Enclosure (archaeology)

In archaeology, an enclosure is one of the most common types of archaeological site – It is any area of land separated from surrounding land by earthworks, walls or fencing. Such a simple feature is found all over the world and during almost all archaeological periods. They may be few metres across or be large enough to encompass whole cities. Archaeological enclosures are typically representative of recurrent patterns of human activity throughout history through landscape. The absolute definition of archaeological enclosures has been debated over time. Some suggest that at a general level, enclosure (archaeologically) could be defined as the replacement of open-fields with privately owned-fields through walls, banks, and dividers. However, this definition has been criticised, as it appears many archaeological enclosures are not enclosed by a physical boundary. Enclosures served numerous practical purposes including being used to delineate settlement areas, to create defensive positions, or to be used as animal pens. They were also widely adopted in ritual and burial practices and seem to demonstrate a fundamental human desire to make physical boundaries around spaces. Some economic historians speculate that the introduction of archaeological enclosures likely caused a shift into historical capitalist economies. Along with most archaeological interests, enclosure sites have been most researched and notably progressive during the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, and the Iron Age. More modern methods used to identify archaeological enclosures have been studied and developed by economic historians, historical geographers, landscape historians and trained archaeologists. Even in current times, through using accessible technology, many non-trained individuals have become interested in archaeological enclosures through methods such as . Enclosures created from ditches and banks or walling can often be identified in the field through aerial photography or ground survey. Other types of enclosures leave less permanent records and may only be identified during excavation.