Landscapes Decoded

About the book

“Landscapes Decoded undoubtedly takes the study of medieval fields forward, presenting us with an exemplar of what a carefully analysed micro-regional study might achieve” Richard Jones, Medieval Archaeology

“This elegant monograph revives the Leicester series which included Finberg's 1955 Roman and Saxon Withington. It's a worthy successor.” Paul Stamper, British Archaeology

More about the book

Susan Oosthuizen’s fascinating research into the landscape history of the Bourn Valley, just west of Cambridge, is published as the first volume in a new series of mid-length (40K-60K words) monographs on fresh and unusual subjects within local and regional history.
The series is published under the auspices of the Centre for English Local History, University of Leicester and the Centre for Regional and Local History, University of Hertfordshire, and marks the beginning of a welcome collaboration.
Most historians and many archaeologists have seen a complete break, at least in physical terms, between the field systems of Roman Britain and the common or open fields of medieval England.
If it is possible to unravel the relationships between pre-open field and open field boundaries in the Bourn Valley between about 600 and 1100 AD, then a significant step forward might be taken in our understanding of the origins of medieval open field systems in general.
We might begin to understand the processes through which the fields, woods and pastures that had developed over the prehistoric millennia and the Roman centuries were organised into a completely new landscape: that of the medieval open fields.
Field work has uncovered preserved prehistoric field patterns in the medieval furlongs of the valley. The unexpected discovery of what appears to be an eighth or ninth century proto-open field pattern enables the author to outline a new model for the introduction of common fields in England.
About the Author/s:
Susan Oosthuizen

Susan Oosthuizen has been involved in lifelong learning since 1985. An archaeologist, she directs programmes in the historic environment (landscape and garden history/ archaeology) at the Institute of Continuing Education at the University of Cambridge.
Her undergraduate degree in Archaeology and History was taken at the University of Southampton. She holds an MA from SOAS (University of London), and a PhD from the University of Cambridge, where her research on Anglo-Saxon landscapes bridged archaeology, history and historical geography.
She is attached to the University of Cambridge Department of Archaeology, a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, a Fellow of Wolfson College, Cambridge, and a former President of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society.
Dr Oosthuizen also holds a PGCE (University of Cambridge) and has a strong interest in community engagement in higher education.
She is currently Vice-Chair of the Universities Association for Lifelong Learning (UALL), and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Her work has included numerous externally-funded outreach projects, and the direction of community education and outreach for the Institute (2005-8). She received a National Award for excellence in History Teaching in Higher Education in 2003.
Other titles by this author
- Tradition and Transformation in Anglo-Saxon England: Archaeology, Common Rights and Landscape. Bloomsbury Academic - Oosthuizen S.M. (2013)
- Landscapes Decoded: The origins and development of Cambridgeshire's medieval fields - Oosthuizen S.M. (2006)
- Cambridgeshire from the Air. Stroud: Sutton - Oosthuizen S.M. (1996)

ISBN: 978-1-902806-58-7 Format: , 192pp Published: Nov 2006

Landscapes Decoded

The origin and development of Cambridgeshire’s medieval fields

About the book

Susan Oosthuizen

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