PAST 1

THE PETROGLYPHS OFTAMGALY, KAZAKHSTAN

As a result of the interest shown in the article on the‘deer stones’ of Mongolia, published in PAST 54, Ioffer some information on a fascinating rock art sitein Kazakhstan that is also the site of an excavated‘deer stone’.

Rock art exists throughout the varied landscape ofKazakhstan, certain concentrations of known sitesextending into neighbouring countries. Thepetroglyphs have a wide date range from the latethird millennium BC to the recent past, but eachperiod has its own style. Such is the internationalinterest in the central Asian sites that a number ofcollaborative teams of local and foreignarchaeologists have been working concertedly inrecent years to document and protect them. Theinitiatives include participants from France,Germany, Norway, Poland and the USA, as well asBritain, as Ken Lymer has previously reported inPAST (Nos 9 and 23). Arguably the most significantsites are in the eastern and southern parts of thecountry, but it is Tamgaly, a complex with more than3000 individual petroglyphs, which I wish todescribe.

Tamgaly is an isolated valley in the dry steppe anddesert landscape that embraces the low foothills ofthe southeastern Chu-Ili Mountains, themselves anextension of the Northern Tienshan range. It issituated about two and a half hours’ drive west ofAlamty, the country’s capital. Extensive rock art wasdiscovered here by chance in 1957 by A. A. Popov, aphotographer from an archaeological team workingunder the direction of À. G. Màximova whoexcavated a local Bronze Age cemetery. The firstaccount of Tamgaly, published the following year byMàximova, used the study of a site in neighbouringKyrgyzstan (Saimaly-Tash) to attribute the artworkto a number of different periods. Subsequently, moredetailed recording has been undertaken, whileexcavations at cemeteries in the area have discoveredpetroglyphs within graves, which help to date thedifferent styles represented on the open rock faces.

NUMBER 56 July 2007

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

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/prehistoric/

The copy date for PAST 57 is 1 October 2007. 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: escargots@tiscali.co.uk. Queries over subscriptions and

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

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vessels. This tradition of painterly expression, as itspread through the Balkan peninsula, dominated inthe decorated compositions on pottery vessels,although the remains of wall decoration can be seeninside some of the houses in this area.

Regarding the painted decoration on the EarlyNeolithic vessels from Macedonia, a wide range ofwhite motifs were employed, creating unique andrarely repeated compositions. These usuallyconsisted of zig-zag lines, stair-like ribbons,triangles, dots and so called vegetal motifs. Someresearchers consider that the choice of motifs relateto the function of the vessels, indicating for examplepots in which herbal remedies were prepared orwhich were used during particular ceremonies indwellings or settlements. Exceptionally importantare the local styles these motifs create which indicatethat, across the wider area of Macedonia, severallocal communities were established, usingdecoration as an element of mutual visualidentification. Although there appear to have beenone or more waves of demographic expansion in theearliest phases of the Neolithic, in its later stages itcan be seen that distinct regional traditions emergewhich are reflected in differences in material culture.Hence, there are remarkable differences betweenEarly Neolithic decoration in the Skopje region(northern Macedonia), the Ovce Pole region (easternMacedonia) and in Pelagonia (southwestMacedonia).

The situation in the Middle Neolithic changedsignificantly. The decoration on the vessels found insettlements across the eastern half of Macedonia isvery similar, so that identical ornaments can befound in the Skopje and Ovce Pole regions, and alsoin other parts of the east of the country. Thissuggests that local Early Neolithic communities weregradually assimilated into one bigger groupingwhich in the Middle Neolithic developed newelements of visual communication. It is interesting to

note that in this period there was a completetransformation in the typology of painted vessels, aswell as in the structure of the compositions, whichnow included new kinds of motifs. The motifs werepainted in brown and black; now only a smallpercentage was white. Painted compositions usuallyconsisted of extended triangles, spirals, vertical andoblique lines and egg shaped motifs which wereprecisely disposed across the structure of thecomposition. There are few other motifs, nor arethere variations of previously mentioned ornaments,so it can be assumed that the Middle Neolithicpopulation from this region developed its ownfirmly-defined iconography that was reflected invarious different types of material culture.

Recently, there have been several attempts to studythe function of the vessels and the significance oftheir decoration. Because of their petrographicfeatures, as well as the time and skill invested in theproduction of these vessels, it has been suggestedthat they were exceptionally important for thecommunities that inhabited these Neolithicsettlements. It is therefore assumed that they had aceremonial or symbolic character, and that they wereused during domestic celebrations, holidays,festivities and rites. Furthermore, the wide range ofornaments painted on these vessels were also presenton the figurines, stamp seals, altars and on the wallsof shrines dating to the same period, and it istherefore thought that they symbolized ideas of rainand regeneration.

Whatever the case, these objects and their decorationundoubtedly indicate that the people of the Earlyand Middle Neolithic in this region had a high levelof technical and artistic accomplishment. Theirability to produce these vessels and to paint them soprecisely surely proves that in this period, the level ofvisual perception, geometrisation and organizationof micro-space was highly developed. This way ofcreating and maintaining the painterly traditiontherefore established specific visual communicationand symbolic interaction between members of onecommunity, as well as between several communitiesacross the wider region.

Goce Naumov, University of Skopje, Institute forHistory of Art and Archaeology, The Republic ofMacedoniaEmail: gonaumov@mail.net.mk

AcknowledgementsI am grateful to the Prehistoric Society forsupporting this research through the Research Fundaward. My special thanks to Joanna Brück forhelpful comments and corrections on an earlier draftof this article. I would also like to thank to mycolleagues from museums in Macedonia for allowingme to work on previously excavated material.

Middle Neolithic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia: Madjari:1-5; Gorobinci: 6

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Tectonic movement has caused localised uplift andsplitting of the sandstone bedrock, and the exposedrock faces bear a dark patina. Indeed, the continuingtectonic movement combined with the sharplycontinental climate has led to the shattering of manyof the decorated faces. Consequently, since the early1990s, considerable effort has been put both intomulti-disciplinary studies of the site’s context underthe supervision of Dr Alexei Rogozhinsky and, mostimportantly, its conservation. The results of thisresearch include the largest sequence of radiocarbondates seen in the country and a palynological recordthat spans the Bronze Age to Late Medieval periods.Since 1998, further research has concentrated on thelocation of associated settlements, while safeguardshave been put in place to protect the complex.Support from UNESCO and Norway encouraged theGovernment of Kazakhstan to issue a special decreewhich declared the area a state historical, culturaland natural reserve, and in 2005 Tamgaly becameonly the second site in the country to be inscribed onthe World Heritage list.

The archaeological complex contains about ahundred different sites, ranging in age from thefourteenth century BC to the twentieth century AD.These sites include not only settlements, quarries andritual places, but also cemeteries with burial cists andmounds (kurgans), as well as the open airpetroglyphs. Some of the Middle Bronze Age cistscontain decoration that is stylistically the same as theearliest open air images, while a stone-builtenclosure (Karakuduk II) contained a ‘deer stone’ ofthe fifth to fourth centuries BC. The open airpetroglyphs themselves have been recorded in nearly50 different locations, and are now attributed to sixdifferent periods, the earliest of which belongs to theMiddle Bronze Age. It is to this period that the mostspectacular of the images belong. They include thirtyexamples of extraordinary pecked figures up to onemetre in height that appear to depict human formswith large disc-shaped heads surrounded by halos ofspots and rays - the so-called ‘sun deities’ (similaranthropomorphic figures, some of earlier date, havebeen recorded elsewhere in Kazhakstan and havebeen referred to as ‘the images of the disguised’).However, there are also figures with masks, weaponsand bows. One panel (Surface 118, Group IV)appears to show a hierarchy of god-like figures,dancing warriors and a woman giving birth, thenonlookers or worshippers. However, other panelsinclude images of a wide range of wild animals, someof which are now extinct. Most commonly, thescenes appear to represent the hunting of horses andaurochsen. Images in this particular style are widelydistributed throughout the Tamgaly valley. They arenot superimposed on each other but are themselvesoften covered by symbols in later styles.

Late Bronze Age compositions also containanthropomorphic figures but these are smaller and

more schematic. Some of them continue the huntingtheme but include pastoral scenes as well, incommon with other sites in Western Mongolia andWestern Tianshen. However, Early Iron Age imagesare the most frequent petroglyphs found in thecomplex and are attributed to several differentgroups of people, reflecting the shifting military andpolitical situation of the time. The main theme is thechase of wild deer and goats by natural predatorsbut scenes may also include ridden horses, series ofcamels and individualistic symbols. Later medievalscenes include warriors, sometimes in combat, thefigures usually engraved with a sharp tool. Oneunique image includes an elephant and rider.

The Tamgaly complex is remote and vulnerable.Nonetheless, the Government of Kazakhstan hastaken a number of important steps to safeguard thesite, including the re-routing of a road that passedthrough the valley, and the provision of basic visitorfacilities. When we parked our car in the area setaside for vehicles, not a soul could be seen for milesaround. Yet, within a few minutes, two young mendressed in combat fatigues emerged to enquire whywe were there. Having established ourarchaeological interests, they led us along a way-marked trail to several of the most impressivedecorated panels. Before long, two mountedcustodians passed by but stopped politely to checkour behaviour and to sell us a most welcomeintroductory leaflet. The Government of Kazhakstanshould be commended for establishing the custodialcare of the site, and Alexei Rogozhinsky is to bethanked for his energetic research and managementof the Tamgaly complex.

More can be learned about Tamgaly from Dr Rogozhinsky’s 2004 book(www.Igakz.org/Publications), and from an excellentsynthesis published in Samarkand (Tashbayeva, K.,Khujanazarov, M., Ranov, V. and Samashev, Z. 2001. Petroglyphs of Central Asia, ISBN 9967-20-776-0).

Andrew J. Lawson

NEW EXCAVATIONS AT STARCARR

Star Carr is the best known site of Mesolithic date inBritain - if not Europe. The site was excavatedbetween 1949 and 1951 by Grahame Clark, laterProfessor of Archaeology at Cambridge University.The site, located near the present town ofScarborough, was situated on the shores of anancient lake (Lake Flixton), which is now infilledwith peat, leading to excellent preservationconditions. The finds recovered surpassed all thathad previously been known from the period.Preservation of animal bones and plant remainspermitted a detailed reconstruction of the diet of thehunter-gatherers who lived on the shores of the lake.A wide variety of organic artefacts were alsorecovered: vast numbers of barbed arrow andharpoon points made from red deer antler; elk antler

mattock heads; bone awls and scrapers. The site alsorevealed a glimpse of the social and religious lives ofMesolithic people: beads made from shale, amber,bone and animal teeth were found, as were thefamous ‘antler frontlets’ - headgear made from theskull cap and antlers of red deer, which Clarksuggested may have been masks for use in ritual(even shamanic) dances.

The site has attracted much attention since itsexcavation and has been reinterpreted several timesover the past 50 years. Clark, for example, suggestedthe site was a residential base camp occupied bythree or four families. However subsequent theorieshave suggested it may have been a specialist site fortanning hides, or a site for killing red deer, or ahunting camp, where men whiled away their sparetime in craft activities while waiting for their prey.The season that these mobile bands of hunter-gatherers visited the site has also been hotly debated:Clark suggested an occupation during the wintermonths; however, a subsequent generation ofarchaeologists pointed out evidence for spring andsummer visits to the site; yet recent work by RichardCarter again suggests winter visits. It seems that evenafter half a century of study, archaeologists cannoteven agree on very basic facts about the site.

Small-scale excavations to the east of Clark’s siteundertaken in the 1980s suggest that Star Carr is

2 PAST PAST 3

Location of fieldwork at Star Carr

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 4

Tectonic movement has caused localised uplift andsplitting of the sandstone bedrock, and the exposedrock faces bear a dark patina. Indeed, the continuingtectonic movement combined with the sharplycontinental climate has led to the shattering of manyof the decorated faces. Consequently, since the early1990s, considerable effort has been put both intomulti-disciplinary studies of the site’s context underthe supervision of Dr Alexei Rogozhinsky and, mostimportantly, its conservation. The results of thisresearch include the largest sequence of radiocarbondates seen in the country and a palynological recordthat spans the Bronze Age to Late Medieval periods.Since 1998, further research has concentrated on thelocation of associated settlements, while safeguardshave been put in place to protect the complex.Support from UNESCO and Norway encouraged theGovernment of Kazakhstan to issue a special decreewhich declared the area a state historical, culturaland natural reserve, and in 2005 Tamgaly becameonly the second site in the country to be inscribed onthe World Heritage list.

The archaeological complex contains about ahundred different sites, ranging in age from thefourteenth century BC to the twentieth century AD.These sites include not only settlements, quarries andritual places, but also cemeteries with burial cists andmounds (kurgans), as well as the open airpetroglyphs. Some of the Middle Bronze Age cistscontain decoration that is stylistically the same as theearliest open air images, while a stone-builtenclosure (Karakuduk II) contained a ‘deer stone’ ofthe fifth to fourth centuries BC. The open airpetroglyphs themselves have been recorded in nearly50 different locations, and are now attributed to sixdifferent periods, the earliest of which belongs to theMiddle Bronze Age. It is to this period that the mostspectacular of the images belong. They include thirtyexamples of extraordinary pecked figures up to onemetre in height that appear to depict human formswith large disc-shaped heads surrounded by halos ofspots and rays - the so-called ‘sun deities’ (similaranthropomorphic figures, some of earlier date, havebeen recorded elsewhere in Kazhakstan and havebeen referred to as ‘the images of the disguised’).However, there are also figures with masks, weaponsand bows. One panel (Surface 118, Group IV)appears to show a hierarchy of god-like figures,dancing warriors and a woman giving birth, thenonlookers or worshippers. However, other panelsinclude images of a wide range of wild animals, someof which are now extinct. Most commonly, thescenes appear to represent the hunting of horses andaurochsen. Images in this particular style are widelydistributed throughout the Tamgaly valley. They arenot superimposed on each other but are themselvesoften covered by symbols in later styles.

Late Bronze Age compositions also containanthropomorphic figures but these are smaller and

more schematic. Some of them continue the huntingtheme but include pastoral scenes as well, incommon with other sites in Western Mongolia andWestern Tianshen. However, Early Iron Age imagesare the most frequent petroglyphs found in thecomplex and are attributed to several differentgroups of people, reflecting the shifting military andpolitical situation of the time. The main theme is thechase of wild deer and goats by natural predatorsbut scenes may also include ridden horses, series ofcamels and individualistic symbols. Later medievalscenes include warriors, sometimes in combat, thefigures usually engraved with a sharp tool. Oneunique image includes an elephant and rider.

The Tamgaly complex is remote and vulnerable.Nonetheless, the Government of Kazakhstan hastaken a number of important steps to safeguard thesite, including the re-routing of a road that passedthrough the valley, and the provision of basic visitorfacilities. When we parked our car in the area setaside for vehicles, not a soul could be seen for milesaround. Yet, within a few minutes, two young mendressed in combat fatigues emerged to enquire whywe were there. Having established ourarchaeological interests, they led us along a way-marked trail to several of the most impressivedecorated panels. Before long, two mountedcustodians passed by but stopped politely to checkour behaviour and to sell us a most welcomeintroductory leaflet. The Government of Kazhakstanshould be commended for establishing the custodialcare of the site, and Alexei Rogozhinsky is to bethanked for his energetic research and managementof the Tamgaly complex.

More can be learned about Tamgaly from Dr Rogozhinsky’s 2004 book(www.Igakz.org/Publications), and from an excellentsynthesis published in Samarkand (Tashbayeva, K.,Khujanazarov, M., Ranov, V. and Samashev, Z. 2001. Petroglyphs of Central Asia, ISBN 9967-20-776-0).

Andrew J. Lawson

NEW EXCAVATIONS AT STARCARR

Star Carr is the best known site of Mesolithic date inBritain - if not Europe. The site was excavatedbetween 1949 and 1951 by Grahame Clark, laterProfessor of Archaeology at Cambridge University.The site, located near the present town ofScarborough, was situated on the shores of anancient lake (Lake Flixton), which is now infilledwith peat, leading to excellent preservationconditions. The finds recovered surpassed all thathad previously been known from the period.Preservation of animal bones and plant remainspermitted a detailed reconstruction of the diet of thehunter-gatherers who lived on the shores of the lake.A wide variety of organic artefacts were alsorecovered: vast numbers of barbed arrow andharpoon points made from red deer antler; elk antler

mattock heads; bone awls and scrapers. The site alsorevealed a glimpse of the social and religious lives ofMesolithic people: beads made from shale, amber,bone and animal teeth were found, as were thefamous ‘antler frontlets’ - headgear made from theskull cap and antlers of red deer, which Clarksuggested may have been masks for use in ritual(even shamanic) dances.

The site has attracted much attention since itsexcavation and has been reinterpreted several timesover the past 50 years. Clark, for example, suggestedthe site was a residential base camp occupied bythree or four families. However subsequent theorieshave suggested it may have been a specialist site fortanning hides, or a site for killing red deer, or ahunting camp, where men whiled away their sparetime in craft activities while waiting for their prey.The season that these mobile bands of hunter-gatherers visited the site has also been hotly debated:Clark suggested an occupation during the wintermonths; however, a subsequent generation ofarchaeologists pointed out evidence for spring andsummer visits to the site; yet recent work by RichardCarter again suggests winter visits. It seems that evenafter half a century of study, archaeologists cannoteven agree on very basic facts about the site.

Small-scale excavations to the east of Clark’s siteundertaken in the 1980s suggest that Star Carr is

2 PAST PAST 3

Location of fieldwork at Star Carr

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 4

PAST 5

with earlier dates on barbed points and antler debrisfrom Clark’s trenches, this indicates that barbedpoints were produced throughout the long history ofthe occupation of the site and strengthens theassociation of Star Carr with rare artefacts madefrom animal remains. Overall it appears there is areduction in the diversity of objects made fromanimal remains as one moves east - from the hugevariety in Clark’s trench, to a single barbed point andevidence of antler working in the 1980s trench, toevidence from antler working alone in thewesternmost 2006 trench. It thus appears that we arecloser to understanding the extent and distributionof unusual objects at the site.

Finally, the past three year’s work have permitted anassessment of the rate of deterioration of organicobjects at the site. The organics have been affectedby the lowering of the water table through drainage,but since the sediments are very acidic, seasonalfluctuations in the water table can also hasten thedestruction of the archaeological material. Specialistswho have visited the site have estimated that theremaining organic material will deteriorate in lessthan a decade. It is therefore imperative for thecurrent project to continue; only then do we haveany chance of unlocking the remaining secrets of StarCarr before it is too late.

Chantal Conneller, Archaeology, School of Arts,Histories and Cultures, University of Manchester

THE PRE-ROMANARCHAEOLOGY OF CHESTER’SROMAN AMPHITHEATRE

Between 2004 and 2006, excavations at the Romanamphitheatre, Little St John Street, Chester (SJ 40856614), were carried out under the direction of DanGarner (Chester City Council Archaeology Service)and Tony Wilmott (English Heritage). Threetrenches (designated A, B and C) on the northernhalf of the amphitheatre were excavated as part ofThe Chester Amphitheatre Project and were jointlyfunded by Chester City Council and EnglishHeritage.

During previous excavations on the site in the 1960s,a pre-Roman soil horizon was identified over largeareas of the northern seating bank or cavea. Thisdeposit was labelled as ‘original ground surface’ andwas generally treated as a natural sub-soil. This soilhorizon was exposed over a fairly large area intrench A during the final season of excavation in2006 and demonstrated that the pre-Roman activitywas more complicated than had originally beenanticipated. Three phases of pre-Roman activitycould be discerned in the archaeological record andthese are described in greater detail below. Theevidence is ground breaking in the context ofarchaeology in the city of Chester; previousarchaeological investigations have only been able toestablish evidence for pre-Roman cultivation ofindeterminate date. It is now possible to demonstratethat the site at Chester was settled and farmedseveral centuries before the arrival of the Romanmilitary and the establishment of the legionaryfortress.

The Middle Iron AgeOn removal of the pre-Roman soil horizon, thenatural subsoil was exposed. This varied across thesite, but was generally glacial clay till rarely morethan 0.5m thick that overlay the weathered surfaceof the underlying sandstone bedrock. Ploughscarring could be seen to have penetrated the surfaceof the natural subsoil quite extensively, and theshallow scars were consistent with the use of asimple ard-type implement. This evidence supportedthe suggestion that the pre-Roman soil was in fact acultivation soil. At the end of the 2005 season, a pairof large post settings was identified cut into the topof the natural subsoil when a small area of the pre-Roman cultivation soil was removed. When theywere excavated, it was established that they wereeach 0.9m in diameter, 0.6m deep and that one post-hole had cut the other. The earlier post-hole had anidentifiable post-pipe suggesting a timber with adiameter of 0.5m; wood charcoal from the base ofthis post-pipe produced a standard radiometric dateof 390 to 180 Cal BC (Wk19120).

A much larger area of the pre-Roman cultivation soilwas removed during 2006 and a further two pairs oflarge post-holes were identified; in each case, onepost-hole had been succeeded by another. It becameclear that the post-holes represented three corners ofa four-post structure, the fourth corner of which hadbeen removed by a substantial medieval cess-pit.Furthermore, the occurrence of the post-holes inpairs indicated that the first four-post structure hadbeen dismantled and then replaced with a secondsimilar structure with slightly different alignmentand dimensions. The earlier structure was fairlysquare in plan measuring 3.5m by 3.5m, and in allthree instances the packing stones and post-pipesremained intact demonstrating that all of the timbers

more complicated than initially imagined. This workdiscovered a platform of hewn aspen timbers - theearliest evidence of systematic woodworking inBritain. The spread of artefactual debris was alsodiscovered to continue to the east of Clark’strenches, while work by Petra Dark on charcoalindicated intermittent occupation of the site foraround 230 years. Paul Mellars has suggested that itis increasingly unlikely that a single function orseason of occupation can be determined for such alarge, repeatedly occupied site.

However excavations since the mid-1970sundertaken by Tim Schadla-Hall around the shoresof ancient Lake Flixton have suggested a radicallynew interpretation of the site. These excavationsindicate that Star Carr is unique in its locallandscape. Excavations around Lake Flixton haverevealed many new, well-preserved Mesolithic sites;however, none of these have yielded the same rangeof material as Star Carr. 192 barbed antler pointshave been found in excavations at Star Carr, but onlyone further example has been found in 30 years ofexcavations around Lake Flixton. The same is truefor beads and antler frontlets: none of these objectshave been found elsewhere, in comparison to largenumbers at Star Carr. This pattern has led severalarchaeologists to suggest independently that therewas an important ritual element to the activitiesundertaken at Star Carr and that people weredepositing objects made from animal remains intothe shallow waters at the lake. It is significant thatthe only other sites where antler frontlets have beenrecovered (three sites in Germany) also displaysimilar patterning in the deposition of combinationsof frontlets, beads and barbed points, often intowaterlogged contexts. Analogies can perhaps bemade with a number of contemporary hunter-gatherer groups who believe that animals should betreated with respect in order that they continue togive themselves up to the hunter and this respectfultreatment often encompasses the careful disposal ofanimal bones in particular areas.

Given these uncertainties surrounding the site, it wasdecided to undertake new excavations at Star Carr. Itwas also apparent that the excellent preservationconditions that had made the site so famous weredeteriorating. A project was therefore establishedbetween the Universities of Manchester, York, UCLand Cambridge in order to gather as muchinformation from the site before the organic materialfinally decayed. The project commenced withfieldwalking and small-scale test-pitting in 2004.This work revealed that the spread of Mesolithicmaterial continued even further to the east than the1980s fieldwork suggested. Further test-pitting in2005 revealed a continuous spread of lithic materialalong the spine of the peninsula to the east of thesite. It is hoped that further work on this area may

reveal the dryland settlement area of the site. The2004/5 excavations included two wetland test-pits;however these only revealed occasional fragments ofbone, of the sort found elsewhere around LakeFlixton, rather than the more spectacular remainsdiscovered by Clark.

In 2006, more extensive fieldwork was undertakenon the dryland/wetland margins. Two largertrenches, measuring 3x11m and 3x8m respectively,were excavated to the east of the 1980s excavations.The most easterly of these revealed a rather sparsescatter of lithic material and some possible planks ofworked wood (presently being analysed by MaisieTaylor). More significant evidence was recoveredfrom the second trench (trench 22), just 12m to theeast of the trench excavated in the 1980s where thetimber platform was encountered. Though noevidence of the platform itself was found, trench 22yielded several of the distinctive woodchipsproduced as a by-product of Mesolithicwoodworking. The trench also yielded two clustersof worked antler. The first of these was in aparticularly poor state of preservation; however thesecond cluster, more towards the lakeward end of thetrench, was slightly better preserved and displays useof the groove and splinter technique which wasemployed to produce blanks to make barbed points. These antler clusters have yielded dates towards theend of the 10th millennium uncal BP, making themthe latest known artefacts from Star Carr. Taken

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Plan of Trench 22

Red deer antler with splinter removed

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with earlier dates on barbed points and antler debrisfrom Clark’s trenches, this indicates that barbedpoints were produced throughout the long history ofthe occupation of the site and strengthens theassociation of Star Carr with rare artefacts madefrom animal remains. Overall it appears there is areduction in the diversity of objects made fromanimal remains as one moves east - from the hugevariety in Clark’s trench, to a single barbed point andevidence of antler working in the 1980s trench, toevidence from antler working alone in thewesternmost 2006 trench. It thus appears that we arecloser to understanding the extent and distributionof unusual objects at the site.

Finally, the past three year’s work have permitted anassessment of the rate of deterioration of organicobjects at the site. The organics have been affectedby the lowering of the water table through drainage,but since the sediments are very acidic, seasonalfluctuations in the water table can also hasten thedestruction of the archaeological material. Specialistswho have visited the site have estimated that theremaining organic material will deteriorate in lessthan a decade. It is therefore imperative for thecurrent project to continue; only then do we haveany chance of unlocking the remaining secrets of StarCarr before it is too late.

Chantal Conneller, Archaeology, School of Arts,Histories and Cultures, University of Manchester

THE PRE-ROMANARCHAEOLOGY OF CHESTER’SROMAN AMPHITHEATRE

Between 2004 and 2006, excavations at the Romanamphitheatre, Little St John Street, Chester (SJ 40856614), were carried out under the direction of DanGarner (Chester City Council Archaeology Service)and Tony Wilmott (English Heritage). Threetrenches (designated A, B and C) on the northernhalf of the amphitheatre were excavated as part ofThe Chester Amphitheatre Project and were jointlyfunded by Chester City Council and EnglishHeritage.

During previous excavations on the site in the 1960s,a pre-Roman soil horizon was identified over largeareas of the northern seating bank or cavea. Thisdeposit was labelled as ‘original ground surface’ andwas generally treated as a natural sub-soil. This soilhorizon was exposed over a fairly large area intrench A during the final season of excavation in2006 and demonstrated that the pre-Roman activitywas more complicated than had originally beenanticipated. Three phases of pre-Roman activitycould be discerned in the archaeological record andthese are described in greater detail below. Theevidence is ground breaking in the context ofarchaeology in the city of Chester; previousarchaeological investigations have only been able toestablish evidence for pre-Roman cultivation ofindeterminate date. It is now possible to demonstratethat the site at Chester was settled and farmedseveral centuries before the arrival of the Romanmilitary and the establishment of the legionaryfortress.

The Middle Iron AgeOn removal of the pre-Roman soil horizon, thenatural subsoil was exposed. This varied across thesite, but was generally glacial clay till rarely morethan 0.5m thick that overlay the weathered surfaceof the underlying sandstone bedrock. Ploughscarring could be seen to have penetrated the surfaceof the natural subsoil quite extensively, and theshallow scars were consistent with the use of asimple ard-type implement. This evidence supportedthe suggestion that the pre-Roman soil was in fact acultivation soil. At the end of the 2005 season, a pairof large post settings was identified cut into the topof the natural subsoil when a small area of the pre-Roman cultivation soil was removed. When theywere excavated, it was established that they wereeach 0.9m in diameter, 0.6m deep and that one post-hole had cut the other. The earlier post-hole had anidentifiable post-pipe suggesting a timber with adiameter of 0.5m; wood charcoal from the base ofthis post-pipe produced a standard radiometric dateof 390 to 180 Cal BC (Wk19120).

A much larger area of the pre-Roman cultivation soilwas removed during 2006 and a further two pairs oflarge post-holes were identified; in each case, onepost-hole had been succeeded by another. It becameclear that the post-holes represented three corners ofa four-post structure, the fourth corner of which hadbeen removed by a substantial medieval cess-pit.Furthermore, the occurrence of the post-holes inpairs indicated that the first four-post structure hadbeen dismantled and then replaced with a secondsimilar structure with slightly different alignmentand dimensions. The earlier structure was fairlysquare in plan measuring 3.5m by 3.5m, and in allthree instances the packing stones and post-pipesremained intact demonstrating that all of the timbers

more complicated than initially imagined. This workdiscovered a platform of hewn aspen timbers - theearliest evidence of systematic woodworking inBritain. The spread of artefactual debris was alsodiscovered to continue to the east of Clark’strenches, while work by Petra Dark on charcoalindicated intermittent occupation of the site foraround 230 years. Paul Mellars has suggested that itis increasingly unlikely that a single function orseason of occupation can be determined for such alarge, repeatedly occupied site.

However excavations since the mid-1970sundertaken by Tim Schadla-Hall around the shoresof ancient Lake Flixton have suggested a radicallynew interpretation of the site. These excavationsindicate that Star Carr is unique in its locallandscape. Excavations around Lake Flixton haverevealed many new, well-preserved Mesolithic sites;however, none of these have yielded the same rangeof material as Star Carr. 192 barbed antler pointshave been found in excavations at Star Carr, but onlyone further example has been found in 30 years ofexcavations around Lake Flixton. The same is truefor beads and antler frontlets: none of these objectshave been found elsewhere, in comparison to largenumbers at Star Carr. This pattern has led severalarchaeologists to suggest independently that therewas an important ritual element to the activitiesundertaken at Star Carr and that people weredepositing objects made from animal remains intothe shallow waters at the lake. It is significant thatthe only other sites where antler frontlets have beenrecovered (three sites in Germany) also displaysimilar patterning in the deposition of combinationsof frontlets, beads and barbed points, often intowaterlogged contexts. Analogies can perhaps bemade with a number of contemporary hunter-gatherer groups who believe that animals should betreated with respect in order that they continue togive themselves up to the hunter and this respectfultreatment often encompasses the careful disposal ofanimal bones in particular areas.

Given these uncertainties surrounding the site, it wasdecided to undertake new excavations at Star Carr. Itwas also apparent that the excellent preservationconditions that had made the site so famous weredeteriorating. A project was therefore establishedbetween the Universities of Manchester, York, UCLand Cambridge in order to gather as muchinformation from the site before the organic materialfinally decayed. The project commenced withfieldwalking and small-scale test-pitting in 2004.This work revealed that the spread of Mesolithicmaterial continued even further to the east than the1980s fieldwork suggested. Further test-pitting in2005 revealed a continuous spread of lithic materialalong the spine of the peninsula to the east of thesite. It is hoped that further work on this area may

reveal the dryland settlement area of the site. The2004/5 excavations included two wetland test-pits;however these only revealed occasional fragments ofbone, of the sort found elsewhere around LakeFlixton, rather than the more spectacular remainsdiscovered by Clark.

In 2006, more extensive fieldwork was undertakenon the dryland/wetland margins. Two largertrenches, measuring 3x11m and 3x8m respectively,were excavated to the east of the 1980s excavations.The most easterly of these revealed a rather sparsescatter of lithic material and some possible planks ofworked wood (presently being analysed by MaisieTaylor). More significant evidence was recoveredfrom the second trench (trench 22), just 12m to theeast of the trench excavated in the 1980s where thetimber platform was encountered. Though noevidence of the platform itself was found, trench 22yielded several of the distinctive woodchipsproduced as a by-product of Mesolithicwoodworking. The trench also yielded two clustersof worked antler. The first of these was in aparticularly poor state of preservation; however thesecond cluster, more towards the lakeward end of thetrench, was slightly better preserved and displays useof the groove and splinter technique which wasemployed to produce blanks to make barbed points. These antler clusters have yielded dates towards theend of the 10th millennium uncal BP, making themthe latest known artefacts from Star Carr. Taken

4 PAST

Plan of Trench 22

Red deer antler with splinter removed

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 6

had been between 0.45 and 0.5m in diameter. One ofthese earlier post-holes had a broken saddlequernstone amongst its packing material and asmentioned above the structure was probablydismantled about 390 to 180 Cal BC (Wk19120).The second four-post structure was roughlyrectangular in plan with dimensions of 3m by 4m;the post-holes were of a similar size to that of theearlier structure but in all three instances the post-pipes did not survive.

To the south of the four-post buildings, twosegments of a circular gully were also found to be cutinto the natural subsoil. The southern extent of thesegullies had been removed by the construction of theamphitheatre arena during the 1st century AD, butenough survived to suggest a circular enclosure witha diameter of about 10m. This has been tentativelyinterpreted as the remains of a roundhouse. Withinthe surviving interior of this enclosure was a singlepost-hole that was filled with charred cereal grainsthat still await identification and analysis. A singlesherd of Cheshire stony VCP (briquettage associatedwith the pre-Roman Cheshire salt trade) wasrecovered from one section of the gully and thisrepresents the entire artefact assemblage for thisphase of the excavation.

The Late Iron AgeDuring the excavation of the pre-Roman cultivationsoil, varying excavation conditions led theexcavation team to identify slight changes in whathad originally been assumed to be a single deposit. Insome instances, these changes might not have beenreal; however, what is certain is that all of these soilsoverlay the earlier Iron Age structural featuresdescribed above and also sealed a multitude of linear

scarring marks in the surface of the natural subsoilthat are thought to have been created by cultivationusing an ard. It was generally impossible to discernwhether the ard-marks post-dated or pre-dated theIron Age structural features, but the presence of theoverlying cultivation soils would argue for theformer. Approximately 25% of the cultivation soilwas set aside for wet sieving down to 4mm meshwith the aim of recovering cultural material.Generally speaking, this only served to recover fairlyabundant amounts of heat-fractured stone andoccasional pieces of worked flint - the latter clearlybeing residual. Artefacts were generally limited tostone objects (heat fractured stone, flint-work,sharpening stones and a fragment of quern stone),but some small fragments of ceramic (possiblyCheshire stony VCP) were also recovered along witha corroded iron object that awaits analysis foridentification. It is conceivable that the artefactsrecovered from the cultivation soils actually relate tooccupation of the earlier structures described above.

The upper surface of the pre-Roman cultivation soilwas found to contain undulations in several areas ofthe excavation and it became clear that theseanomalies represented the remains of buriedearthworks that pre-dated the construction of theamphitheatre. This was most clearly demonstrated inthe area between the back of the Nemeseium and theamphitheatre’s outer wall, where a series of ridgesand furrows were recorded. Roughly six parallelfurrows were identified in this area running on aneast-west alignment, and spaced at c.1m intervals.The best preserved examples of this earthwork wereuncovered after the removal of the Roman seatingbank deposits immediately adjacent to the inner faceof the amphitheatre’s outer wall, which areassociated with the earliest phase of amphitheatreconstruction. Further to the north, this ridge andfurrow earthwork could be seen to have survived ina slightly more truncated state. The overallimpression is that this system of earthworksrepresents part of a Late Iron Age cultivationtechnique that is often referred to as ‘cord-rig’ (whenit has been found further north beneath Roman fortson Hadrian’s Wall).

The Late Iron Age/Roman interfaceIn an area between the two outer walls of the laterRoman amphitheatre, a series of five small post-holes were identified cut into the pre-Romancultivation soil. These post-holes formed a clearnortheast to southwest alignment that did notrespect the line of the amphitheatre wall. Noartefactual evidence was recovered from these post-holes and their dating remains debateable. They areunlikely to represent timber scaffolding related to theconstruction of the amphitheatre wall as they wereremoved prior to the excavation of the wall’sfoundation trench and they do not continue furtherto the north-east. It is therefore more likely that they

form one side of either an ephemeral timberstructure or part of a fence-line possibly for a smallstock enclosure?

To the south-west of the post-hole alignment, therewas a slight depression in the surface of the pre-Roman cultivation soil, which may have onceformed a muddy hollow that had clearly beenchurned up by the passage of traffic. This wasmainly indicated by the presence of a mixture ofhuman footprints and animal tracks that overlay oneanother. The sequence appeared to suggest that theearliest imprints were human footprints in a mixtureof sizes from possible children/small female feet toaverage-sized male footprints. On two examples,there was a suggestion that these pedestrians hadbeen wearing footwear and in one instance it waspossible to suggest that the imprint of hobnails wasvisible. The human footprints were overlain by aseries of three narrow wheel ruts that were probablyformed by a small cart. Finally, there was a series ofanimal tracks (some of which were possibly hoofprints from cattle) that could clearly be seen to havepost-dated both the human footprints and the wheelruts. These footprints and tracks were sealed beneatha thick layer of fairly sterile red sandstone brash thatwas thought to have functioned as a make-up/levelling layer immediately prior to the beginningof the construction of the amphitheatre. They wouldprobably not have been preserved in thearchaeological record if they had been left exposedfor any length of time and this implies that thefootprints and tracks formed only weeks or daysbefore the construction of the amphitheatre wasbegun!

For more information visitwww.chesteramphitheatre.co.uk.

Dan Garner, Senior Archaeologist, Chester CityCouncil

THE SALCOMBE FIND – SOMECOMMENTS FROM READERS

Dear Editor,

The article on Salcombe in April PAST(‘Mediterranean bronze found in English waters’; seealso British Archaeology, November/December2006) states that the enigmatic strumento is ‘the firstsecure object of Mediterranean origin and BronzeAge date to be found in north-west Europe’. Weawait full publication of the Salcombe context, butthis sweeping statement writes out of prehistory atleast one other secure find.

Still on the south coast of England, it is not clearwhether the shaft-hole axe found at Southbourne in

Dorset is from a context significantly less secure thanSalcombe. This axe was recovered just below the lowwater mark on the beach. It is sometimes referred toas from Hengistbury Head, though found a little tothe west; of Sicilian origin, it is somewhat later indate than the strumento. But elsewhere in north-westEurope we do have an undoubtedly secureMediterranean object, broadly contemporary withSalcombe. This is a razor in the hoard fromOmmerschans in the Netherlands, also known for itsoutsize blade in the form of a dirk similar to theexample from Oxborough, Norfolk, currently ondisplay in the British Museum. The Ommerschansrazor also belongs to a type that occurs in Sicily.

Brendan O’Connor

Dear Dr Brück,

PAST 55

How on earth can Italian colleagues have assembledsuch a collection of words (meaning, roughly,instrument with a socket like a cannon) to describethe Bronze Age thing recovered recently off theDevon coast? Surely it is clear what it is and itshould be described accordingly: a potato peeler –sbucciapatate.

Nicholas Thomas

THE 2007 EUROPA LECTURE

The 2007 Europa Lecture took place on May 23 andwas given by Professor Lars Larsson of theUniversity of Lund, in Sweden. IntroducingProfessor Larsson, the President referred to the widerange of his interests and the extraordinary numberof his publications. It is good to know that the textof his lecture will be added to the list and will appearin our Proceedings.

The lecture was on ‘Ritual buildings in prehistoricScandinavia’ and covered an enormous range ofdifferent projects, some of them conducted byProfessor Larsson himself. It began with hisMesolithic cemetery at Skateholm and ended with anextraordinary temple dating from the firstmillennium AD at Uppåkra just outside Lund wherehe is excavating at the moment. The lecture evenfeatured a gold ring found a week earlier.

The lecture covered an enormous period of timefrom the Mesolithic period to the Viking Age anddrew on many revealing examples: the specialisedbuildings associated with Mesolithic graves inScandinavia; the first earthen long barrows to befound in southern Sweden; the timber and stone ‘culthouses’ of the Neolithic and Bronze Age; and the

6 PAST PAST 7

Rim sherd from a Cheshire stony VCP vessel recovered from the pre-Roman cultivation soil

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 8

had been between 0.45 and 0.5m in diameter. One ofthese earlier post-holes had a broken saddlequernstone amongst its packing material and asmentioned above the structure was probablydismantled about 390 to 180 Cal BC (Wk19120).The second four-post structure was roughlyrectangular in plan with dimensions of 3m by 4m;the post-holes were of a similar size to that of theearlier structure but in all three instances the post-pipes did not survive.

To the south of the four-post buildings, twosegments of a circular gully were also found to be cutinto the natural subsoil. The southern extent of thesegullies had been removed by the construction of theamphitheatre arena during the 1st century AD, butenough survived to suggest a circular enclosure witha diameter of about 10m. This has been tentativelyinterpreted as the remains of a roundhouse. Withinthe surviving interior of this enclosure was a singlepost-hole that was filled with charred cereal grainsthat still await identification and analysis. A singlesherd of Cheshire stony VCP (briquettage associatedwith the pre-Roman Cheshire salt trade) wasrecovered from one section of the gully and thisrepresents the entire artefact assemblage for thisphase of the excavation.

The Late Iron AgeDuring the excavation of the pre-Roman cultivationsoil, varying excavation conditions led theexcavation team to identify slight changes in whathad originally been assumed to be a single deposit. Insome instances, these changes might not have beenreal; however, what is certain is that all of these soilsoverlay the earlier Iron Age structural featuresdescribed above and also sealed a multitude of linear

scarring marks in the surface of the natural subsoilthat are thought to have been created by cultivationusing an ard. It was generally impossible to discernwhether the ard-marks post-dated or pre-dated theIron Age structural features, but the presence of theoverlying cultivation soils would argue for theformer. Approximately 25% of the cultivation soilwas set aside for wet sieving down to 4mm meshwith the aim of recovering cultural material.Generally speaking, this only served to recover fairlyabundant amounts of heat-fractured stone andoccasional pieces of worked flint - the latter clearlybeing residual. Artefacts were generally limited tostone objects (heat fractured stone, flint-work,sharpening stones and a fragment of quern stone),but some small fragments of ceramic (possiblyCheshire stony VCP) were also recovered along witha corroded iron object that awaits analysis foridentification. It is conceivable that the artefactsrecovered from the cultivation soils actually relate tooccupation of the earlier structures described above.

The upper surface of the pre-Roman cultivation soilwas found to contain undulations in several areas ofthe excavation and it became clear that theseanomalies represented the remains of buriedearthworks that pre-dated the construction of theamphitheatre. This was most clearly demonstrated inthe area between the back of the Nemeseium and theamphitheatre’s outer wall, where a series of ridgesand furrows were recorded. Roughly six parallelfurrows were identified in this area running on aneast-west alignment, and spaced at c.1m intervals.The best preserved examples of this earthwork wereuncovered after the removal of the Roman seatingbank deposits immediately adjacent to the inner faceof the amphitheatre’s outer wall, which areassociated with the earliest phase of amphitheatreconstruction. Further to the north, this ridge andfurrow earthwork could be seen to have survived ina slightly more truncated state. The overallimpression is that this system of earthworksrepresents part of a Late Iron Age cultivationtechnique that is often referred to as ‘cord-rig’ (whenit has been found further north beneath Roman fortson Hadrian’s Wall).

The Late Iron Age/Roman interfaceIn an area between the two outer walls of the laterRoman amphitheatre, a series of five small post-holes were identified cut into the pre-Romancultivation soil. These post-holes formed a clearnortheast to southwest alignment that did notrespect the line of the amphitheatre wall. Noartefactual evidence was recovered from these post-holes and their dating remains debateable. They areunlikely to represent timber scaffolding related to theconstruction of the amphitheatre wall as they wereremoved prior to the excavation of the wall’sfoundation trench and they do not continue furtherto the north-east. It is therefore more likely that they

form one side of either an ephemeral timberstructure or part of a fence-line possibly for a smallstock enclosure?

To the south-west of the post-hole alignment, therewas a slight depression in the surface of the pre-Roman cultivation soil, which may have onceformed a muddy hollow that had clearly beenchurned up by the passage of traffic. This wasmainly indicated by the presence of a mixture ofhuman footprints and animal tracks that overlay oneanother. The sequence appeared to suggest that theearliest imprints were human footprints in a mixtureof sizes from possible children/small female feet toaverage-sized male footprints. On two examples,there was a suggestion that these pedestrians hadbeen wearing footwear and in one instance it waspossible to suggest that the imprint of hobnails wasvisible. The human footprints were overlain by aseries of three narrow wheel ruts that were probablyformed by a small cart. Finally, there was a series ofanimal tracks (some of which were possibly hoofprints from cattle) that could clearly be seen to havepost-dated both the human footprints and the wheelruts. These footprints and tracks were sealed beneatha thick layer of fairly sterile red sandstone brash thatwas thought to have functioned as a make-up/levelling layer immediately prior to the beginningof the construction of the amphitheatre. They wouldprobably not have been preserved in thearchaeological record if they had been left exposedfor any length of time and this implies that thefootprints and tracks formed only weeks or daysbefore the construction of the amphitheatre wasbegun!

For more information visitwww.chesteramphitheatre.co.uk.

Dan Garner, Senior Archaeologist, Chester CityCouncil

THE SALCOMBE FIND – SOMECOMMENTS FROM READERS

Dear Editor,

The article on Salcombe in April PAST(‘Mediterranean bronze found in English waters’; seealso British Archaeology, November/December2006) states that the enigmatic strumento is ‘the firstsecure object of Mediterranean origin and BronzeAge date to be found in north-west Europe’. Weawait full publication of the Salcombe context, butthis sweeping statement writes out of prehistory atleast one other secure find.

Still on the south coast of England, it is not clearwhether the shaft-hole axe found at Southbourne in

Dorset is from a context significantly less secure thanSalcombe. This axe was recovered just below the lowwater mark on the beach. It is sometimes referred toas from Hengistbury Head, though found a little tothe west; of Sicilian origin, it is somewhat later indate than the strumento. But elsewhere in north-westEurope we do have an undoubtedly secureMediterranean object, broadly contemporary withSalcombe. This is a razor in the hoard fromOmmerschans in the Netherlands, also known for itsoutsize blade in the form of a dirk similar to theexample from Oxborough, Norfolk, currently ondisplay in the British Museum. The Ommerschansrazor also belongs to a type that occurs in Sicily.

Brendan O’Connor

Dear Dr Brück,

PAST 55

How on earth can Italian colleagues have assembledsuch a collection of words (meaning, roughly,instrument with a socket like a cannon) to describethe Bronze Age thing recovered recently off theDevon coast? Surely it is clear what it is and itshould be described accordingly: a potato peeler –sbucciapatate.

Nicholas Thomas

THE 2007 EUROPA LECTURE

The 2007 Europa Lecture took place on May 23 andwas given by Professor Lars Larsson of theUniversity of Lund, in Sweden. IntroducingProfessor Larsson, the President referred to the widerange of his interests and the extraordinary numberof his publications. It is good to know that the textof his lecture will be added to the list and will appearin our Proceedings.

The lecture was on ‘Ritual buildings in prehistoricScandinavia’ and covered an enormous range ofdifferent projects, some of them conducted byProfessor Larsson himself. It began with hisMesolithic cemetery at Skateholm and ended with anextraordinary temple dating from the firstmillennium AD at Uppåkra just outside Lund wherehe is excavating at the moment. The lecture evenfeatured a gold ring found a week earlier.

The lecture covered an enormous period of timefrom the Mesolithic period to the Viking Age anddrew on many revealing examples: the specialisedbuildings associated with Mesolithic graves inScandinavia; the first earthen long barrows to befound in southern Sweden; the timber and stone ‘culthouses’ of the Neolithic and Bronze Age; and the

6 PAST PAST 7

Rim sherd from a Cheshire stony VCP vessel recovered from the pre-Roman cultivation soil

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 8

PAST 9

pagan temple at Gamla Uppsala described by Adamof Bremen in AD 1076. It was with Uppåkra that thelecture concluded, and that is entirely appropriate,for work at this extraordinarily rich site is still inprogress.

Proposing the vote of thanks after an outstandinglecture, Richard Bradley commented, with a certainenvy, on the Scandinavian definition of prehistory,which does not end at the Roman period butcontinues until AD 1000. Few prehistorians couldcarry out research over such a broad field, butProfessor Larsson is one of them. The lecture was aperfect demonstration of his wide range of interests.

EUROPA 2008: A NEWLOCATION, A NEW FORMATAND A MAJOR EVENT

The Society is delighted to announce that the 2008Europa Prize will be awarded to Professor Sir BarryCunliffe of the University of Oxford. Next year willalso mark a significant break with tradition in thatthe accompanying Europa lecture, rather than beingheld in London on a Wednesday evening, will formthe centrepiece of a day-conference on a relatedtheme.

The first of our new annual Europa day-meetingswill be entitled ‘Britons in the Celtic world:contrasting perspectives’. It will draw togetherarchaeologists, geneticists and linguists, featuringtwo speakers from each discipline with ratherdifferent views, before culminating in ProfessorCunliffe’s own lecture, entitled ‘A race apart?Insularity and connectivity’.

The meeting will be held in Oxford on Saturday,May 17, 2008, and we are anticipating a great deal

of interest! Further details will be announced later.The Society’s AGM will also be held on this day,immediately before the presentation of the Europaprize at the start of Barry’s lecture.

We are confident that these new-style Europa day-meetings, taking place in regional locations as well asin the capital, will provide a fitting context for thepresentation of our Society’s most prestigious prize.

PREHISTORIC SOCIETYMEETINGS AND EVENTS 2007-8The programme for next year’s lectures andmeetings is coming together. We have decided tomake a few changes - more day conferences, fewerevents in London, more collaborative lectures.Details of a number of events have yet to befinalised and all details will be posted on ourwebsite, together with contact details and bookingforms as applicable, as soon as they becomeavailable. We are also planning some one-day fieldvisits to ‘live’ projects but these may be organisedat fairly short notice and will be very much on afirst-come-first-served basis, so for all events dokeep checking the website. Booking forms will beincluded in later editions of PAST.

Members, please note that the loss of our office inLondon also resulted in the loss of our phonethough the postal address remains. If you do nothave easy access to the website you can also contactJulie Gardiner about obtaining details of events(events inquiries only please!) on 01722 343413who will pass your inquiry to Tessa. All meetingsmarked with * are free to members (£3 on the doorfor non-members). Just turn up on the day! Allother meetings must be pre-booked via the contactsgiven. Please book early to avoid disappointment.

2007

Thurs. 11th Oct. 1-5pmField tripVenue: Cissbury, SussexThe Archaeology of Cissbury and Chactonbury:guided walk, led by David McOmishJoint Prehistoric Society/Sussex ArchaeologicalSocietyPrice: £3. Places are limited and must be booked inadvance. Cheques should made be payable to‘Sussex Past’, and sent to Lorna Gartside, SussexArchaeological Society, Barbican House, 169 HighStreet, Lewes BN7 1YE.

Weds. 10th Oct. 7.30pmLecture: EdinburghVenue TBC'Forgotten sites and elusive images: prehistoric rockcarvings of southern Scandinavia'*,

8 PAST

Prof. John ColesJoint Prehistoric Society/Society of Antiquaries ofScotland

Thurs. 11th Oct. 7.30pmLecture: AberdeenVenue TBC'Forgotten sites and elusive images: prehistoric rockcarvings of southern Scandinavia'*, John ColesJoint Prehistoric Society/ Society of Antiquaries ofScotland

Weds. 24th Oct. 5pmLecture: LondonSociety of Antiquaries, Burlington House, PiccadillyThe seventh Sara Champion Memorial Lecture: ‘Acrystal world from weeping stone: considering therelationships between Neolithic cave art andmonument construction on Mendip’*, Dr JodieLewis

Dec. TBCDay conference:Venue TBCResearch Strategy for PrehistoryA day of papers to launch English Heritage’sResearch Strategy for PrehistoryJoint seminar Prehistoric Society/English Heritage

2008

Sat. 12th Jan.Lecture: NorwichVenue TBCTitle to follow*, Speaker to followJoint Prehistoric Society/Norfolk & NorwichArchaeological Society

Jan. TBCLecture: ExeterVenue TBCTitle to follow*, Speaker to followJoint Prehistoric Society/Devon ArchaeologicalSociety

Sat. 2nd Feb.Day conference: LondonSociety of Antiquaries, Burlington house, Piccadilly‘The view from above, the view from below:surveying the prehistoric landscapes of England’A review of how major large-scale aerialphotographic mapping, ground survey andgeophysical prospection is revolutionising ourunderstanding of prehistoric landscapes.Price: £30 inc tea & coffee

Sat. 9th Feb. 2pmLecture: LewesSt Thomas a Becket church hall, Cliffe High St, Lewes

‘Visions of power and virtue: making the significantdead in Early Bronze Age Britain’, Dr Paul GarwoodJoint Prehistoric Society/Sussex ArchaeologicalSocietyPrice: £2. Places must be booked in advance.Cheques should made be payable to ‘Sussex Past’,and sent to Lorna Gartside, Sussex ArchaeologicalSociety, Barbican House, 169 High Street, LewesBN7 1YE.

Fri. 18th-Sun. 20th AprilConference: BournemouthVenue: Bournemouth University‘The British Chalcolithic’A major conference on the Neolithic-Bronze Agetransition - not just Beakers! Joint Prehistoric Society/Bournemouth UniversityArchaeology & History Group

Sat. 17th MayDay conference and Europa Lecture: OxfordVenue: TBC‘Britons in the Celtic world: contrastingperspectives’ followed by the 17th Europa Lecture:Prof. Barry Cunliffe ‘A race apart? insularity &connectivity’*NB There will be a fee for the conference (TBC) butthe Europa Lecture will be free to members; £3 tonon-members

Fri. 23rd-Sun. 25th MayStudy Weekend:Venue: Dillington House, Ilminster, SomersetIron Age or Celtic Britain?Picking up on the theme of the Europa conference.Lectures on Friday and Saturday followed by a fieldtrip on Sunday. For details please contact Wayne Bennett,Dillington House, Ilminster TA19 7DZ. Tel: 0146052427, email: dillington@somerset.gov.uk

June TBCBritish Study Tour:Venue: TBCWe are exploring possibilities, most likely for a tripto several of the Hebridean isles (subject toavailability of suitable accommodation) - details tofollow

Fri. 15th-Sun. 17th AugBudget study weekend:Venue: Based in BathPrehistory of MendipFollowing the success of our day visit fromDillington and the Sara Champion lecture, wepropose a ‘budget’ weekend based at Bath YHAexploring the prehistoric landscape of Mendip, ledby Dr Jodie Lewis.

Professor Larsson (right) with the President

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 10

PAST 9

pagan temple at Gamla Uppsala described by Adamof Bremen in AD 1076. It was with Uppåkra that thelecture concluded, and that is entirely appropriate,for work at this extraordinarily rich site is still inprogress.

Proposing the vote of thanks after an outstandinglecture, Richard Bradley commented, with a certainenvy, on the Scandinavian definition of prehistory,which does not end at the Roman period butcontinues until AD 1000. Few prehistorians couldcarry out research over such a broad field, butProfessor Larsson is one of them. The lecture was aperfect demonstration of his wide range of interests.

EUROPA 2008: A NEWLOCATION, A NEW FORMATAND A MAJOR EVENT

The Society is delighted to announce that the 2008Europa Prize will be awarded to Professor Sir BarryCunliffe of the University of Oxford. Next year willalso mark a significant break with tradition in thatthe accompanying Europa lecture, rather than beingheld in London on a Wednesday evening, will formthe centrepiece of a day-conference on a relatedtheme.

The first of our new annual Europa day-meetingswill be entitled ‘Britons in the Celtic world:contrasting perspectives’. It will draw togetherarchaeologists, geneticists and linguists, featuringtwo speakers from each discipline with ratherdifferent views, before culminating in ProfessorCunliffe’s own lecture, entitled ‘A race apart?Insularity and connectivity’.

The meeting will be held in Oxford on Saturday,May 17, 2008, and we are anticipating a great deal

of interest! Further details will be announced later.The Society’s AGM will also be held on this day,immediately before the presentation of the Europaprize at the start of Barry’s lecture.

We are confident that these new-style Europa day-meetings, taking place in regional locations as well asin the capital, will provide a fitting context for thepresentation of our Society’s most prestigious prize.

PREHISTORIC SOCIETYMEETINGS AND EVENTS 2007-8The programme for next year’s lectures andmeetings is coming together. We have decided tomake a few changes - more day conferences, fewerevents in London, more collaborative lectures.Details of a number of events have yet to befinalised and all details will be posted on ourwebsite, together with contact details and bookingforms as applicable, as soon as they becomeavailable. We are also planning some one-day fieldvisits to ‘live’ projects but these may be organisedat fairly short notice and will be very much on afirst-come-first-served basis, so for all events dokeep checking the website. Booking forms will beincluded in later editions of PAST.

Members, please note that the loss of our office inLondon also resulted in the loss of our phonethough the postal address remains. If you do nothave easy access to the website you can also contactJulie Gardiner about obtaining details of events(events inquiries only please!) on 01722 343413who will pass your inquiry to Tessa. All meetingsmarked with * are free to members (£3 on the doorfor non-members). Just turn up on the day! Allother meetings must be pre-booked via the contactsgiven. Please book early to avoid disappointment.

2007

Thurs. 11th Oct. 1-5pmField tripVenue: Cissbury, SussexThe Archaeology of Cissbury and Chactonbury:guided walk, led by David McOmishJoint Prehistoric Society/Sussex ArchaeologicalSocietyPrice: £3. Places are limited and must be booked inadvance. Cheques should made be payable to‘Sussex Past’, and sent to Lorna Gartside, SussexArchaeological Society, Barbican House, 169 HighStreet, Lewes BN7 1YE.

Weds. 10th Oct. 7.30pmLecture: EdinburghVenue TBC'Forgotten sites and elusive images: prehistoric rockcarvings of southern Scandinavia'*,

8 PAST

Prof. John ColesJoint Prehistoric Society/Society of Antiquaries ofScotland

Thurs. 11th Oct. 7.30pmLecture: AberdeenVenue TBC'Forgotten sites and elusive images: prehistoric rockcarvings of southern Scandinavia'*, John ColesJoint Prehistoric Society/ Society of Antiquaries ofScotland

Weds. 24th Oct. 5pmLecture: LondonSociety of Antiquaries, Burlington House, PiccadillyThe seventh Sara Champion Memorial Lecture: ‘Acrystal world from weeping stone: considering therelationships between Neolithic cave art andmonument construction on Mendip’*, Dr JodieLewis

Dec. TBCDay conference:Venue TBCResearch Strategy for PrehistoryA day of papers to launch English Heritage’sResearch Strategy for PrehistoryJoint seminar Prehistoric Society/English Heritage

2008

Sat. 12th Jan.Lecture: NorwichVenue TBCTitle to follow*, Speaker to followJoint Prehistoric Society/Norfolk & NorwichArchaeological Society

Jan. TBCLecture: ExeterVenue TBCTitle to follow*, Speaker to followJoint Prehistoric Society/Devon ArchaeologicalSociety

Sat. 2nd Feb.Day conference: LondonSociety of Antiquaries, Burlington house, Piccadilly‘The view from above, the view from below:surveying the prehistoric landscapes of England’A review of how major large-scale aerialphotographic mapping, ground survey andgeophysical prospection is revolutionising ourunderstanding of prehistoric landscapes.Price: £30 inc tea & coffee

Sat. 9th Feb. 2pmLecture: LewesSt Thomas a Becket church hall, Cliffe High St, Lewes

‘Visions of power and virtue: making the significantdead in Early Bronze Age Britain’, Dr Paul GarwoodJoint Prehistoric Society/Sussex ArchaeologicalSocietyPrice: £2. Places must be booked in advance.Cheques should made be payable to ‘Sussex Past’,and sent to Lorna Gartside, Sussex ArchaeologicalSociety, Barbican House, 169 High Street, LewesBN7 1YE.

Fri. 18th-Sun. 20th AprilConference: BournemouthVenue: Bournemouth University‘The British Chalcolithic’A major conference on the Neolithic-Bronze Agetransition - not just Beakers! Joint Prehistoric Society/Bournemouth UniversityArchaeology & History Group

Sat. 17th MayDay conference and Europa Lecture: OxfordVenue: TBC‘Britons in the Celtic world: contrastingperspectives’ followed by the 17th Europa Lecture:Prof. Barry Cunliffe ‘A race apart? insularity &connectivity’*NB There will be a fee for the conference (TBC) butthe Europa Lecture will be free to members; £3 tonon-members

Fri. 23rd-Sun. 25th MayStudy Weekend:Venue: Dillington House, Ilminster, SomersetIron Age or Celtic Britain?Picking up on the theme of the Europa conference.Lectures on Friday and Saturday followed by a fieldtrip on Sunday. For details please contact Wayne Bennett,Dillington House, Ilminster TA19 7DZ. Tel: 0146052427, email: dillington@somerset.gov.uk

June TBCBritish Study Tour:Venue: TBCWe are exploring possibilities, most likely for a tripto several of the Hebridean isles (subject toavailability of suitable accommodation) - details tofollow

Fri. 15th-Sun. 17th AugBudget study weekend:Venue: Based in BathPrehistory of MendipFollowing the success of our day visit fromDillington and the Sara Champion lecture, wepropose a ‘budget’ weekend based at Bath YHAexploring the prehistoric landscape of Mendip, ledby Dr Jodie Lewis.

Professor Larsson (right) with the President

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 10

AMS radiocarbon assayDating was undertaken by Dr Gordon Cook andPhilip Naysmith of the Scottish UniversityEnvironmental Research Council (SUERC)radiocarbon laboratory. The process requiredchemical pre-treatment of the shaft, which had beenpreserved by the finder in cooking oil, to remove alltraces of contamination.

On typological grounds alone, the bronze spearheaddates to the Penard phase (Period 5) of the BronzeAge. This period equates to the Middle Bronze Age,1300-1150 cal. BC. However, radiocarbon assay ofthe wooden shaft produced a date in the range 1080-890 cal. BC. This corresponds to theWilburton/Blackmoor/Ewart Park phases (Period6/7) and the transition from the Middle to the LateBronze Age. The difference between the dates for the

bronze spearhead, and that for its shaft, suggests thatthe spear was in circulation for a period of between70 and 410 years before being deposited, perhaps aspart of a ritual ceremony, at Priest Hutton. Thislength of use, although apparently long, correspondsto similar use-lives found in hoarded objectselsewhere in Lancashire.

Taking data from seven hoards for which thetypology of the contents could be determined, it waspossible to assess the age range of the contents (seegraph). In the case of the Winmarleigh hoard, foundat Pilling Moss, the oldest objects were also pegged,socketed, leaf-shaped spearheads, similar to the onefound at Priest Hutton, and also dating to the Penardphase on typological grounds. The youngest objectsin the hoard, for example the Yorkshire-typesocketed axes, date to the Ewart Park phase of theLate Bronze Age (Period 7, 1000-800 cal. BC). Thusthe oldest objects in the hoard were between 150-500 years old at the time they were deposited in themoss. Although the dating is approximate, it is clearthat, even using the most conservative estimate ofage, the oldest object must have passed throughseveral generations before it was deposited. Similarlylengthy periods of circulation were found amongstobjects deposited in hoards at Congleton, BeestonCastle and in the River Ribble.

Support for the hypothesis that objects circulatedover long periods of time prior to deposition isprovided by analysis of use-wear. Repeatedresharpening of the edges of objects has been notedelsewhere in the European Bronze Age. InLancashire, a number of instances of resharpeningcan be identified in spears. Objects can also bemodified: Bridgeford cites an example of a swordthat ended up as a dagger. In the area surroundingMorecambe Bay, I have identified a Group II dirk ofActon Park phase (Period 5), the butt of which hasbeen reworked into a broad tang and then drilledwith a secondary hole for re-hafting. With eachevent, the artefact acquired additional meaningimbuing it with individual character, so that we canbegin to think of these objects as having‘biographies’.

Interpretation: The consumption of metalworkduring the Bronze AgeThe deposition of the Priest Hutton spear in the LateBronze Age came after a long period during which it,

PAST 1110 PAST

Oct. TBCWeekend study tour:North WalesThe 4th student study tour

Weds. 29th Oct.Lecture:Venue: TBC8th Sara Champion Memorial Lecture* TBCNB may be outside London

Dec. TBCConference: LondonVenue: Geological Society, Burlington House,PiccadillyCoastal erosion and prehistoryA major conference exploring the effects of globalwarming and coastal erosion on the prehistoricarchaeology of the UK. Joint Prehistorc Society/Geological Society meeting,subject to agreement and confirmation

In the planning stages: budget study tour: Isle ofWight; field trip and lecture: Cresswell Crags; fieldtrip: Silbury Hill; day conference: recentdevelopments in Palaeolithic archaeology, theimpact of Aggregates Levy funding; day conference:cave archaeology - what’s new?; day conference:environmental techniques: recent applications forinterpreting archaeology; day conference:Prehistoric London reviewed; conference:archaeology & astronomy

DATING A PEGGED, SOCKETED,LEAF-BLADE SPEARHEAD FROMLANCASHIRE: SOMEIMPLICATIONS FOR THEREGION’S BRONZE AGE

IntroductionBronze weapons and tools are a definingcharacteristic of the Bronze Age period. Althoughmuch energy has been invested in their descriptionand categorisation, from which relative typologicalchronologies have been constructed, we still knowcomparatively little about their precise absolutedating. The problem is that metal is not conducive toradiocarbon dating methods, which require organicmaterial for analysis. A rare exception to this ruleoccurs where metalwork is found still attached towooden shafts or handles. In those cases, it ispossible to use the technique of Accelerator MassSpectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon assay to determinedates for the wood, from which dates for theattached metalwork may be inferred.

This paper reports on the results of an analysis of awooden spearshaft found partially intact by metal

detectorist, Mr Matt Hepworth. Thanks to hisforesight, he had retained both bronze spear andwooden shaft, making possible their detailed study.The spear and its shaft were found at Priest Hutton,Carnforth, Lancashire (OS ref SD 5260 7450, c. 40m HOD).

Description of the spear and spear shaftThe find is of a pegged, socketed, leaf-bladespearhead with single midrib. The spear measures175mm long, 40mm wide (across the blade) and is23mm thick. It is generally in good condition. Thereis slight wear and some damage to the blade edge.Such damage has been widely reported in bronzespears and is associated with use in the prehistoricperiod. It is likely that the tip to the spear, which ismissing, was similarly lost during use. The artefacthas a dark brown patina, with areas of green wherecorroded.

The spear came to light with a portion of thewooden shaft in situ. Prior to radio carbon assay,which is a destructive process, the shaft was drawn.What was most significant was that the shaft,although in a state of decay, still retained evidence ofa hole drilled through it in order to accommodate thepeg which would have secured it to the spear, thusconfirming the link between the two artefacts.Analysis of the wooden shaft, undertaken by DrJennifer Miller of Glasgow UniversityArchaeological Research Department, confirmed theauthor’s initial interpretation that the shaft wasmade of Fraxinus sp. (ash).

The Priest Hutton spear. Type: pegged, socketed, leaf-shaped bladewith single midrib. Note the missing tip and damage to the blade

edge, possibly due to prehistoric use.

The surviving wooden spearshaft. The shaft is made of ash and wasfound inside the socket of the bronze spear. A hole had been drilled

through the shaft, seen most clearly in the centre illustration, toaccommodate the peg that would have passed through the hole in

the spearhead to secure it to the shaft.

Length of circulation of metalwork prior to deposition in hoards.Number of artefacts examined = 46.

Dirk, modified for rehafting. Found at Foulshaw/Helsington PeatMoss, Cumbria. Kendal Museum KMA 1979.28

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 12

AMS radiocarbon assayDating was undertaken by Dr Gordon Cook andPhilip Naysmith of the Scottish UniversityEnvironmental Research Council (SUERC)radiocarbon laboratory. The process requiredchemical pre-treatment of the shaft, which had beenpreserved by the finder in cooking oil, to remove alltraces of contamination.

On typological grounds alone, the bronze spearheaddates to the Penard phase (Period 5) of the BronzeAge. This period equates to the Middle Bronze Age,1300-1150 cal. BC. However, radiocarbon assay ofthe wooden shaft produced a date in the range 1080-890 cal. BC. This corresponds to theWilburton/Blackmoor/Ewart Park phases (Period6/7) and the transition from the Middle to the LateBronze Age. The difference between the dates for the

bronze spearhead, and that for its shaft, suggests thatthe spear was in circulation for a period of between70 and 410 years before being deposited, perhaps aspart of a ritual ceremony, at Priest Hutton. Thislength of use, although apparently long, correspondsto similar use-lives found in hoarded objectselsewhere in Lancashire.

Taking data from seven hoards for which thetypology of the contents could be determined, it waspossible to assess the age range of the contents (seegraph). In the case of the Winmarleigh hoard, foundat Pilling Moss, the oldest objects were also pegged,socketed, leaf-shaped spearheads, similar to the onefound at Priest Hutton, and also dating to the Penardphase on typological grounds. The youngest objectsin the hoard, for example the Yorkshire-typesocketed axes, date to the Ewart Park phase of theLate Bronze Age (Period 7, 1000-800 cal. BC). Thusthe oldest objects in the hoard were between 150-500 years old at the time they were deposited in themoss. Although the dating is approximate, it is clearthat, even using the most conservative estimate ofage, the oldest object must have passed throughseveral generations before it was deposited. Similarlylengthy periods of circulation were found amongstobjects deposited in hoards at Congleton, BeestonCastle and in the River Ribble.

Support for the hypothesis that objects circulatedover long periods of time prior to deposition isprovided by analysis of use-wear. Repeatedresharpening of the edges of objects has been notedelsewhere in the European Bronze Age. InLancashire, a number of instances of resharpeningcan be identified in spears. Objects can also bemodified: Bridgeford cites an example of a swordthat ended up as a dagger. In the area surroundingMorecambe Bay, I have identified a Group II dirk ofActon Park phase (Period 5), the butt of which hasbeen reworked into a broad tang and then drilledwith a secondary hole for re-hafting. With eachevent, the artefact acquired additional meaningimbuing it with individual character, so that we canbegin to think of these objects as having‘biographies’.

Interpretation: The consumption of metalworkduring the Bronze AgeThe deposition of the Priest Hutton spear in the LateBronze Age came after a long period during which it,

PAST 1110 PAST

Oct. TBCWeekend study tour:North WalesThe 4th student study tour

Weds. 29th Oct.Lecture:Venue: TBC8th Sara Champion Memorial Lecture* TBCNB may be outside London

Dec. TBCConference: LondonVenue: Geological Society, Burlington House,PiccadillyCoastal erosion and prehistoryA major conference exploring the effects of globalwarming and coastal erosion on the prehistoricarchaeology of the UK. Joint Prehistorc Society/Geological Society meeting,subject to agreement and confirmation

In the planning stages: budget study tour: Isle ofWight; field trip and lecture: Cresswell Crags; fieldtrip: Silbury Hill; day conference: recentdevelopments in Palaeolithic archaeology, theimpact of Aggregates Levy funding; day conference:cave archaeology - what’s new?; day conference:environmental techniques: recent applications forinterpreting archaeology; day conference:Prehistoric London reviewed; conference:archaeology & astronomy

DATING A PEGGED, SOCKETED,LEAF-BLADE SPEARHEAD FROMLANCASHIRE: SOMEIMPLICATIONS FOR THEREGION’S BRONZE AGE

IntroductionBronze weapons and tools are a definingcharacteristic of the Bronze Age period. Althoughmuch energy has been invested in their descriptionand categorisation, from which relative typologicalchronologies have been constructed, we still knowcomparatively little about their precise absolutedating. The problem is that metal is not conducive toradiocarbon dating methods, which require organicmaterial for analysis. A rare exception to this ruleoccurs where metalwork is found still attached towooden shafts or handles. In those cases, it ispossible to use the technique of Accelerator MassSpectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon assay to determinedates for the wood, from which dates for theattached metalwork may be inferred.

This paper reports on the results of an analysis of awooden spearshaft found partially intact by metal

detectorist, Mr Matt Hepworth. Thanks to hisforesight, he had retained both bronze spear andwooden shaft, making possible their detailed study.The spear and its shaft were found at Priest Hutton,Carnforth, Lancashire (OS ref SD 5260 7450, c. 40m HOD).

Description of the spear and spear shaftThe find is of a pegged, socketed, leaf-bladespearhead with single midrib. The spear measures175mm long, 40mm wide (across the blade) and is23mm thick. It is generally in good condition. Thereis slight wear and some damage to the blade edge.Such damage has been widely reported in bronzespears and is associated with use in the prehistoricperiod. It is likely that the tip to the spear, which ismissing, was similarly lost during use. The artefacthas a dark brown patina, with areas of green wherecorroded.

The spear came to light with a portion of thewooden shaft in situ. Prior to radio carbon assay,which is a destructive process, the shaft was drawn.What was most significant was that the shaft,although in a state of decay, still retained evidence ofa hole drilled through it in order to accommodate thepeg which would have secured it to the spear, thusconfirming the link between the two artefacts.Analysis of the wooden shaft, undertaken by DrJennifer Miller of Glasgow UniversityArchaeological Research Department, confirmed theauthor’s initial interpretation that the shaft wasmade of Fraxinus sp. (ash).

The Priest Hutton spear. Type: pegged, socketed, leaf-shaped bladewith single midrib. Note the missing tip and damage to the blade

edge, possibly due to prehistoric use.

The surviving wooden spearshaft. The shaft is made of ash and wasfound inside the socket of the bronze spear. A hole had been drilled

through the shaft, seen most clearly in the centre illustration, toaccommodate the peg that would have passed through the hole in

the spearhead to secure it to the shaft.

Length of circulation of metalwork prior to deposition in hoards.Number of artefacts examined = 46.

Dirk, modified for rehafting. Found at Foulshaw/Helsington PeatMoss, Cumbria. Kendal Museum KMA 1979.28

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 12

PAST 13

southern end of the alignment (at the edge of thegravel-terrace), these cut through a pair of earlierditches that yielded glazed medieval sherds. Indeed,some would consider it distinctly conservative to dubthis pit-alignment ‘post-medieval’ rather than‘modern’.

At first sight, this revelation of a shockingly new pit-alignment in the Trent Valley may seem curious farefor readers of PAST, though it should be obviousenough that such very late dating carries seriousimplications for those prehistorians whose interestslie with landscape studies in the various corners ofBritain where pit-alignments occur, often ascropmarks, undated other than through analogy andpreconception. This will be particularly poignant forstudents of the final millennium BC, the supposedage of many a pit-alignment. And now, in light of thelatest from the Dee Valley, it is perhaps also pertinentto those who study much earlier events. On the otherhand, the relatively wide spacing of those pits inScotland (about 5m can be inferred, as comparedwith an average of 1.5m at Holme Pierrepont)suggests that more than one phenomenon ismasquerading under our ‘pit-alignment’ epithet.

A summary account of the multi-period results fromthis 5-hectare excavation at Holme Pierrepont hasrecently appeared in the county journal,Transactions of the Thoroton Society ofNottinghamshire vol. 110 (2006), pages 15-48.

Graeme Guilbert, Trent & Peak Archaeological Unit

AN INKA ADMINISTRATIVESITE IN THE ANCASHHIGHLANDS, NORTH-CENTRALANDES

During extensive survey and trial trenching in theCordillera Negra of the north-central Ancashhighlands of Peru, we discovered an important LateHorizon (AD 1480-1532) Inka administrative site.The site, known locally as Intiaurán, is located in theChaclancayo Valley. This highland region isecologically categorised as a tundra/sub-Alpine(3500-5100m) zone of steep vertical gradients, smallhighland plains and short narrow ravines fed by fast,seasonally active, high-energy water streams.Historically, this region fell under the sway of the

12 PAST

just like the objects found in bronze hoards, musthave passed through the hands of several owners.Insight into the social significance of these weaponscan be gained from a reading of comparativeethnography which leads one to consider thisbehaviour in terms of ‘consumption’. Consumptionof objects, including metalwork, can be one of thefactors that emphasises similarities and differenceswithin a community: just think of how we regardmotor vehicles in our own society, and how what wedrive - a 4x4, a Rolls Royce or a third hand Ford -determines how we regard others, and how we areregarded by them. In the Bronze Age, ownership ofcertain bronze weapons and associated activities,such as deposition, could become social markersused in group affiliation. Deliberate deposition ofparticular objects suggests that they had specificmeaning; this meaning came about during the life ofthe object. This implies that during its life an objectis likely to undergo transformations of meaning. Inorder to become valuable, and earn the right to beritually deposited, they should fulfil specificexpectations. If they do not fulfil the expectations,and follow the life-path considered appropriate, theymay lose their significance. This is something whichhas been recorded for several ethnographic casestudies on the use of valuables elsewhere in theworld.

In the case of metalwork, it is unclear whetherobjects began their lives as commodities, latertransforming their status to that of valuables, orwhether they existed from the beginning asvaluables. Some even argue against the distinction. Itis likely that bronze objects may have been both giftsand commodities with different spheres of exchangeco-existing. As Mauss has shown, during giftexchange an object is to some extent seen as imbuedwith the presence of the former owner, hence theinalienability of the object. It becomes to an extentpersonified. Godelier has argued that in the case ofvaluables perceived as very special, objects are notonly seen as signalling the presence of formerowners, but of very special persons, and evenancestors or gods.

The transactions themselves are hard to recognisearchaeologically. One way that we may identify theexistence of spheres of exchange is to examineobjects in hoards. Valuables are likely to have passedthrough several hands and to have accumulatedcomplex biographies before being deposited. Theyare therefore likely to have achieved considerable ageand to bear the marks of circulation at the point ofdeposition.

ConclusionThis study highlights the importance of apparentlyinsignificant fragments of wood. Without theforesight of the finder, the wooden shaft may wellhave been discarded and the detailed dating analysis

rendered impossible. The insight offered by theanalysis into the world of the prehistoric inhabitantsof Lancashire is thought-provoking. It suggests thatthere is still much that can be learnt through detailedscientific analysis and the application ofethnographic case studies.

David A. Barrowclough MA PhD, Fellow, WolfsonCollege, Cambridge

CONFERENCE NEWS

9th Annual Conference of the British Association forBiological Anthropology and OsteoarchaeologyDepartment of Archaeology, University of Reading,September 14-16, 2007

This year’s BABAO conference is open to bothmembers and non-members: students, professionalsand the public alike. Papers are invited for inclusionin three themed sessions as well as an ‘open’ sessionin which papers and posters on any topic can bepresented. The titles of the themed sessions are: - Ethical, Scientific and Cultural Issues in the

Repatriation of Human Remains- The Patter of Tiny Feet: the bioarchaeology of

infants and children- Mortuary Matters: the cultural aspects of death

and disposalRegistration details, conference arrangements,session abstracts and guidelines for abstractsubmission are available at www.babao.org.uk.Abstracts for spoken or poster presentations shouldbe sent by email to m.e.lewis@reading.ac.uk. Thedeadline for abstract submission is Wednesday 1stAugust. For any further enquiries please contact: DrMary Lewis (m.e.lewis@reading.ac.uk) at theDepartment of Archaeology, SHES, University ofReading, Whiteknights, PO Box 227, Reading RG12SA. Tel: 0118 8927, Fax: 0118 378 6718.

A SHOCKINGLY NEW PIT-ALIGNMENT ON THE TRENTGRAVELS

PAST 54 brought news of a shockingly old pit-alignment in the Dee Valley of Aberdeenshire,created, it seems, in the 8th millennium BC orthereabouts, having previously been ascribed to theEarly Neolithic (PAST 50). Well, contrasting, andequally startling news has lately come out of theTrent Valley in Nottinghamshire, where excavationahead of gravel-extraction at Holme Pierrepontencountered unambiguous evidence for constructionof a pit-alignment no earlier than the 18th centuryAD - yes, AD. Not only did some of its pits containpotsherds of that century (or possibly the early 19th- anyway residual, not intrusive) but, where the planshows several of the oblong pits coalescing near the

Plan of part of the Holme Pierrepont excavation, showing the pit-alignment running roughly north-south through a palimpsest of features,many of which belonged to successive episodes of historic land-use, from Early Saxon on (just a scatter of pits, but none of the rings or other

ditches, and certainly not the pit-alignment, can be proven prehistoric). The line of hachures marks the southwestern edge of the river-terrace, while the stippled ditches were cut into an adjoining alluvial plain. Scale 1:1000.

Map of survey area

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 14

PAST 13

southern end of the alignment (at the edge of thegravel-terrace), these cut through a pair of earlierditches that yielded glazed medieval sherds. Indeed,some would consider it distinctly conservative to dubthis pit-alignment ‘post-medieval’ rather than‘modern’.

At first sight, this revelation of a shockingly new pit-alignment in the Trent Valley may seem curious farefor readers of PAST, though it should be obviousenough that such very late dating carries seriousimplications for those prehistorians whose interestslie with landscape studies in the various corners ofBritain where pit-alignments occur, often ascropmarks, undated other than through analogy andpreconception. This will be particularly poignant forstudents of the final millennium BC, the supposedage of many a pit-alignment. And now, in light of thelatest from the Dee Valley, it is perhaps also pertinentto those who study much earlier events. On the otherhand, the relatively wide spacing of those pits inScotland (about 5m can be inferred, as comparedwith an average of 1.5m at Holme Pierrepont)suggests that more than one phenomenon ismasquerading under our ‘pit-alignment’ epithet.

A summary account of the multi-period results fromthis 5-hectare excavation at Holme Pierrepont hasrecently appeared in the county journal,Transactions of the Thoroton Society ofNottinghamshire vol. 110 (2006), pages 15-48.

Graeme Guilbert, Trent & Peak Archaeological Unit

AN INKA ADMINISTRATIVESITE IN THE ANCASHHIGHLANDS, NORTH-CENTRALANDES

During extensive survey and trial trenching in theCordillera Negra of the north-central Ancashhighlands of Peru, we discovered an important LateHorizon (AD 1480-1532) Inka administrative site.The site, known locally as Intiaurán, is located in theChaclancayo Valley. This highland region isecologically categorised as a tundra/sub-Alpine(3500-5100m) zone of steep vertical gradients, smallhighland plains and short narrow ravines fed by fast,seasonally active, high-energy water streams.Historically, this region fell under the sway of the

12 PAST

just like the objects found in bronze hoards, musthave passed through the hands of several owners.Insight into the social significance of these weaponscan be gained from a reading of comparativeethnography which leads one to consider thisbehaviour in terms of ‘consumption’. Consumptionof objects, including metalwork, can be one of thefactors that emphasises similarities and differenceswithin a community: just think of how we regardmotor vehicles in our own society, and how what wedrive - a 4x4, a Rolls Royce or a third hand Ford -determines how we regard others, and how we areregarded by them. In the Bronze Age, ownership ofcertain bronze weapons and associated activities,such as deposition, could become social markersused in group affiliation. Deliberate deposition ofparticular objects suggests that they had specificmeaning; this meaning came about during the life ofthe object. This implies that during its life an objectis likely to undergo transformations of meaning. Inorder to become valuable, and earn the right to beritually deposited, they should fulfil specificexpectations. If they do not fulfil the expectations,and follow the life-path considered appropriate, theymay lose their significance. This is something whichhas been recorded for several ethnographic casestudies on the use of valuables elsewhere in theworld.

In the case of metalwork, it is unclear whetherobjects began their lives as commodities, latertransforming their status to that of valuables, orwhether they existed from the beginning asvaluables. Some even argue against the distinction. Itis likely that bronze objects may have been both giftsand commodities with different spheres of exchangeco-existing. As Mauss has shown, during giftexchange an object is to some extent seen as imbuedwith the presence of the former owner, hence theinalienability of the object. It becomes to an extentpersonified. Godelier has argued that in the case ofvaluables perceived as very special, objects are notonly seen as signalling the presence of formerowners, but of very special persons, and evenancestors or gods.

The transactions themselves are hard to recognisearchaeologically. One way that we may identify theexistence of spheres of exchange is to examineobjects in hoards. Valuables are likely to have passedthrough several hands and to have accumulatedcomplex biographies before being deposited. Theyare therefore likely to have achieved considerable ageand to bear the marks of circulation at the point ofdeposition.

ConclusionThis study highlights the importance of apparentlyinsignificant fragments of wood. Without theforesight of the finder, the wooden shaft may wellhave been discarded and the detailed dating analysis

rendered impossible. The insight offered by theanalysis into the world of the prehistoric inhabitantsof Lancashire is thought-provoking. It suggests thatthere is still much that can be learnt through detailedscientific analysis and the application ofethnographic case studies.

David A. Barrowclough MA PhD, Fellow, WolfsonCollege, Cambridge

CONFERENCE NEWS

9th Annual Conference of the British Association forBiological Anthropology and OsteoarchaeologyDepartment of Archaeology, University of Reading,September 14-16, 2007

This year’s BABAO conference is open to bothmembers and non-members: students, professionalsand the public alike. Papers are invited for inclusionin three themed sessions as well as an ‘open’ sessionin which papers and posters on any topic can bepresented. The titles of the themed sessions are: - Ethical, Scientific and Cultural Issues in the

Repatriation of Human Remains- The Patter of Tiny Feet: the bioarchaeology of

infants and children- Mortuary Matters: the cultural aspects of death

and disposalRegistration details, conference arrangements,session abstracts and guidelines for abstractsubmission are available at www.babao.org.uk.Abstracts for spoken or poster presentations shouldbe sent by email to m.e.lewis@reading.ac.uk. Thedeadline for abstract submission is Wednesday 1stAugust. For any further enquiries please contact: DrMary Lewis (m.e.lewis@reading.ac.uk) at theDepartment of Archaeology, SHES, University ofReading, Whiteknights, PO Box 227, Reading RG12SA. Tel: 0118 8927, Fax: 0118 378 6718.

A SHOCKINGLY NEW PIT-ALIGNMENT ON THE TRENTGRAVELS

PAST 54 brought news of a shockingly old pit-alignment in the Dee Valley of Aberdeenshire,created, it seems, in the 8th millennium BC orthereabouts, having previously been ascribed to theEarly Neolithic (PAST 50). Well, contrasting, andequally startling news has lately come out of theTrent Valley in Nottinghamshire, where excavationahead of gravel-extraction at Holme Pierrepontencountered unambiguous evidence for constructionof a pit-alignment no earlier than the 18th centuryAD - yes, AD. Not only did some of its pits containpotsherds of that century (or possibly the early 19th- anyway residual, not intrusive) but, where the planshows several of the oblong pits coalescing near the

Plan of part of the Holme Pierrepont excavation, showing the pit-alignment running roughly north-south through a palimpsest of features,many of which belonged to successive episodes of historic land-use, from Early Saxon on (just a scatter of pits, but none of the rings or other

ditches, and certainly not the pit-alignment, can be proven prehistoric). The line of hachures marks the southwestern edge of the river-terrace, while the stippled ditches were cut into an adjoining alluvial plain. Scale 1:1000.

Map of survey area

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 14

discovered at this site prove that their use andelaboration prevail for much longer than theconservative chronological estimates given toAndean ceramic styles. Either through reuse orcontinued manufacture, ceramics in this areademonstrate an affinity and use that straddle theMiddle Horizon through to the end of the LateIntermediate Period and probably beyond.

A crucial piece of evidence for Inka occupationthough comes from a singular pottery fragment. Thisis a coarse-grained, dark grey-coloured base; thisthick-walled fragment constituted the base of anaríbalo, a typically Inka ceramic form (see photo).The coarse-grained nature of this base and its ratherasymmetrical form suggest that this might well havebeen a provincial Inka copy. It also serves to cementthe site’s association with the Inka; this is furthersupported by a single date obtained from theexcavation calibrated to AD 1545±95. This datecame from a burnt layer associated with the floor ofa residential unit within the excavation. It is possiblethat this layer could be dating a final destructionlevel associated with the abandonment of at least thisstructure if not the site. The large amount of brokenceramics associated with the floor level and the burntlayer would seem to support this supposition.

To conclude, all the evidence from the site ofIntiaurán indicates a pattern of use that stretchedfrom an indigenous Middle Horizon through to theestablishment of a Late Horizon Inka administrativecentre. In the Spanish Colonial Period, there aresuggestions of an abrupt abandonment of the site. Assuch, the site serves to fill an important gap in ourunderstanding of Inka colonial strategy in the north-central Andean region. Continuing surveys andexcavations planned for this year will advance ourknowledge of community organisation, subsistencestrategies and importantly Prehispanic hydraulictechnology in the area.

Kevin Lane, University of ManchesterGabriela Contreras Ampuero, Universidad NacionalMayor de San Marcos, Peru

DECORATION ON THENEOLITHIC PAINTED VESSELSFROM THE REPUBLIC OFMACEDONIA

The Republic of Macedonia is known as a regionwhere the process of Neolithization was highlyactive and from which it was dispersed through thenorthern part of the Balkans. Numerous excavationsfrom the last six decades have shown thatNeolithization in this area was the result of a long-

range process which gradually penetrated fromAnatolia, via Greece, into the Republic ofMacedonia. Associated changes across variouscategories of material culture include the appearanceof decorated ceramic vessels.

This research aims to assess the extent to whichelements of visual similarity in ceramic decorationindicate the spread of the Neolithic from Anatolia toMacedonia, and also to examine how localtraditions of pottery production which graduallydeveloped their own individual character werecreated. For this purpose, detailed analysis wascarried out on the decorative motifs present on thepainted vessels from the Early and Middle Neolithicfound on recent excavations from the northern andeastern part of the Republic of Macedonia. A largenumber of vessels and fragments were examined,providing information on the ornamentation and thedevelopment of motifs and compositional systemsused in the Neolithic as a means of visualidentification and communication.

The beginning of the Neolithic in the Republic ofMacedonia is currently dated to the middle of theseventh millennium BC, and even in its earliestphases painted vessels were present. In the earliestperiod, almost throughout the entire region, vesselswere painted with white decoration similar to thatfrom Thessaly in Greece. However, vessels whichemploy motifs known from the Neolithic of Anatoliaare also known, demonstrating the remarkablechronological and geographical range over whichaspects of material culture could be transmitted.These ceramics do not have a direct analogy with theEarly Neolithic painted vessels from Anatolia, butinstead bear remarkable similarities with motifspresent on wall paintings and reliefs, and alsoengraved on stamp seals and figurines in the latterregion. Particular similarities can be identified withiconography found inside the buildings at ÇatalHüyük, where painting was almost entirelyconcentrated on the walls of buildings rather than on

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Inka Empire during the late fifteenth century AD,becoming part of the Huaylas province.

The Inka site of Intiaurán was probably anadministrative site created to consolidate imperialcontrol across an important transit zone linking thecoast with the fertile Santa Valley to the east. Untilnow, this region of the northern and north-centralAndes has very few verifiable Inka sites and norecognised administrative centres along the whole ofthe Cordillera Negra. The nearest known Inkaadministrative site is along the coast, this beingChiquitoy Viejo located in the northern ChicamaValley at a distance of over 150km. Towards thewest, in the Santa Valley, apart from another possiblesmall Inka administrative site in the lower southernhalf of the valley at Pueblo Viejo, there are again fewindications of imperial Inka installations. Given thatit is very probable that a lateral Inka road existedlinking the coast to the highlands, it is conceivablethat the newly discovered site of Intiaurán was themain conduit for this route suggesting an importantthoroughfare here across this coastal cordillera.

Intiaurán’s identification as an Inka administrativecentre is undisputed. The site is located at thetransitional agriculture-herding boundary set at3900 to 4100m and is divided into two discreteareas, one to the east and the other to the west. Atthe centre of each of these areas were two welldefined Inka kallankas (administrative buildings),facing in each instance an open area or plaza. Whilethe western kallanka faced an area of agricultural orhabitational terracing that included a large naturalrock that might have acted as an ushnu (ritualplatform or dais) situated in the centre of the plaza,the eastern kallanka was built opposite a series oflow rectangular-shaped walls. Without further studyit is impossible to define the function of theserectangular spaces, although they could conceivablybe corrals used to amass animals either as part ofritual, annual shearing, transport or tribute.

Intiaurán was also the site of convergence of twoclearly defined roads, one coming up from the coastand another heading north-west in the direction ofthe adjacent northern valley of Jimbe. Although thecoastal road skirted the lower kallanka, it met theother road at the upper plaza. Both roads wereclearly marked and had well defined stone steps anda kerb; both of these are well known Inkaarchitectural road-building features.

The coastal road was serviced by two chasquiwasis(Inka runner way-stations) located at the middle ofthe site between the upper and lower plazas. Thelack of identifiable qollqas (storage houses) suggestseither that storage was located in individual housesor, as befits an agro-pastoral economy, storage wasconducted ‘on the hoof’ (in the Andes this would

actually be ‘on the pad’ in consideration of camelidanatomy). The low rectangular enclosures, orpossible corrals, associated with the upper plaza andkallanka would seem to suggest the latter type ofstorage. A series of small (c.1m x 1m), roughlyrectangular enclosures located between the two mainareas of the site and running parallel to the RicoRiver might also be the remains of stone-linedterraced pools used for the production of chuño(freeze dried potatoes used as food). A mixture ofrectangular-, oval- and round-shaped buildings inIntiaurán indicated both an initial local andsubsequent Inka occupation of the site.

The ceramic material recovered was particularlycrucial in providing an important relativechronology for the dating of Intiaurán supportingthe interpretation of the radiocarbon date collectedfrom the excavation. Trial-trenching at Intiauránuncovered two fragments of Akillpo-style ceramics;this places the site within the context of the localindigenous Late Intermediate Period (AD 1000-1480). A third fragment was indicative of coastalCasma Incised Ware and again suggests a LateIntermediate Period date.

The rest of the assemblage was more varied. The useof a recurved neck for a large jar or olla suggests alate Middle Horizon (AD 600-1000) date, althoughthe use of recurved vessels extends well beyond thishorizon itself. An important discovery was that of afine-pasted, pale orange ceramic fragment with ablack-orange geometric design. This geometricdesign shares close parallels with vessels ascribed tothe Middle Horizon Nepeña Black-White-Red Style;the design and composition of the paste suggest aMiddle Horizon date for the ceramic, perhaps a localhighland variation of the coastal polychrome Black-White-Red Style, which still remains ill-defined.Similarly, other decorated fragments are reminiscentof late Middle Horizon decorative techniques.

The identification of Middle Horizon ceramicsassociated stratigraphically with Late IntermediatePeriod ceramics is significant in that it demonstratesthe conservative nature of indigenous cultures andtheir ceramic forms. The Middle Horizon ceramics

14 PAST

Base of Inka-style aríbalo from excavation at Intiuarán

Early Neolithic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia:Amzabegovo: 1-3; Velushka Tumba: 4, 6; Porodin: 5

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 16

discovered at this site prove that their use andelaboration prevail for much longer than theconservative chronological estimates given toAndean ceramic styles. Either through reuse orcontinued manufacture, ceramics in this areademonstrate an affinity and use that straddle theMiddle Horizon through to the end of the LateIntermediate Period and probably beyond.

A crucial piece of evidence for Inka occupationthough comes from a singular pottery fragment. Thisis a coarse-grained, dark grey-coloured base; thisthick-walled fragment constituted the base of anaríbalo, a typically Inka ceramic form (see photo).The coarse-grained nature of this base and its ratherasymmetrical form suggest that this might well havebeen a provincial Inka copy. It also serves to cementthe site’s association with the Inka; this is furthersupported by a single date obtained from theexcavation calibrated to AD 1545±95. This datecame from a burnt layer associated with the floor ofa residential unit within the excavation. It is possiblethat this layer could be dating a final destructionlevel associated with the abandonment of at least thisstructure if not the site. The large amount of brokenceramics associated with the floor level and the burntlayer would seem to support this supposition.

To conclude, all the evidence from the site ofIntiaurán indicates a pattern of use that stretchedfrom an indigenous Middle Horizon through to theestablishment of a Late Horizon Inka administrativecentre. In the Spanish Colonial Period, there aresuggestions of an abrupt abandonment of the site. Assuch, the site serves to fill an important gap in ourunderstanding of Inka colonial strategy in the north-central Andean region. Continuing surveys andexcavations planned for this year will advance ourknowledge of community organisation, subsistencestrategies and importantly Prehispanic hydraulictechnology in the area.

Kevin Lane, University of ManchesterGabriela Contreras Ampuero, Universidad NacionalMayor de San Marcos, Peru

DECORATION ON THENEOLITHIC PAINTED VESSELSFROM THE REPUBLIC OFMACEDONIA

The Republic of Macedonia is known as a regionwhere the process of Neolithization was highlyactive and from which it was dispersed through thenorthern part of the Balkans. Numerous excavationsfrom the last six decades have shown thatNeolithization in this area was the result of a long-

range process which gradually penetrated fromAnatolia, via Greece, into the Republic ofMacedonia. Associated changes across variouscategories of material culture include the appearanceof decorated ceramic vessels.

This research aims to assess the extent to whichelements of visual similarity in ceramic decorationindicate the spread of the Neolithic from Anatolia toMacedonia, and also to examine how localtraditions of pottery production which graduallydeveloped their own individual character werecreated. For this purpose, detailed analysis wascarried out on the decorative motifs present on thepainted vessels from the Early and Middle Neolithicfound on recent excavations from the northern andeastern part of the Republic of Macedonia. A largenumber of vessels and fragments were examined,providing information on the ornamentation and thedevelopment of motifs and compositional systemsused in the Neolithic as a means of visualidentification and communication.

The beginning of the Neolithic in the Republic ofMacedonia is currently dated to the middle of theseventh millennium BC, and even in its earliestphases painted vessels were present. In the earliestperiod, almost throughout the entire region, vesselswere painted with white decoration similar to thatfrom Thessaly in Greece. However, vessels whichemploy motifs known from the Neolithic of Anatoliaare also known, demonstrating the remarkablechronological and geographical range over whichaspects of material culture could be transmitted.These ceramics do not have a direct analogy with theEarly Neolithic painted vessels from Anatolia, butinstead bear remarkable similarities with motifspresent on wall paintings and reliefs, and alsoengraved on stamp seals and figurines in the latterregion. Particular similarities can be identified withiconography found inside the buildings at ÇatalHüyük, where painting was almost entirelyconcentrated on the walls of buildings rather than on

PAST 15

Inka Empire during the late fifteenth century AD,becoming part of the Huaylas province.

The Inka site of Intiaurán was probably anadministrative site created to consolidate imperialcontrol across an important transit zone linking thecoast with the fertile Santa Valley to the east. Untilnow, this region of the northern and north-centralAndes has very few verifiable Inka sites and norecognised administrative centres along the whole ofthe Cordillera Negra. The nearest known Inkaadministrative site is along the coast, this beingChiquitoy Viejo located in the northern ChicamaValley at a distance of over 150km. Towards thewest, in the Santa Valley, apart from another possiblesmall Inka administrative site in the lower southernhalf of the valley at Pueblo Viejo, there are again fewindications of imperial Inka installations. Given thatit is very probable that a lateral Inka road existedlinking the coast to the highlands, it is conceivablethat the newly discovered site of Intiaurán was themain conduit for this route suggesting an importantthoroughfare here across this coastal cordillera.

Intiaurán’s identification as an Inka administrativecentre is undisputed. The site is located at thetransitional agriculture-herding boundary set at3900 to 4100m and is divided into two discreteareas, one to the east and the other to the west. Atthe centre of each of these areas were two welldefined Inka kallankas (administrative buildings),facing in each instance an open area or plaza. Whilethe western kallanka faced an area of agricultural orhabitational terracing that included a large naturalrock that might have acted as an ushnu (ritualplatform or dais) situated in the centre of the plaza,the eastern kallanka was built opposite a series oflow rectangular-shaped walls. Without further studyit is impossible to define the function of theserectangular spaces, although they could conceivablybe corrals used to amass animals either as part ofritual, annual shearing, transport or tribute.

Intiaurán was also the site of convergence of twoclearly defined roads, one coming up from the coastand another heading north-west in the direction ofthe adjacent northern valley of Jimbe. Although thecoastal road skirted the lower kallanka, it met theother road at the upper plaza. Both roads wereclearly marked and had well defined stone steps anda kerb; both of these are well known Inkaarchitectural road-building features.

The coastal road was serviced by two chasquiwasis(Inka runner way-stations) located at the middle ofthe site between the upper and lower plazas. Thelack of identifiable qollqas (storage houses) suggestseither that storage was located in individual housesor, as befits an agro-pastoral economy, storage wasconducted ‘on the hoof’ (in the Andes this would

actually be ‘on the pad’ in consideration of camelidanatomy). The low rectangular enclosures, orpossible corrals, associated with the upper plaza andkallanka would seem to suggest the latter type ofstorage. A series of small (c.1m x 1m), roughlyrectangular enclosures located between the two mainareas of the site and running parallel to the RicoRiver might also be the remains of stone-linedterraced pools used for the production of chuño(freeze dried potatoes used as food). A mixture ofrectangular-, oval- and round-shaped buildings inIntiaurán indicated both an initial local andsubsequent Inka occupation of the site.

The ceramic material recovered was particularlycrucial in providing an important relativechronology for the dating of Intiaurán supportingthe interpretation of the radiocarbon date collectedfrom the excavation. Trial-trenching at Intiauránuncovered two fragments of Akillpo-style ceramics;this places the site within the context of the localindigenous Late Intermediate Period (AD 1000-1480). A third fragment was indicative of coastalCasma Incised Ware and again suggests a LateIntermediate Period date.

The rest of the assemblage was more varied. The useof a recurved neck for a large jar or olla suggests alate Middle Horizon (AD 600-1000) date, althoughthe use of recurved vessels extends well beyond thishorizon itself. An important discovery was that of afine-pasted, pale orange ceramic fragment with ablack-orange geometric design. This geometricdesign shares close parallels with vessels ascribed tothe Middle Horizon Nepeña Black-White-Red Style;the design and composition of the paste suggest aMiddle Horizon date for the ceramic, perhaps a localhighland variation of the coastal polychrome Black-White-Red Style, which still remains ill-defined.Similarly, other decorated fragments are reminiscentof late Middle Horizon decorative techniques.

The identification of Middle Horizon ceramicsassociated stratigraphically with Late IntermediatePeriod ceramics is significant in that it demonstratesthe conservative nature of indigenous cultures andtheir ceramic forms. The Middle Horizon ceramics

14 PAST

Base of Inka-style aríbalo from excavation at Intiuarán

Early Neolithic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia:Amzabegovo: 1-3; Velushka Tumba: 4, 6; Porodin: 5

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 16

PAST 1

THE PETROGLYPHS OFTAMGALY, KAZAKHSTAN

As a result of the interest shown in the article on the‘deer stones’ of Mongolia, published in PAST 54, Ioffer some information on a fascinating rock art sitein Kazakhstan that is also the site of an excavated‘deer stone’.

Rock art exists throughout the varied landscape ofKazakhstan, certain concentrations of known sitesextending into neighbouring countries. Thepetroglyphs have a wide date range from the latethird millennium BC to the recent past, but eachperiod has its own style. Such is the internationalinterest in the central Asian sites that a number ofcollaborative teams of local and foreignarchaeologists have been working concertedly inrecent years to document and protect them. Theinitiatives include participants from France,Germany, Norway, Poland and the USA, as well asBritain, as Ken Lymer has previously reported inPAST (Nos 9 and 23). Arguably the most significantsites are in the eastern and southern parts of thecountry, but it is Tamgaly, a complex with more than3000 individual petroglyphs, which I wish todescribe.

Tamgaly is an isolated valley in the dry steppe anddesert landscape that embraces the low foothills ofthe southeastern Chu-Ili Mountains, themselves anextension of the Northern Tienshan range. It issituated about two and a half hours’ drive west ofAlamty, the country’s capital. Extensive rock art wasdiscovered here by chance in 1957 by A. A. Popov, aphotographer from an archaeological team workingunder the direction of À. G. Màximova whoexcavated a local Bronze Age cemetery. The firstaccount of Tamgaly, published the following year byMàximova, used the study of a site in neighbouringKyrgyzstan (Saimaly-Tash) to attribute the artworkto a number of different periods. Subsequently, moredetailed recording has been undertaken, whileexcavations at cemeteries in the area have discoveredpetroglyphs within graves, which help to date thedifferent styles represented on the open rock faces.

NUMBER 56 July 2007

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

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/prehistoric/

The copy date for PAST 57 is 1 October 2007. 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: escargots@tiscali.co.uk. Queries over subscriptions and

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

56

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16 PAST

vessels. This tradition of painterly expression, as itspread through the Balkan peninsula, dominated inthe decorated compositions on pottery vessels,although the remains of wall decoration can be seeninside some of the houses in this area.

Regarding the painted decoration on the EarlyNeolithic vessels from Macedonia, a wide range ofwhite motifs were employed, creating unique andrarely repeated compositions. These usuallyconsisted of zig-zag lines, stair-like ribbons,triangles, dots and so called vegetal motifs. Someresearchers consider that the choice of motifs relateto the function of the vessels, indicating for examplepots in which herbal remedies were prepared orwhich were used during particular ceremonies indwellings or settlements. Exceptionally importantare the local styles these motifs create which indicatethat, across the wider area of Macedonia, severallocal communities were established, usingdecoration as an element of mutual visualidentification. Although there appear to have beenone or more waves of demographic expansion in theearliest phases of the Neolithic, in its later stages itcan be seen that distinct regional traditions emergewhich are reflected in differences in material culture.Hence, there are remarkable differences betweenEarly Neolithic decoration in the Skopje region(northern Macedonia), the Ovce Pole region (easternMacedonia) and in Pelagonia (southwestMacedonia).

The situation in the Middle Neolithic changedsignificantly. The decoration on the vessels found insettlements across the eastern half of Macedonia isvery similar, so that identical ornaments can befound in the Skopje and Ovce Pole regions, and alsoin other parts of the east of the country. Thissuggests that local Early Neolithic communities weregradually assimilated into one bigger groupingwhich in the Middle Neolithic developed newelements of visual communication. It is interesting to

note that in this period there was a completetransformation in the typology of painted vessels, aswell as in the structure of the compositions, whichnow included new kinds of motifs. The motifs werepainted in brown and black; now only a smallpercentage was white. Painted compositions usuallyconsisted of extended triangles, spirals, vertical andoblique lines and egg shaped motifs which wereprecisely disposed across the structure of thecomposition. There are few other motifs, nor arethere variations of previously mentioned ornaments,so it can be assumed that the Middle Neolithicpopulation from this region developed its ownfirmly-defined iconography that was reflected invarious different types of material culture.

Recently, there have been several attempts to studythe function of the vessels and the significance oftheir decoration. Because of their petrographicfeatures, as well as the time and skill invested in theproduction of these vessels, it has been suggestedthat they were exceptionally important for thecommunities that inhabited these Neolithicsettlements. It is therefore assumed that they had aceremonial or symbolic character, and that they wereused during domestic celebrations, holidays,festivities and rites. Furthermore, the wide range ofornaments painted on these vessels were also presenton the figurines, stamp seals, altars and on the wallsof shrines dating to the same period, and it istherefore thought that they symbolized ideas of rainand regeneration.

Whatever the case, these objects and their decorationundoubtedly indicate that the people of the Earlyand Middle Neolithic in this region had a high levelof technical and artistic accomplishment. Theirability to produce these vessels and to paint them soprecisely surely proves that in this period, the level ofvisual perception, geometrisation and organizationof micro-space was highly developed. This way ofcreating and maintaining the painterly traditiontherefore established specific visual communicationand symbolic interaction between members of onecommunity, as well as between several communitiesacross the wider region.

Goce Naumov, University of Skopje, Institute forHistory of Art and Archaeology, The Republic ofMacedoniaEmail: gonaumov@mail.net.mk

AcknowledgementsI am grateful to the Prehistoric Society forsupporting this research through the Research Fundaward. My special thanks to Joanna Brück forhelpful comments and corrections on an earlier draftof this article. I would also like to thank to mycolleagues from museums in Macedonia for allowingme to work on previously excavated material.

Middle Neolithic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia: Madjari:1-5; Gorobinci: 6

813_PAST 56:PAST 56 11-2-07 03:52 Page 2