The Middle Ages Revisited ― Studies in the Archaeology and History of Medieval Southern England Presented to Professor David A. Hinton

This volume, produced in honour of Professor David A. Hinton’s contribution to medieval studies, re-visits the sites, archaeologists and questions which have been central to the archaeology of medieval southern England. Contributions are focused on the medieval period (from the Anglo-Saxon period to the Reformation) in southern England, to reflect the research of Professor Hinton. The contributions largely re-examine important debates believed to have been settled long ago, or explore the implications of changing research traditions for the interpretation of archaeological sites. The volume begins with two considerations of archaeologists themselves, the antiquary Richard James (Tom James) and those who have shaped our understanding of Anglo-Saxon Hamwic (Mark Brisbane and Richard Hodges). Both studies show the role of individuals, and the times in which they worked, on the questions and interpretations advanced by archaeological study. Staying in the Anglo-Saxon period, Barbara Yorke re-opens the debate about the Jutish archaeology of Wessex, Martin Biddle re-visits the archaeology of Winchester Old Minster and Katherine Weikert explores the household of early medieval Facombe Netheron. Moving into the later medieval period, Duncan H. Brown re-assesses the evidence from the important site at Cuckoo Lane, Southampton, with a focus on ceramics, and Maureen Mellor examines the evidence of church floor tiles from Oxfordshire, an early research interest of Professor Hinton. Two chapters deal with medieval food, Mark Robinson discusses wheat cultivation and Dale Serjeantson et. al. revisit the animal bones from excavations at Eynsham Abbey, comparing them with those from St Albans to explore the issue of the Saxon-Norman transition. Finally, staying with the archaeology elite culture, the volume concludes with Matthew Johnson’s contribution on recent work on late medieval elite landscapes in south-east England. Together, these contributions combine historiography, new evidence and emerging ideas, helping us to understand how the landscape of research has developed, whilst showing the importance of re-visiting old sites and questions to advance the discipline of medieval studies.