Martin Biddle | University of Oxford (original) (raw)
Papers by Martin Biddle
Did Lady Mary Wroth have Nonsuch in Mind?
Notes and Queries, Sep 17, 2019
M. W. Thompson (ed.): Novgorod the Great: Excavations at the Medieval City directed by A. V. Artsikhovsky and B. A. Kolchin. London: Evelyn, Adams and Mackay, 1967. 122 pp., 103 figs. (including black-and-white illustrations, line-drawings, plans, tables and graphs). 70s
Antiquity, Mar 1, 1968
Winchester uncovered: revisiting one of England's greatest urban excavations
Current Archaeology, 2015
Excavations at Winchester, 1971: Tenth and Final Interim Report: Part I
The Antiquaries Journal, Mar 1, 1975
In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a se... more In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a seventh being excavated by the Winchester Schools Archaeological Committee. The final season was also the longest: work began on 29 May and lasted for twenty-two weeks until 1 November. About £25,470 was spent and an average of 200 people took part each working day during the ten weeks of the full season from 21 June to 29 August.
Felix Urbs Winthonia: Winchester in the Age of Monastic Reform
Routledge eBooks, Oct 21, 2021
Two Flavian Burials from Grange Road, Winchester
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1967
One evening towards the end of August 1964, Mr. G. H. Bell walked across to the excavations north... more One evening towards the end of August 1964, Mr. G. H. Bell walked across to the excavations north of Winchester Cathedral and told the writer that some pots had been found during the digging of a new sewer trench opposite his house in Grange Road, Winchester. The site of the discovery was visited the same evening and the pots, which later proved to have come from Grave I, at once showed that the find was of Roman date. Immediate inspection revealed one pit, later numbered Grave II, in the east side of the sewer trench. The following day a talk with Mr. Butcher of King's Worthy, who had been driving the mechanical digger excavating the trench, revealed the full story of the discovery.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The text of this article has been serialized (in three parts) in artifax (Autumn 2004—Spring 2005... more The text of this article has been serialized (in three parts) in artifax (Autumn 2004—Spring 2005), a USA-based quarterly digest and commentary on biblical archaeology and related fields. The illustrations are mostly taken from the “Christian Sanctuaries” web-site and the ...
Excavations at Winchester 1962–63: Second Interim Report
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1964
One result of the excavations in Winchester in 1961 was the formation in 1962 of the Winchester E... more One result of the excavations in Winchester in 1961 was the formation in 1962 of the Winchester Excavations Committee. The city is at present passing through a period of intensive rebuilding and development which offers many opportunities for archaeological research. Moreover, the 1961 excavations had directed attention to the problems of Winchester's Saxon minsters and the Dean and Chapter were willing to allow excavation near the cathedral. With these opportunities in view, the committee was formed to undertake excavations, both in advance of building projects, and on sites not so threatened, aimed at studying the development of Winchester as a town from its earliest origins to the establishment of the modern city. The centre of interest is the city itself, not any one period of its past, nor any one part of its remains. But we can hope that this approach will in particular throw light upon the end of the Roman city and on the establishment and development of the Saxon town, problems as vital to our understanding of urban development in this country, as they are difficult to solve. Further, it is essential to this approach that the study and interpretation of the documentary evidence should go hand in hand with archaeological research, for the existence of documentary materials greatly enhances the possibilities of interpretation inherent in the archaeological results, and vice versa.
Excavations at Winchester, 1969: Eighth interim report
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1970
SummaryFive sites were excavated in 1969. At Castle Yard the pre-Roman and Roman defences were ex... more SummaryFive sites were excavated in 1969. At Castle Yard the pre-Roman and Roman defences were examined and a large salient discovered at the south-west corner of the Roman walled town. A Saxon street and its buildings lying within this salient were found buried below the castle earthworks of 1067, and the early development of the castle was investigated. At Lankhills sixty fourth-century graves were excavated, four producing evidence of an alien military element in the late Roman town. Further evidence of this alien element was found at the Cathedral Green, and together with earlier discoveries, suggests the presence of a Germanic garrison. The excavation of the Old Minster was completed by the examination of the east end of the seventh-century church, and by the discovery of a west-work of continental type consecrated in 980. At Lower Brook Street four houses and other structures of the mid twelfth to mid thirteenth century were excavated, one property being devoted entirely to cloth finishing with a rack-ground and dye-house. Three phases of St. Mary's Church were examined and the latest stage of St. Pancras' Church uncovered. At Wolvesey Palace the west hall can be dated to c. 1110. The lead-piped water-supply of the palace was investigated, its first stage belonging to the early twelfth century. Excavation continues.
Excavations at Winchester, 1971: Tenth and Final Interim Report: Part II
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1975
In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a se... more In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a seventh being excavated by the Winchester Schools Archaeological Committee. The final season was also the longest: work began on 29 May and lasted for twenty-two weeks until 1 November. About £25,470 was spent and an average of 200 people took part each working day during the ten weeks of the full season from 21 June to 29 August.
Journal of the British Archaeological Association, Jun 1, 1964
This paper records the excavation of a small motte and bailey castle of mid-twelfth-century date ... more This paper records the excavation of a small motte and bailey castle of mid-twelfth-century date in northeast Hertfordshire. A bank and ditch, forming a rectangular area of considerable size still traceable around the western half of Therfield, appear to have been associated with the motte and bailey castle in a defensive system for the village. The defences of the bailey were found to have consisted of a ditch backed by a rampart revetted on both sides with timber and filled with clay. A reconstruction of this rampart is attempted. No structures were found on the motte top and this and other evidence suggests that the castle was never finished before it was slighted. Traces of earlier occupation associated with Saxo-Norman pottery were found sealed below the bailey defences. There was some slight later occupation of the site in the thirteenth century. Pottery and other finds from all three periods are discussed and an attempt is made to relate the castle to the condition of the area in the mid-twelfth century. ' Victoria County Histori es, Herifordshire, III, p. 276. The castle is also shown on Mr. D. F. R cnn's map of mottes near Cambridge in Antiquiry, XXXIII (1959), I08. An interim note on the 1958 excavation which appeared in M edieval Archaeology, III (1959), 307-8, needs coni de rable modification in the light of the work underta~en in writing the present report.
Excavations Near Winchester Cathedral, 1961
The Archaeological Journal, 1962
Antiquity, Mar 1, 1992
In 873 the Viking Great Army took winter quarters at the Anglo-Saxon monastery of Repton in the h... more In 873 the Viking Great Army took winter quarters at the Anglo-Saxon monastery of Repton in the heart of Mercia. Excavations 2974-88 found their D-shaped earthwork on the river bank, incorporated in the stone church. Burials of Viking type were made at the east end of the church, and an existing building was cut down and converted into the chamber of a burial mound containing at least 249 individuals. Here is afirst account of the evidence for the Vikings at Repton in and after the campaigning season of 873-4. The church of St Wystan at Repton in Derbyshire (NGR SK 303272) occupies a prominent bluff of Bunter sandstone and pebble on the south side of the valley of the River Trent (FIGURE 1). The river now flows one kilometre away to the north, on the far side of the valley, but originally flowed on the Repton side, at the foot of a low cliff now rising to a height of about 6 m above the Old Trent Water, a remnant of the former course of the river. To the east the land falls away to the broad valley of the Repton Brook, which joins the Trent northeast of the church. Well defined to the north by the river and to the east by the brook, the bluff lies open to south and west. The ground rises gradually to the south through the village towards Hartshorne and Swadlincote, and undulates westwards along the valley edge in the direction of Newton Solney and Burton.
King Arthur's Round Table: An Archaeological Investigation
The Sixteenth century journal, 2002
Problem and context - the Round Table in literature and legend, the Round Table as furniture, the... more Problem and context - the Round Table in literature and legend, the Round Table as furniture, the setting of the Round Table - Winchester Castle and the Great Hall the table - carpentry, condition, and sequence, tree-ring dating the Round Table, radiocarbon dating the Round Table the painting - investigating the painting, inscriptions in the painting, iconography of the painting solutions and meanings - the making of the Round Table, the hanging of the Round Table, the painting of the Round Table the symbol. Appendix: Traveller to the Round Table, 1539-1900.
The Archaeology of Winchester
Scientific American, May 1, 1974
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1967
IN 1966 the Winchester Excavations Committee was again joined by the University of North Carolina... more IN 1966 the Winchester Excavations Committee was again joined by the University of North Carolina and Duke University in excavations on four sites in the city. The work lasted ten weeks from the middle of June to the latter part of August and an average of 160 people took part, about £14,000 being spent. The excavation has again been made possible only by the help of those many bodies and individuals who have worked with and for us in the previous five years. We wish particularly to record the following: special thanks are due to the U.N.C.-Duke Committee, under the co-chairmanship of Professor F. T. de Vyver and
Late Saxon Planned Towns
The Antiquaries Journal, Mar 1, 1971
SummaryDocumentary, topographical, and archaeological evidence suggests that the rectilinear stre... more SummaryDocumentary, topographical, and archaeological evidence suggests that the rectilinear street plan of modern Winchester was laid out as a planned system not later than the mid tenth century and probably before c. 904. Among the places listed in the Burghal Hidage there are seven which show clear evidence of rectilinear planning which is not of Roman origin. Four are on the sites of Roman towns—Winchester, Chichester, Exeter, and Bath—and three on non-Roman sites—Wareham, Wallingford, and Cricklade. These plans are seen as the result of a deliberate policy of urban formation in response to the military situation during Alfred's reign (871–99). These places are not so much fortresses as fortified towns in which the rectilinear street plan is a deliberate expression of the organization and apportionment of the land for permanent settlement. Rectilinear street systems appear to be characteristic of the larger places founded or re-organized by Edward the Elder or Athelstan, but rectilinear planning does not thereafter appear until the plantation of new towns in the Norman and later period.
England's Premier Abbey: The Medieval Chapter House of St. Albans Abbey, and its excavation in 1978
Expedition: The magazine of the University of Pennsylvania, 1980
Object and economy in medieval Winchester
... Text: English References: refs., indexes, concordances Subject Keywords English: Anglo-Saxon;... more ... Text: English References: refs., indexes, concordances Subject Keywords English: Anglo-Saxon;excavations;catalogs;tools;gold;silver;copper;alloy; iron; tanning;bone;antler;wood; stone;equipment;furnishings;armor; medieval;wire; drawing;glass;painting Subject Label ...
The Rose reviewed: a comedy(?) of errors
Antiquity, Dec 1, 1989
The identification, partial excavation, and covering-up again of the Rose Theatre in London this ... more The identification, partial excavation, and covering-up again of the Rose Theatre in London this summer roused public interest unparalleled since the discovery of the Temple of Mithras 35 years ago. How is it that the future of an archaeological site of such importance has still to be resolved under threat in a flurry of direct action, injunctions, and media attention? Martin Biddle was almost the only archaeologist not directly involved who was prepared publicly to explore the issues in the press and on radio and television. Here he sets out his views of the lessons of the Rose.
Did Lady Mary Wroth have Nonsuch in Mind?
Notes and Queries, Sep 17, 2019
M. W. Thompson (ed.): Novgorod the Great: Excavations at the Medieval City directed by A. V. Artsikhovsky and B. A. Kolchin. London: Evelyn, Adams and Mackay, 1967. 122 pp., 103 figs. (including black-and-white illustrations, line-drawings, plans, tables and graphs). 70s
Antiquity, Mar 1, 1968
Winchester uncovered: revisiting one of England's greatest urban excavations
Current Archaeology, 2015
Excavations at Winchester, 1971: Tenth and Final Interim Report: Part I
The Antiquaries Journal, Mar 1, 1975
In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a se... more In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a seventh being excavated by the Winchester Schools Archaeological Committee. The final season was also the longest: work began on 29 May and lasted for twenty-two weeks until 1 November. About £25,470 was spent and an average of 200 people took part each working day during the ten weeks of the full season from 21 June to 29 August.
Felix Urbs Winthonia: Winchester in the Age of Monastic Reform
Routledge eBooks, Oct 21, 2021
Two Flavian Burials from Grange Road, Winchester
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1967
One evening towards the end of August 1964, Mr. G. H. Bell walked across to the excavations north... more One evening towards the end of August 1964, Mr. G. H. Bell walked across to the excavations north of Winchester Cathedral and told the writer that some pots had been found during the digging of a new sewer trench opposite his house in Grange Road, Winchester. The site of the discovery was visited the same evening and the pots, which later proved to have come from Grave I, at once showed that the find was of Roman date. Immediate inspection revealed one pit, later numbered Grave II, in the east side of the sewer trench. The following day a talk with Mr. Butcher of King's Worthy, who had been driving the mechanical digger excavating the trench, revealed the full story of the discovery.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The text of this article has been serialized (in three parts) in artifax (Autumn 2004—Spring 2005... more The text of this article has been serialized (in three parts) in artifax (Autumn 2004—Spring 2005), a USA-based quarterly digest and commentary on biblical archaeology and related fields. The illustrations are mostly taken from the “Christian Sanctuaries” web-site and the ...
Excavations at Winchester 1962–63: Second Interim Report
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1964
One result of the excavations in Winchester in 1961 was the formation in 1962 of the Winchester E... more One result of the excavations in Winchester in 1961 was the formation in 1962 of the Winchester Excavations Committee. The city is at present passing through a period of intensive rebuilding and development which offers many opportunities for archaeological research. Moreover, the 1961 excavations had directed attention to the problems of Winchester's Saxon minsters and the Dean and Chapter were willing to allow excavation near the cathedral. With these opportunities in view, the committee was formed to undertake excavations, both in advance of building projects, and on sites not so threatened, aimed at studying the development of Winchester as a town from its earliest origins to the establishment of the modern city. The centre of interest is the city itself, not any one period of its past, nor any one part of its remains. But we can hope that this approach will in particular throw light upon the end of the Roman city and on the establishment and development of the Saxon town, problems as vital to our understanding of urban development in this country, as they are difficult to solve. Further, it is essential to this approach that the study and interpretation of the documentary evidence should go hand in hand with archaeological research, for the existence of documentary materials greatly enhances the possibilities of interpretation inherent in the archaeological results, and vice versa.
Excavations at Winchester, 1969: Eighth interim report
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1970
SummaryFive sites were excavated in 1969. At Castle Yard the pre-Roman and Roman defences were ex... more SummaryFive sites were excavated in 1969. At Castle Yard the pre-Roman and Roman defences were examined and a large salient discovered at the south-west corner of the Roman walled town. A Saxon street and its buildings lying within this salient were found buried below the castle earthworks of 1067, and the early development of the castle was investigated. At Lankhills sixty fourth-century graves were excavated, four producing evidence of an alien military element in the late Roman town. Further evidence of this alien element was found at the Cathedral Green, and together with earlier discoveries, suggests the presence of a Germanic garrison. The excavation of the Old Minster was completed by the examination of the east end of the seventh-century church, and by the discovery of a west-work of continental type consecrated in 980. At Lower Brook Street four houses and other structures of the mid twelfth to mid thirteenth century were excavated, one property being devoted entirely to cloth finishing with a rack-ground and dye-house. Three phases of St. Mary's Church were examined and the latest stage of St. Pancras' Church uncovered. At Wolvesey Palace the west hall can be dated to c. 1110. The lead-piped water-supply of the palace was investigated, its first stage belonging to the early twelfth century. Excavation continues.
Excavations at Winchester, 1971: Tenth and Final Interim Report: Part II
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1975
In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a se... more In 1971 the Winchester Excavations Committee undertook excavations on six sites in the city, a seventh being excavated by the Winchester Schools Archaeological Committee. The final season was also the longest: work began on 29 May and lasted for twenty-two weeks until 1 November. About £25,470 was spent and an average of 200 people took part each working day during the ten weeks of the full season from 21 June to 29 August.
Journal of the British Archaeological Association, Jun 1, 1964
This paper records the excavation of a small motte and bailey castle of mid-twelfth-century date ... more This paper records the excavation of a small motte and bailey castle of mid-twelfth-century date in northeast Hertfordshire. A bank and ditch, forming a rectangular area of considerable size still traceable around the western half of Therfield, appear to have been associated with the motte and bailey castle in a defensive system for the village. The defences of the bailey were found to have consisted of a ditch backed by a rampart revetted on both sides with timber and filled with clay. A reconstruction of this rampart is attempted. No structures were found on the motte top and this and other evidence suggests that the castle was never finished before it was slighted. Traces of earlier occupation associated with Saxo-Norman pottery were found sealed below the bailey defences. There was some slight later occupation of the site in the thirteenth century. Pottery and other finds from all three periods are discussed and an attempt is made to relate the castle to the condition of the area in the mid-twelfth century. ' Victoria County Histori es, Herifordshire, III, p. 276. The castle is also shown on Mr. D. F. R cnn's map of mottes near Cambridge in Antiquiry, XXXIII (1959), I08. An interim note on the 1958 excavation which appeared in M edieval Archaeology, III (1959), 307-8, needs coni de rable modification in the light of the work underta~en in writing the present report.
Excavations Near Winchester Cathedral, 1961
The Archaeological Journal, 1962
Antiquity, Mar 1, 1992
In 873 the Viking Great Army took winter quarters at the Anglo-Saxon monastery of Repton in the h... more In 873 the Viking Great Army took winter quarters at the Anglo-Saxon monastery of Repton in the heart of Mercia. Excavations 2974-88 found their D-shaped earthwork on the river bank, incorporated in the stone church. Burials of Viking type were made at the east end of the church, and an existing building was cut down and converted into the chamber of a burial mound containing at least 249 individuals. Here is afirst account of the evidence for the Vikings at Repton in and after the campaigning season of 873-4. The church of St Wystan at Repton in Derbyshire (NGR SK 303272) occupies a prominent bluff of Bunter sandstone and pebble on the south side of the valley of the River Trent (FIGURE 1). The river now flows one kilometre away to the north, on the far side of the valley, but originally flowed on the Repton side, at the foot of a low cliff now rising to a height of about 6 m above the Old Trent Water, a remnant of the former course of the river. To the east the land falls away to the broad valley of the Repton Brook, which joins the Trent northeast of the church. Well defined to the north by the river and to the east by the brook, the bluff lies open to south and west. The ground rises gradually to the south through the village towards Hartshorne and Swadlincote, and undulates westwards along the valley edge in the direction of Newton Solney and Burton.
King Arthur's Round Table: An Archaeological Investigation
The Sixteenth century journal, 2002
Problem and context - the Round Table in literature and legend, the Round Table as furniture, the... more Problem and context - the Round Table in literature and legend, the Round Table as furniture, the setting of the Round Table - Winchester Castle and the Great Hall the table - carpentry, condition, and sequence, tree-ring dating the Round Table, radiocarbon dating the Round Table the painting - investigating the painting, inscriptions in the painting, iconography of the painting solutions and meanings - the making of the Round Table, the hanging of the Round Table, the painting of the Round Table the symbol. Appendix: Traveller to the Round Table, 1539-1900.
The Archaeology of Winchester
Scientific American, May 1, 1974
The Antiquaries Journal, Sep 1, 1967
IN 1966 the Winchester Excavations Committee was again joined by the University of North Carolina... more IN 1966 the Winchester Excavations Committee was again joined by the University of North Carolina and Duke University in excavations on four sites in the city. The work lasted ten weeks from the middle of June to the latter part of August and an average of 160 people took part, about £14,000 being spent. The excavation has again been made possible only by the help of those many bodies and individuals who have worked with and for us in the previous five years. We wish particularly to record the following: special thanks are due to the U.N.C.-Duke Committee, under the co-chairmanship of Professor F. T. de Vyver and
Late Saxon Planned Towns
The Antiquaries Journal, Mar 1, 1971
SummaryDocumentary, topographical, and archaeological evidence suggests that the rectilinear stre... more SummaryDocumentary, topographical, and archaeological evidence suggests that the rectilinear street plan of modern Winchester was laid out as a planned system not later than the mid tenth century and probably before c. 904. Among the places listed in the Burghal Hidage there are seven which show clear evidence of rectilinear planning which is not of Roman origin. Four are on the sites of Roman towns—Winchester, Chichester, Exeter, and Bath—and three on non-Roman sites—Wareham, Wallingford, and Cricklade. These plans are seen as the result of a deliberate policy of urban formation in response to the military situation during Alfred's reign (871–99). These places are not so much fortresses as fortified towns in which the rectilinear street plan is a deliberate expression of the organization and apportionment of the land for permanent settlement. Rectilinear street systems appear to be characteristic of the larger places founded or re-organized by Edward the Elder or Athelstan, but rectilinear planning does not thereafter appear until the plantation of new towns in the Norman and later period.
England's Premier Abbey: The Medieval Chapter House of St. Albans Abbey, and its excavation in 1978
Expedition: The magazine of the University of Pennsylvania, 1980
Object and economy in medieval Winchester
... Text: English References: refs., indexes, concordances Subject Keywords English: Anglo-Saxon;... more ... Text: English References: refs., indexes, concordances Subject Keywords English: Anglo-Saxon;excavations;catalogs;tools;gold;silver;copper;alloy; iron; tanning;bone;antler;wood; stone;equipment;furnishings;armor; medieval;wire; drawing;glass;painting Subject Label ...
The Rose reviewed: a comedy(?) of errors
Antiquity, Dec 1, 1989
The identification, partial excavation, and covering-up again of the Rose Theatre in London this ... more The identification, partial excavation, and covering-up again of the Rose Theatre in London this summer roused public interest unparalleled since the discovery of the Temple of Mithras 35 years ago. How is it that the future of an archaeological site of such importance has still to be resolved under threat in a flurry of direct action, injunctions, and media attention? Martin Biddle was almost the only archaeologist not directly involved who was prepared publicly to explore the issues in the press and on radio and television. Here he sets out his views of the lessons of the Rose.