THE OPEN FIELDS OF ENGLAND [Signed]

Hall, David

ISBN 10: 0198702957 / ISBN 13: 9780198702955

Published by Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2014

About this Item

Octavo, 379 pages. In Very Good condition with Very Good minus dust jacket. Spine light green with green lettering. Dust jacket protected in mylar covering. Minor scuffing to dust jacket, small tear to bottom rear. Text block clean. Interior pages clean. Signed flat by Hall to front free end paper. Shelved Middle Ages. 1394003. Shelved Dupont Bookstore.

Seller Inventory # 1394003

Bibliographic Details

• Title: THE OPEN FIELDS OF ENGLAND [Signed]
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, Oxford
• Publication Date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0198702957
• ISBN 13: 9780198702955
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition, First Printing.
• Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)
• Seller catalogs:
  • Ancient History & Classical Studies
  • Dupont Circle
  • European History

About this title

Synopsis

The Open Fields of England describes the open-field system of agriculture that operated in Medieval England before the establishment of present-day farms surrounded by hedges or walls. The volume encompasses a wide range of primary data not previously assembled, to which are added the results of new research based upon a fifty-year study of open-field remains and their related documents. The whole of England is examined, describing eight different kinds of field-system that have been identified, and relating them to their associated land-use and settlement. Details of field structure are explained, such as the demesne, the lord's land, and the tenants' holdings, as well as tenurial arrangements and farming methods.

Previous explanations of open-field origins and possible antecedents to medieval fields are discussed. Various types of archaeological and historical evidence relating to Saxon-period settlements and fields are presented, followed by the development of a new theory to explain the lay-out and planned nature of many field systems found in the central belt of England.

Of particular interest is the Gazetteer, which is organized by historic counties. Each county has a summary of its fields, including tabulated data and sources for future research, touching on the demesne, yardland size, work-service, assarts, and physical remains of ridge and furrow. The Gazetteer acts as a national hand-list of field systems, opening the subject up to further research and essential to scholars of medieval agriculture.

About the Author

David Hall studied chemistry at St Peter's College, Oxford, but has worked in the field of archaeology for over fifty years. He has published extensively on British archeology and the history of field-systems.