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TTHHEE MMOOOONN,, TTHHEE BBOONNFFIIRREEAANNDD TTHHEE BBEEAAKKEERR??AANNAALLYYSSIINNGG WWHHIITTEE IINNLLAAYYFFRROOMM BBEEAAKKEERR PPOOTTTTEERRYYIINN AABBEERRDDEEEENNSSHHIIRREE

The Beaker pottery of Aberdeenshire stands out,quietly but clearly. Placed within the unassumingprotection of ‘flat’ short-cists on gravel slopes andknolls, many have been discovered and excavatedover the last two centuries. This has resulted in awell-contextualised sample of Beakers in thecollections of the University of Aberdeen andNational Museums Scotland, which has been studiedby a notable series of scholars, from MargaretCrichton Mitchell to Ian Shepherd, resulting in a finebody of specialist/site reports and syntheses. Buildingon these foundations, the recent Leverhulme Trust-funded Beakers and Bodies Project based inMarischal Museum, University of Aberdeen, hasincluded archival research, osteological analysis, acritical appraisal of existing dates, evaluation ofburial assemblages, 40 new radiocarbon dates andstable isotope analyses and the investigation of whiteinfill within incised and comb-impressed decoration.This surface finish is particularly striking in contrastto reddish/buff burnished, undecorated zones.

Of the 54 Beakers examined under stereomicroscope, 31 (57%) had clear evidence of whitepaste, while a further 5 (9%) were probable and aminimum of 7 (13%) were possible cases, makingthis a more common feature of Beakers thanpreviously considered. Initial scanning electronmicroscope (SEM) analysis indicated the presence ofcalcium and phosphorus, while further analysis of

four Beakers using Raman spectroscopy hasindicated that this was in the form of calciumhydroxyapatite - the major inorganic constituent ofbone. The paste therefore appears to have comprisedground-down cremated bone, applied along with anas yet unidentified fixing agent. Sampling andanalysis is, however, continuing, including ensuringthat none of the elements identified are the result of

NUMBER 65 July 2010

THE NEWSLETTER OF THE PREHISTORIC SOCIETY Registered Office University College London, Institute of Archaeology, 31–34 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PY

http://www.prehistoricsociety.org/

The copy date for PAST 66 is 1 October 2010. Contributions to Joanna Brück, School of Archaeology, NewmanBuilding, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland. Email: joanna.bruck@ucd.ie Contributions on disc oras e-mail attachments are preferred (either word 6 or rtf files) but hardcopy is also accepted. Illustrations can be sentas drawings, slides, prints, tif or jpeg files. The book reviews editor is Dr Mike Allen, Wessex Archaeology, PortwayHouse, Old Sarum Park, Salisbury, Wilts, SP4 6EB. Email: aea.escargots@gmail.com Queries over subscriptions and

membership should go to the Society administrator Tessa Machling at the London address above.

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Beaker from Borrowstone, cist 2, Kingswells, City of Aberdeen(ABDUA 15640)

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taphonomic processes or old conservation work.While it is not currently possible to determinewhether the bone was from an animal or humansource, its presence in the funerary context appearsto indicate a symbolic significance.

The presence of calcium phosphate on severalScottish Beakers was noted by D. L. Clarke in‘Beaker Pottery of Great Britain and Ireland’, whointerpreted it as crushed burnt bone. Other work onBeakers, such as that by Mary Davis in Britain andC. P. Odriozola and V. M. Hurtado Pérez in Spain,has also shown the presence of bone in a number ofinstances. Clarke also identified the use of crushedchalk as white inlay on English Beakers, noting thatan unknown number may have lost their alkalinewhite inlay through taphonomic processes. The largenumber of Aberdeenshire Beakers with white inlaymay simply be due to the protection offered by stonecists. However, both the use of ‘flat’, well-sealedshort-cists and the use and survival of bone inlaymay be manifestations of a particular, regional,attitude to the treatment and containment of bodies.

A consideration of the dates from ten skeletonsassociated with Aberdeenshire Beakers with whiteinlay shows a range from 3865±40 BP (2470-2205cal BC at 95.4 % probability; GrA-29077) fromBorrowstone, cist 1, to 3647±29 BP (2135-1935 calBC at 95.4 % probability; OxA-V-2243-44) fromPersley Quarry. It therefore seems probable thatwhite inlay was a feature throughout most of theBeaker period in Aberdeenshire. Indeed, a widevariety of typological forms are represented amongthe sampled vessels with evidence of white inlay. InClarke’s scheme, vessels from NorthernBritish/North Rhine to Final Northern are present; inShepherd/Lanting and van der Waals’s scheme, Steps3 to 6 are represented; and in Needham’s scheme, ‘S’-Profile, Short-Necked and other regional variationsof the Short-Necked type, are all present. Theabsence of white inlay from All-Over-Corded/Step 1-2/Low-Carinated vessels partly reflects the lownumber of these vessels discovered, but it may also benoted that the style of decoration employed on thesepots is not as conducive to the application of an inlay.

It is therefore possible that the sharp-edged incisionand toothed comb-impression of other types may bedirectly related to the application of white inlay, suchthat it was an intrinsic feature of the appearance andsymbolism of much comb-impressed Beaker pottery.The white fill was possibly applied by the comb in a‘tattooing’ fashion, although this awaits furtheranalysis and experimental work.

The findings fit well with Julian Thomas’s argumentthat Beakers focused attention on, and guidedmeaning of, the identity of the dead body. AnnWoodward has noted a possible connection between

comb (impressions), bodily adornment and changingconcepts of personhood during the Beaker period,while Ian and Alexandra Shepherd have noted thatthe apparent male: female dichotomy in the bodyposture of Aberdeenshire’s Beaker inhumationsextends to the typology of Beakers. The presence ofbone fill perhaps marked the Beaker as an idealisedand ancestrally verified representation of personhoodand genealogy to be considered in connection withthe particular, named identity of the dead.

It has been suggested by Richard Bradley that whiteand red may have had a cosmological significancefor the communities who constructedAberdeenshire’s broadly contemporary recumbentstone circles. The observation of the ‘milky’ moon,acts involving fire and the deposition of quartz havelong been recognised as characteristics of thesemonuments. Quartz is also known from Beakerburials, featuring in significant quantities within thecist cemetery at Borrowstone, near Aberdeen. AtForglen House in Buchan, quartz-like pebbles andthree Beakers were laid out in adherence to thetypical arrangement of recumbent stone circles: witha rectangular ‘pavement’ (c.1.8m by 0.91m) in thelocation usually preserved for the south-westernsetting of a large recumbent stone and a line ofquartz tracing the north-east/south-west alignmentthat forms such a major structuring principle of thesestone circles.

Unfortunately, the chronology of recumbent stonecircles remains relatively fluid, with possible datescovering the Later Neolithic and Early Bronze Age.It therefore remains to be established whether thecosmological principles that appear to be sharedbetween recumbent stone circles and Beakers werethe result of a unified worldview or whether the pre-existing symbolic repertoire developed at thesemonuments may help to explain the widespreadadoption of Beaker practices in Aberdeenshireduring the mid/later third millennium BC.

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Beaker sherd from Tavelty Farm, Kintore (ABDUA 14261)

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These regional considerations, compelling as they are,should be tempered with wider considerations: theBeakers of north-east Scotland are not alone inpresenting a white inlay of ground-down bone. Asimilar surface finish, consisting of calcium carbonate,has been identified upon Beakers from ContinentalEurope. White inlay on the Beaker pottery ofAberdeenshire may therefore reflect the fusion of pre-existing or independently developed regional readingsof more distant and unifying dimensions and ideasconveyed by the Beaker ‘network’. These issues andothers will be considered in the publication of theproject’s wider findings in due course.

Neil Curtis, Marischal Museum, University ofAberdeenDr Ljiljana Popovic, School of Natural &Computing Sciences, University of Aberdeen Neil Wilkin, Research Assistant, Beakers and BodiesProject, and PhD student, University of BirminghamMargot Wright, Marischal Museum, University ofAberdeen

AcknowledgmentsThe Beakers and Bodies Project was funded by theLeverhulme Trust (grant F/00 152/S). Grateful thanksare also due to Dr Jan Skakle of the School of Natural& Computing Sciences, University of Aberdeen, forthe use of analytical equipment and facilities.

AA UUNNIIQQUUEE IIRROONN AAGGEEGGOOLLDD HHOOAARRDD FFOOUUNNDDNNEEAARR SSTTIIRRLLIINNGG

A remarkable hoard of Iron Age gold torcs wasfound near Stirling in central Scotland in lateSeptember 2009 by David Booth - on his first outingwith a metal-detector! The find includes someexceptional and unique pieces, and expands our viewof the use of gold in the Iron Age.

The hoard consists of four torcs. Two are ribbontorcs - fine, twisted ribbons of gold with hookedends. One has knobbed terminals, a common form;the other has more unusual disc terminals. There hasbeen an extended debate over the type’s dating. Fora long time they were thought to be Bronze Age, butRichard Warner has argued that most are Iron Age,on the basis of associations and metal composition.He differentiates between a less common loosely-twisted Bronze Age type and the more commontightly-twisted Iron Age one. The Stirling examplesprovide emphatic support for this Iron Age date;their small diameter suggests they were for womenor youths, or were intended as arm ornaments.

The third torc in the hoard is fragmentary. Twojoining pieces make up half of an annular tubulartorc of sheet gold. It is decorated with three rows ofcomplex repoussé high-relief ‘mushrooms’,resembling a row of vertebrae, with decorative detailchased in. Similarities to La Tène “Plastic Style”

The excavated circular structure © Trustees of the National Museums of Scotland.

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suggest a third century BC date. This type of torc iswell known from south-west France, and our findmust be an import from that area. It is the first suchtorc known from Britain - although when she saw apicture of it, Mary Cahill of the National Museum ofIreland uncovered a group of similar fragments fromthe museum’s safe, where they had long beenconsidered ethnographic! The exact provenance ofthe Irish find is unknown.

The fourth torc is the most unusual. It is a hybrid ofIron Age forms and Mediterranean craft skills. Thepenannular shape with loop terminals is a commonIron Age type; the rope-like hoop, made from eightbraided pairs of gold wires, is a technique seen atSnettisham and elsewhere. However, the decoration

of the terminals is unparalleled. A disc was set intothe loops, with gold wire and granules soldered to it; further twisted gold wires were soldered either side ofthe terminals, which are linked by a fine chain. Theseare skills typical of the Mediterranean world, not thetemperate Iron Age. Was this a special commission,sent as a diplomatic gift from the Mediterraneanworld to a recipient in ‘barbarian Europe’, as hasbeen suggested for the Winchester hoard? Or is thisevidence for Mediterranean-trained craft-workersnorth of the Alps? This is a key area for research, butthere is other evidence for mobile craft-workers, forinstance in the Greek inscriptions found on the torcof Mailly-le-Camp (France). Unfortunately, there wasno associated material to provide a scientific date forthe hoard, but the parallels suggest a date bracket ofperhaps 300-50 BC.

The hoard © Trustees of the National Museums of Scotland.

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The finder reported the discovery very promptly, andthanks to the support of the landowner, it waspossible to excavate extensively around the findspot.The exact location is being kept confidential, but itlies on a terrace in a boggy area. Excavations showedthat the hoard sat within an isolated circular timberbuilding, with a continuous groove for the wall anda narrow outer drainage gully. Apart from a centralcooking pit and nearby posthole, there were no otherinternal features, and there was a complete dearth offinds - even of charcoal or burnt bone, except in thecentral pit. We would normally call this aroundhouse, but the isolated, damp location and thepresence of the hoard within suggest other options -a shrine, perhaps? Of course, building and gold maynot be contemporary - the spatial association istantalising but could be misleading, and radiocarbondates will help to assess this.

The find is remarkable in many ways - in confirmingthe date of ribbon torcs, in showing evidence ofEuropean connections, in raising the question of linksto the Mediterranean world long before the rise ofRome. It is also a valuable reminder that there is moreto Iron Age gold in Britain than Snettisham-styletorcs. With the addition of ribbon torcs to our IronAge corpus, gold becomes much less geographicallyrestricted: Snettisham-style torcs can be seen as one ofseveral regional versions of gold ornaments.

Fraser Hunter, Dept of Archaeology, NationalMuseums Scotland

TTHHEE BBRROONNZZEE AAGGEE OOFF TTHHEETTHHAAMMEESS VVAALLLLEEYY:: NNEEWWRREESSEEAARRCCHH,, NNEEWWTTHHOOUUGGHHTTSS,, NNEEWWAAGGEENNDDAASS

Society of Antiquaries, Burlington House, London,6th February 2010

This one-day conference organised by the PrehistoricSociety built on the success of last year’s Neolithic ofthe Thames Valley meeting. The speakers providedvaluable updates on recent research and developer-led investigations. A diverse range of papers waspresented on themes that included settlements, fieldsystems, burials, and the thorny issue of votivedeposition.

Gill Hey looked at the changing landscape of theUpper Thames Valley, and contrasted the relativelyelusive domestic evidence of the Early Bronze Agewith the extensive cleared and settled landscapes ofthe Late Bronze Age. She suggested that over time,people invested more in settlements than in funerarymonuments, and intensive agriculture could becorrelated with increased competition, surplus, andstatus acquisition.

Jane Sidell and Jon Cotton queried votive depositionin the context of the finds from the river Thames.Drawing upon modern analogies, they argued thatobjects and people could end up in the river for avariety of non-votive reasons (accident, loss,confiscation, theft, etc.). Jane also drew attention tothe inherent biases in the finds database from theThames, where successful recovery is dependentupon hand dredging, and the advance of mechaniseddredging has inevitably resulted in data loss. Arevised understanding of the context of the Thamesskulls and weapons was also called for. Recentdetailed studies of palaeochannels have helped mapthe changing course of the river through time, andsuggest that some metalwork and human remainswere deposited originally in dry locations. Thebehaviour of the River Thames also altered overtime: Jane proposed that it might be no coincidencethat a change from river regression to transgressionafter 1500 BC is matched by an increase in fluvialmetal deposition.

Richard Bradley and Rick Shulting continued thetheme of river deposition and presented the resultsfrom a recent programme of AMS dating on severalThames skulls. Skulls with evidence of blunt (ratherthan sharp or sword) trauma injuries were selectedto identify whether any predated the Bronze Agechronology often ascribed to them. Two interestingdeductions were reached. Firstly, similar numbers ofmale and female skulls exhibited blunt trauma

Location map

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injuries. Secondly, most of the skulls were of laterBronze Age or Iron Age date. Rick concluded thatmany of these injuries were not the result of ‘heroic’face-to-face combat but rather related to raiding,revenge and surprise attacks. He contended that thedeposition of skulls with evidence of trauma in theriver might indicate that the Thames acted as acontested boundary or border zone during this time.

Tim Allen discussed the recent excavations of twoLate Bronze Age hilltop enclosures (Little Wittenhamin Oxfordshire and Taplow in Buckinghamshire). Hereasoned that these settlements were not asstrategically or prominently positioned in thelandscape as the Early Iron Age hillforts thatsucceeded them in these locations. He drew possiblelinks between the significant concentrations ofmetalwork found in the Kingston and Taplow areasand these hilltop sites.

Peter Boyer summarised the recent excavations byPre-Construct Archaeology of a multi-period site inwest London, focussing on the important discoveryof a Bronze Age cremation cemetery. This comprisedmainly inverted urned cremations that wereclustered around a small penannular ditchedmonument. The radiocarbon dates suggest that thiscemetery continued in use throughout an extensiveperiod of time, perhaps as long as 500 years andstraddling both the Middle and Late Bronze Ages.

John Lewis spoke about the extensive Bronze Agelandscape uncovered by Framework Archaeology inadvance of the construction of Heathrow’s Terminal5. Through comparison with other recentlyexcavated Bronze Age sites in the wider region, hehighlighted the variety of field system layouts. Heargued that this diversity reflected the distinctfunctions the fields fulfilled and the ways in whichdifferent communities responded to buildingformalised landscapes, a topic also recentlyaddressed by Dave Yates. Bayesian modelling of theimpressive suite of radiocarbon dates obtained fromthe field system ditches indicates that this vastbounded landscape was created over a remarkablyshort period of time.

Damien Goodburn provided a useful synthesis ofexcavated wooden structures (trackways, platformsand causeways) found along the Thames, many ofwhich remain poorly known or unpublished. Hedemonstrated how woodworking debris providesvaluable clues regarding construction techniques,and yet it is often overlooked or thrown away inexcavations. Matt Brudenell undertook a detailedinvestigation of the changing nature of the potteryassemblages from the Mucking ringworks. Hediscussed how charting variations in sherd size,weight and decoration through the ditch sequencesalludes to the dynamic ways in which ringworks

were used and perceived over time. Matt offered anenlightening approach to understanding the long andcomplex narratives of these sites.

Many of the papers stimulated useful wider debate.It was noteworthy that metalwork did not featuregreatly in the papers, highlighting the fact thatbronze deposition tends to occur in contextsremoved from the domestic, agro-pastoral and evenfunerary landscapes under discussion. Theconference closed with a plenary session to discussresearch agendas, and to introduce new ways ofstructuring Bronze Age research in light of all theseinteresting discoveries and developments. The eventprovided a useful arena to reflect on the impressivequantity and quality of data recently uncovered andthe new approaches being undertaken to further ourinterpretations of the Bronze Age in the ThamesValley and more widely.

Catriona GibsonCentre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies,University of Wales

PPHHIILL DDEEAANN:: IINN MMEEMMOORRIIAAMM

Phil’s recent and tragically early death marks the lossof an exceptional contributor to portraying andunderstanding the past. His illustrations demonstratethat he was not only equipped with exceptional skillbut with a perception that brought new life to theremnants of prehistory. Those will endure on theprinted page in monographs such as the GreenwellCatalogue to papers in many journals. Oneinnovation - although it is perhaps invidious to singleout just one - was a new way of portraying theintricacy and feel of early goldwork, previously justillustrated flat in drawings or photographs, such asthe Bush Barrow gold and the Rillaton Cup (where,by the way, he was the first to note internaldecoration not spotted in a hundred and fifty years ofstudy). That skill and perception was also invaluablein the field where often he saw far more than those ofus doggedly recording the excavation process.

The Society owes him a particular debt. Hetransformed a basic suggestion into the triple-spirallogo, instantly recognisable and capable of use in anymedium, a task that was done in his own time andfor free.

He was an unassuming and very good friend.

Ian Kinnes

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AADDDDEENNDDAA TTOO OOUURR ‘‘11993355’’EEDDIITTIIOONN OOFF PPAASSTT

Postscript to the Hurlers

Readers may be interested to know how therestoration of the Hurlers progressed after the initialwork, reported on in our anniversary edition ofPAST, took place in 1935. Radford was appointedDirector of the British School in Rome in October1936. The restoration of the Hurlers was restarted in1938 when Radford returned and again, with CroftAndrew’s assistance, worked on the northern circle.This was only partially achieved and the intendedrestoration of the southern circle never took place.The site remains in a largely unchanged conditiontoday since the 1930s restoration programme. Twoshort notes on the project appeared in PPS in 1935and 1938 but the work was never fully published.Radford was president of the Prehistoric Societyfrom 1954-58. The Hurlers is one of Cornwall’smost famous and most easily accessible and muchvisited prehistoric monuments. A re-assessment ofthe unpublished excavations archive has recentlybeen carried out by Historic Environment CornwallCouncil on behalf of the Cornwall Heritage Trustand the Caradon Hill Area Heritage Project. Formore details contact jnowakowski@cornwall.gov.uk.

Jacky Nowakowski

The fate of the Maiden Castle alligator

I’d like to update the report on Maiden Castle: thebirthday alligator, buried in one of the ditchesfollowing its sacrifice, was re-excavated during NiallSharples’ excavations of 1985-6. In the course ofsample selection for the Dating CausewayedEnclosures project, I ascertained that it is preservedin the collections of the Natural History Museum, intheir Wandsworth store, complete with iron or steelreinforcements. Whatever indignities the alreadytaxidermised defunct reptile may have suffered in thelater parts of the birthday celebrations must wait tobe defined by techniques still beyond us.

Frances Healy

DDEERREEKK SSIIMMPPSSOONN AARRCCHHIIVVEE

On his untimely death in 2005, Derek Simpson left anumber of unpublished excavation archives from hiswork in Scotland, England and Ireland. His Scottishbacklog was being cleared by his colleagues andresearch students at Queen’s University Belfast withfunding from Historic Scotland and indeed his mostfamous excavation, the Beaker settlement atNorthton, Harris, was published posthumously.There were no plans to reduce his English backlog,however, and it was felt that this material was indanger of being forgotten and indeed dispersed.Much of the artefactual material languished in thebasement of QUB but a substantial amount of theoriginal paper archive, prompted by reorganisationwithin QUB, had been transferred to his garagesometime after Derek’s death. This material inparticular was suffering from damp in this somewhat‘archivaly unstable’ environment and at the requestof Derek’s widow, Nancy Simpson, I paid a visit toQUB and Hillsborough to determine what was there.

In discussions with English Heritage, it was decidedit would be desirable to rescue his English archivesbefore they became even more depleted anddispersed and to deposit the archives with therelevant curator. Thanks to a grant from EnglishHeritage, these archives were brought back toBradford University, sorted, scanned and catalogued.This note is to raise awareness within the prehistoriccommunity to what was found:

• Launder’s Lane, Rainham, Essex: ring-ditch withNeolithic ceramics. A number of excavation plansand sections were transferred to MoLAS forincorporation into their East London Gravelsproject.

• King’s Newnham, Warwickshire: ring-ditch.Excavation plans and photographs plus flints,ceramics and a cremation deposit were transferredto Warwickshire Museums Service.

• Borrough Hill, Leicestershire: hillfort. Excavationplans and ceramics were transferred to Universityof Leicester Archaeological Services.

• Irton Moor and Seamer Moor, Yorkshire: roundbarrows. The archives have been retained atBradford with a view to writing these sites up viastudent projects. Digital copies of the archive havebeen sent to the NMR.

Alex GibsonArchaeological, Geographical & EnvironmentalSciencesUniversity of Bradford.

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The jaws of the alligator post-excavation (courtesy of Niall Sharples)

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MMEEEETTIINNGGSS PPRROOGGRRAAMMMMEE22001100--22001111

The programme for next year’s lectures and meetingsis coming together. However, details for a number ofevents have yet to be finalised - these will be posted

on our website, together with contact informationand booking forms as applicable, as soon as theybecome available. Booking forms will also beincluded in upcoming editions of PAST. If you wouldlike to be kept updated by email please contact TessaMachling on prehistoric@ucl.ac.uk (see front page).

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75th Anniversary Tour: Avebury to Norwich‘Thunder Run’A tour to commemorate the ‘great coup d’état’ of1935 by Clark, Hawkes, Phillips, etc., thattransformed the Prehistoric Society of East Angliainto the Prehistoric Society. Stuart Piggott famouslysaid of reaching the critical meeting in Norwich: ‘Idrove from Avebury (rather fast, in Keiller’s MGMidget) to cast my vote in favour’. Travellingrather more sedately and staying overnight inCambridge, this event will retrace Piggott’s journeyand stop off at selected prehistoric sites en route toreflect on 75 years of research.

The ‘Champion Debate’with Prof. Clive Gamble (Royal Holloway,University of London) and Prof. Tim Champion(Southampton University). To celebrate the 75thanniversary of the Society, our distinguishedspeakers will debate, in a not wholly seriousfashion, the relative merits of the Stone Ages versusthe Metal Ages. Followed by a wine reception(admission £5 including refreshments).

‘A History of the Prehistoric Society 1935-2010’by Dr. Rachel Pope (Liverpool University)A special lecture reflecting on the origins andhistory of the Prehistoric Society in its anniversaryyear (admission free to members).

The Present and Future of British PrehistoricPottery: Finds, Methods, InterpretationsJoint Prehistoric Society/Prehistoric CeramicsResearch Group Over the last decade, a wide range of importantexcavations, new finds, new analyses, newtechniques and interpretations have changed ourunderstanding of prehistoric British pottery. Insome regions of Britain, a comparative lack of findshas now been replaced by an abundance ofinformation which still awaits broader synthesis.The conference will reassess ceramic studies fromthe Neolithic through to the Iron Age and discussfuture research directions. For further informationsee the Prehistoric Ceramics Research Groupwebsite (http://www.pcrg.org.uk)

‘Time and the River - Environmental Change,Monumentality and Prehistoric Land-use atNeedingworth Quarry, Over’ by Christopher Evans,FSA (Executive Director, Cambridge ArchaeologicalUnit)Joint Prehistoric Society/Cambridge AntiquarianSociety

Sat 4-Sun 5 Sept2010

Wed 20 Oct 2010 6pm

Thurs 28 Oct 20105pm

Fri 29-Sun 31 Oct2010

Mon 10 Jan 20116pm

Weekend study tour Venue: Avebury/Cambridge

See enclosed booking form

75th Anniversary Event Venue: Society of Antiquaries, Burlington House, Piccadilly,London

See enclosed booking form

75th Anniversary Lecture Venue: Shore Lecture Theatre,14 Abercromby Square,University of Liverpool

Weekend conferenceVenue: Manchester

LectureVenue: Cambridge

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In the planning stages:

Lectures:• Joint lectures with the Society of Antiquaries of

Scotland, the Devon Archaeological Society, theNorfolk and Norwich Archaeological Society, andthe Sussex Archaeological Society

Conferences:• Launching the English Heritage Research Strategy

for Prehistory• Rethinking the Late Iron Age

Study Tours:• Monmouth and the Gwent Levels• Dillington weekend

AA FFAANNTTAASSTTIICCIINNTTEERRNNAATTIIOONNAALL BBRROONNZZEEAAGGEE LLIINNEE--UUPP IINN DDUURRHHAAMM,,1144 MMAAYY 22001111 –– TTHHEEPPRREEHHIISSTTOORRIICC SSOOCCIIEETTYY’’SS22001111 EEUURROOPPAACCOONNFFEERREENNCCEE

The Prehistoric Society has decided to bestow itsEuropa Prize for 2011 on Dr. Natasha Shishlina forher outstanding contribution to Eurasian steppenomad studies. The chosen theme of the 2011 Europameeting will be ‘Eurasian Interactions, 4000-1000BC’; it will be held at Durham University on Saturday14 May 2011. There will be six other internationally-

The Iron Age in the Thames ValleyFollowing on from two very successful meetings onthe Neolithic and Bronze Age, this day conferencewill explore the landscape of the Thames Valley inthe Iron Age, based on the results of recent majorprogrammes of fieldwork and analysis.

Looking at Landscapes: The Archaeology of theCotswolds and Thames ValleyLed by Dr. Alex LangStarting with a welcome event on Friday night atthe Institute of Archaeology, University of Oxford,the tour provides an opportunity to visit some ofthe more famous sites of both the Cotswolds(Saturday) and Thames Valley (Sunday), led byarchaeologists who have excavated and researchedthese sites for many years (incl. Prof. Tim Darvill,George Lambrick and Dr Gill Hey). Highlights willinclude: The Rollright Stones, Crickley Hill,Stanton Harcourt and WittenhamClumps/Dorchester.

Climate Change in PrehistoryOrganised by Dr. Bob Johnston (SheffieldUniversity), Dr Kevin Walsh (University of York) and Dr. Graeme Warren(University College Dublin).

Eurasian Interactions 4000-1500 BCIncluding the Europa Lecture by Dr. NataliaShishlina (Moscow): ‘The Mysterious Bronze AgeSteppe Nomads’.(There will be a fee for the conference but theEuropa Lecture will be free to members)

The Prehistory of West PenwithLed by Jacky Nowakowski (Cornwall Council)With a number of distinguished guides, the tourwill showcase a range of sites, from burialmonuments to settlements, in their landscapecontexts against the background of the WestPenwith survey.

Sat 26 Feb 2011

Fri 9-Sun 11 Apr2011

29 Apr-1 May2011TBC

Sat 14 May 2011

June 2011 (tbc)

Day conferenceVenue: London

Booking form to come inNovember PAST

6th student study tour Venue: Oxford

Booking form to come inNovember PAST

Weekend conferenceVenue: Dublin

Booking form to come inNovember PAST

Day conference and EuropaLectureVenue: Durham

Booking form to come inNovember PAST

UK study tourVenue: Cornwall

Booking form to come inNovember PAST

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recognised speakers. Dr. Volker Heyd (Bristol) will setthe third millennium context with his presentation on‘Late Neolithic-Early Bronze Age interactions inEurasia’. This will be followed by a wide-rangingdiscussion by Professor Kristian Kristiansen(Gothenburg) on ‘How Eurasia was incorporated intoa Near Eastern world-system’. Professor TonyWilkinson (Durham) will then present the results ofhis recent research on ‘The ancient Near East as adynamic system’. We then turn to ‘The Mediterraneansystem in the Bronze Age’, presented by Dr. CyprianBroodbank (UCL). Next, Professor William O’Brien(Cork) will provide a challenging overview of‘Atlantic metals and interactions in the Chalcolithicand Early Bronze Age’. In the final conference paper,Dr. Timothy Taylor (Bradford) will provide a reviewof ‘Eurasian interactions in the Iron Age’ - the periodwhich most archaeologists associate with the steppenomadic way of life. The climax of the day meetingwill be Dr. Shishlina’s Europa lecture on ‘Themysterious Bronze Age steppe nomads’, in which shewill present a new synthesis of her recent researchdemonstrating the far greater antiquity of the steppenomadic way of life than was once thought.

All members and non-members are welcome: forbooking and further information, please contact Dr.John Chapman (j.c.chapman@dur.ac.uk).

IIMMPPOORRTTAANNTT:: AARREE YYOOUU AASSTTAARR??

Please look closely at the top right hand corner ofyour copy of PAST. Do you have a coloured star? Ifso, then you are NOT up-to-date with yoursubscription for the current year. If you have not paidthe FULL amount at one of the following rates, thenyour subscription will be invalid and you will not besent PPS when it is published. Rates for 2010 are asfollows: £35 Ordinary Members; £25 Retired withPPS; £17.50 Student; £12.50 Retired without PPS;and £50 for Institutional Members. Jointmembership for any of the above (not includingInstitutional Membership) is £5.

If you are in any doubt about the status of yoursubscription, please contact our administrator TessaMachling at the address below, or by email atprehistoric@ucl.ac.uk. Cheques should be madepayable to ‘The Prehistoric Society’ and sent to: ThePrehistoric Society, Institute of Archaeology, 31-34Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY. Many thanksfor your support!

TTHHEE AARRCCHHAAEEOOLLOOGGYY AANNDDEENNVVIIRROONNMMEENNTT OOFFPPRREEHHIISSTTOORRIICC RROOCCKKCCAARRVVIINNGGSS OONN BBEENNLLAAWWEERRSS Prehistoric rock art presents a problem forarchaeologists. It is easy to discover but very difficultto date. It is even more of a challenge to interpret itin its original context as it has rarely beeninvestigated by excavation and pollen analysis.

There have been some valuable developments inrecent years, with targeted excavations inNorthumberland and the west of Scotland, but thereal breakthrough was the work of the late BlazeO’Connor in the Irish Republic where she showedthat decorated outcrops could be associated withsubsoil features and deposits of artefacts. Her workand that of Andy Jones and his team at Kilmartininspired the project described here.

Their work was in landscapes with survivingearthworks or stone-built monuments. Was it soproductive because those areas are unusual? It wasnecessary to extend fieldwork into a region in whichsuch structures are absent. The Ben Lawers estate inthe southern Highlands of Scotland is ideal for thispurpose. It is managed by the National Trust ofScotland and has been surveyed by the Scottish RoyalCommission. The local monuments - mainly cairnsand stone circles - are on the low ground close toLoch Tay. Our work took place on the 400 metrecontour well away from these sites.

It employed a simple methodology. Two rings ofmetre-square test pits were excavated around thedecorated rocks. One group of test pits followed theouter edges of the stone; in principle, the other waslocated five metres away, although the scheme had tobe modified where there were streams or pools ofstanding water. That method would establishwhether the carvings were associated with anyartefacts and, if so, whether the distribution of finds

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Prehistoric carving on the surface of Rock 1

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focussed on these panels. To complete the exercise alarge uncarved rock was examined by the samemethod. We also followed that procedure at a‘natural’ standing stone which had been moved byglacial action.

This method showed that the more ornate carvings(those on Rocks 1 and 2) were associated withdeposits of broken and flaked quartz, thedistributions of which focussed on the positions ofthe decorated surfaces. The simplest carving (Rock 3)had little material associated with it, and the sameapplies to the undecorated outcrop (Rock 4) and the‘standing stone’ (Rock 5). Some of the worked quartzmay have been deposited intentionally, whilst otherfragments could have been a by-product of makingthe designs. The remaining finds were a flint flakefound in a natural fissure on top of a decorated rock,two pieces of Arran pitchstone and a roundedquartzite pebble which probably originated on astorm beach.

At the foot of the largest decorated rock (Rock 1) wasa discontinuous layer of cobbling containing aquantity of worked and broken quartz. It filled anumber of shallow hollows and was located at theonly point from which an observer could see theimages on top of the stone - scattered cup marks andseven concentric rings. The cobbles also sealed a relictland surface. Pollen samples were taken above andbelow this structure.

The results were very striking. It had long beenargued that complex rock carvings were located at

viewpoints, but nowhere was there any convincingevidence of the local environment - perhaps thesefeatures had been surrounded by trees. At theexcavated site on Ben Lawers it is clear that the rockcarving was situated in open grassland which wasprobably used as upland pasture. The localenvironment had been partially cleared of heathlandsome time before the designs were made. There waslittle sign of arboreal pollen apart from some hazeland birch growing in the valley floor and alder on thewetter soils. It seems as if the rock would havecommanded an extensive vista along and across theloch just as it does today.

When we embarked on this project it was with thesuspicion that nothing would be found. It seemed asthough artefacts and structural evidence might berestricted to rock carvings associated with

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Left: the extent of the excavated areas. Other carved rocks are indicated by circular symbols. Right: outline plans of the test pits and otherexcavations. The carved surfaces are indicated by stars. Rock 4 is a large undecorated surface and Rock 5 is a ‘natural’ standing stone.

Excavation beside Rock 1, showing parts of the cobbled surface.Rock 2 is visible in the background.

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monuments. Obviously that was wrong, but it was anerror that we are happy to have made. The results ofthis small project raise the possibility that similarresults can be obtained by fieldwork in other areas.

AcknowledgmentsWe must thank Robin Turner and NTS forpermission to carry out the project, and DerekAlexander for much practical help. We also thankSharon Carson, Diana Coles, George Currie, AnnieHamilton-Gibney, Tim Phillips, Ronnie Scott andJohn Womble for their hard work in the field.

Richard Bradley, Alex Brown and Aaron Watson

NNEEWWSSWWAARRPP OONN TTHHEE WWEEBB

WARP (the Wetland Archaeology Research Project)is an informal world-wide network of archaeologistsand others engaged in wetland archaeology. Twenty-five years ago, we set up WARP to encourage contactand the exchange of information and ideas aroundthe world. This led to the appearance of thenewsletter, NewsWARP, along with conferences andother publications. However, from 2000, thenewsletter was replaced by the Journal of WetlandArchaeology. Now, thanks to WARP’s Pacific co-ordinators, Dale Croes and Akira Matsui, togetherwith European co-ordinator, Francesco Menotti, wewelcome the return of NewsWARP - on the web.

Have a look for yourselves at http://newswarp.info/and send in your news, comments, photos,questions, book announcements, etc., in pdf formatto Dale Croes at dcroes@spscc.ctu.edu - the moreyou contribute, the better NewsWARP will be. Pleasesend a brief summary in English for contributions inother languages. We look forward to reading all yourwetland news.

Bryony and John Coles

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The week before Christmas saw hundreds ofarchaeologists descend on a very snowy DurhamUniversity for the 31st meeting of the TheoreticalArchaeology Group (TAG). The Prehistoric Societykindly sponsored a session on ‘Dwelling, lithicscatters and landscape’ organised by VickiCummings and myself. The session aimed to bringtogether a series of papers on recent and ongoingresearch on lithic scatters and landscape.

Archaeologists have long grappled with the potentialand problems that lithic scatters present. From theMesolithic to the Early Bronze Age, lithic scattersform arguably one of the most prolific traces ofhuman activity available to archaeologists. Butdespite this potential, lithic scatters are difficult todeal with. By their very nature, they represent afragment of just one component of prehistoricmaterial culture, itself partial, mixed, disturbed anddifficult to interpret. It is no coincidence, therefore,that many prehistoric landscape archaeologies havetended to focus on the more tangible evidence ofmonuments, with the more ephemeral evidence oflithic scatters slipping into the background.

On the face of it, the nine papers presented in thesession were diverse in chronology, location andscale of research. However, what they shared was a confident approach to working with lithicscatters, accepting the difficulties inherent inworking with them, but nevertheless seeing them askey data for understanding the inhabitation ofprehistoric landscapes.

Nick Snashall’s paper on Neolithic scatters in theCotswolds illustrated this confident approach, firstidentifying many of the perceived problems withlithic scatters and then proposing ways - boththeoretical and methodological - in which theseproblems may be circumvented. She argued that it isnot necessarily scatters themselves but the questionsthat archaeologists ask of them that are the greatestlimit to their interpretative potential. Elements ofJonathan Last’s paper examined some of thecuratorial implications of this change in perspectiveon lithic scatters from ‘bad’ to ‘key’ data. Heexamined how adequately lithic scatters as ‘siteswithout structures’ are dealt with by PPG16-drivencommercial archaeology and also the implications ofproposed heritage legislation for the designation andprotection of lithic scatters.

Part and parcel of this confident approach toworking with scatters is an acknowledgement thatthey represent much more than simply thepresence/absence of human activity to be plotted ondistribution maps; rather, they were inhabited, lived-in places. Ben Chan’s work on the Stonehengelandscape inverted the relationship betweenmonuments and scatters. His paper combinedevidence from his re-evaluation of surface lithicassemblages from the Stonehenge Environs Projectwith evidence of in situ domestic structures fromrecent excavations at Durrington Walls. Emphasis isshifted away from the monuments themselvestowards an understanding of the contexts andconditions under which people encountered andapproached them. In a similar vein, but verydifferent context, Hannah Cobb suggested that lithicscatters, rather than the more conspicuous and

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monumental shell middens, are key to understandingthe complicated interplay between people, thingsand places during the Mesolithic of the northernIrish Sea basin.

Common to many of the papers in the session was anacknowledgement of the need to look beyond theminutiae of the contents of lithic scatters themselves,and to consider also how lithic scatters as dwelt-inlocations are related to their immediate landscapes.Emma Philip’s work on Late Mesolithic and EarlyNeolithic scatters in the Dee valley, Aberdeenshire,Emmett O’Keeffe’s work on Mesolithic assemblagesfrom Bardsey Island and the Llyn Peninsular, northWales, and my own work on the Neolithic of thelower Exe valley, Devon, all explored ideas about theinterplay between lithic scatters and landscapesetting. My paper also discussed the benefits ofsituating the analysis of lithic scatters within othertypes of archaeological field work in order to teaseout some of the lost topographic and monumentaldetails in an intensively ploughed landscape.

Hugo Lamdin-Whymark discussed scatters ofworked quartz found during the excavation of rockart sites near Kilmartin, Scotland. As a result ofexperimental work replicating some of the rock arthe suggested these assemblages consist offragmentary and used hammerstones, and as suchare a bi-product of rock art production rather thanbeing lithic debitage in the conventional sense. Healso suggested that the creation of these pieces ofrock art would have been a very visible and noisyprocess contributing to the prominence of these sitesin the landscape.

Erick Robinson’s paper critiqued approaches toMesolithic scatters in the Low Countries which havefocused on counts and distributions of microliths.He instead argued that a site or assemblage-basedapproach to scatters offers the potential for a muchfuller understanding of the Mesolithic in this region.

For me, although initially slightly terrified of givingmy first paper at TAG, the session was a goodexperience. It was inspiring to hear eight papers fromother researchers who are also grappling with thecomplexities of interpreting lithic scatters and whoaspire to doing more with them than simply reducingthem to dots on maps. It was also comforting torealize that I am not alone in ploughing through boxafter box of small pointy stones.

Olaf Bayer, University of Central Lancashire

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During an unexpected encounter at the EuropeanAssociation of Archaeologists conference in Malta in2008, a Sardinian geologist, Giusi Gradoli, and aBritish scholar, Terry Meaden, showed mephotographs of a newly discovered painted cave andanother cave full of human bones. They convincedme to see the caves for myself at Seulo in centralSardinia. I visited some ten caves and rocksheltersdistributed along tributaries of the RiverFlumendosa, each containing rich later prehistoricritual deposits. Back home, I designed a researchprogramme promising to evaluate ideas about theritual transformation of persons, objects and cavesusing a range of modern scientific techniques on thisnew and potentially high-quality archaeologicaldataset. The key research aims would be toestablish: the diversity of natural caves and theirhuman uses in the territory of Seulo; how some ofthese caves and their natural features were modifiedfrom natural spaces into sacred places; the character

Neolithic cave painting in Grutta I de Longu Fresu, Seulo (photo: G. Farci).

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and variety of rites of passage performed andexperienced by people in these caves; and the degreeto which these persons and the material dimensionsof their cave rituals were connected to (ormarginalized from) wider patterns of life.Permission for fieldwork was obtained from theItalian Ministry of Culture and, thanks to thebenevolence of the Prehistoric Society, the BritishAcademy and the Fondazione Banco di Sardegna,funding was secured for the work. This began in thesummer of 2009 with help of a small multi-nationalteam of specialists and volunteers.

Over the first year of the project, we have worked onthree levels: a small-scale field survey of the Taccu diTicci plateau around which many of the caves aresituated; an extensive survey of caves within thesurrounding catchment of the upper RiuNarbonionniga; and the excavation and sampling offour contrasting cave sites known to containprehistoric deposits. Automated dataloggers wereinstalled in all four caves to record temperature andrelative humidity levels and laser scans were made ofthe interiors of these caves. The field-survey identifiedaround 50 ‘sites’, including a later prehistoric nurgaheand dolmen, and an extensive scatter of obsidian andceramic artefacts suggestive of a later prehistorichilltop settlement. In addition, 19 caves have beenrecorded through the cave survey while our caveexcavations have been no less productive.

In Longu Fresu cave, three important ritual featureswere identified at the end of the small cave tunnel.The first was a small group of paintings, covered byflowstone (sampled for Uranium-series dating),placed to the side of a spring, and representing atleast two schematic anthropomorphic figures; thesecond was a human skull, cemented to the cave wallby flowstone, and related bones deposited in nichesand holes, radiocarbon dated to the Middle-LateNeolithic (c. 4250-4050 cal. BC); and the third wasa semi-circular structure, formed by modifiedstalagmites and stone blocks, containing agreenstone axe-blade.

In the extensive is Janas cave system, someintensively burnt ritual deposits were excavated intwo chambers located at the end of the entrancecorridor. These contained large quantities of ashes,pottery sherds (some decorated in the distinctivestyle of the Ozieri culture), animal bonesradiocarbon dated to the Final Neolithic (c. 3800-3650 cal. BC), obsidian artefacts and ornaments ofshell and stone. A third chamber was excavated inthe deep interior of the cave system with a shallowerspecial deposit.

In the very small is Bittuleris cave, the mortuarydeposits were found to have been completelydisturbed since the 1930s. Nevertheless, werecovered substantial quantities of human bonesradiocarbon dated to the Middle Bronze Age (c.1750-1600 cal. BC), animal bones, pottery sherds,obsidian artefacts and bone, shell, ceramic and metalornaments. Specialist study of the human remainsby Jessica Beckett points to successive primaryinhumations in this cave of adults and children,males and females, while DNA fragments have beenassigned to mitochondrial hapolgroups T, H, J and Kby the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA.

At the large Su Cannisoni rockshelter, excavationfound that a pile of stones had been constructedunder a spring and over a secondary burial depositcomprising a pair of adult human skulls radiocarbondated to the Middle Bronze Age (c. 1550-1450 cal.BC) and an adjacent artificial semi-circle of stonescontaining a large group of disarticulated humanbones, sheep/goat bones, pottery sherds and charcoal.

Having established the research potential of theSeulo caves, future work will involve larger-scaleexcavation and further scientific studies includingobsidian and pottery characterisation, charcoalanalysis, isotope analyses of human and animalbones and palaeo-climatic analysis of speleotherms.In this way, I hope that we will come closer toreaching the lives and deaths of the people whotransformed these caves in the prehistoric past.

Robin Skeates, Durham University

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Human bones on the surface of Sa Forada de Gastea cave, Seulo(Photo: R. Skeates).

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AA PPEECCKKEEDD SSTTOONNEE FFRROOMM AANNEEOOLLIITTHHIICC SSEETTTTLLEEMMEENNTTSSIITTEE AATT GGRREEEENN,, IISSLLEE OOFFEEDDAAYY,, OORRKKNNEEYY

The Orkney archipelago is deservedly renowned forthe quantity and quality of its Neolithic archaeologyand new discoveries continue to be made. One such discovery is a site at Green, a farm on the southcoast of Eday, where a Neolithic stone building, part of a more extensive settlement, has been underinvestigation by BEVARS (British ExcavationVolunteers & Archaeological Research Society) since 2007. In 2008, a stone with pecked motifs wasfound lying in what appears to be the entrance to the building.

The sandstone slab, which measures c. 0.57m x0.32m, is broken and evidently formed part of alarger panel. The motifs which have survived intactcomprise a triangle with a line leading from the acuteangle to a roughly pecked circle and a complete so-called horned or spectacled spiral which has peckeddots within each of its spirals. There is furtherpecking between the spirals forming an irregularlinear shape. There are other motifs present whichhave not fully survived due to the breaking of thestone in antiquity. Two of these appear to bevariations of the horned spiral, and another is a singlepecked curve similar in appearance to a bass clef.

Careful inspection of the panel has revealed anumber of incised lines that probably predate thepecked motifs. Most of these barely detectable lines

are clustered around and within the pecked triangle.The figures comprise parallel lines, triangles, tracesof a lattice design and a line which can be followedalong one side of the triangle which swings away andcurves around its acute angle. The incised shapes donot appear to act as a pattern for the later motifs, butappear to have their own schema. They are so faintthat they would not have been seen unless theyoperated as ‘underdrawings’ for painting assuggested by Bradley for the incised designs in tombssuch as Maes Howe and in domestic contexts such asSkara Brae. Bradley’s suggestion (supported byChilde’s find of paint pots at Skara Brae) serves toemphasise the possibilities of a rich variety ofdecoration which may have been employed in bothtombs and houses. It is possible that the incised linesare Neolithic graffiti, “the random scribblings thatan idler leaning against the wall might perpetrate”,as Childe put it. Alternatively, they may have had aspecific purpose, caused by some other activitywhich is lost to us.

The mixture of curvilinear and angular motifs isfairly typical of Orcadian megalithic funereal art ofthe later Neolithic. However it is highly unusual tofind both curvilinear and angular motifs together onthe same stone in a domestic setting. Until recently,the figures on decorated stones from Neolithicsettlement sites in Orkney have been exclusivelylinear or angular, typically the incised or peckedzigzags, lozenges, parallel lines, triangles, chevronsand ‘grids’ found on decorated stones from SkaraBrae, Barnhouse, and Pool, Sanday. As Bradley andShepherd suggest, these linear motifs, which alsoappear in Maes Howe type tombs, are rather similarto the incised designs on Grooved Ware pottery.

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Curvilinear designs appear almost exclusively onpecked stones. As Shepherd points out, it may bethat particular designs held particular meanings orassociations or that certain motifs were particularlyappropriate or even required for certain occasions orpurposes. It is interesting to note that curvilineardesigns also appear very rarely on Grooved Warepottery in Orkney and there is only one example (asherd from the earlier House 10 at Skara Brae) ofcurvilinear and angular shapes appearing togetherwithin the same design on pottery.

The horned spiral motifs on the Green stone may becompared with the pairs of so-called ‘eye’ motifs,conjoined arcs over small dots or cups, in the tombof Papa Westray South. Other Neolithic objectswhich include eye-like motifs include the maceheadfrom Knowth, Ireland, and the Folkton drums fromYorkshire which are decorated with conjoinedconcentric ring marks and eye motifs, together withGrooved Ware style lozenges and triangles.

Most of the parallels to the stone from Green sharethe horned spiral, described by Bradley as “the mostdistinctive motif on Orkney”. The nearestcomparison is the ‘sun’ stone, recovered from thenearby ruined cairn of Eday Manse, 3.5km to thenorth of Green. This had two rather more elaboratehorned spirals than those on the Green stone. TheWestray stone from Pierowall, a probable lintel froma Maes Howe-type tomb, has, amongst other motifs,two back-to-back horned spirals. The motifs fromboth Pierowall and Eday Manse also have single dotswithin each spiral. Two smaller stones fromPierowall also appear to have a similar arrangementof horned spirals. These are, however, like the stonefrom Green, more crudely finished than the Westraystone. The closest known parallel within Orkney forthe triangle motif is probably the pecked triangle ona stone at the tomb of Holm of Papa Westray Southwhich is similarly roughly executed. As alreadynoted this tomb also had eye motifs.

The stone from Green was found lying flat on theground, decorated side upwards, in thin, silty soil

thought to have derived from run-off whichcollected in the entrance, the lowest point of thebuilding, after the roof had collapsed and the sitehad been abandoned. Three overlapping slabs, ofwhich the decorated stone was uppermost, laywithin the entrance, suggesting that it may have beendeliberately placed there when the building went outof use. The lack of any wear on the stone and thefreshness of the peck marks mean that it cannot havebeen used as a paving slab during the life of thebuilding. A chevron-decorated, pecked stone fromPool similarly appears to have been deliberatelyselected for placing within the demolition deposits.

The Green stone may have been removed fromanother structure elsewhere on Eday to be reused inthe settlement, and the combination of curvilinearand angular motifs suggests that it may originallyhave come from a tomb. It is possible that theconnotations of death and burial were felt to beparticularly apposite in marking the death of thebuilding. If its origins were within a tomb, it isinteresting to speculate where this may have been.There are many tombs in north and central Eday andthe nearest, Eday Manse, is one possibility.Alternatively, Eday may originally have housedanother tomb in the south of the island. The only hillof significant size on Eday which does not boast atomb is Ward Hill, the summit of which is just 2kmwest of the settlement at Green. Perhaps anothertomb may lie there, awaiting discovery.

The stone at Green, together with other recentdiscoveries, is beginning to provide a clearer picture ofsome aspects of the Orcadian Neolithic. For instancethe much publicised figurine found at the Links ofNoltland, Westray, which is liberally covered withincised Grooved Ware style patterning, also has ahorned spiral with dots within the spirals apparentlydepicting eyes. The shape of the figurine is highlyreminiscent of a polished stone axehead and indeed anaxehead of almost identical size and shape has beenrecovered from the site at Green. A number of similaraxeheads are known from other Orcadian sites.

Within the Grooved Ware tradition on Orkney, it isnow becoming evident that similar motifs anddecorations are appearing consistently across an everbroadening range of material contexts. It has longbeen apparent that Neolithic Orcadian society had astrong sense of self identity. However, there nowappears to be a distinctive taste within the northernislands for at least one motif, the horned spiral,which is all but absent from the record elsewhere inOrkney. It is tentatively suggested here that this maybe giving us an insight into more localisedexpressions of identity within the broader tradition.

Diana Coles, Mick Miles and Tina Walkling, BritishExcavation Volunteers & Archaeological ResearchSociety

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