Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (775 page)

BOOK: Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology
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Vindolanda, Northumberland, UK
[Si].
Roman fort and associated civilian settlement established in the late 1st century
ad
, subsequently incorporated into the
HADRIAN'S WALL
frontier. Extensively excavated under the direction of Robin Birley between 1969 and 1989. Amongst the structures revealed are a military bath-house, mansion, houses, and a mausoleum. Localized waterlogging provides ideal conditions for the preservation of organic finds, the most notable group being over 1000 fragments of letters and official papers written in ink on thin pieces of wood.
[Sum.: R. Birley , 1977,
Vindolanda: a Roman frontier post on Hadrian's Wall
. London: Thames & Hudson]
vineyard
[MC].
An area of land, often enclosed, which is set aside and equipped for the cultivation of vines. The grapes that are produced are used to provide a constant and sustainable supply of wine and there may be storage and processing equipment within or adjacent to the vineyard. Typical components of a vineyard that may be found archaeologically are terraces, revetments, growing beds, boundary walls, buildings, stakes, and rigging.
Vinland Map
[Do].
Parchment map of the ‘unknown world’ now in Yale University Library. Published in 1965, but purportedly dating to
c.
ad 1440, showing the ‘island’ of Vinland where North America stands. The map is probably a forgery.
Visigoths
[CP].
See
GOTHS
.
vitrification
[De].
The formation of glassy material in a ceramic body resulting from firing at a high temperature, 800°C or more, depending on the clay constituents.
vitrified fort
[MC].

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