Archaeology

We analysed the connection between religious change (Christianisation) and political change (the development of centralised power) in Scandinavia, Central Europe and Rus'. In all these areas the final conversion to Christianity was initiated from above. Yet there were also significant differences between the regions in how Christianisation and monarchy were linked. We composed a detailed questionnaire and included history, archaeology and art history in our analysis. Our aims were to compare the various areas, looking at both the primary sources and the national literature.

The Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project is investigating human activity across the landscape during all time periods, using intensive archaeological and geomorphological survey. TAESP is working in a broad area of the north-central Troodos mountains that includes fertile valleys and plains, copper-bearing foothills, and the northern part of the Troodos Range itself. Other than some rescue excavation of tombs, no systematic archaeological work had been done in this area, and none at all in the mountains.

The project's aim is the capture, storage and manipulation of data from a long-term archaeological excavation (1997 and continuing) of insula ix of the Iron Age and Roman town of Silchester, Hampshire (Calleva Atrebatum). The data comprise a variety of linked excavation and finds records which are stored on the Integrated Archaeological Database (IADB). The latter is a key tool for the post-excavation analysis of this complex, stratified site for which publication is planned in both printed and web-based formats.

The project is a multiperiod survey of the landscape within a 64 sq km centred on the Iron Age and Post Roman hillfort of Cadbury Castle, Somerset. Sampling localities and transects cover approximately 11 sq km of the study area.
The principal survey techniques have been gradiometry, test and shovel pitting, the first two applied uniformly over all target areas, the latter were soil conditions are suitable. Excavation is then used to test the results and to further the narrative objectives.