Mesolithic woodworking, experimental archaeology & underwater heritage in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (UK) (original) (raw)
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Bouldnor Cliff, 11 metres beneath the Solent, is a unique and enigmatic Mesolithic site. The difficulties (and costs) in excavating a site that is being eroded away by daily tides of up to 5 knots means we must ensure we extract all information possible from the current catalogue of artefacts already recovered. The timbers are of particular interest because desk research and museum visits have found nothing remotely similar anywhere in Northern Europe (or beyond?). This paper looks at a range of Bouldnor timbers and compares them to the current literature and to those timbers found at other prehistoric sites such as Star Carr (Mesolithic) and at Somerset Levels (Neolithic and Bronze Age). It is suggested that many of the timbers were converted from trees probably via radial splitting, followed by tangential slicing. This is in agreement with the conclusions drawn from the Neolithic sites at the Somerset Levels. An explanation for the degradation processes and sequence is put forward, especially for the unique ‘half-rod’ appearance. This was seen to be critical if an understanding was to be made of various other features of these timbers. The concept of ‘physical abrasion’ is put forward as a key degradation process – the first time this has been postulated in the literature we think. Of particular interest is the possible identification of small tenons on 3 of the pieces. There are the remains of the original splitting process by humans and suggestions of some toolmarks perhaps from antler or bone tools during the splitting process; but better, cleaner samples need to be uncovered. Colour photographs, diagrams and 3D models have been used extensively in this paper to demonstrate the points made.
Drowned and deserted: a submerged prehistoric landscape in the Solent, England
International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, 2000
A submerged landscape containing worked flint tools has been found at—11m OD in the western Solent. This paper reviews coastal sites in northern Europe and suggests that many similar sites should exist around the coast of southern England; as a result of isostatic shifts and eustatic fluctuations many coastal sites of the Mesolithic will now be submerged. A need has been identified to locate, protect and record submerged sites before they are lost to erosion or development, for which outline proposals are suggested.
Archaeology and Environment on the North Sea Littoral: A Case Study from Low Hauxley [2016]
2016
Excavations at Low Hauxley (Northumberland, Great Britain) uncovered a remarkable archaeological site where layer upon layer of human history had survived on a discrete parcel of land as sediments accumulated during the Holocene. Associated with the archaeological remains was a rich palaeoenvironmental record of vegetation and land use change that could be correlated with archaeological events. The archaeological remains date from the Mesolithic through to the modern period and are generally well-preserved thanks to their burial under metres of calcareous dune sand. The site is subject to severe coastal erosion and this volume disentangles the complex archaeological stratigraphy and places it in its local and wider North Sea setting. The comprehensive radiocarbon dating programme was supported by detailed artefact analyses and in-depth analysis of palaeoenvironmental evidence. The Low Hauxley site makes an important contribution to knowledge of key historical processes affecting the wider North Sea Basin, including the arrival of Mesolithic groups from 'Doggerland' , the presence of Early Neolithic farming groups, the arrival of the first Beaker-using people to the region and farming intensification in the Bronze Age, together with Iron Age and Roman farmers who had access to Roman material culture despite being north of Hadrian's Wall. Important environmental events are documented, including the development and subsequent burial of peat deposits, catastrophic sand inundation following the Bronze Age relative sea level high-stand and further episodes of catastrophic sand inundation in the early medieval period and in the late or post-medieval period that may be linked with the ‘Little Ice Age’. For an independent review of the book, see: http://www.prehistoricsociety.org/publications/reviews/
Exploiting the Wildwood: Evidence from a Mesolithic Activity Site at Finglesham, Near Deal
2013
An important Mesolithic site was discovered during the spring of 1981 when foundation trenches for a new cow-shed were being excavated in a field of rough pasture adjoining the north-east side of Lower Farm at Finglesham, near Deal, NGR TR 3383 5379 (Figs 1 and 2). Workmen engaged in hand-digging the trenches (in Area J, see below) encountered a dense layer of struck flint and calcined flint at a depth of about 0.45m below ground level. Fortunately, one of the workers was also a member of Dover Archaeological Group and immediately recognised that traces of a hitherto unknown prehistoric site had been revealed. The writers were
WOOD AS AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESOURCE: THE SEVERN ESTUARY EVIDENCE
Archaeology in the Severn estuary, 2000
Wood is one of the most important and overlooked of archaeological materials. The Severn estuary region is fortunate in having a larger quantity of archaeological wood-both excavated and still in situ-than any other rural area of the UK. The evidence it contains can be analysed in many ways and provides a view ofpast societies which is more intense and more meaning/it! than that derived from 'normal' dry archaeology. The challenge which faces present day archaeologists is to develop strategies to overcome the forces which threaten the survival of this important resource.
Barnett, C. 2011. The Tilbury Alluvial Sequence and a Submerged Forest of Neolithic Age at 118 Victoria Dock Road, Canning Town, East London. LAMAS 62, 1-15 Archaeological evaluation of a small redevelopment site in Canning Town revealed a deep, well-stratified Holocene alluvial sequence (the Tilbury Formation) to 5.8m depth (-4.75m OD) over Devensian fluvial sands and gravels. A thin peat (the lower peat) at c.5.5—5.75m depth (-4.45 to -4.7m OD) contained tree trunks, some with roots attached. The layer was sampled and assessed for plant macrofossils, wood and molluscs and was radiocarbon dated to the early Neolithic (3940—3700 cal bc), probably relating to the Tilbury III regression. Floodplain alder carr and surrounding mixed deciduous woodland were inundated in the Early Neolithic by Thames flood waters during marine transgression and have been preserved in situ as a submerged forest. Human activity in the local forest is indicated by the presence of wood charcoal and scorched snails but no archaeological features or artefacts were found. The thick overlying sediment sequence contained two further main bodies of peat dating to the end of the Early Neolithic (3350—3030 cal bc) and Middle Bronze Age (1400—1130 cal bc), correlating broadly with other Tilbury sequences in London and with a shallower peat sequence at Silvertown, where a Neolithic trackway was identified. The pollen indicates the continuation of dense and relatively undisturbed forest for the Neolithic to Middle Bronze Age wetland edge landscape. Although long-term settlement of the area would not have been feasible due to the fluctuation and instability of these wetlands, it is likely that the area offered opportunities for economic activities such as fishing and fowling. Excellent preservation by waterlogging in this deep sequence has been demonstrated and archaeological evidence in the form of organic remains, eg trackways and fishtraps, may be discovered in the area in the future.