Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (720 page)

1
In archaeology a terrace is an artificially created more or less level platform cut into the side of a hill. Often they are made by digging back into the hillslope while throwing the resultant quarried material forward downslope to extend the width of the platform. Revetments are sometimes made on the downslope side to contain the redeposited material. The resultant terrace is usually planted with a crop such as cereals or vines.
2
In geology terraces are broadly horizontal deposits of gravels laid down by river systems at different times in the past. The gravels in these deposits sometimes contain archaeological material. See also
RIVER TERRACE
.

 
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A track cut into the side of a hill so that it runs along a
TERRACE
more or less at right angles to the prevailing slope so as to produce comparatively gentle gradients along the track itself.

 
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Literally, ‘baked earth’. Mainly used to refer to fired clay that remains porous, such as might be used in building materials or coarse pottery.

 
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Descriptive term applying to a class of middle Bronze Age settlements in the Emilia region of northern Italy because they appear in the modern landscape as spreads of rich black organic soil. Terramara is often quarried by local farmers for use as fertilizer.

 
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Black or silver-grey coloured Gallo-Belgic tableware produced in Gaul during the 1st century
bc
through to the mid 1st century
ad
. Exported from Gaul to other nearby parts of the Roman empire for military and civilian use, and to communities outside the empire who presumably acquired it as a traded luxury item. Close imitations of fabrics and forms are known amongst copies made in Britain. The imported vessels usually have the name of the potter or workshop stamped on the inner surface of the base, a practice imitated in Britain but usually with illegible markings.

 
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As
TERRA NIGRA
, but red in colour.

 
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