Medieval Arcaheology

Ely, Cambridgeshire, is known to tourists as an incredible city steeped in myth and legend and dominated by the Norman Cathedral, a masterpiece of medieval architecture. There have been many popular books written about the Isle, but in 'Ely: A Hidden History' the approach is to look at the longue duree of life on the isle focusing on continuity and change in cultural practices.  The work combines the latest archaeological discoveries to tell the story of the settlement of the Isle from its earliest beginnings through to the seventeenth century. With vivid illustrations, the authors trace the origins of life in Ely, and bring the most recent archaeological excavations alive.

Topics covered include: the geological origins of the Isle of Ely, the first prehistoric settlement, including important archaeological sites at Haddenham, Wilburton and Barway. The foundation of the monastic centre by St Etheldreda, and the archaeological evidence for the Anglo Saxon foundations of the city, together with current thoughts on the site of St Etheldreda's first settlement. The story of Hereward the Wake, and his resistance against the Norman invaders. The Norman foundation of the cathedral and castle.

Key features of the book are discussion and synthesis of the latest research on the nationally important later Bronze Age hoard from Wilburton, and the Iron Age bog body from Soham, which highlight the importance of the Isle of Ely to British archaeology. The findings from Channel 4’s Time Team excavation of the medieval Broad Street are included, with illustrations, as are the stories of Hereward the Wake. Richly illustrated and extensively researched, this is a fascinating look at the early history of an amazing city.

The author presents a lot of 16 Wallachian coins issued during the reign of Mircea the Elder (1386-1418) and kept within the “Maria and Dr. George Severeanu” collection. One of these pieces is part of the great coin hoard discovered on Bădila hill, Niculiţel commune, Tulcea County. The information on the numismatic material is completed by the results of X-Ray fluorescence analysis conducted in the laboratories of the Bucharest Municipality Museum which led to determining the percentages of the main metals used in making the coins issued under Mircea the Elder during the second part of his reign. A brief overview of similar investigations is made followed by the presentation of the studied monetary types and subtypes. The numismatic material’s catalog and illustrations complete the article’s structure.

Se presenta una síntesis de los datos recabados durante 15 campañas de excavaciones en Els Altimiris que permiten clasificar el yacimiento como un monasterio de montaña fundado hacia mediados del siglo V y con su momento álgido en los siglos VI-VII. El lugar, ubicado en una estribación montañosa del Montsec aun hoy de difícil acceso, está presidido por una iglesia con anejos y cerrado por un gran muro y precipicios naturales, tiene una salida por el paso ganadero de Santa Cecilia, el cual ha fosilizado en su hagiotopónimo la advocación de la antigua basílica. Diferentes fondos de cabaña para ser ocupados de forma individual, un edificio de carácter comunitario y tres grandes cisternas para la recogida del agua pluvial completan el conjunto conocido hasta el momento.