Modelling Archaeology and Palaeoenvironments in Wetlands The Hidden Landscape Archaeology of Hatfield and Thorne Moors, Eastern England

About this book

The measurement and analysis of space is central to archaeological study, such as through the recording of site plans and sections and the interpretation of spatial relationships between artefacts and features. Modelling Archaeology and Palaeoenvironments in Wetlands details a different approach to the study of past patterns of environmental change within the broader framework of landscape archaeology. It utilizes a range of quantitative and qualitative methodologies and GIS modelling to investigate spatial and temporal patterns of Holocene landscape change for two raised mires in south Yorkshire: Hatfield and Thorne Moors. Whilst concerned with specific aspects of landscape evolution, such as peat growth and spread, Modelling Archaeology and Palaeoenvironments in Wetlands aims to illustrate the synergy which is generated through integrating spatial models with chronological modelling and stratigraphic, cartographic, topographical, environmental and archaeological information in order to better understand past landscapes, human activity and the archaeological record. Building on a rich legacy of previous palaeoenvironmental research on these moors, the data generated by this combined methodology has practical applications for current management concerns, including in situ preservation, heritage and policy.

Contents

1. Landscape archaeology, space, chronology, palaeoenvironments and peatlands
2. Raised mires and the Humber Peatlands
3. Building from the bottom up: aims and approaches
4. Laying the foundations: modelling pre-peat landscapes
5. Modelling, dating and contextualising palaeoenvironmental records
6. Patterns of change: modelling mires in four dimensions
7. Archaeological investigations of a late Neolithic site on Hatfield Moors
8. The ‘hidden landscape archaeology’ of Hatfield and Thorne Moors
9. Conclusions: themes in the archaeo-environmental study of peatlands

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