Books by Andrew Lowerre
Since its publication by English Heritage in 2000, Brian Roberts and Stuart Wrathmell’s ‘An Atlas... more Since its publication by English Heritage in 2000, Brian Roberts and Stuart Wrathmell’s ‘An Atlas of Rural Settlement in England’ has become a key point of reference for understanding the development of rural settlement in England. The maps of 19th century settlement and terrain from the Atlas are now available as data that can be used in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software and viewed in ‘geobrowsers’ like the Google Earth* mapping service.
Papers by Andrew Lowerre
Land Use Policy, 2022
Annexation is the most common form of municipal boundary adjustment in Canada, yet a systematic a... more Annexation is the most common form of municipal boundary adjustment in Canada, yet a systematic analysis of annexations is missing from the academic literature. This begs two key questions: Why do Canadian municipalities annex land? What are the land use outcomes of annexation? This qualitative and quantitative case study of Alberta, a Canadian prairie province, reveals that trends in annexation activity, motivations, and land use outcomes are broadly informative, but every instance of annexation is a story of local ambitions and outcomes. Through a series of examples, we illustrate a growth-driven, inherently political and economic process of annexation that is sometimes complex, and one in which the outcomes of annexation may not always match the motivations for it. We find that multiple motivations (that may be intertwined) prompt municipal annexations; furthermore, development in the annexed area occurred at the expense of the non-annexed parts of annexing municipalities, particularly in small towns and villages. This leads us to believe that annexation is perhaps a contributing factor to urban sprawl and land fragmentation. The study calls into question the efficacy of annexation as a policy tool for municipal boundary adjustment or as a substitute for conducting regional planning.
The Archaeological Journal, 2017
Variation in the density of archaeological evidence is caused by a multitude of interacting facto... more Variation in the density of archaeological evidence is caused by a multitude of interacting factors, some of which reinforce each other and some of which act to disguise genuine patterns of past practice. This paper initially presents a set of density models for England constructed by the members of the English Landscape and Identities (EngLaId) project and then goes on to discuss three possible explanations for the variation seen: modern affordance, variability in past usage of material culture, and past population density. The various members of the project team (with the aid of Andrew Lowerre) then provide their thoughts on the models and ideas presented from their own specific period specialist perspectives. The article is presented in this discursive format to reflect the differing opinions and approaches across an unusual multi-period project, in the spirit of multi- vocality and healthy debate.
This report shows how it is possible to collate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data for his... more This report shows how it is possible to collate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data for historic settlement nucleation and dispersion with a range of data on environmental variables in order to investigate the relationships between them. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model specification, selection and validation procedures, followed by further analysis using spatial regression methods, identified environmental variables that appear to have had the most significant influence on settlement organisation. The use of OLS and spatial regression and the innovative Relative Area Overlap (RAO) technique has enabled investigation of how relationships between key environmental variables and historic settlement organisation varied across England. Overall, the regression analyses indicate that far more of the variation in the measures of settlement organisation is not explained by the environmental variables than is explained by them. The results of the RAO analysis echo this conclusion. Using unsupervised classification, it has been possible to develop new, national-scale characterisations of historic settlement organisation and of key environmental variables. These new classifications of historic settlement organisation often broadly align with Brian Roberts and Stuart Wrathmell’s delineations of provinces, sub-provinces and local regions, but the cluster outlines and Roberts and Wrathmell’s boundaries diverge more often than they agree.
Available here: http://research.english-heritage.org.uk/report/?15158
This report explores the... more Available here: http://research.english-heritage.org.uk/report/?15158
This report explores the use of portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy as a survey technique for archaeological prospection. St Algar’s Farm was chosen because recent archaeological excavation (undertaken by a community archaeology group) has indicated that cupellation of lead took place in the Roman period. Lead cupellation is known primarily from the recovery of litharge (lead oxide rich material) left behind when lead was oxidised in order to recover silver. Geophysical surveys of the site show the presence of a simple road system, enclosures and buildings. The excavations have found little evidence for either earlier or later activity. The pXRF was optimised to allow rapid determination of lead content of the soil. Each pXRF analysis point was surveyed using a Global Positioning System (GPS) instrument and the combined datasets were interrogated using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software to reveal spatial variations which could be compared with the data from other survey techniques.
Available here: http://research.english-heritage.org.uk/report/?15104
This research investigat... more Available here: http://research.english-heritage.org.uk/report/?15104
This research investigates the usefulness of portable X-Ray Fluorescence spectroscopy to detect trace elements in the plough soil, which can indicate past anthropogenic activity. The site under study in this research has artefactual evidence for metal-working, and data from geophysical survey, field-walking, metal-detecting and aerial survey are available for comparison. Geochemical data were plotted against Global Positioning System readings to display soil elemental composition spatially. It was hoped to develop a methodology for geochemical techniques to detect sub-surface archaeology with relatively little cost or disruption.
Hailes Abbey, Stanway, Gloucestershire: Hailes Abbey Culvert Evaluation Assessment Report. by A. Lowerre, with contributions by P. Baker, K. Brown, Gill Campbell, Greg Campbell, C. Evans, E. Forster, D. Goodburn, K. Graham, D. A. Higgins, J. Meadows, S. Paynter, D-E. Robinson, and S. Rowntree Available here: http://research.english-heritage.org.uk/report/?15100
Hailes Abbey, Gloucester... more Available here: http://research.english-heritage.org.uk/report/?15100
Hailes Abbey, Gloucestershire, founded in 1245, was one of the last Cistercian houses to be established in England. To the south-east of the surviving claustral buildings is a large, rectangular area, thought to be a former pond. The nature of the ‘pond’ was unclear, as was the survival of any remains of the monastic culvert and associated structures in the area which are not currently exposed. The discovery of part of a masonry-revetted dam and the sediments observed in a test pit demonstrate conclusively that the ‘pond’ was an artificial water body. Radiocarbon dates from near the bottom of the sediment sequence show that the pond was medieval in date. The pond probably dried out or silted up rapidly following the Dissolution and no longer existed by the late 16th century. Significant archaeological remains survive very near the surface immediately to the south-east of the standing remains of the abbey. The culvert does survive and continues further to the south-east, towards the pond. It is recommended that any flood mitigation works at Hailes Abbey be preceded by controlled archaeological excavation to recover artefactual and environmental evidence and record any features that would be affected by those works.
"This article describes the results of a project to use the maps of terrain and nineteenth-centur... more "This article describes the results of a project to use the maps of terrain and nineteenth-century rural settlement published in Roberts and Wrathmell’s An Atlas of Rural Settlement in England to create data ready for use in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software. The first part summarises the process by which the maps have been converted from their original format to GIS data. The contents of the resulting data collection are outlined, followed by a discussion of the means by which the data will be disseminated and some of the limitations of the data. The second part examines how the data on terrain and settlement nucleation and dispersion have been re-analysed using spatial analytical tools to examine patterns of rural settlement at a national scale. The conclusion sets out the wide-ranging potential for re-use of the Atlas materials in conjunction with other data."
This paper reports on a GIS-based investigation into the location of a series of late-eleventh-ce... more This paper reports on a GIS-based investigation into the location of a series of late-eleventh-century castle sites in the southeastern Midlands of England, built during the period of the Norman Conquest. Specifically, I examine how the proximity of castles to major roads and navigable rivers and the castles’ viewsheds influenced the locational choices made by Norman castle-builders in the years 1066-1100. My analysis is based on a GIS which includes castle sites, major late-eleventh-century roads, navigable rivers, as well as a digital elevation model of the study area. The analysis is based on Monte Carlo significance testing, which enables an assessment of the unusualness of a given castle site when compared to a range possible choices which a would-be castle-builder had. The results of the study indicate that the importance of these factors varied considerably and must be considered in conjunction with a wide range of other criteria.
Book Reviews by Andrew Lowerre
The American Historical Review, 2010
Conference Presentations by Andrew Lowerre
Watersheds and other topographic features have increasingly been used as an interpretative framew... more Watersheds and other topographic features have increasingly been used as an interpretative framework for understanding various aspects of the landscape of Anglo-Saxon England. The focus of my paper today is on the later Anglo-Saxon subdivisions of the shires – known as wapentakes in the Danelaw and hundreds elsewhere in England – and their relationships with hydrological boundaries derived from natural topography, as well as major anthropogenic features like Roman roads. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology, and building on a spatial statistical technique developed in ecology and epidemiology, it is now possible to examine systematically the association between Anglo-Saxon hundred and wapentake boundaries and the extents of watersheds and other topographic features. This analysis allows an assessment of the degree to which the boundaries of these administrative units 'match up' with such features. It also enables the identification of specific hundred or wapentake boundaries that show a statistically significant match with watershed and other boundaries, as well as those that exhibit significant avoidance of such features. The aim of this work is to explore how past human-environment relationships influenced the formation of territories. I hope to showcase how the rich analytical capabilities of GIS can be used to investigate the territorial organisation of Anglo-Saxon England.
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Books by Andrew Lowerre
Papers by Andrew Lowerre
This report explores the use of portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy as a survey technique for archaeological prospection. St Algar’s Farm was chosen because recent archaeological excavation (undertaken by a community archaeology group) has indicated that cupellation of lead took place in the Roman period. Lead cupellation is known primarily from the recovery of litharge (lead oxide rich material) left behind when lead was oxidised in order to recover silver. Geophysical surveys of the site show the presence of a simple road system, enclosures and buildings. The excavations have found little evidence for either earlier or later activity. The pXRF was optimised to allow rapid determination of lead content of the soil. Each pXRF analysis point was surveyed using a Global Positioning System (GPS) instrument and the combined datasets were interrogated using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software to reveal spatial variations which could be compared with the data from other survey techniques.
This research investigates the usefulness of portable X-Ray Fluorescence spectroscopy to detect trace elements in the plough soil, which can indicate past anthropogenic activity. The site under study in this research has artefactual evidence for metal-working, and data from geophysical survey, field-walking, metal-detecting and aerial survey are available for comparison. Geochemical data were plotted against Global Positioning System readings to display soil elemental composition spatially. It was hoped to develop a methodology for geochemical techniques to detect sub-surface archaeology with relatively little cost or disruption.
Hailes Abbey, Gloucestershire, founded in 1245, was one of the last Cistercian houses to be established in England. To the south-east of the surviving claustral buildings is a large, rectangular area, thought to be a former pond. The nature of the ‘pond’ was unclear, as was the survival of any remains of the monastic culvert and associated structures in the area which are not currently exposed. The discovery of part of a masonry-revetted dam and the sediments observed in a test pit demonstrate conclusively that the ‘pond’ was an artificial water body. Radiocarbon dates from near the bottom of the sediment sequence show that the pond was medieval in date. The pond probably dried out or silted up rapidly following the Dissolution and no longer existed by the late 16th century. Significant archaeological remains survive very near the surface immediately to the south-east of the standing remains of the abbey. The culvert does survive and continues further to the south-east, towards the pond. It is recommended that any flood mitigation works at Hailes Abbey be preceded by controlled archaeological excavation to recover artefactual and environmental evidence and record any features that would be affected by those works.
Book Reviews by Andrew Lowerre
Conference Presentations by Andrew Lowerre
This report explores the use of portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy as a survey technique for archaeological prospection. St Algar’s Farm was chosen because recent archaeological excavation (undertaken by a community archaeology group) has indicated that cupellation of lead took place in the Roman period. Lead cupellation is known primarily from the recovery of litharge (lead oxide rich material) left behind when lead was oxidised in order to recover silver. Geophysical surveys of the site show the presence of a simple road system, enclosures and buildings. The excavations have found little evidence for either earlier or later activity. The pXRF was optimised to allow rapid determination of lead content of the soil. Each pXRF analysis point was surveyed using a Global Positioning System (GPS) instrument and the combined datasets were interrogated using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software to reveal spatial variations which could be compared with the data from other survey techniques.
This research investigates the usefulness of portable X-Ray Fluorescence spectroscopy to detect trace elements in the plough soil, which can indicate past anthropogenic activity. The site under study in this research has artefactual evidence for metal-working, and data from geophysical survey, field-walking, metal-detecting and aerial survey are available for comparison. Geochemical data were plotted against Global Positioning System readings to display soil elemental composition spatially. It was hoped to develop a methodology for geochemical techniques to detect sub-surface archaeology with relatively little cost or disruption.
Hailes Abbey, Gloucestershire, founded in 1245, was one of the last Cistercian houses to be established in England. To the south-east of the surviving claustral buildings is a large, rectangular area, thought to be a former pond. The nature of the ‘pond’ was unclear, as was the survival of any remains of the monastic culvert and associated structures in the area which are not currently exposed. The discovery of part of a masonry-revetted dam and the sediments observed in a test pit demonstrate conclusively that the ‘pond’ was an artificial water body. Radiocarbon dates from near the bottom of the sediment sequence show that the pond was medieval in date. The pond probably dried out or silted up rapidly following the Dissolution and no longer existed by the late 16th century. Significant archaeological remains survive very near the surface immediately to the south-east of the standing remains of the abbey. The culvert does survive and continues further to the south-east, towards the pond. It is recommended that any flood mitigation works at Hailes Abbey be preceded by controlled archaeological excavation to recover artefactual and environmental evidence and record any features that would be affected by those works.
I begin by briefly outlining several different current geospatial technologies through which Domesday materials are or could be utilised. I then touch on a basic question: why put information which is recorded in Domesday Book on maps at all? The bulk of the paper then reviews a range of Domesday-related mapping systems and digital datasets, many of which are still in development. I frame the review around a series of geographically-oriented questions, discussing how the different systems and data collections may or may not help scholars to find answers. The main – unsurprising – conclusion is that the level of complexity of the questions one poses of Domesday Book (and related materials) and the complexity of the maps one might wish to create indicates the level of complexity of the geospatial tools one will need to employ to answer those questions.
There have been considerable advances in making Domesday maps since the turn of the millennium. But the full potential of geospatial technologies for improving understanding of Domesday Book and of Domesday England – noted at the 2000 conference and even earlier at Domesday’s novocentenary – is still yet to be realised.
In this paper, I will discuss some of the issues involved in the creation of GIS data from Domesday Book, using two datasets created by John Palmer and Robin Fleming. I will also demonstrate how Domesday GIS allows researchers to ask and answer far more detailed and complicated questions than those on which Darby’s work was based.
My discussion will touch not only on the enormous potential of GIS-ready Domesday data on their own, but also on the even greater potential of combining such data with other relevant, GIS data, e.g., from other documents, about soils, archaeology or, indeed, any other aspects of the wider historic landscape.
Finally, I will show how spatially enabling the contents of Domesday Book holds out the promise of democratising access to this remarkable source. Domesday GIS data can be easily converted for use in Google Earth, thus expanding dramatically the availability of both the spatial and attribute information Domesday Book holds.
Roberts and Wrathmell’s Atlas has become a key point of departure for investigation into the development of rural settlement in England, the historic character of the landscape, and the nature and development over time of regional diversity. The aim of the project is to enable more effective re-use of Roberts and Wrathmell’s results, as they themselves called for in their original publication. The maps in the Atlas were produced digitally, but were created as vector graphics files and cannot be directly incorporated into a GIS.
The body of the paper will be in two parts. In the first part, I will summarise Roberts and Wrathmell’s methods in compiling the original Atlas. I will then outline the process by which the graphics files have been migrated from their original format to GIS data. I will also sketch the project’s scheme for disseminating the data, metadata and documentation produced. The wide-ranging potential for re-use of the data will be noted, as well as the limitations of the data.
In the second part, I will discuss how the data on settlement nucleation and dispersion have been re-analysed using spatial analytical tools to examine patterns of rural settlement at a national scale. The results of the new analyses will be compared with Roberts and Wrathmell’s own division of England into settlement provinces, sub-provinces and local regions. I will highlight particularly new ways in which gradual changes in patterns of settlement nucleation and dispersion across the landscape can be visualised.