Enclosures in Neolithic Europe

Enclosures in Neolithic Europe
Author: G. Varndell
Publisher: Oxbow Books
Total Pages: 329
Release: 2002-01-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1785705237

These papers come from a conference on Neolithic Causewayed Enclosures in Europe held in London in 1999. They present a series of snapshots of some of the sites and regions at the forefront of current research on causewayed enclosures in Europe, and as such are a complement to the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England (RCHME) project which has systematically recorded all known Neolithic enclosures in England by both analytical topographic survey techniques and aerial transcription. The detailed regional data collected by the RCHME project has allowed a radical reinterpretation of these sites and the recognition that there are regional groups of enclosures. This series of papers serves to broaden the discussion about the structure and form of causewayed monuments beyond lowland England, looking at a wide geographical range of sites across central Europe, as well as considering some sites which do not conform to the traditional type but which have been proved by excavation to have a Neolithic context. This collection of papers provides a long-awaited and important addition to the debate on these enigmatic prehistoric sites.

Enclosures in Neolithic Europe

Enclosures in Neolithic Europe
Author: G. Varndell
Publisher: Oxbow Books
Total Pages: 138
Release: 2002-01-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1785705253

These papers come from a conference on Neolithic Causewayed Enclosures in Europe held in London in 1999. They present a series of snapshots of some of the sites and regions at the forefront of current research on causewayed enclosures in Europe, and as such are a complement to the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England (RCHME) project which has systematically recorded all known Neolithic enclosures in England by both analytical topographic survey techniques and aerial transcription. The detailed regional data collected by the RCHME project has allowed a radical reinterpretation of these sites and the recognition that there are regional groups of enclosures. This series of papers serves to broaden the discussion about the structure and form of causewayed monuments beyond lowland England, looking at a wide geographical range of sites across central Europe, as well as considering some sites which do not conform to the traditional type but which have been proved by excavation to have a Neolithic context. This collection of papers provides a long-awaited and important addition to the debate on these enigmatic prehistoric sites.

The Oxford Handbook of Neolithic Europe

The Oxford Handbook of Neolithic Europe
Author: Chris Fowler
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 1303
Release: 2015-03-26
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0191666890

The Neolithic --a period in which the first sedentary agrarian communities were established across much of Europe--has been a key topic of archaeological research for over a century. However, the variety of evidence across Europe, the range of languages in which research is carried out, and the way research traditions in different countries have developed makes it very difficult for both students and specialists to gain an overview of continent-wide trends. The Oxford Handbook of Neolithic Europe provides the first comprehensive, geographically extensive, thematic overview of the European Neolithic --from Iberia to Russia and from Norway to Malta --offering both a general introduction and a clear exploration of key issues and current debates surrounding evidence and interpretation. Chapters written by leading experts in the field examine topics such as the movement of plants, animals, ideas, and people (including recent trends in the application of genetics and isotope analyses); cultural change (from the first appearance of farming to the first metal artefacts); domestic architecture; subsistence; material culture; monuments; and burial and other treatments of the dead. In doing so, the volume also considers the history of research and sets out agendas and themes for future work in the field.

The Creation of Monuments

The Creation of Monuments
Author: Alistair Oswald
Publisher: Liverpool University Press
Total Pages: 183
Release: 2014-07-15
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1848021879

Neolithic Causewayed enclosures are amongst the oldest, rarest and most enigmatic of the ancient monuments found in Europe. First recognised as a distinct type in the 1920s, sixty-nine certain or probable examples have now been identified in the British Isles. As a class, they are of outstanding importance, for while their precise functions remain unclear, they represent the first non-funerary monuments and the earliest instance of the enclosure of open space. This book presents an overview of the findings of a systematic national programme of research, carried out by the RCHME, now merged with English Heritage. Every certain, probable and suggested causewayed enclosure in England has been investigated through integrated aerial and field survey. Specialist reconnaissance flying has been undertaken, along with the thorough analysis of aerial photographs taken from the 1920s onwards. This has greatly increased the number of sites known, turning the spotlight onto many that have received little or no archaeological attention in the past. The aerial surveys now available offer a new basis for improved understanding. Analytical field investigations of the few causewayed enclosures that are well preserved as earthworks have also squeezed fresh information out of even those long familiar to archaeologists. Far from merely ‘dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s’ of past fieldworkers, these detailed surveys have led to the rejection of some long-held theories and the proposal of new interpretations. This book significantly advances the understanding of causewayed enclosures both as individual monuments and as a class. It is a major contribution to the understanding of the British Neolithic, and to ‘landscape archaeology’ more generally.

The Neolithic of Europe

The Neolithic of Europe
Author: Penny Bickle
Publisher: Oxbow Books Limited
Total Pages: 499
Release: 2017-05-31
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1785706578

The Neolithic of Europe comprises eighteen specially commissioned papers on prehistoric archaeology, written by leading international scholars. The coverage is broad, ranging geographically from southeast Europe to Britain and Ireland and chronologically from the Neolithic to the Iron Age, but with a decided focus on the former. Several papers discuss new scientific approaches to key questions in Neolithic research, while others offer interpretive accounts of aspects of the archaeological record. Thematically, the main foci are on Neolithisation; the archaeology of Neolithic daily life, settlements and subsistence; as well as monuments and aspects of world view. A number of contributions highlight the recent impact of techniques such as isotopic analysis and statistically modeled radiocarbon dates on our understanding of mobility, diet, lifestyles, events and historical processes. The volume is presented to celebrate the enormous impact that Alasdair Whittle has had on the study of prehistory, especially the European and British Neolithic, and his rich career in archaeology.

Woodland in the Neolithic of Northern Europe

Woodland in the Neolithic of Northern Europe
Author: Gordon Noble
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 235
Release: 2017-02-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1107159830

A detailed consideration of the ways in which human-environment relations altered with the beginnings of agriculture in the Neolithic of northern Europe.

Enclosing the Neolithic

Enclosing the Neolithic
Author: Alex M. Gibson
Publisher: BAR International Series
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2012
Genre: Earthworks (Archaeology)
ISBN: 9781407310398

Contents: Introduction (Alex Gibson); Earthen Enclosures in Britain & Ireland: An Introduction to the study of henges: time for a change? (Alex Gibson); Henging, mounding and blocking: the Forteviot henge group (Kenneth Brophy & Gordon Noble); Henges in Ireland: new discoveries and emerging issues (Muiris O'Sullivan, Stephen Davies & Geraldine Stout); Journeys and Juxtapositions. Marden Henge and the View from the Vale (Jim Leary & David Field); Conformity, Routeways and Religious Experience - the Henges of Central Yorkshire (Jan Harding); Ringlemere: A Pit/Post Horseshoe and Henge Monument in East Kent (Keith Parfitt & Stuart Needham); Living with Sacred Spaces: The Henge Monuments of Wessex (Joshua Pollard); Neolithic enclosures: European case studies: Mid Neolithic Enclosures in Southern Scandinavia (Lars Larsson); Mid- Late Neolithic Enclosures in the South of France (Fabien Convertini); Kreisgrabenanlagen - Middle Neolithic Ritual Enclosures in Austria 4800-4500 BC (Wolfgang Neubauer); Mind the gap: Neolithic and Chalcolithic enclosures of south Portugal (Antonio Carlos Valera); The Neolithic enclosures in transition. Tradition and change in the cosmology of early farmers in central Europe (Jan Turek); Journey to the Centre of the Earth (Richard Bradley).

The Significance of Monuments

The Significance of Monuments
Author: Richard Bradley
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 193
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1134744838

The Neolithic period, when agriculture began and many monuments - including Stonehenge - were constructed, is an era fraught with paradoxes and ambiguities. Starting in the Mesolithic and carrying his analysis through to the Late Bronze Age, Richard Bradley sheds light on this complex period and the changing consciousness of these prehistoric peoples. The Significance of Monuments studies the importance of monuments tracing their history from their first creation over six thousand years later. Part One discusses how monuments first developed and their role in developing a new sense of time and space among the inhabitants of prehistoric Europe. Other features of the prehistoric landscape - such as mounds and enclosures - across Continental Europe are also examined. Part Two studies how such monuments were modified and reinterpreted to suit the changing needs of society through a series of detailed case studies. The Significance of Monuments is an indispensable text for all students of European prehistory. It is also an enlightening read for professional archaeologists and all those interested in this fascinating period.

Big Men Or Chiefs?

Big Men Or Chiefs?
Author: Jaroslav Řídký
Publisher: Oxbow Books Limited
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2019
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 9781789250268

Explores the archaeological features of the Central European Neolithic period, questioning what they reveal about the structures of power and socio-political relationships that were forming within communities.

The Oxford Handbook of Neolithic Europe

The Oxford Handbook of Neolithic Europe
Author: Chris Fowler
Publisher: Oxford Handbooks
Total Pages: 1201
Release: 2015
Genre: History
ISBN: 0199545847

The Neolithic - a period in which the first sedentary agrarian communities were established across much of Europe - has been a key topic of archaeological research for over a century. However, the variety of evidence across Europe and the way research traditions in different countries (and languages) have developed makes it very difficult for both students and specialists to gain an overview of continent-wide trends. The Oxford Handbook of Neolithic Europe provides the first comprehensive, geographically extensive, thematic overview of the European Neolithic - from Iberia to Russia and from Norway to Malta - offering both a general introduction and a clear exploration of key issues and current debates surrounding evidence and interpretation. Chapters written by leading experts in the field examine topics such as the movement of plants, animals, ideas, and people (including recent trends in the application of genetics and isotope analyses); cultural change (from the first farming to the first metal artefacts); domestic architecture; subsistence; material culture; monuments; and burial and other treatments of the dead. In doing so, the volume also considers the history of research and sets out agendas and themes for future work in the field.