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Agricultural terraces in the Mediterranean: medieval intensification revealed by OSL profiling and dating

Turner, S. et al. (2021) Agricultural terraces in the Mediterranean: medieval intensification revealed by OSL profiling and dating. Antiquity, 95(381), pp. 773-790. (doi: 10.15184/aqy.2020.187)

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Abstract

The history of agricultural terraces remains poorly understood due to problems in dating their construction and use. This has hampered broader research on their significance, limiting knowledge of past agricultural practices and the long-term investment choices of rural communities. The authors apply OSL profiling and dating to the sediments associated with agricultural terraces across the Mediterranean region to date their construction and use. Results from five widely dispersed case studies reveal that although many terraces were used in the first millennium AD, the most intensive episodes of terrace-building occurred during the later Middle Ages (c. AD 1100–1600). This innovative approach provides the first large-scale evidence for both the longevity and medieval intensification of Mediterranean terraces.

Item Type:	Articles
Additional Information:	Funding for fieldwork and analysis has been provided by grants from the Newton Fund administered by the British Academy (AF140007 & AF160103), UK Research and Innovation (AH/P005829/1 & AH/P014453/1), the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (116K829), the European Commission (H2020 657050), Dumbarton Oaks (Washington, D.C.), Seven Pillars of Wisdom Trust (UK), Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (HAR2012-35022) (Spain), Xunta de Galicia (2016 PG-065) (Spain).
Keywords:	Mediterranean, landscape archaeology, agricultural terraces, OSL-PD.
Status:	Published
Refereed:	Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:	Kinnaird, Dr Timothy and Sanderson, Professor David
Authors:	Turner, S., Kinnaird, T., Varinlioğlu, G., Şerifoğlu, T. E., Koparal, E., Demirciler, V., Athanasoulis, D., Ødegård, K., Crow, J., Jackson, M., Bolòs, J., Sánchez-Pardo, J. C., Carrer, F., Sanderson, D., and Turner, A.
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > G Geography (General) G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GB Physical geography G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GE Environmental Sciences G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GF Human ecology. Anthropogeography
College/School:	College of Science and Engineering > Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre
Research Group:	SUERC Environmental Physics
Journal Name:	Antiquity
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
ISSN:	0003-598X
ISSN (Online):	1745-1744
Published Online:	22 April 2021
Copyright Holders:	Copyright © 2021 The Authors
First Published:	First published in Antiquity 95(381): 773-790
Publisher Policy:	Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

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Deposit and Record Details

ID Code:	249957
Depositing User:	Professor David Sanderson
Datestamp:	20 Aug 2021 08:38
Last Modified:	03 Mar 2022 19:05
Date of acceptance:	18 August 2020
Date of first online publication:	22 April 2021
Date Deposited:	19 August 2021
Data Availability Statement:	No