Neolithic Stone Extraction in Britain and Europe : An Ethnoarchaeological Perspective / Peter Topping.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Topping, Peter, author.

Series:

Prehistoric Society Research Papers ; Volume 12.

Prehistoric Society Research Papers ; Volume 12

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Neolithic period.

Europe.

Great Britain.

Genre:

Instructional and educational works.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xx, 181 pages) : illustrations

Edition:

1st ed.

Other Title:

Neolithic Stone Extraction in Britain and Europe

Place of Publication:

Oxford : Oxbow Books, 2021.

Summary:

This new title in the acclaimed Prehistoric Society Research Papers series focuses on the introduction of Neolithic extraction practices across Europe through to the Atlantic periphery of Britain and Ireland. The key research questions are when and why these practices were adopted, and what role extraction sites played in Neolithic society. Neolithic mines and quarries have frequently been seen as fulfilling economic roles linked to the expansion of the Neolithic economy. However, this ignores the fact that many communities chose to selectively dig for certain types of stone in preference to others, and why the products from these sites were generally deposited in special places such as wetlands. To address this question, 168 near-global ethnographic studies were analysed to identify common trends in traditional extraction practises to produce robust statistics about their motivations and material signatures. Repeated associations emerged between storied locations, the organisation of extraction practises, long-distance distribution of products, and the material evidence such activities left behind. Finally, the new ethnoarchaeological model has been used to analyse the social context of 79 Neolithic flint mine and 51 axe quarry excavations in Britain and Ireland, and to review their European origins. The evidence which emerges confirms the pivotal role played by Neolithic extraction practices in European Neolithisation, and that the interaction of indigenous foragers with migrant miner/farmers in Britain, Ireland and elsewhere was fundamental to the adoption of the new agro-pastoral lifestyle.

Contents:

Setting the scene : the Mesolithic prelude and first contact Neolithic

The ethnography of lithic extraction

Ethnographic snapshots of traditional extraction practices

The archaeology of lithic extraction

An ethnoarchaeological analysis of Neolithic extraction sites in Britain and Ireland

The products : an ethnoarchaeological analysis of lithic objects from extraction sites

Neolithic extraction : a pan European phenomenon

Neolithic stone extraction in Britain and Europe

Appendix. References to excavation reports and archives, listed alphabetically by site.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on: online resource; title from PDF information screen (JSTOR, viewed September 10, 2022).

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9781789257069

1789257069

9781789257083

1789257085

OCLC:

1430661131