April 2008 (issue 114) - The Sussex Archaeological Society

Research
FISHBOURNE ROMAN PALACE
LEWES PROPERTIES
Development
Animals as status symbols
Pigs and cattle in Iron Age/Roman West Sussex
The role of animals in archaeology
has traditionally been
thought of from an economic perspective,
with animal bone reports
highlighting ‘calories consumed’ or
‘yields produced’. More recently,
the social importance of animals,
as in ritual practices, ethnic values
or symbolically in art, have been
emphasised.
So what does this mean for our
understanding of Iron Age/Romano-
British rural identities Over the
transitional period, pig remains
constitute high levels at higherstatus
sites such as Fishbourne
Roman Palace and the Romano-
Celtic temple on Hayling Island.
The links between these two sites
are well known, as are their cultural
connections with the continent.
Contrastingly, lower-status
farmsteads were mainly herding
cattle and sheep at this point, possibly
linked to the production of
secondary commodities vital to a
subsistence lifestyle. Into the later
Roman period, the political geography
seems to have shifted from
the royal core at Fishbourne, which
declined and was eventually abandoned,
to a new, decentralised
rural elite based across the South
Downs. At all these wealthy villas
cattle seem to have been the key to
economic success, as exemplified
by the villa at Bignor, West Sussex
which contained nearly 80% cattle
remains in its bone assemblage.
The role of Chichester as a regional
commercial catalyst is significant
and, at first glance, these changes
look economic in design. But we
must remember that this is only an
abstract observation by ourselves,
modern enthusiasts, looking back
into the past! What were the experiences
of people living at that time
How did they understand the world
around them Is it possible that different
animals were imbued with
different meaning In the earlier
period the evidence suggests the
activities of procuring, killing and
consuming pigs could have been
an identifier of elitism, prescribing
a representation of social position.
Though, over time, it seems that
cattle became symbolic indicators
of wealth on villas. So a change in
perception of animals in relation
to the people who interacted with
them could give us ideas as to how
the living world in the late Iron Age
and Roman period was symbolic
and representational.
These are only early indications
and broader issues still need to
be addressed, but I hope that this
discussion is beginning to highlight
the importance of animal remains
in local archaeology. The Sussex
data certainly shows that they were
primary to local and regional economies.
Though maybe we should
also view animals as being part of
wider, more complex, cultural perceptions
….
Martyn Allen
PhD Research Student
Martyn will be talking about Zooarchaeology
and Romanisation at
Fishbourne Roman Palace on April
26 (see Noticeboard for details).
Palaeolithic site at Beedings
Flintwork from Beedings.
Photo: C Wells
H
ow old is this flintworking
Summer 2007 saw trial
trench excavations by Matt Pope
and a volunteer team in the field
to the east of Beedings Castle,
Nutbourne, near Pulborough, West
Sussex. This revealed flintworking
in a fissure in the greensand (Hythe
Beds) bedrock, in fine sediments
perhaps consisting of loess (periglacial
wind-blown sand). The key
question is whether some of the
flint working is Upper Palaeolithic
or some is perhaps even Late
Middle Palaeolithic, and if so these
assemblages may cover the period
when the last Neanderthal hunters
of the British Isles were replaced by
early “modern” peoples.
Further excavations planned for
the summer of 2008 will, we hope,
throw more light on this site. It will
also form the basis of an English
Heritage funded review of potential
for similar sites fringing the Weald,
to be carried out by the Boxgrove
Project in the coming year. More
news in the summer newsletter.
Matt Pope
UCL
Caroline Wells
Chair of Council
Developments in Lewes
Sally White reports on Anne of Cleves and Castle Appeals
The plans for Lewes Castle and
Barbican House are gathering
momentum, though not unexpectedly
there are some setbacks as
well as successes along the way.
I am stunned by and very grateful
for the response many of you
made to the appeal for books to
put in our book sale for the Castle
Appeal. The sale took place in February
and was a great success. We
had so many books that the sale
was extended to three days and we
took over £1200. This total will rise
as there are lots of books left and
John Bleach will be finding homes
for many of them. Hopefully this will
pay for three new steps.
In December 2007 we heard that
we have been given Planning Permission,
Scheduled Monument
Consent and Listed Building Consent
for all of the structural works
in the project, subject to a few conditions.
I was hugely relieved, and
the Lewes District Councillors were
unanimous in their warm support
of our plans. A second application,
covering new signs on the outside
of Barbican House and the display
boards in the Castle will be considered
shortly. The Heritage Lottery
Fund (HLF) insisted on the commissioning
of a Conservation Management
Plan, which is being prepared
by a team of consultants and we
will get the first draft shortly. It will
be a fascinating and useful document
summarising the history and
importance of the properties and
setting out a 10-year maintenance
plan.
I am trying to identify an individual
or group who can help with the
refurbishment of the Lewes Town
Model. I have started discussions
with a local model railway society
but would be grateful for any suggestions
of people who might be
able to help with this. The Model
needs thorough and careful cleaning,
repairs to buildings and streets,
replacing parts of the railway and
re-flocking of the trees.
The next important date is in
March (we do not know the exact
date) when the HLF will consider
our Stage 2 Submission. Once they
give the project the final go ahead,
we hope to start work on site in
October 2008, and the Castle will
probably close for six months while
all the outdoor work is completed.
Fundraising
Shortly before Christmas the
Appeal got a serious boost when
we heard that grant applications
to the Wolfson Foundation and
the Garfield Weston Trust had
been successful. We are waiting
for responses from several other
grant-giving organisations. Largely
because English Heritage has introduced
new conditions, such as lead
roofs for the Education Resource
Centre and Interpretation Pavilion,
the costs of the project have gone
up. Our new fund raising target is
£177,000 – double what we originally
thought. On the bright side
we have now raised over £50,000.
A heartening number of donations
has been coming in from members,
and some smaller donations will be
combined so that some of the steps
can be credited to ‘Members of the
Sussex Archaeological Society’ on
the engraved bricks.
Anne of Cleves House
The HLF project has not distracted
us from the clamant needs of Anne
of Cleves. We are very aware that
urgent repairs are needed to the
rainwater goods, roof, timbers and
windows. Trustee Richard Akhurst
prepared a schedule of works that
has gone out to local builders and
we are considering tenders from
two firms.
Gutters, Anne of Cleves House.
Jane Vokins, Chairman of the
Friends of Anne of Cleves, has put
in a huge amount of effort to source
grants to help fund these essential
works. Leaving no stone unturned,
she discovered that the climax of
the annual National Maintenance
Week in November is National
Guttering Day (I’m sure you are
all rushing to put the date in your
diaries). Fortuitously the organisers
are looking for a building with
suitably decrepit gutters to pose
a celebrity against as part of their
publicity campaign. Not to miss an
opportunity, Jane has offered them
Anne of Cleves House. It certainly
has an abundance of decayed
guttering (see photo above).
We are trying to raise money to
help to pay for these repairs and to
minimise the amount the Society
has to dip into its reserves. Although
I have been encouraging you all to
help with the Castle Appeal, I would
also ask anyone who cares about
the future of this really important
Wealden House, or who may have
personal memories of it, to make
any contribution they can.
8 Sussex Past & Present April 2008
www.sussexpast.co.uk www.romansinsussex.co.uk Sussex Past & Present April 2008 9
Photo: S White