Review of Astill, Grenville and Annie Grant, eds., 'The countryside of medieval England' Oxford and Cambridge Mass., Blackwell, 1992: paper; pp. xi, 282; 50 illustrations; R.R.P. AUS$39.95 [distributed in Australia by Allen & Unwin].

This volume of some ten essays by seven scholars draws on a wide range of sources, both documentary and archaeological, to explore the physical landscape, the patterns of rural life, and the natural environment, of people in medieval England. Thus animals, both kept and hunted, and vegetation, as well as agriculture and contemporary 'technology' are carefully appraised. The result is an amazingly comprehensive guide to the landscape of the past and its exploitation, particularly in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Much of the documentation is presented in excellent diagrams and tables.