Medieval Archaeology 41

Many hundreds of the known early medieval cemeteries dated between the late fifth and early eighth centuries AD from southern and eastern England have largely been studied in terms of artefacts and human remains. The reuse of prehistoric and Roman structures by these burial sites has received much less attention and discussion. It is suggested that the landscape context of early Anglo-Saxon burial sites provides considerable evidence for the social and ideological significance of the dead in early Anglo-Saxon society.

The fragmentary remains of a lead plate have recently been found in excavations near St. Gregory's Minster, Kirkdale, North Yorkshire. An inscription on it appears to refer to a reliquary, ossuary or coffin; the letter forms date between the late seventh and mid tenth centuries. This find supplements the existing evidence for the church and possible monastery referred to in the well-known sundial inscription. The opportunity is also taken to review the sundial, both its archaeological context and its content.

Recent work provides evidence of both the environmental context of settlement in the eleventh to fourteenth centuries AD and the timing and effect of this on the upland context of late medieval settlement. It highlights some of the problems linked to palaeoenvironmental study of the later Holocene and its application to archaeological questions.

It is argued, on the basis of thin section analysis, that the actual source of this pottery lies somewhere in modern Leicestershire. The possible use of glacially transported sands in the clay mix may also argue for other production sites elsewhere.

Uses a GIS-based database to propose new theories about the layout of the city, the early Norman castle and the cathedral.

A harpoon made from yew was founded embedded in soft clay off Hayling Island. Radiocarbon dating showed it was medieval and not prehistoric. Medieval parallels for the object are scarce.