Geophysical survey at the frontier of medieval Iberia: The castles of Molina de Aragon and Atienza (Guadalajara, Spain)
Metadatos
Mostrar el registro completo del ítemEditorial
Wiley
Materia
Castles Frontiers Geophysical survey Islamic Archaeology Medieval Archaeology
Fecha
2023-03-26Referencia bibliográfica
García-Contreras, G., Fry, R., Banerjea, R. Y., & Pluskowski, A. (2023). Geophysical survey at the frontier of medieval Iberia: The castles of Molina de Aragon and Atienza (Guadalajara, Spain). Archaeological Prospection, 1–15. [https://doi.org/10.1002/arp.1899]
Patrocinador
School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science (SAGES) at the University of Reading. The geophysics surveys in Atienza and Molina were funded by the Society of Antiquaries of London; The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)—Grant AH/R013861/1.Resumen
This paper presents the results of geophysical surveys conducted within two castles
in central Iberia: the fortifications of Molina de Aragon and Atienza, both located
within the modern province of Guadalajara in Spain. They represent essential case
studies for understanding the transformations of the frontier societies of medieval
south-western Europe, because both were founded during the Andalusi period, both
played a fundamental role at the time of the military confrontations between oppos ing Islamic and Christian states, and both became capitals within the feudal depen dencies of the Crown of Castile during the Late Middle Ages. At present, these
castles are uninhabited and protected archaeological sites, with no modern develop ments within their wards; the adjacent towns have developed on the outskirts of
their outer walls. Although both castles have been the focus of uneven amounts of
archaeological research, geophysical surveys, the first conducted at these sites, have
proved to be a fundamental tool not only for planning future archaeological investi gations but also for the data that they have provided on the potential roles of these
castle wards.