Paths to Complexity: Centralisation and Urbanisation in Iron Age Europe

241 Pages·2014·13.285 MB·English

by  Manuel Fernandez-Gotz, Holger Wendling, Katja Winger

PATHS TO COMPLEXITY
Centralisation and Urbanisation in Iron Age Europe
edited by
Manuel Fernández-Götz, Holger Wendling, Katja Winger
Oxbow Books
Oxford & Philadelphia
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Front cover: 3D reconstruction of the Heuneburg at the height of its prosperity in the first half of the 6th century BC (after
Fernández-Götz & Krausse 2013; © Landesamt für Denkmalpflege Baden-Württemburg)
Back cover:Reconstruction of the Pfostenschlitzmauer wall of the Donnersberg oppidum (Photo: Manuel Fernández-Götz)
CONTENTS
Foreword Prof. Michael E. Smith ..........................................................................................................................................v
List of Contributors ..............................................................................................................................................................vii
GRAND NARRATIVES: THE RISE OF URBANISM IN TEMPERATE EUROPE
1 Introduction: New Perspectives on Iron Age Urbanisation ..........................................................................................2
Manuel Fernández-Götz, Holger Wendling and Katja Winger
2. Urbanisation in Temperate Europe in the Iron Age: Mediterranean Influence or Indigenous? .................................15
John Collis
TOWNS BEFORE THE OPPIDA: CENTRALISATION PROCESSES IN THE EARLY IRON AGE
3. Understanding the Heuneburg: A Biographical Approach ..........................................................................................24
Manuel Fernández-Götz
4. Hallstatt Urban Experience before the Celtic Oppida in Central and Eastern Gaul. Two Cases-Studies:
Bourges and Vix ..........................................................................................................................................................35
Pierre-Yves Milcent
5. Places of Memory, Hero Cults and Urbanisation during the First Iron Age in Southeast Gaul ................................52
Raphaël Golosetti
MODELLING COMPLEXITY: VILLAGES AND CITIES IN LATE IRON AGE EUROPE
6. Oppida and Urbanisation Processes in Central Europe ..............................................................................................64
Vladimír Salač
7. Oppida, Production and Social Status – Complexity of the Late La Tène Period in Central Europe .......................76
Alžběta Danielisová
8. A Historical-Semantic Approach to the Concept of ‘Oppidum’. The Example of Bibracte ......................................84
Dominik Lukas
iv Contents
9. Space, Architecture and Identity in Gaul in the 2nd/1st centuries BC .....................................................................101
Sabine Rieckhoff
10. Symbolic Meanings of Iron Age Hillfort Defences in Continental Europe ..............................................................111
Caroline von Nicolai
OPEN AGGLOMERATIONS AND FORTIFIED CENTRES: FROM SITES TO LANDSCAPES
11. Roseldorf – An Enclosed Central Settlement of the Early and Middle La Tène Period in Lower Austria
(Roseldorf/Němčice Centre) ......................................................................................................................................122
Veronika Holzer
12. Aspects of Iron Age Urbanity and Urbanism at Manching ......................................................................................132
Holger Wendling and Katja Winger
13. What’s in a Wall? Considerations on the Role of Open Settlements in Late La Tène Gaul ...................................140
Tom Moore and Côme Ponroy
14. Enlarging Oppida: Multipolar Town Patterns in Late Iron Age Gaul ......................................................................156
Matthieu Poux
15. Exploring Urbanisation in the Southern French Iron Age through Integrated Geophysical
and Topographic Prospection ....................................................................................................................................167
Ian Armit, Tim Horsley, Chris Gaffney, Frédéric Marty, Nathan Thomas, Robert Friel and Ashley Haye
16. Interdisciplinary and Trinational Research into the Late La Tène Settlement Landscape of the Upper Rhine .......179
Lars Blöck, Andrea Bräuning, Eckhard Deschler-Erb, Andreas Fischer, Yolanda Hecht, Corina Knipper,
Reto Marti, Michael Nick, Hannele Rissanen, Norbert Spichtig and Muriel Roth-Zehner
17. Caesar’s Conquest of Gaul – A Factor of Crisis or Consolidation? The Otzenhausen Oppidum
and its Environment ...................................................................................................................................................191
Sabine Hornung
AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD? IBERIA AND BRITAIN
18. The Emergence of Urbanism in Early Iron Age Central Iberia ................................................................................204
Jesús R. Álvarez-Sanchís and Gonzalo Ruiz-Zapatero
19. The Celtiberian Oppidum of Segeda .........................................................................................................................214
Francisco Burillo-Mozota
20. Are the Developed Hillforts of Southern England Urban? .......................................................................................224
Niall Sharples
FOREWORD
I remember vividly the bright winter morning a year worried that a couple of craft workshops and a fancy burial
ago when Manuel Fernández-Götz gave me a tour of the or two would be used to argue for Early Iron Age urbanism.
Heuneburg. The site was officially closed for the season, Archaeologists always want to find the earliest example
and it was covered with snow. I had read some articles on of things, whether artifact types or social institutions, and
the Heuneburg, and I had just listened to some presentations such claims are sometimes based on flimsy evidence. But
on the Heuneburg and other Iron Age settlements at a I found the article convincing, and so I was excited when
conference in Stuttgart that had brought me to Germany. But Manuel invited me to the conference on Iron Age urbanism
there is no substitute for walking over an ancient urban site. and society in Stuttgart last year. Most of the participants
Archaeologists can learn about sites by reading reports and seemed comfortable with the concept of Early Iron Age
articles, but the experience of being there adds something urbanism, including Colin Renfrew and Kristian Kristiansen.
intangible yet important to one’s understanding. When I From one perspective, the question of whether the
walk through a deserted landscape that had once been filled Heuneburg is classified as an urban settlement is not
with ancient buildings, people and their activities, the dry important. For our understanding of that site, it is far
professional facts about post-holes, radiocarbon dates, and more important to describe and explain the particular
potsherds come alive. manifestations of Iron Age life and society than to classify
My visit of the Heuneburg brought to culmination a the settlement. The Heuneburg is clearly a significant site
personal process of discovery of Iron Age urbanisation and whose excavation extends our knowledge of the Early Iron
its importance within the broad realm of urban studies. For Age, whether one uses the label city, a town, a fort, or village.
many years I had included the oppida in the course I teach But from the broader perspective of comparative urbanism,
on “the earliest cities.” When I started teaching this class two re-classifying the Heuneburg as an urban settlement has two
decades ago, I presented the oppida of the Late Iron Age as big advantages. First, it allows data from that site – and other
an example of settlements that had a few urban traits (e.g., Early Iron Age sites – to contribute to discussions of the
craft specialisation and fortification), but were not cities nature of urbanism around the world. Comparative urban
or urban settlements. My context of comparison was the scholars can add another case – a unique and fascinating
cities of the great ancient civilisations, from Mesopotamia case – to our sample of early urban societies. Second,
to Mesoamerica (Smith 2007; 2008). The oppida provided archaeologists who work at the Heuneburg can draw on the
a good “teaching example” to explore the limits of the concepts and insights of comparative urban studies to add
concepts of city and urbanism in the ancient world. But richness to their reconstructions of life, society, and change
over the years, as my knowledge and understanding of at the Heuneburg.
comparative urbanism grew, I came to accept the oppida These dual advantages of acknowledging the urban nature
as urban settlements. This change was partly due to the fact of the Heuneburg – adding to our sample of ancient urban
that I learned more about the oppida, and partly due to my societies, and contributing insights to the study of the site –
own changing concept of urbanisation and its varied forms also apply to the Late Iron Age oppida sites. Although John
around the world and through time. Collis (1984) called the oppida “the earliest towns north of
Then Manuel sent me the draft of a paper he and Dirk the Alps” three decades ago, my impression is that Iron Age
Krausse had written arguing that the start of urbanism north scholars and comparative urban scholars were both slow to
of the Alps should be pushed back to the Early Iron Age, acknowledge this insight. Now, in 2014, there is no excuse
at the Heuneburg (Fernández-Götz & Krausse 2013). My to leave the oppida out of discussions of early urbanism.
first reaction – before reading the paper – was skeptical. I The overall scholarly trend in the field of Iron Age
vi Foreword
urbanisation parallels the changes in the way I presented audience. And I want to thank Manuel, not only for his
the oppida in my university class. As more evidence intellectual and scientific contributions, but also for taking
accumulated and views of the nature of cities and urbanism me to see snow-covered Heuneburg. We should all be
expanded, it became increasingly clear that the Iron Age pleased that Early and Late Iron Age society are now part
(both Early and Late) was the setting for some complex of the universe of early urban societies, and I look forward
and unique urban societies in Europe. to the continuing productivity and insights of archaeological
This book appears at a crucial time. It marks the clear research in this area.
arrival of a new view of urbanism and social complexity
in Iron Age Europe. Much of the primary excavation data Prof. Dr. Michael E. Smith
have been published previously in German, French, Spanish, Arizona State University
and other languages. While that is only a minor problem for 17 February 2014
Iron Age scholars, comparative urban scholars like me who
are fascinated by these sites can typically read only a few
of these languages. Much of the information in this book
Bibliography
appears in English for the first time, and it will bring the
Iron Age to a new English-language audience. To take just Collis, J. (1984): Oppida: Earliest Towns North of the Alps.
one example, I have long considered Manching a fascinating University of Sheffield Press, Sheffield.
site, yet I had access to only a few papers in English and Fernández-Götz, M. & D. Krausse (2013): Rethinking Early Iron
Age urbanisation in central Europe: the Heuneburg site and its
the short descriptions in Fichtl (2005). The chapter here by
archaeological environment. Antiquity 87, 473–487.
Wendling and Winger greatly extends the English-language
Fichtl, S. (2005) La ville celtique: Les oppida de 150 avant J.-C.
coverage of Manching, and there are similar benefits for
à 15 après J.-C. Errance, Paris.
other sites and regions throughout these chapters.
Smith, M. E. (2007): Form and meaning in the earliest cities: a
The editors of this book – Manuel Fernández-Götz,
new approach to ancient urban planning. Journal of Planning
Holger Wendling, and Katja Winger – deserve thanks from History 6 (1), 3–47.
the archaeological community for assembling an outstanding Smith, M. E. (2008): Aztec City-State Capitals. University Press
group of papers. They have brought the complexity and of Florida, Gainsville.
fascination of Iron Age urban society to a much wider
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS
Prof. Dr. Jesús Álvarez-sanchís Dr. veronIka holzer
Universidad Complutense de Madrid Naturhistorisches Museum Wien
Spain Austria
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Prof. Dr. Ian armIt Dr. saBIne hornunG
University of Bradford Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz
United Kingdom Germany
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Prof. Dr. francIsco BurIllo-mozota DomInIk lukas m.a.
Universidad de Zaragoza, Campus de Teruel Cluster of Excellence TOPOI, Berlin
Spain Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
Dr. PIerre-Yves mIlcent
Prof. Dr. John collIs Université de Toulouse 2
University of Sheffield France
United Kingdom Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
Dr. tom moore
Dr. AlžbětA DAnielisová Durham University
Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, United Kingdom
Prague Email: [email protected]
Czech Republic
Email: [email protected] Dr. carolIne von nIcolaI
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Dr. manuel fernÁnDez-Götz Germany
University of Edinburgh Email: [email protected]
United Kingdom
Email: [email protected] côme PonroY
Durham University
Dr. raPhaël GolosettI United Kingdom
Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study Email: [email protected]
The Netherlands
Email: [email protected]
viii List of contributors
Prof. Dr. matthIeu Poux Prof. Dr. nIall sharPles
Université Lyon 2 Cardiff University
Email: [email protected] United Kingdom
Email: [email protected]
Prof. Dr. saBIne rIeckhoff
Universität Leipzig Prof. Dr. mIchael e. smIth
Germany Arizona State University
Email: [email protected] United States
Email: [email protected]
Dr. hannele rIssanen
Archäologische Bodenforschung des Kantons Basel-Stadt Dr. holGer WenDlInG
Switzerland Salzburg Museum GmbH/Keltenmuseum Hallein
Email: [email protected] Austria
Email: [email protected]
Prof. Dr. Gonzalo ruIz zaPatero
Universidad Complutense de Madrid Dr. katJa WInGer
Spain Freie Universität Berlin
Email: [email protected] Germany
Email: [email protected]
Dr. vlADimír sAlAč
Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences,
Prague
Czech Republic
Email: [email protected]
GRAND NARRATIVES: THE RISE OF URBANISM
IN TEMPERATE EUROPE