Medieval rural settlement

Breunsdorf liegt im Süden der Leipziger Tieflandsbucht. Für den fortschreitenden Braunkohlenabbau im Tagebau Schleenhain wurde der Ort in den Jahren 1994 bis 1996 abgerissen. Aus diesem Anlass wurde auch die Breunsdorfer Kirche vollständig ausgegraben.
Die Kirche bildete den topographischen und geistigen Mittelpunkt Breunsdorfs. Durch baugeschichtliche Untersuchungen des aufgehenden Mauerwerks vor ihrem Abbruch und die anschließenden archäologischen Ausgrabungen kann die interessante Entwicklung des Gebäudes nachgezeichnet werden, das fast die gesamte Geschichte des Dorfes begleitet hat. Das einheitliche Erscheinungsbild unserer Zeit täuschte darüber hinweg, dass der Kirchenraum über Jahrhunderte schrittweise vergrößert wurde, um mit dem Wachstum der Gemeinde Schritt zu halten.

This paper reports on the fifth year of the University of
Cambridge Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA)
project which combines education and outreach
(particularly within the secondary school sector) with the
archaeological investigation of currently occupied rural
settlements (CORS) by the excavation of 1-metre square
test pits in open spaces (mostly private gardens) within
areas currently occupied by settlement. A total of 246 test pits were excavated in 2009, nearly 100 of which
were dug by members of the public during community
test pit excavation weekends. This paper summarises the resutls of these excavtions which took place in eleven parishes across six counties in eastern England as well as in Derbyshire and Leicestershire (the latter in Kibworth carreid out as part of Michael Woods 2010 history series for BBC2 'Story of England').

"The contribution presents the first results of a project centring on the study of a mediaeval settlement in the Rokycany District (Plzeň Region). It concentrates on research into villages that ceased to exist in the 15th century, their location, size, layout, farmsteads and houses. Agriculture and the exploitation and processing of iron ore in the rural environment in the late Middle Ages are conveyed marginally and will be the subject of further assessment.

Die Erforschung der Besiedelung im Bezirk Rokycany hat ergeben, dass sich das Siedlungsnetz von den bereits im frühen Mittelalter intensiver genutzten niedriger gelegenen Gebieten mit für die Landwirtschaft günstigeren Bedingungen (die Gebiete im Westen des Bezirks entlang des Flusses Beraun [Berounka], in der Region Rokycany und das Holoubkover Becken) nach und nach in die oberhalb 400 und später 500 m ü.d.M. gelegenen ungünstigeren Lagen ausbreitete. Im Einklang mit den Erkenntnissen bezüglich der Besiedelung in anderen Teilen Böhmens messen wir auch in der Region Rokycany dem 13. Jahrhundert (besonders dessen zweiter Hälfte), als die Besiedelung in Gebiete vordrang, in denen wir Spuren einer älteren Besiedelung bislang vermissen (Buchberg-Bergland [Bukovohorská vrchovina], Brdywald-Vorland
[podhůří Brd], Ränder des Ratscher und Hudlicer Berglands [Radečské a Hudlické vrchoviny]) eine beträchtliche Bedeutung bei. Außer einer deutlichen Ausweitung der Oikumene in der Region kam es zu strukturellen Änderungen der Besiedelung und zur Entstehung stabilisierter Wohnplätze auf Gebieten mit
alter Siedlungstradition. Der Bau des Siedlungsnetzes wurde erst im Verlauf des 14. Jahrhunderts vollendet, als an den Ränder des Ratscher Berglands im mittleren Teil der Region eine Gruppe von Dörfern angelegt wurde und es mindestens ab der Wende vom 13. zum 14. Jahrhundert zu einer schnellen Entwicklung der sich in der Region Strašice – Dobřív konzentrierenden Eisengewinnung kam. Im Hinblick auf die Fülle von schriftlichen Quellen und archäologischen Belegen können wir für den Zeitraum des 14. und zu Beginn des 15. Jahrhunderts die Besiedelung der Region fast zur Gänze rekonstruieren, ebenso ist es möglich, die letzten
nicht besiedelten Gebiete abzugrenzen (die Region Strašice, Radeč und den Rand des Hudlicer Berglands). Im 15. Jahrhundert ist es zu einer deutlichen Reduzierung der Besiedelung gekommen, in deren Verlauf fast 40 % der Dörfer wüst wurden (nur ein Viertel von ihnen wurde in jüngerer Zeit erneuert). Gleichzeitig verzeichnen wir, dass eine Fülle kleinerer Adelssitze (Festungen, Höfe) und einige Burgen verschwinden. Ebenso wie auch anderswo in Böhmen bietet sich ein Zusammenhang mit den zerstörerischen Auswirkungen der langwierigen Podiebrader- und Hussitenkriege an, von denen die Region Pilsen und das Brdywald– Vorland (Podbrdsko) schwer heimgesucht wurden. Freilich muss im Untergang, bzw. eher in der nicht Erneuerung der Sitze der Schnittpunkt von einer Reihe von Ursachen gesucht werden, die den Gegenstand einer weiteren Untersuchung darstellen werden. An die Ergebnisse der älteren regionalen Forschung knüpfte in den letzten Jahren eine eingehende
Grabung spätmittelalterlicher Dorfwüstungen an (insgesamt 12 Fundstellen), bei welcher vornehmlich zerstörungsfreie Methoden zugrunde gelegt wurden, die eine Fülle an Informationen über die Lage wüster Sitze in der Landschaft, über ihre Grundrissanordnung, Größe, Form von Anwesen und Haus lieferte. Auch wurde landwirtschaftlichen und nichtlandwirtschaftlichen Aktivitäten im ländlichen Milieu Beachtung geschenkt. Zu den wichtigen Ergebnissen des Projektes wird die Identifizierung des Gebietes hinzugezählt, in dem eine archaische Anordnung der Anwesen mit einteiligem Haus (Rauchstube) und selbständiger
Kammer (mittlere und nordöstliche Region Rokycany) bis zum Ende des Mittelalters überdauerte. Dazu bildet ein zweites Gebiet mit Indizien für eine regelmäßige Anordnung des Anwesens und mehrteiligem (dreiteiligem) Haus einen Kontrast (Südwesten und Süden der Region). In der Region Rokycany ist es auch gelungen nachzuweisen, dass die Untertanen ausgiebig dem Abbau und der Verarbeitung von Eisenerzen nachgingen, was bislang eines Vergleiches entbehrt."

A non-destruktive archaeological survey recorded the last visible remains of the deserted village of Vojkov, the area of which was heavily damaged by the construction of a modern road and part of which is now covered by a modern gamekeeper's house. Only five features on site can be considered as remains of the village, three out of which probably represent houses. Ceramic finds collected during the surface survey put the beginnings of the settlement to the 13rh century. Another phase of the occupation period can be dated to the 14rh - 15'h century and the youngest finds come from 16rh - 17rh century. According to the spacial distribution of the ceramic sherds, the medieval village extended over an area of 2.5 ha. The most frequent finds from the more recent period of settlement can be found only on a much smaller area of the size of about one third of the original village, which speaks for the reduction of the village size. A partial abandonment or only a partial re-settlement of the larger medieval village deserted in the 15rh century is a probable interpretation of the results of the archaeological research.
The excavation of the part of the site threatened by the outplanting of a forest tree nursery in the northwest section of the site revealed the remains of the oldest village settlement
from the 13rh century. In the 14rh - 15rh century a part of this space was used as a refuse area with thousands of ceramic sherds; we do not understand its purpose and there are no analogies for this kind of feature in the medieval village environment. From the most recent early modern phase of the settlement the excavation revealed a part of a house. The excavation uncovered a timber chamber and the remains of a black kitchen with stone lining that formed a portion of a three-part house, the front room of which has been irreversibly destroyed by the recent extraction of soil. Behind the house there was an open space and a refuse area covering an older rubbish pit, in which were deposited the remains of a burnt house from the 16rh century including its inventory. The house was destroyed by a catastrophic fire that we connect with the abandonment of the village documented by the written sources (see Kodera, this volume). During the study of the numerous finds from the abandonment layer that contributes to the so far not well understood material culture of the early modern village environment, we gain an accurate historic context and a date ante quem of the end of the year 1622 to the year 1623.

Fornlämningsbilden i Misterhult tyder på att befolkningen minskar under sen bronsålder och/eller äldre järnålder. Det är först under medeltidens början som man kan se en kolonisation och nyodling. Bakgrunden till denna bebyggelseutvidgning måste ses i ett socialt sammanhang. En möjlig förklaring till den medeltida expansionen är att området koloniserats genom en organiserad process ledd av kungens förvaltare på Tuna gård. Enligt denna tolkning ska kolonisationsprojektet ha baserats på att nybyggarna rekryterades bland frigivna trälar, legohjon, husmän och fattiga bondsöner. Det var människor som var vana vid hårt arbete och som behärskade grunderna i jordbrukets konst. Efter några
arrendefria år kunde de framgångsrika bilda familj och gå upp bland de fria landborna. Jordränta betalades till kronan.

Tuna gård hade under vissa perioder stor betydelse för utvecklingen i Misterhult, men hur Tuna blev en kungsgård kan vi bara spekulera kring. Man skulle hypotetiskt kunna tänka sig att övertagandet hänger samman med en i Mellansverige framväxande kungamakt som under tidig medeltid flyttar fram sina positioner mot det viktiga och politiskt omstridda Kalmarsundsområdet. Förutom Tuna gård ingick också husabyarna i Hossmo och Högsby i denna inledningsvis försiktiga etablering.

Misterhultområdets anknytning till ett större sammanhang framgår av kopplingen till Vimmerby. Via Tunaåsen som var en viktig färdväg redan under järnåldern, upprätthölls under medeltiden en kommersiell förbindelse mellan staden Vimmerby och dess hamnplats Figeholm. Därmed hade man en koppling till en av Nordeuropas viktigaste handelsleder, som följde utmed östkusten.

För att sammanfatta: i Tuna län fanns två saker som lockade medeltidens entreprenörer: mark att kolonisera och goda transportvägar till kommersiella centra där överskottet kunde omsättas. I Tuna län, Tjustgöla fäste undantaget, var det kungamakten som skulle exploatera resurserna och befrämja deras omsättning genom att ge Vimmerby med dess hamnplats Figeholm handelsprivilegier.

This paper presents the results of two different campaigns of archaeological excavations (August 2015 and August 2016) in the medieval castle of Castel Pizigolo (Toano, RE) conducted by Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Department of History and Cultures. This research brought to light a tower, a church and a building, and helped us to define and understand the topography of the settlement. Moreover, the archaeological excavations have highlighted the chronology of the castle, from XII to XV century, with former phases of IX-X century

The Kyklades or Cycladic Islands have always been popular amongst archaeologists working on the Aegean Bronze Age and the 'glorious' Classical Greek past. In contrast, not much light has been shed upon aspects of post-Roman life on the islands. Research into the post-medieval period has been a subject mainly for historians and folklorists. This paper attempts to explore aspects of the lifestyle of the peoples who inhabited this island group throughout the more recent, yet most neglected centuries of Greek history, using archaeological, textual and other sources and methods. My aim is to reconstruct everyday rural life in Greece, by focusing on the domestic sphere and addressing questions concerning society and the domestic material culture of a littoral area that has remained traditional until very recently.
This paper examines some .first results of the CYRE.P. (Cyclades Research Project) and introduces examples concerning the domestic material culture of the late medieval and post-medieval periods (early 13th-late 19th centuries) in the Aegean Islands of the Cyclades, with particular reference to housing, furniture and internal.fittings, costumes and embroideries.

Rafał Kubicki (University of Gdańsk)
Water mills and rural settlement in the Dominion of the Teutonic Order in Prussia
The study is devoted to the closer discussion of the issue of location, economic function and the legal status of water mills in the Dominion of the Teutonic Order in Prussia. The aim of it was also to indicate factors having the largest impact on the shape of the water mills network existing here in the Medieval period. The situation in Prussia was determined by the policy of the Teutonic Order. The Order not only did it control the right for building water mills in knight’s estates but also, except in several cases, constituted the sole owner of water mills situated in towns. It was indeed possible only due to the fact that the Teutonic Order, as the biggest land owner in the state, had water regale at its own disposal. It would give it the opportunity to plan a network of mills relevant to the needs of the settlement network in foundation.
The location of a watermill resulted above all from the real occurring economic needs and adequate water conditions. Authorities tried to keep the largest possible influence on the decisions on locating new buildings. Owing to that, on one hand, in the content of documents detailed provisions banning constructions of new mills in a given distance from the already existing ones would be included, and on the other, a system of incentives was applied in the form of milling coercion enforcing specific settlements to use only the designated mill. Town and villages location laws are abundant with references to the existence of mills or, even more often, just the plans of building them. The Order, bishops and chapters, while issuing the documents, often reserved for themselves the right to construct such a machinery, excluding parts of the terrain needed for that purpose from general location laws. Issuing a permit to build and utilise water mills in exchange for rent and the system of reservation, had a considerable impact on the way mill networks were created and the rules of their functioning. Planning the economy of rural area in terms of water mills allocation was also manifested by establishing separate mill hamlets, which enjoyed the status of independent settlement units.
Water mills constituted an important element of the economic infrastructure of rural areas, and that their functions were closely related to the organisation of villages as well as the farms production profile, thus with the scale of grain cultivation in juxtaposition to animal husbandry. It also meant that millers had to cooperate closely with the village community, sometimes by means of regulations included in mill laws and location documents of individual settlements. Within the framework of colonisation campaign conducted by the Teutonic Order in Prussia, based on locating towns and villages, also a development of a whole economic infrastructure commenced, of which an important part, the water mill was. Attempts to control that process occurred already at the stage of town or village location, which is indicated in the mentioned clauses of reserving the places for anticipated milling facilities. Later, analogical control was exercised over newly built or redeveloped mills. The economic crisis of the state observed in the middle of the 15th century, indicated by the phenomenon of desolation of villages, would also result in water mill network regression.

Uno dei caratteri originali dell’identità geografica e culturale europea si formò, fra XII e XIV secolo, grazie a un imponente processo di creazione e di sviluppo di villaggi, borghi e città nuove, assai diversificato nel tempo e nello spazio. La spontaneità di tale fenomeno fu non di rado incanalata e guidata, nei suoi esiti territoriali e urbanistici, da vere e proprie ondate di ‘fondazioni’ che influirono in modo decisivo sulle caratteristiche dei paesaggi urbani europei.
Evidenze paesaggistiche diverse fecero forse sì che i primi segni di ‘maturazione’ della coscienza di questi aspetti venissero emergendo sin dalla fine dell’Ottocento sia nella storiografia tedesca, attenta al processo di nuove fondazioni nell’est dell’Elba, sia in quella francese, che sin dal 1880 affrontò in modo unitario il complesso tema della fondazione delle bastides, nel sud-est del paese.
In Italia tale coscienza maturò più tardi, negli anni Settanta del secolo scorso, dalla convergenza scientifica e di competenze fra alcuni architetti – quali Giampiero Vigliano – o storici dell’arte, come David Friedman, e una generazione di medievisti nutriti dalle letture delle opere di Marc Bloch e Georges Duby, ansiosa di collaborazioni pluridisciplinari e di mettere a frutto i dati della nascente archeologia medievale.
Nel Cuneese di quegli anni si poterono così estendere, in chiave di storia dell’insediamento e dei paesaggi urbani, le conoscenze storico-politiche conquistate dalla scuola positivistica, rappresentata a fine Ottocento da Lorenzo Bertano, e da quella crociana, espressa verso il 1970 da Piero Camilla.
Fu in questo nuovo clima culturale, attentissimo ai problemi della conoscenza e della valorizzazione del “patrimonio” locale, che, in un orizzonte storiografico europeo e in un contesto locale ormai attento alla storia dei paesaggi rurali e alle dinamiche del popolamento, crebbe e maturò il tema affrontato in questo volume.
Fu però soltanto verso la fine degli anni Ottanta del Novecento che l’attività scientifica della Società per gli studi Storici di Cuneo riuscì a catturare l’attenzione, maggiore che in passato, di alcune amministrazioni civiche che reggevano centri di fondazione di origine medievale. Di questa attività scientifica, che si sviluppava in stretto rapporto con le iniziative di valorizzazione dei comuni, è rimasta ampia traccia nelle pubblicazioni e nei volumi della stessa Società.
È da questa tradizione di convergenze scientifiche e di indagini multidisciplinari, ormai ben radicata nel Cuneese, che prende origine il volume Borghi nuovi. Paesaggi urbani del Piemonte sud-occidentale. Esso, infatti, nato da un progetto scientifico della Società studi-storici sostenuto dalla Fondazione CRT e dalla Presidenza del Consiglio regionale del Piemonte, si è avvalso delle competenze di docenti e ricercatori del Politecnico di Torino e delle Università degli Studi di Torino, Milano e Bergamo, concretizzando un caso di felice collaborazione fra atenei e istituti di ricerca storico-territoriale.
L’auspicio è che gli esiti dell’indagine possano essere di supporto a nuovi approfondimenti in altre regioni dell’Occidente europeo per una conoscenza comparativa più estesa di un processo-chiave nella storia dei paesaggi urbani; la speranza è di contribuire alla valorizzazione comune di uno dei tratti peculiari dell’identità storica dell’Europa, che sarebbe auspicabile politicamente davvero unita, pur nell’incomparabile ricchezza delle sue diversità.

This report shows how it is possible to collate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data for historic settlement nucleation and dispersion with a range of data on environmental variables in order to investigate the relationships between them. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model specification, selection and validation procedures, followed by further analysis using spatial regression methods, identified environmental variables that appear to have had the most significant influence on settlement organisation. The use of OLS and spatial regression and the innovative Relative Area Overlap (RAO) technique has enabled investigation of how relationships between key environmental variables and historic settlement organisation varied across England. Overall, the regression analyses indicate that far more of the variation in the measures of settlement organisation is not explained by the environmental variables than is explained by them. The results of the RAO analysis echo this conclusion. Using unsupervised classification, it has been possible to develop new, national-scale characterisations of historic settlement organisation and of key environmental variables. These new classifications of historic settlement organisation often broadly align with Brian Roberts and Stuart Wrathmell’s delineations of provinces, sub-provinces and local regions, but the cluster outlines and Roberts and Wrathmell’s boundaries diverge more often than they agree.

During the 15th century the population of Romney Marsh, using the term in the broad sense, declined to a fraction of its former size. A study of Dengemarsh manor shows a remarkable stability of settlement and land-holding in the first three decades of the century. There were numerous small tenements comprising farmsteads with adjoining fields. The pattern probably remained relatively unchanged until the 1480s when land was engrossed to produce much larger holdings. The village of Old Romney contracted in the early 16th century having changed little in size since the late 14th century. By contrast, there is no evidence for a decrease in size in the nearby town of Lydd. The main period of engrossment and probably also of settlement abandonment is identified as the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Some of the reasons for these changes were the demand for wool from the local Wealden cloth industry and the absence of by-employment on the marsh to support smallholders.

Non-destructive research ofthree sites in Blovicko (Plzeň Region) has been carried out within aproject centred
upon deserted medieval and postmedíeval settlements in a forest environment. In two cases, deserted late-medieval
villages were documented, while the third location in a forested area revealed a settlement from the early Middle Ages.
The two other recent villages also contained evidence of earlier settlement activities.

The paper presents the settlement structure of the Zgornja Gorenjska region in the Middle Ages. It begins with
the period immediately preceding the Slavic settlement, continues with describing the early Slavic settlement and
concludes with the colonisation during the high Middle Ages, which mainly concentrated on lowland areas. The 13th
century witnessed the settlement of economically less favourable areas in valleys and at higher elevations. The paper
contains two tables indicating the numbers of farms in villages that appear in written sources for the period of around
1330 and for the end of the 15th century. The paper also provides a total number of farms in the area under discussion
and attempts to give an approximate number of the population. The table referring to the end of the 15th century, in
particular, is more representative and realistic.

Medieval settlement around Stary Dzierzgoń (Alt-Christburg)


The surroundings of the village of Stary Dzierzgoń were already impacted by people during the Neolithic. Settlement was also concentrated here in the Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age, the of Roman Period and the Early Middle Ages. For the last three periods, this is confirmed above all by archaeological research that took place at the "Castle Hill" near Stary Dzierzgoń. The finds obtained during these investigations allowed the use of the site to be determined from the Early Iron Age up to the middle of the 13th century. During the conquest of Pomezania, the Prussian stronghold was transformed into a fortification by the Teutonic Order, in the form of a conventual castle, and the period of completion of this undertaking and the functioning of the Order’s defensive point was probably marked by the second Prussian uprising. A church was built near the castle in 1249, and in 1312 a village Alt-Christburg was established under German law. In the case of the village, the Prussian name of Kirsburg, derived from the name of the stronghold, has been preserved, with the first element Kirs deriving from the Prussian name Kirsne / Kirsnute or Kerse and burg referring to a stronghold.

In the Middle Ages, the settlement around the village of Stary Dzierzgoń was already established. In Prussian times, the area belonged to the Lingwars tribal territory. The earliest known settlement in the vicinity of Stary Dzierzgoń was Prussian Protajny (Prothein), part of which was obtained by one freeman by the name of Stephan in 1296. He was obliged to provide Prussian cavalry service. Another village is Górki (Grabisco), which appears in the sources in 1294. This was granted to one Gerko - as can be inferred from the Prussian name. In 1312, the village of Mortag Mortec (Mortung) was already functioning. From 1332, procurators (Pfleger / provisor) are certified in Mortąg. Later, the Fischmeister had his seat in Mortąg. The second village in the vicinity of Stary Dzierzgoń is Matule, which appeared for the first time in sources in 1321. In 1386-1399 Matule is described as a Prussian village. There was a Prussian elder here and peasants lived in the village bearing Prussian names such as: Mattis son of Wajsyla, Namir, Gundo, Woyade, Tessune, Wopine, Pomer, Iudenne, Sklodo, Spandot, Ione and Girlach. Alongside Prussians, Lithuanians also lived in the village, mentioned in 1402, 1404 and 1409-1411. The village of Monasterzysko (Munsterberg) bordered with Stary Dzierzgoń from the west. The first information about the village appears in the location document of the Stare Miasto (Altstadt) from May 3, 1312. It was a German village. To the north of Stary Dzierzgoń was the settlement of Hannus Lehmann Gut, today Zakręty (Sakrinten) known from 1312.

Okolice wsi Stary Dzierzgoń poddawane były antropopresji już w neolicie. Osadnictwo skupiało się tu także w epoce brązu i we wczesnej epoce żelaza, okresie wpływów rzymskich oraz wczesnym średniowieczu. Dla trzech ostatnich okresów potwierdzają to przede wszystkim badania archeologiczne, które miały miejsce na „Górze zamkowej” w pobliżu Starego Dzierzgonia. Pozyskane w toku badań zabytki pozwoliły określić użytkowanie miejsca począwszy od wczesnej epoki żelaza aż do połowy 13 wieku. Podczas podboju Pomezanii pruskie grodzisko zaczęto przekształcać w krzyżacką warownię o charakterze zamku konwentualnego, kres temu przedsięwzięciu i funkcjonowaniu krzyżackiego punktu obronnego położyło najpewniej drugie powstanie pruskie. W pobliżu grodu w 1249 roku wybudowano kościół, a w 1312 roku założono wieś na prawie niemieckim. Dla wsi zachowano jednak pruską nazwę Kirsburg wywodzącą się od nazwy grodu, gdzie pierwsza część Kirs pochodzi od pruskiego imienia Kirsne / Kirsnute lub Kerse a burg to właśnie gród.
W średniowieczu osadnictwo wokół wsi Stary Dzierzgoń było już ustabilizowane. W czasach pruskich okolice należały do ziemi Lingwars. Najwcześniej znana osada z okolicy Starego Dzierzgonia to pruskie dobra Protajny, których część w 1296 roku otrzymał pewien wolny imieniem Stephan. Zobowiązany był pełnienia pruskiej służby wojskowej konnej. Inna wieś to Górki (Grabisco), które pojawiają się w źródłach w 1294 roku. Dobra te otrzymał pewien Gerko – jak można wnioskować z imienia Prus. W 1312 roku funkcjonowała już wieś Mortąg Mortec (Mortung). Od 1332 roku w Mortągu poświadczeni są prokuratorzy (Pfleger / provisor). Później w Mortągu siedzibę miał Fischmeister. Druga wieś w sąsiedztwie Starego Dzierzgonia to Matule pojawiają się ona po raz pierwszy w źródłach w 1321 roku. W 1386-1399 roku Matule występują jako wieś pruska. Był tu pruski starosta oraz zamieszkiwali wieś wieśniacy o pruskich imionach takich jak: Mattis syn Wajsyla, Namir, Gundo, Woyade, Tessune, Wopine, Pomer, Iudenne, Sklodo, Spandot, Ione, Girlach. Obok Prusów wieś zamieszkiwali też Litwini, wspomniani w latach 1402, 1404 i 1409-1411. Wieś Monasterzysko (Munsterberg) graniczyła ze Starym Dzierzgoniem od strony zachodniej. Pierwszy raz informacje o wsi pojawiają się w dokumencie lokacyjnym Starego Miasta z 3 maja 1312 roku. Była to wieś niemiecka. Na północ od Starego Dzierzgonia znajdowały się dobra Hannus Lehmann Gut dzisiejsze Zakręty (Sakrinten) znane z 1312 roku.

The Saxon-Bohemian Ore Mountains, already established as a border region in historical times, now separate Germany from the Czech Republic.

Since the Ore Mountains were not settled until Slavic times, they are particularly well suited for a study of the high-medieval colonisation. In this case it represents a new settlement rather than an internal colonisation.

In this process, the rural colonisation should not be examined on its own. It should rather be studied in connection with the location and direction of old roads, the claims of the state expressed through castles, the building of monasteries and cities and the commercial utilisation of the mountains through mining, glass manufacture or wood-working activities.

This paper includes parts of a more comprehensive study of the settlement of the Ore Mountains which is in print and will be published in the “Bamberger Schriften zur Archäologie des Mittelalters und der Neuzeit” under the title “Die hoch- und spätmittelalterliche Besiedlung des Erzgebirges. Strategien zur Kolonisation eines landwirtschaftlichen Ungunstraumes”.

IN 2006 a large oval earthwork dating form the early 11th century was discovered in a parcel of woodland near the hamlet of Appel in the Gelderse Valley in the Netherlands. Small scale trial trenches showed inside the earthwork traces of a settlement dating from the 11th to 16th century. Among the features was a sunken hut used for storage of grain and smithing and bronze casting. In the southern part of the enclosure a circular moat was found surrounding a parcel with a diameter of c 12 m. Finds from the maot suggest that on this parcel a brick and wooden towerlike building must have been erected in the 13th century. The building remained in use untill the (ealry) 16th century. In the area directly around the earthwork several rows of iron ore extraction pits were found.
The earthwork is possibly connected with the so called 'hof (curtis) of Appel' mentioned in the written sources from the second  half of the 10th century untill the 16th century. This curtis was owned by the counts of Hamaland and around 960 given to the abbey of Elten (presentday Germany).  In the vicinity of the earthwork the remains of the later curtis of Elten are located in a wooded area. A dirt road still connects the earthwork with this location.

An archaeological excavation was carried out at De La Beche, Aldworth following an evaluation, which had previously identified the remains of a possible building. The excavation revealed two phases of buildings dating from the 12th century and the 13th century. Little of the earlier building survived. The later building had two internal surfaces: a beaten-earth floor and a cobbled area, both of which were probably roofed over. In addition, a apparently external drain, parallel to the walls, was investigated. Berkshire Archaeological Research Group carried out a resistivity survey with inconclusive results. The second structure excavated was probably an ancillary building to the manor complex built in the middle of the 13th century, and which was then demolished at an unknown point in the course of probably the 14th or possibly 15th century.

This paper presents the results of an investigation into the extent to which it might be possible to identify and record evidence for children's play from medieval settlement site excavations, using evidence form archaeology, history, history of art and folklore studies.  The paper concludes that such evidence is likely to survive and argues that a great awareness of the possible role of children in contributing to the archaeological record would lead to more such evidence being recognised. Published in Childhood in the Past, vol 2, 2009.

This user manual summarises lidar data processing and evaluation (by using of ArcMap software) for the purpose of archaeological research.  It is based on the Czech commercial product (DTM 5G) but after the creation of DEM the procedure is identical for all kinds of lidar data.