Excavations conducted between 1985 and 1990 at the site of Barking Abbey yielded extensive evidence of the earliest Anglo-Saxon monastery, founded in the seventh century and subsequently sacked by the Vikings in AD 870. One of the most noteworthy finds was the base of a glass furnace, along with pits containing glass-melting crucibles and working waste. This paper presents the first comprehensive analysis of this material. The circular furnace was constructed from clay-bonded Roman tiles and employed both forced air at the base and apertures in its superstructure to regulate its operating temperature. A recalibration of the original archaeomagnetic dates shows that the furnace was operating between c. AD 730-845 and belongs to the earliest phase of monastic occupation of the site. Crucible and waste finds demonstrate that glasses were being remelted to produce decorative glass vessels and complex millefiori canes for use in high-quality metalwork. Consequently, the evidence for glassworking presented here represents the most important assemblage found to date from this period in Britain. It provides unique insight into craftworking in a Middle Saxon monastery and reshapes our understanding of the industry nationally.
The Roman annexation of northern Britain in the first century CE correlates with the emergence of a diverse range of economically and culturally significant plants in the region; a process now framed in the Mediterranean as Roman Agricultural Diffusion (or RAD). This paper presents a systematic analysis of those plants introduced during the Roman period, contextualized through changes in the broader timeframe,first millennium BCE and CE. Plants are broken down into use-based (functional) categories and their presence systematically reviewed. Two distinct peaks are evident in the frequency of collated crop records, the first associated with the Roman period and the second associated with the period of Scandinavian settlement. Dataset biases are discussed to contextualize the representativeness of the region's archaeobotanical record and its ability to reflect historical processes.
Excavations in advance of the erection of a coffee shop with drive-through, and associated parking, servicing and landscaping, uncovered the remains of a Late Bronze Age settlement dated to the eleventh-ninth century BC. Elements of this had been initially encountered by previous excavations at Tothill Street (Cotton et al. 2011). The settlement was enclosed by a circular ditch about 35-40 m in diameter and consisted of a group of postholes and pits, although no definite structures could be identified. The site has been identified as a ringwork, a type of monument typically associated with Late Bronze Age south-eastern England. Ringworks have been hypothesized as 'aggrandized' elite residences linked with the production and circulation of craft and industrial products, particularly prestige metalwork such as swords and situated within regional trade networks. So far, about only 15 ringworks have seen any form of archaeological intervention and the site at Laundry Road, Minster is an important addition to this group of sites. A small copper alloy hoard, associated with the redeposited, disarticulated remains of a human individual, was discovered within the enclosure ditch, and the significance of this rare combination is discussed.
The rich decoration of Irish and British Iron Age metalwork once conveyed complex symbolic meanings, though its language has long since been lost. Ornamentation remains a vital avenue for interpreting the identities of both makers and users. While most Irish Iron Age artefacts adhere to the insular La T & egrave;ne-derived style, a small yet significant group of objects diverges markedly in decorative character. These items, distributed across several centuries, suggest the persistence of an alternative, yet possibly connected, tradition. This paper proposes that this distinct style may reflect the material culture of a group who perceived themselves as culturally separate. Their divergent aesthetic choices may signal a long-lived identity expressed through decoration and may have influenced the later development of Pictish art in northern Britain. Through close analysis of these underexplored objects, this study contributes to broader discussions of cultural plurality, identity construction and artistic exchange in Iron Age Ireland, Britain and Europe and the role of decorative traditions in shaping and reflecting social difference.
Geoarchaeological survey and palaeoenvironmental analyses were conducted in the floodplain of the river Ure to the north of the Roman town of Isurium Brigantum (Aldborough, North Yorkshire) as part of a complementary campaign of geophysical survey and excavations (2018-2024). This involved an intensive coring survey to understand the development of the valley and the environmental context of the settlement. A large palaeochannel was discovered south of the present day canalized river which was sampled for palynological, physical and geochemical analyses, with portable OSL determinations, and radiocarbon and OSL dating. The sedimentological analysis revealed riverine activity from the Late Mesolithic period (ca. 4600-4300 BC) through Roman and Medieval times. A 6 metre deep, multi-process fluvial system was present with evidence of active and low/slow flow phases in earlier prehistoric times, followed by prolonged periods of overbank alluviation from the Iron Age onwards, and particularly coincident with the Roman occupation of Isurium. By the Roman period, there was a shallow channel in a wide floodplain, slowly filling with alluvium, necessitating the construction of a lengthy road-bridge structure, before shifting northwards. This was set against progressive woodland diminution and extensive human impact during the late prehistoric, Roman and early historic periods.
Archaeological investigations at Clare College, Cambridge, between 2014 and 2021 allow a much greater understanding of the fourteenth to seventeenth-century college than has previously been possible. The extent and layout of the later Medieval quadrangle can be reconstructed with some accuracy. The western range was probably not constructed until the mid-fifteenth century and was c. 9.7 m wide (8.5 m internally). The ground floor was c. 0.4 m lower than the ground surface in the central court, and c. 0.2 m higher than the ground to the west. The western range incorporated considerable quantities of brick and the floor of the Master's Lodge was supported by posts on stone pads. The ground was remodelled in the early/mid-seventeenth century, around the time the modern college buildings began to be constructed, with brick floors and plastered walls, and went out of use in the late seventeenth century. While the development of Clare College is usually thought of as two phases, of later Medieval buildings that were replaced by Early Modern structures, there was effectively an intermediate period that was a mixture of the two that existed in several stages over a 130 year period, between 1638 and 1769.
Contrary to several recent publications, this paper will argue that the case against Burnswark being a genuine siege is strongly supported by detailed analysis of the Roman use of artillery, specifically the position and interpretation of the Three Brethren as artillery mounds, the close position of the South Camp in relation to the Iron Age hillfort, the numbers and different types of missiles striking the collapsed/slighted stone face of the hillfort's rampart, and the non-use of a Vespasian-style catapult blitzkrieg.
This paper presents the first long-term, multi-period analysis of riverine deposition within the Middle Thames, focusing on the period c. 2200 BC to 1100 AD. Utilizing a comprehensive dataset of 2,337 river finds, it investigates patterning in the selection and distribution of deposited objects, with particular emphasis on weapons, tools, and martial objects. This study identifies significant regional and chronological variation, as well as patterns of long-term behavioural continuity, including the dominance of spearheads across the Bronze Age and Early Medieval periods, and a restructuring of depositional practices, avoiding martial associations, in the Roman period. In addition to compositional changes, this paper highlights the variable physical and mental geography of the Middle Thames Valley, identifying an evolving relationship between key crossing points, socio-political authority and emerging religious ideas. Methodologically, the study applies a novel raster-based approach within GIS to integrate both high and low-resolution spatial data, offering a new framework for interpreting riverine assemblages recovered without precise provenance. In doing so, it demonstrates that while the underlying logic dictating riverine deposition in the past may remain elusive, patterns of change and continuity are clearly discernible, revealing the Middle Thames as a dynamic and enduring ritual landscape shaped by sustained, structured deposition.
