Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (741 page)

A tall commemorative stone column erected in the centre of Trajan's Forum in Rome in honour of the emperor Trajan and dedicated to him on 18 May ad 113. Composed of eighteen massive drums of marble the whole structure stands 29.5m high to the base of the statue plinth. The decoration is a continuous spiral frieze commemorating the emperor's triumphs in Dacia in ad 101–2 and 105–6. This provides an important source of information about the structure and workings of the Roman army on campaign.
[Sum.: F. Lepper and S. Frere , 1988,
Trajan's Column
. Gloucester: Sutton Publishing]

 
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An idea borrowed from systems analysis to refer to a course of development representing medium- or long-term social change that can be mapped in archaeological terms by reference to changes in specific characteristics through a series of successive stages.

 
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Tool having a straight cutting edge caused by the removal of a flake parallel to it.

 
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Now obsolete, this term was widely used during the early and mid 20th century to describe the chambers of certain types of Neolithic long barrow in northwest Europe where individual cells open off a central passage or chamber. Commonly found in the Cotswold–Severn long barrows of western England and Wales and also in similar barrows around the mouth of the Loire in western France.

 
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Transferring livestock from one region to another according to the season of the year so that two complementary ecozones are exploited. Typically, transhumance systems utilize areas of lowland during the winter months and nearby uplands during the summer. Some or all of the population will move with the livestock, especially in the case of long-distance transhumance where the regions are perhaps 50km or more apart.

 
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1
General term used to describe cultures or styles during a period of change from one distinctive form to another.
2
In American archaeology see
FORMATIVE
.
3
In European architecture, the style of ecclesiastical architecture intervening between the Romanesque and the Gothic.

 
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