REVIEW BY STEPHEN RIPPON
‘Landscape history’ is often written as a chronological story, of which there are innumerable examples at the scale of individual parishes and counties. This innovative study is refreshingly different, both in its more thematic approach and in its exploration of an entire region: Wessex (defined as the historic counties of Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset, and Berkshire). The author takes care to reflect how landscape character is a combination of both natural/physical and cultural/human elements, and, while the focus is on the origins of today’s countryside, the reader is sometimes taken through the prehistoric and Roman periods as well. Examples of the thematic approach include chapters on the ‘Utilisation of natural resources’ and ‘Environmental governance and change’, while other chapters explore specific types of landscape including chalk/limestone downland, the clay vales, heathland, moorland, woods/forests, wetlands, and coastlines. It is engagingly written, and well-illustrated throughout, making for a fascinating study of a region of diverse character.
Wessex: A landscape history
Hadrian Cook
Archaeopress Archaeology, £35
ISBN 978-1803275352
