Isobel Harvey

My research will examine peatlands under the care of the National Trust for Scotland from a range of archaeological angles. This will be done by using a tripartite methodology based on Assemblage Theory to examine the perceptions and activities associated with these landscapes, evidenced through material evidence for depositional and extractive behaviour, intangible heritage such as social history and folklore, and the impact of such actions on the peatlands themselves, through examination of paleoenvironmental proxy records. A more-than-human approach will be used when discussing this material, particularly the selected environmental proxy, the highlight the continued importance of these landscapes to a wide variety of actors, rather than simply the fluctuating perceptions of peatlands by different human communities. Where there is previous literature or archival material, this will be synthesised and used as the basis for assessments of perception and impact. Small scale excavation of a peat stance at a property with rich evidence for peat cutting as well as some surviving depths of peat, will give a further insight into the material form of some of the relationships people have had with peatlands through time. This will then be complemented by taking peat cores at each selected case study property to allow for the local paleoenvironment to be analysed and assessed. In the case of the excavation, this will be as close as is feasible to the excavation site.