Life in early medieval Wales Edwards, Nancy creator author. text bibliography Electronic books. History enk 2023 2023 monographic eng remote 1 online resource (v, 493 pages) : illustrations "The period c. ad 300-1050, spanning the collapse of Roman rule to the coming of the Normans, was formative in the development of Wales. This book considers how people lived in late Roman and early medieval Wales and how their lives and communities changed during this period. It uses a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on the growing body of archaeological evidence set alongside the early medieval written sources. It begins by analysing earlier research and the range of sources, the significance of the environment and climate change, and ways of calculating time. Discussion of the fourth-sixth centuries focuses on the disintegration of the Roman market economy, fragmentation of power, and the emergence of new kingdoms and elites. Early medieval Wales was an entirely rural society. Analysis of the settlement archaeology includes key sites, alongside the development of new farming and other rural settlements. Consideration is given to changes in the mixed farming economy reflecting climate deterioration and a need for food security, as well as craftworking and the roles of exchange, display, and trade. At the same time cemeteries and inscribed stones, stone sculpture and early church sites chart the course of conversion to Christianity, the rise of monasticism, and the increasing power of the Church. Finally, discussion of power and authority analyses emerging evidence for sites of assembly, the rise of Mercia together with the significance of Offa's and Wat's Dykes, increasing English infiltration, and the Viking impact. Throughout the evidence is placed within a wider context"--Publisher's description. Intro -- Series page -- Title page -- Copyright page -- Dedication page -- Preface and Acknowledgements -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- 1. Rediscovering the Early Medieval Past in Wales: Approaches and Sources -- Antiquarians and the Archaeology of Early Medieval Wales -- The Later Nineteenth and First Half of the Twentieth Centuries -- Modern Approaches -- Approaching the Written Sources -- 2. Space and Time -- Land and Sea -- Climate Change and its Impact -- Reconstructing the Early Medieval Landscape -- Time and Memory -- 3. Continuity and Collapse -- Problems with Dating and Chronology -- From Roman to Post-Roman Wales: A Regional View -- Crossing the Divide -- 4. The Legacy of Rome, Irish Settlement, and Changing Identities -- The Roman Legacy and its Reinvention -- Inscribed Memorial Stones -- Other Evidence for Irish Settlement and its Impact -- Conclusion -- 5. Hearth and Home -- In Search of Settlements -- Hillforts, Promontory Forts, and Related High-Status Sites -- Other High-Status Settlements -- Farmsteads -- Buildings and the Use of Space -- Conclusion -- 6. Food, Farming, and the Agricultural Economy -- The Farming Landscape: Fields and Estates -- Cereals and Other Crops -- Animal Husbandry -- Hunting, Fishing, and Gathering -- Diet and Health -- Conclusion -- 7. Craft, Display, and Trade -- Materials, Craftworking, and Technology -- Display, Identity, Social Interaction, and Belonging -- Trade and Exchange -- Conclusion -- 8. Christianity: Identifying the Evidence -- Church Buildings -- Inscribed Stones and Stone Sculpture -- Burials and Cemeteries -- Enclosures -- Holy Wells and Trees -- Relics, Reliquaries, and other Christian Metalwork -- Written Sources -- Place Names and Church Dedications -- Conclusion -- 9. Conversion, Commemoration, and Burial -- Pre-Christian Religions -- The Origins of Christianity -- Commemoration -- Burial -- Conclusion -- 10. Christian Sites and Christian Landscapes -- Major Monasteries, Mother Churches, and Clasau -- Island Monasteries, Hermitages, and Female Religious Sites -- Lesser Churches, Chapels, and Cemeteries -- Christianity and the Wider Landscape -- Conclusion -- 11. Ritual and Belief -- Saints' Cults, Relics, and Pilgrimage -- Death and Commemoration -- Conclusion -- 12. Power and Authority -- Assembly Sites and Other Meeting Places -- Building Borders and Frontiers: Changing Relations with Anglo-Saxon England -- The Viking Impact -- 13. Conclusion -- References -- Index. Nancy Edwards Includes bibliographical references and index. e-uk-wl Excavations (Archaeology) Wales Wales Antiquities Wales History To 1063 Wales Social life and customs To 1500 Pays de Galles Antiquités Pays de Galles Histoire Jusqu'à 1063 Pays de Galles Mœurs et coutumes Jusqu'à 1500 Antiquities Excavations (Archaeology) Manners and customs Wales European history History To 1500 fast DA715 .E39 2023 942.901 Life in early medieval Wales Edwards, Nancy. Oxford, United Kingdom : Oxford University Press, 2023 (DLC) 2023900660 (OCoLC)1378023126 Medieval history and archaeology 9780192888389 0192888382 9780191797774 0191797774 0191047899 9780191047893 9780198733218 http://proxy.library.tamu.edu/login?url=https://academic.oup.com/book/46838 EBLCP 230805 20260318165720.8 in00005698434 eng