Artificial islands older than Stonehenge stump scientists

A study of crannogs in Scotland's Outer Hebrides reveals some were built more than 3,000 years earlier than previously thought. But what purpose did they serve?

When it comes to studying Neolithic Britain (4,000-2,500 B.C.), a bit of archaeological mystery is to be expected. Since Neolithic farmers existed long before written language made its way to the British Isles, the only records of their lives are the things they left behind. And while they did leave us a lot of monuments that took, well, monumental effort to build—think Stonehenge or the stone circles of Orkney—the cultural practices and deeper intentions behind these sites are largely unknown.

Now it looks like there may potentially be a whole new type of Neolithic monument for archaeologists to scratch their heads over: crannogs.

Read more from the article at National Geographic here.

2000-year-old figurine of a horned Celtic fertility god found in Roman settlement

The two inch metal charm, dating from the second century AD, depicts a faceless individual, holding a ‘torc’ or neck ring, and is thought to represent ‘Cernunnos’, the Celtic god of nature, life and the underworld.

It was found by archaeologists in farmland at the National Trust’s Wimpole Estate in a field which is to be turned into a car park.

Click here to read more.

Barry Cunliffe: Who Were the Celts?

Exploring Celtic Civilizations | An Online Celtic Studies Coursebook

Exploring Celtic Civilizations | An On-line Celtic Studies Course-Book

Exploring Celtic Civilizations is an on-line course book suitable for undergraduates introducing the field of Celtic Studies: the various kinds of evidence available about Celtic-speaking communities through over two millennia and the methods available for understanding them. This digital course book thus presents texts as well as other sorts of evidence, such as aspects of material culture (e.g., archaeological artefacts), through on-line exhibits and data visualizations.

In Search of the Irish Dreamtime: Archaeology and Early Irish Literature by JP Mallory review

"In Search of the Irish Dreamtime: Archaeology and Early Irish Literature" a review by JP Mallory.

JP Mallory describes this book as a companion to his The Origins of the Irish,
from 2013, in which he sketched the emergence in the early medieval
period of a people who were recognisably Irish. In that book he briefly
examined the legendary history of Ireland as written down in
early-medieval times by clerical scholars who prized the vernacular
traditions of poetry, myth and legend and gave them an honoured place
side by side with the Latin learning of the church.

 He returns to that subject in this latest valuable study written in his characteristic accessible and witty style.

Pictish Stone Puzzle

Gamers and interested parties are being asked by Scotland’s national museum to utilise their technical skills to piece together over 3,000 fragments depicting the Cross on a Pictish slab.

The the first of its kind in the archaeological world, project sees participants using a 3D programme developed by a Scottish technology firm to try to solve the mystery of the Hilton of Cadboll Stone.  Experts believe people who play computer games are more adept at manipulating objects on screen.

The stone, which stood on a chapel site in Tain in Easter Ross was carved around 800AD, after the Picts converted to Christianity, in order to celebrate their new religion.  Over time the stone endured a number of accidents, until it was knocked over and broken, and the bottom portion was lost.   It is also believed to have been vandalised more than once during the time of the Reformation in the 16th century.

Excavations of the chapel site uncovered the upright base in the ground and more than 3,000 scattered fragments of the face of a cross. 

The hope is that gamers, and interested parties will be able to piece together the jigsaw to give experts a chance to interpret and decipher the stone’s elaborate symbols and carvings.

Maxwell said: “We need techy-savvy people who have the mindset and understanding of how to work with 3D objects which are a form of virtual reality in space. It’s that puzzle-solving mind we need.”

She said there had been one previous attempt to piece all the fragments together but that it soon became obvious that such a task needed manpower and specialist skills – now possible due to new computer technology.

You can read more of the article at The Scotsman, and take part in solving the puzzle.

If you want to participate in finding the solution, you can do so at the Pictish Puzzle website.

Kilmartin Captured

discoverthetrip:

Kilmartin Glen is an area situated at about 25 miles south of Oban in Argyll, surrounding the village of Kilmartin and contains one of Scotland’s most significant concentrations of Neolithic and Bronze remains.

Another Defensive Wall Found in Scotland; Thought to be Larger than Hadrian's Wall

The Daily Mail's headline reads "Hadrian's Wall had a bigger and older Scottish brother: Archaeologists's 10 year study uncovers 120 mile defence system built in AD 70s to keep out northern tribes".

• Archaeologists reveal Roman defence system in Scotland
• Structure is believed to be made up of forts, fortlets and watchtowers
• Thought to have been built in AD 70s after Romans invaded Scotland
• Deterred hostile northern Caledonian tribes from invading land

It is the largest monument from the ancient era in northern Europe, but Hadrian's Wall in fact has an older and more northern brother.

Archaeologists have been carrying out research into a huge late fist century AD defence system, which stretches 120 miles across Scotland.

A total of 14 forts and several fortlets, which formed part of a defensive network built in the AD 70s, have so far been investigated over the past decade by the team, led by Dr Birgitta Hoffmann and Dr David Wolliscroft, both of the University of Liverpool.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Prehistoric rock art found in Scottish Highlands

The Archaeology News Network reports that:

"An archaeologist has uncovered the biggest collection of ancient rock art in the Highlands. Douglas Scott, 64, of Tain, Ross-shire, discovered a circle of 28 carved rocks which date back 5000 years while combing a 200-metre hillside farm in Evanton."

The full story can be read at the website here.

The Search for Brigid Story Archaeology

Brigid: the much-loved, Irish saint and the revered, Celtic, tribal ancestress.  But is there a connection between the two?  Sift through the strata of her story in conversation with the Story Archaeologists.

Music: “Tam Lin” by Gian Castello

Don’t forget to subscribe to get the latest podcasts by The Story Archaeologists!

I cannot recommend this series of podcasts on the Irish stories, myths and poetry from The Story Archaeologists enough.  Though I received the recommendation last year, I have only begun listening this past week and have regretted not listening sooner, as I am entranced by what is discussed in these podcasts.  I'm not academic and these discussions seemed to be addressing the lay person, such as myself, so I am grasping the connections being made, and having lots of personal "A-ha!" moments of understanding as I listen.

I've linked to this particular podcast, exploring the stories surrounding Brigid, because we are approaching Là Fhèill Brìghde 2013.  However, this is Episode 5 of Series 1 in the podcasts and I should like to suggest that listeners start from the beginning and work their way through the series.  Something I neglected to do.

I hope my readers find the discussions of the Story Archaeologists as fascinating as I do.

Cliff Dreamers Update

You may remember I did a review of Cliff Dreamers, in which I bemoaned the lack of good editing? If not, you can read it here. Well, it just so happens that Jacqui Wood has found a professional editor who is going over who two books, ready for republishing. In the meantime, the podcasts and the originals, which were available through LuLu, have been withdrawn until such time as the new versions of Cliff Dreamers and Journey Through the Inland Sea are available.

I think this is great news, because I believe that once the editing is complete a publisher will probably acquire the books. With such interest in history in the mass media at the moment - look at recent film releases (10,000 BC) and history programmes on television - there should be a market for these books in the general populace. I hope so, because I believe Jacqui deserves to be better known as an author.

Jacqui has also featured in the news recently as an article was written in The Times -
"Mysterious pits shed light on forgotten witches of the West" - about discoveries at the Saveock Water archaeological dig. If anyone wants to read more, please visit Jacqui's website, Saveock Water Archaeology. Jacqui also says "people with no experience can come to my field school for a dig holiday and get a chance to see the pits first hand. I get a lot of people from Australia, America and Canada already." So, why not go along and see for yourself?

Cliff Dreamers

Author: Jacqui Wood

This is a self-published book, available from Lulu by Jacqui Wood. I believe this is Jacqui's first fiction offering, having already written "Prehistoric Cooking". Jacqui Wood is an archaeologist, so it is not surprising to find the book set in a historical Europe.

I do have a few quibbles with the self-publishing aspect of this book, which I will get out of the way first. It is quite obvious that there was a lack of general editing as spelling errors can be found on nearly every other page; grammar is appalling and the tense can change several times within the same paragraph; and the narration also jumps from first to third and, most alarmingly in one paragraph to second, where the reader is addressed by the main character. I would dearly love to see a publishing hosue pick up this book just to sort out these technical quibbles. So, that's the critical part of this review over.

I had a wonderful time with this book. Not only was I drawn in by the turbulent life of its main character, Mia, but I learned quite a bit about Europe 6,000 years ago as the author effortlessly wove her knowledge of the period into the book. The story centres around an eleven year old girl, Mia, who lives on an island between Scanland (Norway) and Britland (Britain) which is fast disappearing into the sea.

Cliff Dreamers starts with Mia being chosen by the island's Shaman to be his priestess, an honour for most girls on Dogga Island, but not for Mia, who views this role as nothing more than slavery. Mia sits on her sand cliffs and wistfully watches the traders come in the their log boats and wishes she could travel far and wide with them. This soon becomes a reality when a fellow islander, Borg, discovers the Shaman's plans for Mia, who is not yet "of age".

Cliff Dreamers takes us along with Mia on her first ventures away from Dogger Island, and the various tribes she encounters with Kemit (the captain of the log boat in which she escapes), his crew and Borg. As the book progresses, we go back and forth from Mia's life on Dogger Island to her life at sea, trying to escape those who pursue her for her unusual magical powers.

The author is gifted when it comes to describing the various tribal settlements of neolithic times and I couldn't help but be drawn into Mia's world. I will be purchasing the sequel, Journey Through the Inland Sea, as soon as my finances allow. I will also be hoping that a publisher will pick up these books. I suspect the books will have a broad appeal because of the folding of history, archaeology, fantasy, magic and a thriller into one book makes them unique reading.

Rating: 4/5 (downgraded because of editing problems)