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English Pages 287 [289] Year 2009
The nature of the contributions is quite different, reflecting the wide scope of topics and perspectives that have enriched the Action's activities. Some of them present results of common research; others focus on discussions on theory, methodologies or techniques; a third category offers debates or dialogues between different approaches; finally, a few advance emerging themes or new perspectives opening the door to future collaborative research programmes. The major axes that articulate the different papers collected in this publication are: ■ The construction of a theory for landscape studies, able to connect fundamental and applied research. ■ Strategies for recording and characterising landscapes and landmarks. ■ Specific proposals for protection and management . ■ Scientific and social approaches to landscape through perception, presentation and valorisation. ■ Landscape studies and policies. This book is the result of a desire of the members of Action A27 to contribute to the construction of an interdisciplinary and socially relevant research field on cultural landscape studies. Transnational collaborations ensure an added value and open new possibilities of common understanding and shared initiatives beyond the different academic traditions and legal/administrative frames. This cooperative approach, based both on particular (local, regional, national) and collective (international) experiences, should constitute the core of the innovative and imaginative issues to be raised.
ESF provides the COST Office through an EC contract
Este volumen ha sido concebido como una forma de presentar tanto a la comunidad académica como a otros lectores las colaboraciones científicas internacionales iniciadas o desarrolladas en el seno de una red europea de investigación, la Acción COST A27 Understanding preindustrial structures in rural and mining landscapes (LANDMARKS). Todas las contribuciones han sido realizadas por miembros de la Acción pertenecientes a diferentes delegaciones nacionales, como una muestra de los beneficios mutuos de la cooperación desarrollada en el proyecto LANDMARKS. La naturaleza de las contribuciones es variada, reflejando el amplio abanico de temas y perspectivas que han enriquecido las actividades de la Acción. Algunas de ellas presentan resultados de investigaciones conjuntas, otras se centran en discusiones teóricas, metodológicas o técnicas, un tercer grupo reúne debates o diálogos entre distintas perspectivas y, por último, se recogen algunos temas o aproximaciones emergentes, que abren la puerta a futuros programas científicos de colaboración. Los ejes principales que articulan los diferentes capítulos de esta publicación son: ■ La construcción de una teoría para los estudios sobre paisaje, capaz de conectar investigación fundamental y aplicada. ■ Estrategias para el registro y caracterización de paisajes y marcadores de paisajes. ■ Propuestas específicas de protección y gestión de los paisajes culturales. ■ Aproximaciones científicas y sociales al paisaje a través de su percepción, presentación y puesta en valor. ■ Investigaciones y políticas de paisajes. Este libro es el resultado de la voluntad de los miembros de la Acción A27 de contribuir a la construcción de un campo de estudios sobre paisajes culturales, interdisciplinar y socialmente relevante. Las colaboraciones transnacionales aseguran un valor añadido y abren nuevas posibilidades de convergencia científica y para iniciativas compartidas, más allá de las diversas tradiciones académicas y marcos legales y administrativos. Este acercamiento cooperativo, basado tanto en experiencias particulares (locales, regionales, nacionales) como colectivas (internacionales), puede constituir el núcleo de prometedoras propuestas, innovadoras e imaginativas.
from present to past through landscape from present to past through landscape
This publication has been conceived as a way of presenting to the academic community and other audiences the valuable international scientific collaborations established or developed within a European research network, the Action COST A27 Understanding pre-industrial structures in rural and mining landscapes (LANDMARKS). All the contributions have been prepared by members of the Action belonging to different national delegations, as a small sample of the mutual benefits of the co-operation developed in the frame of the LANDMARKS project.
Editors Almudena Orejas David Mattingly Monique Clavel-Lévêque COST is supported by the EU RTD Framework Programme
Parc Culturel du Biterrois
From Present to Past through Landscape
FROM PRESENT TO PAST THROUGH LANDSCAPE
Edited by Almudena Orejas David Mattingly Monique Clavel-Lévêque
No permission to reproduce or utilise the contents of this book by any means is necessary, other than in the case of images, diagrammes or other material from other copyright holders. In such cases, permission of the copyright holders is required. This book may be cited as: COST A27 – From present to past through landscape All contents are the responsibility of the authors. The publisher is responsible for the scientific interest of the published material. Legal notice by COST Office Neither the COST Office nor any person acting on its behalf is responsible for the use which might be made of the information contained in this publication. The COST Offi ce is not responsible for the external websites referred to in this publication. Cover credits / Cubierta: Island of Elba, Rio Albano Mine (Photo: Marco Lunghi) Le Mans, France (Photo: Per Grau Møller) Thingvellir, World Heritage Park, Iceland (Photo: Almudena Orejas) Layout and typeset by / Maquetación y composición por Julia Sánchez (Unit of Digital Edition and Graphic Design / Unidad de Edición Digital y Diseño Gráfico, CCHS, CSIC) Revision of texts / Revisión de textos: David Mattingly, Guillermo-Sven Reher, Almudena Orejas, and Monique Clavel-Lévêque Photos and other illustrations / Fotografías y otras ilustraciones: Authors / Los autores Illustrations from other sources / Ilustraciones de otras fuentes: As indicated in the captions / Según se indica en los pies de las figuras. General catalogue of official Publications / Catálogo general de publicaciones oficiales: http://www.060.es
© 2009 CSIC, Madrid, Spain © COST Office, 2009 © Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque (editors) NIPO: 472-09-120-3 ISBN: 978-84-00-08908-5 Legal deposit / Depósito Legal: M-50883-2009 Printed by / Impreso por: DiScript Preimpresión, S. L. Printed in Spain / Impreso en España
CONTENTS
COST and the Action A27 LANDMARKS
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The CSIC, the CCHS and the Research Line Archaeology and Social Processes
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Acknowledgments
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Preface Tom Bloemers
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I. THEORISING LANDMARKS Landscapes in European History. Some thoughts from the COST A27 experience Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique ClavelLévêque Historic landscapes in Europe: highlights and challenges Heleen van Londen, María Ruiz del Árbol and Almudena Orejas II. RECORDING AND CHARACTERISING LANDMARKS Concepts and approaches to analyse regional landscape histories Daniel Salzmann, Oliver Bender and Matthias Bürgi Hidden landscapes and ancient landmarks: some theoretical and methodological issues of studying early historical landscapes in Southwest Iberia Frank Vermeulen and Filipe Themudo Barata Regards croisés sur la viticulture en Catalogne et en Languedoc romains Monique Clavel-Lévêque and Oriol Olesti
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43
59 69
85
Less obvious Imperial landscapes: distant Britannia and Hispania David Mattingly and Almudena Orejas Culture, technology and change in pre-industrial silver mining Peter Claughton, Christoph Bartels and Marie-Christine Bailly-Maître III. PERCEIVING, PROTECTING AND REPRESENTING LANDMARKS La perception des paysages antiques de l’Asie Mineure à l’Occident (Italie et France méridionales) : mythe ou réalités archéologiques ? Rita Compatangelo-Soussignan and Raffaella PierobonBenoit Character and change – Heritage Management and the future European landscape Graham Fairclough and Per Grau Møller Integration of European cultural landscapes data within Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) Miguel Lage, Anthony Corns, Juan Luis Pecharromán and Robert Shaw The application of Digital Terrain Analysis to Geoarchaeology: a case study from Thera Island (Greece) Theodoros Gournelos, Andreas Vassilopoulos, Niki Evelpidou, Jaroslav Hofierka and Eleana Karkani Formalisation of a GIS-based methodology for landscape change analysis: example of erosion on Naxos island, Aegean Sea, Greece Niki Evelpidou, Alenka Krek and Andreas Vassilopoulos CONCLUDING REMARKS European Landscapes and the COST A27 Action: retrospect and prospect David Mattingly, Almudena Orejas and Monique ClavelLévêque ANNEXES Annex 1 Annex 2 Annex 3 Annex 4 Annex 5
A27 Management Committee and Working Group meetings Publications of the Action A27 (2005-2009) A27 Workshops and Conferences A27 Training Schools A27 Participating Institutions
List of contributors
119 149
171
197 221
229
239
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267 269 275 277 279 283
COST and the Action A27 LANDMARKS
COST is an intergovernmental framework for European Cooperation in Science and Technology, allowing the coordination of nationally-funded research on a European level. COST contributes to reducing the fragmentation in European research investments and opening the European Research Area to cooperation worldwide. The goal of COST is to ensure that Europe holds a strong position in the field of scientific and technical research for peaceful purposes, by increasing European cooperation and interaction in this field. This research initiative makes it possible for the various national facilities, institutes, universities and private industry to work jointly on a wide range of Research and Development (R&D) activities. COST – together with EUREKA and the EU framework programmes – is one of the three pillars of joint European research initiatives. These three complementary structures have differing areas of research. COST has clearly shown its strength in non-competitive research, pre-normative cooperation, and solving environmental, cross-border and public utility problems. It has been successfully used to maximise European synergy and added value in research cooperation and is a useful tool to further European integration. Ease of access for institutions from non-member countries also makes COST a very interesting and successful tool for tackling topics of a truly global nature. As a precursor of advanced multidisciplinary research, COST plays a very important role in building a European Research Area (ERA). It anticipates and complements the activities of the EU Framework Programmes, constituting a "bridge" towards the scientific communities of emerging countries. It also increases the mobility of researchers across Europe and fosters the establishment of scientific excellence in the nine key domains: ▪ Biomedicine and Molecular Biosciences ▪ Food and Agriculture
▪ Forests, their Products and Services ▪ Materials, Physical and Nanosciences ▪ Chemistry and Molecular Sciences and Technologies ▪ Earth System Science and Environmental Management ▪ Information and Communication Technologies ▪ Transport and Urban Development ▪ Individuals, Societies, Cultures and Health In addition, Trans-Domain Proposals allow for broad, multidisciplinary proposals to strike across the nine scientific domains. Action COST A27 (2004-2008) Understanding Pre-industrial Structures in Rural and Mining Landscapes (LANDMARKS) belongs to the domain of Individuals, Societies, Cultures and Health. The number of signatory countries to the Action is 21: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and United Kingdom. The point of departure of LANDMARKS is European rural and mining landscape. Pre-industrial structures mark many of those landscapes; most of them are now threatened by the abandonment of traditional practices, in particular less wealthy regions. This process implies the quick destruction of landscape differences resulting from traditional activities and ways of life. LANDMARKS aims to stimulate the European research on this topic, to produce specific documentation and to structure a consistent dissemination plan by: ▪ Morphological analysis of relevant elements and models of integration in present landscapes; ▪ Research on historical techniques and technologies related to the historical use of landscapes; ▪ Diachronic study of specific legal and administrative practices; ▪ Analysis of historical landscape perception during history by the communities that inhabited and exploited them; ▪ Providing mechanisms for the public presentation of landscapes and optimising Cultural Heritage. Identification and scientific evaluation are the common basis for the protection, the cultural valorisation and the social and economic vindication of these sensitive landscapes. Diversification of cultural resources and enlargement of the protected cultural heritage are keys for the improvement of the internal potential in many European regions. The objectives of LANDMARKS are described in the Memorandum of Understanding of the Action and the main outcomes are mentioned in the Progress Reports of the Action (all documents can be consulted in COST and LANDMARKS web pages). The activities are centred in four working groups: mining landscapes (WG1), rural landscapes (WG2), virtual landscapes (WG3) and transversal activities (WG4). 8
More information COST: http://www.cost.esf.org/ Action COST A27 LANDMARKS: http://www.soc.staffs.ac.uk/jdw1/costa27home.html Action COST A27 "Cultural Parks, Cultural Projects and Activities": http://www.unipg.it/COSTactionA27/parks-activities/
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The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the Centre for Human and Social Sciences (CCHS) and the Research Line Archaeology and Social Processes
The CSIC or Spanish National Research Council (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas) is the largest public research institution in Spain. The former institution was the Council for Extension of Studies and Scientific Research (JAE) founded in 1907. In 2007 the CSIC has become State Agency CSIC, belonging to the Ministry for Science and Innovation. It is nationwide in scope, with almost 130 Research Centres and Institutes, located in various regions of Spain, playing an active role in national and regional scientific policies. Some of the CSIC Institutes (more than 50) are "joint centres" operating in conjunction with other institutions (mostly Universities). As a multidisciplinary body, the CSIC covers all field of knowledge, from basic research through advanced technological development. The CSIC performs multidisciplinary scientific and technological research, scientific and technical assessments, training of scientific and technical personnel and management of large infrastructures. Its research groups collaborate with universities, public and private R&D organisations, industries, enterprises, professional associations and foundations, and regional governments. The CSIC Institutes are operationally grouped in 8 different Scientific and Technical Domains according to their main fields of research: Humanities and Social Sciences, Biology and Biomedicine, Natural Resources, Agriculture Sciences, Physical Science and Technologies, Material Science and Technologies, Food Science and Technologies, and Chemical Science and Technologies. The Centre for Human and Social Sciences (CCHS) arises from the integration of the 7 Institutes belonging to the Humanities and Social Sciences Domain located in Madrid. The CCHS was founded in 2007 and it is the culmination of a project conceived in 2001. The CCHS integrates the Institutes of History, Philosophy, Mediterranean and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, Language, Literature and Anthro-
pology, Economy, Geography and Demography, Documentary Studies on Science and Technology and the Institute for Public Goods and Policies. The Library Tomás Navarro Tomás includes 700000 volumes, 10300 journals, 11000 maps, 4000 media documents and hundreds of electronic specialised resources available through the CSIC Virtual Library. In the CCHS there are 5 support units and 7 service units. One of the most active Research Lines defined within the CCHS is "Archaeology and Social Processes". This Research Line embraces 50 people: senior and junior researchers belonging to 6 Research Groups and technical staff in charge of the Unit of Laboratories for Archaeological Research. The Research Line understands Archaeology as a knowledge-builder about social formations and historical processes by analysing their material and spatial remains. Different forms of social relations, from the technological and productive spheres to the symbolic world are liable to be understood through Archaeology. These issues are studied through a wide variety of approaches. They all have, however, a common ground: the interpretation of historical realities beyond mere object analysis. The RL pursues the development of new techniques and the use of state-of-the-art instrumentation in analysing and managing new forms of data. Heritage is integrated as a goal into the scientific process from its inception. The Research Group "Social Structure and Territory - Landscape Archaeology" has led Action COST A27 LANDMARKS. It revolves around the understanding of landscapes as a cultural synthesis of social relations. The central axis is the study of the process of change in pre-roman communities and Hispanic provincial society, particularly during the Early Roman Empire, taking into account the transition periods relating to Iron Age and Late Antiquity. The research has developed mainly in the western Iberian Peninsula. In order to study cultural landscapes, specific methodology and adequate techniques must be used to facilitate their analysis and interpretation. Thus, the archaeological record is seen as an integrated compendium of sources, from the geo-archaeological evidence of material culture to written sources. A central element to the Research Group is the correct social projection of scientific results, within the general process of research, valorisation and dissemination of Cultural Heritage.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The publication of this book has been possible thanks to the enthusiastic work of Julia Sánchez ("Unit of design and e-publication" at the CCHS in Madrid) and Guillermo Sven Reher (Research Group "Social Structure and Territory – Landscape Archaeology", CCHS). The editorial board wants to express its gratitude to all the researchers involved directly or indirectly in the Action COST A27, particularly to the members of the Management Committee and the coordinators of the four Working Groups. The list of collaborators should include more than 150 names (see Annex 5). The Icelandic delegation must be especially mentioned for its efficient work in the organisation of the COST A27 Final Conference (September 2008), the forum where this publication has taken shape. Some members of the COST staff have played an essential role in the success of the Action, especially Francesca Boscolo, our Science Officer in the last steps of the Action, and Anna Danti, COST Science Officer when the Action started. David Gronbaek and Julia Stamm have also supported the Action as Science Officers and Jie Zhu and Sebastien Chopin as Administrative Officers. We want to thank also Piotr Swiateck for his interest in involving the Action in the COST Cultural Heritage Interest Group. The Domain Committee ISCH (Individuals, Societies, Cultures and Health) has always supported the Action, taking into account our experiences and opinions. We want to express our gratitude to Chris Godwin and Martina Hartl (chairs of the DC during this period) and very particularly to Marc Caball, the Action’s rapporteur after 2006. Marc Caball and Stephen Daniels have provided an external critical perspective extremely valuable in the last step of the Action and for future collaborations. Rüdiger Klein gave us the opportunity of connecting the Action’s outcomes and experiences through the interdisciplinary scientific initiative on Landscape Studies launched by the ESF.
Michel Chapuis has facilitated the dialogue with the European Commission Research through the Directorate I "Environment" (Unit I 3 Environmental Technologies and Prevention of Pollution, Cultural Heritage Issues). Finally, the Action’s design and development would have been impossible without the day-to-day dedication on behalf of the members of the "Social Structure and Territory-Landscape Archaeology" (EST-AP) research group.
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PREFACE Tom Bloemers (University of Amsterdam)
The COST Action A27 program LANDMARKS. Understanding pre-industrial structures in rural and mining landscapes presents a very informative sample of the various aspects and ongoing activities related to the archaeologicalhistorical landscapes of Europe during the past decade. The program has focused on "new ways of valorisation, promotion and management of cultural heritage in the more general framework of territorial planning". As a sample of current research endeavour, it shows what the potential of this field is and in which direction research and management of the cultural landscape in Europe can develop. First of all landscape is a platform where not only research and management, but also society can meet each other for different purposes: For some, it is sheer interest in or love for the landscapes they live in, visit or pass through, but others it is also about creating a living for people and a future for their children, or tackling problems about conflicting views on use, ownership and identity. European landscapes display an immense and often confusing variety in form, in history, in present occupation and in future development. This diversity is a cultural resource that can be exploited, but should also be maintained in a sensible and responsible manner. But how to do this? COST A27 comprised a group of researchers and managers from 21 European countries, sharing common interests in cultural landscapes and displaying the diverse "states of the art" as regards current knowledge, policy and practice in this field. Not "everything" has been covered by this group, but, for example, the programme has confronted us with a representative selection of the differences and similarities between countries, disciplines and groups. Respecting the differences as part of traditions and identities and recognising their value for finding new pathways towards understanding the transformation and management of past and present landscapes two major trends unite the differences: the region is highlighted as the basic unit on which to practice research and management, and inter- and transdisciplinarity represent a logical, but unconventional answer to the problems and challenges communities face. To exploit these two trends fully will certainly
take the next decade and probably even longer. But this should not prevent us from reflecting about their wider context: the European level. Having established these two trends it raises the problem of dealing with them on the level and scale of Europe as a continent of regional landscapes and as a landscape of actors divided over disciplines, sectors and communities. Is the European level only the sum of regions and actors or is there an added value to be explored? My hypothesis is that Europe seen as a mosaic of landscapes, regions and actors must have a considerable added value. I will explain this further. In my opinion one important criterion to define a landscape is its "meaningfulness" as socio-cultural framework to understand and assess past and present histories and actions reflected or materialised in the landscape. The time depth of the European archaeological-historical landscape covers the long evolutionary span from hunter-gatherers to industrial societies with their very different environments and forms of land use. Depending on the particular problem of heritage research and management at stake, the size of the meaningful landscape or region may vary and inevitably the supra-regional scale will play a more or less prominent role. For example, during their winter-summer cycle, Upper Pleistocene hunter-gatherers exploited landscapes ranging from the central European mountain zones into the Northern European plain. To assess for research and heritage management their sites and the various landscapes they exploited theoretically one has to cross the borders of many historical regions and even modern nations. To take another example, those of us who are engaged in the "Frontiers of the Roman Empire", and who promote their status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site are also working at a trans-national scale. Although the Roman frontiers cross modern borders, they have to be conceptualised as a single "military" landscape. And there are of course many other examples to frame meaningful supra-regional landscapes (or seascapes, as in the Mediterranean world). Another form of supra-regional framing uses actual environmental or economic themes. Water management of river systems crossing modern boundaries is one of the strongest examples, since river systems represent in themselves traditionally meaningful entities. Modern infrastructures like high-speed railways or tourism also facilitate or require the linking of regions on a European level. European sponsored INTERREG programmes illustrate this. The other major trend is to cross the traditional borders of disciplines, sectors and institutions. This is more than cooperation by putting disciplines together, it means sidestepping the boundary by adopting and adapting the paradigms of both disciplines. It means also to establish a fruitful interaction between research and policy on the basis of mutual respect and meaningful interaction. And, finally, it entails the cooperation between expert/professional knowledge and local or lay knowledge. To arrive at inter- and transdisciplinarity as this is defined, not only on a national, but also on an European level, networks crossing the borders of regions and nations are needed.1 It will be evident that this is a very ambitious perspective, but it is the only sensible way forward. 16
Landscape and its problems are too complex to be solved from one specialist view, landscape is too relevant for modern society as a whole to be the sole responsibility of experts, and the value of regional and national landscapes are the constituents of the rich European landscape. The COST Action A27 is a major step towards the implementation of this perspective! This final volume of the impressive series of publications produced by the COST Action A27 group during the past years is the materialisation of what has been said before. Past landscapes and actual aspects of perceiving, characterising and presenting them to support their sustainable management are described. Theory, methodology and practice are discussed. Regional in-depth research using e.g. GIS of one particular region and the comparative approach combining different regions and a particular theme like medieval mining or Roman imperial landscapes illustrate the importance of the region. The concluding remarks show the progress made since the start of the program and the new perspectives for the future. We are grateful for the contribution to this progress by the various participants in this COST Action A27. But above all we have to thank Almudena Orejas and her colleagues from the Spanish Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) for managing this ambitious activity resulting in marvellous books and a European network of research and friendship. Amsterdam, March 2009
NOTES Multidisciplinary research is characterised by parallel tracks, each situated within a particular academic field, between which there is only limited interaction; while knowledge is exchanged, it is not integrated. Instead, each field works within its own conceptual framework and according to its own methods. Interdisciplinary research involves collaboration between various unrelated academic fields for the express purpose of crossing boundaries, such that researchers can create new knowledge (so-called unifying concepts) and achieve a common research goal. Here the adjective "unrelated" indicates that the disciplines in question differ with regard to their research paradigms, for example differences regarding quantitative, qualitative, analytical or interpretative approaches. In trans-disciplinary research, academics from different unrelated disciplines collaborate closely with non-academics in order to achieve certain research objectives and to develop new knowledge. This approach is participative and leads usually to negotiated knowledge such as common definition of problems, the identification of facts and the development of strategies (Tress, B.G., Tress, G and Fry, G. 2006: "Defining concepts and the process of knowledge production in integrative research". In: B.G. Tress, G. Tress, G. Fry and P. Opdam (eds.): From Landscape Research to landscape Planning. Aspects of Integration, Education and Application, Dordrecht (Springe): 13-26, especially 15-17). Inter- and transdisciplinarity are labelled as integrative research approaches. 1
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I THEORISING LANDMARKS
Pero pocos días después recordó que tenía dificultades para recordar casi todas las cosas del laboratorio. Entonces las marcó con el nombre respectivo, de modo que le bastaba con leer la inscripción para identificarlas […] Poco a poco, estudiando las infinitas posibilidades del olvido, se dio cuenta de que podía llegar un día en que se reconocieran las cosas por sus inscripciones, pero no se recordara su utilidad […] Así continuaron viviendo en una realidad escurridiza, momentáneamente capturada por las palabras, pero que había de fugarse sin remedio cuando olvidaran los valores de la letra escrita. (Gabriel García Márquez, Cien años de soledad )
LANDSCAPES IN EUROPEAN HISTORY. SOME THOUGHTS FROM THE COST A27 EXPERIENCE
Almudena Orejas
(Institute of History, CCHS - CSIC, Spain)
David Mattingly
(University of Leicester, United Kingdom)
Monique Clavel-Lévêque
(Parc Culturel du Biterrois, France)
Presentation This publication has been conceived as a way of presenting to the academic community and other audiences the valuable international scientific collaborations established or developed within a European research network, the COST Action A27 LANDMARKS. Throughout the different meetings, conferences and publications produced in the frame of the Action we had the opportunity of sharing experiences, discussing methodological approaches, debating research or management problems, and work trajectories carried out by individuals or pre-existent research teams. Short term scientific missions have allowed researchers to exchange ideas, test new issues or compare approaches. At the end of this journey we seek to present specific outcomes of co-operation (see appendixes). The Final Conference held in Iceland (Thingvellir) in September 2008 provided an excellent frame for presenting some of these common activities. In the following months the authors have worked together writing joint papers; some of them summarising ongoing joint projects; others presenting incipient collaborations. All the contributions have been submitted by two (or more) members of the Action belonging to
different national delegations. The table of contents encompasses all four Working Groups of the Action and fits in with the objectives of the Memorandum of Understanding (see below).1 The nature of the contributions is quite different, reflecting the wide scope of topics and perspectives that have enriched the Action’s activities. Some of them present results of common research; others focus on discussions on theory, methodologies or techniques; a third category offers debates or dialogues between different approaches; finally, a few advance emerging themes or new approaches, opening the door to future collaborative research programmes. The major axes that articulate the different papers collected in this publication are: • The construction of a theory for landscape studies, able to connect fundamental and applied research. • Strategies for recording and characterising landscapes and landmarks. • Specific proposals for protection and management. • Scientific and social approaches to landscape through perception, presentation and valorisation. • Landscape studies and policies.
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
Figure 1: a) Dalene Skov field system, Funen, Denmark (Photo: F.J. Sánchez-Palencia); b) Roman gold mine of Las Médulas, León, Spain (Photo: F.J. Sánchez-Palencia); c) Chachapoya agrarian landscape, Bóveda, Chuquibamba, Peru (Photo: Inge Schjellerup)
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Landscapes in European History
This book is the result of a desire of the members of Action A27 to contribute to the construction of an interdisciplinary and socially relevant research field on cultural landscape studies. We are convinced that transnational collaborations ensure an added value and open new possibilities of common understanding and shared initiatives beyond the different academic traditions and legal/administrative frames. This cooperative approach, based both on particular (local, regional, national) and collective (international) experiences, should constitute the core of the innovative and imaginative issues to be raised. Highlights, risks, perspectives The Action has not been alone. Between 2004 and 2008, the duration of LANDMARKS, many international collaborative projects concerning landscapes have been established and produced results; a few among them: ELCAI, EPCL, LE:NOTRE, SENSOR, ECLAS, Landscape Europe, Action COST A35.2 These coordinated efforts emanating from a variety of disciplinary approaches, experiences and "expertises" have showcased the recent importance of landscape studies. Whether they are more specific or multidisciplinary fora, they share a common understanding of landscape as a cultural creation, a diachronic manifestation of social relations and their interaction with the environment.3 Also, they provide evidence of the need to go a step further in order to integrate already matured research into truly interdisciplinary approaches. Moreover, the challenge lies not only in crossing disciplinary boundaries, but also eliminating barriers that hamper an open dialogue with non-academic spheres, creating stable channels of communication and interaction. Understanding landscapes as heritage is already standard knowledge in many contexts (Fairclough and Møller 2008; Fairclough and Møller in this book). Taking advantage of the diachronic nature of landscape in order to assess territorial planning and sustainable development measures is still largely an untapped resource. There-
in lies the answer to many of today’s problems: the depopulation of rural areas, the ordering of urban areas, the application of the Common Agricultural Policy or the economic reconversion of areas affected by the abandonment of traditional activities (Marcucci 2000). In this book some examples are presented of the predictive management potential of some landscape studies and tools (Salzmann, Bender and Bürgi), the possibilities opened by Geo-information Technologies (Lage, Corns, Shaw and Pecharromán; Evelpidou, Krek and Vassilopoulos), examples of successful integration of the past and the present (Clavel-Lévêque and Olesti; Claughton, Bartels and Bailly-Maître; Vermeulen and Barata), the potentiality of historical landscape studies in understanding complex cultural interaction (Mattingly and Orejas), and the importance of perception in actively constructing historical landscapes (CompatangeloSoussignan and Pierobon). Disciplinary perspectives and interdisciplinary approach Following specific scientific objectives, through their own particular routes, different disciplines have turned landscape into their object of study. By expanding its definition, accepting its polysemy and integrative nature, we may end up emptying it of any significant value, allowing room only for contemplative or subjective approaches. One of the defining characteristics of landscape studies is their holism, which is a world apart from generalist or simple-minded approaches. Throughout the Action more than a hundred researchers have shared the notion of landscape as a social construction, thus loaded with the full complexity of human relations which have shaped it. Albeit the standardised terminology is full of semantic differences, as we can see with "landscape" which is defined in multiple ways by language (Widgren 2004), academic traditions and administrative practices regarding its management (Fairclough and Møller 2008), there is still room for consensus when all approaches see landscape as a way of understanding social relations in their spatial dimensions and in the longue durée. 23
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
It is pointless and counterproductive to reject the disciplinary framework created in the last few decades by Geography, Landscape Ecology, Landscape Architecture, Landscape Archaeology, Geo-information Technologies, Environmental History, Landscape History, etc. They have all developed solid approaches, which have enabled the identification of converging areas and demonstrated the need to turn landscape research into a platform from which transversal scientific issues –particularly those with greatest social relevance– can be approached. Landscape research can only become this platform if there is an active methodological integration of shared tools which may homogenise data in order to make it compatible and comparable (Geo-Information technologies, 3D visualisation, SDIs…). Between local identities and globalisation. Local and global changes The coexistence of the realities of globalisation and the support of local identities seems to gravitate towards social schizophrenia. The increasing standardisation contrasts with the defence of local identities and the creation of narratives to legitimise them. A key element in that identification is that of space: a landscape interconnected with a group, which echoes – or is echoed by – the European Landscape Convention in article 1: "Landscape" means an area, as perceived by people, whose character is the result of the action and interaction of natural and/or human factors. The landscape harbours different rhythms and scales, affected by local historical processes which can only be properly understood in a more general context. This diachronic perspective of processes, changes and conflicts can contribute decisively to eliminate one-sided, simplifying or essentialist interpretations. Regional characterisations used to be based on elements of the physical geography (climate, orography, land use, etc.), currently the design of Landscape Character Areas is increasingly based on the dynamic and complex nature of factors which shape a landscape. Ongoing change and cul24
ture are the defining characteristics behind the landscape. Therefore, it cannot be presented as a static image, and its main value does not lie in its apparent exceptionality at any given moment in time. Usually this exceptionality refers to certain elements such as land use, land cover, practices, etc. If landscape is understood cumulatively, a fallacy is created: "traditional", a term which in fact hides multiple morphologies and practices interacting through time. The term "globalisation" has been greatly trivialised by being applied to quite different historical processes. There certainly is great methodological interest in "thinking globally", but there is also an attendant danger of simplifying processes and standardising situations which had completely different historical contexts. Several international cooperation projects, including LANDMARKS, are based on the presentation of case studies and the comparative approach to them in order to highlight both commonalities and singularities. In this way the two problems can be avoided: the local vision of landscape as unique and isolated, and the temptation to draw general processes or decisions affecting all in the same way. We have found it useful to establish the "region" as a reference point in landscape studies. By "region" we do not mean the administrative or typological unit, but the geohistorical reality that includes local processes understandable only within wider temporal and spatial coordinates. Modern and postmodern approaches to landscape Usually historians, geographers and archaeologists do not doubt the importance of morphological or morphogenetic studies of landscape. Only when the material stuff of the land is understood can we establish a truly scientific approach to the uses and contexts which articulate the landscape as a social construction. Some studies from the latter half of the 20th century focused exclusively on the descriptive aspects, limiting landscape studies to the morphological analysis and the inventory of structures, with no attention being paid to social relations and
Landscapes in European History
historical processes, which are responsible for the presence and articulation of those elements. The Humanities and Social Sciences contribute to the scientific approach to landscape by focusing on a "social" reading of the processes behind it.
strict methodological backing, which goes beyond morphology and morphogenesis, beyond description and identification of symbols in the landscape. The Third Culture and the Ethics of landscape
Postmodern approaches have given great importance to landscape as landscape perception, landscape as a way of seeing (Cosgrove and Daniels 1988; Widgren 2004). The adoption of the English meaning of the word "landscape" in the European Landscape Convention has helped to foster this subjective emphasis. Modern approaches were flawed because they were mere morphological studies, but postmodern ideas are in danger of being overly speculative and intuitive by prioritising subjectivity. In both strategies, understanding the full complexity of social relations is still key, for they bestow landscape with a shape, a value and a meaning. They are not, in this sense, incompatible approaches, but rather complementary. Obviously, a formal analysis of landscapes does not automatically lead to an understanding of social relations, productive strategies, property systems or power relationships. Likewise, a landscape should not be isolated from its broader chronological context as a freeze frame of a precise historical circumstance. It is in that inherent complexity where the potential of diachronic approaches to processes is made evident, tracking conflict and change. Reading landscapes socially and historically requires a
Figure 2: The restored terraced chesnut forest at Lostallo/ Mesocco, Switzerland (Photo: Raimund Rodewald)
After the approval of the European Landscape Convention4 in Florence in October 2000, the process of signature, ratification and entry into force5 has quickened progressively. Many countries have assumed the main principles and the commitment to establish measures to forward them. At this point, researchers are faced with the challenge of playing a role in a society which is demanding protection, management and planning of landscapes. In this direction, the first necessary step is our ability to communicate, which requires the creation of adequate channels and the identification of the correct audiences. It is not just a question of writing dissemination materials so that the public knows what science does, but showing that research can be more than just narrative: it can offer efficient tools for resource management, protecting spaces without fossilising them, and can contribute to the balanced and sustainable development and quality of life. A Third Culture –using the expression coined by Brockman (1995) which extended the proposal made by Snow (1963) regarding the Two Cultures– transforms research also into action. In relation to this point, three questions are addressed to the landscape studies scientific community: Are we aware of the potential implications of our work as researchers? Do we consider the comparative invisibility of the scientific activity as a social problem? Are "planning disciplines" a suitable scenario for developing that "third culture", becoming not only a meeting point for scientists but also the forum where scientific outcomes meet social needs? All too frequently we drift from opportunity to urgency, the first generated by "hot topics" which are easily fundable (global change, complex adaptive systems, biodiversity, non renewable resources, virtual reality…), the second 25
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
imposed by the need for quick responses in certain situations (impact of public works, natural disasters, drastic changes in land use and so on). Research cannot be understood as a self-serving activity, prone to dilettante speculation, and alien to the needs of society. It does, however, have the obligation to be independent –free, innovative and imaginative–, not tied to economic and political circumstance. It must be aware of driving forces but not subordinated to them. Research on cultural landscapes faces the challenge of finding the correct balance between acquiring knowledge per se –a result of the unlimited curiosity that humanity is endowed with– and "living in the world", placing that knowledge at the service of a society which demands it explicitly or implicitly. Researchers must know their responsibility in improving the quality of products and services, the quality of life. This must be done notwithstanding the
basic need to generate and transmit knowledge, and develop networks with it, which should never have a solely ancillary role to the demands of the market. This attitude implies, likewise, a need to participate in the unfinished process of giving landscape a physical and mental configuration. On the one hand, global planning of landscapes is based on false premises such as the demiurgic pretence of understanding and controlling all the factors involved in its construction, in its current state and in its future evolution. On the other hand, management does not necessarily involve commercialisation. A reasonable planning and management strategy must take account of the history behind the landscape for it has acted on three fronts: it has shaped its territoriality (institutional composition, shaping), it has turned it into a resource or set of resources, and it has bestowed it with a symbolic construction.
Figure 3: Roman Gold Mine at Dolaucothi, Wales, United Kingdom (Photo: Almudena Orejas)
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The three fronts mentioned must play a significant role, but "protecting" does not mean "fossilising", just as "safeguarding" does not entail emptying it, depopulating it or turning it into a reservation. The social image of protection is too often linked to the very conservationist mentalities which gave shape to many of today’s collections and museums. A somewhat intermediate solution lies in eco-museums or parks regarded as reserves (some evolving into today’s cultural parks or itineraries), which have had only partial success. This archaic conception of protection is still generally maintained, based on the exceptionality of the reality protected, a simplified vision of cultural heritage. Moving beyond this, historic landscape research should assume a significant role in governance and assessment, as well as an educational role, by demonstrating that social relationships are everchanging and complex, never quite adjustable to the paradigm of singular identities based on ancestral ties between communities, languages, traditions and lands. Often the concepts of protection, preservation and sustainable development are used too ambiguously or in a very flexible manner. The speed and irreversibility of changes today, both at the local and global scale –from climate change, to endangered species or ways of life– does not always warrant a meditated response, where the sustainable development model has been duly thought through. Offering history as the source of experience for correct decision making is a gamble with many implications. In addition to the traditional "fossilising" option, there is the riskier option of integrating the inherited heritage in development not just by simply coexisting, but by actively participating in it. Artifice in landscape research Landscape studies must count on two main vectors, which complement but do not substitute research itself: "patrimonialisation" (valorisation as Heritage) and new technologies. Frequently researchers tend to assume that by considering the object of study to be "Heritage", its scientific and social projection is automatic. Noth-
ing is intrinsically cultural, natural, historical or archaeological about Heritage. Society calls Heritage certain elements or ensembles because they acquire a recognisable value: material, symbolic, because of its representativeness or exclusiveness. It is, therefore, a selection which must be based on standard and acknowledged criteria and a research programme. Only solid research enables protection and offers landscape –in all its complexity, with the material and immaterial, the full network of relationships and meanings which research has uncovered– as Heritage. It is not just identifying outstanding elements in the landscape, it is accepting its complexity (Fairclough and Møller 2008). New Geo-information Technologies multiply, without a doubt, the capacity of data organisation, of using large amounts of geo-referenced data, of elaborating new data and presenting them in a clear and precise way (Bender et al. 2008). Moreover, they open the possibility of making information compatible, generating a shared language and making its use accessible to the scientific and non-scientific community. There are, however, three important risks: first, of forgetting that their use entails problematic issues regarding selection, treatment and presentation of information; second, the potential it has for virtualising, substituting and simplifying the complexity of relations through an image; third, the creation of data which do not respond to scientific issues or social demands. Research and disseminating research on cultural landscapes is not only about showing new or more elaborated pictures. In other words, both the Heritage dimension of landscape and the use of Geo-information Technologies are fundamental, but they must not be excuses for research with little or no scientific or social relevance. New panorama. New research areas at the cross roads Landscapes studies are closely connected to other emerging fields; none more so than the specific integrative research dealing with cul27
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
tural heritage, its assessment and monitoring. Landscape studies have the potentiality of generating a new specific cross-cutting research field shaped by specialists coming from diverse disciplines. Shall we go beyond merely juxtaposed knowledge? Are landscape studies only a circumstantial response to intellectual interests and social requests? There is no definitive answer. Another big question that has arisen in the last decade is how to integrate non-academic knowledge? Local (old and new) traditions, the accumulative perceptions of local populations, visitors, stakeholders, subjective readings of landscape and so on, are nowadays more and more relevant for studies focusing on landscape as a perception. How they can be included in the scientific background is not an easily solvable problem. The integration of languages, opinions and subjectivities is, thus, a remaining challenge. None of these factors can be ignored, but each of them is yet to find its place: the debate lies in the dichotomy between democrati-
sation and over-democratisation in landscape planning. The value of landscapes does not lie anymore in the absolute and iconic significance of a given landscape (like a monument), but in its capacity to show time, space, productive processes, conflicts, aesthetics, or destruction… They are all sides of one multifaceted reality, the permanently changing nature of a landscape: a synthesis of social relations through time. The Action COST A27 LANDMARKS. An overview6 Objectives of the Action COST A27 The Management Committee of the Action, in its first meeting held on June 24th 2004 in Brussels, adopted unanimously the objectives proposed in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU): ● The principal objective of the Action was the identification and the evaluation of pre-industrial
Figure 4: Archaeological Park of Fregellae, Italy (Photo: Giovanna Battaglini)
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elements in the European landscape, threatened by the abandonment of traditional agricultural and mining activities. ● Two main tasks related to this objective were seen as urgent: the intellectual examination of regional and local practices in the framework of broader historic processes and the understanding of the evolution of the present-day landscape through a diachronic reading of the landscape. ● From this point of view the Action focused on: ▪ Exploring the processes of change that these landscapes underwent. ▪ Evaluating the risks of loss in terms of social identity of the territories and of non-renewable Heritage resources. ▪ Envisaging the possibilities of incorporation and improvement of these spaces in society and the economy of the 21st century. ● The following secondary objectives articulated cooperative actions: a. Analysis of the morphological elements and models of integration in the landscape of today. b. Analysis of the technologies related to the historical use of landscapes. c. Diachronic study of specific legal and administrative practices. d. Analysis of landscape perception throughout history by the communities that inhabited and made use of them. e. Provision of mechanisms for the public presentation of landscapes and the optimisation of their Cultural Heritage related resources. Working Groups ● WG 1: Mining landscapes Many landscapes in Europe are strongly marked by pre-industrial mining and metallurgy. Today they are becoming gradually displaced landscapes, without economic profitability and with negative connotations due to the impact of these activities in the natural and social environment. WG 1 produced documentation by sampling significant mining areas in Europe. This information will help in future decisions for the val-
orisation of these zones. Co-ordinators: Christoph Bartels (GE), Javier Sánchez-Palencia (SP) Nº of members: 34 ● WG 2: Rural landscapes: landscape markers and the organisation of the land Certain types of agriculture and of livestockfarming are in regression or have already disappeared. This process causes the appearance of new risks such as fires and erosion and the loss of traditional practices, sometimes related with very old patterns of land use. A contextual inventory of a representative sample of traditional landscape markers was considered the basis for the evaluation of dynamics, possibilities of preservation and their role in regional development. Both physical markers and documentary sources were taken into account. Co-ordinators: Rita Compatangelo-Soussignan (FR), Per Grau Møller (DK), Francesca Reduzzi (IT). Nº of members: 60 ● WG 3: Virtual landscapes and databases This WG envisaged the production of efficient tools for the management and presentation of the information generated by WG 1 and WG 2. Research and dissemination focused on specific but consistent ways of treatment of textual and graphic data. An inventory of cultural landscapes and cultural parks constituted a key example of a "good practice" case studies. Co-ordinators: Giovanna Battaglini (IT), John Peterson (UK), Frank Vermeulen (BE) Nº of members: 29 ●WG 4: Transverse activities This WG was conceived early in the Action to be an umbrella organisation to ensure that the results of each WG were made available to all other WGs by specific liaisons, website postings, training activities and coordination. WG 4 has guaranteed the development of activities related to the dissemination of the Action’s works and results: website, training activities, formalisation of cultural landscapes (parks, itineraries…) 29
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
Co-ordinators: John Wilcock (UK) and Laure Lévêque (FR) Specific tasks: Training activities: John Grattan (UK) and Frank Vermeulen (BE) Network of Cultural Landscapes: Christoph Bartels (GE) and Laure Lévêque (FR) Website: John Wilcock Nº of members: 40 The history of the Action: general overview
(EC, UNESCO) recognised the important role of cultural/ historical landscapes, both as part of the common cultural heritage and as a potential socio-economic resource for the sustainable development. It is particularly relevant in downgraded regions, threatened by dramatic changes of land use and, consequently, of demographic structures. One of the axial ideas of the project was the need to develop high-quality research consistent with specific proposals for the protection and valorisation of landscapes.
a) Background The scientific and social context of the former project for collaborative research was presented in the MoU of the Action (Part I. Technical Annex). In 2002-2003, when the proposal was submitted, some European networks on landscape studies from the perspective of the Humanities and the Social Sciences were already running and several international institutions
Beyond the general academic and social framework, two main stimuli prompted the development of the Action: a) the benefits of previous experiences and involvement of the Action’s members in relevant international projects (Action COST G2 "Ancient landscapes and rural structures" (PASTA),7 the EC POPULUS project, ESF programme EARTH), and b) the need of implementation of the European Land-
Figure 5: Mgarr ix-Xini Valley Regional Park, Malta (Photo: Joseph Bezzina)
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scape Convention. This document, approved in 2000, constitutes an excellent frame both for developing research on landscape and for improving links between research, policies, protection, dissemination and their integration in the daily life of urban and rural communities in Europe. In fact, some of the most representative activities carried out within the Action have to do with the implementation of the ELC. This document has allowed us to establish a consensus on terms and topics as well as the identification of aspects of socially relevant research.
The research teams involved in these cooperation projects contributed to the Action in two ways; on the one hand, we included groups that specialised in the development of specific methods and techniques applicable to landscape studies (geo-information systems, palaeo-environmental analysis, geo-archaeological studies, informatics…), on the other hand, there were other groups working in regional projects all over Europe and interested in networking research on cultural landscapes/valorisation of landscapes as cultural heritage.
b) First steps
In fact, the core of the co-operation was not the comparative studies of past landscapes in material terms, fossilised and different from modernity, but the historical synthesis of multiple realities, synchronic and diachronic. That is why research on historic landscapes connects past and present: it recognises the on-going action of human communities on the environment. Landscapes are neither superposed nor stratified but interacting. Today’s landscapes keep traces both of the remote and of the recent past.
Generally speaking, the initial meetings and activities developed in 2004 and 2005 structured the subsequent work of the Action and determined the essential guidelines of our common activities. It has all risen out of a more detailed definition of the objectives within each WG and the establishment of a schedule adapted to the composition and real potential of each group, and to the time and resources available. The incorporation of new countries into the Action was positive, for LANDMARKS became a real meeting point of different academic traditions and ways of understanding the management of cultural landscapes in Europe. Despite the very dynamic debates on the meaning of the term landscape, the different disciplines and academic traditions involved in the Action consolidated a common ground and A27 became the forum for discussions and presentations both to the scholars and to a larger public. Landscape is the synthetic result of historical processes as well as a social construction in permanent change. The scientific approach to landscape enables the reading of the network of social relations within their spatial and chronological coordinates, in all their complexity. During the first meetings some crucial aspects were discussed such as the problematic delimitation between "pre-industrial" and "industrial" and the fundamentally non-sectorial character of pre-industrial landscapes.
c) Second steps The period 2006-2008 has been characterised by the progressive development of transversal and joint initiatives and more integrative research in the frame of the Action. Moreover, the Action has organised large scientific events and co-ordinated ambitious publications opened to the scientific community, as well as to other actors involved in the management of landscapes. During this period the Action has established or reinforced contacts with other research groups, programmes or networks. Certainly this period has been fruitful in terms of workshops, conferences and publications showing the outcomes of collaborative research (see Annexes). The Final Conference of the Action as well as this book provide excellent evidence of that: a forum for the presentation of papers written up in collaboration as the result of common works and reflections developed by members of different national delegations in the frame of the Action A27. 31
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
d) Perspectives The Action has stimulated collaborative research and has contributed to the creation of an open research area on landscape studies from the perspective of the Humanities and the Social Sciences. In 2008 we close a stage in the scientific collaboration but other possibilities have already been opened or will be in the next months. The Action A27 has facilitated bilateral and multilateral common initiatives and in the frame of the Action the embryos of new networks have emerged. The objectives and the outcomes of the Actions show some of the main trends and potentialities of the new perspectives on landscape studies and their implication in the European policies on cultural and environmental heritage, agrarian policy, regional development and territorial management. The Common Agricultural Policy, the INSPIRE Directive the EU Soil Directive, the implementation of the European Landscape Convention, and so on, are for landscape spe-
Figure 6: Bocage, Le Mans, France (Photo: Per Grau Møller)
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cialists fascinating challenges and opportunities. Main results achieved. General overview The Action’s work-plan as stated in the MoU was adopted as a set of guidelines for the development of the joint activities. Generally speaking the Action reached the objectives accorded and followed the steps planned in the scientific programme of the Action. The MC has tried to combine the organisation of specialised meetings and publications, together with activities addressed to the whole academic community and other sectors such as stakeholders or policy-makers (see Annexes). The Action achieved a large disciplinary and geographical representation: 11 countries initially expressed their interest and supported the submission of the proposal and 14 signatories joined the Action in 2004; with the final number of signatories reaching 21. The national delegations comprised more than 80 institutions (see
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Annex 5) and about 150 researchers were permanently involved. Participation in MC/WG meetings has directly involved some 90 different individuals from 21 countries, with an additional 25 experts from 7 countries participating in or attending our workshops. From the very beginning it was understood that one of the pillars of the correct development of the Action had to be interdisciplinarity. The composition of the MC and of the WG guaranteed this through the participation of historians, archaeologists, linguists, geographers, geologists, mathematicians, biologists, computer experts, GIS experts, remote sensing and spatial modelling experts, specialist in law, etc., as well as specialists in the management of cultural and natural resources. The diversity of institutions and other agents directly involved in the Action (universities, research institutes, cultural parks, heritage management centres, etc.) have enriched the work, operating at different spatial scales, from the international to the local. In the last two years, thanks to the involvement of the Action in the "ESF/ COST Interdisciplinary Scientific Initiative on Landscape Studies", contacts with other disciplines have been expanded, particularly with architects of landscape and landscape managers and planners. The participation of many of the national delegations in the organisation and co-ordination of activities and in terms of contributions to publications, workshops and conferences was very satisfactory overall. In terms of the research achieved on pre-industrial landscapes, the Action has put together a high-level group of experts in the European context, integrating teams and projects of great tradition or impact (like the Historic Landscape Characterisation program of English Heritage, or the Dutch programmes Belvedere and BBO, Protection and Development of Dutch historicarchaeological landscape) and several archaeological or cultural parks upheld by research teams included within the Action (Parc Culturel du Biterrois, Parchi Val di Cornia, Parco Arche-
ologico Fregellae, Zona Arqueológica de Las Médulas, Proyecto Veranes, Carnuntum Archaeological Park, GeoCultural Park of Eastern Aegean, Mġarr ix-Xini Valley Regional Park in Malta …). Thus, the Action has become an active forum for interdisciplinary research and has achieved its goal of interacting with nonacademic spheres. The Action facilitated co-ordination with national or regional projects as the above mentioned cultural parks or research projects, and other national funded projects in the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Slovakia and so on. Definitely one of the successes of the Action has been the capacity to get specialists in landscape studies working together with a more strategic interest. This trend confronted them with issues that will hopefully inspire them to further the debate on presentation and preservation of pre-industrial landscapes in their respective countries. The consolidation of contacts will contribute to the permanent connection of local, regional, national and European scales and the insertion of local decisions in large-scale planning. Landscape studies have moved from a peripheral position to the core of the Humanities in the last decades. We hope to have contributed to the reinforcement of this scientific area by the establishment of solid networking, able to cross academic boundaries and to act in response to contemporary cultural and socio-economic challenges. Landscape studies are able to give consistency to traditional approaches (based on artefacts, monuments, sites) and to integrate diverse approaches to the material record (palaeo-environmental, palaeo-economical, geo-archaeological…), with analytical techniques and different documents and information (material record, writing memory, iconographic representations, intangible heritage). Additionally, Landscape studies are proving their capacity for breaking borders between social and human disciplines and research areas focusing on environment or natural resources. This aspect is crucial due to its implications in territorial planning and management and in 33
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
the rationalisation and sustainable exploitation of resources, especially in rural areas, whether economically depressed or under tourism pressure. Landscape studies are the meeting point for various disciplines and tendencies; they garner both old and recent academic heritages. Operational frame and outcomes searched and achieved. From the very beginning the WGs focused their activities in: 1. The establishment of a census of significant case-studies, concentrating on representative examples rather than a complete overview of rural or mining sites in the whole of Europe. A key point was establishing operational procedures for decision-making based on useful criteria for the selection of really relevant sampling areas. These good practice case studies are expected to become an important tool for the connection Research – Training – Dissemination. The publications of the Action (particularly Lévêque et al. 2006 and Bartels at al. 2008) offer to scholars and to stakeholders a synthetic repertoire of much of the best local or regional projects developed in Europe in the last decade, illustrating both the key aspects of the scientific trajectory and the steps followed for the protection and public presentation of these cultural landscapes. The four working groups had to confront issues relating to the variety of landscapes in the concerned European countries and to take decisions about the best way to present consistent case-studies. 2. Methodological aspects and innovative techniques. The members of the Action A27 have encouraged constructive debate between different theoretical and methodological approaches represented within the Action. Some of the goals of the MoU have been re-oriented. In the case of the WG 3 these were extended beyond the initial objectives (focusing on the construction of data bases or in 34
the exploration of good practices on GIS) to encompass the global application of geo-information systems to cultural landscape studies (Bender et al. 2008). We consider it is necessary to go further than the traditional collection or representation of spatial data and to integrate them in geo-information systems specifically applied to the landscape studies: GIS, remote sensing, non-destructive survey techniques…. 3. Identification of transversal and diachronic topics. This discussion was broached in several WGs, pointing out that actual aspects, like problems of air, water and soil pollution, climate change, desertification (whether resulting from globalised industrialisation, urbanisation or agrarian over-exploitation), as well as social and demographic alterations, are important subjects that need to be diachronically analysed (Compatangelo et al. 2008). One of the main aims of the Action was to link the past and present through landscape: the starting point should be the present landscape and the future of landscape should be our ultimate horizon. Thus, preservation of landscape might be a strategic axis. 4. The collective works have focused on the need of promoting a new understanding of cultural landscapes within Europe stressing the consistency of the integral chain Research – Protection – Valorisation. Public presentation and valorisation (from a high-quality research) are the basis for the next step: the preservation of historic landscapes by its integration in the cultural and socio-economic coordinates of contemporary European societies (Fairclough and Møller 2008). Diverse academic traditions and conceptions came together in the Action but the discussions and joint activities have allowed us to identify common ground and the fruitful and respectful coexistence of multiple
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approaches, for instance in the instruments for the effective protection for landscapes (cultural parks developed in Southern Europe and integrative models developed in Northern Europe). Early-stage researchers in the Action A27 The involvement of early-stage researchers has been one of the concerns of the MC of the Action. Three mechanisms have been useful for this purpose: the integration of young researchers in the scientific activities promoted by the WGs (participation in WGs, oral presentations in WGs meetings, papers in collective publications and so on); the encouragement of applications to Short Term Scientific Missions (STSM);8 and the organisation and participation in specialised training schools. The Action organised an exclusive Intensive Training
School for young researchers Analytical techniques and mining landscapes (Aberystwyth, 6th-13th September 2007) and has co-organised the Interdisciplinary Training School on Science and Technology for the Cultural Heritage (Genova, Italy, 10th-15th September 2007) where all COST Actions regarding Cultural Heritage were present.9 The involvement of early-stage researchers has been positive not only for the sporadic contacts within the frame of the Action but for the establishment of permanent international contacts that could facilitate specialised postdoctoral training or be the embryo of future networking activities. The Action "beyond Europe" The Action A27 has enjoyed productive collaboration with the Universities of Ibn Tofail (Kéni-
Figure 7: Thingvellir World Heritage Park, Iceland (Photo: Almudena Orejas)
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Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
tra, Morocco) and Laval (Québec, Canada). The co-operation with the Institute of Ancient History of the University Laval (Québec, Canada) has been particularly fruitful. Members of the Action co-operated in a series of initiatives promoted from Quebec seeking the establishment of an international network. The Action was represented at an international congress which took place in October 2006 in Quebec on La gestion intégrée de l’eau dans l’histoire de l’environnement : savoirs traditionnels et pratiques modernes (Hermon 2008). Some of the most active participants in the Action have developed research projects in non-Europeans countries and in co-operation with local researchers and institutions. For instance, we highlight the research headed by Inge Schjellerup (Danish delegation) in Peru, David Mattingly (United Kingdom delegation)
Figure 8: Samos, Greece (Photo: Niki Evelpidou)
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in Libya and Jordan, Oriol Olesti (Spanish delegation) in Syria and Morocco. The outcomes or preliminary results of these projects has been presented and in some cases integrated in the Action’s scientific programme. Synergetic activities and contacts in the ERA The Action has been active in establishing or stimulating contacts with other research programmes. As synergic activities within COST, the participation in the "COST Interest Group on Cultural Heritage" can be stressed; this group organised the strategic meeting COST and Cultural Heritage: crossing borders that took place in Florence (October 2005). Contacts with ESF research projects and other scientific initiatives have been fertile and have opened new ways for future collaborations.
Landscapes in European History
Mention should be made of the ESF Networking Research Programme Early Agricultural Remnants and Technical Heritage (EARTH) through members of the Action (particularly the Danish and the Spanish delegations), who are also participating as researchers in that project dealing with the dynamics of non-industrial agriculture: 8000 years of resilience and innovation, and the ESF-COST Interdisciplinary Science Initiative A European Network of Networks: New Perspectives on Landscapes. The network integrates relevant COST Actions and ESF-funded activities, as well as national programmes and activities, spanning several scientific domains. The Action has been active in many scientific events related to the implementation and development of the 7th Framework Programme. Contacts and consultations have been regular with the Units of European Commission (DG Research) dealing with Environment and Cultural Heritage issues. By diverse means (documents, meetings, participation on expert working groups), we have expressed our interest on the consideration of Cultural Landscapes as a research topic in the 7th FP. LANDMARKS has been present at the three last EC Conferences on Cultural Heritage: 6th EC Conference on Sustaining Europe’s Cultural Heritage: from Research to Policy (London, 1st-3rd September 2004); 7th EC Conference on Safeguarding of Cultural Heritage. Understanding and viability for the Enlarged Europe (Prague, 31st May to 3rd June 2006) and 8th EC Conference on Research for Protection, Conservation and Enhancement of Cultural Heritage (Ljubljana, 10th -12th November 2008). The Action, through some active members, has established links with two EU Culture 2000 projects: EUCALAND (European Culture as expressed by Agricultural Landscape) 2008-09 which involves multi-disciplinary membership from UK, Spain, Italy, Croatia and Austria (the co-ordinating countries) and many others (eg Switzerland, France, Germany, Estonia). Graham Fairclough (UK delegation) is actively involved in this project. Slovenian researchers are involved in a connected European initiative Vir-
tual Heart of Central Europe. Recently the Action has been in contact with the co-ordinators of an initiative for the creation of a network of World Heritage Cultural Landscapes. This initiative called Alliance of Cultural Landscapes will adopt the formula of an international association. Members of the Action are involved in other international scientific initiatives, facilitating the circulation of information and networking. G. Fairclough (UK delegation) is a member of the External Advisory Board of Le:Notre (EU network on Landscape Architecture Schools); and the Action has lately intensified contacts with this network through the COST/ ESF ISI on Landscape Studies mentioned above. Scientific programme of the Action A27: publications, conferences, workshops and training schools In general terms three aspects have played a key role in the dissemination of the results of the Action: a) WG 4 has stimulated a range of transversal activity (workshops, publications, training school, websites); b) the national, regional or local institutions making the Action’s activities visible; and c) the presentation of the Action in scientific fora and non-academic events. The scientific activities developed within the Action are listed and detailed in the Annexes. Complementary information can be found in the previous Progress Reports of the Action and in the minutes of the meetings. The scientific events organised by the Action (especially conferences and publications) have been the meeting point for internal and external experts. Often the participation in the Action’s activities of external experts has opened the door to further co-operations in the frame of the Action or in other contexts. a) Websites ▪ The Action has maintained a general website, under the supervision of its webmaster John Wilcock (http://www. fcet.staffs.ac.uk/jdw1/costa27home. 37
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
html). The site has been supported by Staffordshire University and has been operational since July 2004, and will be maintained for several years after the end of the COST A27 Action. The website was not intended to be a full-scale database, but rather a series of links to information sources; it was conceived as a central point of contact information for researchers or research groups and WGs. ▪ A specific website on Cultural Parks / Museums & Cultural Projects/Activities has also been implemented (www.unipg.it/COSTactionA27/parks-activities), operational since October 2007. It is an initiative of the WG 3 and it is edited by the research team from the University of Perugia involved in the Action (Giovanna Battaglini and Francesca Diosono, coordinators), and Erik Pender (University of Naples web designer). The website is supported by the University of Perugia (Ripartizione servizi Informatici e Statistici, Area Servizi Web ▪ Web consultant Giulio Quaresima). The web site is conceived as a synthesis of the different works developed or in progress within Action A27: cultural sites, research projects and (eventually) other activities. The database uses information supplied from 13 countries and it is regularly updated. b) One important outcome of the Action has been the creation and promotion of links with national and regional research programmes. On the one hand the active collaboration of national research projects allows the co-financing of a wide range of COST A27 activities (reimbursements, publications, meetings…). On the other hand, national projects have been reinforced thanks to the Action COST A27 frame. 80 national institutions have been involved in LANDMARKS (see Annex 5). 38
c) The presence of the Action in different international conferences and scientific meetings made possible the enlargement of the scientific contacts as well as a better visibility of the Action's program of activities. We can list as examples, the EC Conferences on Cultural Heritage 2006, 2007 and 2008; meetings of the Europae Archaeologicae Consilium, the International Congress Vestiges de l’archéologie minière, de la fouille au musée (2006, Huez-Alpe d’Huez/Grenoble), annual meetings of the European Association of Archaeologists, the Cavtat Conference Construction aspects of built Heritage protection. Research needs (2006) organised by ECTP – FACH; the Forum Alpinum Landscape Development in Mountain regions (Engelberg, 2007); workshop A Place in Europe: towards a European Historical GIS initiative (Barcelona, 2007); the 4th annual HERA Conference / 1st European Conference for Collaborative Humanities Research (ECCHR) European diversities – European identities (Strasbourg, 2008). The detailed list can be found in the Action’s Final Report. Transfer of results Dissemination / social implications. The establishment of connections between research activities, valorisation initiatives and dissemination constituted an important chapter of the Action's development. Some activities were directly addressed to the improvement of the dissemination and the transfer of results to potential endusers. The most relevant aspects are: ▪ WG 4 of the Action has created an embryonic European network of Cultural Parks. It implies the public presentation of a chart, a specific label and the foundation of the network itself. This process implies the permanent contact with local actors and policy makers at a local or regional scale. The participation in
Landscapes in European History
the Action of research teams involved in local or regional projects has stimulated local development and the connection with global strategies. A specific working group has been formalised as a result of contacts established both in WGs meetings and STSMs. The last actions related to this initiative have relied on the active participation of local authorities responsible of territorial planning and management and cultural heritage protection. The dedicated website on Cultural Parks and Cultural Projects and activities is also connected with this initiative. ▪ As mentioned, the Action A27 is actively involved in the COST-ESF Interdisciplinary Scientific Initiative on Landscape Studies, the final aim of which is to establish solid links between research and policy, coordinating humanistic, social and environmental approaches.
▪ Publications such as Journeys through European Landscapes (Lévêque et al. 2006) or Landmarks. Profiling Europe’s Landscapes (Bartels et al. 2008) seek to contribute to the better knowledge of cultural landscapes in Europe, linking academic and non academic spheres. ▪ Many initiatives have as a framework the implementation of the European Landscape Convention as stressed in the Heritage Management Symposium of the EAC, in the Round Table on the European Landscape Convention (EAA) and in the publication Landscape as Heritage – The Management and Protection of Landscape in Europe, a summary by the Action COST A27 LANDMARKS (Fairclough and Møller 2008). Naturally, we believe the training activities have been very efficient ways for the dissemination of the Action’s scientific programme and for the transfer of knowledge. The Action has been able to offer resources for the provision of specific technical training in various areas covered by the Action. Such measures are essential for the different agents involved in the integrated management of Cultural and Natural Heritage, and the organisation of territory. Highlights
Figure 9: Rammelsberg Museum, Germany (Photo: Oriol Olesti)
Interdisciplinarity has been one of the pillars of the Action A27. The number of participants and their different backgrounds enriched the common work, but at times it also made it difficult to find common ways of working. Actually, the participation in the Action of diverse disciplinary perspectives and academic traditions regarding landscape as scientific object of study generated, especially in the first stages of the Action, many divergent and sometimes contradictory interests. Thus it was initially difficult to establish common ground and to standardise terminology. But this circumstance opened opportunities for better mutual understanding within the diversity and unexplored ways of co-operation, especially from 2006. Advances in sharing a common language and practices, 39
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
beyond the national differences are evident: the different Working Groups have adopted some basic common points to be taken into account both in the research and in the public presentation and they are reflected in the scheme adopted for the presentation of case-studies or in the agreement on some main axes in the orientation of future research. For instance, the nonsectorialisation of pre-industrial economies that is reflected in the complexity of landscapes in turn requires landscape studies to adopt a diachronic approach that takes account of both social structure and territorial frames. Probably further projects or initiatives in Landscape Studies will be able to go one step beyond, enlarging the scope of disciplines and approaches and improving the involvement of stakeholders, policy makers and local or regional authorities and actors. Nonetheless, we
hope that the LANDMARKS Action has made a useful contribution by highlighting the ways in which such a joint approach marks the best way forward. One of the biggest challenges has concerned how to develop capability to connect international co-operation based on the COST Action A27 with national and regional research programmes and institutions involved in local/regional policies (regarding cultural and natural values in the frame of spatial planning). While we have been able to reach an important level of consensus on many issues within the Action, we are applying those ideas in (very) different circumstances, in (very) different legal frameworks and academic traditions. LANDMARKS has been playing a significant role in stimulating international collaboration but, not less important, it has also been contributing to the better working of national networks, and even stimulating the formalisation of national cooperation. One of the best proofs of the success of the Action is the progressive intensification of international collaborations. In some cases this had led to the creation of internal "sub-nets" that could be the embryos of future trans-national European research programmes, focusing on topics such as geo-information technologies, volcanic landscapes, pre-industrial silver mining in Europe, Roman mining in Italy and in the Western provinces, perception and change of symbolic landscapes and places, spatial data visualisation.
Figure 10: Island of Elba – Rio Albano Mine, red pond formed on processing area, Conche site, Italy (Photo: Marco Lunghi)
40
Landscapes in European History
NOTES 1 Both the Memorandum of Understanding of the Action and the main chapters of the Final Report of LANDMARKS are available in the Action’s website: http://www.soc.staffs.ac.uk/jdw1/costa27home.html
ELCAI, European Landscape Character Initiative, FP5 Accompanying Measure Project: Perez-Soba and Wascher 2005; http://www.landscape-europe.net/projects2.html. SENSOR, Sustainability Impact Assessment: Tools for Environmental, Social and Economic Effects of Multifunctional Land Use in European Regions; Helmig et al. 2007; www.sensor-ip.org. EPCL, European Paths to Cultural Landscapes: Ermischer 2005; http://www.pcl-eu.de/indexen.php. LE:NOTRE Thematic Network Project in Landscape Architecture: www.le-notre.org. ECLAS, European Council of Landscape Architecture Schools: http://www.eclas.org. Landscape Europe: Wascher and Pedroli 2008; Pedroli et al. 2007; http://www.landscape-europe.net/index.html. PROGRESSORE, Action COST A35 Programme for the Study of European Rural Societies: http://www.cost.esf. org/domains_actions/isch/Actions/PROGRESSORE 3 Cultural landscapes have occupied specific spaces in international high level meetings such as the last EC Conferences on Cultural Heritage (6th EC Conference on Sustaining Europe’s Cultural Heritage: from Research to Policy, London, 1st-3rd September 2004; 7th EC Conference on Safeguard of Cultural Heritage. Understanding and viability for the Enlarged Europe, Prague, 31st May to 3rd June 2006; 8th EC Conference on Research for Protection, Conservation and Enhancement of Cultural Heritage, Ljubljana, 10th -12th November 2008), the ARCHAIA Training Seminars on Research Planning, Characterisation, Conservation and Management in Archaeological Sites, the 4th annual HERA Conference / 1st European Conference for Collaborative Humanities Research (ECCHR) European diversities – European identities (Strasbourg, 8th – 9th October 2008), or the annual meetings of the European Association of Archaeologists. 2
http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/en/Treaties/Html/176. htm
4
The total number or ratifications/ accessions in 2009 is 30; the number of signatures not followed by ratification is 6. 5
6 This section is based on the Final Scientific Report of the Action prepared by the Chair of the Management Committee of the Action, supported by the Vice-Chairs, the co-ordinators of the four Working Groups and Guillermo Sven Reher (CCHS, CSIC, Madrid). It is based on the previous annual progress reports of the Action as well as on the national reports provided annually by the national delegates. The final full version has been approved by the members of the MC and it can be consulted in the Action website. Most of the working documents such as the Memorandum of Understanding, minutes, progress reports, programmes and scientific reports of workshops, conferences and training schools are also accessible in the Action’s website. A first summary of the scientific collaboration on landscape studies has been presented in the frame of the Training Seminar ARCHAIA in Bologna, May 2008 (Orejas and Ruiz del Árbol 2008).
The Action G2 was chaired by Prof. Monique ClavelLévêque (France) and 14 signatories were involved: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and United Kingdom: http://www.sys.uea.ac.uk/ Research/researchareas/JWMP/COSTG2/costg2.html
7
20 STSM have taken place, 13 of them have involved early stage researchers.
8
The Action also has collaborated in two other training schools: the Summer School organised by the University Complutense of Madrid (Spain) From Landscape Archaeology to Landscape as Heritage (San Lorenzo del Escorial, 1st - 5th August 2005) and the ARCHAIA Training Seminars (Bologna, 15th - 18th May 2008) on Research Planning, Conservation, Characterisation and Management in Archaeological Sites. 9
41
Almudena Orejas, David Mattingly and Monique Clavel-Lévêque
Bibliography Bartels, Ch., Ruiz del Árbol, M., van Londen, H. and Orejas, A. (eds.) 2008: Landmarks. Profi ilng Europe’s Landscapes, Bochum (BDM, COST, CSIC). Bender, O, Evelpidou, N., Krek, A. and Vassilopoulos, A. 2009: Geoinformation Technologies for Geocultural Landscapes: European Perspectives, London (Taylor & Francis). Brockman, J. 1995: The Third Culture. Beyond the Scientific Revolution, New York (Simon & Schuster). Compatangelo-Soussignan, R., Bertrand, J.R, Chapman J. and Laffont, P.Y (eds.) 2008: Marqueurs des Paysages et systèmes socioéconomiques. Landmarks and socio-economics systems. Proceedings of the Le Mans Conference (7th-9th December 2006), Rennes (Presses Universitaires de Rennes). Cosgrove, D. and Daniels, S. 1988: The Iconography of Landscape, Cambridge (Cambridge University Press). Ermischer, G. 2005: "Pathways to Cultural Landscapes: how to gain European understanding of the Cultural Landscape". In Ruiz del Árbol and Orejas (eds.): Landscapes as Cultural Heritage in the European Research. Proceedings of the Open Workshop (Madrid, 29th October 2004), Madrid (CSIC): 107-131. Fairclough, G. and Møller, P. G. 2008: Landscape as Heritage. The Management and Protection of Landscape in Europe, a summary by the COST A27 project "LANDMARKS", Bern (University of Bern). Helmig, K., Tabbush and Perez-Soba, M. (eds.) 2007: Sustainability Impact Assessment of Land Use Changes, Berlin (Springer Verlag). Hermon, E. (ed.) 2008: Vers une gestion intégrée de l’eau dans l’Empire Romain (Actes du Colloque International, Université Laval, octobre 2006), Rome ("L’Erma" di Brestschneider, Atlante Tematico di Topografía Antica XVI Supplemento).
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Lévêque, L., Ruiz del Árbol, M., Pop L. and Bartels, Ch. (eds.) 2006: Journeys through European Landscapes/ Voyages dans les paysages européens, Ponferrada (Fundación Las Médulas – COST). Marcucci, D.J. 2000: "Landscape history as a planning tool", Landscape and Urban Planning 49: 67-81. Orejas, A. and Ruiz del Árbol, M. 2008: "Ten years of collaboration on Cultural Landscapes research". In N. Marchetti and I. Thuesen (eds.): ARCHAIA. Case Studies on Research Planning, Characterisation, Conservation and Mangement of Archaeological Sites, Oxford (Archaeopress, BAR Int. Series 1877): 249-256. Pedroli, B, van Doorn, A., de Blust, G., Paracchini, M.L., Wascher, D. and Bunce, F. 2007: Living Landscapes. Essays exploring our identity in the countryside, Zeist (KNNV Publishing- Landscape Europe). Perez-Soba, M. and Wascher, D. (eds.) 2005: Landscape Character Areas. Places for building a sustainable Europe (Policy Brochure as deliverable from the EU’s Accompanying Measure Project ELCAI), Wageningen (Landscape Europe – Alterra). Snow, C. P. 1963: The Two Cultures: A Second Look, Cambridge (Cambridge University Press). Wascher, D and Pedoli, B. 2008: Blueprint for EUROSCAPE 2020. Reframing the future of the European Landscape, Landscape Europe (pamphlet). Widgren, M. 2004: "Can landscapes be read?". In H. Palang, H. Sooväli, M. Antrop and G. Setten (eds.): European rural landscapes: persistence and change in a globalising environment, Boston (Kluwer Academic Publishers): 455-465.
HISTORIC LANDSCAPES IN EUROPE: HIGHLIGHTS AND CHALLENGES
Heleen van Londen (University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Almudena Orejas
(Institute of History, CCHS - CSIC, Spain)
María Ruiz del Árbol (CCHS - CSIC, Spain)
Introduction In the period between 2004 and 2008 an Action for scientific co-operation was funded by COST designated as COST A27 Understanding pre-industrial structures in rural and mining landscapes (LANDMARKS). As defined in the
Memorandum of Understanding of the Action, the main objective was to identify and evaluate pre-industrial elements in the European landscape threatened by the abandonment of traditional agricultural and mining activities. Behind
Figure 1: A27 Management Committee at work during a meeting in Bochum, Germany (2007) (Photo: EST-AP, CSIC)
Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
these objectives lay the belief that recovery of landscapes is part of the European Cultural Heritage and important both for research and for the creation of new resources.1 During the years of the COST Action collaboration between academic researchers of various European countries flourished through COST A27 meetings and common projects (figure 1). These allowed the authors to reflect and interchange ideas and opinions about the two major themes of our Action: the close relation between historical-archaeological research on the one hand and its application to the protection and public presentation of Cultural Heritage on the other. In writing this article colleagues from Spain and The Netherlands worked together to outline some possible future directions for the themes of the Action and to consider how it could be taken a step further. The basis of cooperation lies in the collaboration during the book Land-
marks- Profiling Europe's Historic Landscapes (Bartels et al. 2008) (figure 2). The preparation of the introduction for that work allowed us to summarise some of the results of these discussions. It is our intention now to get deeper into the ideas addressed in that book focusing on the strategic aims of research in historical-archaeological landscapes through themes such as the value that research gives to landscapes, their diversity, and transformations and approaches, the proactive participation of researchers in planning and the effectiveness of such actions. The core of the article will be a SWOT analysis, going over the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, leading to suggestions for future strategies to link research and policy for sustainable development of the archaeologicalhistorical landscapes of Europe. We intend to propose new insights for advancing landscape studies in the future. The Historical Dimension of European Landscapes and COST Action A27 LANDMARKS The landscapes of Europe contain a dazzling time depth harbouring traces of past cultures and of people that inhabited the land before us. Some of these traces are visible; others are covered and can only be experienced through stories and maps. Some are exceptional, others are common. The past has made our land what it is today and what we do shapes the future of it. The importance of the landscape on both regional and European scale can hardly be exaggerated and is aptly described by the European Landscape Convention in 2000. In the preamble to the European Landscape Convention of Florence, 20 October 20002 it is stated:
Figure 2: Cover of the book Landmarks- Profiling Europe’s Historic Landscapes (Bartels et al. 2008)
44
The landscape … has an important public interest role in the cultural, ecological, environmental and social fields, and constitutes a resource favourable to economic activity and whose protection, management and planning can contribute to job creation;
Historic landscapes in Europe: highlights and challenges
… contributes to the formation of local cultures and … is a basic component of the European natural and cultural heritage, contributing to human well-being and consolidation of the European identity; … is an important part of the quality of life for people everywhere: in urban areas and in the countryside, in degraded areas as well as in areas of high quality, in areas recognised as being of outstanding beauty as well as everyday areas; … is a key element of individual and social well-being and … its protection, management and planning entail rights and responsibilities for everyone The choices made concerning the landscape today determine the fate that awaits its historic dimensions. It is important to create greater awareness concerning the effect of human actions. The influence of world-wide problems of food production, energy, the environment and agricultural subsidies have an immediate effect on our land and the heritage that comes with it. It is clear that development can not be stopped and this is not on the agenda. Instead, it must be stressed that the landscape must be managed in such a way that the historical dimensions are sustained. Knowledge of these historical dimensions is required to achieve evidence-based policy.
COST A27 was designed and launched with this aim in mind: on the one side, were these theoretical aspects related to landscape research and protection. On the other, the historical problems shared by many European research teams and institutions both at a national and international level (global and historic analysis of the characteristics of pre-industrial rural settlement, the study of pre-industrial social relations and the perception of these relations in the written sources …). Links between researchers and professionals involved in these research topics have been important since the eighties particularly through the Action COST G2 PASTA (Ancient landscapes and rural structures) which, in a certain degree, aided the formation of the COST A27 network (Sánchez-Palencia et al. 2005). As already stated, the central aim of the Action was the identification and the evaluation of pre-industrial structures in European landscape, threatened by the abandonment of traditional agricultural and mining activities facing the acceleration globalisation provokes in the destruction of landscape differences resulting from traditional activities (figure 3). The Action has looked at the processes of change affecting these landscapes and the role of pre-industrial structures and elements in the past and for the future.
Luckily, landscape is increasingly recognised as having an important value and significant examples are the different programmes on cultural landscapes developed at different scales (to mention but one: the Blueprint for EUROSCAPE 2020, Wascher and Pedroli 2008) but few imply the coordinated collaboration between archaeologists and historians.
Every team involved has made a particular contribution to the Action based on their experiences of research at the crossroads of historical, environmental, space planning, Cultural Heritage and other fields of study. The coordinated work has produced concrete results within the frame of the Action, contributing to the recovery of landscapes as an essential part of European Cultural Heritage, as a research topic and as a cultural, social and economic resource.3
The role of archaeologists and historians is essential in cultural landscape identification, characterisation and management. These processes must be carried out in the context of the implementation of the objectives of the European Landscape Convention and must be science based.
Action COST A27 LANDMARKS has provided a forum for diverse experts to focus on the links between the past and the future of European landscapes. IT-specialists, historians, archaeologists, geologists, specialists in literature and other professions formed an interdiscipli45
Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
Figure 3: General view of the main opencast gold mine at Las Médulas, Spain. (Photo: EST-AP, CSIC)
nary group brought together by a shared goal formulated in the Memorandum of Understanding. Case studies and methods were exchanged, but also visionary and strategic aspects were discussed to find common ground to set an agenda for the future. By doing this, the Action members were well aware of the political implications and the need to interact with groups outside academia, meaning the public and policy makers. Profiling Europe's Historic Landscapes: Strengths, Threats, Weaknesses and Opportunities of Archaeological-Historical Landscape Studies (and Projects) The theme of the interrelation between knowledge and policy for sustainable development of historic landscapes was present from the first meeting of the Action onwards. A look at the index of the proceedings of that meeting (Ruiz 46
del Árbol and Orejas 2005) show that this theme formed the basis of discussions held in Madrid; on the one hand, the research on landscapes (and its valorisation as cultural heritage); on the other, the regional dimension in a European context. The Landmarks book was produced towards the end of the action and is taken here as the basis for reflection on the past focussing on the challenges for the future. Before the actual SWOT analysis, the essence of that book will be briefly presented. The book contains comparative case studies of several European historic landscapes that illustrate the wide scope of diversity in landscapes, landscape research and the national or local awareness for science-based sustainable development. Landscapes come to the front showing that, in general terms, landscape studies constitute a suitable framework for the meeting of people from diverse administrations and both
Historic landscapes in Europe: highlights and challenges
academic and non-academic institutions all with different competences (cultural, environmental, territorial planning, agricultural and so on). In this context Human and Social Sciences in general, and History and Archaeology in particular, can play a central role in the choices for shaping the landscape for the future. These case studies show that landscapes can be researched and valorised through inter- and trans-disciplinarian research projects combining expert and local knowledge. The projects have resulted in the dissemination of knowledge, experiences and "best practices" in policy, research, education and public spheres. The differences in phasing of the processes, the specificity of contexts and the many dimensions of diversity in European countries and landscapes should be acknowledged and exploited. In the Landmarks introduction we stressed the need for knowledge-based policy when it comes to spatial planning in order to incorporate the old in the new and monitor areas that are too vulnerable for change. We argue that the creation of an attitude and mentality for sustainable development in policy, research, education and public interest is necessary. Sustainability can take various forms: "Archaeological-historical sustainability needs various forms and conditions as a foundation for the process of sustainable development: material, conceptual, methodical and disciplinary. Material sustainability refers to the quantity and constitution of archaeological-historical values. Conceptual sustainability is needed since sustainable development is a long-term and continuous process; as a consequence it has to be supported by an open and at the same time powerful concept or metaphor such as the "biography of landscape" or "lieu de mémoire". Methodological sustainability is necessary because of the complexity in reaching the aim of a sustainable landscape. And disciplinary sustainabil-
ity requires multi-, inter- and trans-disciplinary cooperation, because the aim of sustainable development of cultural landscapes crosses the borders of disciplines and sectors" (Introduction, Landmarks, page 9 following Bloemers 2005 and 2006). Strategies are necessary to implement such aims. Three different types of issues or actions, we pointed out, can build a strategy that will result in a successful shift in attitude and mentality: diversity, pro-active participation in planning and effectiveness. The added value also present in the various case studies of the COST A27 was explained as follows: "Diversity covers the rich potential behind the topic of historic landscapes in Europe: the richness of landscapes, the complexity of past, present and future environmental developments, the variety in political, institutional, cultural and intellectual traditions linked with the national member states of the European continent. The active involvement in environmental planning is crucial for the future of European historic landscapes, because the confrontation of various interests concerned with the use of space takes place in the arena of planning policy and particularly on the national and regional level. And this action should start at the earliest possible phase of the planning process and should be driven by clear strategic views. The third issue is effectiveness, since the transformation of European historic landscapes is going on already for decades and it accelerates and intensifies quickly. So, there is a real sense of urgency not only to think, but also to act at the same time" (Bartels et al. 2008: 11). Having presented examples of good practices and common goals and strategies, where does this bring us now? A SWOT analysis of our practices so far allows us to make an inventory to focus on future actions. 47
Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
Strengths ● Fruitful cooperation between different disciplines, countries and traditions: European dimension (figure 4) ● Multidisciplinary research results that reach well into society and protective policies: the case studies present projects where archaeological research and heritage intervention enjoy the attention of both academic institutions and public administrations ● Interaction between research and action: historical landscape interpretation is used to enhance the management of the landscape (maintenance of the difficult balance between scientific research, management and landscape dissemination) ● Variety of approaches as a result of diversity of discourses, academic traditions and management policies but also the differences in types of landscape, political and economic conditions, spatial context and local communities
● Diversity of studies, showing the rich variety of landscapes structured by pre-industrial rural and mining activities and the strong relationship between the character of nature and the human influence on its morphology in different ecozones ● Vitality of the theory and praxis of cultural landscape research and management (of particular interest for landscape oriented policies is the English approach to landscape archaeology and history, known as Historic Landscape Characterisation, Fairclough and Wigley 2005; Wigley et al. 2008) ● Researchers and research teams: critical mass with great concern and efforts to fully integrate cultural landscape into spatial planning (strong concern to think and act at the same time) ● Integration of research and policy, knowledge and action, professionals and local communities ● Presence of the long term: diachronic studies,
Figure 4: A27 group of researchers visiting Roman gold mines at Dolancothi, near Aberystwyth (Photo: Heleen van Londen)
48
Historic landscapes in Europe: highlights and challenges
landscapes with considerable time-depths ● Innovative use of new technologies: major advances in methodology for mapping and analysing complex landscapes Weaknesses ● Conceptual weaknesses: • In the heritage sector there is traditionally a focus on individual sites and monuments and on scheduling them as protected objects. These "sectoral" structures do no fit the new approach dealing with landscape as an entity • There is a need for conceptualising landscape: landscape is not everything ● Scientific weaknesses: • Absence of a common language and the different mechanism and levels of protection of the historical heritage complicates communication and comparisons • Few cross-cutting actions between scientific areas • Scant coordination of dissemination activities • There is a need to make concepts usable at the local level • Slow transfer of knowledge (time-lag between research and policy) ● Political weaknesses: • While research results in a positive status, in most cases protection, specific management and presentation to a wider public stay behind • Policy has often no research available ● Organisational weaknesses: • Inefficient financial and administrative management (the response to changes in the scientific and social environment is slow) • Impractical political and administrative infrastructures (i.e. Cultural Heritage laws, see Fairclough and Møller 2008) • Staff (researchers whose other duties constrain their time for research) ● Of competencies: • Hierarchical dependence of single ministries (and rarely of the ministry of culture) • Inadequate coordination and lack of dependence in decision making
•
Decisions susceptible to political vicissitudes ● Structural weaknesses: • Limited budgets • Inadequate management and planning protocols and infrastructures Opportunities ● Scientific opportunities: • The axis research-valorisation-dissemination is an approach that has made research projects become the seed that spurred a variety of archaeological initiatives in several areas • Several examples show how research influences the protection and development by placing value on the landscape (Bender 2008; Hammer et al. 2008; Sánchez-Palencia et al. 2008). In some cases protection and utilisation of traditional cultural landscapes are tied to regional development (examples of integrated protection and utilisation addressed to the preservation of valuable traditional cultural landscapes in regional contexts) (figure 6)
Figure 5: Netherlands large scale development at Broekpolder (Photo: Heleen van Londen)
49
Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
Figure 6: Central area of the Cultural Park of Biterrois, France (M. Clavel-Lévêque et L. Lévêque, published in Bartels et al. 2008)
• •
Horizontal (interdisciplinary research) Historical approach: the adoption of a "vertical viewpoint" by understanding and exploiting the time-depth of the landscape (combination with landscape architecture) • Community of practice: existing disciplinary expert and local chains of knowledge values (experience, information, abilities) ● Financial opportunities: national programmes; new scientific programmes at a European level (initiative ISI COST-ESF) ● Social opportunities: • Variety of intellectual and cultural traditions of regions and nations • Social (and economic) demand: commitment of local people to their own environment • Change of attitudes • Observatories of social and political interest 50
● Political opportunities • ELC • Common Agricultural Policy • The growing importance of regional and local institutions in putting planning into practice ● International opportunities: cooperation (COST A27, ISI COST-EST New perspectives on landscape studies …), representation of landscape researchers on international bodies Threats ● Present day landscapes are threatened by major transformations: the abandonment of land use forms and the over-use by the local populations and tourists, alteration of the environment, demographic developments, climate and its effects … ● Despite the dynamism of human and social sciences, there are other research areas traditionally
Historic landscapes in Europe: highlights and challenges
stronger in relation to landscape management and with more advanced, dynamic and competitive instruments (ecology, biology …) ● Exclusion of human and social sciences from specific scientific environments managed by ministries other than culture (a good exception to this is the Belvedere Memorandum and the example of The Netherlands: Bloemers 2005; van Beek et al. 2008) (figure 5) ● Non-centrality of historical landscape studies in European scientific policies ● Diversity of actions: differences and disequilibria between Northern and Southern Europe (science, management, infrastructures) ● Some human and social academic environments are not conceptually opened to a landscape approach (history and archaeology practices traditionally focus on sites and monuments). Loss of internationalisation of landscape research ● Difficulty in obtaining funds (an example was the difficulty of the initial evaluation of the A27 due to the non-existence of an appropriate committee of experts) ● Lack of motivation in policies, industry (few interaction social and human sciences and technological or industrial sectors): non-existence of a coherent discourse between the domains of the expert, the public and politicians. Highlights and challenges (revisiting COST A27 MoU, results and ways forward) The case studies of the Landmarks book have been considered as laboratories where different experiments in approaches are carried out to discover "best practices", fitting these to specific landscape transformations and ways of "managing" them by the local communities. The SWOT analysis has identified the main strengths to be the multidisciplinary research and the presence of long-term planning; the variety of approaches and diversity of studies, well related to the European dimension; the vitality of the theory and praxis of cultural research which leads to a coherent integration of research and policy, knowledge and action; the presence of a critical mass of research
teams, very much concerned with the transfer of the results of their research into society. On the other hand, the weaknesses are identified as being those relating to aspects of the management of the landscape and the role of archaeological-historical landscape research on it. The transfer of concepts, political and administrative structures, limited budgets and the existence of an inadequate organisational structure (landscape management related to a hierarchical dependence on single ministries, often environmental and rarely the ministry of culture) are the weaknesses given the strongest negative assessment in our SWOT analysis. This consideration means also that historical landscape research has little room for manoeuvre to embark on specific research projects with a European dimension as these have generally not been eligible for funding through standard public calls for proposals. Moreover, few crosscutting actions between scientific areas and the inadequacy of European schemes relating to historical landscape studies (difficulty to found calls in which projects can fit) are further weaknesses with a strongly negative strategic relevance (and they need to be dealt with carefully in the design of the landscape research strategy for the coming years). Lastly, the absence of a common language and the need to make concepts usable at the local level, were also identified as a significant weakness, and one that underlies and sums up many of the other weaknesses detected. As regards the opportunities, the SWOT analysis allows us to conclude that the inclusive character of landscape research is an ideal field for the further development of interdisciplinary research and the potential of the historical approach. Other opportunities identified in the analysis include the existence of a community of practice; the socio-economic demand for research results (especially significant is the commitment of local people to their own historical environment) and the emergence of new scientific research policies. Obviously, these two strengths will be of considerable use to it in making the most of this opportunity (in the context of the implementation of the European Landscape Convention). 51
Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
One relevant factor under the heading of threats is the existence of research disciplines with more advanced, dynamic and competitive instruments. Although these (Ecology, Biology, Forestry…) are intrinsically good for landscape research and policies, and therefore complementary to the historical-archaeological studies, they are also a significant threat for our disciplines in that they are strong competitors both for research funding and landscape management. Indeed, their closer integration in scientific and management structures (and also the non-inclusion of human and social sciences in specific scientific environments) lead to a non centrality of historical landscape studies in European scientific policies. Given landscapes multiple character and diversity better opportunities may potentially arise if a coherent discourse between the domains of the expert, the public and politicians is promoted. Another of the threats analysed in the SWOT analysis, which needs to be taken into account in the landscape research strategy for the future,
Figure 7: World Heritage site Thingvellir, Iceland (Photo: Heleen van Londen)
52
is the differences and disequilibria between Northern and Southern Europe; given the differences in science development, landscape management and infrastructures, this diversity poses a threat to future collaborations. The SWOT analysis enabled the identification of those elements which may have the greatest influence over the historical-archaeological research on landscape strategy over the next few years. According to these elements of the analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) and the interactions between them, some considerations towards a strategy of future actions must be made, so as to promote the strengths to the full and to try to overcome the weaknesses detected. Action COST A27 LANDMARKS has contributed to debate by emphasising the protagonist role of social and humanistic approaches in landscape studies, integrating cultural and environmental components of an integrated single heritage. We have insisted that the temporal dimension is as important as the spatial coordinates for understanding the landscape; and this essential temporality of the space shapes it as an historical product. This perspective implies the consideration of landscape as a continued record of diverse information connecting past and present. The approach adopted in A27 is based on the convergence of scientific aims and "strategic" objectives in the validation of scientific results. We believe it can have a direct effect on territorial planning and regional development. All that would be possible with a new conception of cultural heritage, as an inclusive and integrative reality, based on the presentation of historical processes and social relations both through the visible and intangible heritage. This perspective breaks the 19th century conception exclusively based on monuments, aesthetics and singularities. The landscapes studies do not seek to deny this "traditional" heritage but to integrate it within their social, spatial and temporal coordinates (figure 7).
Historic landscapes in Europe: highlights and challenges
The list of challenges for the future is long: ● There is a need for continuing analysis and reflection to gain insight into factors of success and failure and a call for various forms of assessment and monitoring. Also, the promotion of official commitments is needed to act in accordance with the intentions of the ELC by e.g. a European charter, a quality label or national and regional landscape manifesto (Bartels et al. 2008: 13). ● There are as many discourses possible as landscapes, communities and individuals. A theoretical point of reference is needed to structure and focus the process in a meaningful and effective way on the preservation and management of landscapes. The conceptual and empirical worlds are linked by different methodologies like e.g. "action research" or "research by design". The challenge is to make the line of division between the domains of the expert, the public and politicians more permeable (Mattingly, van Londen and others, cited in Bartels et al. 2008: 13). ● The importance of integrating knowledge: that requires a different attitude of researchers and policy makers: the focus is to be put in interdisciplinary and problem oriented questions. Research gives landscape its value and ensures
the quality and European projection of cultural landscapes: high quality research is essential in a successful landscape management and protection. But high quality research already exists and the issue is: how to augment its social impact. ● In fact, we need to find a balance between the quest for knowledge and the need to act in policy. A methodical basis to solve this dilemma is offered by the concept of "action research" to integrate scientific knowledge with applied cultural and environmental politics. The "action research" concept creates an attitude, which enables people to cope with challenges and opportunities they face in their own community and environment (Bartels et al. 2008: 18). Securing Humanities scholarly input into interdisciplinary approaches to landscape studies (the historical value of landscapes) is a big challenge. The existence of networks and initiatives working throughout Europe4 for the consolidation and co-ordination of diverse proposals has the potential to set historical landscape studies at a crossroads location for disciplines, research topics and policies, making it a focus for emerging themes and a domain where social needs meet scientific issues.
NOTES Citation from the Introduction of the Landmarks book (Bartels et al. 2008: 11) based on the Memorandum of Understanding for the implementation of a European Concerted Research Action: (http://www.soc.staffs. ac.uk/jdw1/costa27home.html). 1
http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/cultureheritage/conventions/ Landscape/Default_en.asp. 2
A27 results have been disseminated through conferences, leaflets and books. Books produced within the Action are: Behrends et al. 2005; Ruiz del Árbol and Orejas 2005; Clavel-Lévêque 2006; Lévêque 2006; Lévêque et al. 2006; Reduzzi 2007; Compatan-
3
gelo-Soussignan et al. 2008; Fairclough and Møller 2008; Bartels et al. 2008; Bartels and Küpper-Eichas 2008; Bender et al. 2008; Vermeulen and De Dapper, in press; Lévêque and Ruiz del Árbol, in press. The European Association of Archaeologists regularly disseminates news regarding Landscape Archaeology (and it has a working group that specially deals with the ELC), Landscape Europe (International Network of Expertise in Landscape), ELCAI (European Landscape Character Assessment Initiative), or Interdisciplinary Scientific Initiative COST-ESF New Perspectives on Landscape Studies. A Network of Networks.
4
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Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
Bibliography Bartels, C. and Küpeer-Eichas, C. (eds.) 2008: Cultural Heritage and Landscapes in Europe/ Landschaften: Kulturelles Erbe in Europa (Proceedings of the International Conference, Bochum, 8-10 June 2007), Bochum (German Mining Museum Bochum). Bartels, C., Ruiz del Árbol, M., van Londen, H. and Orejas, A. (eds.) 2008: Landmarks. Profiling Europe's Historic Landscapes, Bochum (German Mining Museum Bochum-CSICCOST). Behrends, O., Clavel-Lévêque, M., Conso, D., Gonzales, A, Guillaumin, J.-Y., Peyras, J. and Ratti, S. 2005: Agennius Urbicus, Controverses sur les terres, Corpus Agrimensorum Romanorum VI, Naples-Paris (Consorzio Interuniversitario Gérard Boulvert). Bender, O. 2008: "The Northern Franconian Alps as a rural and touristic landscape (Bavaria, Germany)". In C. Bartels, M. Ruiz del Árbol, H van Londen and A. Orejas (eds.): Landmarks. Profiling Europe's Historic Landscapes, Bochum (German Mining Museum BochumCSIC-COST): 87-98. Bender, O., Evelpidou, N., Krek, A. and Vassilopoulos, A. (eds.) 2008: Geo-information technologies for Geo-Cultural Landscapes: European perspectives, London (Taylor and Francis). Bloemers, J.H.F. 2005: "Archaeological-historical landscapes in The Netherlands: management by sustainable development in planning". In M. Ruiz del Árbol and A. Orejas (eds.): Landscapes as Cultural Heritage in the European Research. Proceedings of the Open Workshop (Madrid, 29th October 2004), Madrid (CSIC): 69-85. Bloemers, J.H.F. 2006: "Kulturlandschaften in der Niederlandn – Erhaltung durch nachhaltige Entwicklung in der Raumordnung". In U. Matthiesen, R. Danielzyk, S. Heiland and S. Tzschaschel (eds.): Kuturlandschaften als Herausforderung für die Raumplanung, Hannover: 253-273. 54
Clavel-Lévêque, M. (ed.) 2006 : Le paysage en partage, Mémoire des pratiques des arpenteurs (Actes du colloque européen de Colombiers), Paris (L'Harmattan). Compatangelo-Soussignan, R., Bertrand, J-R., Chapman, J. and Laffont, P-Y. (eds.) 2008 : Marqueurs des Paysages et Systèmes socio-économiques, Actes du Colloque COST de Le Mans (7-9 Décembre 2006) / Landmarks and socio-economic systems. Proceedings of the Le Mans Conference (7-9 December 2006), Rennes (Presses Universitaires de Rennes). Fairclough, G. and Møller, P. G. (eds.) 2008: Landscape as Heritage – The Management and Protection of Landscape in Europe, a summary by the Action COST A27 LANDMARKS, Bern (Geographica Bernensia G79). Fairclough, G. and Wigley, A. 2005: "Historic Landscape Characterisation: an English Approach to Landscape Understanding and the Management of Change". In M. Ruiz del Árbol and A. Orejas (eds.): Landscapes as Cultural Heritage in the European Research. Proceedings of the Open Workshop (Madrid, 29th October 2004), Madrid (CSIC): 87-106. Hammer, T., Egli, H.-R. and Atmanagara, J. 2008: "The Example of the UNESCO Biosphere Entlebuch (Switzerland)". In C. Bartels, M. Ruiz del Árbol, H. van Londen and A. Orejas (eds.): Landmarks. Profiling Europe's Historic Landscapes, Bochum (German Mining Museum Bochum-CSIC-COST): 99-112. Lévêque, L. (ed.) 2006 : Mémoire du Paysage, (Actes du Colloque International de Besançon Mémoire et devenir des paysages culturels d'Europe 1-4 Décembre 2005), Paris (L'Harmattan). Lévêque, L. and Ruiz del Árbol, M. (eds.), in press: Heritage, Images, Memory of European Landscapes, Paris (L'Harmattan). Lévêque, L., Ruiz del Árbol, M., Pop, L. and Bartels, C. (eds.) 2006 : Journeys through European landscapes - Voyages dans les paysages
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européens, Ponferrada (Fundación Las MédulasCOST). Reduzzi, F. (ed.) 2007: Sfruttamento tutela e valorizzazione del territorio. Dal diritto Romano alla regolamentazione Europea e internazionale (Atti del Convegno organizzato nell'ambito dell'Action COST A27), Naples (Jovene Editore). Ruiz del Árbol, M. and Orejas, A. (eds.) 2005: Landscapes as Cultural Heritage in the European Research. Proceedings of the Open Workshop (Madrid, 29th October 2004), Madrid (CSIC). Sánchez-Palencia, F. J., Orejas, A. and Ruiz del Árbol, M. 2005: "Social Structure and Territory. Landscape Archaeology: from Regional Projects to European Co-operation". In M. Ruiz del Árbol and A. Orejas (eds.): Landscapes as Cultural Heritage in the European Research. Proceedings of the Open Workshop (Madrid, 29th October 2004), Madrid (CSIC): 23-35. Sánchez-Palencia, F. J., Orejas, A., FernándezPosse, M. D., Ruiz del Árbol, M. and Sastre, I. 2008: "Las Médulas (León, Spain). A Rural and Mining Landscape". In C. Bartels, M. Ruiz del Árbol, H van Londen and A. Orejas (eds.): Landmarks. Profi ling Europe's Historic Landscapes, Bochum (German Mining Museum Bochum-CSIC-COST): 113-124.
Van Beek, R., Bloemers, J.H.F., Keunen, L., Kolen, J., van Londen, H. and Renes, J. 2008: "Chapter 8: The Netherlands". In G. Fairclough and P. G. Møller (eds.): Landscape as Heritage – The Management and Protection of Landscape in Europe, a summary by the Action COST A27 LANDMARKS, Bern (Geographica Bernensia G79): 177-203. Vermeulen, F., De Dapper, M. (eds.) in press: Ol'man river: Geo-Archaeological Aspects of Rivers and Rivers Plains. Proceedings of the International Conference Gent 2006, Gent (BELGEO). Wascher, D. and Pedroli, B. 2008: Blueprint for EUROSCAPE 2020 - Reframing the future of the European Landscape, Policy Visions and Research support, Wageningen. Wigley, A., Dormor, I. and Landles, C. 2008: "The Shropshire Historic Landscape Characterisation Project (United Kingdom)". In C. Bartels, M. Ruiz del Árbol, H van Londen and A. Orejas (eds.): Landmarks. Profiling Europe's Historic Landscapes, Bochum (German Mining Museum Bochum-CSIC-COST): 19-30.
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Heleen van Londen, Almudena Orejas and María Ruiz del Árbol
Abstract This paper analyses the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of the scientific collaboration developed through the COST A27 meetings and common projects concerning the two major themes of our Action: the close relation between historical-archaeological research and its application to the protection and public presentation of Cultural Heritage. The chapter probes more deeply the strategic aims of research in historical-archaeological landscapes that were addressed in the introduction of the book Landmarks. Profiling Europe’s Historic Landscapes, and proposes new insights for advancing landscape studies in the future. Résumé Cette contribution analyse les forces, les faiblesses, les risques et les potentialités (FFRP) de la collaboration développée au sein des rencontres et des projets communs de COST A27 concernant les deux thèmes principaux de notre Action : le rapport étroit entre la recherche historico-archéologique et son application à la protection et à la présentation au public du pa-
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trimoine culturel. Ces pages approfondissent les objectifs stratégiques de la recherché historicoarchéologique sur les paysages, qui ont été déjà avancées dans l’ouvrage Landmarks. Profiling Europe’s Historic Landscapes, et elles proposent de nouvelles pistes pour le futur des études sur les paysages. Resumen En este trabajo se analizan las debilidades, amenazas, fortalezas y oportunidades (DAFO) de la colaboración desarrollada a través de los proyectos colectivos y los encuentros científicos promovidos por la Acción COST A27, que han girado en torno a dos ejes esenciales: la estrecha relación entre la investigación históricoarqueológica y su aplicación en la protección y presentación al público del patrimonio cultural. En este capítulo se profundiza en los objetivos estratégicos de la investigación histórico-arqueológica sobre paisajes, que ya fueron avanzados en la introducción del libro Landmarks. Profiling Europe’s Historic Landscapes, y se proponen nuevas pistas para progresar en los estudios sobre paisajes en el futuro.
II RECORDING AND CHARACTERISING LANDMARKS
L’île se trouvait ainsi quadrillée par un réseau d’interpolations et d’extrapolations qui la différenciait et la douait d’intelligibilité. Ainsi fait tout homme normal dans une situation normale. Remplacer du donné par du construit, problème général, problème humain par excellence, s’il est vrai que ce que distingue l’homme de l’animal c’est qu’il ne peut attendre que de sa propre industrie tout ce que la nature donne gratuitement à l’animal – sa robes, ses armes, sa pitance. (Michel Tournier, Vendredi ou les limbes du Pacifique)
CONCEPTS AND APPROACHES TO ANALYSE REGIONAL LANDSCAPE HISTORIES
Daniel Salzmann (Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Switzerland)
Oliver Bender
(Austrian Academy of Sciences, Mountain Research: Man and Environment, Austria)
Matthias Bürgi
(Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Switzerland)
Introduction European Landscapes are subject to profound and ongoing changes (Lambin and Geist 2006; Feranec et al. 2007).The high rate and especially the direction of landscape change are increasingly perceived by society as problematic. To guide the change in a socially more desired direction, landscape management and planning have to address the underlying processes of landscape change. These processes can only be revealed by a comprehensive analysis of landscape change, including descriptive as well as analytical approaches. In this paper, we present three approaches to analyse regional landscape changes, which can be applied separately, but also in combination. The Memorandum of Understanding of the COST A27 calls for approaching the processes of change. We see our paper as a contribution to this COST objective, but with a wide range of application also beyond landscapes which are core parts of the cultural heritage and as such of core interest to COST A27 – that is, the three approaches presented can be applied in studies of landscape change in general. The first approach provides a method for structuring the major potential forces driving landscape change in order to analyse landscape changes more systemati-
cally. The second approach analyses land use change patterns by use of a statistical technique based on GIS and provides valuable information for assessing the future development. The third approach draws attention to the complex agrarian system which primarily shaped and still shapes the rural landscape. The current agrarian system is investigated by the Agricultural Sciences, the past agrarian system is the object of Agricultural History – both disciplines cover a wide range of specific topics. We illustrate how specific knowledge from these disciplines is essential for interpreting past and ongoing changes in the rural landscape. Systematic analysis of driving forces An analytical investigation of landscape change requires an understanding of the underlying processes, that is, the driving forces of landscape change. Such a systematic analysis of driving forces includes in principle considering the whole range of forces possibly causing observed landscape change (Bürgi et al. 2004). Five major types of driving forces can be identified: socioeconomic, political, technological, natural and cultural driving forces. Socio-
Daniel Salzmann, Oliver Bender and Matthias Bürgi
Definition
economic driving forces, like globalisation, are strongly interlinked with political driving forces, such as the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union. Technological driving forces, for example, the mechanisation of agricultural activities, also shape the landscape. For the natural driving forces we distinguish between site factors, such as topography and soil characteristics, and natural disturbances, such as avalanches or climatic changes –even if the latter can also be of anthropogenic origin. Cultural driving forces, for example, the public awareness of the heritage value of a specific landscape, are important, but often difficult to handle, as culture usually remains a vague concept. Several additional classifications of driving forces are possible, depending on the specific research interests. For example, it is often appropriate to distinguish between different levels of driving forces, that is, primary, secondary, and tertiary driving forces. Depending on the system under study, distinguishing between
Change and persistency
We suggest a systematic procedure for the study of driving forces of landscape change (Bürgi et al. 2004). First, the object of investigation is to be defined precisely, including the study area and the grain size, the study period and the temporal resolution, and, of course, the physical landscape elements under study (system definition). Secondly, changes and persistencies of the physical landscape elements are to be determined, the relevant actors and interest groups are to be named, the institutional regime is to be characterised, and the potential driving
Study period and temporal resolution
Actors and institutions
Landscape elements
Potential driving forces
Synthesis
Analysis
Spatial extent and resolution
intrinsic and extrinsic driving forces also may be reasonable, with intrinsic driving forces being included in the system and extrinsic driving forces being part of the context. Additionally, it may be reasonable to differentiate between intentional and accidental landscape changes, as landscape change is not always planned but often "happens" as an unexpected side effect of certain driving forces.
Search for causal relations between driving forces and landscape processes Figure 1: Systematic procedure for the study of driving forces of landscape change (Bürgi et al. 2004, changed)
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Concepts and approaches to analyze regional landscape histories
forces from the above mentioned five major groups are to be identified (system analysis). In the final step, the actors, institutions, and driving forces are linked in causal relationships and their impact on the landscape elements under study is assessed (system synthesis). So much for theory –in practice, as landscape change is usually a very intricate process, it is necessary to constrain the complexity of the system under study pragmatically and different ways have to be explored to pin down the potential causal relationships between the landscape changes recorded and the forces responsible for these changes. Several publications already demonstrate the practicability of this approach (Schneeberger et al. 2007; Hersperger and Bürgi 2009) but many more have to follow to improve the concept and its application. One important approach concerning how to search and test causal relationships between landscape changes and driving forces, is to conduct inter-regional comparative studies of landscapes. To increase the analytical strength, it is important to compare regions which are similar in many respects (that is, the same eco-region, the same population density, the same settlement structure) but differ in one specific aspect. For example, testing the impact of policies on landscape dynamics can be done by cross-border comparisons be it on the national or sub-
Figure 2: Modelling of a land-register based diachronic HIS (Bender et al. 2005a and 2005b, changed)
national level. Conducting double-comparative studies on landscape change further increases the analytical potential for studies of driving forces (Bürgi and Russell 2001). In double comparative studies, changes between two points in time are analysed in two (or more) regions and then compared. The method allows generalisations about the potential human impact on the temporal dynamics of landscapes and therefore contributes to our knowledge of the interconnections of society and the environment in general. Multivariate Statistical Analysis based on GIS Multivariate statistical analyses based on GIS relationships test correlations between a specific land use at a specific time, or a specific land use change in a specific study period and independent parameters, whether ecological (for example, soil quality, topography) or socio-economic (for example, population density, property value). Based upon the statistical analysis of land use and land use change, future land use can be simulated to determine, for example, areas with a high potential to be affected by land use changes. Such predictions provide valuable information for landscape planning and for setting priorities for nature protection. Multivariate statistical analyses of landscape change require appropriate cartographic data, that is, historic and contemporary maps of land use, ideally on a land plot or cadastral level. To these basic land units, a series of attribute data must be available, first and foremost the land use at several points in time. In the conceptual model, the type of land use serves as dependent variable. Theoretically, the independent variables, which potentially determine the land use of a specific plot, should cover the major driving forces of landscape change specified in the previous section. Consequently, it is possible to organise them according to the five major types of driving forces (that is, socioeconomic, political, technological, natural and cultural driving forces). In practice, spatial data of appropriate quality is only available for selected aspects. Often, the accessible data consist of information 61
Daniel Salzmann, Oliver Bender and Matthias Bürgi
on site quality (for example soil quality, slope), plot structure (for example area, distance to farmstead), property structure (for example fulltime/part-time farming) and macro-economic conditions (for example received subsidies). In a geographical information system (GIS), cartographic data for different points in time and attribute data are integrated into a spatial vector model and a relational database. In a conceptual model, we assume that a multitude of plot characteristics contribute to the explanation of a specific land use. By use of multivariate statistics, such as discriminant analysis, it is possible to assess to what degree the plot characteristics explain the specific land use. The standardised canonical discriminant function coefficient (DFC) can serve as a measure for the influence of plot characteristics on the observed land use patterns. A study conducted in the German Franconian Alb, covering the four time steps 1850, 1900, 1960, 2000, confirmed the assumed high influence of soil quality and slope throughout the study period (Bender 2007; 2008; Bender and Schumacher 2008; Bender et al. 2005a 2005b). However, distance to farmstead has lost in importance
over time, which can be explained by the increasing mechanisation and the persistent demand for parcels to be leased. As already discussed, it is possible to simulate future land use based on the discriminant analysis. In the study mentioned above, the authors were also interested in projecting the expansion of forests on arable land due to abandonment of agriculture. The question was, where, and how many parcels will become available for leasing in the next years, and on which of those farming will continue. The core process, in which land becomes available for leasing is, when old farmers have to give up farming without immediate successor. As the existing farm structure and technology does not allow an unlimited growth of the existing farms, we can then assume that the demand for leasing will be constant and consequently, only a third of these parcels can be allocated on the leasing market, that is, two thirds are supposed to being converted to forest. By use of a cultivation suitability formula it is possible to determine which parcels will be leased and which will be converted to forest. The cultivation suitability formula is derived from the discriminant analysis for the land use
Discriminant function coefficient
Main land use types (arable land-meadows-rough pastures-forest) 0.60
soil quality
0.50
slope gradient proportion of grassland (farm)
0.40 neighbourhood of forest
0.30
proportion of arable land (farm)
0.20
change of property (plot) transport connection
0.10
public property
0.00 1850
1900
1950
2000
distance to farmstead
Time slice
Figure 3: Temporal development of the most important land use structure variables after a discriminant analysis of major land use types in the Franconian Alb (Bavaria, Germany). The discriminant function coefficient (DFC) indicates the relative importance of the respective variables (Source: Bender 2007)
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Concepts and approaches to analyze regional landscape histories
change type "arable land converted to forest in 1960-2000", which weights the importance of slope, proximity to forest, soil quality and other characteristics revealed to be relevant in the statistical analysis. The results of such projections can then be evaluated in the light of the actual needs and demands of society. Potential conflicts between likely future land use changes and societies' values can thus be identified in a timely manner. In the example presented above, planners can evaluate whether the abandonment of agriculture in certain parts of the study region is acceptable or whether counter-measures need to be taken. This could be the case where parcels identified as having a high likelihood of being converted to forests are crucial for biodiversity or landscape aesthetics and should be specially protected for this reason. Projections based on multivariate statistical analyses can be used as an early warning tool for unwanted landscape changes, if they are performed in a close collaboration of landscape modellers and landscape planners. Integration of Agricultural History We are convinced that for understanding and interpreting observed rural landscape change, it is necessary to have profound knowledge of the agrarian system. Agricultural History claims to deliver this specific knowledge. As a subdiscipline of History, it relies on anthropogenic sources and investigates the development of agriculture and rural regions. Three directions of Agricultural History can be distinguished. First, it studies the human economic activities in the agrarian sector, forms of production, trade and consumption as well as economic incidents and actions. Secondly, Agricultural History looks into the legal relationships in the agrarian sector, for example, possession of land, communal constitutions, rate of tithe, and legal status of farmers within society. Thirdly, social structures and processes in the rural regions, social strata and groups, generative behaviour and characteristic mentalities are explored. Recently,
Agricultural History has more and more developed towards an integrative discipline (Rösener 1997, Finberg and Thirsk 1967-2000, Mazoyer and Roudart 2006). The crucial role of Agricultural History shall be illustrated by an example drawn from a Swiss study financed under the umbrella of COST A27. It focuses on aspects of landscape change in the period from 1750 to 1914 that were triggered by the agrarian modernisation in the Swiss canton of Berne (6000 km2) (Salzmann et al. 2008; Salzmann, in prep.). In a multi-source approach, we integrated documentary data, contemporary maps, statistical data and landscape paintings. Three case studies covering the different agrarian systems in the lowland, in the hilly pre-Alpine zone and in the Alpine valleys reveal the landscape change in detail. For the case study located in the lowland municipality of Limpach, several contemporary maps depicting the precise land use pattern were analysed with the help of a geographical information system (GIS). We observed that a prominent forest area of 12 hectares was converted into open land between 1749 and 1882, the former edge of the forest remaining visible in the shape of the newly arranged parcels of arable land. Explaining this phenomenon is not possible without going into details of the history of agrarian production systems and interlinked forest history. We have to descend to the archives where we come across a "pasture exchange treaty" of 1808, in which the superior administration allowed the village community to clear this forest. Two separate development lines leading to this treaty can be distinguished. First, a closely interlinked cluster of agrarian innovations including the feeding of the cattle indoors all-the-year round, the cultivation of legumes (for example, different species of clover) and the inclusion of the fallow land and the common land into the crop rotation spread throughout the canton of Berne in the second half of the 18th century (Pfister 1984). Consequently, the demand for pasture, including that for forest pasture, de63
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creased at least partially. Second, there was increasing concern about the largely unsustainable forest management with the state administration, which postulated to ban forest pasture (Stuber and Bürgi 2001). The changes in the agrarian production enabled the implementation of the forest postulations, which became manifest in the "pasture exchange treaty" of 1808. Before the development in the agrarian sector, forest pasture was essential for most villagers and they would have opposed fiercely a ban on forest pasture, that is, the superior administration would not have had the power to impose it. Forest pasture was a traditional right of the local community, so the villagers were compensated for closing the whole state forest area by being granted the license to clear a part of it. Only profound knowledge of the contemporary political regime and especially of the contemporary agrarian production system reveals the underlying driving forces of the observed changes in the rural landscape, such as in the example, the clearing of a part of the forest area on the com-
munal land. Accordingly, studies focusing on current rural landscape change and discussing management and protection of landscapes rely on detailed knowledge of the current agrarian system (economy, sociology, policy, and etcetera) (see, for example, Lauber 2006). Conclusion A comprehensive analysis of landscape history is the base of understanding landscape change and the starting point for any targeted planning intervention. The three presented approaches are elements of such a comprehensive analysis of regional landscape histories. The first approach provides a structure for the systematic analysis of driving forces, including the relevant actors and considering various appropriate classifications. In practice, it requires a pragmatic concentration on important aspects, which opens room to a certain subjectivity. This requires a clear declaration and open discussion of the assumptions taken. The second approach, the
Figure 4: Considering the agricultural history is vital to understand changes in rural landscapes (Photo: Hager, reproduced in H. Brockmann-Jerosch (ed.) 1933: Schweizer Volksleben : Sitten, Bräuche, Wohnstätten, 2nd edition), Erlenbach-Zürich, Rentsch
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multivariate statistical analysis based on GIS, analyses land use patterns and reveals potential causes of land use and land use change. Based on appropriate assumptions, which again have to be named and discussed, it provides simulations of potential future land use. The third approach, the integration of Agricultural History in studies of landscape change, underlines the importance of long-term developments and innovations for a comprehensive understanding of landscape dynamics. It provides basic knowledge about the linkages of economic, le-
gal and social aspects concerning agriculture. Information on agricultural history provide valuable background for identifying the driving forces of changes in rural landscapes and as well as for interpreting relationships found in the statistical analysis. We suggest that the systematic assessment of driving forces, the inclusion of multivariate statistical analyses and the collaboration with experts in agricultural history are core elements to understand changing rural landscapes.
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Bibliography Bender, O. 2007: Analyse der Kulturlandschaftsentwicklung der Nördlichen Fränkischen Alb anhand eines katasterbasierten Geoinformationssystems (= Forschungen zur deutschen Landeskunde, 255), Leipzig. Bender, O. 2008: “The Northern Franconian Alps (Bavaria, Germany) as a rural and tourist landscape.” In C. Bartels, M. Ruiz del Árbol, H. van Londen and A. Orejas (eds.): Landmarks - Profiling Europe’s Historic Landscapes, Bochum: 87-98. Bender, O., Böhmer, H. J., Jens, D. and Schumacher, K. P. 2005a: "Analysis of land-use change in a sector of Upper Franconia (Bavaria, Germany) since 1850 using land register records", Landscape Ecology 20: 149-163. Bender,O., Böhmer H. J., Jens, D. and Schumacher, K. P. 2005b: "Using GIS to analyse longterm cultural landscape change in Southern Germany", Landscape and Urban Planning 70: 111-125. Bender, O. and Schumacher, K. P. 2008: "Agrarian landscape dynamics periodisation in low mountain ranges of Southern Germany from pre-industrial times to date". In C. Bartels and C. Küpper-Eichas (eds.): Cultural Heritage and Landscapes in Europe. Proceedings of the International Conference in Bochum, June 8-10, 2007, Bochum: 613-638. Bürgi, M. and Russell, E.W.B 2001: "Integrative methods to study landscape changes", Land Use Policy 18: 9-16. Bürgi, M., Hersperger, A.M. and Schneeberger, N. 2004: "Driving forces of landscape change - current and new directions", Landscape Ecology 19: 857-868. Feranec, J., Hazeu, G., Christensen, S. and Jaffrain, G. 2007: "Corine land cover change detection in Europe (case studies of the Netherlands and Slovakia)", Land Use Policy 24: 234-247. Finberg, H.P.R. and Thirsk, J. (eds.) 1967-2000: The Agrarian History of England and Wales (8 vols.), Cambridge. Hersperger, A. and Bürgi, M. 2009: "Going beyond landscape change description: Quanti66
fying the importance of driving forces of landscape change in a Central Europe case study", Land Use Policy 26: 640-648. Lambin, E.F. and Geist H. (eds.) 2006: LandUse and Land-Cover Change. Local Processes and Global Impacts, Berlin. Lauber, S. 2006: "Path-Dependent Change in agricultural structure in two mountain areas in Switzerland. a spatially explicit modelling approach". In S. Mann (ed.): Causes and Impacts of Agricultural Structures, New York: 77-97. Mazoyer, M. and Roudart, L. 2006: A History of World Agriculture: From the Neolithic Age to the Current Crisis, New York. Pfister, C. 1984: Das Klima der Schweiz von 1525-1860 und seine Bedeutung in der Geschichte von Bevölkerung und Landwirtschaft. Volume 2: Bevölkerung, Klima und Agrarmodernisierung 1525-1860, Bern. Rösener, W. 1997: Einführung in die Agrargeschichte, Darmstadt. Salzmann, D. (in preparation): Die landschaftlichen Konsequenzen der Agrarmodernisierung im Kanton Bern 1750-1914. Salzmann, D., Bürgi, M. and Stuber, M. 2008: "Cultural landscape and agrarian modernization in the Swiss Canton of Berne 1750-1914". In C. Bartels and C. Küpper-Eichas (eds.): Cultural Heritage and Landscapes in Europe. Proceedings of the International Conference in Bochum, June 8-10, 2007, Bochum: 639-648. Schneeberger, N., Hersperger, A.M., Bürgi, M. and Ewald K.C. 2007: "Driving forces and rates of landscape change as a promising combination for landscape change research – an application on the northern fringe of the Swiss Alps", Land Use Policy 24:349-361. Stuber, M. and Bürgi, M. 2001: "Agrarische Waldnutzungen in der Schweiz 1800-1950. Waldweide, Waldheu, Nadel- und Laubfutter", Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Forstwesen 152/12: 490-508.
Concepts and approaches to analyze regional landscape histories
Abstract There is a long tradition in studying landscape dynamics: historical geographers and landscape historians alike have developed a wide range of techniques to study land-use and land-cover changes. Since the 1980s, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) became increasingly available. With their ability to map, overlay, and analyse spatial information from various points in time, they offer a high potential to further advance the analyses of landscape dynamics. Whereas these applications of GIS have triggered many projects which stand in the context of global-change research (e.g., in the LUCC (Land-Use and Land-Cover Change) framework and its successor Global Land Project, GLP), there is also a wide range of new concepts and approaches to analyse regional landscape histories. In this paper we present three approaches which we consider to have a high potential to enhance scientific quality and practical applicability studies of regional landscape histories, and we illustrate the three approaches with studies recently conducted in our research groups. The three approaches and the respective examples are: (a) Linking agricultural history with landscape history, as in a study on the landscape consequences of agrarian modernization in the Canton of Bern, Switzerland. (b) Analysing systematically the driving forces of landscape change, focusing on the Limmat Valley, Switzerland. (c) Using multivariate statistical analyses to determine trajectories of landscape change, through a study in the Northern Franconian Alb. The in-depth analyses of the context of major landscape-forming developments, such as profound changes in the agrarian system (approach "a"), as well as the encompassing and systematic analyses of landscape development (approach "b") both can profit greatly from statistics-based categorization and classification (approach "c").
Based on these examples we outline a few major directions, in which the analysis of regional landscape histories might evolve further on. Résumé Il existe une longue tradition d’étude de la dynamique des paysages, tant chez les spécialistes de géographie historique que chez les historiens du paysage, qui ont développé un vaste ensemble de techniques pour l’analyse des mutations intervenues dans l’usage et dans l’occupation du sol. À partir des années 80, l’accès aux Systèmes d’Information Géographiques (SIG/ GIS) s’est considérablement accru. Grâce à leurs capacités pour cartographier, superposer et analyser l’information spatiale au cours des diverses étapes chronologiques, ils offrent un potentiel élevé pour progresser dans l’analyse de la dynamique des paysages. Étant donné que les applications des SIG pour ce type d’analyse ont donné lieu à de nombreux projets dans le contexte des recherches sur le changement global (par exemple dans le cadre du programme Land-Use and Land-Cover Change (LUCC) et de son successeur Global Land Project, GLP, est également apparue une large gamme de nouveaux concepts et de méthodes d’analyse utiles pour l’histoire régionale du paysage. Ce travail présente trois propositions dont le potentiel est susceptible d’améliorer la qualité scientifique des études d’histoire du paysage conduites au niveau régional et illustre concrètement les trois approches récemment développées dans les groupes de recherche des auteurs. Les exemples et les trois propositions sélectionnés se distribuent comme suit : a) Les rapports entre histoire agraire et histoire des paysages développés à partir d’une analyse des effets de la modernisation agraire sur le paysage dans le canton de Berne, Suisse. b) L’analyse systématique des éléments moteurs des changements paysagers illustrée par une approche du paysage de la Vallée de la Limmat, Suisse. 67
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c) L’utilisation de l’analyse statistique multivariée pour déterminer les orientations des mutations paysagères à partir d’un cas situé dans le Jura franconien. L’analyse en profondeur du contexte des développements les plus marquants dans la formation du paysage, comme les changements majeurs intervenus dans le système agraire (proposition a) ou l’analyse systématique et intégrée du développement du paysage (proposition b) peuvent bénéficier de la catégorisation et de la classification fondées sur des analyses statistiques (proposition c). Resumen Existe una larga tradición de estudio de las dinámicas del paisaje: tanto especialistas en Geografía histórica como historiadores del paisaje han desarrollado un amplio abanico de técnicas para el estudio de los cambios en los usos y cobertura del suelo. A partir de los años ochenta el acceso a los Sistemas de Información Geográfica (SIG/ GIS) ha sido creciente. Gracias a su capacidad para cartografiar, superponer y analizar información espacial de varios momentos cronológicos, ofrecen un elevado potencial para avanzar en el análisis del dinamismo del paisaje. Dado que las aplicaciones de SIG para este análisis han dado lugar a muchos proyectos en el contexto de las investigaciones sobre cambio global (por ejemplo en el marco de los proyectos Land-Use and Land-Cover Change (LUCC) y su sucesor Global Land Project, GLP, ha surgido también una amplia gama de nuevos conceptos y enfoques para analizar la historia regional del paisaje.
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En este trabajo se presentan tres propuestas con une elevado potencial para mejorar la calidad científica y la aplicación práctica en estudios de historia del paisaje a escala regional y se ilustran las tres aproximaciones con estudios recientemente desarrollados por los grupos de investigación de los autores. Las tres propuestas y los ejemplos seleccionados son: a) La relación de la historia agraria con la historia del paisaje, ilustrada a través de un estudio sobre las consecuencias en el paisaje de la modernización agraria en el Cantón de Berna, Suiza. b) El análisis sistemático de las fuerzas motrices del cambio en el paisaje, ilustrado mediante un estudio sobre el cambio del paisaje del Valle Limmat, Suiza. c) El uso de análisis estadísticos multivariantes para determinar trayectorias en el cambio en el paisaje, ilustrado por un estudio en el Jura Francón. Tanto el análisis en profundidad del contexto de los desarrollos más importantes en la formación del paisaje, como los importantes cambios en el sistema agrario (propuesta a), como el análisis sistemático e integrador del desarrollo del paisaje (propuesta b) pueden beneficiarse de la categorización y clasificación basadas en análisis estadísticos (propuesta c).
HIDDEN LANDSCAPES AND ANCIENT LANDMARKS: SOME THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES OF STUDING EARLY HISTORICAL LANDSCAPES IN SOUTHWEST IBERIA
Frank Vermeulen (Universiteit Gent, Vakgroep Archeologie, Belgium – Universidade de Evora, CIDEHUS, Portugal)
Filipe Themudo Barata
(Universidade de Evora, CIDEHUS, Portugal)
Introduction This presentation discusses several issues connected with on-going Belgo-portuguese geo-archaeological and historical landscape research in Northern Alentejo (Portugal). It is the fruit of common work and reflection developed by members of two national delegations within the COST A27 framework: Portugal and Belgium, thus stressing the fact that the Action has facilitated new common initiatives of a bilateral nature. The presented study is fully in line with some of the major objectives of the Action COST A27. The principal objective of the Action is the identification and the evaluation of preindustrial elements in the European landscape, threatened by the abandonment of traditional agricultural and mining activities. Through a diachronic reading of the landscape we do not only want to examine intellectually regional and local practices in the framework of broader historic processes, but also to try to understand the evolution of the past to present-day landscape. In doing this we focus on processes of change that this landscape underwent, to evaluate the risks of loss in terms of social identity of the involved territories and heritage resources
and finally to envisage the possibilities of incorporation and improvement of this landscape in the society and in the economy of the 21st century. In this cooperative action we are trying to analyse important morphological elements and landmarks as well as stimulate their integration in the landscape of today. One of the tools for succeeding in the latter enterprise is to help provide mechanisms for the public presentation of landscapes and the optimisation of their Cultural Heritage-related resources. In this paper we touch upon some of the main raisons d’être of the three crucial working groups (WG) active within the COST Action. For WG1: Mining landscapes we have produced some documentation by sampling one of the significant mining areas in European Antiquity, thus providing information which could help in future decisions for the valorisation of this type of zones. Within the context of WG2: Rural landscapes: landscape markers and the organisation of the land we consider a representative sample of traditional landscape and topographical markers, in an attempt to better evaluate the historical dynamics, possibilities of preservation and likely future role in regional
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development. Finally with regard to WG3: Virtual landscapes and databases we consider some efficient and present-day information technology tools for the study, the future management and the presentation of this historic landscape information to a specialised as well as a wider public.
marks within this context. Special attention is given to the notion of so-called early historic hidden landscapes and especially to the ways of identifying patterns and structures connected with landscapes of Antiquity and early (Arabic) Middle Ages in the southwestern part of the Iberian peninsula in general, and in the region of Ammaia in particular.
Approaching the Landscape Our approach to the historical landscape here is mostly concerned with what we would like to call the "hidden landscape". This somewhat enigmatic term refers to an (ancient) landscape that cannot be read and understood in a simple and direct way, but that needs careful translation on the part of the investigator of the landscape in order to present it to the broader public that lives in it or just visits the landscape concerned. The study and cultural valorisation of the Roman town site and ancient territory of Ammaia in Portugal are taken as starting point of a discussion of some theoretical approaches towards hidden landscapes and on the definition of land-
Before entering into the discussion of this particular case study, with repercussions for research and approaches elsewhere in Europe, first of all we would like to stress the sometimes forgotten dichotomy of approaching past landscapes. We need to underline that there are basically two ways of studying and intellectually understanding such historical environments: there is a theoretical application of landscape study and there is a more methodological and often technological one. Regarding the theoretical approach, we would like to briefly stress, as Peregrine Horden and Nicholas Purcell did more elaborately in their
Figure 1: View on the semi-agrarian landscape around the Roman town site of Ammaia (Alto Alentejo)
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brilliant essay on The Corrupting Sea, that within the European context major differences in approach exist and are necessary between the South and the North. So, when looking at cultural and historic landscapes, and in particular when looking at crucial matters for past and present landscapes, such as the (inter-) connectivity of territory, we have to bear in mind the huge geographic differences within the broad European context. While, landmarks can in all areas, North and South, be quite easily defined as focal points that organised and helped manage the landscape, a very different role is played by two other life-important elements or systems: water and road systems. Especially water, as a means for connectivity but also as a life supporting commodity, is not evenly distributed and available: there is too much of it in the North and just too little in the South. And if global warming does not disrupt this situation of Past and Present in the coming years, this imbalance will continue to determine the use of the landscape by human societies in a dramatic way. In a different way, road systems are and where in the Past often essential determinants for the connectivity of people and settlement in the landscape. The presence of a mountainous environment and the absence of technological means or economical driving forces can inhibit the development of a transport infrastructure. Roads, easy transport routes or bridges are crucial for the development of a cultural landscape, or, as is often the case in some regions of the South, the underdevelopment of it. We can illustrate some of these crucial theoretical issues best by moving on to the more methodological and technological approach of a particular landscape, being the one of our case study in Alentejo. Some basic issues, which are also picked up in several other papers in this volume, need to be fully kept in mind when doing so. They can be summarised as follows: 1. For a full comprehension of ancient landscapes we need to move from the wide perspective to a more accessible and understandable regional level;
2. Landscapes are dynamic processes and research needs to be concentrated on the longue durée, keeping in mind all possible diachronic processes; 3. Approaches to ancient landscapes need to be multi-disciplinary and involve certain technological applications; 4. We need to be looking not only at archaeological and historical "sites" but at all semi-natural components in the landscape, which can be viewed as "cultural"; 5. There is a close relation between historical-archaeological research and its application to protection, management and public presentation of cultural heritage; 6. The research strategy is not concerned with preservation per se, but it can aid the sustainable management of the landscape and has an impact on life in the region today. A case study for "Landmark research" in Southwest Iberia The presented project for study, valorisation and protection of a historical landscape is centred around the archaeological site of the former Roman town of Ammaia. This is located in the heart of the Serra de São Mamede, a mountainous area of east central Portugal extending into Spanish territory. The site is part of the fertile valley of the River Sever and lies at São Salvador da Aramenha in the municipality of Marvão, district of Portalegre, within the region of Alto Alentejo. Most of inner Alentejo is a very rural region with a low population. There are several small towns but few cities, and farms (sometimes large estates) are widely dispersed throughout the landscape. A great part of the sparse population still makes a living from agriculture, which is dominated by cork and olive plantations and pastureland. The majority of the Alentejo consists of outcropping hard rocks, which means that the resulting soils are very shallow, evidently making them quite poor. This is even worsened by the extreme summer 71
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Figure 2: View on part of the archaeological site (area Porta Sul) with in the back the site museum and in the distance the arabic-medieval castle site of Marvão
dryness especially in the south, due to Mediterranean influence. The only ways of using the land are consequently grazing for meat production (mainly cows) and cork/olive production (little demanding trees). Portalegre is the northernmost district of the northern Alentejo region and it is also the name of the district’s capital town. It is the hilliest part of Alentejo and hence forms a transition between the lower parts of Alentejo in the south and the mountainous Beira in the north. It is characterised by a desolate landscape of rolling planes on schists and granites, alternating with quartzite hills. The Serra de São Mamede is the main mountain range; it has a northwest-southeast orientation and extends for some 40 km, distributed more or less equally among Portugal and Spain. The highest point is the Pico de São Mamede at 1027 m. above mean sea level. This elevated area forms a real barrier for clouds, which can cause abundant orogenetic rains, resulting in numerous small rivers and streams. 72
The whole mountain range is encompassed in a protected natural area: the "Serra de São Mamede Natural Park". The main rivers of the area are Ribeira de Nisa and Rio Sever, roughly running southeast-northwest following the orientation of the main mountain ridges, and of course the river Tejo, to which the aforementioned streams are tributary. Throughout history several rather small dams have been built on these rivers, mainly for water storage. The Portalegre district has an extensive cultural patrimony. Remains of many time periods can be found throughout the area. Evidence of prehistoric human occupation include more than 500 dolmens and menhirs dispersed throughout the area, and the numerous artifacts of lithic industries that have already been found on the Tejo’s river terraces. Roman remains, partly from villas and smaller farms are quite abundant, as well as medieval structures. Several hilltop villages with castles (e.g. Portalegre, Castelo de
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a surrounding porticus or cryptoporticus. Apart from providing the indications about the extent and organisation of the former urban area, these digs in combination with a first topographic mapping effort and a synthesis of earlier historical, epigraphic and numismatic evidence inform us about the location of the town and the major elements of its chronological development.
Figure 3: Vertical aerial photograph with traces in the landscape of still buried remains of a Roman theatre and possible amphitheatre of Ammaia
Vide, Marvão) testify of the area’s possibilities for the construction of defensive sites. The main settlement of Antiquity did not however use the possibilities of defence and security which the landscape offers abundantly. The archaeological and historical identification of the site as the emplacement of the Roman town of Ammaia dates from the mid-1930s. Systematic archaeological digs started here only in 1994 and from 1997 onwards this work of excavation, study and conservation has been organised by the Fundação Cidade de Ammaia in close collaboration with the University of Évora. These excavations were almost all centred on places where still visible ruins indicated the underground presence of Roman period structures. They mainly consist of parts of the city wall with towers and a gate (porta sul) on the southern side with remains of housing and a monumental paved square and road in the same sector, remains of a house in the location Quinta do Deão, parts of a public bath building and the remains of the centrally located forum with the well-preserved podium of a temple and walls of
Founded probably early in the first century AD, possibly in the reign of Augustus, the flourishing Roman town, lying in the province of Lusitania, received municipal status at an early date and developed its urban structures in part as a result of the exploitation of the area’s natural resources: metals and minerals (e.g. lead, silver, rock crystal), some fertile agricultural land, and perhaps stock raising of horses. A further major asset was its location at the junction of several main roads, one of which connected Ammaia with the provincial capital of Emerita Augusta (Merida). Like many others in the province, the town flourished during the 2nd and 3rd centuries. After the 5th century the city seems to have fallen gradually in ruins and the recent excavations showed that some parts were covered by floods and slope deposits. Under Arab rule the Roman site was finally abandoned, to be replaced in the late 9th century by the nearby and strategically well-situated castle town of Marvão. During the later medieval period and after, the aboveground ruins were further dismantled. With the exception of a few disparate wall structures mentioned above, not much of this classical town remains visible today. Now most of the former urban site is just a part of the rural countryside. It lies on a hillslope immediately south of the small "street-village" of São Salvador da Aramenha, near the Rio Sever and the terrain is almost completely used for agricultural purposes, mainly olive orchards and some crop cultivation. The upper parts of the hillslope comprise light woodland and abandoned cultivation terraces. Except for a handful of houses and farms, one of which (the farm house at Quinta do Deão) was recently transformed into an attractive archaeological on-site museum, the site is almost free of modern building constructions. 73
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It is however cut into two unequal parts by the national road leading from Castelo de Vide to Portalegre. The exact extent of the ancient territory of belonging to Ammaia remains unknown, but was no doubt considerable, extending to the north up to the River Tejo and to the east deep into modern Spain. It probably formed an area of about 60 by 60 km, with Ammaia as a central focus. The town lay in a hilly landscape geologically dominated by quartzites and schists surrounded by an extensive undulating to sometimes nearly flat landscape of granites. The topographical situation of the town is no doubt linked to the presence in this hilly environment of the Holocene valleys of the River Sever and of a main tributary descending from the northwest, from the area of Castelo de Vide. The abundance of natural water springs in the area was clearly an extra attraction for the Roman settlers. The impressive post-classical historical hilltop site of Marvão, located some 2.5 km north of the Roman town site, visually dominates the landscape. Its role as a possible predecessor of the city of Ammaia must certainly also be taken into consideration, although there is no conclusive evidence for this today. Recent surveys in the areas north and west of the urban centre of Ammaia, show a quite intense dispersion of Roman farms and farmsteads in the immediate hinterland of the town. They certainly illustrate the Roman imperial success of the urban centre in exploiting its hinterland. This case study area shows distinctively that possible problems of identification of landmarks are linked with deciphering the nodes of connectivity in the landscape, such as roads and hydrographic networks, and with understanding the topographic context of the main settlement foci that managed and organised the partly mountainous landscape concerned here. Some of the main landmarks of the past are easily detectable: they are the central settlements that still exist today, hilltop Arabic castles such as Marvão and Castelo de Vide, which developed into flourishing and beautiful medieval and post-medieval small towns. At present 74
these small centres constitute the major foci of cultural (and partly nature) tourism in the area. The accidental tourist and even a good part of the local inhabitants do not however perceive fully that this system of central landmarks was preceded by a Roman one, whose existence is in a sense crucial to understanding the later developments and the present-day situation. It is clear that the presence of the original population of the former town of Ammaia, now a completely abandoned agricultural zone, partly explains why the Arabic centre Marvão came into existence here. The partly urban tissue of the human presence in this landscape goes much further back in time and was, we can surely say, even much more developed than today. To understand this fully and to explain this to all concerned it is necessary that research and valorisation of the archaeological values of the area are fully developed and translated. The latter type of remark is also applicable to the communication routes of the Past and the Present. When analysing the current road sys-
Figure 4: Roman aqueduct recently discovered by way of geo-archaeological survey
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tem we can see that the four most important arteries in this area north of Portalegre today are in fact roads from Roman times. Although surely partly determined by topographic conditions, their structuring and persistence have clear roots in Antiquity. This also applies to secondary systems –less easily detectable– connecting the former urban centre of Ammaia to areas that conditioned its economic survival and explain its degree of incorporation in the Roman empire. They are mostly roads and routes leading to places connected with mining gold, copper, iron, silver, etc. and quarrying stones such as granite, marble, quartz and rock crystal. Also important for communication, but surely more connected with elementary survival is the presence of water. The location of the central urban site of Roman times and the delimitation
of its "natural" territory is surely conditioned by the presence of two main rivers in the area: the Sever and the Tejo. But it is also the high amount of natural springs in the area of the former town –still today responsible for the water provisioning of Portalegre– that explains its historic and diachronic success. From Roman and Arab times onwards, aqueducts, dams and cisterns were constructed to improve collection, supply and distribution of this commodity over habitation sectors and fields, a life-saving activity for many. We are convinced that the control over these roads and this water, first from Roman Ammaia and later from Arabic Marvão is crucial to the understanding of today’s historical landscape It is clear that a great number of the traditional landmarks in this region, from the large centralised settlements, discussed above, to the
hydraulische infrastructuur: kanaal hydraulische infrastructuur: bekken finaal exploitatiefront ontgonnen gebied ("Conhal") was- of evacuatiekanaal "Castelejo" residuele heuvel
S
accumulatie van fijn, steriel sediment
Figure 5: Aerial photograph with mapping of the remains of Roman gold mining activity in the northern part of the territory of Ammaia (Conhal site; mapping S. Deprez)
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many small ones which were erected through the ages –from the prehistoric menhirs and the Roman and Visigoth burial areas to the castles, monasteries, farm complexes, hydraulic works, bridges, churches and chapels of medieval and post-medieval times– can still be seen and understood in the present landscape. Their study and valorisation, undertaken with the use of a wide set of art historical approaches or through a study of archive documents, is still possible. A much more complex strategy is necessary to approach some all-important aspects of the hidden archaeological and historical landscapes of Antiquity and Early Middle Ages, where the loss of social and cultural identity is more tangible today. New memories and landmarks changes We must stress the importance of Ammaia and its region as a case study. That is why we should go a little bit deeper into what landscape changes concerns.
It is certain that Ammaia was still occupied in the mid 6th century, but no longer retaining the same character as in Roman times. In fact, there had been a progressive degradation of public spaces and public buildings –repairs done with low quality materials testify to these changes. We still do not know very much about Visigoth domination, but the distance from the new political centre at Toledo probably contributed to people progressively abandoning Ammaia. In this context we can perceive how an economy can become disorganised and the maintenance of life systems becomes much more difficult. It is certain, for instance, that the mining activity had lost its network of clients and with them the markets they use to sell to, many roads had been abandoned and water systems were no longer maintained. In brief, landmarks were vanishing probably without been substituted. With the Arabic domination, step by step the region knew a different situation. There was an interesting note in an Arabic chronicle that
Figure 6: Abandonment of traditional stone field boundaries and terracing systems near the site of Ammaia
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Figure 7: Ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey in 2008 on the site of Ammaia by a team from Ghent University
Táriq ibn Ziyâd’s military expedition (711/712) spent some time –in fact a winter– at Ammaia, meaning the place had still some importance. But soon after the Arabic conquest, the town lost any pre-eminent position and became a point in the middle of the North/South frontier. This geographic position issue is important to understand the evolution of the region. The new political centre of Arabic Omayyad was settled in Cordova. Here only those who had connections and were far enough away from the emir could build up a personal, family and group power strong enough to survive. That was the case of the Badajoz region, controlled by a powerful clan, the Marwanids, occupied with many "muladis" (descendants of converted Christians) and capable of mobilising many people to war. The new game was to help the emir but, at the same time, to avoid being too controlled by him. In 889, they founded Badajoz as the new symbol of the situation, but they also needed a place to retire to when it
was necessary to escape the emir’s armies. This centrifuge attitude was common and reflects the geographical and tribal origins of the winner. That was how the landscape began to change in the Ammaia region. The newcomers did not need any more an urban space to organise the territory or to serve as an economic centre. What they needed now was a well-defended castle from where they could resist the emir’s armies or take refuge when the political environment became dangerous. This is probably when most parts of the town of Ammaia were finally abandoned and the site of Marvão fortified. The latter was now the new landmark; this real eagle’s nest now did not need anymore the domain of the surrounding fields to do agriculture and those in charge of the site preferred to control the road system and to tax those who wanted to cross the region. The castle name was a memory of its founder, Ibn Marwãn al-Jillíqí, called by chronicles as the lord of "Ammaia the one of ruins". 77
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From then, for centuries onwards, the new role of Marvão would be military and connected with the succession of borders that were raised in the vicinity: first between Muslims and Christians, between Portugal and Castile during some centuries and, finally, between Portugal and Spain. Now it is a beautiful heritage. After the 9th century, textual references to Marvão and Ammaia ceased. In fact, for more news we must wait until the Renaissance to have some generic description about Ammaia and the 18th century to be aware how the site was slowly de-
stroyed. In 1710, the Governor of Castelo de Vide ordered the transfer of the beautiful Roman arch near the main entrance to be incorporated in his fortress. Some years later the stones were recovered to be used in an asylum. In the 18th and 19th centuries a lot of stones were re-used in churches, monasteries and palaces. Several Roman statues from Ammaia were even sent to England according to some private letters. The site had lost its normal limits and had become a farm and a quarry. It means that Ammaia was used as a kind of resource while losing importance as landmark.
Figure 8: Results of the GPR survey on the forum area of the ancient town. Clear traces of the square, the shops and the basilica were discovered
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Hidden landscapes and ancient landmarks
Some particular methodological issues concerning research Among the many possibilities to disclose this hidden landscape, we would like to advocate a distinctly geo-archaeological approach making especially use of the potential of integrated non-destructive survey methods to map and reconstruct the ancient sites and features, hidden under today’s landscape morphology. First of all we would like to stress –and this is one of the main results from fruitful collaborations within COST action A27– that beyond the basic objectives focusing on the construction of databases or GIS structures assembling a variety of ancient landscape data, there is a general need for a wide set of geo-information systems to be applied to cultural landscape studies. It has been considered in WG3, as well as among this bilateral Belgo-Portuguese project, that it is absolutely necessary to go beyond the traditional collection or representation of spatial data and to integrate them in geo-information systems
specifically applied to the landscape studies: GIS, remote sensing, non-destructive survey techniques, etc. The site of ancient Ammaia and its culturally affected natural hinterland form the background of several geo-archaeological investigations presented here by the teams of the universities of Evora and Gent. They concern questions about the topographic and stratigraphic development of the urban centre itself as well as about the human exploitation of natural resources lying within its territory. With this study we approach the cultural landscape around Ammaia by means of techniques which combine both methods of the geosciences and of archaeological survey. The specific problems of assessing and reconstructing a Roman or early medieval landscape, much altered by physical movements of the soil and by a two millennia long period of human interference, can only be tackled in a multidisciplinary way. Several typical geo-archaeological themes have been approached in the project so far.
Figure 9: Summer school excavations by the University of Evora (2008) on the Roman bath complex near the forum of Ammaia
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They include: 1. A tentative reconstruction of the erosion history of the urban site and its surroundings, including the study of degradation processes affecting man-made field terraces; 2. Identification and landscape analysis of the Roman circuit walls and other urban monuments and buildings related to the natural topography; 3. Study of water collection and distribution in and around ancient Ammaia, including the locating of source areas and the tracing and mapping of Roman aqueducts; 4. Locating and evaluating the areas of possible natural resources exploited by the Romans and the Arab conquerors (e.g. stone building materials, exploitable minerals,...) by way of site catchment analysis; 5. General location and spatial analysis of all elements and smaller landmarks
which structure the humanised Roman and Arabic landscape, such as rural settlements, villas, roads, bridges, enclosures and other ancient field systems. Another key issue for a more holistic approach of the site of Ammaia and its immediate hinterland is to develop it as a field laboratory for the study and valorisation of large and complex sites with non-destructive techniques. We are convinced that the site of Ammaia has potential to be an excellent case study for this testing and exchange of European experience. The underlying philosophy for this can be summarised as follows. To a large extent, scientific research and heritage-management of buried archaeological sites aim to limit destructive intervention, such as excavation, to the absolute minimum. This often results in a kind of passive protection of thousands of European sites, which however remain only partially located, badly understood and unknown in their complexity. During the last two decades, a set of
Figure 10: The Roman epigraphy room in the site museum, a converted traditional farm house on top of the archaeological site of Ammaia
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methods of surface survey and non-invasive sub-surface prospection have been developed, in a way that these sites can now be analysed, interpreted and eventually visualised without any damage to the monuments themselves. This is particularly relevant for larger and complex sites with sometimes well-preserved sub-surface structural remains, such as a whole range of proto-urban and urban settlements of ancient Europe (Pasquinucci and Trément 2000). Such deserted archaeological sites can now be well studied and efficiently protected, using an integrated set of modern survey techniques, such as different kinds of remote sensing (satellite imagery, aerial photography, airborne thematic mapping, LiDAR, etc.), ground based geophysics (magnetometry, electric resistivity measurements, ground penetrating radar), systematic recording of surface materials, GISbased analysis and visualisation tools, geomatic research (GPS, 3D scanning, photogrammetry) and geo-morphological survey. The construction of a European network linking researchers and teams that are experimenting with new technologies and survey techniques, if not always integrating the approaches, can create opportunities to transfer knowledge and know-how and to validate developments in methodology. A direct confrontation on methods and quality of results in the landscape of Ammaia is a way to improve this specific geoarchaeological approach. Thanks to the planned and already started fieldwork effort, to scientific meetings and high-level formation activities, dissemination of results and the creation of a GIS database, this project would also promote the valorisation of research initiatives all over Europe. It will also have ample repercussions on the protection and efficient management of complex archaeological sites, such as here in Ammaia, which can now be "scanned" in a non-invasive way. The first tests in Ammaia of this new approach are mainly concentrated on the area of the forum. Thanks to the first fieldwork operations, involving especially georadar prospections and test excavations in the area, a detailed mapping and visualisation of the former cityscape have been realised.
The landscape and the public Finally, we would like to propose the possible implementation of theory and method within the framework of an active archaeological park and regional (cultural) landscape preservation. The ongoing works, within the Ammaia project are focusing on the need of promoting a new understanding of cultural landscapes within this part of Europe, stressing the consistency of the integral chain Research – Protection – Valorisation. High quality public presentation and valorisation, based on excellent interdisciplinary and innovative research, need to be the basis for a crucial next step: the preservation of historic landscapes by their integration in the cultural and socio-economic spheres of present-day and future society. Within the tradition of Southern Europe the best way to obtain this is to create an effective protection of parts of the historic landscape within the framework of a well conceived and delimited cultural park, developing at the same time a set of instruments to present the past in an accessible and attractive way to a wide public of local inhabitants and regional, national or international visitors. For a meaningful backing of a programme of educational and research activities at Ammaia during the coming years, it is essential that the museum has a fully recognised role as an excellent regional museum for the on-site display of a Roman town and its territory. Different necessary actions include: the elaboration of thematic exhibits, the introduction of interactive IT for the visiting public, the creation of wider audience publications, the development of a fully attractive open air museum with related ecologic dimension. We are convinced that the incorporation of landscape elements, and especially the correlation and changing relationship between landscape and people in Roman times and the period of Arabic dominance, can be elaborated in the museum display. For this the results of geo-archaeological work in the territory of Ammaia and especially a collaboration with the Parque Natural da Serra de S. Mamede seem most appropriate. The link ArchaeologyGeography-Ecology is very strong here and its 81
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possibilities for tourism exploitation evident. It is however crucial to incorporate the values and historical meaning of the hidden landscape in the presentation and use of the landscape as perceived today. The message is simple: it is a mostly rural landscape today, but it was not always like this! Hidden beneath this landscape are: ancient urbanisation, different ways of control of territory and communication, industrial development in a more distant but important Past than the one the last generations of local inhabitants can remember. Let us try,
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as researchers deeply involved with the cultural and historical values of this distant Past, to help to translate, understand and valorise this "hidden past". Equally important, in this process of valorisation is to show how the scientific study of the landscape can change the subjective perception of the Past. Therefore, also the development of study, and the different possible perceptions which result from it, need to be part of the package that binds researchers, policy makers and landscape users in the broadest sense.
Hidden landscapes and ancient landmarks
Bibliography Corsi, C. and Vermeulen, F. 2008: "Elementi per la ricostruzione del paesaggio urbano e suburbano della città romana di Ammaia in Lusitania", Archeologia Aerea 3: 55-82. Gil Mantas, V. 2000: "A sociedade luso-romana do município de Ammaia, Sociedad y cultura en Lusitania romana". In Sociedad y Cultura en la Lusitania romana. IV Mesa Redonda Internacional, Mérida: 391-420. Horden, P. and Purcell, N. 2000: The Corrupting Sea, Oxford. Laranjo Coelho, P. M. 1956: Terras de Odiana. Subsídios para a história documentada. Medobriga, Aramenha e Marvão, Marvão.
Sidarus, A. 1991: “Ammaia de Ibn Maruan: Marvão”, Ibn Maruan, 1, Marvão: 13-26. Themudo Barata, F. and Carvalho, J. 2006: "Préservation de la mémoire paysagère et développement régional: la cité romaine d’Ammaia". In L. Lévêque (éd.): Paysages de Mémoire, Paris: 399-410. Vermeulen, F. 2005: “Understanding lines in the Roman landscape: a study of ancient roads and field systems based on GIS-technology”. In M. Mehrer and C. Wescot: GIS and predictive modelling in Archaeology, Argonne: 289314.
Le Roux, P. 1990 : "Les villes de statut municipal en Lusitanie romaine". In Les Villes de La Lusitanie Romaine : hiérarchies et territoires (Talence, 8-9 décembre 1988), Paris : 35-49.
Vermeulen, F. and De Dapper, M. (eds.) 2000: Geo-archaeology of the Landscapes of Classical Antiquity, International Colloquium Ghent, 23-24 October1998 (Babesch Supplement 5), Leuven-Paris-Sterling.
Pasquinucci, M. and Trement, F. 2000: NonDestructive Techniques Applied to Landscape Archaeology (POPULUS Project. The Archaeology of Mediterranean Landscapes 4), Oxford.
Vermeulen, F., De Dapper, M., Corsi, C. and Deprez, S. 2005: "Geoarchaeological observations on the Roman town of Ammaia", Internet Archaeology 19 (http://intarch.ac.uk/ journal/ issue19/corsi_index.html).
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Abstract This paper discusses several issues connected with on-going Belgo-Portuguese geo-archaological and historical landscape research in Northern Alentejo (Portugal). The study and cultural valorisation of the Roman town site of Ammaia and its ancient territory is taken as starting point of a discussion on some theoretical approaches towards ancient landscapes and the definition of landmarks. Special attention is given to the notion of so-called hidden landscapes and to the ways of identifying patterns and structures connected with landscapes of Antiquity and Early Middle Ages in the region concerned. Problems of identification of landmarks are linked with deciphering the nodes of connectivity present in the landscape such as roads and hydrographical networks, and with understanding the topographic context of the main settlement foci that managed and organised the partly mountainous landscape concerned here. The discussion includes the methodological issues of a geo-archaeological approach and especially the potential of integrated non-destructive survey methods to map and reconstruct the ancient sites and features, hidden under today’s landscape. Finally, proposals are made for the possible implementation of theory and method within the framework of an active archaeological park and regional (cultural) landscape preservation. Résumé Ce travail présente plusieurs propositions issues de la recherche conduite, dans le cadre d’une collaboration belgo-portugaise, sur les paysages historiques et géo-archéologiques du Nord de l’Alentejo. L’étude et la mise en valeur de la ville romaine d’Ammaia et de son territoire ont été prises comme bases de la discussion sur les approches théoriques des paysages antiques et sur la définition des marqueurs paysagers ("landmarks"). Avec une attention particulière portée à ce qu’il est convenu d’appeler "paysages invisibles" et à l’identification dans la région des modèles et des structures connectés aux paysages antiques et médiévaux. L’identification des "marqueurs" est à rapporter au dé84
chiffrement des articulations du paysage, voies et réseaux hydrographiques notamment, et à la compréhension du contexte topographique des principaux foyers de peuplement qui ont organisé et régulé ce paysage, par endroits montagneux. Certains points de méthodologie sont également discutés, comme les potentialités de l’usage intégré de méthodes non destructives pour cartographier et reconstruire les données enfouies sous le paysage actuel. Enfin, des propositions sont avancées quant aux possibilités d’articuler théorie, pratique et préservation du paysage (culturel) régional au sein d’un parc arquéologique. Resumen Este trabajo presenta varias propuestas surgidas de la investigación conjunta belgo-portuguesa sobre paisajes históricos y geoarqueológicos desarrollada en el norte del Alentejo (Portugal). El estudio y la puesta en valor de la ciudad romana de Ammaia y su territorio se han tomado como punto de partida para una discusión sobre las aproximaciones teóricas a los paisajes antiguos y a la definición de marcadores de paisajes ("landmarks"). Se presta especial atención a los denominados "paisajes ocultos" y a las formas de identificar patrones y estructuras conectados con paisajes de la Antigüedad y de la Alta Edad Media en la región. Los problemas de identificación de "landmarks" están relacionados con el desciframiento de los nodos de conectividad en el paisaje, como vías y redes hidrográficas, y con la comprensión del contexto topográfico de los principales focos de poblamiento que gestionaron y organizaron este paisaje parcialmente montañoso. Igualmente se abordan aspectos de metodología geoarqueológica, especialmente el potencial del uso integrado de métodos no destructivos para cartografiar y reconstruir antiguos núcleos y características, ocultos bajo el actual paisaje. Por último, se lanzan propuestas para la posible articulación de la teoría y el método en el marco del un parque arqueológico activo y de la preservación del paisaje (cultural) regional.
REGARDS CROISÉS SUR LA VITICULTURE EN CATALOGNE ET EN LANGUEDOC ROMAINS
Le "paysage du vin" tel qu’on le voit se mettre en place dans le Languedoc romain –dans la province de Gaule transalpine qui prend le nom de Narbonnaise au début de l’Empire– offre suffisamment d’éléments de comparaison avec celui de la Catalogne dans la province romaine de Tarraconaise, pour justifier de porter aujourd’hui un regard croisé sur la dynamique de ces territoires dont les liens avec l’économie viticole sont évidents. L’approche synthétique, dont nous allons présenter les grandes lignes, s’intéressera plus précisément au Maresme et au Biterrois (figure 1). Produit de luxe, le vin a d’abord été une denrée d’importation apportée aux populations celtes et ibères par les marchands étrusques et grecs puis italiens dont les amphores mesurent l’activité sur la plupart des sites, urbains d’abord, puis ruraux. Plusieurs textes antiques, connus depuis longtemps, fournissent des renseignements précieux tant sur les tendances générales, y compris sur les mesures politiques qui ont pu peser sur les producteurs locaux, que sur questions précises touchant aux techniques, aux cépages et même aux mérites comparés de quelques crus, mais ce sont les données de terrain, mieux connues depuis quelques années des deux côtés des Pyrénées, qui renouvellent aujourd’hui les problèmes. Elles apportent des éléments essentiels qui éclairent tant la chronologie du développement
Monique Clavel-Lévêque (Parc Culturel du Biterrois, France)
Oriol Olesti
(Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Espagne)
de la viticulture dans ces provinces du monde romain que les cadres de production, les techniques de plantation et de vinification avec les installations spécialisées des domaines viticoles, unités intégrées, qui produisent souvent à la fois le vin et ses conteneurs, pour le stockage et la commercialisation, c’est-à-dire les grands dolia –ces cuves d’hier qui s’alignent dans les chais avec leurs 2 m. de haut– et les amphores, qui indiquent souvent la "mise en bouteille" à la propriété. C’est dire que le dossier ne cesse de s’enrichir et qu’il y a matière pour développer une réflexion comparative sur les rythmes et les modalités du développement de la vigne, marqueur précoce de nos paysages, et sur le poids de la viticulture dans les formes d’occupation du sol et d’aménagement des territoires, sachant qu’un siècle sépare la conquête de la Catalogne (fin du IIIe siècle avant notre ère) et celle du Languedoc (fin IIe). Un décalage que l’on retrouve dans le développement de la production viticole et dans les rapports commerciaux entre les deux zones, puisque la Catalogne a relayé l’Italie dans les flux d’approvisionnement en vin dès le Ier siècle av. n.è. Dans l’une et l’autre région se pose d’emblée le problème de la présence de la vigne à l’état sauvage et du rôle des colons grecs, installés dès
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600 à Marseille, dont les textes disent qu’elle a été l’éducatrice des Gaulois pour la culture de l’olivier et de la vigne qu’elle leur aurait appris à tailler1. Sans revenir sur le débat des origines de la viticulture, il faut souligner l’influence jouée par les colons grecs qui ont diffusé le vin à partir de leurs comptoirs d’Emporion/Empúries ou de Rhodé/Roses en Catalogne et d’Agathé/Agde, avant qu’interviennent, sans commune mesure, les Italiens dont la concurrence effrénée réussit à éliminer Marseille du marché dans le courant du IIIe siècle av. n.è. Nous nous limiterons donc à la période romaine et la logique de l’histoire comme la commodité de l’exposé imposent de commencer par le versant catalan. Catalogne Peu de territoires de Méditerranée occidentale ont entretenu pendant la période romaine un
Figure 1: Situation des régions d’étude
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rapport aussi étroit et fécond avec la production vinicole que le nord-est de la province romaine d’Espagne Citérieure. Depuis les zones productrices proches d’Emporion, dans l’actuel Empordà, jusqu’aux zones méridionales autour de l’embouchure de l’Ebre et au territoire de Tarragone, l’ancienne Tarraco, de nombreuses régions ont profité de leurs bonnes conditions climatiques et de leurs facilités de communication pour se vouer intensivement à la production vinicole. C’est particulièrement vrai pour la Léétanie (correspondant aux actuelles zones littorales et prélittorales de la province de Barcelone), où s’est développée à l’époque romaine une importante production viti-vinicole liée à la colonie augustéenne de Barcino/Barcelone et aux municipes d’Iluro, Baetulo, Egara, et probablement Aquae Calidae. Nous nous intéresserons aujourd’hui spécifiquement au Maresme, région archéologiquement la mieux connue de la Léétanie (Olesti 1995 ; Ruestes 2002).
Regards croisés sur la viticulture en Catalogne et en Languedoc romains
Le vin est déjà connu dans le monde ibérique du Nord mais, bien qu’une consommation de raisin sauvage ait existé là depuis le Néolithique, c’est seulement à partir de l’arrivée de colons et de l’essor du monde ibérique que la culture de la vigne pour la production de vin est attestée (Buxó 2005). En effet, des pépins de raisin cultivé ont été retrouvés en contexte colonial grec à Emporion (Empúries et St. Martí d’Empúries) et en contexte ibérique (Ullastret, Illa d’en Reixac, Sitges, Moleta del Remei, Puig de la Misericòrdia...) depuis les VIe-IIIe siècles av. n.è. À la différence de la production d’huile, présente en Catalogne à la periode ibérique mais qui ne se développe qu’avec la présence romaine, il semble clair que la culture de la vigne –à la fois pour le raisin et pour le vin– était déjà assez étendue à l’époque ibérique2. Il ne s’agit pas d’une culture intensive, ni d’exportation, mais d’une production agraire sans doute présente dans une bonne partie des zones ibériques les plus développées, notamment dans les zones côtières. Mais, l’utilisatión généralisée dans le monde ibérique catalan d’un seul type d’amphore pour toutes les productions agro-pastorales, rend difficile d’identifier une production et une commercialisation vinicole intensive, bien que les imitations3 de Darró (Garraf) et la découverte de résidus de vin en amphores ibériques (type Mañá 1) à Mas Boscà (Badalona), permette de penser à une production significative dans certaines zones. Les débuts de la production vinicole romaine apparaissent plus nettement. Occupée par Rome depuis la fin du IIIe av. n.è., la Léétanie a connu un processus de romanisation progressive et intense, où les oppida et les centres indigènes ont cohabité avec les formes nouvelles nées de l’occupation romaine. Au début du Ier avant, l’abandon définitif des oppida indigènes a coïncidé avec les premières fondations urbaines. Une société intégrée et dynamique s’est alors développée qui, déjà au début du Ier av. n.è., voire dès le milieu du IIe, a adopté la viticulture comme forme émergente de production agricole (Olesti 1995 ; 1998b).
Toutefois, les données archéobotaniques, vestiges les plus anciens de production de vin, ne viennent pas de Léétanie, ni d’ailleurs de la zone côtière, mais de l’intérieur de l’actuelle Catalogne, dans la cité romaine de Iesso (Guissona, Segarra), créée ex nihilo à la fin du IIe av. n.è., et où on a récupéré plus de 3000 pépins de raisin. La quantité et leur concentration, outre leurs caractéristiques morphologiques, confirment la culture de la vigne (Buxó 2005), mais cette production paraît correspondre aux seuls besoins de la consommation locale, car on ne connaît ni ateliers d’amphores à vin dans ce territoire, ni indices d’une exportation. Il en va très différemment en Léétanie et dans les autres zones côtières catalanes, où il semble que dès l’origine la production de vin a eu un caractère commercial. À preuve, l’identification, déjà au milieu du IIe av. n.è., de modestes productions léétaniennes d’amphores imitant les types gréco-italiques (Martin et al. 2007), puis la Dressel 1, attestée en Maresme (Léétanie) et dans le territoire de Tarragone (Olesti 1998b). Même si nous ne savons pas ce qu’elle contenait, l’imitation de la forme dans laquelle on importait massivement le vin italien, dès la fin du IIIe av. n.è. et dans la plus grande partie du IIe, indique assez clairement qu’il s’agissait de vin. Ces productions de gréco-italiques et Dressel 1 locales ne sont pas le seul indice du développement de la viticulture dans la région. Au long de la seconde moitié du IIe siècle, on connaît en Léétanie, et notamment dans le Maresme (Olesti 1995 ; 1998a), un ample processus qui voit les petites fermes indigènes de tradition ibéro-romaine, commencer à abandonner les petits ensembles de 2/3 silos où elles stockaient leurs surplus, pour commencer à construire de petits chais à dolia, fréquemment associés à de petits bassins de décantation. Évidemment, il ne s’agit pas de substitution totale de la viticulture à la céréaliculture, mais l’amplitude du processus est claire : progressivement la vigne joue un rôle plus important au détriment des céréales. Bien que la plus grande partie de ces fermes soit de filiation indigène et occupée par une population ibérique (d’après la continuité des modes 87
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de construction, la culture matérielle locale ou les graffitis ibériques), le processus ne se réalise pas en marge de la présence italienne comme le montre l’introduction d’innovations techniques4, ou l’imitation des formes d’amphores. Les plus anciennes imitations connues jusqu’ici proviennent de Ca l’Arnau (Burriac, Maresme) (Martin et al. 2007), où on a retrouvé plusieurs maisons de plan italique et un magnifique ensemble thermal de la seconde moitié du IIe siècle qui illustre le lien entre production vinicole et nouveaux arrivants. Quoi qu’il en soit, il s’agit d’un phénomène hybride, ibéro-romain, comme le montre la présence à Burriac, l’oppidum ibérique central du Maresme, d’un magasin de plus d’une douzaine de dolia de la seconde moitié IIe, près duquel on a retrouvé un pressoir
Figure 2: Chais à dolia et base de pressoir. Oppidum de Burriac (IIe av. n.e.), d’après J. Barberà et R. Pascual (Revilla et Zamora 2006)
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vinicole (figure 2). La production d’imitations de Dressel 1 dans le même atelier qui produisait des amphores ibériques Maña 1 (Forns de St. Simó, Mataró) souligne cette continuité. La participation d’une partie de la société indigène au démarrage de la production vinicole ne peut être plus évidente. Les premiers changements dans les paysages sont difficiles à saisir mais, dans certains cas, il est possible de mettre en rapport l’essor de la viticulture avec un changement des formes d’occupation du territoire et la pénétration de nouvelles terres, véritable phénomène de colonisation agricole, dans les zones de hauteur comme dans les plaines alluviales. Et c’est encore dans le Maresme qu’il est le mieux documenté. Ainsi, c’est au milieu du IIe av. n.è. qu’y démarre un ample processus de transformation territoriale qui implique l’abandon d’une bonne partie des oppida indigènes, la mutation et l’essor des oppida centraux survivants, comme l’apparition d’un réseau dense de modestes habitats voués à la production –qu’on peut qualifier de fermes de tradition ibérique (associés à de modestes ensembles de silos), mais avec déjà des solutions techniques de type romain (tuiles, dolia...). Le processus culmine avec un véritable mouvement de dispersion et d’atomisation des centres de stockage agricole, les ensembles de silos, concentrés jusque-là autour des oppida, se distribuent désormais dans le territoire autour des nouveaux pôles de peuplement rural. Ce changement semble bien accompagner une réorganisation des terres, qu’il faut lier à la mise en place d’une centuriation5. Ce cadastre, construit sur le module de 20 x 20 actus, couvrirait aussi bien la plaine littorale que les vallées proches, et on le retrouve, bien fossilisé, vers Premià de Dalt, Cabrera de Mar, et la plaine de Mataró. Ce nouveau réseau d’établissements ruraux, dense et plus dispersé, est lié à un nouveau modèle d’occupation et d’exploitation du sol qui occupe de novelles terres dans un paysage dont la régularité géométrique est évidente.
Regards croisés sur la viticulture en Catalogne et en Languedoc romains
Figure 3: Terrasse agricole de Can Pau Ferrer (Martín 2004)
Cette construction d’un nouveau paysage agricole est documentée archéologiquement dans le Vallé de Cabrera (Maresme) –autour de l’oppidum de Burriac, et du nouveau centre de Ca l’Arnau– où a été mis au jour, en 2003, l’ensemble de terrasses agricoles de Can Pau Ferrer (Cabrera)6, datable du IIe av. n.è. (figure 3)7. Or, tout près de là a été retrouvé un four produisant des Dressel 1 Léétaniennes, indice d’une production vinicole. Il semble possible de lier la construction de ces terrasses à la mise en place de la centuriation du Maresme, dans la seconde moitié du IIe avant (Olesti 1995 ; 1998b), au cours d’une même opération de réorganisation du territoire, dont l’ensemble Burriac-Ca l’Arnau est le centre politique. Bien que le lien entre géométrisation et démarrage de la production vinicole ne soit pas automatique, il est significatif qu’un fort pourcentage des nouveaux sites soit viticole (chais à dolia, imitations de grécoitaliques ou Dressel 1). La continuité de ces sites ruraux, y compris leur important développement dans la première
moitié du Ier av. n.è., coïncide avec l’essor des imitations et avec l’évolution qui suit vers la création de la première forme amphorique locale, la Tarraconaise-Léétanienne 1, qui apparaît dans le second quart du Ier, et qui connaît rapidement une large diffusion commerciale dans le nord-est de la Citérieure. La coïncidence chronologique avec la fondation des premières villes romaines de la région, Baetulo et Iluro, dans le second quart du Ier, montre que le vin fait partie du processus général, à la fois d’intégration des populations indigènes et étrangères et de romanisation. La naissance de la production vinicole en Léétanie s’exprime aussi dans le nouveau paysage social. Avec l’imitation des conteneurs vinaires italiques apparaît la présence d’estampilles qui indiquent sur l’amphore le nom du producteur (du contenu, sans doute, ou du conteneur). C’est un phénomène limité, car les pièces marquées constituent un pourcentage faible, mais qui illustre comment les mécanismes de distribution et de commercialisation arrivent en Espagne Cité89
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rieure, formes mercantiles liées à la production et à la distribution du vin dans le monde romain. Les premières marques sur des Dressel 1 Léétaniennes correspondent à un nom latin, Q.FABI(us), peut-être indicatif des premières familles italiennes établies dans la région (Olesti 1998b). Par la suite, avec les Léétaniennes 1, la présence italienne s’est encore renforcée8. Ces marques coexistent d’ailleurs avec d’autres, en écriture ibérique elles, retrouvées sur des Dressel 1, du territoire de Tarragone et du Vallès, et sur dolium dans le Maresme. Il s’agit d’anthroponymes ibériques qui révèlent l’élargissement à la fois de la production vinicole et de sa commercialisation. Que des noms ibériques, en écriture ibérique, apparaissent, en rapport avec le vin italien et le vin local, est un indice supplémentaire de l’intégration des communautés locales à l’économie provinciale et de leur développement dans le nouveau modèle
territorial, où la propriété privée des moyens de production joue un rôle fondamental. Nous connaissons au moins un exemple de l’exportation de ces productions vinicoles hors Léétanie, par la présence d’une amphore vinicole estampillée en ibérique à Salduie, Saragosse (Galve 1996). Le développement de la grande production vinicole n’est pas antérieur à la mi-Ier av. n.è. même si, depuis la fin IIe-début Ier av. n.è., les indices de la production vitivinicole sont évidents dans la plus grande partie de la Léétanie, qui prend un caractère vraiment industriel vers 50 av. n.è. Alors, avec l’apparition d’un nouveau type d’amphore, les Pascual 1, la production s’industrialise avec une claire vocation exportatrice. La présence de léétaniennes Pascual 1 dans une bonne partie de l’Espagne et sur de nombreux sites de Gaule méridionale et des frontières germaniques, montre
Figure 4: Fours d’amphores (Ier-IIe siècles de n.è.) en Léétanie et en Catalogne (Revilla et Zamora 2006)
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Regards croisés sur la viticulture en Catalogne et en Languedoc romains
son entrée dans les circuits commerciaux méditerranéens et son arrivée à Rome. Le haut niveau de cette production est confirmé par le développement d’ateliers spécialisés à partir la moitié du Ier siècle en Léétanie où le phénomène est général, ample, et où il correspond à celui des fondations urbaines. Le seul nombre des fours d’amphores connus –qui correspondent à des ateliers spécialisés qui devaient fournir de nombreux moyens et petits producteurs des alentours–, indique une densité très élevée de vignes et de producteurs (figure 4). Cette densité est évidente dans les zones les plus urbanisées de la Citérieure où les structures cadastrales ont été bien reconnues : Maresme, Vallès, Pla de Barcelona, ager Tarraconensis, Penedès et Empordà. Le moment fort de ce développement correspond, au tournant de l’ère, à la période augustéenne et à la fondation de la colonie de Barcino/Barcelone. Cet essor n’est pas seulement dû à la participation des communautés locales mais aussi à l’intervention d’étrangers, intéressés à ce commerce très rentable et à un investissement de caractère spéculatif (Pena 1998 ; Molina 2002). De nombreuses estampilles révèlent clairement la présence de familles italiennes, impliquées dans le commerce du vin de Léétanie et de Citérieure (Pena 1998 ; Barreda 1998 ; Tremoleda 2000), mais cette participation n’était possible que dans un territoire déjà engagé auparavant dans la production viti-vinicole, et où les investissements spéculatifs orientés vers la standardisation de la production pouvaient être rapidement rentables. C’est peut-être dans ce sens qu’il faut lire le passage de Cicéron sur l’interdiction de planter de nouvelles vignes et des olivettes en Transalpine, vers la mi-Ier. Même s’il s’insère dans un contexte polémique, Cicéron parait se référer clairement à une limitation de la production transalpine de vin et d’huile, produits phares des exportations italiennes vers l’Occident au long des IIe-Ier siècles av. n.è. La référence renvoie à la seule Transalpine (voir infra), mais l’Espagne Citérieure a pu être également concernée. La présence de nouvelles
familles engagées dans le négoce, traduit-il le réinvestissement en Citérieure de capitaux antérieurement investis en Transalpine? La présence sur des Léétaniennes-Tarraconaise 1 de noms de famille également connus en Narbonnais (Pena 1998) pourrait le laisser supposer. En tout cas, étant donné qu’on connaît alors aussi un essor de la production vitivinicole en Biterrois, il faut peut-être penser à la solidarité des réseaux provinciaux (pompéiens des deux côtés) dans la résistance à la mesure? Par la suite, la fondation de la colonie de Barcino/Barcelone vers 14-13 av. n.è., avec une nouvelle centuriation de la région, apporte une impulsion à la production vinicole. Nous avons montré ailleurs (Olesti 2005) que l’étroite relation entre les premières familles établies dans la colonie (Porcii, Licinii, Cornelii, Pedanii…) et la production vinicole, paraît évidente. Quoi qu’il en soit, l’interaction entre communautés locales et nouvelles familles crée, dans le courant du Ier siècle de notre ère, un paysage particulier, spécialisé dans une viti-viniculture exportatrice, et l’analyse des établissements les plus significatifs m’a permis de reconstruire, au moins partiellement, ce qu’on peut appeler le paysage du vin dans la Léétanie romaine, que nous présenterons rapidement. Le paysage du vin en Léétanie aux Ier et IIe siècles de n.è. impliquait logiquement une grande diversité de l’habitat rural : fermes de paysans, centres résidentiels de type villa de quelques riches propriétaires, cabanes à outils implantées dans les parcelles, fermes, chais à dolia –associés souvent à des pressoirs–, fours dans les sites produisant des amphores et dolia nécessaires, ateliers... Diversité qui pouvait exister dans un espace unique ou relever de la dispersion, peut-être au sein de la même propriété (Revilla 1995). La structure de ce paysage léétan peut se lire sur la carte des centres producteurs d’amphores –avec leurs fours– identifiés en Catalogne (figure 4). On note que la densité des ateliers est remarquable tout le long de toute la côte catalane, mais sa concentration dans la zone centrale, en Léétanie, surprend. La comparaison est suggestive –près de 40 ateliers en 91
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Léétanie contre 11 dans la région de Tarragone, où ont été aussi élaborés des vins prestigieux9– car, même si tous n’ont pas fonctionné ensemble, l’écart mesure la portée de la production vinicole, d’autant que nombre d’établissements ne produisaient pas leurs amphores. Les établissements productifs en Maresme sont évidemment impossibles à présenter intégralement. Certains, définis comme villa, ou parfois villa rustique, sont plutôt des centres de production ou des entrepôts de produits agricoles destinés à la vigne. Cinq types d’établissements coexistaient que nous évoquerons brièvement. D’abord, les petits établissements secondaires, disposant de moyens réduits et qui pouvaient aussi servir d’habitat pendant les périodes de travail intense ; puis, des établissements plus vastes où pouvaient coexister plusieurs unités familiales, tel le site de Can Balençó (Argentona), de tradition ibérique finale ; ou encore des établissements liés à des travaux spécialisés, notamment dans la production d’amphores : deux ateliers –Can Collet et de St. Miquel de Martres (Caldes de Montbui) et Can Vendrell (St. Eulàlia de Ronçana)– ont produit des Pascual 1 et des Dressel 2/4, outre des Dressel 1 Léétaniennes à Can Vendrell, où une des marques était en caractères ibériques. Un autre groupe, mal connu jusqu’à ces dernières années, comprend des établissements produisant à grande échelle. Or, si la production vinicole léétanienne –avec sa diversité de marques amphoriques–, peut être associée dans sa phase initiale à une structure éclatée de petits et moyens producteurs, on note au Ier avant, mais surtout à partir du Ier de n.è, et plus encore du IIe, un processus de concentration de la production dans des pôles de type industriel. Ainsi à El Moré (St. Pol, Maresme) sur une hauteur dominant la côte, organisé sur 1.200 m2, en 4 terrasses, selon un plan qui profite des dénivelés pour faciliter l’élaboration et le stockage du vin. Sous l’habitation de la première terrasse, est installée l’aire de production (pressoir, bassins de décantation)10, le vin est ensuite canalisé vers les 3e et 4e terrasses et les grandes batteries de dolia (300 dolia ; Gurri 2004 : 632), tandis 92
qu’un atelier d’amphores, avec ses fours, se développe au pied de la colline. Le site, fondé vers le tournant de l’ère, produit du vin jusque vers la mi-IIe après notre ère. À Veral de Vallmora (Teià, Maresme), organisé aussi en terrasses face à la mer, les installations vinicoles (chai à 3 travées, pressoirs, 2 aires de dolia, couverte et à l’air libre) sont complétées par un four à amphores. Créé au Ier avant, le centre viticole installé à l’époque augustéenne, connaît à partir du IIe siècle une restructuration qui accroît sa capacité productive qui reste à un haut niveau au IIIe et jusqu’à la mi-IVe, quand s’implante un champ de silos. Le dernier groupe correspondrait à de véritables villae, luxueuses, moins nombreuses qu’on ne l’a dit (Revilla 1995), et dont certaines se développent à partir d’un atelier d’amphores, comme Torre Llauder11. Can Sentromà dispose d’une aire de décantation, d’un chai à dolia, d’un pressoir à partir du début du Ier siècle de notre ère, mais monte en puissance au Ier siècle et surtout au IIe, quand disparaît une aire de silos remplacés par des dolia. Le site de Cal Ros de les Cabres (Ocata), lui, correspond à un habitat ibérique final, transformé à la fin du Ier av. n.è. en un important atelier auquel s’ajoute une villa dont la riche décoration est du début du IIIe. La production de vin est ainsi souvent à l’origine de grosses villae et pas forcément l’inverse. Terres et vignes, dans la diversité des établissements, témoignent d’un paysage fortement anthropisé et très spécialisé, même si on peut seulement entrevoir les rapports entre centres producteurs et zones de culture du vin léétanien au cours des processus d’aménagement des territoires. L’articulation centuriations/viticulture n’est évidemment pas automatique, mais il est éclairant de constater comment les sites ruraux qui s’intègrent à la nouvelle structure territoriale sont en grande partie les plus manifestement liés à la production vinicole (Olesti 1998). Certaines données archéologiques du Haut Empire nous semblent significatives.
Regards croisés sur la viticulture en Catalogne et en Languedoc romains
Et ce n’est peut-être pas le seul hasard des récupérations de matériaux qui fait qu’une limite de parcelle, datable du Ier de n.è., à Can Soleret (figure 5) (Gallemi et al. 1994), près d’un four de Pascual I, dans une zone de terrasses de culture, a été matérialisée par un fossé linéaire où s’alignaient 7 têtes d’amphore plantées à l’envers conformément à ce qu’indique Siculus Flaccus12 pour une limite de propriété. Ici, elle se situe précisément sur un axe théorique de la centuriation de cette zone, où elle organise l’espace agricole deux siècles après sa mise en place (Olesti 1998a). Hors de la Léétanie et du Maresme, on connaît deux autres limites semblables, liées à un réseau centurié13: dans le territoire de Tarragonne14 et en Biterrois. On a aussi mis au jour récemment un ensemble de fosses de plantation à Veral de Vallmora (Teià)15, datées du Ier siècle de n.è.16, qui attestent l’usage de la plantation en fosse et, comme en Biterrois, l’intérêt de planter jusqu’aux murs des habitations, pour exploiter au maximum les terres17. L’évolution du vin léétanien, qui peut correspondre à l’ensemble du vin de la Tarraconaise à partir de la période augustéenne, connaît un
essor qui couvre tout le Ier siècle. La consolidation des marchés des Gaules, du limes du Rhin, et même de Rome –atteints d’abord par les Pascual 1 puis par les Dressel 2/4–, ouvre une époque d’expansion qui a fait du vin léétanien un produit relativement commun sur les tables romaines. Les textes littéraires antiques, en majorité de la seconde moitié du Ier de n.è. en témoignent (Revilla 1998). Pline évoque l’abondant vin léétanien (NH 33), Martial, d’origine espagnole, précise "l’infâme" vin léétanien (I, 26, 9-10 ; VII, 53, 6 ; XIII, 118) et les allusions de Juvénal (V, 29-30) et de Fronton (Ep. de eloquentia I, 1) vont dans le même sens. Mais, une série d’étiquettes trouvées à Rome valorisent le Lauronense vetus (CIL XV 45774579), de Léétanie intérieure dont on connaît d’autres crus18. Plusieurs auteurs signalent aussi le vin de Tarragone : Martial (XIII, 118), Silius Italicus (III, 369-370 ; XV, 176-177), Florus (Vergilius orator an poeta II, 8). Techniques de culture et de production, procédés de vinification, rendements sont évoqués par Columelle (III, 2, 19 ; II, 15, 4; V, 5, 15 ; XII, 21, 4-6 ; 40, 2 y 44, 5). Et Pline cite aussi plusieurs cépages19 présents dans la péninsule ibérique, dont l’aminée. Ainsi, c’est la quantité plus que la qualité qui a fait le succès du vin léétanien, dont le prix et le degré ont aussi dû constituer des arguments. En ce sens, on peut penser que ses avantages ont dû résider dans l’importance de sa production (grâce à la forte productivité) et dans son transport à bas coût vers les zones de consommation, pour les troupes du Rhin ou le peuple de Rome.
Figure 5: Limite de propriété de Can Soleret, Mataró (Gallemí-Gurrera 1994)
Il est difficile d’évaluer les raisons de cette forte rentabilité sachant que le monde romain ne relevait pas d’une véritable économie de marché et que des facteurs comme les réseaux de relation entre les élites provinciales et romaines jouaient pour l’obtention de contrats de fourniture aux armées, pouvant affecter la distribution des produits. Mais ont aussi pesé des facteurs naturels –climat, complémentarité des ressources, situation– et des facteurs démographiques qui ont favorisé le Maresme, l’offre de main93
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d’oeuvre y étant liée à la haute densité urbaine –trois municipes et une colonie (Blandae, Iluro, Baetulo, Barcino) sur une frange littorale d’à peine 70 km. Mais, cette situation a connu une importante inflexion dans les années 80-90. Dans le dernier quart du Ier, l’archéologie met en évidence un ample mouvement d’abandon d’une bonne partie des petits centres de production vinicole –petites fermes, chais à dolia, ateliers d’amphores– tandis que très peu de villas sont touchées. Cette "crise" ne signifie absolument pas un arrêt de la production, mais une réorganisation du système productif, où les petites unités autonomes reculent quand s’imposent les centres de grande dimension, comme Veral de Vallmora ou El Moré, et connaissent alors une importante phase de développement. En d’autres termes, il semble bien que le vin cesse d’être une affaire largement exercée par les petits et moyens agriculteurs, pour passer sous le contrôle de certaines familles, capables de poursuivre une production de type industriel. Comment expliquer ce changement? Il paraît logique d’envisager un processus de concentration de la propriété, d’autant que les abandons de fermes semblent donner aux centres qui survivent, surtout des villae, une position plus forte au sein d’un processus qui s’affirme surtout à partir de la mi- IIe siècle, même s’il a débuté à la fin du Ier. Mais d’autres facteurs ont dû jouer. Pour certains, la crise de la fin du Ier serait liée à un changement de conteneur, les amphores étant remplacées par des tonneaux qui laissent peu de traces. Mais cela n’explique pas les abandons de fermes et de chais. Plus complexe est la polémique citée par Suétone (Domit. VII, 2) et d’autres sources (Philostrate, Vie d’Apollonios VI, 42), sur l’interdiction de planter de nouvelles vignes et sur l’arrachage d’une partie de celles des provinces, quand manquent les grains et que surabonde le vin en Italie. La mesure a été interprétée par certains comme un essai de protection des vignobles italiens, l’efficacité a été limitée étant donnée la poursuite de la production vinicole dans beaucoup de régions. Pour d’autres elle n’en aurait eu aucune. On sait pourtant que Pro94
bus (276-282) autorise de nouvelles plantations de vignes en Gaule et en Espagne notamment (Hist.Aug., Prob. XVIII. 8 et infra), ce qui suppose l’existence de telles mesures au cours du temps. Or, celles de Domitien, vers 90, coïncident dans beaucoup de zones vinicoles, comme le nord-est de la Citérieure, avec le changement et l’abandon de nombreux sites. Y a-t-il une relation? Il est évident que les mesures de Domitien ne signifient pas la fin de la production viticole dans des zones comme la Léétanie, où des établissements comme el Moré ou Veral de Vallmora montrent même un essor de la production. Mais on ne peut nier les indicateurs de changement, d’inflexion de la structure générale : réduction des productions d’amphores et donc des exportations massives, dans une claire réorganisation qui suppose concentration de la production et réduction du volume total de vignes et de sites. S’il est difficile de lier ces observations aux mesures de Domitien, elles ressemblent étrangement à ce qu’auraient pu être leurs effets : seuls quelques producteurs ont pu continuer d’exporter, mais cette continuité a impliqué pour leur entreprise un coup de fouet que seule la réduction générale de la production pouvait donner. Ainsi, la limitation de la production vinicole a pu favoriser quelques propriétaires au détriment d’autres et leur permettre d’accroître leurs propriétés et leurs ressources aux dépens des plus menacés. On sait que Veral de Vallmora appartenait au réseau d’une importante famille de Barcelone, la gens Pedania, et la croissance de l’entreprise au détriment des autres serait un bon exemple de ce processus favorisé par les mesures de Domitien. Les liens domaines/propriétaires s’éclairent par l’analyse des marques amphoriques et de la toponymie alto-médiévale, qui permet d’identifier certaines familles impliquées dans le négoce vitivinicole, et les groupes sociaux concernés (Revilla 1995 ; Olesti 2005). Ainsi, un travail récent sur les fundi connus autour de
Regards croisés sur la viticulture en Catalogne et en Languedoc romains
Barcino a permis d’identifier un ensemble de 50 toponymes formés sur des noms personnels romains, dont 19 correspondent à des familles de notables documentées dans les inscriptions de Barcino (Olesti 2005). L’analyse a permis de montrer la forte relation entre ces grands propriétaires et le commerce vitivinicole, qui joue sur 10 des 19 cas documentés. L’intervention de ces grandes familles dans la production vitivinicole ne doit pas cacher la réalité du milieu producteur. Malgré quelques timbres portant les tria nomina des citoyens et qui peuvent lier leurs porteurs à des membres des élites provinciales ou impériale20, la plupart des estampilles21 évoquent des dépendants (Revilla 1995 : 107) et soulignent leur rôle, notamment des affranchis, dans le monde de la production et de la distribution du vin léétanien22. Un magnifique exemple de la complexité de la structure sociale de la viticulture léétane se lit dans le cas de L. Pedanius Epictetus. Jusqu’à peu, l’une des familles les plus importantes de la colonie, les Pedanii, n’avait pu être identifiée par une étude territoriale, ni sa relation avec la production vinicole. Or, la découverte récente d’un signaculum de plomb sur le site del Veral de Vallmora (Teià, Maresme), a livré une nouvelle information (Rodà et al. 2006). Il s’agit d’un sceau rectangulaire pour marquer les céramiques, EPICTET(us) L(uci) P(edanii) CLEMENTIS, que nous pouvons interpréter comme Epictetus, esclave de Lucius Pedanius Clemens, deux personnages bien documentés dans l’épigraphie de Barcino à l’époque de Trajan. Dans cette propriété, un esclave serait impliqué dans le commerce du vin, Epictetus, qui, peu de temps après, serait affranchi (L. Pedanius Epictetus, IRC IV 106) par Lucius Pedanius Clemens (IRC IV 107, 108) et deviendrait sévir augustal de la colonie. Sa présence à Teià pourrait ne pas être fortuite, si l’origine du toponyme peut être reliée à un autre personnage connu dans l’épigraphie de Barcino, Lucius Pedanius Atilianus (IRC IV 68). Plusieurs mentions sont connues pour Teià : Taliano (996, CSC 314), Tallano (1030,
CSC 513), alaudem Tayano (1097, CSC 764). Coromines le considère comme un toponyme dérivé du nom personnel latin Tallius (Onom. Cat. VII, 255), mais nous pensons qu’il peut venir du nomen Atiliano