Iron Age and Roman arable practice in the east of England
This thesis provides an interpretation of Iron Age and Roman arable practice in the East of England, using data on carbonised plant macrofossils recovered during excavation as its primary data. Choice of crop, strategies employed in cultivation, and the ways in which crops were processed, stored and utilised are explored and linked to wider social and economic changes over time. Spelt and barley are confirmed as the major crops of the region/period, with localised emmer cultivation well attested in the Middle Iron Age; bread wheat cultivation was rare. Investment of sufficient labour/resources to maintain reasonable crop-yields is revealed as the normal attitude to cultivation throughout the region and period. Small-scale handling of crops was the norm until the Middle Roman period, when increased scale of production, along with malting, use of chaff as fuel, and concern with efficiency of crop-storage/transport suggest a switch from subsistence production to participation in a more market-oriented economy. Middle Iron Age emmer cultivation (alongside spelt) and investment in large-scale production indicate surplus production on the Isle of Ely, suggested to have been enabled by inter-settlement co-operation
Parks, Kate Ellen
Iron Age and Roman arable practice in the east of England. This thesis provides an interpretation of Iron Age and Roman arable practice in the East of England, using data on carbonised plant macrofossils recovered during excavation as its primary data. Choice of crop, strategies employed in cultivation, and the ways in which crops were processed, stored and utilised are explored and linked to wider social and economic changes over time. Spelt and barley are confirmed as the major crops of the region/period, with localised emmer cultivation well attested in the Middle Iron Age; bread wheat cultivation was rare. Investment of sufficient labour/resources to maintain reasonable crop-yields is revealed as the normal attitude to cultivation throughout the region and period. Small-scale handling of crops was the norm until the Middle Roman period, when increased scale of production, along with malting, use of chaff as fuel, and concern with efficiency of crop-storage/transport suggest a switch from subsistence production to participation in a more market-oriented economy. Middle Iron Age emmer cultivation (alongside spelt) and investment in large-scale production indicate surplus production on the Isle of Ely, suggested to have been enabled by inter-settlement co-operation
iron_age_roman arable practice east_england provide interpretation iron_age_roman arable practice east_england use data plant recover excavation primary_data choice crop strategy_employ cultivation way crop process store utilised explore link wider_social economic_change time barley confirm major crop region period localise cultivation well_attested middle_iron_age bread wheat cultivation rare investment sufficient labour resources maintain reasonable crop reveal normal attitude cultivation throughout_region period small_scale handle crop norm middle roman period increased scale_production along use chaff fuel concern efficiency crop storage transport suggest switch subsistence production participation market oriented economy middle_iron_age cultivation alongside investment large_scale production indicate surplus production isle suggest enabled inter settlement co_operation