Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (156 page)

See
FIELD SYSTEM
.

 
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Wet clay mixed with straw used in constructing walls, ovens, and other similar kinds of structure. To achieve the desired shape or form, cob was packed between wooden shuttering and allowed to dry.

 
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Medium to large-sized particles of more than 64mm and less than 256mm across forming constituent components of
GRAVEL
, including both natural and anthropogenic gravel. One of the principal size divisions of gravel which in ascending scale comprise: granular, pebble, cobble, and boulder gravel.

 
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Small shrub of the order Linaceae (Erythroxylon coca), the dried leaves contain the alkaloid cocaine and can be chewed as a stimulant. Native to wide areas of South America below about 1200m above sea level. Domesticated by
c.
2500 bc.

 
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A place of entertainment common in later medieval and post-medieval times comprising a small round arena in which cockfights were held, surrounded by a viewing area for spectators. Some examples are covered by a building, but as earthworks cockpits are usually circular depressions up to 40m in diameter and 2–3m deep. In Britain the sport was made illegal in ad 1849.

 
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One of a number of cultural subdivisions of the Archaic Stage hunter-gatherer communities occupying the Great Plains of North America, broadly dating to the period 7000–6000 bc. Characterized by exquisitely made chipped stone points and a distinctive kind of off-angled knife.

 
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Coedès , George
(1886–1969)
[Bi].