Author: Christopher D. Morris
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1789256089
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1306
Book Description
The Brough of Birsay was the power-center of the Viking earldom of Orkney and is one of Historic Environment Scotland’s key monuments and visitor attractions on the islands. This publication is the culmination of 60 years of investigations that took place on the site between 1954 and 2014. This new volume incorporates comprehensive accounts of work undertaken by Dr Ralegh Radford and Mr Stewart Cruden between 1954 and 1964, excavations by the Viking and Early Settlement Research Project under the direction of the author on site between 1974 and 1981, a rescue excavation in 1993, a geophysical survey in 2007 and archival research up to 2014. Specialist artefactual and palaeobiological studies of metallurgical material, ogham inscriptions and a gilt-bronze mount of Insular origin are included, together with re-analysis of the radiocarbon dates from all sites in Birsay Bay, and a re-assessment of the architecture and dating of the church and related buildings on the Brough itself. The final two chapters put the Brough, as both a Pictish power-center and the hub of the Viking earldom, in the overall context of Birsay Bay and Viking and late Norse Orkney, and the wider world between the Pictish and late Norse/Medieval periods. As well as being the author’s third and final volume reporting on work for the Birsay Bay Project, this volume completes a trilogy of studies of the Brough itself, alongside Mrs Cecil Curle’s and Prof John Hunter’s earlier monographs.
The Birsay Bay Project
Author: Christopher D. Morris
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1789256089
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1306
Book Description
The Brough of Birsay was the power-center of the Viking earldom of Orkney and is one of Historic Environment Scotland’s key monuments and visitor attractions on the islands. This publication is the culmination of 60 years of investigations that took place on the site between 1954 and 2014. This new volume incorporates comprehensive accounts of work undertaken by Dr Ralegh Radford and Mr Stewart Cruden between 1954 and 1964, excavations by the Viking and Early Settlement Research Project under the direction of the author on site between 1974 and 1981, a rescue excavation in 1993, a geophysical survey in 2007 and archival research up to 2014. Specialist artefactual and palaeobiological studies of metallurgical material, ogham inscriptions and a gilt-bronze mount of Insular origin are included, together with re-analysis of the radiocarbon dates from all sites in Birsay Bay, and a re-assessment of the architecture and dating of the church and related buildings on the Brough itself. The final two chapters put the Brough, as both a Pictish power-center and the hub of the Viking earldom, in the overall context of Birsay Bay and Viking and late Norse Orkney, and the wider world between the Pictish and late Norse/Medieval periods. As well as being the author’s third and final volume reporting on work for the Birsay Bay Project, this volume completes a trilogy of studies of the Brough itself, alongside Mrs Cecil Curle’s and Prof John Hunter’s earlier monographs.
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1789256089
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1306
Book Description
The Brough of Birsay was the power-center of the Viking earldom of Orkney and is one of Historic Environment Scotland’s key monuments and visitor attractions on the islands. This publication is the culmination of 60 years of investigations that took place on the site between 1954 and 2014. This new volume incorporates comprehensive accounts of work undertaken by Dr Ralegh Radford and Mr Stewart Cruden between 1954 and 1964, excavations by the Viking and Early Settlement Research Project under the direction of the author on site between 1974 and 1981, a rescue excavation in 1993, a geophysical survey in 2007 and archival research up to 2014. Specialist artefactual and palaeobiological studies of metallurgical material, ogham inscriptions and a gilt-bronze mount of Insular origin are included, together with re-analysis of the radiocarbon dates from all sites in Birsay Bay, and a re-assessment of the architecture and dating of the church and related buildings on the Brough itself. The final two chapters put the Brough, as both a Pictish power-center and the hub of the Viking earldom, in the overall context of Birsay Bay and Viking and late Norse Orkney, and the wider world between the Pictish and late Norse/Medieval periods. As well as being the author’s third and final volume reporting on work for the Birsay Bay Project, this volume completes a trilogy of studies of the Brough itself, alongside Mrs Cecil Curle’s and Prof John Hunter’s earlier monographs.
The Hirsel Excavations
Author: Rosemary Cramp
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 135119125X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 690
Book Description
"Excavations and surveys adjacent to Hirsel House, Coldstream, have revealed a remarkably detailed history of a proprietory church and its cemetery for a period when the parochial structure in Scotland was in course of development, and when very little is known about the fate of estate churches after they were donated to support the newly founded monasteries of the 12th century. The church is set in a landscape with evidence for settlement from the Neolithic to the establishment of Hirsel House, the seat of the Earl of Home. Here, in an estate the boundaries of which has changed very little since the Middle Ages, a small unicellular drystone structure developed into a well-built Romanesque church with a rare example of its bell founding structure intact. The subsequent history when the church was burnt, robbed of stone and used for domestic purposes, then finally destroyed and covered over in the late Middle Ages is graphically illustrated by the wealth of artefacts from the site. There are traces of other medieval buildings to the north of the site and the cemetery-one of the largest rural cemeteries in Scotland- provides an interesting range of burial modes, as well as, together with the environmental evidence from the site, an insight into the community which the church and cemetery served."
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 135119125X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 690
Book Description
"Excavations and surveys adjacent to Hirsel House, Coldstream, have revealed a remarkably detailed history of a proprietory church and its cemetery for a period when the parochial structure in Scotland was in course of development, and when very little is known about the fate of estate churches after they were donated to support the newly founded monasteries of the 12th century. The church is set in a landscape with evidence for settlement from the Neolithic to the establishment of Hirsel House, the seat of the Earl of Home. Here, in an estate the boundaries of which has changed very little since the Middle Ages, a small unicellular drystone structure developed into a well-built Romanesque church with a rare example of its bell founding structure intact. The subsequent history when the church was burnt, robbed of stone and used for domestic purposes, then finally destroyed and covered over in the late Middle Ages is graphically illustrated by the wealth of artefacts from the site. There are traces of other medieval buildings to the north of the site and the cemetery-one of the largest rural cemeteries in Scotland- provides an interesting range of burial modes, as well as, together with the environmental evidence from the site, an insight into the community which the church and cemetery served."
The Chapel and Burial Ground on St Ninian's Isle, Shetland: Excavations Past and Present: v. 32
Author: Rachel C. Barrowman
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351192213
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 488
Book Description
"This volume is the definitive account of the excavation which led to the discovery of the magnificent hoard of 28 pieces of Pictish silverware on St Ninian's Isle, Shetland in 1958. It includes a reassessment of the original archives and finds, including an ogham stone found on the site in 1876 and a fantastic collection of glass beads, as well as several new small-scale excavations on the site of the chapel and its burial ground. Taken together, this work reveals a long sequence of settlement beginning in the Iron Age. The first church was built on the site in the 8th century, and accompanied by a long cist cemetery with cross-incised stones and shrine sculpture. The church may have continued in use into the 9th or 10th centuries, and the recent work has confirmed that the famous hoard was buried into its floor. There was a degree of continuity between the pre-Christian and Christian burials, with evidence that the site was a special place for burial before the advent of Christianity. The report describes these burials in detail, ending the story sometime between the 11th and end of the 12th centuries, when an adult male who had died a violent death was moved to be buried on the site. Thereafter the site was inundated with wind-blown sand. A new chapel with an accompanying long cist cemetery was then built above the earlier church, and a chancel was added later. The associated graveyard continued in use until around 1840, long after the building was demolished."
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351192213
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 488
Book Description
"This volume is the definitive account of the excavation which led to the discovery of the magnificent hoard of 28 pieces of Pictish silverware on St Ninian's Isle, Shetland in 1958. It includes a reassessment of the original archives and finds, including an ogham stone found on the site in 1876 and a fantastic collection of glass beads, as well as several new small-scale excavations on the site of the chapel and its burial ground. Taken together, this work reveals a long sequence of settlement beginning in the Iron Age. The first church was built on the site in the 8th century, and accompanied by a long cist cemetery with cross-incised stones and shrine sculpture. The church may have continued in use into the 9th or 10th centuries, and the recent work has confirmed that the famous hoard was buried into its floor. There was a degree of continuity between the pre-Christian and Christian burials, with evidence that the site was a special place for burial before the advent of Christianity. The report describes these burials in detail, ending the story sometime between the 11th and end of the 12th centuries, when an adult male who had died a violent death was moved to be buried on the site. Thereafter the site was inundated with wind-blown sand. A new chapel with an accompanying long cist cemetery was then built above the earlier church, and a chancel was added later. The associated graveyard continued in use until around 1840, long after the building was demolished."
Early Medieval Settlement in Upland Perthshire: Excavations at Lair, Glen Shee 2012-17
Author: David Strachan
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1789693160
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 201
Book Description
Excavation of seven turf buildings at Lair in Glen Shee confirms the introduction of Pitcarmick buildings to the hills of north-east Perth and Kinross in the early 7th century AD. Clusters of these at Lair, and elsewhere in the hills, are interpreted as integrated, spatially organised farm complexes comprising byre-houses and outbuildings.
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1789693160
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 201
Book Description
Excavation of seven turf buildings at Lair in Glen Shee confirms the introduction of Pitcarmick buildings to the hills of north-east Perth and Kinross in the early 7th century AD. Clusters of these at Lair, and elsewhere in the hills, are interpreted as integrated, spatially organised farm complexes comprising byre-houses and outbuildings.
Art and Architecture in Neolithic Orkney
Author: Antonia Thomas
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1784914347
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
This book offers a groundbreaking analysis of Neolithic art and architecture in Orkney, focussing upon the incredible collection of hundreds of decorated stones being revealed by the current excavations at the Ness of Brodgar.
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1784914347
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
This book offers a groundbreaking analysis of Neolithic art and architecture in Orkney, focussing upon the incredible collection of hundreds of decorated stones being revealed by the current excavations at the Ness of Brodgar.
The Development of Neolithic House Societies in Orkney
Author: Colin Richards
Publisher: Windgather Press
ISBN: 1909686921
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 593
Book Description
Considering that Orkney is a group of relatively small islands lying off the northeast coast of the Scottish mainland, its wealth of Neolithic archaeology is truly extraordinary. An assortment of houses, chambered cairns, stone circles, standing stones and passage graves provides an unusually comprehensive range of archaeological and architectural contexts. Yet, in the early 1990s, there was a noticeable imbalance between 4th and 3rd millennium cal BC evidence, with house structures, and ‘villages’ being well represented in the latter but minimally in the former. As elsewhere in the British Isles, the archaeological visibility of the 4th millennium cal BC in Orkney tends to be dominated by the monumental presence of chambered cairns or tombs. In the 1970s Claude Lévi-Strauss conceived of a form of social organization based upon the ‘house’ – sociétés à maisons – in order to provide a classification for social groups that appeared not to conform to established anthropological kinship structures. In this approach, the anchor point is the ‘house’, understood as a conceptual resource that is a consequence of a strategy of constructing and legitimizing identities under ever shifting social conditions. Drawing on the results of an extensive program of fieldwork in the Bay of Firth, Mainland Orkney, the text explores the idea that the physical appearance of the house is a potent resource for materializing the dichotomous alliance and descent principles apparent in the archaeological evidence for the early and later Neolithic of Orkney. It argues that some of the insights made by Lévi-Strauss in his basic formulation of sociétés à maisons are extremely relevant to interpreting the archaeological evidence and providing the parameters for a ‘social’ narrative of the material changes occurring in Orkney between the 4th and 2nd millennia cal BC. The major excavations undertaken during the Cuween-Wideford Landscape Project provided an unprecedented depth and variety of evidence for Neolithic occupation, bridging the gap between domestic and ceremonial architecture and form, exploring the transition from wood to stone and relationships between the living and the dead and the role of material culture. The results are described and discussed in detail here, enabling tracing of the development and fragmentation of sociétés à maisons over a 1500 year period of Northern Isles prehistory.
Publisher: Windgather Press
ISBN: 1909686921
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 593
Book Description
Considering that Orkney is a group of relatively small islands lying off the northeast coast of the Scottish mainland, its wealth of Neolithic archaeology is truly extraordinary. An assortment of houses, chambered cairns, stone circles, standing stones and passage graves provides an unusually comprehensive range of archaeological and architectural contexts. Yet, in the early 1990s, there was a noticeable imbalance between 4th and 3rd millennium cal BC evidence, with house structures, and ‘villages’ being well represented in the latter but minimally in the former. As elsewhere in the British Isles, the archaeological visibility of the 4th millennium cal BC in Orkney tends to be dominated by the monumental presence of chambered cairns or tombs. In the 1970s Claude Lévi-Strauss conceived of a form of social organization based upon the ‘house’ – sociétés à maisons – in order to provide a classification for social groups that appeared not to conform to established anthropological kinship structures. In this approach, the anchor point is the ‘house’, understood as a conceptual resource that is a consequence of a strategy of constructing and legitimizing identities under ever shifting social conditions. Drawing on the results of an extensive program of fieldwork in the Bay of Firth, Mainland Orkney, the text explores the idea that the physical appearance of the house is a potent resource for materializing the dichotomous alliance and descent principles apparent in the archaeological evidence for the early and later Neolithic of Orkney. It argues that some of the insights made by Lévi-Strauss in his basic formulation of sociétés à maisons are extremely relevant to interpreting the archaeological evidence and providing the parameters for a ‘social’ narrative of the material changes occurring in Orkney between the 4th and 2nd millennia cal BC. The major excavations undertaken during the Cuween-Wideford Landscape Project provided an unprecedented depth and variety of evidence for Neolithic occupation, bridging the gap between domestic and ceremonial architecture and form, exploring the transition from wood to stone and relationships between the living and the dead and the role of material culture. The results are described and discussed in detail here, enabling tracing of the development and fragmentation of sociétés à maisons over a 1500 year period of Northern Isles prehistory.
Pictish Progress
Author:
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004188010
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 404
Book Description
This publication is the culmination of an extended programme of conferences that have sought to mark the contribution of F. T. Wainwright to Pictish studies and, in particular, the 50th anniversary of The Problem of the Picts. The book is firmly in the tradition of interdisciplinary scholarship Wainwright did so much to promote and brings together much fresh thinking on the archaeological, art-historical, place name and historical understanding of Northern Britain in the second half of the first millennium AD. Within a wider, European framework it addresses questions of landscape, material culture and mentalities, revealing some of the different strategies by which the Picts made their world. All the studies are accessibly presented to serve the interests of students, teachers and anyone interested in the roots of European civilisation. Contributors are Barbara E. Crawford, Nicholas Evans, Iain Fraser, James Fraser, Meggen Gondek, Stratford Halliday, Andrew Heald, Kellie Meyer, Gordon Noble, Robert D. Stevick, Simon Taylor and Sarah Winlow.
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004188010
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 404
Book Description
This publication is the culmination of an extended programme of conferences that have sought to mark the contribution of F. T. Wainwright to Pictish studies and, in particular, the 50th anniversary of The Problem of the Picts. The book is firmly in the tradition of interdisciplinary scholarship Wainwright did so much to promote and brings together much fresh thinking on the archaeological, art-historical, place name and historical understanding of Northern Britain in the second half of the first millennium AD. Within a wider, European framework it addresses questions of landscape, material culture and mentalities, revealing some of the different strategies by which the Picts made their world. All the studies are accessibly presented to serve the interests of students, teachers and anyone interested in the roots of European civilisation. Contributors are Barbara E. Crawford, Nicholas Evans, Iain Fraser, James Fraser, Meggen Gondek, Stratford Halliday, Andrew Heald, Kellie Meyer, Gordon Noble, Robert D. Stevick, Simon Taylor and Sarah Winlow.
Archaeology in Practice
Author: Jane Balme
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1405148861
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 464
Book Description
Archaeology in Practice: A Student Guide to ArchaeologicalAnalyses offers students in archaeology laboratory courses adetailed and invaluable how-to manual of archaeological methods andprovides insight into the breadth of modern archaeology. Written by specialists of material analyses, whose expertiserepresents a broad geographic range Includes numerous examples of applications of archaeologicaltechniques Organized by material types, such as animal bones, ceramics,stone artifacts, and documentary sources, or by themes, such asdating, ethics, and report writing Written accessibly and amply referenced to provide readers witha guide to further resources on techniques and theirapplications Enlivened by a range of boxed case studies throughout the maintext
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1405148861
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 464
Book Description
Archaeology in Practice: A Student Guide to ArchaeologicalAnalyses offers students in archaeology laboratory courses adetailed and invaluable how-to manual of archaeological methods andprovides insight into the breadth of modern archaeology. Written by specialists of material analyses, whose expertiserepresents a broad geographic range Includes numerous examples of applications of archaeologicaltechniques Organized by material types, such as animal bones, ceramics,stone artifacts, and documentary sources, or by themes, such asdating, ethics, and report writing Written accessibly and amply referenced to provide readers witha guide to further resources on techniques and theirapplications Enlivened by a range of boxed case studies throughout the maintext
Three Forts on the Tay: Excavations at Moncreiffe, Moredun and Abernethy, Perth and Kinross 2014–17
Author: David Strachan
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1803276592
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
Despite a resurgence in Scottish fort studies, few sites have been investigated, especially at the scale reported in this volume. Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust (with AOC Archaeology Group) excavated three hilltop forts on the Tay estuary to explore their enclosing works and internal buildings, uncovering an impressive assemblage of small finds.
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1803276592
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
Despite a resurgence in Scottish fort studies, few sites have been investigated, especially at the scale reported in this volume. Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust (with AOC Archaeology Group) excavated three hilltop forts on the Tay estuary to explore their enclosing works and internal buildings, uncovering an impressive assemblage of small finds.
The Social Context of Technology
Author: Leo Webley
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1789251796
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 290
Book Description
The Social Context of Technology explores non-ferrous metalworking in Britain and Ireland during the Bronze and Iron Ages (c. 2500 BC to 1st century AD). Bronze-working dominates the evidence, though the crafting of other non-ferrous metals – including gold, silver, tin and lead – is also considered. Metalwork has long played a central role in accounts of European later prehistory. Metals were important for making functional tools, and elaborate decorated objects that were symbols of prestige. Metalwork could be treated in special or ritualised ways, by being accumulated in large hoards or placed in rivers or bogs. But who made these objects? Prehistoric smiths have been portrayed by some as prosaic technicians, and by others as mystical figures akin to magicians. They have been seen both as independent, travelling ‘entrepreneurs’, and as the dependents of elite patrons. Hitherto, these competing models have not been tested through a comprehensive assessment of the archaeological evidence for metalworking. This volume fills that gap, with analysis focused on metalworking tools and waste, such as crucibles, moulds, casting debris and smithing implements. The find contexts of these objects are examined, both to identify places where metalworking occurred, and to investigate the cultural practices behind the deposition of metalworking debris. The key questions are: what was the social context of this craft, and what was its ideological significance? How did this vary regionally and change over time? As well as elucidating a key aspect of later prehistoric life in Britain and Ireland, this important examination by leading scholars contributes to broader debates on material culture and the social role of craft.
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1789251796
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 290
Book Description
The Social Context of Technology explores non-ferrous metalworking in Britain and Ireland during the Bronze and Iron Ages (c. 2500 BC to 1st century AD). Bronze-working dominates the evidence, though the crafting of other non-ferrous metals – including gold, silver, tin and lead – is also considered. Metalwork has long played a central role in accounts of European later prehistory. Metals were important for making functional tools, and elaborate decorated objects that were symbols of prestige. Metalwork could be treated in special or ritualised ways, by being accumulated in large hoards or placed in rivers or bogs. But who made these objects? Prehistoric smiths have been portrayed by some as prosaic technicians, and by others as mystical figures akin to magicians. They have been seen both as independent, travelling ‘entrepreneurs’, and as the dependents of elite patrons. Hitherto, these competing models have not been tested through a comprehensive assessment of the archaeological evidence for metalworking. This volume fills that gap, with analysis focused on metalworking tools and waste, such as crucibles, moulds, casting debris and smithing implements. The find contexts of these objects are examined, both to identify places where metalworking occurred, and to investigate the cultural practices behind the deposition of metalworking debris. The key questions are: what was the social context of this craft, and what was its ideological significance? How did this vary regionally and change over time? As well as elucidating a key aspect of later prehistoric life in Britain and Ireland, this important examination by leading scholars contributes to broader debates on material culture and the social role of craft.