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Patterns of finds of continental coinage appear to vary considerably, related to fluctuations in trading relationships and economics, with finds of Venetian coinage and the Low Countries most common.[39] A mid-12th-century I petit denier i struck at Ypres (Belgium) from Temple Bruer with Temple High Grange (Lincolnshire; LIN-6D2321; Fig 2j) is of an earlier date than the main Low Countries incursions (mid-late 13th century) and the first PAS-recorded example from outside southern England. Evidence from graves shows that such copies were often pierced for suspension, playing the same role in burials as official coins - eg as pendants at Lechlade (Gloucestershire) and Ipswich (Suffolk), and unmodified at Carisbrooke Castle (Isle of Wight), where it was placed in the mouth of the deceased.[9] Other plated imitations with piercings have been recorded by the PAS.[10] PHOTO (COLOR): Fig 1 Early medieval coins. Two pennies of Offa of Mercia (757-96), non-portrait types belonging to the "Light Coinage" (c 784-92), extend the distribution of Mercian coinage into SW England with finds from Tarrant Hinton (Dorset; DOR-A6A573; Fig 1f) - the first from Dorset - and Chitterne (Wiltshire; SUR-7F7364; Fig 1g). I General Editor: i NEIL CHRISTIE I Portable Antiquities Scheme Report edited by: i JOHN NAYLOR[1] I Medieval Britain and Ireland compiled and edited by: i TIZIANA VITALI I and i PATRICK GLEESON I with i TOMÁS Ó CARRAGÁIN This section of the journal comprises two core sets of reports linked to work in 2021: finds and analyses relating to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and related research reports; and site-specific discoveries and reports in medieval Britain and Ireland (MB&I), with a selection of highlighted projects. [Extracted from the article]

Causeway Construction Three distinct phases of causeway construction were identified (see Figs. This section comprises a selection of highlighted projects or discoveries made across Britain and Ireland in 2021, with illustrated overviews of results, finds and contexts. On the balance of the evidence, this building formed the gatehouse opening into the inner precinct of the abbey that contained the conventual buildings and the graveyard. Salvage recording assigned a 13th- to 15th-century occupation date to the remains of a manor house, several isolated rectangular buildings of unknown function, and an extensive limestone-cobbled yard.[5] Manor Excavations The causeway, revealed by open-area excavation in 2021,[6] was probably related to the 13th- to 14th-century manor (Fig 1). [Extracted from the article]

ONE OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS in early-medieval northern Britain was the re-emergence of fortified enclosures and settlements. As in western England and Wales, the fort rather than the hall formed the most prominent material manifestation of power of an elite and their client group. While fortified sites dominate our knowledge of the form that central places of power and governance took in the early-medieval period in northern Britain, our historical sources reveal little about the character, longevity and lifespan of many of these important nodes of power, and archaeological investigation has also tended to be limited. Hence only a handful of forts in northern Britain provide well-dated and investigated sequences for what are critical sites for understanding the character of post-Roman society in the north. As part of the Leverhulme Trust-funded Comparative Kingship project, a suite of new radiocarbon dates was produced using archived material from excavations at the now-destroyed early-medieval hillfort of Clatchard Craig in Fife, eastern Scotland (NGR NO 2435 1780); one of the most complex early-medieval forts yet identified in northern Britain. Some 35 years ago, Joanna Close-Brooks oversaw the publication of a report on the hillfort based on excavations which had occurred more than two decades earlier in response to the quarrying of this multivallate hillfort.5Due to the imprecision and scarcity of radiocarbon dating, a broad 6th to 8th + century ad chronology for the defences and occupation of the interior was obtained. With higher precision AMS dates and a new Bayesian model, a much tighter sequence of dating has been produced suggesting the development and destruction of the monumentally enclosed phase of the site centred on a much shorter period in the 7th century ad. The new chronology for the site, which suggests the fort was constructed and destroyed within a few generations at most, has important implications for the role of fortifications, and the character of warfare in early-medieval society. The burning of the fort suggests a catastrophic and rapid end to a site that is likely to have been constructed by the Pictish elite. The fort may have been a victim of the tumultuous and pivotal events of the latter half of the 7th century when southern Pictland came under Northumbrian control before being wrested back into Pictish overkingship in the aftermath of the Battle of Nechtanesmere of ad 685. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

EMERGING EVIDENCE FOR EARLY MEDIEVAL UPLAND COLONISATION IN BRITAIN AND IRELAND When we broaden the perspective out to the whole of Britain and to Ireland, the temporal correlation between upland colonisation and the population growth and temperature increases c 850-1300 becomes less clear. Graph: Fig 4 Illustration of the "pull" and "push" factors in upland colonisation in the 10th to 14th centuries, in the context of wider climate variability: A) local factors within uplands which acted as facilitative "pull" factors for new hill farms; B) regional socio-political and demographic pressures which acted as "push" factors for people to settle in uplands. PHOTO (COLOR): Fig 8 Hypothetical summary of three key long-term trends that influenced decisions to establish year-round farms in uplands and influenced the viability of these farms once established (c ad 500-1900): A) the economic value of uplands; B) population pressure to settle in uplands; and C) arable carrying capacity of uplands. The review comprises three temporal case studies: (1) "classic" early second millennium ad expansion in south-west England, and the role of pre-existing transhumant niches in upland colonisation; (2) the growing evidence for early medieval farming in uplands across Britain and Ireland, and the role of local environmental factors in this expansion; and (3) the resilience of hill farmers during the late-medieval and early modern "Little Ice Age". [Extracted from the article]

This section comprises a short selection of highlighted projects or discoveries made across Britain and Ireland in 2019, with illustrated overviews of results, finds and contexts. Since the well was cut through not only the basalt dyke but also the hardcore deposit, it either post-dated the tower that was built upon this levelled hardcore surface or was contemporary with the tower, with both post-dating the hardcore. Here, excavation indicates that the courtyard overlay a levelled platform of redeposited weathered sandstone; at least part of this was likely provided by the digging of the ditch beneath the Lower Court (F). Implications for social change, agricultural productivity and landscape development in north-east Scotland ', Stud Celtica 52, 32. 11 Slade, H G 1967, ' Druminnor, formerly Castle Forbes: an investigation into the original building of a mid-fifteenth-century Palace House ', Proc Soc Antiq Scot 99, 148 - 66. 12 Slade, H G 1985, ' The Tower and House of Drum, Aberdeenshire ', Proc Soc Antiq Scot 115, 297 - 356. [Extracted from the article]

This section of the journal comprises two core sets of reports linked to work in 2018: finds and analyses relating to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and site-specific discoveries and reports in medieval Britain and Ireland (MB&I), with a selection of highlighted projects. Over 1,900 coins recorded of "short cross" and '(voided) long cross' types of Henry II-Edward I (1180-1279) represent a marked increase in coin loss, and the period after Edward I's (1272-1307) recoinage of 1279 until Henry VII (1485-1509) accounted for almost 3,000 recorded coins last year. 12 Cook, B 1999, ' Foreign coins in medieval England ', in L Travaini (ed), Local Coins, Foreign Coins: Italy and Europe 11th-15th Centuries, Milan: Società Numismatica Italiana, 231 - 83. 18 Gannon, A 2013, British Museum Anglo-Saxon Coins I: Early Anglo-Saxon Gold and Anglo-Saxon and Continental Silver Coinage of the North Sea Area, c.600-760, Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles 63. [Extracted from the article]

In advance of the demolition of the fire-damaged structures fronting High Town, at the northern end of the development boundary, remnants of two 16th-century timber-framed buildings were recorded.[18] Elements of panelled timber wall frames, filled with wattle and daub, survived in the western structure. The earliest appear to be the NW corner of a structure indicated by foundation (2026) (Fig 7) and the NE corner and E side of a building defined by Group 2119. Clay-bonded wall foundations are commonly found in Hereford in medieval buildings but positively dating our feature was problematic, largely due to its reuse in several phases of later building and the lack of any further associated clay-bonded foundations. The well's backfilling certainly occurred during the Victorian period or later and may have been replaced by a further well (2033), located to the north, associated with later buildings whose post-medieval foundations reused elements of the medieval foundations and in some instances were keyed into or cut through the earlier foundations (Fig 6). [Extracted from the article]

REMAINS OF AN 11th–13th-century farmstead were revealed during excavations within part of ‘The Hayworth’, an early enclosure on the ‘lost’ manor of Trubwick, (West Sussex).2Historical, landscape and toponymic evidence has been utilised to set the archaeological activity in context. It seems probable that the excavated site, and the Hayworth enclosure more broadly, relate to a specialised cattle rearing or vaccary farm. The site represents the most completely excavated vaccary complex yet known, and is the first recognisable example from the Wealden region in south-east England.The discovery has important implications for our current understanding of medieval Wealden economy and environment, as well as patterns of settlement evolution. Evidence suggests this site can be linked with the traditions of Anglo-Saxon outpasture and transhumance. This article explores the evidence from this site for the transition from a seasonal pasture to a permanent 12th-century manorial establishment held in severalty. The likely form of a vaccary complex is established and the potential for the existence of these specialised cattle ‘ranches’ and dairies is explored. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

THIS PAPER EXAMINES the archaeological evidence for hand spinning in medieval Britain from c 1200 to c 1500. Ceramic, stone and baked clay spindle whorls have dominated the excavated finds, but a new corpus of lead-alloy spindle whorls, recorded through the Portable Antiquities Scheme and Scottish Treasure Trove, is presented here. Analysis of the metal whorls' distribution, manufacture, dating and decoration is provided, illuminating the wide social and economic contexts in which they were used. From memento mori of pious spinners to sexually potent objects representative of lubricious gossips, the ubiquitous spindle whorl was a universal tool that had a powerful agency. The artefacts are small finds embodying daily life but also tie into the wider national economy of the High and Late Middle Ages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses archaeological discoveries made by the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) in medieval Britain and Ireland. Topics include features of early medieval coins circulated in England in the 5th century, the excavation of a bronze bowl, ceramic vessel, and coin pendants from a 7th century female burial in Norfolk, England, and the analysis of medieval commercial locations such as Saltfleetby and Skidbrooke.

The article discusses the highlights of archaeological fieldwork and studies involving medieval Britain and Ireland conducted in 2015. Topics explored include the discovery of 11th century land reclamation deposits from the excavation in Poets' Corner Yard of Westminster Abbey in London, England, unusual characteristics of the lead coffins found within the main excavation region, and brief historical background of the construction and structure of St. Mary's Abbey located in York, England.

THE CHURCH OF ST MARY, Prittlewell is now superficially a late medieval building, but it has long been recognised that the N wall of the chancel contains fragments of Anglo-Saxon work, while the nave retains early Romanesque fabric. It is demonstrated here that these early structures represent two discrete axially aligned churches. The Anglo-Saxon church at Prittlewell has been assumed to date from the 7th century, but comparison with similar church buildings points instead to a 10th-century date, suggestive of an absence of continuity between the 7th-century ‘princely’ burial discovered nearby and the foundation of the church. There is no documentation of the church before the Domesday survey, but it is tentatively suggested that a church at Prittlewell was founded in the 10th century as a successor to the nearby minster at Wakering, whose fortunes were then in decline. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

HISTORICAL, ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND GEOMORPHOLOGICAL data indicate that many of the coastal dune formations of Britain and Ireland underwent significant accretion in the medieval and post-medieval periods. The changes wrought by sand-blows to settlement and agriculture were far-reaching, and in some cases devastating. Contemporary attempts to stave off their effects were in many cases the prelude to settlement shift and abandonment. The desertion of sand-inundated settlements has left a rich but fragile archaeological resource concealed under coastal sand-dunes. Exposure, deflation and erosion remain serious challenges to the management and conservation of these landscapes. Archaeological methods applied in sand-dune landscapes are reviewed, with the aim of outlining the range of techniques and approaches available for research and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This section of the journal comprises two core sets of reports linked to work in 2014: on finds and analyses relating to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and on site-specific discoveries and reports in medieval Britain and Ireland (MB&I), with a selection of highlighted projects. For the PAS report, reviews on coin and non-coin finds and on specific research angles are presented. For MB&I, the Society is most grateful to all contributors (of field units, museums, universities, developers, specialist groups and individuals) who have provided reports on finds, excavations, field-surveys and building analyses for 2014. For MB&I, see below for the format and content of the Fieldwork Highlights section and for contact details of the compilers. The annual Specialist Groups Reports appear in the Society’sNewsletter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This section of the journal comprises two core sets of reports linked to work in 2013: on finds and analyses relating to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and on site-specific discoveries and reports in medieval Britain and Ireland (MB&I), with a selection of highlighted projects. For the PAS report, reviews on coin and non-coin finds and on specific research angles are presented. For MB&I, the Society is most grateful to all contributors (of field units, museums, universities, developers, specialist groups and individuals) who have provided reports on finds, excavations, field-surveys and building analyses for 2013. Note that while we can advise on content, we are not able to abstract from interim reports. Please also note that in certain cases the National Grid Reference has been omitted from reports to protect sites; do notify the compilers if this information is to be withheld. For MB&I, see below for the format and content of the Fieldwork Highlights section and for the contact details of the compilers. The annual Specialist Groups Reports now appear in the Society’s Newsletter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THIS ARTICLE DESCRIBES the recent discovery of Britain’s first certain hoard of gold bracteates, found in a field in Binham (Norfolk). This find is unique in Anglo-Saxon England where bracteates have previously been found either in graves or as single finds. A further two gold bracteates and a possible die have been discovered in the vicinity of Binham suggesting a ‘bracteate cluster’. It is argued here on the basis of analogies with sites in Scandinavia and northern Germany that Binham may have acted as a central place in northern Norfolk in the early Anglo-Saxon period. In light of bracteate distribution across Anglo-Saxon England, the area of Binham is suggested as one of several sites with meaningful clusters of bracteate finds; these may have belonged to a network of central sites distributed across Scandinavia and along North Sea coastal areas in England. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

WHY WERE important Viking longhouses built on large mounds of sand and then repeatedly rebuilt in precisely the same apparently challenging location? Generations of Viking-late Norse people did so, on sandy bays along the coasts of the Northern Isles of the United Kingdom. These prominent, 'layered-up' longhouse complexes were landscape statements. They reflected, in their location and the detail of their construction and use, the social attitudes and arrangements of those who lived in and visited them. The settlements played a pivotal role in power relationships and in the organisation of the local economy. This article explores the meaning of these focal settlement mounds through landscape archaeology; investigates building practices, stratigraphic detail and place-name associations; looks at their cultural roots in Scandinavia; and considers the role they played in the development of local social and political structures in Orkney. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THIS ARTICLE presents a summary and interpretation of burial practices in Scotland in ad 400-650. Due to the dearth of documentary sources, mortuary archaeology provides a window on the changes occurring at the juncture between prehistory and history. Yet previous work has generally approached burial as evidence for a single aspect of this transition: the conversion to Christianity. Rather than signalling ethnic or religious affiliation, it is argued that graves should be understood as acts of structured deposition which enabled new relationships to be forged between the living and the dead at a local level. The composition of the grave with stone, sand, timber and earth can be seen as a form of furnishing cognate with the use of grave goods elsewhere in Britain and the continent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This section of the journal comprises two core sets of reports linked to work in 2012: on finds and analyses relating to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and on site-specific discoveries and reports in medieval Britain and Ireland (MB&I), with a selection of highlighted projects. For the PAS report, reviews on coin and non-coin finds and on specific research angles are presented. For MB&I, the Society is most grateful to all contributors (of field units, museums, universities, developers, specialist groups and individuals) who have provided reports on finds, excavations, field-surveys and building analyses for 2012. Note that while we can advise on content, we are not able to abstract from interim reports. Please also note that in certain cases the National Grid Reference has been omitted from reports to protect sites; do notify the compilers if this information is to be withheld. For MB&I, see below for the format and content of the Fieldwork Highlights section and for the contact details of the compilers. The annual Specialist Groups Reports now appear in the Society's Newsletter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BOTANICAL DATA FROM EXCAVATIONS are one of several sources of evidence that can be brought to bear on studies of medieval agriculture, food, diet, trade and environment. Reliable reconstructions of these aspects of medieval life are dependent on the quality of the datasets currently available for study. Here these are assessed and lacunae highlighted. The focus lies on sites where macro-remains of food and agricultural products have been found (eg seeds, grains, chaff and fruit stones). The research has raised several areas of concern, some of which relate to changes in the funding of archaeological projects since 1990 (the rise of development-led archaeology). Research priorities are formulated and suggestions for good practice recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ARCHAEOLOGICAL REMAINS OF excavated early medieval houses coupled with the examination of early Irish texts suggest that the location, layout and dimensions of houses were instrumental in communicating status in early medieval Ulster. Changes to houses and settlements from the 9th century onwards may reflect an insecure society adapting to major socio-economic changes and the threat of slave rather than cattle raiders.2 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This section of the journal comprises two core sets of reports linked to work in 2011: on finds and analyses relating to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and on site-specific discoveries and reports in medieval Britain and Ireland (MB&I), with a selection of highlighted projects. For the PAS report, reviews on coin and non-coin finds and on specific research angles are presented. For MB&I, the Society is most grateful to all contributors (of field units, museums, universities, developers, specialist groups and individuals) who have provided reports on finds, excavations, field-surveys and building analyses for 2011. Note that, while we can advise on content, we are not able to abstract from interim reports. Please also note that in certain cases the National Grid Reference has been omitted from reports to protect sites; do notify the compilers if this information is to be withheld. For MB&I, see below for the format and content of the Fieldwork Highlights section and for the contact details of the compilers. The annual Specialist Groups Reports now appear in the Society's Newsletter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Later Medieval England possessed over 300 documented leper hospitals, representing around a quarter of all hospital foundations, but to date a sustained discussion of this archaeological material is lacking. This paper synthesises and explores the present state of archaeological knowledge within the broader context of recent studies in other disciplines. It identifies some current issues and avenues for potential research, with particular reference to the recent archaeological work at St Mary Magdalen, Winchester, one of the most extensive excavations of a medieval leper hospital and almshouse to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is now widely accepted that the Anglo-Saxons were not just transplanted Germanic invaders and settlers from the Continent, but the outcome of insular interactions and changes. But we are still lacking explicit models that suggest how this ethnogenetic process might have worked in concrete terms. This article is an attempt to present such a model from an archaeological perspective, but with an interdisciplinary approach. The focus is on the role of the native British population and its interaction with immigrant Germanic groups. As a result, the model envisages two broad phases in the creation of the Anglo-Saxons: an ethnically divided conquest society in the 5th/6th centuries in which immigrants and their descendants practised a form of 'apartheid' in order to preserve their dominance; and a phase of increasing acculturation and assimilation of the natives in the 7th/8th centuries that laid the foundations of a common English identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses medieval archaeological finds from 2010, focusing on records of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and other discoveries made in Great Britain and Ireland. The authors describe the PAS's aim to record archaeological finds discovered by the public, and the 1996 Treasure Act allowing museums to acquire finds. The authors discuss the death of PAS archaeologist Geoff Egan and describe medieval coinage recorded in 2010 as well as other finds such as runic inscriptions and pilgrims' badges. Also presented is an index of 2010 archaeological finds and projects in Great Britain and Ireland, along with brief reports about each project including a 9th-century industrial site in Northumberland, England, a Viking-Age settlement in Orkney, Scotland, and Nevern Castle in Wales.

This study probes the destruction of material culture to illuminate the introduction of Norman political authority into northern England. A brief overview of Norman destruction of churches provides the background to a review of the potential relationship of Anglo-Saxon monuments with memory and identity, in the context of recent discussions of monument reuse. Durham and York, the Anglo-Saxon monastic sites at Wearmouth/Jarrow, Lindisfarne and Jedburgh, and a selection of local churchyards provide case studies. It argues that some monuments seem to have been deliberately targeted, but a wider range of factors, all ultimately derived from changing political circumstances, can be identified that explain why sculpture was removed and reused. The paper serves as a platform for further debate about the significance of monuments in the Middle Ages, and as a contribution to the broader discourse within archaeology about their social meanings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excavation at Bantham Ham in 2001 examined a sequence of post-Roman occupation with radiocarbon dates centred on the late 5th and 6th centuries. Despite the limited area of exposure, a major and unusually well-preserved assemblage of Mediterranean amphorae was recovered; among sites in the British Isles, the quantity of ceramics is second only to that from Tintagel. This assemblage is of great significance in the study of links between western Britain and the Mediterranean in the post-Roman period, raising questions about the date, duration and character of trading patterns, and about their late-Roman antecedents. Associated finds of vessel glass and evidence of ironworking are discussed; the glass is interpreted as reflecting elite drinking rituals. Study of well-preserved bone, shell, charcoal and charred plant macrofossils allows consideration of aspects of the economy and environment of the site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a Growing recognition that introduced species are direct records of cultural activity and that studies of their biogeography have the potential to tell us about patterns of human migration, trade and even ideology. In England the fallow deer (Dama dama dama) is one of the earliest and most successful animal introductions, whose establishment has traditionally been attributed to the Normans. However, recent investigations of Old English place names have raised the possibility that the term *pohha/pocca relates to fallow deer, suggesting that the species was widely established in the Anglo-Saxon landscape. This suggestion deserves serious consideration as it has implications for our understanding both of AngloSaxon society and the impact of the Norman Conquest. This paper therefore presents a critical review of the literary, iconographic, place-name and zooarchaeological evidence for fallow deer in early medieval England and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historic Building Investigations and selective excavations carried out during recent conservation works have shed new light on St Mary's Guildhall, Boston (Lincolnshire), built by an internationally significant religious fraternity in one of the most important ports of medieval England. Dendrochronological dating of the guildhall indicates a construction date of c 1390. This is significantly earlier than had previously been supposed and suggests a close link between the construction of the guildhall and the grant of a royal licence of incorporation to the guild in 1392. It makes the guildhall one of the earliest securely dated brick buildings in Lincolnshire and is important evidence of investment during a period when Boston was experiencing severe economic decline. Multidisciplinary analysis of the archaeology of the building and some of the guild's surviving documentary records enables a reconstruction of the original form and function of the guildhall and its now-lost material culture. Comparative analysis of Boston with other surviving provincial guildhalls begins to shed light on the emergence of a distinctive type of public architecture in pre-modern England. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a report of the 2010-2011 activities of the Society for Medieval Archaeology. Information about the society's address, trustee, and council members is presented. Also presented is a summary of the society's objectives to further study of British history and a description of the society's activities related to medieval archaeology in Great Britain, Ireland, and Europe, including their publication of the journal "Medieval Archaeology."

The Number of bracteate finds from early Anglo-Saxon England has increased substantially in recent years. A catalogue draws together for the first time all the finds since 1993 and one, possibly two, dies with bracteate motifs. This leads to a review of their find circumstances, distribution and their stylistic and iconographical links with continental and Scandinavian bracteates. The outcome is a revised picture of the function and meaning of bracteates in Anglo-Saxon society, with the suggestion that the English adopted the idea for these pendants from Sievern in Germany but adapted the concept and iconography for local manufacture. In Kent use links to high-status female burials but outside Kent ritual deposition is also a possibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Archaeological Excavations by Field Archaeology Specialists in 2002 outside the walls of York have revealed new evidence for the elusive transition between the Roman and Viking city. At Heslington Hill, in the campus of the present University of York, an early-Anglo-Saxon settlement dates from c AD 550 to AD 650. In the 7th century a new settlement began 2 km westwards on the same glacial moraine. This was the site of Eoforwic at Fishergate on the River Ouse, investigated in the 1980s and here revisited with additional evidence from excavations in 2000–01. The ceramic assemblage suggests that the two communities were connected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines patterns in the placement of apotropaic objects and materials in high- to late-medieval burials in Britain (11th to 15th centuries). It develops an interdisciplinary classification to identify: (1) healing charms and protective amulets; (2) objects perceived to have occult natural power; (3) 'antique' items that were treated as possessing occult power; and (4) rare practices that may have been associated with the demonic magic of divination or sorcery. Making comparisons with amulets deposited in conversion-period graves of the 7th to 9th centuries it is argued that the placement of amulets with the dead was strategic to Christian belief, intended to transform or protect the corpse. The conclusion is that material traces of magic in later medieval graves have a connection to folk magic, performed by women in the care of their families, and drawing on knowledge of earlier traditions. This popular magic was integrated with Christian concerns and tolerated by local clergy, and was perhaps meant to heal or reconstitute the corpse, to ensure its reanimation on judgement day, and to protect the vulnerable dead on their journey through purgatory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses medieval archaeological projects and discoveries in Great Britain and Ireland that took place during 2007. Several groups present reports on their activities for the year. The Castle Studies Group held an Annual Conference in April 2007, took part in a conference commemorating the 700th anniversary of the death of King Edward I of England, and studied châteaux forts in the Languedoc region of France. The Finds Research Group held a meeting in May 2007 and discussed finds from Wharram Percy and Whitbey Abbey at a meeting in October 2007. The Medieval Pottery Research Group held a conference and annual general meeting (AGM) in June 2007 in which the movement of pottery across medieval Europe was discussed.

The article presents a compilation of reports related to medieval archeology societies in Great Britain and Ireland in 2006. They include information on the conference and seminars conducted during the year by Medieval Settlement Research Group (MSRG), Medieval Pottery Research Group, and Finds Research Group. Also included are information about the archeological objects that were discovered and recorded in 2006, and details of archeological structures and excavations which include the remains of the Cluniac priory, and the Bishop's Palace and Manor in Exeter, England.

The article presents the annual report of the council of the Society for Medieval Archaeology in Great Britain for the year ended March 31, 2007. The report includes the Society's statement of financial activities, balance sheet, and notes to the financial statements for the year that provide information on the preparation of accounts and the basis of income, value added tax, expenditures and investments of the society. The independent report of the account examiner to the council is also presented, with details on the respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner and basis of audit opinion.

THE STUDY of High-medieval castles has benefited from the incorporation of elements of landscape archaeology in the last few years. While this paper is far from a complete study of the late 13th-century castle of Caernarfon and its relationship with its surrounding landscape, it aims to stimulate interest in this avenue of archaeological research. By focusing on the subtle relationships between the castle, the adjoining walled town and their ecclesiastical foci, and considering them in relation to the other Edwardian castles in Wales, the benefits of these approaches will be evident. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A SURVEY of archaeological ceramic thin sections held by institutions and individuals in the United Kingdom was undertaken in the early 1990s by the City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit and funded by English Heritage. Over 6,000 thin sections of Anglo-Saxon or medieval date (or reports on their analysis) were located. For the Middle to Late Anglo-Saxon and the post-Conquest Periods, these studies have confirmed that pottery production was carried out in a limited number of centres and that most pottery, including handmade coarsewares, was therefore produced for trade. The distances over which pottery was carried vary from period to period but were actually as high or higher in the Middle to Late Anglo-Saxon Period as in the 13th to 14h centuries. However, for the Early Anglo-Saxon Period (and the Middle Anglo-Saxon Period outside of eastern England) the evidence of ceramic petrology is equivocal and requires more study. These 6,000–odd thin sections represent a resource which could be used for various future studies, some of which are discussed here, and as an aid to their further use a database containing information on the sampled ceramics, their location and publications of their analyses will be published online through Internet Archaeology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the annual report of the council of the British Society for Medieval Archaeology for the year ended March 31, 2005. The Society has no current investments. It did not acquire gains or losses other than those for the current and previous years. All of its activities were classed as continuing. Voluntary income and donations were reported for as received by the Society.

Presents an annual report of the Council of the Society for Medieval Archaeology for the year 2003-2004 in Great Britain.

Provides reports on excavations, survey work, and a compilation of portable antiquities scheme report in Great Britain. Excursion to Normandy organized by the Castle Studies Group; Activities coordinated by the Medieval Pottery Research Group; Description of a copper-alloy axe discovered in Dorchester.

Presents several chronological conferences during the 2002 in Great Britain. Number of delegates hosted by Castle Studies Group; Subject of coins and lectured by Philip Wise and Martin for Finds Research Group; Coverage of buildings, settlements, field systems and industry by the Medieval Settlement Research Group.

Focuses on the archaeology of medieval small towns in Great Britain. Value of research on sites; Significance of international exchange, cultural life and political influence; Means of livelihood.

Focuses on the mineralogical analysis of garnet inlays conducted in Sweden and Great Britain. Difficulty of testing garnets set into jewelry; Kinds of mineralogical specimens produce ready-made flat slabs; Representation of gemstones of oval and circular shapes alternating with square and rectangular shapes.

The article discusses the changes and improvements within the "Medieval Archaeology" journal of the Society for Medieval Archaeology in Great Britain. The improvements include the free accessibility of volumes 1-50 online through the Archaeology Data Service, the publication of colored illustration in the journal's online version, and the introduction of the Martyn Jope Award that will rewarded for the best novel interpretation, application of analytical method or presentation of new findings published in the journal. The changes will also include certain modifications in the journal's house-style and appearance.

The article lists the officers and council members of the Society for Medieval Archaeology in Great Britain in 2007, which includes Roberta L. Gilchrist, Rosemary Cramp and David A. Hinton.