Neolithic and bronze-age Somerset: a wetland perspective (original) (raw)

A brief inspection of the Somerset Sites and Monuments Record (SMR) shows that the county abounds in archaeological sites of the neolithic and bronzeage periods. However, this masks the paucity of detailed knowledge concerning these sites. The majority of entries on the SMR refer to scatters of flint or pottery recorded from field-walking. While these may represent occupation sites, the only extensive excavation of a settlement was Martin Bell’s work on the sand cliff at Brean Down (Bell, M 1990). The numerous prehistoric funerary monuments in the county have had a long history of “archaeological” investigation but also lack the modern excavations of such structures which have taken place elsewhere in England. Only two elements of the county’s archaeological record of these periods are of more than regional significance; the metalworking evidence of the Bronze Age, and the wetland archaeological evidence from the peat moors. The discoveries of prehistoric waterlogged remains and the...