Page - 232 - in The Power of Urban Water - Studies in premodern urbanism

232 UlrichMüller Fig. 2:Haithabu, reconstructionof theport in the 10th century. the subject of comprehensive excavations at the end of the 19th century, the results of which were systematically presented. The prospection and geophysical testing performedwithin the wall from the 2000s onwards have provided research into Haithabu with a new impetus as regards assessment of the populationdensity and settlement structure, and also regarding the questionof thesettlement’s intendedfunction.19 It isnowassumedthat therewasa fairlydense level of building development.While the cemeteries were already the focus of archaeological researchquite early on, academic interest in theharbourwas roused following the recovery of twowrecks in 1953 and 1980. A total of approximately 2200m2 of the shallows and shoreline areas were examined during 1978/9, and these excavations were presented in a fundamental new analysis by Sven Kalmring.20 Even before the development of the first harbour building works, there were recognisable activities taking place in Haithabu during the middle of the 9th century that Kalmring has connected to a hithe.21 The water’s edge was used for various activities. During the following years, we can observe developmental phases consisting of the raising and levelling of the land, as well as protective measures in the waterside areas. The buildingworks covered an area of approximately 1800m2 and can be dated between 817 and circa 885. To the side, in the southernpart of the site, thesemeasures canbedivided into four developmentalphases.Here, theground levelwas raised inabout823or laterand890,and the port areawaspushedbackaround 11m into the lagoon. Theperiodof actual port construction beganaround theendof the9th century (Fig. 3).After this, a secureaccess route to the jetties was created. The first jetty was completed around 865, and sometime between 865 and 884 thiswas then connectedwith thepre-existing building to create a ‘platform’. The succeeding building measures also enlarged the port structure. This step-by-step building process and the extension into the lagoon created a closed frontage by the end of the 9th century. At the 19 Hilberg 2018. 20 Kalmring 2010. 21 Kalmring 2010, 265.