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I stadens skugga : den medeltida landsbygden som arkeologiskt forskningsfält

Bentz, Emma LU (2008) In Lund Studies in Historical Archaeology 8.
Abstract
In this thesis focus is on two aims: 1) to investigate the emergence and establishment of medieval rural archaeology as an archaeological field of study, from the 1930’s up until today and 2) based on the results made in this study, to discuss generally how new subject areas are incorporated and maintained within the humanities. Thus, the scope of the thesis does not lie on the medieval period with its rural settlements and their inhabitants, but rather on their archaeological historiography during the 20th and 21st centuries. Sweden (Fosie) serves as a point of departure and together with examples from Germany (Hohenrode), Denmark (Store Valby) and Great Britain (Wharram Percy) the over decades changing practices and approaches are... (More)
In this thesis focus is on two aims: 1) to investigate the emergence and establishment of medieval rural archaeology as an archaeological field of study, from the 1930’s up until today and 2) based on the results made in this study, to discuss generally how new subject areas are incorporated and maintained within the humanities. Thus, the scope of the thesis does not lie on the medieval period with its rural settlements and their inhabitants, but rather on their archaeological historiography during the 20th and 21st centuries. Sweden (Fosie) serves as a point of departure and together with examples from Germany (Hohenrode), Denmark (Store Valby) and Great Britain (Wharram Percy) the over decades changing practices and approaches are discussed and analyzed.

Three conditions namely the technical, disciplinary and ideological constitute the theoretical foundations for the present study. In short, the technical conditions primarily relate to the fieldwork and the process of excavation at different times. The disciplinary conditions are defined as the study of those variables within the scientific sphere, and their internal relationship that have contributed to the formation of the field of medieval rural archaeology and its continued existence. In order to study these aspects the concept of boundary work has served as an inspiration. The ideological conditions focus on the interaction between archaeology and society, in my study mainly represented by discussions on the status of the medieval village in legislation.

Based on theoretical discussions and analyses made in the empirical studies, it is argued that the emergence, establishment and upcoming changes of medieval rural archaeology as a field of study are best distinguished by identifying different promoting and constraining factors. These conclusions are followed by discussing how best characterize and describe different subject areas. Based on observations made, the metaphor of a web consisting out of different spatial and temporal levels and nodes is proposed. This model serves as a complement to a more traditional chronological scheme and, thus, it contributes to a more complete and deeper understanding of the structure of scientific fields. The argument is also that the models application is versatile to other disciplines. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
supervisor
opponent
  • PhD Svart Kristiansen, Mette, Aarhus University
organization
publishing date
type
Thesis
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Wharram Percy, medieval archaeology, Fosie, history of archaeology, Store Valby, medieval rural settlements, Hohenrode, Historical archaeology, boundary work
in
Lund Studies in Historical Archaeology
volume
8
pages
309 pages
publisher
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Lund University
defense location
Nya Festsalen, AF Borgen
defense date
2008-10-03 10:15:00
ISSN
1653-1183
ISBN
978-91-89578-21-X
language
Swedish
LU publication?
yes
id
d624b51c-1a7e-462c-b6bb-0a5a2d86b5f4 (old id 1222759)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 13:12:30
date last changed
2019-05-21 19:32:25
@phdthesis{d624b51c-1a7e-462c-b6bb-0a5a2d86b5f4,
  abstract     = {{In this thesis focus is on two aims: 1) to investigate the emergence and establishment of medieval rural archaeology as an archaeological field of study, from the 1930’s up until today and 2) based on the results made in this study, to discuss generally how new subject areas are incorporated and maintained within the humanities. Thus, the scope of the thesis does not lie on the medieval period with its rural settlements and their inhabitants, but rather on their archaeological historiography during the 20th and 21st centuries. Sweden (Fosie) serves as a point of departure and together with examples from Germany (Hohenrode), Denmark (Store Valby) and Great Britain (Wharram Percy) the over decades changing practices and approaches are discussed and analyzed.<br/><br>
	Three conditions namely the technical, disciplinary and ideological constitute the theoretical foundations for the present study. In short, the technical conditions primarily relate to the fieldwork and the process of excavation at different times. The disciplinary conditions are defined as the study of those variables within the scientific sphere, and their internal relationship that have contributed to the formation of the field of medieval rural archaeology and its continued existence. In order to study these aspects the concept of boundary work has served as an inspiration. The ideological conditions focus on the interaction between archaeology and society, in my study mainly represented by discussions on the status of the medieval village in legislation.<br/><br>
	Based on theoretical discussions and analyses made in the empirical studies, it is argued that the emergence, establishment and upcoming changes of medieval rural archaeology as a field of study are best distinguished by identifying different promoting and constraining factors. These conclusions are followed by discussing how best characterize and describe different subject areas. Based on observations made, the metaphor of a web consisting out of different spatial and temporal levels and nodes is proposed. This model serves as a complement to a more traditional chronological scheme and, thus, it contributes to a more complete and deeper understanding of the structure of scientific fields. The argument is also that the models application is versatile to other disciplines.}},
  author       = {{Bentz, Emma}},
  isbn         = {{978-91-89578-21-X}},
  issn         = {{1653-1183}},
  keywords     = {{Wharram Percy; medieval archaeology; Fosie; history of archaeology; Store Valby; medieval rural settlements; Hohenrode; Historical archaeology; boundary work}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  publisher    = {{Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Lund University}},
  school       = {{Lund University}},
  series       = {{Lund Studies in Historical Archaeology}},
  title        = {{I stadens skugga : den medeltida landsbygden som arkeologiskt forskningsfält}},
  volume       = {{8}},
  year         = {{2008}},
}