Early medieval

Archaeological fieldwork in the Forth-Clyde isthmus has been dominated by the World Heritage Monument of the Antonine Wall, the Roman frontier built in the second century a.d. Considerably less attention has been given to the evidence for post-Roman experience of the Wall and how it was remembered (and forgotten) in the subsequent centuries. This paper will briefly summarise historical notices of the Antonine Wall, then consider the archaeological and toponymic evidence for early medieval occupation. The role of the Forth-Clyde isthmus as a political frontier is shown to be less significant to our understanding of this period than the evidence for mobility, memory and the contested legacy of Rome in early medieval Scotland.

The present text focuses on an attempt to analyze the presence of sickles in graves. Bibliographic query from the Polish lands revealed only 22 finds of sickles within cemetery space, out of which only 12 could be undoubtedly related to early medieval graves (see the catalog). Confrontation of anthropological and archaeological data has not shown any regularities in the custom of placing sickles in graves. They were placed both in female (Czersk, Jaksice, Napole) and in male graves (Brzeg, Święck-Strumiany, Tomice) of persons of different age (adultus – Czersk, Tomice; maturus – Brzeg, Święck-Strumiany; dorosły – Brześć Kujawski), placed with the head pointing westward (Brzeg, Czersk,Kałdus, Święck-Strumiany, Tomice) or eastward (Brześć Kujawski, Końskie, Napole, Sandomierz). In majority of cases they were single graves, and only in Sandomierz and Czersk these graves contained more than one person. A usually peripheral location of a grave within the cemetery space is, however, worth noticing. The inventories in the discussed graves were rather impecunious, and the sickle was often the only object found at the dead (see the catalog). Its location within a grave space was diversified. In three cases it was placed near the pelvis (Tomice, Brześć Kujawski, Święck-Strumiany), in two cases at the lower limbs (Napole, Brzeg), while in Końskie at the right side of the skull, in Sandomierz at the chest and in Jaksice it was driven into the neck vertebrae (?). The above overview of finds suggests that the custom of equipping the dead with a sickle was not common in the Polish lands in early middle ages. This situation was similar to the other parts of Europe, with the exception of the Carpathian Basin and middle Danube, (Slovakia, Hungary, Lower Austria, western Romania) where the custom was relatively frequent. Some scholars think, that these were the areas, where the custom spread westwards and north-westwards in the 8th and 9th centuries. Three concepts explaining the presence of sickles in graves can be found in literature. The first one suggests it was a professional attribute, proving the jobs the dead used to perform while alive – in this case farming or in some relation to farming. The second hypothesis suggests that a sickle in a grave proves a relation to military issues, being a weapon and a tool useful during military expeditions. The third explanation of the phenomenon bases on a sickle’s apotropaic properties, guaranteeing that the dead remains in the location of the burial and would not harm the living. Each of these three concepts is proved by numerous, sometimes parallel arguments, but the authors tend to the last concept in explanation of the phenomenon. It is supported by: placing of the tool in contact with the dead body, peripheral location of the burials within a necropolis, lack of more numerous grave inventories and ethnographic data. The fact that the burials bear no traces of defacing, present in relation to persons accused of especially malicious intents, allows us to think that a sickle accompanied burials of persons who did not cause as much fears but still some form of caution was desired.

This study provides the first evidence for the extraction of lead in the later early medieval period in Lancashire, in the North West of England. Archaeological evidence for human activity in the region during the later medieval period is modest, although the material culture that is known supports the historic accounts of settlement by people of Scandinavian origin, which is reinforced by studies of place names and local dialect. Investigation of two upland sites in the western Pennines, on Anglezarke and Rivington moors, indicates that lead was being extracted in the period c.680-1000 cal.AD, most likely from known veins at Lead Mines Clough. The emergence of extractive activity coincides with contact with the Norse who are known from both historic and archaeological evidence to have been present in Lancashire during the later early medieval period.

KEYWORDS
EARLY MEDIEVAL, LEAD, MINING, MINERAL EXTRACTION, MAGNETIC MEASUREMENT, SATURATION ISOTHERMAL REMANENT MAGNETISATION ASSAY, HEAVY METAL (LEAD) ASSAY, METALLURGY, UPLAND, PEAT, LANCASHIRE, ARCHAEOLOGY, ARCHAEOLOGICAL METHOD, NORSE ARCHAEOLOGY

The study of the inhumation cemeteries of Late Iron Age Scotland tends to revolve around the vexed question of whether or not they provide evidence for Christianity.  As a result, our approach has been to look for ‘Christian’ practices (lack of grave goods, west-east orientation) that are expectations based on analogy with the more standardised Christianity of the later medieval period.  As these burial practices originate in a Late Iron Age context, recent theoretical approaches from the study of late prehistory also need to be applied.  It is the emergence of cemeteries that is new in the mid-first millennium AD, and this distinction is still under-theorized.  Recent theoretical models seek to understand the significance of place, and how these cemeteries are actively involved in creating that place rather than using a predefined ‘sacred’ place.  By tracing their role in shaping and being shaped by their landscapes, before, during and after their use for burial, we can begin to speak more clearly about how we can use mortuary archaeology to study the changes of c. AD 400-600.  It is argued that the ambiguity of these sites lies not with the burials themselves, but in our expectations of Christianity and paganism in the Late Iron Age.

The paper presents the archaeological evidence for early Viking fortresses in Ireland. The Irish referred to these sites by the term Longphort (plural Longphuirt). In the 9th and 10th centuries the term was used exclusively to describe fortresses which were engaged in raiding and trading activities and which protected Viking fleets. Thirteen sites are discussed in detail including the Longphort phase of Dublin and the newly discovered site of Linn Duachaill, Annagassan, Co. Louth.

"This paper proposes three new (and tentatively, another two) identifications of sundials in Middle Eastern mosaics of the 5th – 8th century. The author discusses a vignette from the Holy Martyrs’ Church at Tayibat al-Imâm, central Syria, a mosaic panel from the tomb of Georgia and Theodosia in Jerusalem, two
vignettes of Sebastis and Kastron Mefaa from the St. Stephan’s Church at Umm al-Rasas, and a vignette of Jerusalem from the St. George’s Church at Madaba. These mosaics date, respectively, to 442, to the reign of Justinian (527 –565), and to the Byzantine Umayyad era (718). According to the author, these are probably the latest representations of sundials known to date from the Late Antiquity. Until this study, only six representations of sundials on mosaics from the Roman period were known. This paper adds three new items and two hypothetical ones from Byzantine times. It also offers an interpretation of the function of the famous column in Jerusalem, shown on the map of Madaba and the mega-vignette of the Holy City.
Key words: Sundials, Sonnenhuhren, Meridiane, Cadrans solaires, Relojes de sol."

Near the Szurpiły village (the Suwałki region)a large settlement complex is situated with the mostintensive phase of usage dated to the early medieval period(9th–13th
c.).In the centre of this complex there is a hillfort (the so-called “Góra Zamkowa”/“Castle Hill”), and relics of a large settlement (c. 20 ha; Site 4 and Site 8).In the northern part of Site 8 a unique kind of cemetery was found. In the area of c.2500m2 in the humus layer an extraordinary amount of cremated human bones, small pieces of metal objects and pottery was discovered. During the expeditions conducted in 2009–2010 a trenchof56,25m2
was excavated. In this trench over 6500 pieces of cremated human bones, 957 pieces of metal objects and other artefacts and over 4000 pieces of pottery were found. Thanks to anthropological analysis (carried out by
B. Balukiewicz MA) we know that remains of at least 1 adult
male, 2 adult females and 2 children were found. Among the artefacts pieces of costume elements, ornaments, weaponry and tools appeared. All of them were intentionally badly destroyed, most of them were also burned. Basing on the artefacts we can date the cemetery in general to the13 th  c.

The production of Anglo-Saxon cut halfpennies and farthings has been a hitherto neglected area of research. Metcalf (1978) proposed that cut fractions were produced in the mints where chisels were used to cut pennies into smaller denominations. The mints were therefore responsible for officially issuing the currency and for controlling its circulation. His theory was upheld with little more than anecdotal evidence. Using a previously unstudied collection of eighty cut fractions Metcalf’s theory was tested for the first time. Having created a reference collection of the characteristics of cuts made by different types of tool each coin was microscopically examined to determine how it had been cut. It was found that Anglo-Saxon cut fractions were manufactured in a systematic manner using a chisel to make the cut. This finding offers the first independent evidence to support Metcalf’s explanation of cut coin production.

This paper takes as a starting-point a number of iconic artefacts from the famous ship-burial excavated in Mound 1 at Sutton Hoo (c. AD 625-650) – the helmet, shoulder-clasps and gold buckle – and considers the fantastic creatures which adorn them. Attention is devoted to the nature, origin and symbolism of the two-headed serpent surmounting the helmet, and also the winged dragon on the helmet’s face-mask, with its wing-tips decorated with boar-heads in relief. The intersecting boars formed from intricately shaped garnets on the shoulder-clasps, demand an explanation, as does the solitary biting quadruped on the terminal of the gold reliquary-buckle. However fantastic these creatures might appear to be, it is argued that the beasts on each object can be given a consistent Christian explanation, recognisable on diverse objects found in Europe at the time of the conversion.

The authors discuss the issue of presence of vessels in the inventory of an early-medieval warrior. The goal was to answer a question of to what extent this category of artifacts belonged really to non-military accessories. The source basis was constituted by 106 burial sets, equipped with military artifacts and containing vessels, recorded at burial grounds from Polish lands, utilized in the period of 10th - 13th centuries. Basing on the find overview, three basic groups of vessels were distinguished: wooden vessels (a bucket, a scoop, and others), clay and metal ones (bronze bowls). The discussion included also leather vessels, only hypothetically present in the graves.
The authors express an opinion, that all of the mentioned vessel categories could have been used by early-medieval warriors. Material, shape and technical parameters of the buckets makes them especially suitable for this role, although basing on the data present we cannot unambiguously identify these finds as related to riders. They could have been used by any military formation. The smallest specimens were used as drinking mugs, larger ones were used mainly for storing of food or as containers of liquids, subsequently poured to smaller vessels. The largest ones, although not numerous, could have been used for horse watering. A small number of other types of wooden objects in the graves with military artifacts does not allow any further discussion. Ceramic vessels were probably used ad hoc as mugs during military expeditions. Miniature specimens were included in personal inventory, while larger specimens probably followed the army transported on wagons. Bronze bowls were included in grave sets containing horse equipment, caparison elements and prestigious weapon elements. All this suggests, that they were used (as vessels for washing hands) by the representatives of the contemporary social elites, serving most probably as riders. Considering the luxurious character of the bowls, however, we have doubts about practical usage of this category during military expeditions. No sources exist that would prove the use of leather vessels by the warriors. The performed analysis excludes the possibility that the vessels found in graves could have been used for liquid transportation, since all of them, independently on their type, were open in form. They could, however, been used on camps, as vessels for consumption of meals and fluids. Probably most of the analyzed vessels were the warrior’s property.

The authors deal with the issues of the beginnings of the parish system in the Czech lands, which formed the prerequisites for a deeper Christianisation of the rural milieu. Based on the distinctive transformations in burials observable in a large part of Bohemia and Moravia, they place the beginnings in the period around 1100 A. D. The evidence of the archaeological sources is confronted with the testimony of the written evidence and critically also with the conception of art historians, who do not suppose a boom of sacral architecture in the rural milieu until the second half of the 12th century and later. The shift of the beginnings of parish organisation further into the past opens a number of historical and methodological questions.

The Galway to Ballinasloe N6 road scheme in the Republic of Ireland was 56km long: metre for metre, one of the largest archaeological projects anywhere in the world. The archaeology found along the scheme has shed new light on the treatment of the dead at crucial stages of Irish history. Brendon Wilkins explains the evidence.

The identification of particular Pictish symbols in relation to the symbolism of the Book of Jonah, and the use of Jonah as a type of Christ, in the tomb for 3 days, in Pictish art. Reference to other symbols with possible Christian meanings, particularly in the light of their occurrence on cross slabs.