Information for record number MWA6464:
Shrunken Settlement Earthworks at Copston Magna

Summary The Medieval shrunken village of Copston Magna. The remains of the village are visible as an earthwork. The site is located to the north of Copston Magna.
What Is It?  
Type: Shrunken Village
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Copston Magna
District: Rugby, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 45 88
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 Earthwork remains of shrunken village on north side of Copston Magna village show on air photographs. These have been plotted on the ridge and furrow plot for Copston Magna (PRN 6463).
3 Air photographs.
 
Sources
Source No: 2
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: NMR
Author/originator:
Date: 1949
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 106G UK 636
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP4588
Author/originator: CUC
Date: 1964
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP4588 I
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Aerial Photograph Transcript
Title: Tredington parish
Author/originator: ARI
Date: 1992
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Tredington Parish
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique Earthwork 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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period Medieval 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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monument VILLAGE * A collection of dwelling-houses and other buildings, usually larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a simpler organisation and administration than the latter. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument RIDGE AND FURROW * 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. back
monument SHRUNKEN VILLAGE * A settlement where previous house sites are now unoccupied, but often visible as earthworks, crop or soil marks. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record