Bringing the Country to Town: ‘Rurban’ Landscapes in Iron Age Europe

Abstract

Research on Iron Age agglomerations has a long tradition, but only recently have the environs of these temperate European central places begun to attract greater attention. Expanding the focus from site cores to their wider landscapes challenges the traditional dichotomies of rural and urban. This can also be observed in the internal structure of many complexes, which, despite their complexity and manifold functions, often included rural-like settlement structures. Here, we argue that the concept ‘rurban’ encapsulates the resemblances many Iron Age centres had with elements of farmed landscapes, and that they should be considered within the framework of low-density urbanism. We argue that comparative analogies help to expand our interpretative frameworks, while new fieldwork strategies may lead us to a better understanding of the use of space within these agglomerations.