|
OS Card
|
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.
|
| back |
|
WMANS
|
West Midlands Archaeological News Sheet, a publication that was produced each year, this later became West Midlands Archaeology. The West Midlands Arcaheological News Sheet contains reports about archaeological work that was carried out in the West Midlands region in the previous year. It includes information about sites dating from the Prehistoric to the Post Medieval periods. It was produced the Department of Extramural Studies at Birmingham University. Copies are held at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record.
|
| back |
|
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.
|
| back |
|
Cropmark
|
Cropmarks appear as light and dark marks in growing and ripening crops. These marks relate to differences in the soil below. For example, parched lines of grass may indicate stone walls. Crops that grow over stone features often ripen more quickly and are shorter than the surrounding crop. This is because there is less moisture in the soil where the wall lies.
more ->
|
| back |
|
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. more ->
|
| back |
|
YARD *
|
A paved area, generally found at the back of a house.
|
| back |
|
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 |
|
SITE *
|
Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible.
|
| back |
|
SETTLEMENT *
|
A small concentration of dwellings.
|
| back |
|
BUILDING *
|
A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known.
|
| back |
|
STONE *
|
Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function.
|
| back |
|
MANOR HOUSE *
|
The principal house of a manor or village.
|
| back |
|
SHRUNKEN VILLAGE *
|
A settlement where previous house sites are now unoccupied, but often visible as earthworks, crop or soil marks.
|
| back |
|
FEATURE *
|
Areas of indeterminate function.
|
| back |
|
DRAIN *
|
An artificial channel for draining water or carrying it off.
|
| back |
|
PRIORY *
|
A monastery governed by a prior or prioress. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, FRIARY, MONASTERY or NUNNERY.
|
| back |
|
DESERTED SETTLEMENT *
|
An abandoned settlement, usually of the Medieval period, often visible only as earthworks or on aerial photographs.
|
| back |
|
FIELD *
|
An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock.
|
| back |
|
APPROACH ROAD *
|
A road, sometimes raised as a causeway, which serves as an approach road to a building or bridge.
|
| back |
|
HOUSE PLATFORM *
|
An area of ground on which a house is built. A platform is often the sole surviving evidence for a house.
|
| back |
|
SPRING *
|
A point where water issues naturally from the rock or soil onto the ground or into a body of surface water.
|
| back |
|
STREAM *
|
A natural flow or current of water issuing from a source.
|
| back |
|
FARM *
|
A tract of land, often including a farmhouse and ancillary buildings, used for the purpose of cultivation and the rearing of livestock, etc. Use more specific type where known.
|
| back |
|
EARTHWORK *
|
A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification.
|
| back |
* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)