TSR Wiki > Study Help > Subjects and Revision > Revision Notes > History > Urban Continuity
- Was one urban civilisation (Rome) transformed into another (late Medieval, Modern Europe) by death (followed by rebirth middle ages) or process gradual transformation?
What do we expect of a town?
- Difficult to pinpoint definitions of town; size, function, relative etc
Constraints of Written Evidence
- Evidence in some parts, Britain 5th and 6th century verging on prehistoric level also flexible definition of town explains instability in arguments.
- Most civitates survived to early middle ages may only have been church surrounded by a few dwellings
- Written evidence sparse and not generally descriptive of town life
The archaeological evidence: Old approaches and old problems
- Areas of best archaeological evidence, Scandanavia (little Roman domination) and Britain least happening.
- Mediterranean sites under excavated and have they been dug properly? Going straight for classical remains, as opposed to whats in between
- Interest in imperial power Roman archaeology tourism at expense of good archaeology of post-Roman period even Aprhodisias
- Luni two archaeological excavations first one at ace finds nothing and suggests continuity of forum, second one shows houses of 6th 7th century on top of forum.
- Topographical evidence like Roman pattern of streets today showing continuity? No archaeological or documentary evidence.
The archaeological evidence: current debates and current perspectives
- Much scope in poorly documented post-Roman period
- Very much prized in Britain (difficult to extract) better but not so well in Mediterranean
- Roman urbanism (colonnaded streets) into Arab suqs seen as a degeneration of Arab conquest. Recent interpretation of positive development allowing Islamic mercantile enterprise, freed form aristocratic chains Roman urbanism changing attitude from colonial disdain for the Arab to broad mind
- Italy controversial heritage in Roman sub soil, or renaissance rebirth of classicism?
- Agreement less populous, less monumental than before gradual fading away or reappearance
- Medieval historians and historically trained archaeologists powerful Italys later medieval cities swayed in favour of urban survival by nature of written sources. Continuity of citivas based political and ecclesiastical life ignore failed cities.
- Archaeologists dark earth stress discontinuity and calamity, over-emphasising evidence from abandoned cities provide such well preserved archaeological material.
- Carandini likens possible continuity of early medieval city in Italy to aristocrat who has become a tramp in spirit a noble, but sadly decayed
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