| Humans have been intrigued by their surrounding landscape for centuries. Sometimes intrigue has led to particular manipulations of the land by groups of people, such as the building of mounds and other monuments. Thus, the study of past landscape use is an important part in understanding our own interests. Over the years, developments in archaeology have come to include various perspectives on how past landscapes should be interpreted. This thesis will examine the changes within the theoretical perspectives in landscape archaeology through the decades. Within the regions of English-speaking Northwest Europe (including Britain and Ireland) and North America, I will specifically focus on the effects that theories have on mound interpretation as seen within a literature sample from each region. By tracing the path the various theories and their applications take within the two regions, a better understanding of landscape archaeology for each region can be gained. It is expected that a study of landscape methodologies can later be used to find gaps within the two regions' interpretations and what can be learned from the other. |
