Environmental Archaeol 4

Distinctive assemblages of Coleoptera (beetles) recovered from seven samples of smoke-blackened thatch (SBT)from a range of late medieval roofs in the south of England are listed. The age, ecology and possible origins of this fauna are discussed. Although its precise origin is known, it is suggested that its occurrence is not limited to thatch, and so cannot be used as a 'finger print' for thatch per se. A find of Sitophilus granarius, the 'granary weevil', suggests that thatch may represent another route by which this species has been incorporated into the archaeological record.

Reviews of: Miller, N. F. and Gleason, K. L. 1994 (eds.). The Archaeology of Garden and Field. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 0-8122-1641-5. pp. 228. £28.50 (paperback) by Maureen Carroll; Holden, T. G. with contributions by Walker, B., Carter, S., Dalland, M. and McMullen, J. 1998. The Archaeology of Scottish Thatch (Technical Advice Note 13). Edinburgh: Historic Scotland. ISBN 1-900168-49-9. pp. 85. £10 (paperback) by Dominique de Moulins.\r\n\r\nReply to book review by P. Buckland. 1998, Environmental Archaeology 2, pp. 74-7 by Robert van de Noort, Steve Ellis, Malcolm Lillie, Ruth Head, Helen Fenwick, Henry Chapman and John Coles. SH