In This Section:

8.7 Research Questions and Agenda

The recommendations below apply specifically to the early medieval period in South East Scotland. 

Many research recommendations from the original National ScARF and other regional research frameworks are also relevant and applicable in South East Scotland. These will soon be all be searchable and available all together through our new digital platform facility.

Settlement and Daily Life

SESARF Qu 8.1: Where and how did people live, and how does this relate to other evidence of occupation from hillforts, inscribed stones and cemeteries?

More information on this question
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.1

SESARF Qu 8.2: How can we explain the proliferation of evidence for agrarian settlement in the 7th and 8th centuries?

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.2

SESARF Qu 8.3: Does the construction of corn-drying kilns and sunken featured buildings relate to agricultural specialisation?

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.3

SESARF Qu 8.4: Can we track the expansion and relative balance of arable and pastoral agriculture over the early medieval period?

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.4

SESARF Qu 8.5: Are there new biomolecular analyses of faunal and cereal assemblages which can help shed light on questions of resource exploitation and dietary change?

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.5

SESARF Qu 8.6: To what extent is there evidence for fishing and marine exploitation, and how does this change over time?  

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.6

SESARF Qu 8.7: What is the evidence for woodland management regimes?

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.7

SESARF Qu 8.8: Are hillforts like Edinburgh and Traprain Law exceptional in their early medieval occupation?

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.8

SESARF Qu 8.9: When do hillforts go out of use in this region? 

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.9

SESARF Qu 8.10: Is unenclosed lowland settlement more common for power centres in this period?  

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.10

SESARF Qu 8.11: Can we locate proposed power centres at Tyninghame, Dalmeny, Kirkliston, and around Eildon Hill/Melrose?

More information on this question
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.11

SESARF Qu 8.12: Does the concentration of deluxe gold fittings, including gold and garnet mounts and pendants, reveal the Lothian plain as a core, not fringe, part of the kingdom of Bernicia? 

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Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.12

Industry and Trade

SESARF Qu 8.13: Can we identify with confidence roads and routes used in the early medieval period?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a4572
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.13
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.14: How important were ports and harbours to the layout of early medieval settlement?  

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a496d
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.14
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.15: What are the economic bases of power in the early medieval period in this area?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a4d97
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.15
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.16: To what extent was the Northumbrian coinage economy in operation in this region?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a51a3
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.16
More information:
What happens to this after the disruption to coin supply in the Viking Age?  
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.17: What is the evidence for market-based trade, and how early can we discern the rise of permanent market sites? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a568e
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.17
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

Religion and Ritual

SESARF Qu 8.18: Do stray finds of Anglo-Saxon and Viking Age type relate to furnished burials disturbed by the plough?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575a75166f2
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.18
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.19: Did inscribed stones and cemeteries deliberately mark out the edges of territories, or is it a bias of survival that they are now on the fringes of settled land? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a5dc1
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.19
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.20: Could the shift in ritual and funerary practice from field cemeteries to churches be part of wider shifts in settlement seen in the 7th century rather than religious changes?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a60e9
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.20
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.21: Can stable isotope analysis and paleogenetic (aDNA) analysis reveal mobility and migration in this region?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a63a3
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.21
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.22: Where might we find the earliest church structures in this region?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a667a
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.22
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.23: Where did Christian worship take place before the expansion of monasteries in the region from the 7th century?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a6a48
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.23
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.24: Can we find traces of ‘British’ Christian sites, for instance at sites with early inscribed stones like Peebles or Kirkliston?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a6e08
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.24
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.25: Is there potential to complete the excavation of the early church at Auldhame?  

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a71a5
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.25
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.26: Can we confirm the supposed vallum seen by Charles Thomas at Abercorn?  

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a75ad
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.26
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.27: What is the significance of harbours to the location of early monasteries, eg Aberlady, Auldhame, Tyninghame, St Abb’s Head, North Berwick?  

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a78e0
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.27
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.28: How early do parish churches begin to be built in this region?  

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a7bf3
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.28
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.29: What is the cultural context of the ‘hogback’ stones?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a7f5a
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.29
More information:
Can we date these sites any closer?  
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.30: How did pre-existing ecclesiastical centres influence the location of 12th-century reformed monasteries at Melrose, Jedburgh, Kelso, etc? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a82f2
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.30
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Agenda 8.1 Targeted work is needed at sites with Northumbrian relief sculpture, including Jedburgh, Ancrum and Coldingham

SESARF Agenda 8.2 A corpus of all early medieval sculpture, not just ‘Anglo-Saxon’ stones, is badly needed  

Material Culture and Identity

SESARF Qu 8.31: Why is there a relative invisibility of ‘Britons’ in material culture? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a85cd
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.31
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.32: Might new finds of early Anglo-Saxon brooch types in the region push back the arrival of Northumbrian influences? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a88e1
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.32
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.33: What does the diverse nature of Viking Age finds indicate about Norse interaction with this area? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a8cf3
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.33
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.34: What evidence is there for specialised craftworking in this area?

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a914c
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.34
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

SESARF Qu 8.35: Why is there a relative lack of mundane and everyday finds, such as tools and ceramics? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a95a4
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.35
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

Conflict

SESARF Qu 8.36: Why is there a relative lack of archaeological evidence for violence despite written records attesting to numerous conflicts in this area? 

More information on this question
URI:
https://scarf.scot/researchframework/v1/question/question-65575897a9a13
Local Framework Numbering:
SESARF Qu 8.36
More information:
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Date accepted:
01/12/2023
Date of next review:
01/12/2028
Linked Strategy(s):
Found in the following Frameworks:
The Scottish Archaeological Research Framework
Categories:

Are there research recommendations that you think are missing?

Why not add your comment below which will be flagged to ScARF (or get in touch with ScARF directly) and new recommendations will be considered for addition at the next revision.