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Scheduled Monument
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Scheduled Ancient Monuments (SAMs) are those archaeological sites which are legally recognised as being of national importance. They can range in date from prehistoric times to the Cold War period. They can take many different forms, including disused buildings or sites surviving as earthworks or cropmarks.
SAMs are protected by law from unlicensed disturbance and metal detecting. Written consent from the Secretary of State must be obtained before any sort of work can begin, including archaeological work such as geophysical survey or archaeological excavation. There are nearly 200 SAMs in Warwickshire.
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OS Card
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Ordnance Survey Record Card. Before the 1970s the Ordnance Survey (OS) were responsible for recording archaeological monuments during mapping exercises. This helped the Ordnance Survey to decide which monuments to publish on maps. During these exercises the details of the monuments were written down on record cards. Copies of some of the cards are kept at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. The responsibility for recording archaeological monuments later passed to the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments.
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WMEF
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Warwickshire Museum Enquiry Form. These are forms that are filled in when a person brings an object to Warwickshire Museum to be identified. Amongst the information recorded on the form are details such as a description of the object, where and when it was found, and in some cases a sketch or photographs of it. Copies of the form can be viewed at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record.
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Documentary Evidence
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Documentary evidence is another name for written records. The first written records in Britain date back to the Roman period. Documentary evidence can take many different forms, including maps, charters, letters and written accounts.
When archaeologists are researching a site, they often start by looking at documentary evidence to see if there are clues that will help them understand what they might find. Documentary evidence can help archaeologists understand sites that are discovered during an excavation, field survey or aerial survey.
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Earthwork
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Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.
In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.
Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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Medieval
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1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)
The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.
The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.
The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
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HOUSE *
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A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known.
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SITE *
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Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible.
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BUILDING *
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A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known.
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RIDGE AND FURROW *
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A series of long, raised ridges separated by ditches used to prepare the ground for arable cultivation. This was a technique, characteristic of the medieval period.
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NUNNERY *
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Houses specifically of nuns/canonesses or religious women.
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FEATURE *
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Areas of indeterminate function.
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FARMHOUSE *
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The main dwelling-house of a farm, it can be either detached from or attached to the working buildings.
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FINDSPOT *
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The approximate location at which stray finds of artefacts were found. Index with object name.
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PARISH CHURCH *
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The foremost church within a parish.
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PRIORY *
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A monastery governed by a prior or prioress. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, FRIARY, MONASTERY or NUNNERY.
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CHURCH *
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A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known.
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MOAT *
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A wide ditch surrounding a building, usually filled with water. Use for moated sites, not defensive moats. Use with relevant site type where known, eg. MANOR HOUSE, GARDEN, etc.
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WELL *
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A shaft or pit dug in the ground over a supply of spring-water.
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PLATFORM *
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Unspecified. Use specific type where known.
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CEMETERY *
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An area of ground, set apart for the burial of the dead.
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CHAPEL *
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A freestanding building, or a room or recess serving as a place of Christian worship in a church or other building. Use more specific type where known.
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CROSS *
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A free-standing structure, in the form of a cross (+), symbolizing the structure on which Jesus Christ was crucified and sacred to the Christian faith. Use specific type where known.
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COPPICE *
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A managed small wood or thicket of underwood grown to be periodically cut to encourage new growth providing smaller timber.
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CISTERCIAN NUNNERY *
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An abbey or a priory of Cistercian nuns.
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EARTHWORK *
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A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification.
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* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)
