An International Scottish Historical Archaeology?

Abstract

This paper serves as an introduction to the special edition of the International Journal of Historical Archaeology on the theme of Scottish historical archaeology in its international context. The introduction aims to provide a context for the individual papers in the collection by briefly outlining some of the main characteristics of Scottish historical archaeology-as it has developed in the past, as it is at present and as it might develop in the future. The paper also discusses the ambiguous relationship between Scottish historical archaeology and wider historical archaeology.

Heritage Tourism: A management plan of Govan, Glasgow

“…The church was established around 500 AD by St. Constantine. This coincides with the discovery of what is presumed to be Christian burials, where the deceased head is oriented to the West, which are dated around the 5th-6th century AD [1]. From the 6th century to 2007, Govan Old Parish Church was the ecclesiastical foundation for Govan.…”

“…Govan was almost virtually not mentioned within the history books for the next couple of centuries. It was not until after the fall of Dumbarton in 870 AD by the Dublin Vikings after a four month siege, that we see the name Govan listed again [1]. The royal family abandoned Dumbarton and settled near Govan.…”

“…It has been noted that according to historical accounts, there were possibly some stones that had been destroyed and misplaced. It can be speculated that when a neighboring shipyard called Harland and Wolff was destroyed in the year of 1973, many of these missing carved stones were also subjected to destruction, being mistaken for common building supplies [1].…”

Boarding and lodging practices in early twentieth-century Scotland

“…Specific streets in Govan were chosen due to their proximity to industrial production, with the Govan area closely associated with industry from the mid 1800s, 41 and a developing shipbuilding industry from the 1860s. 42 Specific streets in the Govan Parish, for example Govan Street, Hospital Street, Main Street, Thistle Street and Victoria Street, were selected due to the large concentration of working-class families housed there, in particular, immigrant families. Class was determined by the occupation of the head of household, with heads in these streets overwhelmingly occupied in unskilled and semi-skilled trades.…”