The research presented in this book advances scholarship on Anglo-Saxon non-elite rural settlements through the analysis of material culture. Forty-four non-elite sites and the high-status site of Staunch Meadow, occupied throughout the Anglo-Saxon period (c. 5th-11th centuries) and geographically representative of Anglo-Saxon settlement in England, were selected for study. Comparative analyses of the material culture assemblages and settlement data from these sites were evaluated from four main research perspectives: the archaeological contexts and distributional patterns of material culture at the sites; the range and character of material culture; patterns of material culture consumption; and material culture as evidence for the economic reach of rural settlements.

Table of Contents:
List of Figures List of Tables Abstract Chapter 1. Introduction 1.1. Relevance and Objectives 1.2. Research Questions 1.3. Book Structure Chapter 2. Literature Review 2.1. Overview 2.2. Theoretical Models 2.3. Anglo-Saxon Studies 2.3.1. Rural Settlements: Building Types and Evolution 2.3.2. Rural Settlements: Morphology and Hierarchy 2.3.3. Anglo-Saxon England: Economic Models and Systems 2.4. Summary Chapter 3. Methodology and Design 3.1. Overview 3.2. Approach 3.2.1. Rural Settlements of Study 3.2.2. Data Collection 3.2.3. Quantifying Artefact Totals 3.2.4. Determining Distributional Patterns of Material Culture 3.2.5. Classifying Material Culture 3.2.6. Interpreting Consumption of Material Culture 3.2.7. Gaging the Ubiquity of Material Culture 3.2.8. Assessing Material Culture Provenance and Economic Context 3.2.9. Defining Local, Regional and Supraregional Economic Reach 3.3. Limitations of the Data 3.3.1. Excavation Methods 3.3.2. Site Formation Processes 3.3.3. Artefact Quantification 3.4. Summary Chapter 4. Material Culture from Rural Settlements: Context, Range and Character 4.1. Overview 4.2. Contexts and Distribution of Material Culture 4.2.1. Distribution: Stratified Features 4.2.2. Conclusions 4.3. Catalogue of Material Culture 4.3.1. Receptacles, Containers, Plates and Vessel Fittings 4.3.2. Utensils 4.3.3. Domestic Items 4.3.4. Security and Privacy 4.3.5. Ornamentation and Jewellery 4.3.6. Dress 4.3.7. Charms 4.3.8. Cosmetic 4.3.9. Grooming and hygiene 4.3.10. Utilitarian equipment 4.3.11. Manufacturing 4.3.12. Weaponry 4.3.13. Animal Equipment 4.3.14. Trade and Exchange 4.3.15. Literacy 4.3.16. Amusement 4.3.17. Disarticulated Human Bone 4.3.18. Building Material 4.3.19. Prehistoric Artefacts 4.3.20. Roman Artefacts 4.3.21. Conclusions 4.4. Summary Chapter 5. The Consumption of Material Culture 5.1. Overview 5.2. Patterns of Material Culture Consumption 5.2.1. Domestic and Household 5.2.2. Ornamentation, Dress and Grooming 5.2.3. Utilitarian 5.2.4. Manufacture, Production and Craft 5.2.5. Agriculture, Cultivation and Horticulture 5.2.6. Warfare and Defence 5.2.7. Hunting and Fishing 5.2.8. Equestrian 5.2.9. Leisure 5.2.10. Trade and Exchange 5.2.11. Prestige and Luxury 5.2.12. Literacy 5.2.13. Recycling and Reuse 5.2.14. Ritual 5.2.15. Burial and Funerary 5.3. Conclusions 5.4. Summary Chapter 6. Material Culture and Economic Reach 6.1. Overview 6.2. Material Culture Provenance 6.3. Material Culture Provenance and Economic Context 6.3.1. Coins 6.3.2. Pottery 6.3.3. Worked Stone Artefacts 6.3.4. Beads 6.3.5. Gemstones and Gemstone Artefacts 6.3.6. Brooches 6.3.7. Pins 6.3.8. Strap Ends 6.3.9. Glass Artefacts 6.3.10. Scandinavian and Anglo-Scandinavian Artefacts 6.3.11. Other Artefacts 6.4. Conclusions 6.5. Summary Chapter 7. Case Studies 7.1. Overview 7.2. Material Culture and Chronology: Multi-period Settlements 7.2.1. Overview 7.2.2. Artefacts and Chronology 7.2.3. Consumption Activities and Chronology 7.2.4. Economic Trends and Chronology 7.2.5. Conclusions 7.3. Material Culture Signatures: Settlement Profiles 7.3.1. Overview 7.3.2. Settlement Signatures 7.3.3. Conclusions 7.4. Material Culture, Social Status and Hierarchy 7.4.1. Overview 7.4.2. Social Status 7.4.3. Rural Settlement Hierarchy 7.4.4. Conclusions 7.5. Microscale Settlement Analysis: Yarnton, Oxfordshire 7.5.1. Overview 7.5.2. Yarnton Settlement Morphology and Artefact Distribution by Phase 7.5.3. Yarnton Material Culture Assemblage 7.5.4. Yarnton Artefacts Provenance 7.5.5. Conclusions 7.6. Summary Chapter 8. Discussion and Conclusions 8.1. Overview 8.2. Wider Implications of the Study 8.2.1. Discussion 8.3. Further Research 8.4. Conclusion Bibliography The following appendices are available as an accompanying download: Appendix 1. The Settlements: Pro Formas Appendix 2. Material Culture: Site Distribution Appendix 3. Material Culture: Evidence Appendix 4. Information on Selected Material Culture Forms, Types and Decoration of Anglo-Saxon Date Appendix 5. Material Culture: Consumption Appendix 6. Material Culture: Economy and Provenance Appendix 7. Material Culture and Chronology Appendix 8. Settlement Profiles: Consumption Activities Appendix 9. Material Culture and Social Status Appendix 10. Microscale Analysis of Yarnton, Oxfordshire