Agrarian archaeology in northern Iberia: Geoarchaeology and early medieval land use

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Quaternary International xxx (2013) 1e13

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Agrarian archaeology in northern Iberia: Geoarchaeology and earlymedieval land use

Juan Antonio Quirós Castillo a,*, Cristiano Nicosia b, Ana Polo-Díaz a,c,María Ruiz del Árbol d

aUniversity of the Basque Country, Department of Geography, Prehistory and Archaeology, C/Tomás y Valiente s/n, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, SpainbUniversité Libre de Bruxelles, Centre de Recherches en Archéologie et Patrimoine, CP 175 e 50, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt, B-1050 Bruxelles, BelgiumcUniversity of Stirling, Biological and Environmental Sciences, Stirling FK9 4LA, Scotland, UKd Institute of History, Spanish National Council for Research (CSIC), C/ Albasanz 26/28, 28037 Madrid, Spain

a r t i c l e i n f o

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* Corresponding author.E-mail address: [email protected] (J.A. Quirós

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a b s t r a c t

This work illustrates the results of a geoarchaeological study carried out at two medieval deserted vil-lages in the Basque Country. These were investigated during large-scale excavations, which exposedinhabited areas alongside production spaces. At Zaballa (Iruña de Oca, Álava), a terrace system from the10th century AD was studied. At Zornoztegi (Salvatierra, Álava), thick backfill units deposited for agri-cultural purposes between the late 11th and the early 12th century AD were analyzed. Traces of vege-tation clearance, possibly by means of fire, were observed in both sites. Soil micromorphological andphysicochemical analyses allowed for the reconstruction of the formation processes of these agriculturalspaces, and demonstrated the human impact on the local soilscapes. A multi-proxy approach was appliedin order to determine the chronology and to identify the crops that were grown in these agriculturalcontexts. At Zaballa, terraces were probably used to grow vines, whereas the backfill units of Zornoztegiwere linked to cereal growth and to horticulture. Results are discussed in comparison to other sites in theBasque Country and northern Iberia, highlighting a generalized transformation of rural settlementsbetween the 6th and the 12th century AD.

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1. Introduction

The study of the period between the end of the Roman Empireand the year 1000 AD e known as the “Dark Ages” e was longcarried out using negative paradigms. These resulted from com-parison between the “decadence” of the Dark Ages and theprosperity of the Roman period or of the late Middle Ages. Ac-cording to these paradigms, the impoverishment of materialculture and technology, and the dismantling of the Roman agri-cultural system embodied a form of regression to a more primi-tive world (i.e. Ward-Perkins, 2005). However, both in southernEurope and more broadly, the archaeology of the Dark Ages hasdeveloped considerably in recent years (see Wickham, 2009).One change is a new focus on the study of landscapes, whichinclude inhabited spaces and the production areas. However,archaeologists have encountered some difficulty in identifying

Castillo).

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stillo, J.A., et al., Agrarian arch/dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2

and analyzing areas devoted to agricultural production and toanimal husbandry. Given that in pre-industrial times these pro-ductive activities involved at least 80% of the population(Wickham, 2005), their historical relevance is evident, and it isthe direct study of agricultural spaces that enables us to gatherinformation about their technical (e.g., land management, agri-cultural techniques, crop species) and social aspects (e.g., artic-ulation of the production, forms of social inequality).

Rescue archaeological operations of the last 10e20 years insouthern Europe included open-area excavations of wide surfaces,often of many hectares. Beside domestic occupation areas, theseexcavations unearthed whole field systems. This required arethinking of older methodological approaches, which until thenhad been centered on the idea of the “archaeological site”. InSpain, in the last years, a form of agrarian archaeology hasdeveloped, focusing specifically on the study of production spaces(Orejas, 2006). In particular, this approach has encompassed thestudy of areas devoid of archaeological structures within ruralsettlements, interpreted as agricultural parcels (Vigil-EscaleraGuirado, 2010). Moreover, it has focused on horticultural parcels

aeology in northern Iberia: Geoarchaeology and early medieval land013.10.003

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Fig. 1. Physical outline of the Alava plain, with position of the studied sites (Zaballa, Zonrnoztegi) and of the site of Aistra, mentioned in the text.

J.A. Quirós Castillo et al. / Quaternary International xxx (2013) 1e132

subject to intensive cultivation, occasionally irrigated, and locatedclose to domestic structures (Quirós Castillo, 2010) and on terracesystems. These have been the main objects of investigation, asterraces are stratified “artifacts” and as such can be investigated byarchaeological methods. In this framework, research has focusedon terrace systems’ chronology (Frederik and Krahtopoulou, 2000;Harfouche, 2007; Acabado, 2009), on their formation processes, oron the agricultural practices that were carried out on them (Frenchand Whitelaw, 1999; Goldberg and Macphail, 2006). In Spain, thearchaeological study of terrace systems includes a wide array ofcases, ranging in chronology from proto-history to the modern age(Ruiz del Arbol, 2005; Grau Mira and Pérez Rodríguez, 2008; RieraMora and Palet Martínez, 2008; Asins Velis, 2009; Catafau et al.,

Please cite this article in press as: Quirós Castillo, J.A., et al., Agrarian archuse, Quaternary International (2013), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2

2011). Research on medieval agricultural spaces has been carriedout in Galicia (Ballesteros Arias, 2003, 2010; Ballesteros Arias et al.,2006), in Asturias (Fernández Fernández, 2011; González Álvarezet al., 2013), in the Basque Country (Quirós Castillo, 2009a;Quirós Castillo, 2010), and in the Andalusi area (Kirchner, 2010,2011). It is in the framework of this growing body of research inagrarian archaeology that historical archaeology and geo-archaeology are being employed conjointly (see Puy and Balbo,2013).

Taking into account the methodological framework outlinedabove, this paper aims to illustrate the results of the geo-archaeological study of the agricultural spaces of two desertedmedieval villages in the Basque Country. The obtained results will


J.A. Quirós Castillo et al. / Quaternary International xxx (2013) 1e13 3

be discussed in historical terms in light of recent research carriedout in this territory.

2. The sites

More than 300 villages abandoned during the Medieval andModern ages have been identified in the Alava province in theBasque Country (López de Guereñu, 1957). Once abandoned, thesesites were transformed into agricultural areas, and were impactedby modern mechanized agriculture and by land reform initiativesduring the 1950s. This had a strong impact on the preservation ofarchaeological deposits and on the possibility of identifying me-dieval agricultural spaces. The continuity of use accompanied bynew technology deeply impacted most ancient field systems.Often, these are only identifiable thanks to surface scatters ofdomestic residues, which include medieval and modern potsherdsthat were incorporated in the soil through manuring practices(Quirós Castillo, 2009a). Archaeological prospecting allows for theidentification of settlements, often located in areas with lowagricultural potential and shallow soils. In these areas, the degreeof preservation of the settlements’ archaeological record and ofnearby agricultural plots is higher. Terrace and field systems havebeen identified by various archaeological projects carried out inAlava province, such as at Bagoeta (Azkarate Garai-Olaun et al.,2011), Aistra (Quirós Castillo, 2009b), San Andrés (Sánchez Rincón,2011), and in other areas of Atlantic Basque Country (e.g. VarónHernández et al., 2012).

The present paper focuses on the agricultural areas exposed inassociation with Zaballa and Zornoztegi, two deserted medievalvillages that were recently investigated (see below). These settle-ments are located in the central part of Alava province, in the so-called ‘Llanada Alavesa’ (Alava Plain). The latter is a depressed ba-sin ca. 40 km wide in EeW direction and 15 km NeS, at the centerof which is the capital city of Basque Country, Vitoria-Gasteiz(Fig. 1). This plain, surrounded by various mountain ranges, be-longs to a syncline (Vitoria syncline e see Eve, 2003) and istherefore of structural origin. The plain is drained by the ZadorraRiver, a tributary of the Ebro, which easily eroded the soft UpperCretaceous carbonates, giving rise to a rather flat surface.

Fig. 2. Aerial view of the Zaballa


Zaballa (Iruña de Oca, Álava, x 517.516; y 4.738.616, UTM 30N)is at the foot of the Vitoria Mountains (composed of UpperCretaceous dolomite), in the SW corner of the Alava plain (Fig. 2).The medieval settlement was located in a valley incised in thenorthern flanks of the mountains. The construction of a largepublic infrastructure required a rescue archaeological operationcarried out over an area of more than 4 ha (Quirós Castillo, 2012).The scale of the operation allowed for the investigation of both thesettlement and the agricultural areas around it. The site, set nearthe Roman town of Iruña-Veleia, started as a single farmstead inthe 6th century AD, and by the 8th century was a village of morethan 1 ha. In the 10th century a private church was built in thearea formerly occupied by domestic structures, and the domesticarea was relocated to the valley bottom. It is in this phase that thelower slopes linking the mountain flanks to the floodplain wereterraced. Three series of terraces were built on the western slopeand one on the eastern one. The western terrace series, studiedhere, have a width of 15 m and a maximum length of 60 m,covering an area of ca. 4000 m2. The settlement was transformedagain in the 13th century, becoming a manor, when a massive fillwas deposited at the valley bottom, covering all the householdsand a new quarter was built on the eastern slope of the Zaballavalley. Finally, the site was abandoned in the 15th century(Lubritto et al., 2013).

Zornoztegi (Agurain, Álava, x 549.436; y 4.747.168, UTM 30N)is located in the central part of the Alava plain, on a small NeSelongated calcareous ridge reaching 612 m a.s.l. (Fig. 3). Themorphology of the ridge is today strongly modified by ongoingagricultural practices. Archaeological excavations were carried outin the settlement area between 2005 and 2011, highlighting aprolonged occupation sequence (Quirós Castillo, 2009a). Thesettlement was founded in the 8th century on top of a late Romanfarmstead (6the7th century), and covered the whole hilltop overa surface of ca. 2 ha. In the 11th century the houses were clusteredin the northern sector of the settlement, where the church ofSanta Maria was then built in the 12th century. In this phase, theremains of the abandoned domestic structures of the southernsector were covered by thick backfill units put in place to createagricultural surfaces, while the western slopes of the hill were

site (Iruña de Oca, Álava).


Fig. 3. Aerial view of the Zornoztegi site (Salvatierra, Álava). On the right-hand side, the archaeological excavation of the church can be seen.


terraced. The site was abandoned in the 13th century, when theroyal town of Salvatierra was built by King Alfonso X less than3 km to the south. The 11the12th century agricultural backfillunits of Zornoztegi cover an area of w300 m2 and were adaptedto the morphology of the slope, creating a homogeneous agri-cultural surface. Their thickness is variable, but it was estimatedthat overall w1600 m3 of material were put in place during thisphase.

3. Material and methods

At Zaballa, two soil profiles were sampled for soil micromor-phology and physicochemical analyses. The positions of the profileswith respect to the local relief are shown in Fig. 4. At Zornoztegi,analyses focused on one profile cutting through the 11the12thcenturies agricultural backfill units and reaching down to thetruncated soil underneath (see position in Fig. 5).

Profiles were described in the field according to the guidelinesof F.A.O. (WRB, 2007) and of C.B.S.D.A. (1983) (see Table 1 forprofile description). Bulk samples for physicochemical analyses

Table 1Field description of relevant horizons in studied profiles.

Site Horizon Description

Zaballa Profile 1 Ah 0e26/44 cm. 10 YR 3/2. Silty clay. Strong pedality: grandom arrangement, 15e20% (2e7.5 cm). Slightlyroots (0.5 mme10 mm). Few charcoal fragments (1

2Bw 26e32/62 cm. 7.5 YR 4/3. Silty clay. Moderate pedarandom arrangement, 15e20% (2e7.5 cm). SlightlyFew charcoal fragments in M4 (1 mm approx.). Clea

Zaballa Profile 2 C1 25e56 cm. 10 YR 5/2. Silty clay. Apedal. Limestone15e20% (2e6 mm). Very hard, dry. Common worm

2Ahb 56e106 cm. 10 YR 4/3. Silty clay. Weak pedality: surandom arrangement, 20% (2e7.5). Slightly hard, slilayer (3 cm-thick) of charcoal fragments (1 cm appr

Zornoztegi Ap 0e40 cm. 2.5 YR 5/2. Silty clay. Moderate pedality:random arrangement, 10% (2e3). Very hard, dry. Co

C 40e85 cm. 2.5 YR 5/4. Silty clay. Weak pedality: subarrangement, 10% (2e4 cm). Hard, dry. Frequent wo

2Aant1 85e113 cm. 2.5 YR 4/2. Clay loam. Weak pedality: srandom arrangement, 10% (2e4 cm). Hard, slightlycharcoal, bone, and pottery. Gradual lower boundar

2Aant2 113e148 cm. 2.5 YR 4/3. Clay. Weak pedality: subanarrangement, 5% (2e4 cm). Hard, Slightly humid. Veand pottery. Abrupt lower boundary.


were collected from the relevant soil horizons observed in thefield. Soil texture was determined by hydrometry, exploiting therelative sedimentation velocity of different particles size ac-cording to Stokes’ law to obtain densiometric readings of thethree granulometric classes (sand, silt, and clay). Organic carbonwas determined by the WalkleyeBlack method, and the soilorganic matter value was obtained by multiplying organic carbonby 1.72. The value of total nitrogen was obtained by distillationfollowed by measurement by spectrophotometry (BranþLuebbe�

AA3 autoanalyzer). Assimilable or “plant-available” phosphoruswas determined by the Olsen method (Olsen and Dean, 1965),while pH was measured in water with a soil to water ratio of 1:2.Total carbonates were quantified by measuring the pressure ofCO2 generated by reaction of 1 g of soil material with HCl. Theresults of physicochemical analyses are presented in Table 2.Samples for soil micromorphology were collected as undisturbedand oriented monoliths. Thin sections were manufactured ac-cording to the methods described in Murphy (1986) and analyzedusing the terminology and concepts of Stoops (2003) (seeTable 3).

ranular. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded,hard, dry. Many worm-related casts (1e2 mm, rounded). Common.5e9 mm). Gradual lower boundary.lity: granular. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded,hard, dry. Common worm-related casts and roots (specially in M2).r lower boundary.

and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded, random arrangement,-related casts. Common roots (0.5 mme25 mm).bangular blocky. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded,ghtly humid. Common worm-related casts. Few roots (0.5 mm). Continuousox.), embedded in M3 sample. Gradual lower boundary.

subangular blocky. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded,mmon worm-related casts. Common roots (0.5e1 mm). Abrupt lower boundary.angular blocky. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded, randomrm-related casts. Very few roots (0-5 mm). Gradual lower boundary.ubangular blocky. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded,humid. Very few roots (0.5 mm). Small fragments (mm- and cm-sized) ofy.gular blocky. Limestone and marl fragments, subangular/subrounded, randomry few roots (0.5 mm). Small fragments (mm- and cm-sized) of charcoal, bone,


Table 3Thin section description (terminology: Stoops, 2003).

TSa Horb Voids/microstructure Textc Charcoal Biosphd B-Fe c/fratio

RelDistf

Pedofeaturesg

>200 mm <200 mm CI DC int DCC DC inf

ZABALLA e Profile 1M1 Ah Planar voids, dominant. Channels (5e7.5%); vughs (3.5%).

Subangular blocky MS, strongly separated juxtaposed tostrongly developed granular MS.

SC * Cryst 35/65 SSP *

M1 2Bw Planar voids, common. Channels (3.5e5%); vughs (2e3.5%).Subangular blocky MS, moderately separated juxtaposedto moderately developed granular MS.

C/SC * * Cryst 25/75 DSP *

M2 2Bw Planar voids, frequent. Channels (3.5e5%); vughs (�5%).Subangular blocky MS, weakly to moderately separated.

C/SC * Cryst 30/70 DSP

M3 2Bw Planar voids, dominant. Channels (2e3.5%); vughs (�2%).Subangular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C/SC ** SS/PS/GS 30/70 DSP * *

M4 2Ck Planar voids, dominant. Channels (�2%); vughs (7.5%).Subangular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C/SC * ** CS/PS/GS 25/75 DSP *** **

ZABALLA e Profile 2M2 C2 Planar voids, dominant. Channels (5e7.5%); vughs (�5%).

Subangular blocky, moderately separated MS; juxtaposedto strongly developed granular MS.

SC ** Cryst 35/65 SSP

M3 2Ahb Planar voids, dominant; vughs (2e3.5%); channels (7.5e10%).Angular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C/SC * Cryst 25/75 DSP

M3 2Ahb Planar voids, dominant. Channels (2e3.5%); vughs (�2%).Subangular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C/SC * * Cryst 35/65 DSP

M4 2Ahb Planar voids, dominant; vughs (�3.5%); channels (7.5e10%).Subangular blocky MS, moderately separated.

C/SC * * * Cryst 35/65 DSP

M5 2C Planar voids, dominant; vughs (�7.5%); channels (3.5e5%).Angular blocky MS, strongly separated, juxtaposed togranular MS, strongly separated.

C/SC * Cryst 35/65 DSP *

ZORNOZTEGI ProfileM2 Ap Planes (very rare); vughs (�2%); vesicles (3.5e5%);

channels (3.5e5%). Channel MS, weakly developed.C ** ** * Cryst 20/80 OP *

M3 C Planes (frequent); vughs (3.5e5%); vesicles (3.5%);channels (5e7.5%). Angular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C e ** e Cryst 20/80 OP ***

M4 2Aant1 Planes (frequent); vesicles (<1%); vughs (5%); channels (5%).Subangular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C * * * Cryst 20/80 OP ***

M5 2Aant1 Planes (rare); vughs (2e3.5%); vesicles (1e2%);channels (7.5%). Angular blocky MS, strongly separated.

C ** ** e Cryst 25/75 OP *** ***

M5 2Aant2 Planes (rare); vesicles (3.5%); channels (3.5%). Angularblocky MS, strongly separated.

C * * * Cryst 20/80 OP ***

M6 3C Planes (frequent); vesicles (�3.5%); channels (7.5%). Angularblocky, moderately separated.

C ** * e Cryst 20/80 OP * ***

Abundance of fabric units (by visual estimate): * ¼ 1e2%; ** ¼ 2e5%; *** ¼ >5%.a TS ¼ thin section.b Hor ¼ horizon.c Text ¼ texture: C ¼ clay; SC ¼ silty clay.d Biosph ¼ calcite biospheroids.e B-F ¼ b-fabric: Cryst ¼ crystallitic; SS ¼ stipple-speckled; PS ¼ porostriated; GS ¼ granostriated; CS cross-striated.f Rel Dist ¼ related distribution pattern: SSP ¼ single-spaced porphyric; DSP ¼ double-spaced porphyric; OP ¼ open porphyric.g Pedofeatures: CI ¼ calcite infillings; DC Inf ¼ dusty and impure clay infillings; DCC ¼ dusty and impure clay coatings; DC Int ¼ dusty and impure clay intercalations.

Table 2Results of physicochemical analyses.

Profile Horizon Sand % Silt % Clay % Texture (USDA) Org. matter % N % C/N ratio pH Carbonates % P ppm

Zaballa 1 Ah 15,4 26.3 58.3 Clay 5.23 0.257 11.8 7.5 24.3 4.42Bw top 23.4 22.3 54.3 Clay 2.59 0.130 11.6 7.5 11.5 3.42Bw bottom 15.1 31.5 53.4 Clay 2.25 0.120 10.9 7.6 17.2 0.1

Zaballa 2 C1 10.8 20.1 69.1 Clay 2.58 0.132 11.3 7.7 61.3 5.8C2 na na na na 2.92 0.156 10.9 7.7 45.1 6.42Ahb 11.8 22.9 65.3 Clay 3.08 0.149 12.0 7.7 48.7 4.62C 12.1 26.1 61.8 Clay 1.74 0.104 9.7 7.7 39.3 0.8

Zornoztegi Ap 8 17.0 75.0 Clay 1.59 0.100 9.2 7.7 40.4 0.2C 7.8 18.1 74.1 Clay 1.70 0.107 9.2 7.8 52.8 6.72Aant1 na na na na 0.64 0.048 7.9 7.7 38.2 4.22Aant2 7.3 16.0 76.7 Clay 1.10 0.075 8.6 7.9 46.8 1.03C 6.5 18.2 75.3 Clay 0.48 0.036 7.8 7.8 66 6.1


Please cite this article in press as: Quirós Castillo, J.A., et al., Agrarian archaeology in northern Iberia: Geoarchaeology and early medieval landuse, Quaternary International (2013), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2013.10.003

Fig. 4. Zaballa: position of profiles 1 and 2.


Radiocarbon dates were calibrated with a precision of 2s (95.4%probability; Blaauw, 2010) using the software OxCal v. 4.2.2 (BronkRamsey, 2009) with IntCal04 atmospheric data (Reimer et al.,2004).

4. Results and discussion

4.1. Zaballa

At Zaballa, ten backhoe trenches were dug, cutting through theterrace system. Their stratigraphic sequences were correlated withthe settlement’s chrono-stratigraphic sequence. The terraces ofZaballa were destroyed partially when domestic structures of the13th century AD were put in place. No traces of human occupationin this sector of the valley pre-date the 8themid-10th century AD.This range is in accordance with a radiocarbon date obtained inprofile 1 at the base of the material brought in for terrace

Fig. 5. Zornoztegi: position


construction, which gave a calibrated age of the late 10themid-12th century (see below). Two of the exposed profiles were chosenfor detailed pedological analysis, discussed below (see Figs. 6and 7).

4.1.1. Profile 1This profile can be subdivided in two parts. The lower part (2Bw,

2Ck, 2R e Fig. 6) can be interpreted as a truncated/eroded moder-ately developed soil, a former Sol Brun Calcique in the classificationsystem of Duchaufour (1983). This is shown by: (a) The redderMunsell hues (7.5 YR) with respect to those of all the other horizonsdescribed at Zaballa (10 YR and 2.5Y e see Table 1), indicating amore intense weathering; (b) The partial decarbonation, shown bythe carbonate content in samples 2Bw (top) and 2Bw (bottom),respectively 11.5% and 17.5%, hence lower than any other sample inZaballa (Table 2). Carbonates leached from the upper part of theprofile have accumulated as calcite infillings in horizon 2Ck, above

of the studied profile.


Fig. 6. Zaballa: profile 1 (see Fig. 4). Rectangles indicate the position of monoliths for soil micromorphology (M1eM4).


the contact with the weathered bedrock; (c) The cross-striated,stipple-speckled, grano- and poro-striated b-fabrics observed inthin section. These indicate the incipient reorganization of the finefraction and shrink-swell phenomena, suggesting a moderate-advanced degree of soil development (see Bullock and Murphy,1979).

Horizons 2Bw and 2Ck contain relatively large quantities offinely (20e50 mm) comminuted charred vegetal matter and char-coal, along with larger charcoal pieces (Fig. 8a). In both horizonsthere are textural pedofeatures such as coatings, infillings, andespecially intercalations of dusty clay (Fig. 8b and c). On top of 2Bwa lining of rounded burnt soil aggregates was observed in the fieldand in thin section. All these indicators suggest a phase of topsoilexposure and disturbance, possibly entailing vegetation clearanceby fire (see Macphail et al., 1990; Macphail, 1992; Cremaschi andNicosia, 2012), and the existence of slopewash processes.

Fig. 7. Zaballa: profile 2 (see Fig. 4). The position of the monoliths collected for soilmicromorphology (M1eM5) is clearly visible.


In the top part of the profile, horizon Ah formed onmaterials putin place for terrace construction. These consist of calcareous clayswith abundant limestone and marl fragments. The calcareous na-ture of Ah shows up in the higher carbonate content (24.3%) withrespect to samples pertaining to the bottom part of the profile, andin the crystallitic b-fabric. Organic matter and nitrogen are alsoroughly double (respectively 5.2% and 0.26%), testifying to higherbiological activity and organic matter incorporation in the soil. Inhorizon Ah there are abundant rounded and subrounded aggre-gates of burned calcareous soil (Fig. 8d) and fine charred vegetaland charcoal fragments. No trace of bone, eggshell, excrements,pottery, ash, or coarse charcoal has been identified in thin section,but their occurrence was noted in the field.

In sum, after the truncation of an original Sol Brun Calcique dueto clearance and slopewash, a mixture of calcareous soil materialand domestic waste was brought in during terrace construction. Anangiospermwood fragment collected at the base of horizon Ah gavethe date of 1001 � 51 BP (986e1150 cal AD; DSH1051), providing aterminus post quem for terrace construction.

4.1.2. Profile 2Based on field observations, this profile is entirely composed of

material accumulated for terrace construction down to the bedrock,and can be divided in two parts. The bottom part (horizons 2Ahband 2C), is composed of calcareous material with pottery, bonesand charcoal mixed in. Frequent whole snail shells, shell fragments,and calcite biospheroids (Fig. 8e) observable in thin section suggestthe formation of a biologically active topsoil horizon after terraceconstruction. Snails, in fact, except during overwintering periods,are active in the top 10 cm of the soil, favoring moist calcareoussoils (Gobat et al., 2004). Biospheroids, produced by earthworms asexcrements, are also much more abundant in the topsoil horizonsof moist calcareous soil and decrease significantly with depth(Canti, 2003). These biogenic inclusions, together with goodstructuration, the strong biological activity, and the C/N ratios (9.7for 2C and 12 for 2Ahb e see Table 2) suggest that this surfacehorizonwas associated with amull humus type. The latter is typicalof biologically active grass-covered areas such as, for example,grasslands, meadows, or pastures (Duchaufour, 2001). Rare dusty


Fig. 8. (a) Zaballa, profile 1, horizon 2Ck. Coarse deciduous-tree wood charcoal fragment. PPL, 20�, frame length 4.5 mm; (b) Zaballa, profile 1, horizon 2Bw. Dusty clay coatinginside an elongated pore. PPL, 100�, frame length 1 mm; (c) Zaballa, profile 1, horizon 2Bw. Impure/dusty clay intercalation (arrows). PPL, 40�, frame length 2.3 mm; (d) Zaballa,profile 1, horizon Ah. Fragment of burned soil with rounded morphology suggesting reworking. PPL, 20�, frame length 4.5 mm; (e) Zaballa, profile 2, horizon 2Ahb. Calcite bio-spheroid. XPL, 40�, frame length 2.3 mm; (f) Zaballa, profile 2Ahb. Reworked soil fragment rubefied by burning. OIL, 20�, frame length 4.5 mm.


clay coatings were recorded in horizon 2C, suggesting exposure anddisturbance of the topsoil. It is likely that due to their calcareousnature (see Table 1) these soils were particularly resistant to slaking(Jongerius, 1970; De Ploey and Mucher, 1981; Limbrey, 1993), acircumstance that hampered the formation of dusty clay texturalpedofeatures.

The top part of the profile (horizons Ah, C1 and C2) bears similarcharacteristics to the top part of profile 1, and also containsreworked burnt soil fragments (Fig. 8f). Textural pedofeatures arenevertheless absent in the upper sequum, which indicates thatthese burnt soil fragments were possibly imported with the rest ofthe material and were not the outcome of clearance in this phase.

4.2. Zornoztegi

At Zornoztegi, open area excavations were carried out in asmaller area than at Zaballa (ca. 1 ha). Thick, anthropic backfilldeposits were exposed in the southern part of the excavation (seeChapter 2 and Fig. 9). These dark-colored deposits cover the re-mains of a hut, the perimeter of which was reconstructed using thedistribution of postholes. Radiocarbon dates of five charcoal frag-ments and seeds within these postholes, and one from the base ofthe anthropic backfill unit allowed us to date its deposition to theend of 11th century and the first half of the 12th century. This date


fits well with the contemporaneous construction of the SantaMaríachurch in the northern part of the settlement. This church dates tothe first half of the 12th century (see Quirós Castillo et al., 2011).

Based on the analyses performed, the studied profile can besubdivided into three parts. At the bottom of the sequence, horizon3C includes a relict truncated natural soil horizon, clay-texturedand calcareous (66% of carbonates e see Table 2) deriving fromthe weathering of the local calcareous bedrock. In thin section,weathered carbonate rock fragments are widespread and the b-fabric is uniformly crystalline. This truncated horizon containstraces of anthropic impact, such as finely (<100 mm) comminutedcharcoal and charred vegetal tissue fragments dispersed in thegroundmass. Textural pedofeatures include impure clay coatings,frequent dusty clay intercalations (Fig. 10a), and traces of sedimentinwash into the pore system, giving rise to a vughy or vesicularintrapedal porosity.

Themiddle part of the profile includes the two horizons (2Aant2and 2Aant1) that formed on the anthropic backfill units of the11the12th centuries. Because they were developed on anthropicparentmaterial, and due to the strong traces of human activity, theyhave been assigned the suffix “ant” (according to Holliday, 2004).Horizon 2Aant2 contains its basal part reworked material fromthe underlying truncated soil, and shows frequent indicators ofhuman impact. These includes: (a) charcoal fragments, increasing


Fig. 9. Zornoztegi: the studied profile (see Fig. 4). The position of the monolithscollected for soil micromorphology is clearly visible. Only thin sections M2eM5 wereanalyzed.

Fig. 10. (a) Zornoztegi, horizon 3C. Dusty clay intercalation (I) and dusty clay coating in porrubefied by burning (center of the frame). Note large charcoal fragment (circled). OIL, 20�, frfinely comminuted charcoal particles in the groundmass. PPL, 40�, frame length 2.2 mm. (surface today. PPL, 20�, frame length 4.5 mm.

Fig. 11. Chronology of medieval agricultural spaces investigated in the Basque Country.



in quantity and size with respect to the underlying 3C (Fig. 10b); (b)impure clay coatings and intercalations suggesting strong sedimentinwash phenomena (Fig. 10c); (c) abundant burnt soil fragments,predominantly rounded (Fig. 10b), increasing towards the top.These derive from combustion in both reducing and oxidizingconditions, as revealed by chromatic differences observable in thinsection. These indicators are compatible with major soil surfacedisturbance, as, for example, tree uprooting with subsequentburning of the stumps (see Sigaut, 1975; Macphail and Goldberg,1990; Goldberg and Macphail, 2006) or secondary clearance(Macphail, 1992).

In the top part of 2Aant2, the concentration of calcite bio-spheroids, the increase in the size and degree of separation of peds,and the increase of Fe-substituted organicmatter suggest a phase oftopsoil development (re-colonization by vegetation?). Horizon2Aant1 is similar to 2Aant2, being rich in charcoal, burnt soil,reworked soil inclusions, and impure clay textural pedofeatures.Domestic wastes, such as burnt and unburnt bone fragments andscarce pottery fragments, are contained in it.

The overall picture emerging from 2Aant2 and 2Aant1 is that ofone or more phases of fire clearance of the area, implying intensedisturbance and truncation of the local natural soil. Topsoil

e (DCC). PPL, 40�, frame length 2.2 mm. (b) Zornoztegi, horizon 2Aant2. Soil fragmentame length 4.5 mm. (c) Zornoztegi, horizon 2Aant1. Impure clay coatings (arrows). Noted) Zornoztegi, horizon C. Fine biogenic porosity, possibly from soil fauna active at the



perturbation and slaking almost certainly derive also from tillageand cultivation, but their micromorphological traces cannot bedistinguished unambiguously from those provoked by clearance.

After a first phase of clearance, backfill containing domesticwastewith pottery dating to the 10the11th century was brought in,testifying to the usage of older occupation deposits for agriculturalpurposes. Interestingly, a period of re-colonization by the vegeta-tion, which could correspond to a moment of abandonment orpossibly of intentional fallow-associated topsoil formation, isintercalated between the two horizons.

In the upper part of the sequence, horizon C is composed of verypoorly sorted calcareous sediments (52.8% of carbonatese Table 2),containing gravels of very diverse size classes. These suggest acolluvial origin for this material, which was then subject to strongbioturbation, still active at the surface today (Fig. 10d). Horizon Apis the outcome of ground leveling and backfilling practices relatedto present-day agriculture.

5. Implications for archaeology and land use history

The geoarchaeological approach used here highlights differentland management strategies at Zaballa and Zornoztegi. At Zaballa,the first noted phase of human impact consisted of the clearing ofvegetation along the hill flanks. Fire was likely employed as an aidin this phase, according to a set of practices adopted in Europe sincethe Neolithic (see Sigaut, 1975; Rowley-Conwy, 1981; Forni, 2000).This resulted in the truncation of the soil profile originally devel-oped on the local calcareous parent material. Erosion was alsocaused by slopewash, a process favored by clearance of the vege-tation and by the steepness of the slope (see Butzer, 1982). The nextstep included the construction of the terraces and the import oflarge volumes of calcareous soil material mixed e ab origine or bylater manuring practices e with domestic waste. The calcareoussoil material was most likely originally present as colluvial depositsat the base of the slopes. A biologically active grassland soil appearsto have developed on the terraced surfaces, with minor traces ofsurface perturbation, which cannot be unequivocally attributed bysoil micromorphology to tillage (see Carter and Davidson, 1998;Macphail, 1998; Lewis, 1999).

Similarly to Zaballa, at Zornoztegi the local natural soil recordeda first phase of vegetation clearance, most likely characterized bythe uprooting and subsequent burning of trees or shrubs. As frag-ments of the natural soil are reworked within the base of the an-thropic backfill units, it seems reasonable to associate this clearancewith the phase of agricultural reorganization of this part of the sitein the 11the12th centuries. It is possible that these practices wererepeated also after large quantities of anthropic soil material,derived from older occupation deposits, were brought in as backfillon which crops grew. The land use envisaged at Zornoztegi can belikened to a form of “midden agriculture”, in which domestic wasteaccumulations are exploited for horticulture or small-scale agri-culture (see Bogaard, 2004; Guttmann, 2005, and referencestherein; Bogaard, 2005). The use of anthropic depositse both in situand in secondary position e for agriculture is widely attested inmedieval urban contexts (see Macphail, 1994; Devos et al., 2007,2009), in proto-historic settlements (see Nicosia et al., 2011), andin ethno-historical contexts in the Americas (see Fish and Fish,1993; Lehmann et al., 2004) and Africa (González Ruibal, 2003),among others. The key aspect of this type of land management isthat forms of more or less voluntary “waste management” (seeDavidson et al., 2006) needed to be practiced. The study of wastemanagement practices appears crucial in rural sites like the onesstudied here, where stratigraphy is predominantly composed ofdeposits filling negative structures (silos, pits, postholes, etc.). Atthe same time, primary occupation deposits are very rare, often


truncated by later agricultural practices. The lack of proper mid-dens or dump heaps suggests that domestic rubbish was used formanuring practices and to fill negative structures once they losttheir original function (Quirós Castillo, 2012, 2013).

In our study, it initially appeared difficult to identify the functionof these terraces and of the cultivated crops, and the question wastherefore tackled using different analytical techniques. The lowpollen production by Cerealia, their limited dispersion (see LópezSáez et al., 2003; López Sáez and López Merino, 2005), and thefact that pollen contained within the material used for terraceconstruction is predominantly inherited from the source area,explain the inability of pollen analyses to answer the question. Infact, such analyses proved unable to spot traces of cereal cultivationeven in contexts where this was specifically mentioned in writtensources, such as the Aistra site, located very close (4 km NW) toZornoztegi (Pastor Díaz de Garayo, 2014). In the terraces of Zaballa,of Zornoztegi, and of the nearby contemporaneous settlement ofAistra (Hernández Beloqui, 2011, 2012), pollens of Cerealia are ab-sent or extremely scarce (<1%). A similar datum was also recordedin the medieval agricultural spaces of the site of Villanueva, inAsturias (Fernández Fernández, 2011). Through archaeobotanicaland archaeofaunal records retrieved in domestic areas, it is possibleto determine the crops cultivated in the agrarian spaces. At bothZaballa and Zornoztegi, these analyses revealed a highly diversifiedagrarian model aimed at minimizing the risks deriving fromexcessive specialization. The model was intended to integrateagriculture and sedentary husbandry and avoid any kind ofspecialist production, according to well documentated trends inother rural villages (Halstead and O’Shea, 1989). The main cropsattested at these sites are winter cereals (Triticum, Hordeum, Avena),spring cereals (Setaria, Panicum), legumes (Vicia, Lathyrus, Lens) orfruits such as Vitis (Sopelana Salcedo, 2010, 2012). It can be hy-pothesized that the terraces of Zaballa, set along a steep slope andof limited width, were used for growing vines. Their introduction isin fact contemporary with the construction of the terraces (QuirósCastillo, 2012). At Zornoztegi the agricultural areas were moreprobably exploited for cereals or for intensive horticulture.

Concerning the chronology of the agricultural spaces studiedhere, a comparison can be made with other sites in the BasqueCountry and in other parts of northern Spain. Even though agrarianstructures are known since proto-history, as, for example, at siteslike Vigaña in Asturias (González Álvarez et al., 2013), it can beconcluded that the basic elements of the “traditional landscapes” innorthern Iberia were created during to the Early Middle Ages.Rescue archaeological operations in Galicia enabled the study of atleast a dozen terrace systems with a consistent set of radiocarbondates (Ballesteros Arias, 2010). These reveal that these agriculturalsystems belong to the time span between the 5th and the 13thcentury, when new settlements spread and an intense phase ofdeforestation is shown by pollen spectra (López Sáez et al., 2003).Similarly, in Asturias, the study of the agricultural spaces of the siteof Villanueva of Santo Adriano revealed that they appeared in the8the9th century (Fernández Fernández, 2011). Also in the BasqueCountry, where the agricultural spaces of six sites were investigated(Fig. 11), the Early Middle Ages appears to be the key moment forthe configuration of traditional rural landscapes. Available chro-nologies highlight two main periods of formation of agriculturalspaces. A first group dates to the 5th century, contemporaneouswith the establishment of the earliest medieval peasant settle-ments in this territory. It is, however, in the 10the11th century thatthe majority of the studied productive structures appear. Pollendata from the wet area of Prados de Randulanda, located ca. 3 kmfrom Zaballa, confirm an intense phase of anthropic pressure on thelandscape in the Early Middle Ages (Pérez Díaz and López Sáez,2012). Based on these results, agricultural spaces appear to be the



product of an intensified land use linked to the widening orrefurbishment of cultivated areas. This phase took place betweenthe end of the Roman Empire (4the5th century AD), in theframework of the creation of new rural sites and settlements, and ofthe increase of seigniorial pressure around 1000 AD. Moreover, arecent multi-proxy study of Lake Arreo sequence e located in thewestern part of the Alava provincee revealed that the most intensehuman pressure on this territory in the last 2500 years took placebetween the 10th and 12th century (Corella et al., 2013, 565).

Even if in thisworkwe focus on the studyof intensively exploitedagrarian spaces, we should avoid to treat these as an object. Theconstruction of this terraced space tookplace in the frame of a globaltransformation of the villages and of the agrarian landscape in10the12th centuries. This is shown by settlement shapes, by thearchaeology of domestic spaces, and by bioarchaeological records.The transformation of Zornoztegi in the 10the11th century could beconsidered as systemic, because all of the houses were rebuiltclustered around the new church of Santa Maria, freeing a largespace where the terraces were then constructed. Moreover, in thisperiod, storage pits used as long- andmedium-term resources (withpossibly one pit for each family), were dismissed, suggesting amarked change in the use of agrarian products. Also at Zaballa ter-races were built as a result of the complete transformation of thevillage. In the 10th century a new seigniorial monastery was built inthe core of the old village, located on the peak of a big plateau thatdominates the Zaballa valley. At this time, the domestic householdwas moved to the valley bottom, and terraces were built along thevalley slopes.We can infer that these transformations in the shape ofthe villages had been planned accurately and can be explained in aprecise social context. At Zaballa, we can suggest that the localecclesiastical power played an important role in this transformation.The use of these terraces for vineyards is a very important indicator,since the Alava plain is not suited for this kind of crop, which isnevertheless necessary for the religious seigniorial activity. On theother hand, there are no signs of resident local powers at Zornoztegi,even if the social contextwhere the site is located is distinguished inthe high and late medieval period by a strong seigniorial imprint(Díaz de Durana, 1986).

The large volumes of soil material moved in order to constructcomplex terrace systems, such as those studied at Monte Gaiás,close to Santiago de Compostela (Ballesteros Arias et al., 2006) or atZaballa and Zornoztegi, suggest the coordinated effort of the wholevillage community adhering to a precise work plan. A first estimateof the amount of soil used in the Zornoztegi terraces suggest thatabout 1.600e1.800 m3 of deposit were employed to create theseagrarian spaces (Quirós Castillo, 2009a). At Zaballa more than1000 m3 of deposit had been used in the 10th century terraces, andabout 10,000 m3 of soil were put in place in the late medievalagrarian fill (Quirós Castillo, 2010). The volume of material movedto “construct” the agricultural spaces at Zaballa and Zornoztegireveals the action of social communities and their local leaders(Zornoztegi), or seigniorial powers (Zaballa). This form of coordi-nated effort and organization of rural communities could becompared with others early medieval peasant activities, such as themanagement of open field systems or irrigated agriculture, docu-mented in other European countries in the same period(Oosthhuizen, 2005, 2007; Kirchner, 2011). In conclusion, thearchaeological study of agrarian spaces is a key topic to analysepeasant and lordship agency and the processes of production and ofreproduction of rural medieval societies (Quirós Castillo, 2010).

6. Conclusion

This study allowed us to establish that the traces of wide agri-cultural spaces of theMiddle Ages are still identifiable in the Basque


Country, despite interference from later agricultural practices. Theproper methodological approach makes it possible to determinethe type of agriculture that was carried out in these spaces. On theother hand, it must be stressed that these agricultural spaces arearchaeological landmarks, but that they still lack specific culturalheritage protection measures.

The agrarian spaces discussed here date mostly to the EarlyMiddle Ages. They embody the importance of collective efforts ofrural communities in this period in shaping the landscape. Based ondata presented here, the agricultural practices of this period cannotbe considered as less advanced than those employed in the Romanperiod. Rather, it should be seen as “far-reaching reorganizationand innovative application of earlier technologies” in such a waythat “there was neither a technological relapse nor a technologicalrevolution in post-Roman times or in the Early Middle Ages”(Henning, 2009, p. 164).

However, the dataset available at the regional level is not yetample enough to trace detailed, broad-scale reconstructions. Morebioarchaeological studies are needed to link the agricultural spaceswith the whole production cycle. Still, our geoarchaeologicalapproach proved powerful in characterizing the formation andevolution of these agricultural spaces. At both sites soils were valu-able depositories where traces of human impact on the landscapewerepreservedwithina complexpalimpsest. Thesedata concerningthe physical environment can be evaluated within a wider frame-work in which landscapes are perceived as cultural products.

Acknowledgements

This study was financed by the Research Group IT315-10 of theBasque Government, the Research Project HUM2012-32514 fundedby the Spanish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Competition and apostdoctoral fellowship granted to Ana Polo-Diaz by the Depart-ment of Education, Language Policy and Culture of the BasqueGovernment. Physicochemical analyses were carried out by LuisFernando Lorenzo Martín (IRNASA-CSIC, Salamanca, Spain). TheEnglish of the manuscript was reviewed by Dr. Emily B. Modrall.

Appendix A. Supplementary data

Supplementary data related to this article can be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2013.10.003.

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Documents

Agrarian archaeology in northern Iberia: Geoarchaeology and early medieval land use