Newcastle University

Research Interests

My research and teaching interests focus on the landscapes of Britain and Europe after the Roman period, and on medieval archaeology (particularly early medieval religion)

Research Roles

• Editor, Medieval Settlement Research
• Assistant Editor, Landscape Research
• Programming Committee, International Medieval Congress
• Management Committee, Archaeology Data Service

I am Director of Research for the School of Historical Studies.
I convene the School's Landscapes and Monuments Research Strand and co-convene Med.LA.B - a forum for early medieval, late Antique and Byzantine research

Research Projects

My current and recent projects include:

• 'As One Monastery in Two Places': Wearmouth and Jarrow in their Landscape Context
• Unlocking Historic Landscapes in the Eastern Mediterranean
• Mothecombe Project
• Making Christian Landscapes: Early Medieval Ireland
• Chassenon - Cassinomagus
• Irish Sea Historic Seascape Characterisation

Colleagues at Newcastle involved in these projects include Alex Turner, Hannah Flint and Andy Agate

I am involved in organising this international conference at University College Cork in 2012:
• Making Christian Landscapes: Conversion and Consolidation in the Early Middle Ages, 21-23 September 2012 (with Dr Tomás Ó Carragáin, UCC; in partnership with the Society for Church Archaeology)

I have organised these conferences and symposia at Newcastle:
• Heartland to Frontier: MSRG Winter Seminar, 3 December 2011
• Light: a Christmas Symposium, 11 December 2009 (with Dr Mark Jackson, Newcastle University)
• Early Medieval Northumbria: Current Work and Future Directions, 11-12 February 2006 (with Dr David Petts, University of Durham) (published by Brepols as Early Medieval Northumbria: Kingdoms and Communities, 450-1100)
• Concealed Communities: Marginal and Mobile people in Late- and Post-Medieval Landscapes, 9 December 2005 (published in 2007 as a special issue of Intl J Historical Archaeology)

Postgraduate Supervision

I am currently supervising PhD students on topics including early medieval archaeology and rural landscapes in the medieval and post-medieval periods. Please contact me if you are interested in studying for a research degree at Newcastle in any of these areas:
• Medieval or later landscape archaeology and landscape history
• Early medieval and medieval archaeology
• Management of the historic landscape
• Interdisciplinary studies in archaeology and history or other related disciplines

My current research students include:
• Katie Green 'Rural Byzantine landscapes and societies: new approaches to characterisation and analysis'
• Caron Newman 'Mapping late- and post-medieval landscapes in Cumbria'
• Sheila Newton 'Settlement and Landscape in the Parishes of Muggleswick and Edmundbyers and adjacent areas of the Upper Derwent Valley'
• Rod Grimshaw 'Thirlmere: landscape and memory'
• Maria Duggan 'Links to Late Antiquity'
• Vicky Manolopoulou 'Processing emotion: litanies in Byzantine Constantinople'
• Dulma Karunarathna 'The female in changing social contexts in historical societies of ancient Sri Lanka'

My previous research students include:
• Janet K Lambert - PhD (2010) 'Experiencing landscape'
• Jonathan Shipley - PhD (2010) 'Concealed communities: the history and archaeology of upper Coquetdale and the College Valley during the late medieval and post-medieval periods'
• Andrew Newton - PhD (2009) 'The location of early medieval churches in Northumbria: conversion to a Christian landscape in northern England'

Industrial Relevance

We undertake consultancy and projects in the field of historic landscapes. My colleagues and I work particularly on practical projects and applications of historic landscape and seascape characterisation. Our recent projects include the Irish Sea HSC for English Heritage

I will be on research leave from Feb - June 2012, so not teaching (except my research students, who carry on as normal). Normally, my teaching duties include the following modules:

Undergraduate Teaching

I lead these modules:
ARA1030 Archaeology of Britain from the Romans to the 20th century
ARA2098 Understanding historic landscapes
ARA3029 Early medieval churches of Europe
and I contribute to:
ARA1027 Introduction to archaeology
ARA2100 Fieldwork Methods and Artefact Analysis
ARA3023 Dissertation

Postgraduate Teaching

I lead this module: 
ARA8180 Early medieval Britain and Europe
and I contribute to:
ARA8022 Historical archaeology
ARA8090 Themes, theories and methods in archaeology
ARA8100 Recording historic buildings

• Turner SC, Silvester R, ed. Life in Medieval Landscapes: People and Places in the Middle Ages. Oxford: Windgather Press, 2012.
• Petts DA, Turner SC, ed. Early Medieval Northumbria: Kingdoms and Communities, 450-1100. Turnhout: Brepols, 2012.
• Petts DA, Turner SC. Introduction: Northumbrian communities. In: Petts, D.A., Turner, S.C, ed. Early Medieval Northumbria: Kingdoms and Communities, AD 400-1100. Turnhout: Brepols, 2012, pp.1-12.
• Turner S, Wilson-North R. South-west England: rural settlements in the Middle Ages. In: Christie, N., Stamper, P, ed. Medieval Rural Settlement : Britain and Ireland, AD 800-1600. Oxford: Windgather Press, 2012, pp.135-150.
• Crow J, Turner SC, Vionis A. Characterizing the historic landscapes of Naxos. Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology 2011, 24(1), 111-137.
• Turner SC. Christianity. In: Insoll, T, ed. Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of Ritual and Religion. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011, pp.948-966.
• Turner S. Paysages et relations: archéologie, géographie, archéogéographie. Études Rurales 2011, 188, 143-154.
• Turner S, Crow J. Unlocking historic landscapes in the eastern Mediterranean: two pilot studies using historic landscape characterisation. Antiquity 2010, 84(323), 216-229.
• Turner S. Caracterització del paisatge històric: una introducció als mètodes i aplicacions per a la recerca històrica. Territori i Societat: el Paisatge Històric 2010, 5, 349-370.
• Fairclough G, Turner SC. Constructing a Eucaland Project classification. In:Kruse, A; Pungetti, G, ed. European Culture Expressed in Agricultural Landscapes. Perspectives from the Eucaland Project.Rome:Palombi Editori,2010, pp. 124-145.
• Petts DA, Turner SC. Early medieval church groups in Wales and western England. In: Edwards, N., ed. The Archaeology of the Early Medieval Celtic Churches. Leeds: Society for Medieval Archaeology, 2009.
• Crow J, Turner S. Silivri and the Thracian hinterland of Istanbul: an historic landscape. Anatolian Studies 2009, 59, 167-181.
• Turner SC. Ancient country : the historic character of rural Devon. Exeter: Devon Archaeological Society, 2007.
• Turner SC, Fairclough GJ. Common Culture: The Archaeology of Landscape Character in Europe. In: Hicks, D; McAtackney, L; Fairclough, GJ, ed. Envisioning Landscape: Situations and Standpoints in Archaeology and Heritage. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press, 2007, pp. 120-145.
• Turner S, Young R. Concealed communities: The people at the margins. International Journal of Historical Archaeology 2007, 11(4), 297-303.
• Turner SC. Fields, farms and agricultural innovation in late medieval and early modern south-west England. In: Finch, J; Giles, K, ed. Estate Landscapes: Design Improvement and Power in the Post-Medieval Landscape. Woodbridge: Boydell and Brewer, 2007, pp. 57-74.
• Turner SC. Landscape archaeology for the past and future: the position of Historic Landscape Characterisation. Landscapes 2007, 8(2), 40-49.
• Turner S. Historic landscape characterisation: A landscape archaeology for research, management and planning. Landscape Research 2006,31 4 385-398.
• Turner SC. Making a Christian Landscape: The Countryside in Early-Medieval Cornwall, Devon and Wessex. Exeter:University of Exeter Press,2006.
• Turner SC, ed. Medieval Devon and Cornwall: Shaping an Ancient Countryside. Macclesfield:Windgather Press,2006.
• Turner SC. The Christian landscape: churches, chapels and crosses. In:Turner, S.C., ed. Medieval Devon and Cornwall: Shaping an Ancient Countryside.Macclesfield:Windgather Press,2006, pp. 24-43.
• Turner SC. The medieval landscape of Devon and Cornwall. In:Turner, S.C., ed. Medieval Devon and Cornwall: Shaping an Ancient Countryside.Macclesfield:Windgather Press,2006, pp. 1-9.
• Turner SC. Converting the British landscape. British Archaeology 2005,84 20-25.
• Turner SC. Christianity and the conversion-period landscape of south-west Britain. In:Insoll, T., ed. Belief in the Past.Oxford, UK:BAR,2004, pp. 125-136.
• Turner SC. Coast and countryside in 'Late Antique' south-west England, AD c.400-600. In:Gerrard, J., Collins, R., ed. Debating Late Antiquity in Britain, AD 300-700.Oxford, UK:BAR,2004, pp. 25-32.
• Turner SC. The Changing Ancient Landscape: South-West England c.1700-1900. Landscapes 2004,5 1 18-34.
• Turner SC. A medieval cross from Lidwell, Stoke Climsland. Cornish Archaeology 2003,41-42 (for 2002-3), 161-164.
• Finneran N, Turner SC. An archaeological history of the landscape of Little Haldon, Teignmouth, South Devon. Transactions of the Devonshire Association 2003,134 235-259.
• Turner SC. Boundaries and religion: the demarcation of early Christian settlements in Britain. Anglo-Saxon Studies in Archaeology and History 2003, 12, 50-57.
• Turner SC. Making a Christian landscape: early medieval Cornwall. In: Carver, M, ed. The Cross Goes North: Processes of Conversion in Northern Europe, AD 300-1300. Woodbridge: York Medieval Press, 2003, pp.171-194.
• Turner SC. Aspects of the development of public assembly in the Danelaw. Assemblage 2000, 5.