 1 1 .I F rag men t o fb ov id p e lv is s how ing e v idence o f d is loca t ion a nd af a lse j oin t ( w i th e burna t ion a rrowed) .

Danebury .

p robab ly h as n o t b een f u l ly r epor ted i n t he p as t , a l though i t s f requency a t N or ton Pr iory was 1 3% a t o ne p er iod .

S yndac t i l is m i s k nown i n v ar ious

mam ma ls ( Gruneberg 1 963 ) a nd a rchaeolog ica l e xamp les o f t he f us ion o f d ig i ts o f t he h ands o r f ee t a re k nown .

As heep a t G ussage A l l S a in ts d isp layed

s yndac ty ly i n t wo u n i ted t h ird p ha langes ( one a bnor ma l i n s hape ) , a nd s im i lar i nstances a re k nown f ro m t he O sborne H ouse s i te , Ro msey ( Coy , i n S iege l 1 976 ). A s i n o ther f orms o f p a tho log y , t here i s v a lue a t t imes i n a t te mp ting t o c ons truc t a n o vera l l f requency e s t ima te , b u t f or s o me a bnorma l i t ies e ven o ne o r t wo s pec imens may t e l l u s al o t .

Fro m t he R o man s i te o f U ley , f or i n-

s tance , d o mes t ic f ow l s ku l ls i nc luded o ne w i th a g ene t ica l ly d e term ined s evere a no ma ly c a l led c erebra l h ern ia ( Brothwe l l 1 979 ).

Th is o ccurs o n ly i n c er ta in

b reeds o f s o-ca l led c res ted f ow l , a nd c ou ld i nd ica te t he o ccurrence o f t h is v ar ie ty b y Ro man t imes .

Af i na l e xamp le o f a n u nusua l p oss ible c ongen i ta l

v ar ian t , wh ich p oses s o me p rovoca t ive q ues t ions , i s f ro m P or tches ter C as t le. T he ma ter ia l h as b een k ind ly h anded t o me f or s tudy b y A nn ie G ran t ( w i th t he a gree ment o f Barry C un l i f fe ).

Th is p os t-Ro man s pec imen ( P la te 1 1 :I ) i s

p ar t o f ac ow p e lv is , a nd d isp lays a n a cetabu lar s ocket mod i f ied b y d isuse , w i th c hanges a nd ' po l ish ing ' o n t he b one a bove t he a ce tabu lu m i nd ica t ive o f a f a lse j oin t w i th t he f e mora l h ead .

The h is tory o f t h is c ase may we l l b e t ha t

ac ongen i ta l d ysp las ia o f t he h ip e ven tua l ly g ave r ise t o af u l l d is loca t ion o f t he f e mur s o me t ime a f ter b ir th .

O nce t he d is loca t ion o ccurred , move men t

w ou ld h ave b een d i f f icu l t a nd c lumsy.

Bu t t he e v idence s ugges ts t ha t t he

a n i ma l s urv ived i n to a du l thood a nd t he P or tches ter c o m mun i ty d id n ot k i l l i t a s n o t iceab ly d efec t ive s tock .

I n as im i lar way , t he I ron Age l u mbar v etebrae

f ro m Danebury s een i n P la te 1 1 : I ( aga in b y c our tesy o f Barry C un l if fe a nd A nn ie G ran t ) s how d eform i t ies p robab ly i nd ica t ive o f c ongen i ta l a bnorma l i ty , wh ich i s f ur ther e v idence o f a no ther c om mun i ty t o leran t t o n ot iceab le a bnorma l i ty i n i t s l i ves tock . G row th a nd Nu tr i tion C ongen i ta l d efec ts must b e c ons idered a s o n ly p hase 1o f as er ies o f p roble ms wh ich e ar ly c o m mun i t ies b ecame a cqua in ted w i th i n t heir l i ves tock . The g row ing a nima l may e xper ience c l i ma t ic s tress , v ar iable ' hous ing ' c ond i t ions a nd h yg iene , a nd e spec ia l ly d i f fer ing n u tr i t iona l l eve ls .

The e f fec t

o n s ke le ta l g row th c an b e modes t , p roduc ing sma l l s ca le s ize d i f ferences , o r e normous , a s i n s evere r ickets . t hese e x tre mes .

Mos t s igns o f f eed ing p rob le ms f a l l b etween

The i nc iden ts c an b e i so la ted , a s i n t he p oor b one a nd t oo th

c a lc if ica t ion i n a n i mma ture I ron Age d og f ro m Ma iden C as t le ( S iege l 1 976 ) o r t he b ov ine l ong b ones f ro m t he G oss S tree t s i te i n Ches ter where g row th s ee med t o h ave b een i nh ibi ted f or a p er iod s o me t ime p r ior t o d ea th ( Baker a nd Bro thwe l l 1 980 ). S i mi lar ly , ab ov ine s ku l l . f ro m S ou tha mp ton d isp lays a f orm o f o s teoporos is wh ich may i nd ica te p rotein a nd minera l d ef ic iency ( Nodd le 1 975 ). G row th a t t he e p iphysea l p la te may b e v arying ly a f fec ted , a p robable e xamp le b e ing s een i n a n I ron Age p ig f ore l i mb f ro m Danebury ( P la te 1 1 :I I I ).

R ib a nd l ong b one f ragmen ts f ro m a n umber o f S co t t ish a nd

E ng l ish s i tes s how c hanges s ugges t ive o f r icke ts ( Baker a nd Bro thwe l l 1 980 ). Bu t b y f ar t he c o m mones t e v idence p oss ibly i nd ica t ive o f d i f feren t n u tr i t iona l e nv iron men ts i s t o b e s een i n s heep h orn c ores a nd i n t he o ra l h ea l th o f s heep .

2 35

C ENT IMETRES

I NCHES

C ENT iMETRES

I NCHES

P la te 1.1 1

L u mbar v er tebra l b odies p ar t ly u n i ted a nd d eformed , s ugges t ing c ongen i ta l d eform i ty . D anebury . Two v iews o f s ame s pec imen .

P la te 1. I I

E v idence o f r e tarded g row th ( espec ia l ly a t t he e p iphysea l p la tes ) i n a Danebury p ig f ore limb b one ( r igh t ) , s een i n c ompar ison w i th a h ea lthy modern s pec imen ( l ef t ) .

P la te 1 1 .I V

T ypica l e v idence o f Danebury s heep o ra l p a tho logy ( c a lcu lus , p er iodon ta l d isease a nd t oo th l oss ) . s pec imen .

Two v iews o f s ame

S o me y ears a go , Ha t t ing ( 1975 ) s ugges ted t ha t i nden ta t ions o n s heep h orn c ores migh t b e r ela ted t o s evere w in ter c ond i t ions a nd ma lnu tr i t ion .

When

w e l ook f or t h is d efec t i n e ar ly Br i t ish ma ter ia l , i tc an b e s een a t v ar ious s i tes , I ron Age Danebury , Ro man P or tches ter , Winches ter a nd C an terbury. A t S axon S ou tha mp ton , n ear ly a q uarter o f t he h orn c ores s how t h is f ea ture ( Bourd i l lon a nd C oy 1 980 ) , a nd c lear ly f ur ther s tud ies — inc lud ing t hose d one o n modern s heep—need t o b e u nder taken t o c lar ify t h is p o ten t ia l ly u sefu l e nv iron men ta l marker . I n t he c ase o f t he p a tholog y o f t he mou th , t he s i tua t ion i s c o mp lex , w i th n o t o n ly a n umber o f d is t inc t d isease e n t i t ies , b u t w i th s uch f ac tors a s f ood h ardness a nd c o mpos i t ion , e x ten t o f c a lcu lus ( t ar tar ) d epos i ts , a l ign men t o f t eeth , a nd t he n a ture o f t he o ra l micro-organ is ms o f t he mou th , a l l p roduc ing d i f feren t e f fec ts . s amp les .

Wha t i s i mpress ive i s t he amoun t o f o ra l p a tho logy i n s o me

Moreover , t here i s _so me modern c l in ica l e v idence t o s ugges t t ha t

t he h ea l th o f t he g u ms a nd a lveo lar b one i n t he r eg ion o f t he t ee th i s r e la ted t o s o me e x ten t t o d ie tary h ea l th .

Harcour t ( 1980 ) s ugges ts t h is l i nk i n h is

i n terpre ta t ion o f s heep p er iodon ta l d isease i n I ron Age ma ter ia l f ro m G ussage A l l S a in ts .

My own i nves t iga t ion o f Danebury s heep j aw p a tho log y ( exe mp l i f ied

i n P la te 1 1 :IV ) s ugges ts a f ood l i nk a lso .

Ann ie G ran t ( 1975 ) s im i lar ly r epor ts

t ha t Ro man P or tchester Cas t le s heep were p rone t o d ie t-rela ted p er iodon ta l d isease .

I n as tudy o f al arge s amp le o f S axon s heep f ro m W icken B onhun t ,

L ev i tan ( 1977 ) s howed t ha t av ery l arge n umber h ad p er iodon ta l d isease , e spec ia l ly i n t he r eg ion o f t he l as t p re mo lar a nd f i rs t mo lar .

I n c on tras t t o

t hese f i nd ings , a nd i n f ac t i n c on f l ic t w i th t he e v idence o f t he h orn c ore i ndent a t ions , t he S axon H a mw ih s heep ( Bourd i l lon a nd C oy 1 980 ) s ee med t o b e r emarkab ly f ree o f t h is o ra l p a tho logy.

I nc iden ta l ly , s o me o f t he d egrees o f

g um i nf lam ma t ion a nd a lveo lar b one swe l l ing ( a t t imes w i th t oo th l oss ) c ou ld h ave d eterred f eed ing a nd d ragged d own t he g enera l h ea l th o f t he s heep , b u t c lear ly t he s hepherds were e i ther n o t a ware o f t h is , o r i gnored t he f ac t i n s o me l oca l i t ies . T rau ma a nd I t s C onsequenc ies Throughou t g row th a nd i n to ma ture l i fe , a n ima ls may s u f fer t rauma , o r a cc iden ta l d amage.

Th is may r ef lec t a n a spec t o f s urv ivorsh ip w i th in a n

e nv iron men t o r e ven p rov ide i nforma t ion o n t he t rea t men t o f a n ima ls b y Man . T here a re , o f c ourse , many a rchaeo log ica l e xamp les o f f rac tures a nd o ther i n jur ies t o b one , b u t Iwan t t o c ons ider h ere o n ly t hose wh ich a re mean ing fu l e nv iron men ta l ly.

O ne c a tegory i s t he t rac t ion i n jury , r esu l t ing f ro m t he u se

o f a n i ma ls f or t rac t ive p urposes o ver l ong p er iods , l ead ing t o d egenera t ive j o in t c hanges .

I n Baker 's ( 1980 ) a na lys is o f t he Winches ter ma m ma ls o f

R o man t o med ieva l d a te , h e f ound e v idence o f u se i n jury i n 8 2 b ov ids a nd 3 h orses .

I n t he ma jor i ty o f c ases , t h is was i n t he f orm o f p elv ic j o in t c hanges

( e burna t ion w i th in t he a ce tabu lu m ) , t he r esu l t o f r epea ted o ver-ro ta t ion o f t he f e mur h ead , p erhaps i n a n a t te mp t o n t he p ar t o f t he a n i ma l t o move h eav i ly l aden c ar ts o n b ad s ur faces o r p loughs i n h eavy s oi l . ' Penn ing e lbow ' i s at rau ma t ic j oin t c ond i t ion o f s heep , wh ich i s r ecogn ised b y s hepherds a s b e ing l i nked w i th t he u se o f p ens f or manage men t p urposes . L ike c a t t le t rac t ion i n jur ies , t here i s an eed f or a s ys te ma t ic i nves t iga t ion o f t h is c ond i t ion i n a rchaeolog ica l s amp les , a nd o ne c an o n ly s ay a t p resen t t ha t

2 39

C ENT IMETRES

P la te I :V P oster ior ( above ) a nd l a tera l ( be low ) v iews o f ab ov id t i b ia s how ing f racture a nd s o me h ea l ing . D anebury .

i to ccurred a t s o me s i tes .

Bourd i l lon a nd C oy ( 1980 ) n o te t en b ones o f t he

s heep e lbow f ro m S axon Hamw ih w i th a r thr i t ic c hanges s ugges t ive o f t h is c ond i t ion .

B y f ar t he g rea tes t e v idence c o mes f ro m Ro man t o med ieva l

s heep a t Winches ter , where t he l arge n u mber o f c ases i nd ica tes t ha t p enn ing was u sed o ver a l ong p er iod o f t ime ( Baker 1 980 ). Af i na l a spec t o f t rau ma wh ich s hou ld b e men t ioned i s t he q ues t ion o f i n jury i n r e la t ion t o s er ious manhand l ing .

Examp les c o me r ead i ly f ro m t he

I ron Age Danebury p a tho logy wh ich Iam a t p resen t work ing o n . t i bia ( P la te 1 1 : V ) s hows a s ha f t f rac ture w i th s o me h ea l ing .

O ne b ov id

I t i s d i f f icu l t

t o k now wha t c aused t h is i n jury t o s uch a l arge s trong b one , a nd o ne c an o n ly q ues t ion t he mot ives o f t he c o m mun i ty i n k eeping a l ive a n a n i ma l w i th s uch ma jor l eg d amage.

I n t he s ame way , wha t i nc iden t , wha t i mpac t , p roduced

t he d eep i n jury t o t he t horac ic n eura l s pine ( P la te 1 1 :V I ) , o r t he b roken i m ma ture c aprov id p e lv is ( P la te 1 1 :V I I ) o r t he f rac tures d eep i n t he w e l l musc led s capu lae o f p ig a nd b ov id f ro m Danebury? i s t he Danebury d og e v idence :

Mos t s urpr is ing o f a l l

i n o ne s pec imen , i n jury h ad c aused t oo th l oss

a nd d amage t o t he s nou t a nd o rb i ta l a rea ;

i n a nother , ab low t o t he p e lv is

h ad b roken t he f e mur h ead o f f i n t he s ocke t , p roduc ing a sep t ic n ecros is ( P la te 1 1 : V I I I ) , a f ter wh ich t he d og h ad l imped a nd s urv ived o n af a lse j o in t . The s urpr ise i s t ha t b o th d ogs s how b u tchery marks , a nd were p resumab ly e a ten —hard ly t he t rea tmen t f or a f am i ly p et . I n fec t ion a nd I n f lam ma t ion I nf lam ma tory c ond i t ions i n b ones c an b e i n t he f orm o f f i ne s ur face r eact i ons o r mass ive c hanges —des troying o r e xpand ing b one s hape .

R o man

P or tches ter C as t le p rov ides a n e xamp le o f e x tre mes , w i th t he k nee e nd o f a n o x t i bia a bscessed a nd g rea t ly s wo l len ( Gran t 1 975 ). The s we l l ing a nd p a in w ou ld h ave b een o bv ious ( no t t o men t ion a p us-dra in ing s inus ) , b u t t he a n ima l was n ot s laugh tered f or a c ons iderab le t ime.

S im i lar ly , t he D a nebury I ron

A ge c o m mun i ty k ep t ah orse ( P la te 1 1 :I X ) w i th s evere l ongter m o s teo mye l i t is o f t he mand ib le , a nd w i th t h is c ond i t ion i ti s u n l ikely t o h ave b een a w ork ing h orse , a nd e ven a s ap r ize s ta l l ion i t s p er formance wou ld p robab ly h ave l e f t much t o b e d es ired . More i mpor tan t t han t hese g enera l p a tho log ies o f u ncer ta in a e t io logy a re o f c ourse t he d iseases where o ne c an make a g uess a t t he micro-organ is ms wh ich a re p robab ly i nvo lved .

Th is n o t o n ly h e lps t o e s tabl ish t he a n t iqu i ty o f

as pec if ic p aras i te a nd d isease i n r e la t ion t o e ar ly a gr icu l tura l d evelop men ts , b u t i n s o me i nstances may t hrow l igh t o n t he p oss ibi l i ty o f h ea l th c hanges i n t he a ssoc ia ted h u man c om mun i ty. a t p resent s hor t b u t v ar iable .

The l i s t o f s pec if ic i n fec t ious d isease i s

I t s ee ms l i kely t ha t i fg rea ter a t ten t ion were

g iven t o e va lua t ing d isease , more c ond i t ions a nd more s pec i mens wou ld b e f ound . O f t he d isease e n t i t ies c aused b y t he micro-organ is m F us i form is n ecrophorus , o ne c ond i t ion c a l led ' f ou linthe-foo t ' h as o ccurred a t an umber o f s i tes . O s teo myel i t is may d eve lop f ro m t he i n i t ia l s of t t i ssue l es ion a t t he d ig i ts . I th as n ow b een i den t i f ied i n S axon a nd med ieva l c ows f ro m H ereford , t wo c ases f ro m S axon a nd med ieva l Winches ter , a nd a t l eas t f ive o ther i ns tances , i nc lud ing t wo f ro m I ron Age Dragonby . The c ond i t ion i s n o t u nco m mon t oday , a nd t he q ues t ion a r ises a s t o whe ther t he e v idence h as b een missed o r t he d isease h as b eco me c o m moner i n r e la t ion t o modern b reeds o f c a t t le? 2 41

P la te 1. V I

F rac tured a nd s em i-hea led b ov id n eura l s p ine f rom D anebury .

P la te 1 1 . V I I

B roken a nd s em i-hea led i mma ture c aprov id p e lv is .

—l a te

1. V I I I

Two v iews o f aD anebury d og p e lv is w i th t he f e mora l h ead b roken o f f a n te- mor tem a nd r ema in ing f ree w i th in t he a ce tabu lu m .

B utchery marks a re a lso t o b e s een ( arrowed) .

P la te 1 1 .1X

Danebury h orse mandib le ( two v iews ) s how ing a n e x tens ive i nf la mma tory r eac t ion i n t he r eg ion o f t he d ias te ma a nd men ta l f ora men o n t he l ef t ( arrowed) .

Lu mpy j aw i s a lso q u i te c o m mon t oday.

A c t ino myces b ov is c an i nvade

t he l ower j aw a nd c ause mass ive c hanges , b u t t here i s a ga in s urpr ising ly l i t t le e v idence o f t he d isease s o f ar . S ou thamp ton ( S iegel 1 976 ).

There i s ap oss ible c ase f ro m S axon

Harcour t ( 1971a ) n o tes t wo o ther p oss ible i ns tances ,

a nd t he e ar l ies t s pec imen i s f ro m Ro man Winches ter ( Baker 1 980 ).

Because

o f t he p rob le ms o f d if feren t ia t ing b e tween t he e ar ly s tages o f l u mpy j aw a nd j aw s we l lings r esu l t ing f ro m o ther t ypes o f i n fec t ion , a more d e ta i led a nd c arefu l e va lua t ion o f much o ra l p a tho log y n eeds t o b e u nder taken . The o rgan is m Bruce l la a bor tus p r imar i ly a f fec ts c a t t le a nd man , b u t a lso t o al esser e x ten t , h orses .

S urpr is ing ly , t he o n ly p oss ib le e v idence s o f ar

i s i n av er tebra l s pec i men f ro m Dragonby ( Baker 1 980b ).

I ft h is i s i ndeed

ac ase , t hen we s hou ld b eg in t o l ook f or b ruce l los is i n c on te mporary h u man a nd c a t t le g roups . A t p resen t , we k now n oth ing o f b ruce l los is i n c a t t le b efore 1 805 ( accord ing t o Da lry mp le-Cha mpneys 1 960 ). F ina l ly , o ne v ira l d isease wh ich i s s pec if ic t o c h ickens i s k nown a s a v ian o s teopetros is ( Baker 1 965 ). The v irus s t imu la tes t he f orma t ion o f much e x tra b one , a nd i n t he l a ter s tages t h is i s e asy t o i den t i fy i n l ong b ones .

A s ar esu l t o f a rchaeo log ica l ma ter ia l ,

we c an n ow e s tab l ish t ha t t he d isease may h ave a f fec ted e ar ly f ow ls o f Th is t le ton a nd Wicken B onhun t ( Harcour t 1 971b ;

Baker a nd Bro thwe ll 1 980 ).

S urpr is ing ly , n o o ther c ases a re k nown , a nd i ti s p oss ib le t ha t t he d isease f requency may h ave i ncreased n ot iceab ly w i th t he d eve lop men t o f modern h usbandry me thods . A s Is a id a t t he b eg inn ing , t h is c an o n ly b e ab r ief s um mary o f av as t r esearch f i e ld .

D iseases a re a s y e t l i t t le c ons idered i n t he f i eld o f e nv iron-

men ta l a rchaeology.

My h ope i s t ha t , b y r eference t o s o me e ar ly B r i t ish

e xamp les , o ne c an s ee t ha t i th as much i n forma t ion t o g ive a nd a s igni f ican t p lace w i th in t he s ub jec t a s awho le . Acknow ledge men ts Ig rea t ly a pprec ia te t he c ons iderable h elp o f A nn ie G ran t i n p rov id ing f ro m h er i n tensive z ooarchaeo log ica l s tudy a t Danebury , ma ter ia l f or t h is p aper .

Thanks a re s im i lar ly e x tended t o Barry C un l if fe , t he e xcava tor o f

t he Danebury s i te , a nd J ohn Baker who p rov ided v ar ious u npubl ished i nforma t ion f ro m h is own r ecen t s tud ies o n mam ma l b one p a tho logy.

Noe l S yers

k ind ly p rov ided b oth p hotograph ic a nd r ad iograph ic a ss is tance . B ib l iography A ndrews , A . H . a nd Nodd le , B . A . ( 1975 ).

A bsence o f p re mo lar t ee th f ro m

r um inan t mand ib les f ound a t a rchaeo log ica l s i tes .

J ourna l o f

Archaeo log ica l S c ience 2 1 37-144. Baker , J . ( 1965 ). Baker , J . ( 1980a ).

Av ian O s teope tros is .

Ph .D . t hesis , U n iversi ty o f Br is tol .

Manuscr ip t o n t he p a laeopa tho log y o f Winches ter mam ma ls.

U npubl ished , b u t s ub m i t ted f or p ub l ica t ion . Baker , J . ( 1980b ).

Dragonby.

D iseased b ones .

Manuscr ip t s ub m i t ted f or

p ub l ica t ion . Baker , J . a nd Bro thwe l l , D . ( 1980 ). A n i ma l D iseases i n Archaeo logy. L ondon : Acade m ic P ress .

2 46

B ourd i l lon , J . a nd C oy , J . ( 1980 ). The a n i ma l b ones . I n : Excava t ions a t Melbourne S tree t , S ou thamp ton , 1 971-76. ( ed H o ldswor th , P .) P ubl ished f or S .A .R. C . b y C ounc i l f or Br i t ish Archaeo logy , L ondon .

p p . 7 9-121 .

Bro thwe l l , D . ( 1 979 ).

R o man e v idence o f ac res ted f orm o f d o mes t ic f ow l ,

a s i nd ica ted b y as ku l l s how ing a ssoc ia ted c erebra l h ern ia . J ourna l o f Archaeo log ica l S c ience 6 2 91-293 . Da lry mp le-Champneys , W . ( 1960 ). Man .

L ondon :

G ran t , A . ( 1975 ). V o l . 1 .

Bruce l la I nfec t ion a nd U ndu lan t F ever i n

O x ford U n ivers i ty P ress .

The a n i ma l b ones . R o man .

S oc . An t iq ., 3 2 , L ondon . G r t inenberg , H . ( 1963 ).

I n :

Excava t ions a t P or tches ter C as t le ,

( ed C un l if fe , B .)

R epor ts R esearch C om m .

p p . 3 78-406.

The Pa tho logy o f Deve lopmen t .

H arcour t , R . A . ( 1971a ).

B lackwe l l .

The p a laeopa tho logy o f a n i ma l s ke le ta l r e ma ins.

V e ter inary R ecord 8 9 H arcour t , R . A . ( 1971b ).

O x ford :

2 67-272.

A n ima l b ones f ro m Th is t le ton .

R epor t o n f i le a t

D oE, A nc ien t Monumen ts L abora tory , L ondon . H arcour t , R . A . ( 1980 ).

The a n i ma l b ones .

I ron Age S e t t le men t i n Dorse t . L ondon . H a t t ing , T . ( 1975 ).

The i n f luence o f c as tra t ion o n s heep h orns . ( ed C lason , A . T .)

P ub l ish ing C o ., Ams terda m.

An

H .M .S .O .,

p p . 3 45-351 . a Methodo-

B .Sc . t hes is , U n ivers i ty o f L ondon .

Fauna l S tud ies o n U rban S i tes .

Exe ter 1 971-1975 .

I n :

N or th-Ho l land

Pa tho log ica l Ano ma l ies i n S heep Mand ibles :

l og ica l A pproach . Ma l tby , M. ( 1979 ).

G ussage A l l S a in ts .

p p . 1 50-160 .

A rchaeo log ica l S tud ies .

L ev i tan , B . ( 1977).

I n :

( ed Wa inwr igh t , G . J .)

The A n i ma l Bones f ro m

Exe ter Archaeo log ica l Repor ts , V o l . 2 .

Depar tmen t o f P reh is tory a nd Archaeo logy , S hef f ie ld . N odd le , B . A . ( 1975 ).

The a n i ma l b ones .

S ou thamp ton , 1 953-1969 . L e icester :

I n :

Excava t ions i n Med ieva l

( ed P la t t , C . a nd C o le man-S m i th , R .)

U n ivers i ty P ress .

p p . 3 32-335 .

ORGAN ISATION FOR EUROPEAN ECONO M IC COOPERATION ( 1957 ). C on trol o f L osses i n Young Farm A n i ma ls .

Pro jec t N o. 3 45 ,

OEEC , P ar is . S iegel , J . ( 1976 ).

A n i ma l p a laeopa tho log y :

p oss ibi l i t ies a nd p rob le ms.

J ourna l o f Archaeo log ica l S c ience 3 3 49-384 .

2 47

THE ECOLOGY OF S ETTLE MENT

1 2.

THE I RON AGE TO EARLY SAXON ENV IRON MENT OF THE UPPER THA MES TERRACES Mark Rob inson

I NTRODUCTION Th is p aper i s a n a t te mp t t o t race t he e nv iron men ta l h is tory o f t he a rea u nder c ons idera t ion u s ing ab road s pec trum o f e v idence , ma in ly b io log ica l , f ro m s i tes e xcava ted b y t he O x fordsh ire Archaeo log ica l U n i t . b io log ica l g roups u sed w ere :

The p r inc ipa l

p ol len , wa ter logged macroscop ic p lan t r e ma ins ,

i nsec ts a nd mo l luscs . The Upper Thames V a l ley i t se lf i s ac oheren t g eograph ica l d iv is ion , more o r l ess c on ta ined b y t he p resen t d ay c oun ty o f O xfordsh ire .

F ro m t he j unc t ion

o f a sma l l C otswo ld R iver Tha mes w i th t he R ivers C hurn , L each , C o ln a nd C o le i n t he r eg ion o f C r ick lade a nd L ech lade , t o t he G or ing G ap , where t he Thames f orces i t s way t hrough t he c ha lk s carp o f t he C h i l terns a nd Berksh ire D owns , t he l ower p ar t o f t he v a l ley h as a c ons is ten t c harac ter :

b road e xpanses

o f c a lcareous g ravel t erraces a nd s hor t c lay s lopes s tepp ing d own t o af l oodp la in t ha t i s s t i l l s o me t i mes i nunda ted .

A bove t he t erraces i s ah in ter land o f

w ider c lay s lopes , s ands h igher u p a nd r a ther b rashy l imes tone h i l l tops wh i le t he c ha lk d owns a re e ver p resen t f ur ther t o t he s ou th . O n t he g ravel t erraces a nd t o al esser e x ten t t he f l oodp la in e x is t n umerous a rchaeo log ica l s i tes o f I ron Age t o e ar ly S axon d a te .

O n t he t erraces , p lough ing

h as u sua l ly r e moved a ny a nc ien t s o i ls b u t o n t he f l oodp la in s o me s i tes s urv ive i n g ood c ond i t ion u nder a l luv ia l c over ings .

A naerobic wa ter logged d epos i ts

a re f requen t ly p resen t o n t hese t errace o r f l oodp la in s i tes i n we l l a nd d i tch b o t to ms wh i le o ld s tream b eds c an b e e ncoun tered o n t he f l oodp la in a s we l l . B efore t h is i nves t iga t ion , n o work h ad b een d one o n p lan ts o r i nsec t r e ma ins f ro m wa ter logged p os t g lac ia l c on tex ts o n t he g ravel t erraces . Mos t o f t he work o n o ther b io log ica l r e ma ins o f I ron Age t o e ar ly S axon d a te h as b een p iece mea l i den t i f ica t ions o f e xcava ted ma ter ia l .

Recen t ly , h owever , w i th t he

c rea t ion o f t he Ox fordsh ire Archaeolog ica l U n i t , as ys te ma t ic p rogra m me o f e nv iron men ta l i nves t iga t ions h as b een u nder taken , w i th work b y M . J ones o n c harred s eeds a nd R . W i lson o n a n i ma l b ones r unn ing i n p ara l le l w i th t he work o n wa ter logged ma ter ia l .

Their r esu l ts s o f ar h ave b een p resen ted s i te b y s i te

i n H inch li f fe a nd Tho mas ( 1980 ) , La mbr ick a nd Robinson ( 1 979 ) , M i les ( 1981 ) a nd Parring ton ( 1978 ) . GE OLOGY , DRA INAGE AND SO ILS The l andscape o f t he a rea h as r esu l ted l argely f ro m t he e ros ion o f J urass ic a nd C retaceous s ed imen tary r ocks wh ich g en t ly s lope t o t he s ou theas t .

Where

c lays were e xposed , v a l leys f or med wh i le o n t he h igher g round t he ir p ro tec t ive c over ing o f l imes tone o r c ha lk s urv ive ( Ordnance S urvey o ne i nch d r if t g eo log ica l 2 51

ezn

maps ).

O ver t he r eg ion t he R iver Thames d rops a bou t 3 0 m b efore t he G or ing

G ap , wh ich f orms t he b ase l eve l o f t he U pper Tha mes ( Wood 1 968 : 1 5 ). Throughou t t he P le is tocene t here h ave b een p er iods when t he Thames o r ap ro to-Thames h as a ccre ted a n e x tens ive l imes tone g rave l t errace o ver t he c lay v a les o n ly t o s tar t d owncu t t ing , r e move much o f t he g rave l a nd t hen f or m an ew t errace.

The s equence — o f t erraces was e s tabl ished b y S and ford ( 1924 ).

The y ounges t a nd l owes t o f t he t erraces i s t he f irs t t errace , wh ich r ises 2 t o 3m a bove t he p resen t r iver l evel .

A bove t he f i rs t t errace i s t he s econd t er-

r ace a t 8 .5 m a bove modern r iver l evel , t he t h ird t errace a t 1 8 m a nd t he f our th t errace a t 3 0 m ( a l though n ot a l l t he t erraces h ave t he s ame g rad ien t a s t he modern r iver ).

The f i rs t a nd s econd t erraces a re t he mos t e x tens ive

a nd i ti s o n t he m , a s w e l l a s t he modern f l oodp la in , t ha t t he s i tes i nves t iga ted were l oca ted . w ide .

I n s ome p ar ts o f t he r eg ion t he t wo t erraces a re 5 km o r more

The p resen t f l oodp la in o f t he u pper Tha mes a nd i t s t r ibu tar ies c an b e

o ver 2 1 km w ide a nd i s c overed w i th a u sua l ly c a lcareous a l luv ium . The g rave l t erraces a re we l l d ra ined a l though we t f lushes s o me t imes o ccur o n t he c lay s lopes b e tween t erraces .

The R iver Thames i n t h is r eg ion i s we l l

k nown f or i t s e x tens ive w in ter f l oods a nd a t o ne t ime t here was much marshy l and o n t he Tha mes f l oodpla in ( E mery 1 974 : 8 1 ).

Excep t where i ti s p ro tec ted

b y f l oodbanks , i ti s s t i l l u sua l f or t he Thames t o i nunda te p ar t o f i t s f l oodp la in a l most e very y ear . I n a bou t o ne y ear o u t o f t hree most o f t he u npro tec ted f l oodp la in f l oods a l mos t t o t he e dge o f t he g ravel t errace a nd i n a bou t o ne y ear i n t we lve , s er ious f l ood ing o ccurs , wh ich e x tends o n to s o me p ar ts o f t he f irs t g ravel t errace ( L t .-Co l . D . Wi l l iams , p ers . c o m m.). O n t he f l oodp la in a re p oor ly d ra ined a l luv ia l c lays wh ich a re n eu tra l t o a lka l ine ( Jarv is 1 973 : 1 81-2 ). A v ar ie ty o f s oi ls i s t o b e f ound o n t he f irs t g rave l t errace , t he mos t i mpor tan t b e ing : t he S u t ton s er ies , a we l l d ra ined n eu tra l s andy l oa m ;

t he Badsey s er ies , ac a lcareous a nd s o me t i mes more

c layey s er ies ; a nd t he C aswe l l s er ies , n eu tra l t o c a lcareous i mperfec t ly d ra ined c lay o r c lay l oam . O n t he h igher g rave l t erraces i s o n ly t he S u t ton s er ies ( Jarv is 1 973 : 1 16-17 , 1 79-81 ).

The S u t ton s er ies a re s o ls l ess ive 's

t rans i t iona l t o t he b rown c a lcareous g roup b u t t he ir d ra inage i s n ot i mpeded ( Jarv is 1 973 , 2 8 , 1 81 ).

The c hanges i n t hese s o i ls t hrough t ime a re d iscussed

o n p . 2 70 . The s oi l o f t he f l oodp la in s t i l l p resen ts p roble ms f or a rable a gr icu l ture e ven w i th e x tens ive modern d ra inage .

The s oi ls o f t he h igher g rave l t erraces

wh ich a re f ree d ra in ing a re e as i ly c u l t iva ted b u t e spec ia l ly o n t he h igher t err aces c rops c an s u f fer f ro m d rough t a nd t he S u t ton s er ies i s d ef ic ien t i n p o tass ium ( Jarv is 1 973 : 1 81 ) , b u t t hese f ac tors p robab ly t ended t o r esu l t i n r educed , b u t s t i l l a ccep table , y ields r a ther t han d iscourag ing a rable c o mp le te ly. THE ARCHAE OLOGY OF THE RE G ION The a rchaeo log y o f t he g ravel t erraces o f t he U pper Thames Va l ley i s p ar t icu lar ly we l l k nown b ecause t he ir s oi ls a re v ery s u i tab le f or t he o ccurrence o f c rop marks a nd a rab le i s t he ma in u se o f t he g rave ls .

A f ter 4 0 y ears o f

i n tens ive a er ia l p ho tography a l l g rave l c ropmarks k nown t o d a te were p lo t ted f or O x fordsh ire ( Benson a nd Mi les 1 974 ) a nd f ur ther u ps trea m t o t he h eadwa ters ( Leech 1 977 ).

Recen t w ork b y R . H ing ley h as i ncreased b y 3 0% t he n u mber o f

2 53

s i tes g i ven i n Benson a nd Mi les b e tween O x ford a nd L ech lade.

G rave l e x trac-

t i on i n i t ia l ly p rov ided a n e asy way o f o b ta in ing f i nds f ro m t hese s i tes b u t a n i ncreasing e f for t h as b een p u t i n to r escue a rchaeo logy.

The f l oodp la in h as

r ece ived r a ther l ess a t ten t ion b ecause , u n t i l r ecen t ly , mos t o f i t was p ermanen t g rass land .

H owever , af ew s i tes h ave b een d iscovered f ro m t he a ir

i n v ery d ry y ears a s p arch- marks i n g rass a nd o thers s t i l l s urv ive a s e ar thworks . The U pper Thames g ravels h ad a lready b een e x tens ive ly o ccup ied b y l a te n eo l i th ic t imes a nd l arge r i tua l s i tes , s uch a s t he D orches ter h enge a nd c ursus c o mp lex h ad b een b u i l t o n t he m ( A tk inson e t a l . 1 951 ).

F ew u ndoub ted s e t t le-

men t s i tes f ro m t he Bronze Age a re k nown b u t r ing-d i tches a re u b iqu i tous o n t he g rave l t erraces a nd t hey a re a lso p resen t o n t he f l oodpla in . The e ar l ies t a ccep tab le r ad iocarbon d a te f or a n I ron Age c on tex t i n t he a rea i s 5 20 ± 7 0 b e b u t u nfor tuna te ly t he d a tes o b ta ined f ro m t he o ther t wo s a mp les i n t he s er ies were h igh ly s uspec t ( Parr ing ton 1 978 : 3 9 ).

S e t t le men ts

o f t he e ar ly I ron Age o n t he Tha mes g rave ls r e ma in r e la t ive ly e n igma t ic . O n ly o ne e nc losure o f t h is d a te h as b een e xcava ted b u t i t was i nco mp le te ly p ub l ished a nd i t s d i mens ions a re u nknown ( Hard ing 1 972 : 1 5-16 ).

H owever ,

p i t c lus ters f ro m t h is p er iod h ave f requen t ly b een e ncoun tered o n t he g rave l t erraces , f or i nstance a t A shv i l le , A bingdon ( Parr ing ton 1 978 : 3 ) a nd Far rnoor ( Lambr ick a nd Robinson 1 979 : 6 5-6 ).

S o me were p robab ly f or g ra in s torage .

O n t he B erksh ire D owns a s er ies o f h i l lfor ts w ere c ons truc ted a nd t hey were i n tegra ted w i th Bronze Age l and d iv is ions ( Brad ley a nd R ichards 1 978 ).

No

ma jor l and d iv is ions o r f i eld s ys te ms a re k nown f ro m t he g rave l t erraces a t t h is d a te . F or t he midd le I ron Age , t ha t i s f ro m a bou t 3 50 b e o nwards , amuch g reat er amoun t o f i nforma t ion h as b een r ecovered f or s e t t le men t s i tes o n t he g rave l t erraces a nd f l oodp la in . L ambr ick ( 1978 : 1 12-18 ).

Recen t e xcava t ions o f t he m h ave b een s u m mar ised b y They f a l l i n to t wo t ypes .

F irs t ly , t he r e la t ive ly

u nco m mon e nc losed s e t t le men ts , where a l l t he h u ts a nd o ccupa t ion a reas were s urrounded b y ar e la t ively s ubs tan t ia l d i tch .

O n ly o ne s uch s i te h as b een

e xcava ted wh ich was a t M ing ie 's D i tch , o n t he f l oodp la in ( p .257 ) .

The o ther

t ype i s Hard ing 's c a tegory o f o pen s e t t le men ts ( Hard ing 1 972 : 1 4-21 ).

They

a re c harac ter ised b y h u t c irc le g u l l ies , s o me t imes w i th sma l l a nnexes o r f armyards a t tached , a nd r ec tangu lar t o i rregu lar s haped e nc losures u p t o a bou t 5 0 m a cross , c lus ters o f p i ts a nd s ee ming ly r ando m l eng ths o f g u l ly. These s e t t le men ts r ange f ro m wha t amoun ted t o ah am let o r v i l lage o n t he s econd t errace , a s a t A shv i l le , w i th many h u t c irc les a nd s torage p i ts ( Parr ing ton 1 978 ) , t o s ing le h u t c o mplexes , a s o n t he f l oodp la in a t farmoor The e ar l ies t b u i ld ings i den t i f ied o n t he g rave ls b e long t o t h is p er iod a nd t hey were u sua l ly i n t he f orm o f p os t-bu i l t c ircu lar h u ts u p t o a bou t 8m i n d iame ter , u sua l ly s urrounded b y a n o pen h u t c irc le g u l ly .

A t Moun t Far m ,

D orches ter , La mbr ick ( 1979 ) d iscovered t he b eg inn ings o f as ys te m o f s ubr ec tangu lar , sma l l d i tched f i elds d a t ing f ro m t he midd le I ron Age a nd c on t inu ing i n u se i n to t he Ro man p er iod .

O n p resen t e v idence , h owever , s uch a s ys te m

d oes n ot s ee m t o h ave b een u sua l o n t he g ravel t erraces a t t h is d a te . Wi th t he c om ing o f t he B e lg ic p er iod i n t he i s t c en tury BC , s o me ma jor c hanges s ee m t o h ave o ccurred i n t he Thames Va l ley . 2 54

A t t he b eg inn ing o f t h is

p er iod t he r eg ion s ee ms t o h ave b een o n t he b oundar ies b e tween t he h istor ic t r ibes o f t he Dobunn i t o t he wes t , t he A treba tes t o t he s ou theas t a nd t he C a tuvel laun i t o t he n or theas t b u t b y t he e ar ly y ears o f t he i s t c en tury AD t he C a tuvel laun i h ad e xpanded o ver much o f t he a rea ( Cun l i f fe 1 974 : 7 6-105 ). The h i l lfor ts s ee m t o h ave f a l len o u t o f u se i n t he Be lg ic p er iod ( Hard ing 1 972 : 4 5 ) a nd t he ir p ossib le s uccessors were D yke H i l ls a t D orches ter where a d ouble r ampar t c u t o f f al oop o f t he Thames , a nd t he B ig R ing a t C ass ing ton M i l l b y t he R iver E ven lode .

The ir d a t ing i s b y n o means s ecure ( Hard ing

1 972 : 5 4-6 ). The d eve lop men t t ak ing p lace o n t he g ravel t erraces d ur ing t h is p er iod was t he a ppearance o f r e la t ive ly l arge ( 100 m a cross o r more ) r ec tangu lar f i e lds o r p addocks.

A t A pp leford , o n t he f irst t errace , ah u t c irc le w i th a n

a t tached c o mpound was i ncorpora ted i n to a l arger r ec t i l inear s ys te m o f g u l l ies w i th a t rackway ( Lambr ick 1 978 : 1 16 ;

H inch l if fe a nd Tho mas 1 980 ).

A t

A shv i l le r ec tangu lar e nc losures r ep laced t he midd le I ron Age h am le t .

H ow-

e ver , s uch e nc losures o n ly o ccur i n t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty o f s e t t le men ts a nd d o n ot s ee m t o r epresen t p ar t o f e x tensive f i e ld s ys te ms . The Thames Va l ley was w i th in t he i n i t ia l a rea o f R o man c onques t a f ter t he i nvas ion o f 4 3 AD .

The t wo u l t i ma te ly wa l led Ro man t owns o f O x fordsh ire ,

D orches ter a nd A lches ter , p robab ly s ucceeded c onques t p er iod f or ts ( Rodwe l l 1 975 : 4 1 , 1 01 ). A no ther t en o r s o u nwa l led sma l l t ownl ike s e t t le ments d eveloped i n t he r eg ion , i nc lud ing p erhaps o nes a t A bingdon a nd Wa l l ing ford o n p ossible Thames c rossing p oin ts ( Rodwe l l 1 975 : 1 3 ) .

Thus , w i th Dorches ter ,

t here were p robably t hree Ro man t owns o n t he g rave ls .

The ma jor r oads b u i l t

b y t he Ro mans i n t he a rea were Ake man S tree t , r unn ing e as t-wes t f ro m V eru la m iu m t o C irencester v ia A lches ter a nd o ne r unn ing n or th f ro m S i lches ter t hrough Dorches ter a nd A lches ter t o T owcester .

The impor tan t p ar t p layed

b y l ong-d is tance c o m mun ica t ions d ur ing t h is p er iod i s emphas ised b y t he p resence o f mar ine o ys ter s he l ls o n e ven t he sma l les t o f Ro man r ura l s i tes i n Ox fordsh ire .

The ma jor n on-agr icu l tura l a c t iv i ty o f t he r eg ion i n t he Ro man

p er iod was t he p o t tery i ndus try s i tua ted o n t he D orches ter t o A lches ter r oad e as t o f Ox ford .

The i ndus try b egan i n t he 2 nd c en tury AD a nd b y t he 4 th c en-

t ury was o ne o f t he mos t i mpor tan t p o t tery i ndus tr ies i n Ro man Br i ta in ( Young 1 977 ). Many v i l la e s ta tes were e s tabl ished o n t he l imes tone o f t he C otswold s lopes i nc lud ing i n t he a rea wh ich b ecame t he med ieva l Wychwood f ores t .

The v i l la

a t D i tch ley b egan l i fe a s ar ec tangu lar t imber b u i ld ing i n a bou t 7 0 AD a nd i n t he e ar ly y ears o f t he 2 nd c en tury was r ep laced b y as tone w inged-corr idor v i l la .

S o me o f t hese C otswo ld v i l las were v ery l arge , f or e xamp le Nor th

L e igh ( Frere 1 967 : 2 68-9 ). Wh i le t he C o tswo ld v i l las s ee m t o h ave b een t he wea l th ies t f arms i n t he r eg ion , t he Thames g rave ls h ad t he mos t i n tens ive a gr icu l tura l s e t t le men t . The Ro man s i tes o n t he m t end t o c ons is t o f ad i tched t rackway w i th sma l l r ec tangu lar e nc losures l a id o u t a longs ide t he m ( M i les 1 978 ;

Robinson 1 978 ).

S uch s i tes c an b e r egarded a s ap ro l ifera t ion a nd e n large men t o f t he B e lg ic t ype o f s et t le men t o n t he g rave ls .

Wi th in t he sma l l f i e lds o ccur v ar ious

o ccupa t ion f ea tures s uch a s p i ts a nd we l ls b u t t he b u i ld ings t he mse lves h ave r are ly b een d iscovered .

As i n t he e ar l ier p er iods t he e nc losures d o n ot

2 55

r epresent e x tens ive f i e ld s ys te ms a nd s ee m t o b e r e la ted t o t he o ccupa t ion a reas t he mse lves .

The d roveway s i tes o ccur o n a l l t he g ravel t erraces a nd

v ery many a re k nown f ro m a er ia l p ho tographs b u t t hey d o n o t e x tend o n to t he f l oodp la in .

O n t he h igher g rave l t erraces a f ew o f t hese s i tes d eveloped i n to

s tone-bu i l t v i l las , a s a t Bar ton C our t Farm ( p .266 )b u t a t al a ter d a te t han t he C o tswo ld v i l las , p erhaps i n t he l a te 3 rd c en tury a nd n o t o n s uch a g rand s ca le.

U n t i l r ecen t ly , n o v i l la s i tes were k nown o n t he f i rst g rave l t errace

b u t e xcava t ions b y D . M i les ( 1980 ) a t C laydon P ike r evea led s tone R oman b u ild ings o n t h is t errace. A t t he e nd o f t he 4 th c en tury t here s ee ms t o h ave b een a b reakdown i n c o m mun ica t ions o f t he r eg ion r esu l t ing i n t he d ec l ine o f t he p ot tery i ndus try a nd t he v i l la s ys te m .

Me ta lwork f inds f rom t he t own o f D orches ter a nd t wo

b ur ia ls i n t he r a mpar t o f D yke H i l ls a re t hough t t o s ugges t t ha t aG erman ic Ro man mi l i tary g arr ison was p resen t i n t he t own i n t he v ery e ar ly y ears o f t he 5 th c en tury ( Brown 1 974 : 1 6;

Row ley 1 974 : 4 2 ).

B y t he midd le o f t he 5 th

c en tur y S axon c o lon isa t ion o f t he U pper Thames Va l ley was t ak ing p lace a nd b efore t he e nd o f t he c en tury h ad e x tended u ps tream t o b eyond L ech lade . The S axons o ccup ied D orches ter f ro m a t l eas t t he l a ter 5 th a nd t hroughou t t he 6 th c en tur ies ( Row ley 1 974 : 4 4 ) b u t i tc annot b e r egarded a s f unc t ioning a s a t own i n t he Ro man s ense.

O n t he g ravel t erraces t he Pagan S axons a re b es t

k nown f ro m t he ir c e me tery s i tes , r ich i n g rave g oods , f or e xa mp le a t B er insf ie ld ( M i les 1 975 ).

There i s l i t t le e v idence f or a c on t inu t ion o f u se o f

t he Ro man e nc losure s ys te ms t he mse lves , a l though S axon o ccupa t ion s o met imes o ccurred o n s uch s i tes a s a t Moun t Farm ( Lambr ick 1 979 ). A n i n tere s t ing e xcep t ion was p rov ided b y t he Bar ton C our t Farm v i l la where a 5 th c en tury e x tens ion was made t o a Ro man e nc losure .

Pagan S axon s e t t le men ts

o f t he 5 th a nd 6 th c en tur ies o n t he g rave ls c an b e c harac ter ised b y t he p resence o f s evera l t o many s unken h u ts , p erhaps af ew p os t-bu i l t h a l l h ouses , s o me p i ts a nd s ha l low wa t t le-l ined we l ls ( e .g . Hawkes a nd G ray 1 969 ). METHODS Wa ter logged a nd d ry s a mp les were t aken f ro m c on tex ts wh ich c ou ld b e r e la ted t o t he a rchaeo logy o f t he s i tes i nves t iga ted a nd p rocessed t o e x trac t p lan t a nd i nver tebra te r e ma ins . These were i den t i f ied a nd u sed t o b u i ld u p e co log ica l i n forma t ion a bou t t he s i tes . Fu l l d eta i ls o f s a mp ling p rocedure , e x trac t ion t echn iques , r eference c o l lec t ions u sed , i den t i f ica t ion me thods , s ources o f e co log ica l i nforma t ion a nd a spec ts o f i n terpre ta t ion a re g iven i n Lambr ick a nd Robinson ( 1979 : 7 7-111 ). I n terpre ta t ion o f c oleop teran r e ma ins i s f ur ther d iscussed i n A ppend ix I THE I RON AGE Ma jor i nves t iga t ions o f t wo f l oodp la in s i tes b e long ing t o t h is p er iod , M ing ie 's D i tch a nd Farmoor ( wh ich a lso e x tended o n to t he f i rst t errace ) were u nder taken . I n a dd i t ion a sma l l s amp le f ro m t he f i rs t t errace s i te o f C laydon P ike was e xamined s o t ha t i t s macroscop ic p lan t r e ma ins c ou ld b e c o mpared w i th Farmoor . M ing ie 's D i tch , Hardw ich w i th Ye l ford ( SP 3 91059 ) F loodp la in ( I n ter im r epor ts , Rob inson a nd A l len 1 978 ;

Lambr ick 1 978 ;

A l len a nd Rob inson 1 979 ).

The s i te , o n t he f l oodp la in b e tween t he t wo c ourses o f t he R iver W indrush , 2 56

c ons isted o f ac ircu lar d oub le-d i tched e nc losure a bou t 8 0 m i n d ia me ter . O ccupa t ion f ea tures n ame ly h u ts , f our p os t s truc tures a nd p i ts , were c onf ined e n t irely t o t he a rea w i th in t he i nner e nc losure d i tch . At h in a l luv ia l c over ing o ver t he s i te h ad r esu l ted i n t he s urv iva l o f o ccupa t ion l ayers a nd f l oors f or s o me o f t he h u ts . I n i t ia l ly t he e nc losure s tood i n i so la t ion , w i th a p a ir o f ' a n tennae d i tches ' r unn ing f ro m ab reak i nt he o u ter d i tch a nd a c orrespond ing g ap i n t he i nner d i tch p rov ided a n e n trance t o t he i n ter ior . A ccess t o t he a rea b etween t he d i tches ( a bou t 1 0 m w ide ) was p rov ided b y ab reak i n t he o u ter d i tch where ameander o f as tream , n ow s i l ted u p , a pproached i t . S ubs equen t ly a sma l l f i e ld was a dded t o t he e nc losure , b y e x tend ing t he l i ne o f o ne o f t he ' a n tennae d i tches '.

O ne s ide o f t h is f i e ld was f ormed b y t he s ide

o f t he ma in e nc losure , t he s econd b y t he o ld s tream a nd t he o ther t wo b y n ew d i tches . Rad iocarbon d a tes a re a wa i ted f or t he s i te b u t o n t he b as is o f t he p o t tery a l i ke ly d a te f or i t s u se w ou ld b e b e tween 3 50 b c a nd 2 50 b c . B enea th t he g rave l b anks o f t he I ron Age e nc losure was a bou t 0 .1-0 .2 m o f a l luv ia l c lay. I th ad b een worm s or ted , c oncen tra t ing a l l t he r iver ine Mo l lusca a t t he b o t to m o f t he p rof i le a nd t he u pper p ar t o f t he p rof i le h ad b eco me d eca lc if ied . Th is s ugges ts t ha t t here was a p er iod ( p oss ib ly l as t ing more t han a m i l lenn ium ) when t he s i te was n ot r egu lar ly f l ooded b y t he c a lc ium c arbona te-r ich wa ters o f t he r iver .

C u t t ing t h is a l luv ia l l ayer w ere a s er ies

o f p i ts , t he d eeper o f wh ich s ome t i mes c on ta ined h umif ied p ea t , af ew v ery r ot ten f ragmen ts o f A lnus wood a nd A lnus c harcoa l . I n o ne o f t hese p i ts , p reserved b y as pi l l o f g ravel , were w ood land Mo l lusca . These p i ts p robably r epresen ted a p reIron Age p hase o f c learance o f a lder wood . There was n o e v idence f ro m a ny o f t he d epos i ts t ha t t he I ron Age s e t t lemen t s u f fered f l ood ing wh i le i t was o ccup ied . P o l len a na lys is ( b y G . W. D imb leby ) o f p ea t f ro m t he b ot to m o f t he e nc losure d i tches s ugges ted a l ands cape s ubs tan t ia l ly c leared o f w ood land a l though w i l low t rees may h ave b een c onsp icuous ly p resen t . Tree p o l len f ormed 4% o f t he t o ta l t ree p o l len wh i le s hrub p o l len , mos t ly S a lix c o mpr ised a no ther 1 3% o f t he t o ta l . i s c on f irmed b y t he C o leoptera .

Th is p ic ture

Wood a nd t ree d ependen t s pec ies ( exc lud ing

A nobiu m p unc ta tum a nd L yc tus s p .) made u p o n ly 1 % o f t he t o ta l t errestr ia l C o leoptera i den t if ied f ro m M ing ie 's D i tch c o mpared w i th 1 7% f rom Buscot L ock ( Robinson u npubl ished ) , ar iver ine d epos i t p robab ly s urrounded b y woodl and , a nd 5 % f ro m S hus toke B ( Ke l ly a nd O sborne 1 964-5 ) , wh ich was r egarded a s h av ing a n o pen e nv iron men t a l though w i th s o me s econdary wood land a nd s crub p resen t . The p o l len s pec tra s ugges t t ha t s pec ies-r ich g rass land was i mpor tan t w i th G ra m ineae p o l len a verag ing 3 4% , P lan tago l anceo la ta 6% a nd C o mpos i taeL igu l i f lorae 7% o f t he p o l len f ro m t he f our s amp les . The g rass land was l i ke ly t o h ave b een w e t , g rad ing i n to marsh a long t he marg in o f t he R iver Windrush a nd t he a nc ien t s tream wh i le s uch v ege ta t ion p robab ly c overed t he b ed o f v ar ious minor s treams t ravers ing t he a rea wh ich p erhaps o n ly c on ta ined wa ter i n t he w in ter .

S eeds o f w et g rass land o r marsh s pec ies i nc luded Ranuncu lus

c f . f l a m mu la , L ychn is f l os-cucu l i , F i l ipendu la u l mar ia , Men tha s p . Pu l icar ia s p ., a nd v ar ious r ushes a nd s edges . G rass land s pec ies were w el l r epresen ted amongs t t he C o leoptera , e spec ia l ly P hyl loper tha h or t ico la , wh ich h as l arvae t ha t f eed o n r oots i n p ermanen t g rass land ( Raw 1 951-2 : 6 445 ). 2 57

The C o leop tera

p rov ide o verwhelming e v idence f or t he i mpor tance o f p as ture i n t he v ic in i ty o f t he s i te .

Dung b ee t les f ro m t he g enera G eo trupes , C o lobop terus , A phod iud

a nd O n thophagus made u p 1 6% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C oleop tera f rom t he s i te , s o me o f wh ich a re r es tr ic ted t o d ung o f l arge h erb ivores i n t he f i e ld ( ra ther t han i n manure h eaps ). A longs ide t he R iver Windrush p ea t d epos i ts w i th a bundan t r e ma ins o f S choenoplec tus l acus tr is a nd Menyan thes t r ifol ia ta a s w el l a s b r igh t ly c o loured f ragmen ts o f d onac i ine C hryso me l idae w ere.p resen t .

These p robab ly r ep-

r esen t ar eedswa mp c o m mun i ty a long t he e dge o f t he r iver , p erhaps w i th t he c a t t le g razing t he a qua t ic v egeta t ion i n s ha l low wa ter e nab l ing t he Menyan thes t o c o mpe te a ga ins t t he t a l ler g row ing S choenop lec tus ( Hewe t t 1 964 : 7 29 ). The d iscovery o f t wo p a irs o f s add le q uerns a nd t he p resence o f c erea l r e ma ins , b o th wa ter logged a nd c harred , s how t ha t g ra in mus t h ave b een u sed o n t he s i te.

There was n o d irec t e v idence f or c u l t iva t ion e i ther i ns ide o r o u t-

s ide o f t he sma l l f i e ld t o t he s ou th o f t he o ccupa t ion e nc losure.

There was

n o t race o f mix ing o f g rave l i n to t he I ron Age s oi l p rof i le e ven t hough i t was o n ly 1 0 cm d eep i n p laces ( i t h ad n ot b een t runca ted ) a nd w orm-sor ting h ad n o t t aken sma l l g rave l s p i l ls f ro m t he u pcas t o f I ron Age f ea tures t o t he b o t to m o f t he p rof i le .

Ap re l i minary e xamina t ion b y M . J ones ( p ers . c omm .) o f a n

a sse mblage o f c arbon ised c erea ls f ro m t he s i te ( mos t ly H ordeum v u lgare b u t a lso Tr i t icu m s pe l ta ) s ugges ted t ha t t hey h ad b een g rown o n d ry g round , a nd p robably n o t o n t he f l oodp la in . Amongs t t he macroscop ic p lan t r e ma ins were a bundan t s eeds , wood a nd l eaves o f many s hrubs a nd sma l l t rees : Acer c ampes tre

Rubus f ru t icosus a gg .

C orylus a ve l lana

S a l ix s p .

C ra taeg-u s c f . mono iena

S ambucus n igra

P runus s p inosa

The lycran ia s angu inea

Rha mnus c a thar t icus

V iburnu m o pu lus

R osa s p . The p o l len , h owever , d id n ot g ive e ven a s l igh t i nd ica t ion o f t heir p resence a par t f ro m S a l ix a nd C orylus , b u t mos t ly t hey a re e n to moph i lous s pec ies . Exc lud ing S a l ix a nd C orylus , p o l len f ro m t hese s pec ies h as u sua l ly o n ly b een r ecorded a t v ery l ow l eve ls ( f or e xamp le Acer , s ee G odw in 1 975 : 1 70 ) a nd t ends n ot t o b e p reserved we l l .

I n a dd i t ion t o t he s hrubs t here were a lso s eeds

o f v ar ious h erbs o f s crub a nd s hady p laces i nc lud ing Moehr ing ia t r inerva , S tachys s ylva t ica a nd t he c l i mber Humu lus l upu lus .

I n o ne s a mple f rom t he

i nner e nc losure d i tch s eeds f rom l igh t-de mand ing t erres tr ia l p lan ts were a lmos t a bsen t wh i le v ar ious s pec ies wh ich c an g row i n wood land were w el l r epresen ted . The s trong p resence o f s crub s ugges ted b y t he macroscopic p lan t r e ma ins c on tras ts w i th t he p oor e v idence f or woody s pec ies b u t s ubs tan t ia l i nd ica t ion o f g rass land f rom t he C o leop tera .

Th is p robab ly r ef lec ts t he much more l oca l

o r ig in o f t he p lan t r e ma ins c o mpared w i th t he i nsec ts , a nd t he s crub was l oca l ised t o t he v ic in i ty o f t he s e t t le men t .

The d ivers i ty o f woody s pec ies

s uggests e i ther t ha t t he s crub h ad b een d e l ibera te ly p lan ted i n t he f orm o f h edges a round t he e nc losure o r t he s crub was o f a nc ien t o r ig in , p erhaps e ven

2 58

ar e l ic o f t he w ood land wh ich h ad b een c leared f rom t he s i te p r ior t o t he I ron A ge .

Acer c ampes tre ( represen ted b y f ru i ts , wood a nd l eaves ) i s as pec ies

o f w oods , h edgerows a nd s crub p referr ing a h igh b ase s ta tus b u t i ti s n o t a p ioneer s pec ies i n t he i nvas ion o f g rass land .

I ti s p resen t i n s crub o n ly d ur ing

t he l a ter s era l s tages ( J ones 1 944-5 : 2 41-3 ).

Po l lard ( 1973 : 3 43-52 ) h as

s hown t ha t A . c ampes tre i s c o m mon i n o ld wood land o n a ppropr ia te s o i ls b u t h as l i t t le a bi l i ty t o c o lon ise h edges , e ven i fg row ing i n wood land n earby.

I t

h as b een s ugges ted t ha t h edges were c rea ted b y s e lec t ive s crub c learance i n p ar ts o f t he N ether lands d ur ing t he Neo l i th ic ( Groen man v an Waa ter inge 1 978 : 1 38-40 ). S o me o f t he p reIron Age t ree p i ts were d eeper t han t he d eepes t I ron Age f ea tures y e t p reserva t ion o f o rgan ic ma ter ia l i n t he m was v ery p oor , t he o n ly i den t if iable r ema ins b e ing v ery r ot ten f ragmen ts o f wood .

B y t he t ime o f t he

I ron Age o ccupa t ion o f t he s i te , t he wa ter t ab le h ad r isen a nd t here was s tand ing wa ter i n t he b ot to m o f t he e nc losure d i tches , r esu l t ing i n g ood p reserva t ion o f o rgan ic r ema ins .

A s t he d i tches b egan t o s i l t u p s o t he q ua l i ty o f p reserva t ion

d e ter iora ted a nd i n s o me d i tch p rof i les a n on-organ ic d epos i t b u i l t u p .

Then

ag rave l t rackway b e long ing t o t he f ina l p hase o f o ccupa t ion was c ons truc ted t hrough t he e n trance . E i ther j us t b efore o r j us t a f ter t he a bandonmen t o f t he s i te , b u t s tra t igraph ica l ly l a ter t han t he g ravel r oad , t here was a v ery d is t inc t r ecurrence h or izon f or p ea t d eve lop men t i n t he e nc losure d i tches .

I ti s p os-

s ib le t ha t t he c ons truc t ion o f t he r oad s ur face was a r esponse t o t he r is ing wa ter t able a nd t he a bandon men t o f t he s i te may a lso h ave b een r e la ted t o t h is p roble m .

Perhaps t here was a r esump t ion o f f l ood ing .

I n t he R o man p er iod

d ra inage d i tches o ver t he s i te p robably r epresen ted a n a t temp t t o l ower t he wa ter t able o f t he f l oodp la in , b u t t hey f e l l o u t o f u se b y t he e ar ly S axon p er iod a nd t he a l luv ium wh ich f or med a t h in c over ing o ver t he s i te was d epos i ted . F armoor ( SP443057 ) F irs t Terrace a nd F loodp la in ( Fu l l r epor t , Lambr ick a nd Robinson 1 979 ) The s i te e x tended f ro m t he f l oodp la in o n to t he f irs t t errace , ac u t-of f c hanne l o f t he R iver Tha mes s epara t ing t he f l oodp la in f rom t he t errace .

O n

t he f l oodp la in were t hree midd le I ron Age f ar ms teads , e ach c o mpr is ing a sma l l d i tched e nc losure a bou t 1 2 m i n d iame ter f or a r oundhouse , w i th o ne o r more d i tched s ubsid iary y ards o r s tock p ens a t tached .

O ther sma l l e nc losures ,

o ne w i th a n a d jo in ing p os t-bu i l t s em ic ircu lar b u i ld ing were made o n t he g rave l t errace.

Pea ty d epos i ts h ad a ccumu la ted i n t he d i tches o f t he f l oodp la in e n-

c losures a nd i n as ump o f o ne o f t he e nc losures o n t he g rave l t errace . d a ting o f t he midd le I ron Age s e t t le men t h as p roved d if f icu l t .

The

O n t he b as is o f

t he p ot tery i ti s c er ta in ly p re-Be lg ic a nd l i ke ly t o p os t-da te Ming ie 's D i tch , b eing p erhaps s o me t ime b e tween 2 50 b c a nd 1 00 b c .

Two o f t he t hree r ad io-

c arbon d a tes o bta ined f a l l w i th in t he a bove d a te r ange b u t at h ird was 4 60 ± 1 00 b c . The e ar l ies t s amp le e xa mined was f ro m a t h in n on-g leyed s andy s i l t c over ing t he g ravel u nder lying t he o ccupa t ion l ayer o f o ne o f t he e nc losure c o mp lexes ( 3 ) o n t he f l oodp la in . t errestr ia l s pec ies .

A l l o f t he f ew mo l luscan r e ma ins were f ro m

The o ccupa t ion l ayer o f E nc losure C o mp lex 3 , h owever ,

was a g leyed c lay a nd a long w i th c harcoa l f l ecks a nd a l i t t le p o t tery , a lso c ont a ined r iver ine a qua t ic mo l luscs .

These s pec ies were a lso p resen t i n s o me

2 59

o f t he d i tches o f t he f l oodp la in e nc losures .

B i thyn ia t en tacu la ta was p resen t

i n t he d i tches o f E nc losure C o mplexes 2 a nd 3 .

I th as b een i nc luded b y S parks

i n h is f l ow ing-wa ter g roup o f mo l luscs ( Sparks 1 959-60 : 7 6 ) a nd B oyco t t ( 1936 : 1 39-40 ) s ta tes t ha t t he f reshwa ter o percu la tes l i ve a l mos t e xc lus ive ly i n r unn ing wa ter , n ever o ccurr ing i n sma l l , c losed p onds .

B . t en tacu la ta

wou ld n o t h ave

b een a ble t o b reed i n wa ter i n t he b ot to m o f t hese d i tches ( wh ich h ad b een t raced i n t he ir e n t ire ty a nd f ormed a c losed s yste m ).

F lood ing i s r egarded a s t he o n ly

l i kely e xp lana t ion o f i t s i n troduc t ion , i mp lying t ha t t he s i tes w ere s easona l ly o ccup ied . The p o l len a na lyses ( by G . W. D i mbleby ) g ave a n e ven l ower v a lue f or t ree p o l len t han t he s amp les f ro m Ming ie 's D i tch , 1 .4% o f t he t ota l p o l len . S hrub p o l len was a lso d own t o al eve l o f 1 .4% o f t he t o ta l p o l len .

These v a lues

s ugges t t ha t c learance h ad b een v ery t horough i n t he r eg ion o f Farmoor b y t h is d a te a nd u n l ike Ming ie 's D i tch t here was n o e v idence t o t he c on trary f ro m macroscop ic p lan t r e ma ins f or a s ign i f ican t p reserve o f w oody s pec ies .

O n ly

as ing le b eet le o u t o f o ver 1 ,0 00 t erres tr ia l i nd iv idua ls i den t if ied f e l l i n to t he g roup o f t ree a nd wood d ependen t s pec ies ( exc lud ing A nob ium p unc ta tum a nd L yc tus l i near is ).

The ma jor b iotype i nd ica ted b y t he p o l len s ee ms t o b e

g rass land . The wa ter logged s eeds were mos t ly f ro m p lan ts o f d is turbed g round b u t t he ir o r ig in was p robab ly e x tre mely l oca l b u t t here were s eeds o f a bou t 3 5 s pec ies wh ich c ou ld h ave g rown i n g rassland , i nc lud ing s o me wh ich a re r est r ic ted t o we t h ab i ta ts .

Da mp p as tureland i s s ugges ted b y E leochar is S .

Pa lus tres s p ., wh ich was we l l r epresen ted .

These s pec ies ( E. p a lus tr is a nd

E . u n ig lum is ) a re r es tr ic ted t o p laces where c ompe t i t ion f ro m t a l l g row ing s pec ies i s s l igh t o r a bsen t a nd t he wa ter l eve l i s a t o r a bove s oi l l eve l i nt he s pr ing , when r h izo me g row th t akes p lace ( bu t c an t o lera te d r ier c ond i t ions d ur ing t he r es t o f t he y ear ) ( Wa l ters 1 949 : 1 96-7 , 2 04 ).

E . p a lus tr is i s -a n

a bundan t p lan t o n t he w e t ter a reas o f P or t Meadow , h eav i ly g razed g rass land o n t he f l oodp la in n ear O x ford wh ich h as b een p as ture f or many c en tur ies . Another s pec ies wh ich g rows o n t he we t ter a reas o f P or t Meadow , Po ten t i l la a nser ina , was a lso we l l r epresen ted amongs t t he s eeds .

The i mpor tance o f

p as ture a t Farmoor i n t he I ron Age i s c onf irmed b y d ung b ee t les o f t he g enera G eotrupes , C o lobop terus , A phod ius a nd O n thophagus .

They made u p a lmos t

2 8% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C oleop tera , ah igher p ropor t ion t han f or a ny o ther Tha mes Va l ley s i te s o f ar i nves t iga ted . There was a w ide r ange o f s eeds f ro m p lan ts o f d is turbed g round wh ich p robab ly g rew a round t he s et t le men t , b u t t wo s pec ies wh ich a re p ar t icu lar ly c o m mon i n n u tr ien t-r ich g round a round s e t t le men ts a nd whose s eeds a re n orma l ly f ound i n l arge n umbers f ro m wa ter logged a rchaeo log ica l d epos i ts , Ur t ica d ioica a nd S a mbucus n igra , were a l most a bsen t .

O ne o r b o th o f t hese

s pec ies were we l l r epresen ted f ro m a l l t he o ther s i tes i nves t iga ted f or t h is p ro jec t , i nc lud ing t he I ron Age s i te o f Ming ie 's D i tch wh ich was o n t he f l oodp la in a nd C laydon P ike wh ich h ad s o mewha t s im i lar e nc losures t o Far moor . U . d io ica a nd S . n igra a re b o th c apab le o f g row ing o n t he f l oodp la in t oday , s o me t i mes i n g rea t a bundance , b u t n e i ther n or ma l ly g row i n g rass land ( t hough o nce g iven t he o ppor tun i ty t o i nvade , U . d ioica c an s urv ive f or many y ears ) ( Gre ig-S m i th 1 948 : 3 45 ).

S . n igra mus t b e s evera l y ears o ld b efore f l ower ing

a nd U . d ioica d oes n o t f l ower i n i t s f irs t y ear ( Gre ig-S m i th 1 948 : 3 49 ). 2 60

A c o mpar ison f or Farmoor b e tween t he p ropor t ion o f s eeds o f s o me o f t he more c o m mon a nnua l w eeds w i th t he p ropor t ion o f s eeds o f t he f o l low ing p erenn ia l weeds wh ich d o n o t f l ower i n t he ir f irs t y ear :

T i .

d ioica , S . n igra a nd

R ubus s p., s hows t he p erenn ia ls t o h ave b een much b e t ter r epresen ted i n t he R o man d epos i ts t han i n t he I ron Age .

( The a nnua l s pec ies u sed i n t he c o m-

p ar ison were : A tr ip lex s p .

Polygonu m a v icu lare a gg .

C henopod ium a lbu m

S onchus a sper

Chenopod iaceae i nde t .

S tel lar ia med ia g p .

Papaver s pp .

U r t ica u rens

A l l t hese s pec ies , n one o f wh ich n orma l ly o ccur i n u nd is turbed g rass land , w ere p resen t i n b oth I ron Age a nd R o man s a mp les .

I n t he 4 I ron Age s a mp les

w i th a l arge n u mber o f t hese s eeds , t he t hree p erenn ia ls r anged b e tween 7 .5% a nd 0 .4% o f t he t o ta l f or b o th t he a nnua ls a nd t he p erenn ia ls , whereas i n t he 6 s izeab le Ro man s a mp les t hese p erenn ia ls r anged f ro m 2 9% t o o ver 9 9% o f t he t ota l .

Ap oss ible r eason f or t h is d if ference i s t ha t t he I ron Age

s e t t le men ts a t Far moor w ere t e mporary wh i ls t t he Ro man o nes were p ermane n t .

The a nnua l weeds w ou ld b e a ble t o b u i ld u p l arge p opu la t ions r ap id ly o n

t he f resh ly d is turbed g rassland i n t he v ic ini ty o f t he s i tes b u t b y t he t ime t he p erenn ia ls h ad b ecome e s tabl ished a nd were f l ower ing i n p rofus ion , t he s e t t le men ts h ad b een a bandoned a nd t he ir d i tches a l lowed t o s i l t u p . A sma l l n u mber o f c harred g ra ins o f Tr i t icu m s p . a nd H ordeu m f rom t he I ron Age f ea tures o n t he f l oodp la in were t he o n ly c rop r e ma ins i den t if ied . T hey c er ta in ly i nd ica te u sage o f c erea ls b u t i n v iew o f t he e v idence f or f l ood ing i t wou ld s ee m mos t u n l ike ly t ha t t he f l oodp la in was c u l t iva ted .

I ft he i nhabi-

t an ts o f t he I ron Age e nc losure c o mp lexes were g row ing t he ir own g ra in i n t he v ic in i ty , i t wou ld b e mos t l i ke ly t ha t t heir f i e lds were o n t he f i rs t g ravel t err ace , i n wh ich c ase t he s i t ing o f t he s e t t le men t o n t he f l oodp la in , where p res umab ly t hey c ou ld o n ly b e s easona l ly o ccup ied , s ee ms s urpr is ing . P ter id ium a qu i l inum f rond f ragmen ts were p resen t i n I ron Age s amp les f ro m b o th M ing ie 's D i tch a nd Far moor .

I t r equ ires s o mewha t a c id ic c ond i-

t i ons f or s porel ing e s tabl ish men t a l though t he a du l t p lan ts t he mse lves c an g row i n t he p resence o f c a lc ium s a l ts ( Conway a nd S tephens 1 957 ).

L i mes tone h ea th

m igh t h ave d eve loped s o mewhere o ver t he g rave ls i n as tone-free s o i l where t here was n ot a n i npu t o f c a lc ium c arbona te ( f or i ns tance f ro m t he l ime-r ich f l oodwa ters o f t he r ivers ) b u t i ti s more l i kely t ha t t he b racken h ad b een b rough t t o t he s i tes f ro m t he a c id ic s ands o n t he h i l ls ides.

There i s e v idence o f p re-

h is tor ic man b r ing ing b racken t o s i tes e lsewhere , p erhaps a s l i t ter f or a n i ma ls ( D i mb leby a nd Evans 1 974 : 1 32 ). S o me t ime a f ter t he I ron Age s i tes o n t he f l oodp la in h ad c eased t o b e o ccup ied , t he n a ture o f t he f l ood ing c hanged .

Ra ther t han b eing t he s or t o f

f l ood ing wh ich o ccurs o n P or t Meadow t oday , d epos i t ing mos t ly f l otsam w i th v ery l i t t le minera l ma ter ia l , a much g rea ter minera l l oad was d eposi ted , c ausing a b u i ld u p o f a l luv ium o ver t he I ron Age e nc losure c o mplexes , t he f i l l ing i n o f t he o ld r iver c hanne l a nd a l eve l l ing u p o f u ndu la t ions i n t he f l oodp la in .

Pe rhaps t he t ype o f f l ood ing was a lready b eg inn ing t o c hange when

C o mp lex 3 was i n u se b ecause i t s o ccupa t ion l ayer was a s im i lar c lay t o t he

2 61

a l luv iu m a bove i ta nd h ad t he s a me p ropor t ion o f a qua t ic mo l luscs .

E v idence

f ro m t he Ro man s i te a t Far moor s howed t ha t t he ma in a ggreda t ion o f a l luv ium mus t h ave b een s ubs tan t ia l ly c o mp le te b y t he 4 th c en tury AD . C laydon P ike , Fa irford ( SP193996 ) F irs t Terrace ( I n ter im r epor t , M i les 1 980 ) Tr ia l e xcava t ions o n t h is v ery l arge c rop- mark s i te h ave s hown t he p res ence o f many midd le I ron Age h u t c irc les a nd o ther sma l l e nc losures a s we l l a s Ro man s tone b u i ld ings a nd t rackways .

The b o t to m l ayer f ro m t he

d i tch o f a sma l l midd le I ron Age s ub-rec tangu lar e nc losure was t he o n ly wa ter logged d epos i t o n t he s i te .

U r t ica d ioica made u p a bou t 2 0% o f t he weed

s eeds u s ing t he s ame c a tegor ies a s a t Farmoor p lus C henopod ium r ubrum. E xc lud ing C . r ubrum , U . d io ica o u t-numbered a l l t he o ther a nnua ls p u t t og e ther . These r esu lts p rov ide a u sefu l c on tras t t o t hose f ro m t he I ron Age e nc losures a t Far moor , a l though t hey d o n ot , o f c ourse , s how t ha t t he e nc los ure a t C laydon P ike was i n l ongterm u se , t he n e t t les c ou ld , f or e xamp le , h ave b een g row ing amongs t s crub. THE ROMAN PER IOD S ubstan t ia l wa ter logged s a mp les f ro m t hree Ro man s i tes h ave b een i nv es t iga ted , ' na t ive d roveway s e t t le men ts ' o n t he f i rs t t errace a t Farmoor a nd A pp leford , a nd a sma l l v i l la o n t he s econd t errace a t Bar ton C our t Farm. Farmoor ( see a bove ) There was ab reak i n t he o ccupa t ion o f t he s i te d ur ing t he B elg ic p er iod a nd b eg inn ing o f t he Ro man p er iod b u t t he s i te was r e-occup ied f ro m t he l a ter 2 nd c en tury AD u n t i l t he e nd o f t he 4 th c en tury ( da ted b y p o t tery a nd c o ins ). The s et t le men t was c on f ined t o t he g rave l t errace a nd b ased a round a d i tched d roveway wh ich c rossed t he t errace a long i t s e dge w i th t he f l oodp la in .

The

o ld r iver c hanne l h ad b een f i l led i n b y t h is d a te b u t as tream p robab ly s t i l l r an a long t he e dge o f t he g ravel t errace a nd a g ravel l ayer a t t he e nd o f t he d roveway i s l i ke ly t o h ave r epresen ted a f ord c rossing o n to t he f l oodp la in . La id o u t a longside t he d roveway were a s er ies o f sma l l f i e lds o r p addocks w i th in wh ich o ccurred p i ts , we l ls a nd t wo c orn-dr iers .

The s i te h ad c lear ly

b een i nhabi ted b u t n o s truc tures t ha t c od ld d ef in i te ly b e i den t i f ied a s b u i ld ings were l oca ted .

Wa ter logged s amp les were o b ta ined f ro m p i ts , wel ls , t he

d roveway d i tch a nd p ea t o ver t he p oss ib le f ord . The p ol len a na lyses ( by G . W. D i mbleby ) s how t ha t , a s i n t he I ron A ge , t he l andscape was p redo m inan t ly u nwooded .

The h ighes t v a lue f or t ree/shrub

p o l len i n a ny s ample was 1 2% o f t he t o ta l p o l len b u t t he a verage f ro m t he o ther s a mp les was a bou t 3% .

The p ropor t ion o f t ree a nd wood-feed ing C o leop tera

( exc lud ing Anobiu m p unc ta tum a nd L yc tus l i near is ) o u t o f t he t ota l n umber o f t errestr ia l i nd iv idua ls , a t 1 .4% , i s v ery l ow w hen c o mpared w i th wood land s i tes b u t more t han t en t imes g rea ter t han t he c omparable v a lue fr t he I ron Age f ea tures a t Farmoor . G razed p as ture i s a ga in s ugges ted b y t he p resence o f E l echar is S . Pa lus tres s p . b u t s eeds o f s pec ies o f we t g rass land w ere o n ly p resen t i n f eat ures wh ich were c lose t o t he e dge o f t he g rave l t errace .

The l ärge g roup o f

d ung b ee t les f rom t he s uper f am i ly S carabaeo idea was a l mos t a s impor tan t a s

2 62

i t was f or t he I ron Age a t Far moor , G eotrupes , A phod ius a nd O n thophagus s pp . c o mpr ising 2 1% o f t he t erres tr ia l f auna .

The ir o ccurrence i n t he v ar ious

R o man s a mp les was , h owever , b y n o means u n i form .

P erhaps t h is r ef lec ts

d i f feren t u sage o f t he v ar ious sma l l f i e lds o n t he s i te , s o me h av ing a n ima ls c oncen tra ted i n t he m f or p ar t icu lar p urposes , o thers o n ly o ccup ied b y t he n umb er o f a ni ma ls t he g razing c an p ermanen t ly s uppor t o r n o t b e ing u nder g rass a t a l l . A l though t he c u t-of f r iver c hanne l b e tween t he g rave l t errace a nd t he f l oodp la in h ad b eco me f i l led i n , t here was s t i l l a marsh a long t he t errace e dge . S eeds f ro m t he p ea t a rea a t t he e nd o f t he d roveway i nc luded : A l is ma s p .

Men tha s p .

Ap iu m n od i f lorum

Menyan thes t r ifo l ia ta

Carex s pp .

P o tamogeton s p .

I r is ps eu daco r us

Ranuncu lus S . Ba trach ium s p .

There was a lso a w ide r ange o f C o leop tera f ro m marsh o r b anks ide h abi ta ts i n t he R o man f ea tures c lose t o t he e dge o f t he g rave l t errace i nc lud ing : Agonu m v iduu m

No tar is a cr idu lus

A p thona c oeru lea

P teros t ichus v erna l is P rasocur is p he l landr i i

B le thisa mu l t ipunc ta ta

The s eeds f ro m p lan ts o f d is turbed g round h ave a lready b een men t ioned . Mos t o f t he a nnua l weeds were p robab ly n ot f ro m p lan ts wh ich g rew i n a rable f i e lds b u t f rom weeds g row ing o n d is turbed g round i n t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty o f t he d epos i ts .

S o me o f t he s pec ies i den t if ied , h owever , s how a p ar t icu lar

a ssoc ia t ion w i th a rable a gr icu l ture : a nd p erhaps A n the m is c o tu la .

Ranuncu lus a rvens is , Agros te m ma g i thago

A . c o tu la , a l though b eing a bundan t a s ac erea l

w eed a nd n ot b eing f ound o n was te g round , i s s o me t i mes c o m mon g row ing i n f armyards a nd o ccas iona l ly o ccurs a t r oads ides ( Kay 1 971 : 6 25 ). U n l ike t he I ron Age s amp les f ro m F ar moor , s o me o f t he Ro man s amp les c on ta ined a s ign if ican t q uan t i ty o f c erea l r e ma ins .

I n a l l o f t hese s amples t he r e ma ins

r epresented t he d ebr is f rom t he t hresh ing o f s pel t whea t .

T . s pel ta d oes n o t

h ave f ree-thresh ing g ra ins a nd r equ ires p arch ing o ver a c orn-dr ier o r f ire t o r ender t he g lumes b r i t t le , u n less a s oph is t ica ted mi l l i s t o b e u sed ( Helbaek 1 953 : 2 33 ).

I t h as b een a ssu med t ha t t he c arbon ised r e ma ins f ro m o ne o f t he

c orn-dr iers ( exam ined b y M. J ones ) , wh ich c on ta ined f ive t imes a s many g lu me b ases a s c erea l g ra ins , were f ro m a c rop wh ich h ad b een s ub jec ted t o t h is p rocess , t hreshed a nd t hen t he w innow ings p erhaps t hrown o n to t he c orn-dr ier f i re .

Ap i t c on ta ined a s ubs tan t ia l q uan t i ty o f wa ter logged s pe l t c ha f f a nd c harred

s pel t c ha f f was wel l r epresen ted i n o ne o f t he wa ter h o les a long w i th a l i t t le H ordeu m v u lgare .

Af ew s eeds o f a no ther a rab le c rop , L inu m u s i ta t iss i mum

w ere i den t if ied f ro m o ne o f t he we l ls . Three o ther s pec ies wh ich were p resen t s tand o u t a s c rops : P runus d o mes t ica , A nethu m g raveo lens a nd C or iandrum s a t ivu m . Two v ar ie t ies o f p lu m were f ound i n t he R o man s a mples , o ne w i th s tones t he s ize a nd s hape o f amodern v ar iety o f d amson , t he o ther f ro m a l arger f ru i ted v ar ie ty.

D i l l

h as b een i den t if ied f ro m s evera l Ro man s i tes i n Br i ta in ( W i l lcox 1 977: 2 72-8 ). a s h as c or iander ( Rob inson i n Young 1 975 : 1 67 ). Another s pec ies wh ich migh t h ave b een c u l t iva ted was a n on-Br i t ish umbe l l ifer , s eeds o f wh ich were p resen t i n Ro man s amples f ro m b oth Bar ton C our t a nd Far moor . s e mb led s eeds o f C haerophyl lu rn a ro ma t icum.

They s o mewha t r e-

I th as a lready b een s a id t ha t t here was a l ow f requency o f t ree p o l len i n t he Ro man s amples f ro m Farmoor . Macroscop ic r e ma ins o f woody s pec ies , h owever , were n o t u nco m mon , a nd c o mbined w i th e v idence f ro m t he a r thropod r e ma ins s ugges t t ha t h edges migh t h ave b een p resen t .

A l l t he Ro man d epos i ts

c on ta ined t horny t w igs o f P runus s pinosa/Cra taegus t ype , Prunus w ood a nd mos t c on ta ined l ea f a bsc iss ion p ads a nd b ud s ca les . They were a l mos t a bsen t f ro m t he I ron Age s amp les wh i le t he p ropor t ion o f t ree a nd wood-feed ing C o leop tera ( exc lud ing s pec ies wh ich c an i nvade s truc tura l t imbers ) w ere t en t imes more f requen t t han f ro m I ron Age Farmoor .

The mos t n umerous s pec ies

o f a n t was S tenam ma wes twood i , wh ich , w i th at o ta l o f 4 6 i nd iv idua ls o ccurred i n a l l b u t o ne o f t he Ro man s amp les . I tn es ts u nder l arge s tones o r amongs t t he r oo ts o f t rees i n s hady wood land o r i n h edgerows ( Bou l ton a nd C o l l ing-w ood 1 975: 2 2 ).

S evera l o f t he o ther a n ts wh ich were r epresen ted b y workers n es t

i n o ld t ree s tumps , h edges e tc . ( l arge s tones b e ing n o tab ly a bsen t f rom t he s i te ).

S im i lar ly , many o f t he mi tes ( i den t if ied b y S . D enford ) were s pec ies

a ssoc ia ted w i th t rees .

( Both t he worker a n ts a nd t he mi tes wou ld b e e xpec ted

t o h ave much more l oca l o r ig in t han t he C o leop tera o r p o l len , p robab ly more c o mparable w i th t ha t o f t he macroscop ic p lan t r e ma ins.) U n l ike I ron Age Farmoor , t here s ee ms t o b e a bundan t macroscop ic e v id ence f or t rees o r s hrubs , e spec ia l ly t horny s pec ies f ro m t he f am i ly R osaceae g row ing o n t he s i te i n t he Ro man p er iod i n t he v ic in i ty o f s ome o f t he wa terl ogged f ea tures.

I th as a lready b een s hown f or M ing ie 's D i tch h ow i nsec t

p o l l ina ted s hrubs a nd t rees c an b e u nder-represen ted o r a bsen t f ro m t he p ol len r ecord .

Had Farmoor b eco me o vergrown w i th s crub , much o f i tw ou ld p ro-

b ab ly h ave b een P. s pinosa a nd C ra taegus monogyna i n i t ia l ly b u t o ther s pec ies wou ld p robab ly h ave e s tab l ished t he mse lves a f ter a wh i le s uch a s S a l ix s pp ., Rhamnus c a thar t icus a nd e ven tua l ly C ory lus a ve l lana .

I f s uch a n a tura l s crub

h ad b een p resen t o n t he s i te , a s a t Hardw ick , s o me o f t he s pec ies s uch a s S a l ix s pp . o ugh t t o h ave b een d e tec ted b y t he p o l len a na lyses a nd t he o thers b y ad ivers i ty o f macroscop ic r e ma ins .

N ei ther i s t here a ny a rchaeo log ica l e v i-

d ence wh ich wou ld s ugges t t ha t t he s i te h ad b een a bandoned t o s crub , i ndeed i t s o ccupa t ion s ee ms t o h ave b een a t i t s mos t i n tensive d ur ing t he l a te R o man p er iod .

Therefore i ti s p os tu la ted t ha t t he way i n wh ich t he r esu l ts f rom t he

v ar ious b io log ica l g roups c an b e e xp la ined i s b y t he p resenee o f t horn h edges , e spec ia l ly P . s pinosa . Ev idence f or h edges o f a nother s or t c ame f ro m t he d iscovery o f b ox l eaves i n t wo o f t he Ro man f ea tures , i n o ne i ns tance a long w i th M UMS s e mperv irens f ru i t f rag men ts.

B ox i s ap lan t o f c ha lk a nd l imes tone s carps wh ich i s r e-

g arded a s n a t ive t o Br i ta in ( P igot a nd Wa l ters 1 953 ). p lan t t o b e g row ing w i ld a t Farmoor .

I t s ee ms a mos t u n l ike ly

I t i s o ne o f t he f ew n a t ive e vergreen

h edg ing p lan ts a nd P l iny ( XV I : x xv i i i ) d escr ibes i t s u se f or o rna men ta l h edges . I n t he Ro man p er iod a t Far moor t here was a c ons iderable i ncrease i n t he n umber o f b ee t les wh ich l i ve i n r ela t ively i n t ima te a ssoc ia t ion w i th man c o mp ared w i th a ny o f t he e ar l ier s i tes i nves t iga ted .

The f irs t g roup t o b e c on-

s idered a re t hose b ee t les wh ich a re c apab le o f i nvad ing s truc tura l t imbers ( a l though t hey c an a lso i nhabi t n a tura l ly o ccurr ing d ead wood ).

Anobium

p unc ta tu m , t he woodwor m b ee t le , made u p 2 .5% o f t he t ota l t erres tr ia l C o leoptera f ro m t he Ro man s amples a t Farmoor c o mpared w i th 0 .5% f or A . p unc ta tum p lus L yc tus l i ne a ns , ab ee t le o f n ot t oo d iss im i lar h ab i ta ts f ro m t he Farmoor I ron Age d epos i ts a nd 0 .9% f ro m M ing ie 's D i tch . 2 64

The f o l low ing s pec ies f ro m Ro man Far moor c an b e r egarded a s s ynant hrop ic : My c etophagus q uadr igu t ta tus

Tenebr io mo l i tor

P t inus f ur

T ipnus u n ico lor

S tegobium p aniceum

T yphaea s tercorea

A l l b u t S . p an iceum c er ta in ly h ave h abi ta ts i n Br i ta in a way f ro m h u man i nf luence b u t s o me o f t hem a re c ons iderably more e so ter ic t han t he n a tura l h abi ta t o f t he w oodworm b ee t le , b irds ' n es ts b eing a p ar t icu lar f avour i te o f s ome o f t hese s pec ies .

A l l t hese s pec ies c an o ccur i n g ranary r efuse .

They

a re o f ten a ssoc ia ted w i th h ay was te o r s traw a nd c an p erhaps l i ve i n t ha tch . These s pec ies made u p 3 .3% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera c o mpared w i th a c o mp le te a bsence f ro m I ron Age Farmoor a nd 0 .1% ( a s ing le i nd iv idua l o f P . f ur ) f rom Ming ie 's D i tch . Another g roup o f s pec ies l i ke ly t o b e r e la ted t o h uman h abi ta t ion , t he La thr id i idae , were a bou t f ive t imes a s a bundan t a t Ro man Farmoor , ( where t hey c o mpr ised 9 .6% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera ) c ompared w i th e i ther o f t he I ron Age s i tes .

They t end t o o ccur i n " swee t" c o mpos t s uch a s h ays tack

b o t to ms a nd t ha tch . A pp leford ( SU523936 ) F irs t Terrace ( Fu l l r epor t , H inch l i f fe a nd Tho mas 1 980 f or thco m ing ) I n many ways t he R o man s i te a t A pp leford s ee ms t o h ave r ese mbled a l arger v ers ion o f Farmoor .

The Ro man f ea tures e xcava ted c ons is ted o f p ar t

o f ad i tched d roveway w i th sma l l f i elds l a id o u t a ga ins t i t .

W i th in t he sma l l

f i e lds were t he u sua l p i ts a nd wa ter h o les b u t n o d ef in i te e v idence o f b u i ld ings was d iscovered .

The p er iod o f u se o f t he s i te s ee ms t o h ave r anged f ro m t he

l a te i s t c en tury AD u n t il t he e nd o f t he 4 th c en tury ( on t he b as is o f p o t tery a nd c oins ).

Crop marks s howed t ha t t he d roveway c onverged w i th t wo o thers

a bou t 1 50 m a way f ro m t he e xcava ted a rea .

The a rea o f f l oodp la in b etween

t he f irs t t errace a nd t he R iver Thames was c onsiderab ly l ess t han a t Farmoor . Examina t ion o f s amp les f ro m t he wa ter h oles s howed t ha t a s w i th t he o ther s i tes d iscussed s o f ar , g rass land was i mpor tan t .

I n teres t ing ly t he d ung

b eet les f rom t he s uper-fa m i ly S carabaeo idea c o mpr ised j us t u nder 1 0% o f t he t errestr ia l C o leoptera , al ower v a lue t han f or a ny o f t he o ther I ron Age a nd Ro man s i tes b u t i nd ica tors o f meadow land were much b e t ter r epresented t han f ro m a ny o f t hose s i tes .

A pp leford wa ter h o le 3 2 was e spec ia l ly r ich i n s pec ies

wh ich t end t o b e c harac ter is t ic o f f l ower-r ich meadows s uch a s C an thar is s pp . a nd O l ibrus s p .

b u t t hey a re b y n o means c onf ined t o i t .

Wa ter h o le 3 2 a lso

h ad , f or a n a rchaeo log ica l s a mp le , a n e x traord inary d ivers i ty o f C occ ine l l idae ( l adybirds ) w i th f i ve s pec ies p resen t .

A l though a w ide r ange o f C occ ine l l idae

c an b e c ol lec ted i n o ld h ay meadows , a ga in , t hey a re n o t i nd ica t ive o f t he m . P erhaps more u sefu l a re weev i ls o f t he g enus A p ion ( exc lud ing t he i den t if ied ma l low a nd n e t t le f eed ing s pec ies ) a nd t he g enus S i tona .

Th is g roup made u p

a bou t 1 1% o f t he t ota l t erres tr ia l C o leoptera i n t he A pp leford s amp les .

Their

s pec ies a re l arge ly c on f ined t o f eed ing o n members o f t he f a mi ly Pap i l ionaceae a nd f ro m p ersona l e xper ience c an b e c augh t i n v ery h igh n u mbers i s meadows , c er ta in ly more t han o n p as ture land .

S o me i nd iv idua ls , h owever , wou ld b e

e xpec ted e ven i f meadow land was c o mp le te ly a bsen t .

2 65

A c oup le o f s eeds o f Agros te m ma g i thago , a s we l l a s a sma l l q uan t i ty o f b oth c harred a nd wa ter logged c erea l r e ma ins , w ere f ound .

Af ew f lax s eeds

a nd p lu m s tones were a lso p resen t b u t n o t t he c u l inary h erbs wh ich were i dent i f ied f ro m Far moor . Even t hough t he l andscape was p redo minan t ly o pen s o me s crub s ee ms t o h ave b een p resen t a t A pp leford .

The e v idence i nc luded wood o f P runus s p .

a nd C ra taegus t ype a long w i th p r ick ly s te ms o f Rosa s p . a nd s eeds o f Bryon ia d ioica. I ti s u ncer ta in whe ther o r n o t t he s crub was i n t he f orm o f h edges . B ee t les f ro m t he s ynan throp ic c a tegory made u p o nly 0 .7% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leoptera b u t t h is was p robab ly a r esu l t o f t he e xcava ted a rea b e ing s o me d is tance f ro m a ny b u i ld ings a t A pp leford r a ther t han t ha t o ccupat i on was n ecessar i ly l ess i n tens ive t han a t Farmoor o r Bar ton C our t . Bar ton C our t Farm , A bingdon a nd Rad ley ( SU510978 ) S econd Terrace ( Fu l l r epor t , Mi les 1 981 , f or thco m ing ) Th is mu l t iper iod s i te was o n t he t errace e dge , o ver look ing t he c lay s lope d own t o t he f i rs t t errace .

I n t he l a ter i s t c en tury AD aRo man r ec tangu lar

t imber f armhouse w i th in a r ec t i l inear e nc losure r ep laced a Be lg ic f arms tead o n t he s i te.

There was t hen p erhaps ab reak i n o ccupa t ion o f t he s i te u n t i l

a bou t AD 2 70 when a sma l l s tone c orr idortype v i l la was b u i l t .

The v i l la e n-

c losure was s et i n ar ec tangu lar f armyard w i th s evera l s ub-d iv isions a nd a d roveway l ead ing i n to i t .

I n t he f armyard was a lso a s econd b u i ld ing , ac orn

d r ier a nd t wo s tonel ined we l ls , b o th o f wh ich f i l led u p d ur ing t he 4 th c en tury ( da ted b y p ot tery a nd me ta lwork ).

O ne o f t he w el ls was 7 m d eep a nd t he

mass ive s tones o f i t s l i n ing h ad b een b edded i n to t h ick l ayers o f moss , p erhaps t o f i l ter t he wa ter .

Wa ter logged s a mp les were e xamined f ro m b oth w el ls b u t

n o wa ter logged f ea tures w ere e ncoun tered f ro m t he p re-v i l la p hase. J . G reig 's p ol len a na lyses s howed t ha t t he v i l la was s urrounded b y a n o pen , r e la t ive ly u nwooded e nv iron men t .

Th is i mpression i s c onf ir med b y t he

C o leop tera , af ew i nd iv idua ls o f Phy ma todes t es taceus b e ing t he o n ly r epres en ta t ives o f t he C erambyc idae , a nd S co ly t idae w ere e n t irely a bsen t . A t 0 .2% , t he p ropor t ion o f t he t ota l C o leop tera f eed ing o n wood o r t rees was l ower t han e i ther o f t he o ther t wo Ro man s i tes i nves t iga ted .

G rass land a nd d is turbed

g round were t he ma jor e cotypes i nd ica ted b y t he wa ter logged p lan t a nd i nsec t r ema ins .

Dung b ee t les f ro m t he g enera G eo trupes , A phod ius a nd O n thophagus

c o mpr ised 1 6% o f t he t ota l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera .

A t 0 .07% t he p ropor t ion

o f c hryso mel id b ee t les a nd weev i ls t ha t f eed o n a qua t ic o r marsh p lan ts o u t o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leoptera was l ower t han f or a ny o f t he o ther s i tes. S eeds o f s pec ies f ro m we t g rass land were a kso r e la t ive ly l ow .

Th is r esu l t i s

wha t wou ld b e e xpec ted c onsider ing t he s i tua t ion o f t he v ar ious s i tes . Re ma ins o f t hree s pec ies o f a rable c rops wh ich h ad b een b rough t t o t he v i l la f armyard f or p rocessing were f ound wa ter logged : a nd f lax .

s pe l t whea t , b ar ley

B y f ar t he mos t n umerous o f t hese was f lax ( Linu m u s i ta t iss i mum ),

r epresen ted b y s eeds a nd c apsu le f ragmen ts f ro m a l l t he wa ter logged s amp les ( excep t t he moss f ro m t he we l l l i ning ) .

I t mus t b e r e me mbered t ha t f lax c an

b e g rown f or l i nseed a s we l l a s t o make l i nen .

F lax r e t t ing r equ ires wa ter-

f i l led d i tches , p i ts o r t anks , f or wh ich t here was n oe v idence , a nd i ti s ad isg us t ing ly sme l ly p rocess wh ich wou ld n o t b e p leasan t f or t he o ccupan ts o f t he 2 66

s i te.

I t s eems more l i ke ly t ha t t he c apsu les were h arves ted ( r ipp led ) a nd

b rough t t o t he v i l la f or p ressing o r c onsu mp t ion o f t he s eeds wh i le t he ir s te ms w ere r e t ted e lsewhere , p erhaps a t t he p lace o f c u l t iva t ion .

A mos t i n teres t ing

d iscovery was made a long w i th t he f lax r e ma ins i n o ne o f t he s amp les , s i l icu la f ragmen ts o f C ame l ina a lyssu m .

Th is weed i s p ar t icu lar ly a ssoc ia ted w i th

f lax c u l t iva t ion a nd t he p resence i n af lax f ie ld o f i t s c lose r ela t ive , C . s a t iva , s er ious ly a f fec ts t he y ield o f t he c rop d ue t o t he s ecre t ion o f g row th i nh ib i tors ( D i mbleby 1 978 : 8 4 ).

H owever , s eeds o f C . a lyssum h arvested w i th t he l i nseed

w ou ld t he mse lves c on tr ibu te t o t he o i l p roduc t ion o n p ress ing a nd i ti s e ven p ossible t ha t C . a lyssum i t se l f was c u l t iva ted a s a n o i l c rop . S pe l t whea t a nd b ar ley were i den t i f ied f ro m wa ter logged c ha f f f ragmen ts . I n a ddi t ion , ac oup le o f wa ter logged c erea l c aryopses were f ound a nd ' cerea l ' p o l len was p resen t .

H owever , t he e v idence f ro m t he c arbonised s eeds was

much more e x tens ive.

Work b y M. J ones o n t he c orn d r ier a nd o ther s amp les

s howed s pe l t whea t f o l lowed b y h u l led s ix-row b ar ley t o b e t he mos t a bundan t c harred c erea ls .

Th is a pparen t ly c on trad ic ts t he r esu l ts f ro m t he wa ter logged

s a mp les , i n wh ich f l ax was t he mos t i mpor tant .

The p rocesses wh ich l ed t o

t he i ncorpora t ion o f t he r e ma ins a nd t heir p reserva t ion , h owever , wou ld h ave b een b iased ;

t he p arch ing o f c erea ls t ends t o r esu l t i n a cc iden ta l c harr ing a nd

c erea l r e ma ins d o n o t p reserve wel l u nder wa ter logged c ond i t ions . The i nsec ts p rov ide a l i t t le i nforma t ion wh ich m igh t s ugges t t ha t t here was ag rea ter a rea o f a rab le l and i n p rox im i ty t o t he v i l la t han a t e i ther t he Farmoor o r A ppleford Ro man s i tes .

S o me s pec ies o f t he c arab id g enus Amara , i n p ar-

t i cu lar A . a pr icara , A . b ifrons a nd A . t i bia l is l i ve o n o pen , r a ther s andy , b are o r d isturbed g round ( L indro t l i 1 974 : 9 1-3 ).

They made u p 1 .3% o f t he t errestr ia l

C o leoptera f ro m t he Bar ton C our t V i l la s a mp les ( 34 i nd iv idua ls ) b u t were a bsen t f ro m Far moor a nd p resen t a t App leford i n r educed n umbers .

Their a bundance

w ou ld , h owever , b e r e la ted t o s oi l t ype a nd b are g round i n t he v ic in i ty o f t he s e t t le ments a s we l l a s a rable . Exc lud ing t rees g rown f or t heir wood , t here were s eeds o f t hree more s pec ies o f c u l t iva ted p lan t : P runus d o mes t ica .

A ne thu m g raveo lens , C or ia ndru m s a t ivu m a nd

A nother s pec ies , t he o p ium p oppy ( Papaver s o mn i feru m ) ,

r epresented b y 7 1 s eeds i n o ne s amp le , c ou ld h ave g rown a s a weed , b een c u l t iva ted i n sma l l g arden p lots o r h arves ted a s af i e ld c rop . t he s eeds c ou ld h ave b een i mpor ted .

A l terna t ive ly

P . s o mn iferu m h ad b een i n troduced i n to

B r i ta in b y t he I ron Age ( Godw in 1 975 : 1 29 ) a nd s eeds o f i th ave b een r ecorded f ro m s evera l Ro mano-Br i t ish s i tes i nc lud ing S i lches ter .

Re id ( 1905 : 3 77 )

s uggested t ha t a t S i lches ter t he s eeds were u sed s pr ink led o r b read .

I t was

a lmos t c er ta in ly c u l t iva ted i n B ri ta in d ur ing t he Ro man p er iod a nd i s u sefu l a s a n o i l , a s we l l a s a med ic ina l c rop , t he c rushed s te ms b e ing u sed a s a nima l f odder ( Craw ford 1 973 : 2 30-1 ).

C on trary t o p opu lar mytho logy , i td oes s ee m

t ha t o p ium p oppy c an b e g rown a s ad rug p lan t u nder E ng l ish c l ima t ic c ond i t ions ( Godw in 1 978 : 1 57-8 ).

C raw ford ( 1973 : 2 32 ) c i tes s evera l Ro man ( t hough

E astern ) e xa mp les o f med ic ina l u sage . There was n o g ood e v idence t o s ugges t t he p resence o f h edges o n t he s i te. T he b io log ica l r e ma ins s ugges ted t ha t wood land was a bsen t f rom t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty o f t he s i te , a l though a s i s o n ly t o b e e xpec ted , w ood was u sed b y t he v i l la i nc lud ing s ubs tan t ia l o ak t imbers a nd h azel r ods .

2 67

A n u nusua l i ns igh t o n

ap iece o f wood land e xp loi ted b y t he v i l la , b u t n o t i t s l oca t ion , was g iven b y t he moss wh ich h ad b een p acked b etween t he s tone l i ning o f o ne o f t he w e l ls . The mosses ( worked o n b y J . D ixon ) were a l l wood land s pec ies . The most a bundan t , H yloco miu m b rev iros tre o ccurs o n c a lcareous s oi ls i n d eep s hade a nd i s a t p resen t u nco m mon .

Many o ther b io log ica l r e ma ins h ad b een t rans-

p or ted w i th t he moss f ro m t he wood land f l oor . They i nc luded i nsec ts wh ich o verw in ter i n moss , f or e xamp le t he b ug S eh irus b ico lor ( Sou thwood a nd L es ton 1 959 : 2 8 ) a nd t he wood land s na i l A zeca g ooda l l i .

6 2% o f t he p o l len

f ro m t he moss was t ree/shrub p o l len , 5 0% b e ing C orylus .

The s eeds c onf irm

t he e v idence f ro m t he moss f or t he p redo minan t ly c a lcareous s ubs tra te o f t he wood f or t hey i nc luded V iburnum L an tana a nd F ragar ia v esca .

Oak g a l ls o f

p aras i t ic H y menop tera f ro m t he s ub-fam i ly C yn ip inae were p resen t , i nc lud ing l ea f s pang le g a l ls o f N euro terus c f . a lbipes a nd b ud g a l ls o f Andr icus c f . a lbopunc ta tus ( Rob inson 1 980 ).

There was a l ow v a lue f or o ak p o l len , o n ly

6% o f t he t o ta l f rom t he moss . The ' o ld wood land ' b ryophyte f l ora m igh t s ugges t t ha t t he wood h ad a n a nc ien t o r ig in b u t t he h igh v a lue o f h aze l p o l len a nd t he l ow v a lue f or f ores t t rees s how t ha t b y t he l a te 3 rd c entury AD t here h ad b een h uman i n ter ference w i th -t he wood .

P erhaps i t was a n o ak/haze l

c opp ice a nd t he g a l l-infes ted o aks h ad n ot r eached f l ower ing s ize .

T he wood

may h ave b een s i tua ted o n t he c ora l l imes tone t o t he n or th o f t he s i te a s i s t he p resen t d ay w ood o f Bag ley , w i th wh ich i t s f l ora a nd f auna h ave s ome a f f ini t ies . H owever , t here a re many o ther a reas w i th c a lcareous s ubs tra tes where i t c ou ld h ave g rown , i n p ar t icu lar t he g rave l t erraces wh ich h ave n ow b een s o t horough ly c leared o f t rees t ha t t he t ype o f f ores t i t wou ld h ave s uppor ted i s =cer ta in . A nobium p unc ta tu m made u p 1 .6% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera , n o t a s much a s f or R o man Farmoor .

The p ropor t ion o f t he s ynan throp ic

s pec ies , t he La thr id i idae a nd s pec ies o f f ou l , s o mewha t a naerobic , d ecay ing o rgan ic r e ma ins i nc lud ing manure h eaps , s uch a s t he sma l ler S phaer id i inae a nd many o f t he S taphyl in idae were n o b e t ter r epresen ted t han a t Farmoor . Ano ther s pec ies h as b een a dded t o t he s ynan throp ic g roup f or Bar ton C our t , Myce taea h ir ta .

I t i s af unga l f eeder wh ich mos t o f ten o ccurs i n b u i ld ings

a nd s ee ms t o b e p ar t icu lar ly p ar t ia l t o t he d ry r o t f ungus ( Hor ion 1 961 : 1 16). On ly f our i nd iv idua ls o f S tegobiu m p an iceu m f ro m Bar ton C our t c an b e r egard ed a s t rue p es ts o f s tored f ar inaceous ma ter ia l . The p auc i ty o f g ra in b eet les was p erhaps o n ly t o b e e xpec ted f or Farmoor a nd A pp leford b u t i ti s i n teres t ing t ha t t he ma jor g ra in p es ts , wh ich c an i nfes t g ranar ies i n t he ir mi l l ions ( Cryp toles tes , Oryzaeph i lus , S i toph i lus a nd Pa lorus s pp .) s hou ld h ave b een a bsen t f ro m a t rue v i l la wh ich p robab ly h ad a g rea ter i nvo lve men t i n g ra in p roduc t ion .

These s pec ies were a l l p resen t i n Br i ta in b y t he d a te o f t he we l ls

a nd s er ious i n fes ta t ions h ad a lready o ccurred i n t owns ( Kenward a nd W i l l ia ms 1 979 ;

Buck land 1 978 ).

S o me o f t hese s pec ies h ave b een r ecorded f rom v i l las

e lsewhere , f or e xamp le Oryzaeph i lus s ur inamens is a t Barns ley Park , G louc es tersh ire ( Coope a nd O sborne 1 978 ) a nd S i toph i lus g ranar ius a t Win ter ton , L inco lnsh ire ( Robinson , u npubl ished ). THE SAXON PERIOD The d iscovery o f a n e ar ly S axon we l l a t Bar ton C our t a nd a lso a w e l l o n t he f i rs t t errace S axon s i te o f B ishop 's C our t p rov ided s u f f ic ien t wa ter logged ma ter ia l t o e x ten t t he s tudy b eyond t he e nd o f t he R o man p er iod , a l though n o t o n t he s ca le o f t he i nves t iga t ion o f t he I ron Age a nd Ro man e nv iron men t . 2 68

Bar ton C our t ( see a bove ) A t t he e nd o f t he 4 th c en tury o r b eg inn ing o f t he 5 th c en tury t he v i l la wen t o u t o f u se , a l though a c oin h oard f ro m t he o ther b u i ld ing s ugges ts i t may h ave s t ood l onger . The s i te was o ccup ied b y t he S axons f ro m a t l eas t t he mid 5 th c en tury ( on t h e b asis o f d ecora ted p o t tery ) a nd c on t inued i n to t he 6 th c en tury w hen t wo b ur ia ls were i nser ted i n to t he r ubb le o f t he v i l la a nd t wo more i n to t he r e ma ins o f t he o ther b u i lding ( da ted b y t he ir a cco mpanying meta lwork ). A n i rregu lar e nc losure was a dded t o t he s ou th o f t he v i l la f armyard a nd i n t he v ic in i ty s evera l s unken h u ts a nd p ost-bu i l t h a l l-houses w ere c onstruc ted . T he S axons a lso b u i l t awa t t lel ined we l l c u t f rom t he b o t to m o f ap ar t ly f i l led i n R o man d i tch , av ery meagre s truc ture c ompared w i th t he R o man w e l ls . S uper f ic ia l ly t here s ee ms t o h ave b een v ery l i t t le d i f ference b e tween t he g enera l e nv iron men t a round t he s i te i n R oman a nd S axon t imes . A s f or t he R o man p er iod , t he p o l len ( examined b y J . G re ig ) s ugges ted a n o pen r e la t ive ly u nwooded e nv iron men t . I ti s o f p ar t icu lar i n teres t t o k now whe ther t here was a ny i ncrease i n s crub s how ing a bandoned l and a f ter t he e nd o f t he R oman p er iod b u t t he s l igh t r ise i n t ree a nd s hrub p ol len f ro m 4 .5% t o 1 0% was n ot s u f f ic ien t t o i nd ica te a ny c hange o n t he b as is o f o n ly o ne S axon d epos i t . I ndeed t he C o leoptera s how t he r everse t rend w i th n o wood o r t ree d ependen t s pec ies ( even A nobium p unc ta tum ) b eing p resen t . The s ame t ype o f g rassland was p robably p resen t a s i n t he R oman p er iod a l though d ung b ee t les o f t he g enera G eotrupes , C o lobop terus , A phod ius a nd O n thophagus h ad f a l len t o al eve l o f 8 % o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera . The e v idence f ro m t he wa ter logged c erea l r e ma ins t akes o n as pec ia l i mp or tance b ecause t he p resence o f r es idua l Ro man p ot tery i n t he S axon f ea tures w ou ld s ugges t t ha t s o me o f t he c arbon ised s eeds c ou ld b e r es idua l t oo. R oman ma ter ia l wh ich h ad n ot b een c harred wou ld h ave d ecayed i n t he s oi l . The o ny wa ter logged c erea l was H ordeum v u lgare , i den t i f ied f ro m i t s r ach is n odes . I ti s d isappoin t ing t ha t n o wa ter logged whea t was f ound b ecause i t wou ld b e mos t i n teres t ing t o k now whe ther s pe l t c on t inued i n u se i n to t he S axon p er iod h ere . H owever , b read whea t c ha f f i s n ot a s r obus t a s s pe l t c ha f f , s o i ti s p oss ible t ha t i ti s n o t a s e as i ly p reserved i n ar ecogn isab le f orm . The o ther a rab le c rop i nd ica ted was f lax , a ga in i n t he c o mpany o f C ame l ina a lyssum s i l icu la f ragmen ts . The r ange o f e xot ic s pec ies o f Umbel l iferae u sed b y t he R o mans was a bsen t a s were t he f ru i t s tones . C o leop tera a ssoc ia ted w i th a ccumu la t ions o f p lan t d ebr is a nd manure i n v ar ious s tages o f d ecay were p resen t t hough i n l ower p ropor t ions t han i n t he R o man p er iod . The s pec ies p ar t icu lar ly a ssoc ia ted w i th b u i ld ings w ere a t a much r educed l evel o r a bsen t .

The o n ly r epresen ta t ive o f t he s ynan throp ic

g roup was a s ing le s pec imen o f P t inus f ur a nd A nob ium p unc ta tum was n o t f ound . B ishop 's C our t , Dorches ter ( SU571939 ) F irs t Terrace G ravel e x trac t ion a bou t 5 00 m t o t he wes t o f t he R o man t own o f D orches ter i n a n a rea r e la t ive ly f ree o f c ropmarks e xposed a n e ar ly S axon s unken h u t a nd s o me S axon w e l ls . As amp le was o bta ined f ro m o ne o f t hese we l ls , wh ich was wa t t le l i ned a nd d a ted t o t he 5 th-6th c en tury AD b y p ot tery .

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P o l len a na lysis was n o t u nder taken f or t h is d epos i t , b u t t he C o leop tera d id n ot i nc lude a ny t ree o r wood f eed ing s pec ies . Dung b ee t les o f t he g enera G eotrupes , C o lobop terus , A phod ius a nd O n thophagus made u p 1 0% o f t he t ota l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera , s u f f ic ien t ly h igh t o i nd ica te t he p resence o f a tl east s o me p as ture n earby. Rema ins o f c rops were s parse , b u t a par t f rom a s ing le c harred g ra in o f b read/c lub whea t , t hey were t he s a me t wo s pec ies a s f or t he S axon w e l l a t Bar ton C our t , f lax a nd b ar ley. The r epresen ta t ion o f s pec ies o f d ecaying p lan t r ema ins a nd t hose a ssoc ia ted w i th h uman h ab i ta t ion were a lso s im i lar t o S axon Bar ton C our t w i th A nob ium p unc ta tum a bsen t , al ow l eve l o f L a thr id i idae a nd a s ing le i nd iv idua l o f T yphaea s tercorea b e ing t he o n ly me mber o f t he s ynan throp ic g roup ing . PATTERNS OF CHANGE AND CONT INU ITY There was n oe v idence f or a ny c l ima t ic c hange d ur ing t he p er iod i nves t ig a ted o r ad i f ference i n c l ima t ic c ond i t ions f ro m t hose o f t he p resen t . A l l t he c hanges d e tec ted were p robably t he r esu l t o f h uman a c t iv i ty , i n ten t iona l o r o therw ise. S o i l c hange a nd F lood ing The =d is turbed n a tura l s oi ls o n t he g ravel t erraces mos t ly s eem t o h ave b een s tone-free s i l t bar ns ( Robinson i n Pa lmer 1 980 , f or thco m ing ). T he l ack o f l imes tone g rave l i n t hese s o i ls wou ld h ave mean t t ha t d eca lc i f ica t ion b y r a inwa ter l each ing a nd t he f orma t ion o f e x treme s o ls l ess ivAs was a p ossibi l i ty o nce f ores t c over h ad b een r e moved . The modern s oi ls o n t he t erraces a re l i kely t o h ave r esu l ted f ro m p lough ing d eep e nough t o mix t he n a tura l s o i ls w i th t he u nder lying s andy l imestone g rave l . A ny s o ls l ess iv6s wou ld h ave b een d es troyed o n s ha l low s oi ls a nd p robab ly h ave b een made more p ermeable a s ar esu l t o f e ar thworm a c t iv i ty o ver d eeper h o l lows . When t h is o ccurred o n a n e x tens ive s ca le i s =cer ta in . La te Bronze Age/ear ly I ron Age p lough ing a t Moun t Farm , n ear D orches ter , Oxon . t ook p lace i n as tony s oi l a nd p lough marks c u t i n to t he g rave l ( G . Lambr ick , p ers. c om m .). S oi l d ep th w ou ld h ave b een a n i mpor tan t f ac tor a nd t he p resumab ly e ar ly S axon s o i l u nder O x ford i s r ela t ively s tone-free . The p reIron Age s o i l o n t he f l oodp la in t ends t o b e l ess g leyed a nd h ave ah igher s i l t c on ten t t han t he p resen t a l luv ia l c lays ( Rob inson i n Pa lmer 1 980 , f or thcom ing ). The d eca lc if ied u pper p ar t o f t he ir p rof i le , l ack ing i n a qua t ic mo l luscs s ugges ts t ha t t hey were n o t r egu lar ly f l ooded b y t he mo l lusc-r ich c a lcareous wa ters o f t he Thames . Even b efore t he f ound ing o f t he I ron Age s e t t le men t a t M ing ie 's D i tch ( i n c irca 3 50-300 b c ) t he wa ter t able h ad r isen s o mewha t o n t he f l oodp la in a l though t he s i te p robab ly d id n o t f l ood . A t a bou t t he t ime o f a bandonmen t t here was a f ur ther r ise i n t he wa ter t able a nd p oss ibly a n o nse t o f f l ood ing , a l though t here was n o d ef in i te e v idence f or a l luv ia l d epos i t ion o n t he s i te u n t i l much l a ter . A t F armoor , f l ood ing o f t he f l oodp la in e nc losures was t ak ing p lace a t ad a te l a ter t han t he a bandon men t o f t he M ing ie 's D i tch s i te , p erhaps a round 2 00 b e . A f ter t he a bandon men t o f t he f l oodp la in e nc losures , e x tens ive d epos i t ion o f u p t o a bou t 0 .5 m o f a l luv ium t ook p lace o ver p ar ts o f t he f l oodp la in .

The wa ter t able r ose t o a bove wha t h ad b een t he

I ron Age g round s ur face o f o ne e nc losure .

The b u lk o f t he a l luv ium h ad b een

d epos i ted b y t he 4 th c en tury AD b u t s easona l f l ood ing c on t inued u n t i l t he p resen t

2 70

d ay.

There s ee ms n o r eason why a l luv iu m c over ing s o me Bronze Age s i tes

o n t he f loodp la in ( Robinson i n Pa l mer 1 980 , f o t hco m ing ) s hou ld n ot d a te t o t he ma in p er iod o f d eposi t ion a t Farmoor , a l though t he ma in a ggrada t ion a t M ing ie 's D i tch t ook p lace n o e ar l ier t han t he e ar ly S axon p er iod . I th as b een s ugges ted t ha t s oi l e ros ion f o llow ing l arge-sca le c learance , a rable a gr icu l ture o r t he i n troduc t ion o f w in ter c erea ls h ave c aused a ggrada t ion o f a l luv iu m a nd a r ise i n t he wa ter t able i n r iver v a l leys ( L i mbrey 1 978 : 2 3 , 2 5 ;

S hotton 1 978 ).

B y t he d a te o f t he Farmoor d eposi t t he g rave l t erraces

h ad b een e x tensively f armed a nd s pec ies o f c erea l s u i table f or w in ter s ow ing h ad b een c u l t iva ted f or o ver 5 00 y ears.

A lso , t he g rave l t erraces a re a l most

f l a t a nd t heir d ra inage t ends t o b e b y wa ter p ercola t ing t hrough t he s oi l a nd t hen f l ow ing r ela t ive ly f reely t hrough t he g ravel . s uscep t ible t o e ros ion .

They wou ld n ot s ee m v ery

A p ossible , b u t b y n o means d ef ini te , e xp lana t ion f or

t he s ource o f t he d epos i ts wou ld b e midd le a nd l a te I ron Age a gr icu l tura l e xpansion o n to t he l imestone s lopes o f t he C otswolds. E xploi ta t ion o f t he Man- made E nv iron ment B y t he b eg inning o f t he I ron Age wood land was p robably o n ly a b ackground f ea ture t o t he a gr icu l tura l l andscape o f t he g rave l t erraces .

Areas o f s crub ,

h owever , p robably e x is ted o n t he f l oodp la in , e spec ia l ly u p t he t r ibu tar ies o f t he Tha mes .

I n t he e ar ly I ron Age , Tr i t icum s pe l ta , wh ich i s s u i tab le f or

w in ter s ow ing , was b eing c u l t iva ted a t t he s econd t errace s i te o f A shv i l le a nd an orma l r ange o f d o mes t ic ma m ma ls was k ep t ( Jones a nd Wi lson i n Parr ing ton 1 978 ). The mos t c o mp lete r ange o f e v idence f or l and u sage i n t he Tha mes V a l ley d ur ing t he I ron Age c o mes f ro m t he midd le I ron Age. t he ' v i l lage ' a t Ashv i l le was o ccupied .

Throughou t t h is p er iod

Wi th i t s g roup o f h u ts , sma l l e nc losures

a nd n umerous s torage p i ts i tp robably r epresen ts wel l t he t ype o f a gr icu l tura l s et t le ment wh ich e xp lo i ted t he t erraces .

B oth t he p as tora l a nd a rable a spec ts

o f i t s e cono my s ee ms t o h ave b een i mpor tan t b u t t here was n o e v idence a s t o h ow i t s a gr icu ltura l l andscape was d iv ided i n to i t s v ar ious c o mponen ts.

A l l

t ha t c an b e s a id i s t ha t t he a rea u nder c erea l c u l t iva t ion h ad a v ar ie ty o f s oi l t ypes i nc lud ing wet g round wh ich wou ld n ot b e e xpec ted o n t he g ravel t errace ( on t he b asis o f c harred weed s eeds ).

Not o n ly was T . s pe l ta p resen t b u t a lso

c harred s eeds o f weed s pec ies wh ich wou ld s ugges t a t l eas t s o me a u tu mn s ow ing ( Jones i n Parr ing ton 1 978 , 1 05-6 ). The Ming ie 's D i tch s i te o n t he f l oodp la in was v ery d ifferen t f rom Ashv i l le a nd o ther g ravel t errace s i tes.

I t c an p erhaps b e r egarded a s ap ioneer s i te

b r ing ing a n a rea o f s crubby p as ture i n to more i n tensive u se.

The l ayou t o f

t he d ouble d i tched e nc losure , w i th i t s ' an tennae ' d i tches a t t he e ntrance a nd a ccess t o a wa ter ing p lace o n t he o ld s trea m h e lp t o c onf irm t he e v idence f ro m t he p lan t a nd i nver tebra te r e ma ins f or i t s p r i mar i ly p as tora l f unc t ion .

Whether

o r n ot i t was a s ubs id iary f arm o f o ne o f t he n earby a gr icu l tura l s et t le men ts o n t he s econd g ravel t errace , i t wou ld h ave b een d ependen t u pon a s ource o f g rain f ro m e lsewhere.

The s i te c an b e s een a s ah edged e nc losure s et i n a n

e xpanse o f g rassland a nd marshy g razing , p erhaps w i th s o me s crub s t i l l p res en t a nd b ounded o n ly b y t he R iver Windrush a nd t he o ld s tream , t hough c rossed b y a mesh o f sma l l s easona l s treams.

2 71

The Far moor f l oodp la in s e t t le men ts , s easona l s e lf-con ta ined f arms teads s e t i n at reeless e xpanse o f u nenc losed g rass land , were p erhaps o n ly o ccup ied f or a f ew s um mers u n t i l f lood d amage was n ot w or th r epa ir ing .

The i dea o f

s easona l o ccupa t ion o f t he Tha mes f l oodp la in t o e xp lo i t r ich a l luv ia l g razing d ur ing t he I ron Age was f i rs t e xpounded b y C ase ( 1 963 : 5 1 ).

The mind ing o f

g razing h erds was p robab ly v ir tua l ly t he o n ly c oncern o f t hese f arms teads. Fro m t he a n i ma l b ones , s heep a ppeared t o h ave b een r e la t ive ly l ess i mpor tan t t han c a t t le c o mpared t o A shv i l le o n t he s econd t errace ( W i lson i n Lambr ick a nd R obinson 1 979 : 1 33 ).

H orses were a lso k ep t .

The Far moor s e t t le ments

were p robably d ependen t u pon a p ermanen t c om mun i ty o f t he Ashv i l letype t o wh ich t he t ranshuman t h erds men r e turned f or w in ter g razing a nd where t he a rable p lo ts w ere s i tua ted .

I t i s p oss ible t ha t t he Farmoor e nc losures r ep-

r esen ted a r esponse t o t he o nse t o f i nunda t ions o f t he f l oodp la in wh ich p erhaps c aused t he a bandonmen t o f t he Ming le 's D i tch s i te . I t s ee ms l i ke ly t ha t a ma jor c hange i n t he way i n wh ich l and was managed o ccurred i n t he l a te ( Be lg ic ) I ron Age . u sage ) o f t he f l oodp la in c eased .

O ccupa t ion ( t hough p resu mab ly n ot

F orerunners o f t he Ro man t ype o f d roveway

s et t le men ts a ppeared o n s evera l s i tes b u t wa ter logged b iolog ica l e v idence i s l ack ing f ro m t he m a t p resen t . I n t he R o man p er iod , t he d roveway s e t t lemen ts were g rea t ly e xpanded o n t he g ravel t erraces , af ew o f t he m d evelop ing i n to v i l las o n t he h igher t erraces . A t Far moor , o nce a ga in t he s e t t le men t was c oncerned w i th t he g razing o f c a t t le , b u t i t was managed i n ad if feren t way a nd , u n l ike t he I ron Age , o ther a gr icu l tura l a c t iv i t ies w ere p robab ly i mpor tan t a s wel l .

T he d roveway a nd e nc losed f i elds ,

p ossibly w i th t horn h edges a re c lear i nd ica t ions o f a more c arefu l c on tro l o f l and u sage .

The d iscovery o f al arge s cythe i n t he p ea t a tt h e e nd o f t he d rove-

way s erves a s ar eminder t ha t ac rop o f h ay c ou ld h ave b een t aken o f f t he f l oodp la in b efore a n i ma ls were a l lowed t o g raze o n i t .

V ar ious mode ls c an

b e p os tu la ted f or t he manage men t r eg i me o f t he g rass land a t Farmoor a nd i t s ee ms mos t l i kely t ha t t he c lay h i l ls ides a nd l imes tone h i l l tops s hou ld b e t aken i n to c onsidera t ion a s w el l a s t he g rave l t errace a nd f l oodp la in .

F loodp la in

g rass land w ou ld p robab ly h ave b een t he mos t p roduc t ive d ur ing t he h eigh t o f t he s u m mer a nd t he l eas t u se fu l i n w in ter .

The g ravel t errace wou ld p robably

h ave b een t he mos t r es i l ien t t o w in ter g razing a nd p rov ide t he e ar l ies t h ay c rop , b u t b e t he mos t s uscep t ible t o s u m mer d rough t .

The g rave l a nd l ime-

s tone s oi ls wou ld a lso h ave b een t he mos t s u i table f or a rable wh ich may h ave r esu l ted i n t he o verw in ter ing o f s o me a n i ma ls o n t he l ess s u i tab le c lay s lopes . There i s c ons iderab ly more e v idence f or t he i nvo lve men t o f t he s e t t lemen t i n a rab le a gr icu l ture t han f or t he I ron Age b u t i t s l oca t ion i s p roble ma t ic . Parch ing p r ior t o t he f i na l t hresh ing o f g ra in may h ave b een u nder taken a t t he p lace o f c onsu mp t ion a nd u nknown e cono m ic f ac tors w ou ld h ave d e ter m ined whe ther i t was b e t ter f or t he i nhabi tan ts o f t he s i te t o u se t he g rave l t errace f or p as tora l o r a rable f ar m ing .

( The u se o f c orn d r iers f or p arching g ra in

w ou ld r equ ire t he m t o b e r un a t ah igher t e mpera ture a nd t ake a much sma l ler l oad t han i ft hey were u sed t o d ry t he e n t ire c rop a t h arves t t ime p r ior t o s torage ).

P erhaps c erea ls were o n ly g rown f or u se o n t he s i te.

The Ro man s i te i s p erhaps b es t e nv isaged a s ac o l lec t ion o f t ha tched t imber h ouses a nd b arns s e t i n sma l l h edged f i e lds a long t he d roveway w i th f arm y ards , p i les o f d o mes t ic r ubbish a nd c o mpos t i n wh ich f i l th b ee t les l i ved a nd n eg lec ted 2 72

c orners where p lan ts s uch a s C he l idon iu m ma jus a nd S a mbucus n igra g rew . S o me o f t he h ouses may h ave h ad v ege table a nd h erb g ardens e nc losed b y b ox h edges . O ther o f t he sma l l f i e lds were p erhaps c u l t iva ted f or minor c rops ( i .e . o ther t han c erea ls ) o r o rchards o r were s pec ia l p astures .

The

ma in a gr icu l tura l l and o f t he s i te , h owever , must s ure ly h ave b een b eyond t hese sma l l f i e lds ;

l ush u nenc losed g rass land o n t he f loodp la in ;

e lsewhere

o n t he t errace was p erhaps w in ter p as ture a nd a rab le , e i ther i n o pen o r v ery l arge f i elds . The App leford s i te p robab ly h ad a s imi lar f unc t ion t o Far moor a l though p erhaps w i th l ess d ependence o n ,f l oodp la in g razing a nd t he s e t t le men t i t se l f was l arger .

The Bar ton C our t Farm v i l la h ad s o mewha t b et ter e v idence f or

t he p rox i mi ty o f a rable f i e lds wh ich i s wha t migh t b e e xpec ted w i th i t s s i tua t ion o n t he s econd g ravel t errace .

The s i te was a lso i nvo lved i n p as tora l f arm ing

a nd t here was a r a ther h igher p ropor t ion o f s heep b ones t han f or F ar moor ( W i lson i n M i les 1 981 ).

The a rea e xp lo i ted b y t he v i l la , h owever , p robab ly

e x tended d own t he c lay s lope , a cross t he f i rs t t errace a nd o n to t he f l oodp la in ( M i les 1 981 ) , wh ich wou ld t end t o min im ise t he b one e v idence f or a ny d i f ferences b e tween t he u sage o f t he f irs t a nd s econd t erraces. C erea ls w ere n o t t he o n ly i mpor tan t c rop ; r esen ted f ro m Bar ton C our t .

f lax was e spec ia l ly we l l r ep-

F lax s eeds were i den t if ied f ro m a l l t he Ro man

s i tes i nves t iga ted b u t n o t f ound wa ter logged f ro m a ny o f t he e ar l ier d epos i ts . A n i ncrease i n t he c u l t iva t ion o f f lax migh t we l l h ave r esu l ted i n t he p ar t icu lar a reas u nder c u l t iva t ion b eing s l igh t ly d i f feren t f ro m t hose i n t he I ron Age t o i nc lude more d a mp g round . The e n to mo log ica l e v idence s hows a n i ncrease i n s pec ies o f ten a ssoc ia ted w i th s truc tura l t imbers a nd v ar ious s ynan throp ic s pec ies f ro m a l l t he Ro man s i tes . How much t h is d i f ference was d ue t o a n i ncrease i n t he n u mber a nd s ize o f b u i ld ings p er c ap i ta ( perhaps t here was e ven i ndoor h ous ing o f s o me d o mes t ic a n ima ls ) a nd h ow much i t was d ue t o a n i ncrease i n p opu la t ion o f t he o ccupa t ion s i tes i s u ncer ta in .

I t was p robab ly r e la ted t o s o me s or t o f i n tens i-

f ica t ion o f a gr icu l tura l e xp lo i ta t ion o f t he a rea .

G ra in s torage was a lso c hanged

i n t h is p er iod f ro m b e low g round t o a bove g round .

A l though g ra in b eet les w ere

o n ly p resen t i n Ro man s a mp les , t hey d o n ot s ee m t o h ave r eached s er ious p es t p ropor t ions o n t he s i tes i nvest iga ted . n eeds was s tored i n t he t owns.

P erhaps g ra in s urp lus t o l oca l

I t migh t h ave b een e xpec ted t ha t t he b iolog ica l r e ma ins i den t i f ied f ro m Bar ton C our t wou ld r ef lec t t he h igher e cono m ic s ta tus o f t he v i l la i n r ela t ion t o t he o ther t wo Ro man s i tes .

They d id n ot , a nd i t was Farmoor wh ich h ad

e v idence f or o rna men ta l p lan ts w i th Buxus _ s e mperv irene p resen t .

A par t

f ro m Papaver s o mn iferum , a l l t he c u l inary h erbs o r f ru i ts i den t if ied f ro m Bar ton C our t a lso o ccurred a t Far moor .

Exo t ic s pec ies wh ich h ave b een

i den t i f ied f rom s o me R o man t owns a nd c ou ld n o t b e g rown i n Br i ta in ( W i lcox 1 977 ) were a bsent . I t s ee ms c ur ious t ha t r e la t ive ly f e

v i l las a re k nown f ro m t he g rave ls i n

Ox fordsh ire d esp i te t he s o i ls o f t he g rave ls b e ing a gr icu l tura l ly u sefu l a nd r es i l ien t t o d amage.

I n c on tras t , many l arge Ro man v i l las o ccur o n t he l ime-

s tone o f t he C o tswo lds .

I th as b een a rgued t ha t t he s ys te m o f l and i nher i tance

may h ave k ep t R o mano-Br it ish h o ldings sma l l i n t he Tha mes V a l ley ( S tevens

2 73

1 966: 1 25 ).

I ft he R o man c onques t h ad n ot r esu l ted i n d ispossess ion o f t he

l and h e ld b y t he e x is t ing p opu lace , t he t echno log ica l i nnova t ions o f t he R o man p er iod a lone may n o t h ave b een e nough t o e nab le many h o ld ings t o b eco me s u f f ic ien t ly p rof i tab le t o s uppor t v i l las .

Agr icu l ture wou ld a lready h ave b een

i n tens ive o n t he g rave l i n t he I ron Age a nd p opu la t ion l eve ls r e la t ive ly h igh . I n a reas where p opu la t ions were sma l ler , i nd iv idua l h o ld ings p erhaps l ess e f f ic ien t a nd l arger , o r c learance i nco mp lete , t here wou ld h ave b een a much g rea ter p oten t ia l f or c onso l ida t ion o r i mprove men t a nd i ncreased p rof i ts o n a s ing le h o ld ing

t o s uppor t av i l la .

I n teres t ing ly , a f ter t he b reakdown o f

R o man a dm in is tra t ion , s ome o f t he C otswold v i l las were a bandoned t o w oodl and ( p . 2 56 )b u t t he ' grea t e s ta tes ' o f p os t- med ieva l O x fordsh ire t ended t o b e i n t h is a rea ( Hosk ins 1 955 : f ig . 1 3 ). I t i s n o t k nown h ow much o f t he R o man s ys te m o f a gr icu l tura l o rgan isa t ion c on t inued i n to t he S axon p er iod o n t he g rave ls .

A t M ing ie 's D i tch t he Ro man

d ra inage s ys te m o n t he f l oodp la in f e l l i n to d isuse a nd e ven a t Bar ton C our t , t he 5 th c en tury a dd i t ion t o t he v i l la e nc losure d id n o t l as t l ong i n to t he S axon o ccupa t ion o f t he s i te.

The i n tens iveness o f h uman o ccupa t ion a s r ef lec ted b y

s ynan throp ic b ee t les . f e l l b ack t o t he l eve l o f t he I ron Age . Another I ron Age p rac t ice may h ave b een r e-in troduced . There i s d ocu men tary e v idence t ha t c an b e i n terpreted a s s how ing t ha t t ranshumance was u nder taken t o e xp lo i t f l oodp la in g razing ( S turdey 1 963 ).

There was n oa r iden c c f or a n a gr icu l tura l

d ec l ine b u t t here may h ave b een a g enera l d ecrease i n e f f ic iency.

There were

n o r e ma ins o f t he o rchard o r g arden c rops b u t f l ax c u l t iva t ion c on t inued . P erhaps t he mos t i mpor tan t f ac tor t ha t a l l t he s i tes f ro m t he I ron Age t o t he S axon p er iod h ave i n c o m mon ( o ther t han t he a gr icu l tura l e xp loi ta t ion o f t he Thames V a l ley ) i s al ack o f e v idence f or a ny ma in f i e ld b oundar ies .

Ex-

t ens ive a reas o f a rable ' ce l t ic f i e lds ' a nd ' ranch b oundar ies ' d iv id ing u p t he p as ture a re k nown t o h ave e x is ted o n t he c ha lk o f t he Berksh ire/Ox fordsh ire D owns f ro m t he midd le Bronze Age o nwards ( Brad ley a nd R ichards 1 978 ). The g ravel t erraces a re f la t e nough n o t t o n eed p lough ing o n t he c e l t ic f i eld p a t tern t o p reven t e ros ion a nd a re mos t ly s u ff ic ien t ly we l l d ra ined f or d ra inage d i tches n o t t o b e n ecessary.

I t migh t b e a rgued t ha t a ny b oundar ies were i n

t he f or m o f h edges a lone b u t i t wou ld t hen s ee m c ur ious t ha t t he sma l l f i e lds wh ich s urrounded t he R o man d roveway s e t t le men ts were d i tched ( i .e . mos t h edged b oundar ies wou ld h ave b een d i tched a nd t herefore i den t if iable ).

The

i nd iv idua l a reas o f p resumed p as ture e nc losed b y d i tches o n t he B erksh ire Downs a re t o b e measured i n t erms o f many s quare k i lo me tres .

P erhaps

b o th t he a reas o f a rab le a nd p as ture o n t he g ravels were o f as i mi lar s ize t o t hose o n t he Downs a nd t heir b oundar ies w ere t he f ew s treams wh ich c ross t he t erraces .

Marker p osts , t rees o r s tones may h ave b een a l l t ha t s erved

t o i nd ica te c orners o f d if feren t p lo ts w i th in t he a rab le f ie lds .

S o me o f t he

p reh is tor ic e ar thworks o n t he Downs were u sed b y t he S axons a s e s ta te b ound ar ies ( Ge l ling 1 976 : 6 29 ). S o me A spec ts o f S pec ies D i f ferences b e tween S i tes The e co log ica l r easons f or many o f t he d if ferences h ave a lready b een c overed i n t he d iscuss ion o f t he e nv iron men ts o f t he v ar ious s i tes b u t s o me i n teres t ing p oin ts r e ma in .

The I ron Age weed s eeds i l lus tra te s evera l .

F irs t ly , s o me s pec ies wh ich h ave n o p re-Ro man r ecords g iven b y G odw in

2 74 -

( 1975 ) a nd migh t p erhaps h ave b een t hough t o f a s R o man ( or f or s o me , l a ter ) i n troduc t ions s uch a sV a ler iane l la . r imosa were p resen t i n Br i ta in a t l eas t b y t he I ron Age.

S econd ly , H yois cya mus n iger , ad en izen o f f armyards e tc .

wh ich i s n ow u nco m mon ( Bowen 1 968 : 2 29 ;

S a l isbury 1 964 : 4 8 ) was p resen t

o n a l l t he I ron Age , R o man a nd e ar ly S axon s i tes .

F ina l ly , ac oup le o f s pec ies

wh ich a re n o t p ar t icu lar ly a ssoc ia ted w i th h uman s e t t le men t a nd a re n o t c o mmon i n t he Thames V a l ley p ers is ten t ly o ccurred i n t he s amp les :

A n thr iscus

c auca lis a nd O nopordum a can th iu m . The r easons f or t he ir p as t a bundance r ema in o bscure , 0 . a can th iu m migh t e ven h ave b een r egarded a s au sefu l p lan t .

S evera l o ther w eeds f ro m t he I ron Age a nd R o man s i tes , i n ‚ p ar t icu lar

Papaver a rge mone , Va ler ianel la d en ta ta a nd V . r imosa a lso s ee m t o h ave b een r a ther more a bundan t t hen t han t hey a re i n t he a rea a t p resen t , p robab ly a s a r esu l t o f c hang ing a gr icu l tura l p rac t ice.

The r ecen t d ec l ine o f Agros te m ma

g i thago ( wh ich was p resen t i n t he Ro man s amp les ) d ue t o i mproved s eed c lean ing i s w e l l k nown ( Sa l isbury 1 964 : 3 6 ). Anethum g raveo lens , C or iandrum s a t ivum , Papaver s o mn iferum , L inu m u s i ta t iss i mu m a nd a t l eas t t wo v ar ie t ies o f P runus d o mes t ica were i den t if ied f ro m t he R o man s i tes b u t were a bsen t f rom t he p reh is tor ic s amp les .

A l l o f

t hese s pec ies s ee m t o b e r e la t ive ly f requen t f i nds f ro m R o man wa ter logged d epos i ts e lsewhere i n B r i ta in ( e .g . W i l lcox 1 977 ).

T he R o man l i k ing o f

Umbe l l iferae s eeds f or f lavour ing h as b een c o m men ted u pon b y G odw in ( 1975 : 2 22 ) a nd t hey were a n i mpor tan t c o mponen t o f Ro man d ishes i n I t a ly i t se l f ( Ap ic ius ).

D i l l a nd c or iander were p oss ibly R o man i n troduc t ions .

The o ther

a spec t o f R o man c ookery wh ich wou ld p rev ious ly h ave b een a l ien t o t he Br i t ish I s les was t he u se o f o l ive o i l .

I t may h ave b een i mpor ted a l though a s y e t n o

e v idence f or i t s u se i n Br i ta in h as b een d iscovered .

I tw ou ld n ot , h owever ,

h ave b eco me c o m mon ly u sed t hroughou t t he R o mano-Br it ish p opu lace u n l ike , p erhaps c or iander a nd d i l l .

Were o p iu m p oppy a nd l i nseed g rown a s o i l-seed

c rops a nd d id t he Roman t as te f or o i ly a s we l l a s s p icy f oods b eco me w ides pread i n B r i ta in?

B o th o f t hese s pec ies , h owever , h ave b een r ecorded f ro m

p re-Ro man d epos i ts i n B r i ta in ( Godw in 1 975 : 1 29 , 1 67 ).

A lso d id t he Ro mans

i n troduce t he f irs t v ar iet ies o f ' desser t p lum ' i n to Br i ta in?

Th is f ru i t h ad

a pparen t ly b een p resen t i n t he c oun try s ince n eo l i th ic t imes ( Godw in 1 975 : 1 97 ) b u t p lu m s tones a re r are ly e ncoun tered i n p re-Ro man d eposi ts .

O ne p iece o f

e v idence wh ich s ugges ts t ha t t he Ro mans i n troduced c u l inary c hange t o Br i ta in was t he e x tens ive u se o f t he mor tar iu m ( mor tar ) ,a t ype o f p o t tery v esse l u nk nown f ro m t he I ron A ge. Agros tem ma g i thago was n o t i den t i f ied f ro m a ny o f t he p re-Ro man wa terl ogged s amp les .

U nt i l r ecen t ly i t was r egarded a s ap robab ly R o man i n tro-

d uc t ion b u t t he d iscovery o f 2 48 c arbon ised s eeds o f A . g i thago a t t he b o t to m o f al a te I ron Age p i t a t Bar ton C our t Farm ( M . J ones , p ers . c omm .) s erves a s a warn ing t ha t many p resumed Ro man i n troduc t ions c ou ld i n f ac t h ave o ccurred i n t he B elg ic p er iod j ust b efore t he R o man C onquest .

A n the mis

c o tu la i s a nother w eed c o m mon i n t he Ro man s amp les wh ich migh t we l l h ave b een a B elg ic i n troduc t ion b u t a t p resen t n o p re-Ro man r ecords o f i ti n r e l iable q uan t i t ies a re k nown ( see J ones , t h is v o lume , p . 1 11 ). G ra in b eet les w ere n o t p resen t i n a ny o f t he p re-Ro man s amp les , wh ich i s i n a gree men t w i th e v idence f ro m e lsewhere. O n ly t wo s pec ies , S tegobium p an iceu m a nd Tenebr io mol i tor were p resen t i n t he Ro man s amp les a nd t here 2 75

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were n one f ro m t he S axon s a mp les .

I t wou ld b e i n teres t ing t o e s tab l ish

wh ich s pec ies o f g ra in b ee t les s urv ived t he r igours o f t he e ar ly S axon p er iod . T . mol i tor , w i th i t s a l terna t ive h ab i ta t (3. 265 )wou ld p robably h ave b een o ne o f t he m. F ina l ly , t he weev i l Ap ion u r t icar iu m n o l onger o ccurs i n Ox fordsh ire b u t was p resen t o n a l l t he R o man a nd S axon s i tes w e we l l a s i n a n I ron Age s amp le f ro m M ing ie 's D i tch . c o m mon .

I t s h os t p lan ts , U r t ica d io ica a nd U . u rens a re s t i l l

There i s n o o bv ious r eason f or i t s p resen t a bsence .

b een i dent if ied f ro m 1 2 th c en tury d epos i ts i n Ox ford ( Robinson i n

I th as a lso a l mer 1 980 ,

f or thco ming ) a nd o ther R o man r ecords a re g iven b y R obinson ( i n Young 1 975 : 1 67 ) . Acknow ledge men ts Iwou l .d l i ke t o t hank t he d irec tors o f t he v ar ious O .A .U. e xcava t ions f or c o-opera t ion when s amp l ing t he ir s i tes .

The s amp les w ere i nves t iga ted i n

t he H ope En to molog ica l C ol lec t ions U n ivers i ty Museu m , Ox ford a nd a t t he I ns t i tu te o f Archaeo logy , L ondon .

Iam g ra tefu l t o Dr . M . W. R . d eV . G raham

a nd P rofessor G . W. D i mbleby f or t he p rov is ion o f work ing f ac i l i t ies a nd a cc ess t o t he c o l lec t ions u nder t heir c are .

Iam i ndebted t o Dr . J . H . D ickson

f or p rov is ion o f ar epor t o n t he moss f ro m Bar ton C our t , P rofessor G . W. D imb leby a nd Mr . J . R . A . G re ig f or p o l len a na lyses , Mr . M . J ones f or u se o f h is c arbon ised s eed r esu l ts a nd Mrs . S . Denford f or work ing o n t he Farmoor mi tes . Mr . C . S . E l ton h as p rov ided me w i th a ccess t o u npub l ished i n for ma t ion i n t he Wytham Eco log ica l S urvey a nd Ih ave h ad many u sefu l d iscuss ions o n i n terpre ta t ion w i th Mr . J . R . A . G reig , Dr . A . R . Ha l l a nd Mr . H . K . K enward . Dr . K . D . Tho mas made many h e lpfu l c om men ts o n ap re l im inary v ers ion o f t he t ex t wh i le Mr . T . G . Hassa l l , Mr . G . H . Lambr ick a nd Mr . R . W i lson r ead t hrough t he f ina l d ra f t .

A l most a l l t he ir s ugges t ions h ave b een i ncorpora ted .

F ina l ly Iwou ld l i ke t o t hank Mrs. Wendy Page f or d raw ing F ig . 1 2 :1 a nd Mrs. L indsay Donaghy f or e f f ic ien t t yp ing .

2 77

APPEND IX 1. THE U SE OF ECOLOG ICAL GROUP INGS OF COLE OPTERA FOR COMPAR ING S ITES

The ' New A pproach ' o f K enward ( 1978 ) h as p roved u sefu l i n t he i n terpret a t ion o f u rban i nsec t d ea th-asse mblages b u t d oes n ot e xp lo i t t he f u l l p o ten t ia l of r ura l

d epos i ts .

The a im w i th u rban s amp les t ends t o b e a t te mp t ing t o

e s tabl ish p rec ise ly v ery l oca l c ond i t ions , whereas w i th r ura l d epos i ts t he a im i s u sua l ly t o e luc ida te g enera l i nforma t ion a bou t t he s urrounding l andscape . A t te mp t ing t o d ef ine u sefu l e co log ica l g roup ings was s ugges ted b y K enward ( 1978 : 4 0-43 ) a s a no ther me thod l i kely t o b e o f u se i n t he i n terpre ta t ion o f a rchaeolog ica l i nsec t f aunas a nd i th as b een f ound s o .

The p ar t icu lar g roup ings

u sed must b e r egarded a s p re l im inary b u t when e xpressed a s ap ercen tage o f t he t o ta l n umber o f t erres tr ia l i nd iv idua ls f ro m t he s amp les t he r esu l ts s ee m t o b e c orrobora ted b y o ther l i nes o f e v idence.

The r eason t ha t a qua t ic s pec ies

h ave b een e l imina ted i sb ecause a l l t he d epos i ts a ccumu la ted u nder wa ter a nd a ny d i f ferences d ue t o t he e nv iron men t o f t he d epos i t i t se l f c an t hus b e e l imin a ted .

Wa ter b eet les ( def ined a s a ny s pec ies wh ich c an s pend p ar t o f i t s a du l t

l i fe u nder wa ter ) r anged f ro m 1 .1% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera i n t he R o man we l ls a t Bar ton C our t Farm , wh ich were p robably u nsu i tab le h abi ta ts , t o 5 4% f ro m t he d i tches o f M ing ie 's D i tch , i n wh ich t hey a pparen t ly f l our ished . S evera l s amp les were g rouped t oge ther f or t he c a lcu la t ions p ar t ly t o e l im ina te d if ferences d ue t o v ery l oca l c ond i t ions .

S o me o f t he r esu l ts h ave b een e n-

c ourag ing ly c ons is ten t b e tween s i tes , f or e xamp le La thr id i idae r anged b etween 8 .8% a nd 9 .6% o n t he t hree R o man s i tes wh i le o n t he t wo I ron Age s i tes t hey were 1 .3% a nd 2% . When more s i tes h ave b een e xam ined a nd a l arger c orpus o f r esu l ts b eco mes a va i lab le f or c ompara t ive p urposes , i to ugh t t o b eco me p oss ible t o ' ca l ibra te ' t he p ercen tage v a lues f or t he v ar ious s pec ies g roups s o t ha t t he i mpor tance o f ap ar t icu lar h abi ta t c an b e a ssessed .

F or i ns tance t he r esu l ts

f ro m Busco t L ock ( Rob inson , u npubl ished ) a nd S hus toke ( Ke l ly a nd O sborne 1 964 ) s uggest t ha t w ood a nd t ree-dependen t s pec ies ( no t i nc lud ing A nob ium p unc ta tu m a nd L yc tus s p .) p erhaps make 2 0% o f t he t o ta l t erres tr ia l C o leop tera i n ad epos i t wh ich f or med s urrounded b y c losed wood land ( poss ib ly e ven h igher i ft he wood land was d ying ) b u t p erhaps f a l l t o o n ly 1 % f ro m a c leared l andscape w i th s hrubs a nd t rees o nly p resen t i n h edges .

More work c ou ld a lso b e d one

o n i mprov ing t he s pec ies c o mpos i t ion o f t he g roup ings a nd e s tabl ish ing more r igorous ly t he e colog ica l c ond i t ions t hey i nd ica te .

H owever , i t mus t b e e x-

p ec ted t ha t many o f t he g roups c an o n ly b e u sed t o s how t rends r a ther t han a bsolu te i mpor tance o r a bsence .

F or e xamp le s o me i nd iv idua ls o f A p ian s pp .

( exc lud ing ma l low a nd n e t t le f eed ing s pec ies ) p lus S i tona s pp . wou ld b e e xpec ted e ven i fn o meadow land was p resen t wh i le a h igh p ropor t ion o f t hese s pec ies c an o n ly h in t t ha t meadow land was i mpor tan t .

2 79

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C O . 0 ' 3 C \ 1 .

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C r > . I C J C e

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C D C e

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0 0 . C ' Z

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Th is a pproach c ou ld b e e x tended t o o ther t ypes o f d epos i t i fa u toch thonous C o leop tera were e xc luded b u t t hey migh t p rove r a ther h arder t o d ef ine . The me thod w i l l h ave i t s p roble ms , f or i ns tance i fi nsec t-r ich c o mpos t h ad b een d umped i n aw e l l o r al ong-d is tance c omponen t b ecame c oncen tra ted i n ad epos i t . S o me s amp les w i l l h ave t o b e e l imina ted f ro m t he c ons idera t ion , a s was d one w i th t he moss f rom t he d eep Bar ton C our t We l l . I nsec ts l i v ing c ircu rnj acen t t o t he d epos i t c an a lso c rea te p rob le ms . F or i ns tance marshy g round a round t he t op o f t he Bar ton C our t S axon we l l ( b ecause i th ad b een c u t i n a n o ld R o man d i tch ) p robably r esu l ted i n b ee t les t ha t f eed o n marsh a nd a qua t ic p lan ts b eing o ver-represen ted . Desp i te t he v ar ious p rob le ms t h is me thod d oes s eem t o p rov ide a u sefu l way t o i n terpre t a rchaeo log ica l i nsec ts q uant i ta t ive ly.

2 82

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Excava t ions

' Hardw ick w i th Ye lford , Ming ie 's

C ounc i l f or Br i t ish Archaeo log y G roup 9 News le t ter 9

1 15-17. A p ic ius , The a r t o f c ook ing ( Trans la ted b y F lower , B . a nd R osenbau m , E . 1 958 , L ondon :

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a n a rchaeo lo-

O xfordsh ire Archaeo log ica l

U n i t S urvey 2 . B ou l ton , B . a nd C o l l ingwood , C . A . ( 1975 ).

H y menop tera :

F orm ic idae

R oya l E n to mo log ica l S oc ie ty Handbook 6 , p t 3 (c ). B owen , H . J . M. ( 1 968 ). B oyco t t , A . E . ( 1 934 ).

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' The h ab i ta ts o f l and Mol lusca i n Br i ta in '

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1 -38.

B rad ley , R . a nd R ichards , J . ( 1978 ). t he B erksh ire d owns '

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I n :

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men t a nd l andscape , ( ed Row ley , R . T .) B .A .R . 6 p p . 1 6-19. Buck land , P . C . ( 1978 ).

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a

c avea t ' I n : The e f fec t o f man o n t he l andscape : t he L ow land Z one , ( eds L imbrey , S . a nd Evans , J . G .) C .B. A . Research Repor t 2 1 .

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C ase , H . ( 1963 ). ' No tes o f f i nds a nd r ing-d i tches i n t he O x ford R eg ion ' O xon iens ia 2 8 1 9-52. C onway , E . a nd S tephens , R . ( 1957 ). ' Spore l ing e s tab l ishmen t i n P ter id ium a qu i l inum : e f fec ts o f minera l n u tr ien ts ' J ourna l o f E co logy 4 5 3 89-99. C oope , G . R . a nd O sborne , P . J . ( 1967 ).

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i t s a nc ien t p as t a nd u ncer ta in f u ture.

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3 39-355.

' The i mpac t o f Neol i th ic man o n t he

l andscape i n t he Nether lands '

I n :

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S axon s e t t le men t a t New Win t les Farm , E ynsha m ' 3 4

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1 -4.

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7 23-35. H inch lif fe , J . a nd Tho mas , R . ( 1980 ).

' Excava t ions a t Appleford '

O xoniens ia

4 5 , f or thco ming . H or ion , A . D . ( 1961 ). Bodensee :

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Ko m m iss ionver lag Buchdruckerei .

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London :

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o f t he S oi l S urvey o f G rea t Br i ta in : J ones , E . W. ( 1944-45 ). Kay , Q . 0 . N . ( 1971 ).

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6 23-36.

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3 7-65.

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K enward , H . K . a nd Wi l liams , D . ( 1979 ). warehouses i n C oney S treet

I n :

2 39-52.

The a na lysis o f a rchaeolog ica l i nsec t a sse mb lages :

an ew a pproach

Lambr ick , G . H . ( 1978 ).

J ourna l o f Ecology 3 2

J ourna l o f Eco logy 5 9

a l luv iu m a t S hus toke , Warw icksh ire S oc iety o f L ondon 1 76

Me moirs

B io log ica l e v idence f ro m t he Ro man

The Archaeology o f York 1 4/2.

' I ron Age s et t le ments i n t he U pper Tha mes V a l ley'

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a nd Row ley , R . T .) Lambr ick , G . H . ( 1979 ).

B .A . R. S 48.

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Archaeo logy G roup 9 News let ter 9 1 13-15.

2 84

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men ts a t F ar moor , O x fordsh ire C .B. A . R esearch R epor t 3 2 . L i mbrey , S . ( 1978 ).

' Changes i n q ua l i ty a nd d istr ibu t ion o f t he s o i ls o f

L ow land B r i ta in ' I n : L ow land Z one ,

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t he

( eds . L i mbrey , S . a nd E vans , J . G .) C .B .A .

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C arabidae

R oya l E n to mo log ica l

S oc ie ty Handbook 4 , p t . 2 . Mi les , D . ( 1975 ). ' Ber insf ie ld , Wa l ly C orner ' C ounc i l f or B r i t ish Archa eology G roup 9 News le t ter 5 4 0-41 . M i les , D . ( 1 978 ).

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t he Br i t ish I s les , ( eds B owen , H . C .

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a nd F ow ler , P . J .) B .A .R .

4 8 p p . 8 1-88 . M i les , D . ( 1980 ).

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Archaeo log y G roup 9 News le t ter 1 0 M i les , D . ( 1981 ).

C ounc i l f or Br i t ish

1 60-64.

Archaeo log y a t Bar ton C our t Farm , Oxon .

Pa l mer , N . J . ( 1 980 ).

' Excava t ions a t t he Hame l , Ox ford '

F or thco m ing .

O xon iens ia 4 5 ,

F or thcom ing . Parr ing ton , M . ( 1978 ) .

The e xcava t ion o f a n I ron Age s e t t lemen t , Bronze

Age r ing-d i tches a nd R o man f ea tures a t A shv i l le Trad ing E s ta te , A b ingdon ( Ox fordsh ire ) 1 974-76. P igo t t , C . D . a nd Wa l ters , S . M . ( 1953 ). I n :

C .B. A . Research R epor t 2 8 . ' I s t he b ox t ree a n a t ive o f E ng land?'

The c hang ing f l ora o f Br i ta in , ( ed L ousley , J . E .)

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wood land r e l ic h edges i n Hun t ingdonsh ire ' 3 43-52.

' The e co logy o f t he g arden c ha fer , P hyl loper tha h or t ico la

( L.) w i th p re l i minary o bserva t ions o n c on tro l measures ' o f En tomo log ica l Research 4 2 R eid , G . ( 1 905 ).

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6 05-46.

i n H ope , W. H . S t . J . a nd F ox , G . E .

' Excava t ions o n t he

s i te o f t he Ro man C i ty a t S i lches ter , Han ts . i n 1 903 a nd 1 904 ' Archaeo log ia 5 9 Robinson , M . A . ( 1978 ).

p t 2 3 67-8 .

' A c o mpar ison b e tween t he e f fec ts o f man o n t he

e nv iron men t o f t he f irs t g rave l t errace a nd f l oodp la in o f t he Tha mes Va l ley d ur ing t he I ron Age a nd Ro man p er iod ' Man o n t he l andscape :

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t he L ow land Z one , ( eds L i mbrey , S . a nd p p . 3 5-43 .

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J ourna l o f

Archaeo log ica l S c ience 7 9 3-5. Robinson , M . A . a nd A l len , T . G . ( 1978 ).

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D i tch ' C ounc i l f or B r i t ish Archaeo logy Group 9 News le t ter 8 1 7-19 . 2 85

R odwe l l , K . A . ( 1 978 ). c oun ty

H is tor ic T owns i n O x fordsh ire :

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as urvey o f t he n ew

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Quar ter ly J ourna l o f t he G eolog ica l S oc ie ty o f L ondon 8 0 S ho t ton , E . W. ( 1 978 ).

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i n t he l ower S evern-Avon Va l leys ' l andscape :

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1 13-179.

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Research R epor t 7 p p . 1 08-128 . S turdy , D . ( 1963 ). 2 8

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O xon iens ia

9 5-8 .

Wa l ters , S . M. ( 1949 ).

' Eleochar is L .'

J ourna l o f Eco logy 3 7

1 92-206.

W i l lcox , G . H . ( 1977 ).

' Exo t ic p lan ts f ro m R o man wa ter logged s i te i n L ondon '

J ourna l o f Archaeolog ica l S c ience 4 2 69-82. Wood , P . D . ( 1968 ).

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Through Maps 1 1 . Y oung , C . J . ( 1975 ) .

S hef f ie ld :

Br i t ish Landscapes

The G eograph ica l Assoc ia t ion .

' The d efences o f Ro man A lches ter '

Oxon iensia 4 0

1 36-70 . Young , C . J . ( 1977 ).

The R o man p ot tery i ndus try o f t he Ox ford Reg ion

B .A .R. 4 3.

2 86

1 3 .

CROP HUSBANDRY AND ENV IRON MENTAL CHANGE

I N THE COASTAL AREA OF THE FEDDERSEN WIERDE , NEAR BRE MERHAVEN , NORTH WEST GER MANY Ude lgard K örber-Grohne

P reface Aw ierde o r wur t i s a mound b u i l t u p b y t he h ands o f t he h u mans who wan ted t o l i ve u pon i t , s a fe f rom t he s torm f l oods , b efore t he marshes were p rotec ted b y d ikes.

( The p lura l o f wur t i s wur ten ).

S uch dwe l l ing mounds

a re f ound e verywhere i n t he marshes o f t he s ou thern Nor th S ea a nd a long t he l ower c ourses o f t he r ivers t ha t f l ow t hrough t he marshes .

The wur ten were

b u i l t o ver a t ime s pan o f a pprox i ma te ly 1 500 y ears f ro m t he i s t c en tury AD t o t he l a te M idd le Ages .

They d id n o t g o o u t o f u se i m med ia te ly t he c ons truc-

t i on o f d ikes b egan , a s t he e ar ly d ikes were t oo weak t o e nsure p ermanen t p rotec t ion .

The wur ten were n o t i n g enera l e rec ted i n s ing le o pera t ion .

They r a ther b egan a s sma l l l ow mounds t ha t w ere s ys te ma t ica l ly b roadened a nd h eigh tened i n t he c ourse o f s evera l h undred y ears.

The a ppl ied c ons truc-

t i on l ayers may b e d a ted a rchaeo log ica l ly o n t he b as is o f s truc tura l f ea tures a nd r e ma ins o f p reh is tor ic man w i th in t he m .

I n t he F eddersen W ierde , s even

c onsecu t ive s e t t le men t l ayers were d e tec ted d ur ing e xcava t ion .

These were

d epos i ted o ver a bou t 5 00 y ears . The a rchaeo log ica l i nvest iga t ion o f wur t .en a l lows t he way o f l i fe o f t heir o ccupan ts t o b e d e ter m ined .

The c oncurren t g eobo tan ica l t rea t men t o f p lan t

r e ma ins i n t he v ar ious wur t l ayers a nd i n t he o r ig ina l s o i l s ur face b enea th t he wur ten s erves s evera l f unc t ions .

I ta cqua in ts o ne w i th t he e nv iron men t

o f t he p eop le o f t hose t imes a nd p rov ides i nfor ma t ion a bou t t he d e ta i ls o f t he ir a gr icu l ture , b u t a lso h elps a ccumu la te i mpor tan t i n forma t ion a bou t t he e vo lu t ion o f t he Nor th S ea c oas ta l r eg ion i t se lf . The e xcava t ion o f t he F eddersen Wierde i s t he l arges t wur t e xcava t ion i n t he G er man c oas ta l a rea t o d a te .

The f o l low ing i s a n a ccoun t o f t he g eobo tanica l

i nves t iga t ions c arr ied o u t i n c onnec t ion w i th t he wur t , wh ich h ave b een p ubl i shed i n f u l l b y K örber-Grohne ( 1967 ). The s e t t ing o f t he F eddersen Wierde The F eddersen Wierde l i es i n t he c oas ta l r eg ion o f t he s ou theas t p ar t o f t he Nor th S ea ( Fig . 1 3 :1 ). h igh .

The w ierde h as a d iameter o f 2 00 m a nd i s 4m

I t was , l i ke s evera l o thers i n t he a rea , s e t t led f rom t he e nd o f t he i s t

c entury AD t o t he 5 th c en tury AD . I fo ne s tands t oday u pon t he F eddersen Wierde , al ow mound amids t p as ture , o ne s ees o n ly marshes i n t he v ic in i ty. The p resen t c oas t l ine r uns a t a bou t 4 km t o t he wes t o f t he s i te . t he f la t r idge o f l ow h i l ls may b e s een , a bou t 4 km a way. s ands o f t he l ast g lac ia t ion .

To t he e as t

They a re p leis tocene

I ft he c oas t l ine was n ot p ro tec ted t oday b y as ea

d ike a ga ins t t i des a nd s torm f l oods , t hese wou ld t ransform t he a pprox ima te ly 2 87

C . ) C) C ' D 5 . 4

a )

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0 c n " C 3 s • , ( i ) 7 : 3 c t . )

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. 41

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72 ,

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h p

> f :>) CU

C l)

• C l)

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2 88

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Z1 C 11

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7 3

C e

8 km w ide s tr ip o f marsh land i n f ron t o f t hese l ow h i l ls k nown a s " the g ees t" i n to a h a lophyt ic z one o f l agoons . Wha t p rov is ions w ere n ecessary i n p reh is tory i n o rder t ha t p eop le c ou ld l i ve o n t he s i te f or f i ve c en tur ies?, s cape a t t ha t t ime?

a nd wha t was t he a ppearance o f t he l and-

The a rchaeo log ica l , g eobo tan ica l , a nd g eo log ica l i nves-

t iga t ions o f t he wur t a nd i t s s urround ings g o s o me way t o a nswer ing t hese q uest ions . The s elec t ion o f t he F eddersen Wierde a s a n o b jec t o f r esearch The e xcava t ion b egan i n 1 955 a f ter a 1 0 y ear p rogram me o f a rchaeo log ica l i nves t iga t ion o f o ther wur ten a nd g eo log ica l i nves t iga t ion o f t he marshes a long t he s ec t ion o f c oas t b e tween t he Ems a nd E lbe r ivers , c arr ied o u t b y t he I nst i tu te f or Marsh a nd Wur t R esearch i n Wi lhe lmshaven u nder t he d irec t ion o f Prof . Dr . W . Haarnage l .

The c lose c o-ord ina t ion o f a rchaeo log ica l , a nd

g eo log ica l a nd b otan ica l i nves t iga t ions i s v i ta l i n t h is s or t o f e xerc ise.

S even

y ears b e fore t he b eg inn ing o f t he e xcava t ion o f F eddersen Wierde , H aarnage l s e t u p ag eobo tan ica l d iv is ion w i th in h is i ns t i tu te , f o l low ing t he e xamp le o f t he B io log ica l-Archaeo log ica l I ns t i tu te a t G ron ingen a nd i t s f ounder , Prof . Dr . G . E . G . v an G if fen . Numerous e xcava t ions o f wur ten i n t he N e ther lands a nd i n t he n or th-wes tern G er man c oas ta l a rea h ad a lready s hown t ha t t here a re b o th p reh is tor ic a nd med ieva l wur ten .

S o me were b u i l t u p w i th c lay a lone , o thers w i th a l terna t ing

l ayers o f c lay a nd r efuse f ro m a n i ma l s tab les .

S o me a re a gr icu l tura l s e t t le-

men ts a nd o thers , s uch a s o ne a t Emden , were e s tab l ished a s marke t s e t t lemen ts .

S o me o f t he wur ten a re t oday n o l onger i nhab i ted , wh i le o thers l i e

b enea th modern c i t ies a nd v i l lages.

Never the less , r e la t ive ly l i t t le was k nown

a bou t t he f ound ings o f wur ten , a nd a bou t t he l i ves o f t heir o ccupan ts i n t he mids t o f al andscape t ha t was c on tinua l ly mod i f ied t hrough t he c en tur ies b y t he t i des a nd f l oods t ha t o r ig ina l ly c rea ted i t . Var ious c r i ter ia o pera te i n t he s e lec t ion o f a wur t f or i nves t iga t ion . s hou ld b e o f p reh is tor ic a ge .

I t

I t s hou ld c on ta in i n a dd i t ion t o c lay , amp le

s tab le r efuse s o t ha t t he p lan t r e ma ins may b e r ecovered t o p rov ide e co log ica l a nd e cono m ic i n forma t ion . e xcava t ion i s p oss ib le .

The wur t s hou ld b e u n inhabi ted t oday , s o t ha t a rea

A f ter many s amp le b or ings i n t he c oas ta l a rea b e tween

t he Ems a nd t he E lbe , Haarnage l s ing led o u t t he F eddersen Wierde , wh ich i s a t ad is tance o f a bou t 1 00 km f ro m t he I ns t i tu te i n Wi lhe l mshaven . F ield Methods A s t he e xcava t ion b egan , t he g eobotan ica l d iv ision o rgan ised a s i mp le l abora tory i n an earby f armhouse , c ons is t ing o f t wo t ables , as he lf f or t he s a mp les , a nd r unn ing wa ter f or t he wa ter-s iev ing o f s o i l s a mp les .

The

work ing d ay f or myse lf a nd my t echn ic ian r an s uch t ha t we s pen t s evera l h ours o f e ach d ay a t t he e xcava t ion s i te i n o rder t o o bserve t he e xposed l ayers , t o d iscuss a l l r esu l t ing q ues t ions w i th o ur a rchaeo log ica l c o l league Dr . P e ter S ch m id , a nd t o t ake s o i l s amp les a t a ppropr ia te p oin ts .

These s amp les w ere

t hen e xa m ined i n t he f i e ld l abora tory , a nd s ub-samples were e xhaus t ive ly a na lysed f or macrofoss i ls a nd d ia to ms .

O ther s ub-samp les t aken p r i mar i ly

f or p ol len a na lysis , a nd a l l r e ma ins o f wood were g iven t o Wi lhelmshaven f or t rea t men t d ur ing t he w in ter mon ths .

The a im i n t he f irs t y ear o f e xcava t ion

was e ssen t ia l ly t o b eco me a cqua in ted w i th t he f oss i l p lan t r e ma ins . 2 89

2 90

L egend s T he p reh i s to r ic m a r she s a t t he t ime o f a bou t B i r th o f C h r i s t .

Dwe l ling m ound s w i th t h e F edde r sen W ie rde ( F .W .)

R ema in s o f t wo o l d b each w a l ls ; o ne w a l l a long t h e w e s t s i de o f t he p reh i s to r ic m a r she s a nd o ne w a l l a long t he w e s t s i de o f t he P l e i s tocene s and s ( "Gee s t ") .

gr j: • •5t :

P l e i s tocene s and h i l ls ( "Gee s t ") w ith p ea t b og s w ith t h e v a l ley s .

S ea-d ike n ea r t h e m ode rn c oa s tl ine .

P ea t b og s .

F ig . 1 3 .2

The immedia te e nv irons o f t he F eddersen Wierde , s how ing t he dwe l ling mounds a nd marshy a reas i n e x istence when t he s et t le men ts b egan , i n c o mpar ison w i th t he modern c oast line ( af ter H aarnage l 1 979 ) .

2 91

Much t ime a nd c are was d evo ted t o t he s tudy o f t he p resen t l andscape ; t he s trand meadows s eawards o f t he d yke , t he mud f la ts a long t he c oas t w i th i t s d ia to maceous f l ora , a nd t he z ones o f r ushes a nd r eeds a round r iver mou ths , p ar t icu lar ly o f t he E lbe .

I n t hese a reas t he d ia to m a nd h igher p lan t f l oras

were s tud ied i n r e la t ion t o t he s a l t c on ten t o f t he wa ter , t he f requency o f f l ood ing , a nd t he d ura t ion o f e ach f l ood ( Grohne 1 959 ). p as t wa ter l evel r ecords i n t he s tudy o f f l ood ing .

Fu l l u se was made o f

I n a dd i t ion , t he modern

p o l len r a in i n t he marsh b y t he F eddersen W ierde was e xa m ined t o a ss is t t he i n terpre ta t ion o f f oss i l p o l len i n t he l ayers o f t he wur t . S ince t he o b jec t o f t he i nves t iga t ion was n ot o n ly t he wur t , b u t a lso t he d eve lopmen t o f t he s urround ing l andscape , s e lec t p rof i les o f p ea t a nd c lay d epos i ts c hosen f ro m t he n umerous b or ings w ere a na lysed f or p o l len , d ia to ms , a nd g enera l s tra t igraphy .

The i n i t ia l a i m was t o g a in a n i dea o f t he a ppearance

o f t he l andscape a t t he t ime t he s e t t le men t b egan .

The c hanges u p t o t he 5 th

c entury were t o b e d e termined , p ar t icu lar ly t hose wh ich m igh t h ave g iven r ise t o t he a bandon men t o f t h is a rea . O n ly b y o bserv ing t he modern v ege ta t ion i n r e la t ion t o t he f oss i l r ema ins c ou ld a v a l id i n terpre ta t ion o f t he i den t i f ied p lan t r e ma ins b e made .

The c o-

o rd ina ted o bserva t ions o f modern a nd f oss i l v ege ta t ion w ere u nder taken o ver ap er iod o f s ix y ears , f rom May t o Oc tober i n e ach y ear . I n t he l as t t wo y ears a r esearch t r ia l was c onduc ted u s ing modern e xamp les o f t he c u l t iva ted p lan ts t ha t h ad b een d e tec ted i n a rchaeo log ica l d epos i ts f ro m t he F eddersen W ierde.

Th is t r ia l was c arr ied o u t o n an earby u npro tec ted p lo t o f marsh land

l y ing s eawards o f t he d yke .

Dur ing t he t r ia l t wo midsum mer s torm f l oods

f l ooded t he sma l l f i e lds w i th s a l t wa ter .

A s ar esu l t , i t was p ossib le t o make

o bserva t ions a nd measuremen ts o f t he r e la t ive t o lerance o f d i f feren t e cono mic p lan ts t o s a l t e xposure . The e xcava t ion was c arr ied o u t s uch t ha t e ach y ear a s epara te a rea o f t he wur t , o f b e tween 3 500 a nd 4 000 s q m was f u l ly e xcava ted d own t o n a tura l . I n t h is way , t he r elevan t r esearch q ues t ions c ou ld b e d iscussed a new w i th e ach n ew e xcava t ion s eason .

Every t wo weeks t he c urren t e xcava t ion s ur face was

l owered b y a bou t 2 0-25 cm , s o t ha t i n t he c ourse o f as eason 1 2-14 e xcava t ion s ur faces were e xposed .

I n a dd i t ion , a t k ey p osi t ions , p ro f i les were l e f t

s tand ing i n o rder t ha t t he v er t ica l c ons truc t ion s equence c ou ld b e f o l lowed. The d evelop men t o f t he l andscape f ro m t he U pper S ub-a t lan t ic t o t he e ar l ies t s e t t le men t I n h is b ook o n t he F eddersen Wierde Haarnage l ( 1979 ) d escr ibes t he g eol og ica l d evelop men t o f t h is a rea i n t he c ourse o f t he P os tg lac ia l .

The mos t

c ruc ia l p oin t h e makes i s t ha t a t t he t ime o f o ccupa t ion o f t he a rea , t he c oastl i ne r an i n t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty o f t he wur t , a nd n o t 4 km t o t he wes t a s i t d oes t oday ( f ig . 1 3 :2 ) .

T h is c oas t l ine was f ormed b y a n embankmen t o f g ravel ,

a pprox ima te ly 4 0 m w ide , whose o r ig in Haarnage l a ss igned t o t he D t ink irchener Transgress ion , S tad iu m 1

5 00 BC ).

A t v ar ious i n terva ls a long t he 1 2 km

r idge o f t h is b arr ier b each l ay s even more wur ten , a l l c on te mporary w i th F eddersen W ierde.

C ores t hrough t he n e ighbour ing s ed imen ts d e mons tra ted

t he e x is tence o f aw ide a rm o f wa ter r unn ing f rom t he n or th a bou t 1 500 m i n land , t ha t i s t o t he e as t , o f t he c ha in o f wur ten , a nd a long t he wes tern marg in o f t he g ees t .

These s ed imen ts were d a ted b yp o l len a na lys is i n o rder t o 2 92

d e termine whe ther t he wa terway h ad e x is ted a t t he t ime o f t he s e t t le men t o f t he wur ten .

The d ia toms a nd t he s ed i men ts were a na lysed t o d eter m ine

whether t he a rm o f wa ter h ad h e ld f resh o r s a lt wa ter . I n t he s e t t le men t a rea i t se lf a nd i n i t s c lose s urround ings s evera l n av igab le c hanne ls were d iscovered b y means o f c ore s amp l ing , a nd b y t he e xcava t ion i t self . A bou t 1m b e low t he o ldes t s et t lemen t l ayer l i es a c layey r eed p ea t wh ich was d a ted b y p o l len a na lys is t o a bou t 1 000 b c .

O n t he b as is o f d ia to ms i t

mus t h ave d eve loped i n ar eg ion o f s l igh t ly b rack ish ( o l igoha l ine ) wa ter b u t u nder s e mi terres tr ia l c ond i t ions .

The o ver lying s ed imen ts a re a t f i rs t u n-

l ayered , a nd o f c lay a lone , b u t a s o ne p roceeds u pward , t hey c hange i n to l ayered d epos i ts o f s i l t a nd f i ne s and .

The e v idence f ro m macrofoss i ls a nd

t he b eg inn ings o f r oo t c ana ls i nd ica tes t ha t t he a rea g radua l ly a ccrued f l oodl a in s ed iments f ro m mar ine i nunda t ions , a nd was f i na l ly c o lon ised b y s a l t marsh v ege ta t ion , ( S trandw iesen vege ta t ion ).

S evera l d ec ime ters o f s o i l

c on t inued t o b u i ld u p d ur ing t h is l as t s era l p hase .

S eed a na lys is s howed t ha t

a t t he t ime when s et t lemen t o f t he l and b egan , aJ uncus g erard i v ege ta t ion e x is ted i n wh ich t he f o l low ing h a lophyt ic s pec ies w ere d e tec ted ; s a u na

S pergu lar ia

C en taur iu m s p ., P ucc ine l l ia d is tans , G laux mar i t ima , Tr ig loch in

mar i t i mum a nd o thers . Ap rof i le o f t he n or th-sou th f low ing c hanne l f or g eobotan ica l e xa m ina t ion was s e lec ted f ro m i t s marg in , a s t he p ea t h or izon h ad b een e roded b y t he c urren t i n t he c en tre o f t he c hanne l . P o l len a na lys is s ugges ted t ha t t he r eed p ea t was c ontemporary w i th t he r eed p ea t f ound b elow t he wur t .

The f or ma t ion

o f t he h igher p ea t l ayer i n t he u pper p ar t o f t he c hanne l s ed imen ts c ou ld b e d a ted t o a bou t t he 6 th o r 7 th c en tury AD.

The c hannel mus t h ave b een o pen

b e tween t hese t wo p er iods , a l though b y t he l a t ter p er iod i t was p robab ly i n i t s f i na l p hase b efore b eco m ing l and .

The d ia to ms a nd s ed imen to log ica l e v idence

s howed t ha t t he c hanne l h ad c onduc ted s l igh t ly b rack ish was ter , w i th i n f lows n o t o n ly f ro m t he b rack ish mar ine c oas ta l z one f ro m t he f reshwa ter r ivers o f t he g eest .

A na lys is o f t he p ea t b ogs o n t he g ees t h as s hown t ha t p r ior t o t he

s e t t le men t o f t he wur t , when t he n a tura l c hanne l was mos t w e l l d eve loped , s a l t wa ter d ia to ms a nd c lay s ed imen ts h ad b een washed f ar i n to t hese moors . The e ar l ies t o ccupan ts o f t he wur t s e lec ted a 1 .5-2 km w ide s tr ip o f marsh land f or s e t t lemen t , c overed w i th a h a lophyt ic v ege ta t ion s im i lar t o t he modern J tmce tu m g erard i c o m mun i ty. d irec t ly o n t he c oas t . o f t he a rea .

I t was p ro tec ted b y ab arr ier b each

They were n o t , i nc iden ta l ly , t he f irs t h uman o ccupan ts

1 2 cm b e low t he ir u pper s ur face , t he marsh land s ed imen ts men-

t i oned a bove c on ta in s eeds o f c u l t iva t ion-dependen t p lan ts a nd s ke le tons o f t he d ia to m H a n tzsch ia amph iox is , al over o f e u troph ic c ond i t ions.

The i mpress ions

o f c a t t le h ooves h ave s ince b een d iscovered o n e ar l ier s oi l s ur faces .

L ive-

s tock mus t t herefore h ave g razed h ere b efore t he s e t t le men t o f t he wur t . The n a ture o f s e t t le men t o n t he F eddersen Wierde I n h is b ook o n t he e xcava t ion o f t he F eddersen Wierde Haarnage l ( 1 979 ) f u l ly d escr ibes amongs t o ther ma t ters t he c ons truc t ion o f t he wur t , t he n a ture o f t he h ouses , a nd t he s e t t le men t .

Those a spec ts wh ich a re i mpor tan t f or a n

u nders tand ing o f t he g eobot a n ica l i nvest iga t ions a re s um mar ised h ere.

2 93

The f i rs t dwe l l ings were e rec ted a t g round l eve l a t a bou t t he e nd o f t he i s t c en tury BC . s i te.

The b arr ier b each w i th i t s s lopes s erved a s t he c ons truc t ion

Th is s e t t le men t s tood f or n ear ly 1 00 y ears a nd was r enova ted f our t imes . The b u i ld ing o f a r t if ic ia l mounds b egan a t t he e nd o f t he i s t c en tury AD .

F or e ach dwe l l ing a nd i t s a d jacen t s torehouse a l ong mound a bou t 0 .7 m h igh 2 0-25 cm l ong , a nd 8 -10 m w ide was c ons truc ted .

Each mound was b u i l t u p

f ro m a c ore o f s table r efuse , wh ich h ad b een p a ins tak ing ly p acked i n to l a yers . ' S tab le r efuse ' i s u sed h ere i n ab road s ense , t o i nc lude t he t hresh ing d ebr is t ha t was i n termixed w i th t he a c tua l manure a nd s table was te. B efore t he h ouse was c ons truc ted , t he c ore o f manure a nd p lan t ma ter ia l was c overed w i th a . 3 0-50 cm l ayer o f c arefu l ly p acked c lay s ods .

The s truc ture o f t hese s ods

i nd ica tes t ha t t hey w ere t aken f ro m t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty; l ayers h ad r e ma ined c o mp le te ly i n tac t .

t he ir i n terna l

D epos i ts f ro m s torm f l oods o n t he

s lopes o f t he wur ten s how t ha t d ur ing t h is p er iod f l oods o ccas iona l ly o ccurred o ver t he s urround ing l and .

A t t he F eddersen W ierde s i te , a l l s uch c ore-based

wur ten o f t h is p er iod t oge ther c overed a n a rea o f a bou t 1 3200 s q m. Dur ing t he 2 nd c en tury AD t hese wur t c ores w ere s ys te ma t ica l ly e n larged b y a dd i t ions o f s tab le r efuse a nd c lay a long t he ir marg ins . a lso r a ised b y a bou t 5 0-80 cm. The g rea tes t e x tens ions t ook p lace i n t he 3 rd c en tury.

The t ops w ere

A t t ha t t ime t he

a rea o f t he wur ten c ores was s ubs tan t ia l ly i ncreased t o o b ta in more r oo m f or t he h and l ing o f h arves ts a nd h ouseho ld a c t iv i t ies wh ich were b e ing p er formed o n t he wur ten .

The s urfaces were r a ised b y 2 0-50 cm a t t h is s tage .

T he

w iden ing o f t he s epara te wur ten c on t inued i n to t he 4 th c en tury b y wh ich t ime t hey h ad merged i n to o ne c on t inuous wur t . A t t h is t ime a s ubs tan t ia l v i l lage , a rranged r ad ia l ly a bou t al arge c en tra l s quare , c overed a n a rea o f a bou t 3h a . w i th a d iame ter o f a bou t 2 20 m i n t he NW-SE d irec t ion . The e xcava t ion c lear ly s howed t ha t c rop p rocess ing a c t iv i t ies h ad t aken p lace u pon t he wur t , o r i n t he e ar ly p hases , u pon t he s epara te c ore wur ten , i n t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty o f t he s torehouses . p lan ts w ere t o b e f ound e verywhere .

H ere a bundan t r e ma ins o f u sefu l

S ince t he i nd iv idua l b u i ld ing s tages c ou ld

b e d a ted b y means o f a r tefac ts a nd t he r e la ted s tra t igraphy , t hese s tages f ormed as ecure b as is f or t he g eobotan ica l i nves t iga t ions . I n t he h ouses t he mse lves t he p eop le a nd t he l i vestock were s he l tered u nder o ne r oof .

The l arges t o f t he h ouses i nc luded u p t o 1 6 d oub le c o mpar t men ts

f or c a t t le wh ich were s o s ta l led i n w in ter t ha t t heir f aeces r an i n to o ne l i qu id manure c hannel , l i ned w i th r eed s te ms t o a ss is t d ra inage.

Th is e xp la ins h ow

i n t he l ayers o f s tab le r efuse who le p or t ions c ou ld b e f ound c ons is t ing e n t irely o f c a t t le-faeces . U sefu l p lan ts f ro m t he l ayers o f s tab le r efuse i n t he wur t Mos t n otewor thy were t he e x tens ive l ayers o fb rown s te ms a bou t 3 0-40 cm l ong a nd 2 -3 m m t h ick wh ich s t i l l p ossessed t he ir r oo ts a nd b ranches .

I n a dd i-

t i on t o t hese s te ms t he v a lves o f f ru i t c apsu les wh ich h ad b een r e moved i n t he p rocess o f t hresh ing were r egu lar ly f ound .

These p lan t r e ma ins c ou ld b e i den-

t i f ied a s g o ld o f p leasure , C ame l ina s a t iva .

Th is s pec ies , whose s eeds s erved

a s a n i mpor tan t s ource o f o i l , was a n i mpor tan t c u l t ivar f ro m t he I ron A ge t o t he b eg inn ing o f t he modern p er iod . 2 94

Qu i te s im ilar t o t he s te ms o f t hese p lan ts were t hose o f f l ax , L inu m u s i ta t iss i mu m , wh ich w ere , h owever , t h inner a nd s hor ter .

The t wo s pec ies

c ou ld b e d is t ingu ished b y microscop ic e xa mina t ion o f ac ross-sec t ion o f t he ir s te ms .

The s te ms o f f l ax a lso r e ta ined t he ir r oots , i nd ica t ing t ha t , a s t oday ,

t he e n t ire p lan ts h ad b een p u l led u p d ur ing h arves t .

The f ru i t c apsu les r e-

l eased b y t hresh ing were f ound i n sma l ler o r l arger h eaps , s o met imes c over ing s evera l s quare meters . A lso r ecovered f ro m t he e xcava ted s ur faces were l ayers o f t h ick s te ms w i th l ong i tud ina l r ibs a nd whose r oo ts were a lso f ound i n tac t .

At horough

i nspec t ion o f t hese l ayers r evea led t he i mpress ions o f i nd iv idua l p ods o f h orsebean , V ic ia f aba ,

wh ich were t he o n ly c lue t o t he i den t i ty o f t hese r e ma ins .

M icroscop ic e xamina t ion o f t he s te m c ross-sec t ion c onf ir med t h is i den t if ica t ion. O ccurr ing i n e ven g rea ter q uan t i t ies t han t he r e ma ins o f g o ld o f p leasure , f lax , a nd h orsebeans , w ere t he t hresh ing r es idues o f c erea ls .

They were s pread

o ver a reas u p t o s evera l s quare me ters i n e x ten t , t hough f a ir ly t h in ly. The l ong f ragmen ted awns a nd r ach is s egmen ts i nd ica ted t ha t v ir tua l ly a l l t he r es id ues were d er ived f ro m b ar ley , H ordeum v u lgare ,

O n ly o nce were r es idues

o f emmer , Tr i t icum d icoccu m , a lso f ound , a nd t hese were i n t he c arbon ised s ta te .

A pprox ima te ly 2 5% o f a l l c arbon ised g ra ins w ere o f o a ts , b u t t h is c e-

r ea l was e n t ire ly a bsen t f rom t he t hresh ing r esidues.

Th is may b e b ecause

t he t h in-wa l led c ha f f o f o a ts i s n o t c apable o f p reserva t ion . Broo mcorn m i l let , P an icum mi l iaceum , mus t a lso b e men t ioned h ere. Th is o ccas iona l ly o ccurred a s v ery sma l l p i les o f b roken s eed c oa ts wh ich were p ar t icu lar ly n o t iceab le b y t he ir y e l low c o lour .

I t i s s ugges ted t ha t t hey

were t he r efuse f rom i nd iv idua l mea ls . F ina l ly , a n i mpor tan t r ecord a t t he F eddersen Wierde , o f wh ich t here h ave b een o n ly a f ew p r ior e xamp les , i s o f t he p lan t woad , I sa t is t i nc tor ia c ien t s ource o f b lue d ye d is tr ibu ted t hroughou t t he O ld Wor ld . t he i n f lorescences o f t h is p lan t were f ound w i th f ru i ts a t tached . t ha t t hese p lan ts mus t h ave b een r a ised o n t he wur t .

t he a n-

S evera l t imes Th is i nd ica tes

B esides t he u ncharred r e ma ins o f c u l t iva ted p lan ts t here a lso o ccurred c harred g ra ins a nd c harred f ru i ts a nd s eeds o f a l l t he s pec ies men t ioned a bove , w i th t he e xcep t ion o f w oad a nd mi l let .

They l ay i n s o me o f t he h ouses s ca t-

t ered .on t he h ear th among t he a shes a nd b urn t c lay. s erves s pec ia l c o m men t .

O f t hese f i nds , o ne d e-

I n t he o ven o f ab urn t-down h ouse , b enea th t he

c o l lapsed mud wa l ls , l ay a n e ar th a nd a sh f ree l ayer , 1 0 cm t h ick , o f p ure s eeds , o f c erea ls , f lax , g old o f p leasure a nd h orsebean . l ay i n c arefu l ly s epara ted p i les .

The v ar ious s pec ies

The t o ta l we igh t o f t h is f i nd ( sample No . 1 04 )

a t 2 9 k g amoun ted t o a bou t d ouble t he s um t o ta l o f a l l t he o ther c harred f i nds , e ven t hough t hese o ther f i nds d id c on ta in e ar th a nd a sh i mpur i t ies .

Whe ther

t hese s tock p i les were o n ly b eing d r ied i n t he o ven o r were a lso b eing s tored t here c ou ld n ot b e e s tabl ished .

The t o ta l a sse mblage c ons is ted o f a bou t 7 5%

s pe l t whea t a nd 2 5% o a ts.

O n ly o ne o r t wo h andfu ls were o f f lax , g o ld o f

p leasure a nd h orsebeans .

A sma l l n u mber o f g ra ins o f em mer , b read whea t ,

a nd n aked b ar ley were a lso f ound . A n i n terest ing c o mpar ison may b e made b e tween t he p ropor t ions o f c u lt i va ted p lan ts f ound i n ac arbon ised s ta te , a nd o f t hose f ound i n a n u ncarbon ised

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U ncharre c i R ema ins P o l len g ra ins

S pec ies

B a r ley

S t ems a nd r oo ts

T h res h ing r e ma ins

G r ind ing r ema ins

T h resh ing r e ma ins

G r ind ing r ema ins

( Hordeum v u lga re )

O ats

A

S eed s a nd f r u i ts

( Avena s a t iva )

Whea t s

( T r i t icu m s sp )

B roo mcorn M i l le t

( Pan ic um m i l iaceum )

H orsebean F lax

( V ie jo f aba ) ( L inum u s i ta t iss imu

G o ld o fP leasu re

( Came l ina s a t iva)

F ie ld c abbage

( B rass ica s p )

Woad

( Jsc i t is t i nc to r ia)

n

C harred R ema ins P o l len g ra ins

S pec ies

B ar ley

( Hordeu m v u lga r&

O a ts

B

( Avena s a l iva )

Whea ts

( T r i t icum sp .)

B roomco rn M i l le t

( Pan icum m i l iaceum )

H orsebean F lax

( V ic ia f aba )

( L inum u s i ta t iss imum )

G o ld o f P leasure

( Came l ina s o t /va )

F i e ld c abbage

( B rass ie ( ' s p . )

W oad

( isa t is t i nc tor ia )

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S eed s a nd f r u i ts

S te ms a nd r oo ts

a bundant many f ew r are n o t p rovab le

F ig . 1 3 .3

C ompar ison o ft he o ccurrence o f e conomic p lan t r ema ins i n u ncharred a nd c harred ma ter ia l f rom t he s i te .

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s ta te .

The s i te i s u sefu l i n t h is r espec t i n t ha t b o th f orms o f p reserva t ion

a re wel l r epresented .

F igure 1 3 :3 s hows h ow w ide ly t he t wo d iverge .

Three s pec ies p resen t i n t he u ncarbon ised s ta te were e n t ire ly a bsen t f ro m t he c arbon ised r ecord .

I tw ou ld a ppear t ha t c arbon ised ma ter ia l w i l l y ield

q uan t i ta t ive i n forma t ion a bou t c erea ls a lone .

O ne s hou ld b e aware o f t h is

b ias o n s i tes t ha t p roduce o n ly c arbon ised ma ter ia l .

I ti s o bv ious ly p referable

t o r ecover ma ter ia l f ro m b oth f or ms o f p reserva t ion o n as i te . The o r ig in o f t he c rops :

The h a lophyt ic marsh land o r t he i n land g ees t?

A h ypo thesis s ugges t ing t ha t b ar ley , o a ts , g o ld o f p leasure , f lax , a nd h orsebeans were c u l t iva ted o n b rack ish marsh lands t ha t wou ld n orma l ly b ear aJ unce tum g erard i v egeta t ion mus t a rouse s cep t ic is m.

The c lose-by f l ood-

f ree g ees t , wh ich was c onnec ted b y n av igable c hanne ls , a nd f ro m wh ich a l l wood f or h ouse-cons truc t ion , t oo l manu fac ture , a nd f uel was u ndoub ted ly d er ived , c ou ld t heor t ica l ly a lso h ave s upp l ied c u l t iva ted c rops , p erhaps i n e xchange f or l i vestock .

I n o rder t o r eso lve t h is , t he t hresh ing r e ma ins were

e xamined f or s eeds o f weeds f rom c u l t iva ted f i e lds , t o e s tab l ish whe ther t hese s pec ies were f ro m s andy s o i ls o f t he f reshwa ter z one o r w ere h a lophy tes . The l a t ter p roved t o b e t he c ase , a cco mpan ied h owever b y c er ta in n on-ha lophy t ic s pec ies s uch a s Tr i fol iu m r epens , Bro mus mo l l is t r iv ia l is .

P oa p ra tensis , a nd P oa

None the less , t he s pec ies t yp ica l o f t he p oor s andy f i e lds o n t he

g ees t w ere a bsen t .

The p resence o f r oots s t i l l a t tached t o t he t hreshed p lan ts

o f f lax , g o ld o f p leasure a nd h orsebean a lso s ugges ts t hey h ad n ot t rave l led f ar .

I n a dd i t ion , s ec t ions o f p loughed l and were s ubsequen t ly f ound .

T he

i nver ted c lods , wh ich were p roduced n ot b y as imp le a rd b u t b y at urn ing p lough , were a na lysed f or s eeds a nd h um ic c on ten t , t he l a t ter i n t he P ea t Research I ns t i tu te i n Bre men . I t may b e s ta ted w i th c er ta in ty t ha t a gr icu l ture i n t he f orm o f s ummer c u lt iva t ion h ad b een p rac t ised i n t he i m med ia te v ic in i ty o f t he wur t .

I t s r e la t ive

i n tens i ty , a s r ef lec ted i n t he v ar ious s e t t le men t l ayers , was r ecorded a nd mapped d ur ing t he 1 956-9 s easons o f e xcava t ion .

The means b y wh ich s uch

a n a gr icu l ture c ou ld b e c onduc ted w i l l b e p ersued a f ter v ar ious o bserva t ions o n t he s pec ies o f s a l t- marsh v ege ta t ion i n r e la t ion t o t he r ecovered w i ld p lan t ma ter ia l h ave b een made. W i ld p lan ts f ro m t he l ayer s o f s table r efuse i n t he wur t , a nd t he i nferred v ege ta t ion t ypes The l ayers o f a nima l s table r efuse i n t he wur t c ons is ted o f ac lose ly p ressed , b rown t o o l ive s ubs tance ( p la te 1 3 :I ) .

Layers o f p lan t s te ms i n who le o r b ro-

k en c ond i t ion a l terna ted w i th a ccumu la t ions o f p ure c a t t le f aeces.

The r ounded

d ropp ings o f s heep o r g oa ts , a nd t he f aeces o f h orse a nd s w ine were a lso d isc ernab le , t he l a t ter r ecogn isab le b y t he p resence o f c lean ly c u t s ta lks , b u t t hese w ere r are .

U sua l ly t he c a t t le f aeces were f ound mixed w i th s tem r e ma ins .

H owever , t here were a lso sma l ler , t hough s o me t i mes e x tens ive d epos i ts c ons is t ing o f u nm ixed l ayers o f p lan t s ta lks .

O f t hese , e ssen t ia l ly f our t ypes

c ou ld b e d is t ingu ished : 1 )

L ong , t h ick s ta lks o f 5 -8 m m d iame ter , w i th n odes , i n ternodes a nd a

b ud a t e ach n ode.

When f resh ly c u t , t hey a ppeared o chre i n c o lour .

s te ms were i den t if ied a s r eed , P hragm i tes .

2 98

These

A l though i n g enera l t hey w ere

b roken , t hey l ay i n t he d ra inage t roughs o f l i ves tock s ta l ls s t i l l i n b und les , j us t a s t hey h ad b een c u t f ro m t he r eed p lan ts .

The u pper r eed l ayer was

p er mea ted w i th t he f aeces o f c a t t le , b u t t he l ower l ayers o f u p t o 4 0 cm d ep th r e ma ined u ncon tam ina ted .

H ere were f ound , n o t u nco m mon ly , e n t ire f ru i t

c lus ters o f L ythru m s a l icar ia , S lum e rec tum , Euphorb ia p a lustr is , H yper icum t e trap terum , a nd a lso f ronds o f t he f ern Dryop ter is t he lyp ter is . 2 )

B lack s ta lks w i th wh i te mark ings .

These were a bou t a s t h ick a s t he

r eed s ta lks b u t were t r iangu lar i n c ross s ec t ion a nd l acked n odes .

A long

t he ir i n ter iors c ross-wa l ls c ou ld b e f ound a t i n terva ls o f 5 -20 cm .

The p re-

s ence o f we l l p reserved f ru i t c lus ters a l lowed t hese t o b e i den t if ied a s t he b u lrush , S c irpus mar i t imus . 3 ) n odes .

These were n o t a s p len t ifu l a s t he r eeds .

Very t h in s ta lks o f a bou t 1m m d iame ter , s o me w i th a nd s o me w i thou t P len t i fu l amongs t t hese were t he f ru i t c lus ters o f J uncus g erard i ,

a l though o ther s pec ies s uch a s E leochar is p a lus tr ia/un ig lumis , Tr i fo l iu m f rag iferu m , a nd P oten t i l la a nser ina , were a lso p resen t . 4 )

Threshing r e ma ins o f c u l t iva ted p lan ts wh ich h ave a lready b een d is-

c ussed . A s ac onsequence o f t he g ood c ond i t ion o f p reserva t ion i n t he t igh t ly c o mp ressed l ayers o f s tab le r efuse , s eeds , f ru i ts , c a lyces , a nd s o me t i mes e ven p e ta ls w ere p reserved .

A l toge ther , 8 6 s oi l s amp les were p rocessed f or s eeds

o f w i ld p lan ts . S ince t hese s amples were o bv ious ly c o mposed o f a mix ture o f p lan ts f ro m v ar ious s ources , i nc lud ing wha t c ame i n w i th t he c a t t le f aeces , i t was t hough t d es irable t o o bta in s ome p ure , u ncon tam ina ted s amp les . s ible b ecause o f t he v ery l arge a rea e xacava ted .

Th is was o n ly p os-

A s men t ioned a bove , t he

e xposed s ur face u nder e xcava t ion was t aken d own b y a bou t 2 5-30 cm e very t wo weeks .

These s ur faces c ou ld b e t horough ly s earched f or p reserved s ta lks.

The e xposed s table r efuse was s p l i t a par t i n to l ayers i n o rder t o o bta in a g ood i dea o f i t s make-up .

I n t h is way , r e ma ins o f h ay were f requen t ly f ound , i n

o ne c ase c over ing a n a rea o f s evera l s quare me tres .

The s te ms a nd f ru i t

c lus ters f ro m t hese sma l l ' pure ' s amp les c ou ld b e c oun ted a nd c o mpared w i th t he r ela t ive p ropor t ions o f s eeds o f t he s ame s pec ies . o f p ol len were a lso c arr ied o u t o n t hese s a mp les .

S upp le men tary a na lyses

As a r esu l t t he f o l low ing

v ege ta t ion t ypes c ou ld b e d educed : A )

Layers o f t he t h in s hor t s te ms o f J uncus g erard i w i th v arying n u m-

b ers o f f ru i t c lus ters .

These c ou ld b e d i f feren t ia ted i n to t hree t ypes o f

v ege ta t ion : I ) Layers c o mposed o f J uncus g erard i s ta lks a lone , o r w i th f ru i t c lus ters f ro m Agros t is s tolon i fera , Tr ig loch in mar i t i mu m , A tr ip lex h as ta ta/pa tu la P o ten t i l la a nser ina , a nd a f ew o thers .

Th is i s as pec ies-poor v ege ta t ion ,

w i th a n a verage o f 1 7 s pec ies p er s amp le , i n wh ich J uncus g erard i d om ina tes . I ) Layers o f J uncus g erard i s ta lks , c on ta in ing a s c harac ter is t ic c o mp onen ts ;

Bro mus mol l is , F es tuca r ubra , Tr ifo l iu m p ra tense , a nd P oa t r iv ia l is/

p ra tens is .

L eon todon a u tu mna l is a nd O don t i tes r ubra a re a lso p resen t i n

a bundance .

Th is i s ar icher v egeta t ion w i th a n a verage o f 3 2 s pec ies p er

s amp le .

2 99

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