The Archaeology of Britain: An introduction from ... - waughfamily.ca

• 72 • Alasdair Whittle
hundreds of metres upwards in length. The longest, the Dorset cursus on Cranborne Chase, runs
for almost 10 km (Figure 4.6). Many have been detected on river gravels, and their distribution
extends further north than causewayed enclosures (for example, in the complex at Rudston on
the Yorkshire Wolds). A related monument in Perthshire, the Cleaven Dyke, which has a central
mound or bank as well as flanking ditches, has recently been recognized to be of Neolithic date
(Barclay 1997). Some cursus monuments enclose timber and other settings, though these may
normally be later additions. The Dorset cursus incorporates pre-existing long barrows in its layout,
and that at Dorchester-on-Thames subsumes earlier and smaller ditched features, interpreted as
mortuary enclosures. The roles of cursus monuments may have varied. They may have acted as
boundary markers, actual or symbolic; they presumably signify woodland clearance. Their form
suggests procession, perhaps already a feature of gatherings and rites, now formalized and made
permanent. One strong connection appears to have been with the ancestral dead, and there may
be some interest in the risings and settings of the sun and moon (Barrett et al. 1991). It has been
suggested that the Dorset cursus was designed to be experienced from north-east to south-west,
towards the great ‘death island’ formed by the Hambledon Hill causewayed enclosure, a few
kilometres away (Tilley 1994).
Whether there was continuity of the enclosure tradition through the Middle into the Late
Neolithic is uncertain. Causewayed enclosures were not constructed after c.3000 BC. If there is
hiatus, archaeologists might think in terms of the completion of a ritual cycle, with the spirits and
ancestors propitiated, and the concept of community well established. If continuity is envisaged,
other monument types may be proposed: cursus monuments, stone rows or avenues, early stone
circles (such as those encircling Clava cairns of the inner Moray Firth lands) and early henges.
Flagstones (Dorset) and the first phase of Stonehenge belong to the early third millennium BC.
Both draw on the earlier tradition of interrupted ditches (and Stonehenge has old-style deposits
in its primary ditch layers), but have circular or near-circular layouts. This formalization is enhanced
in Stonehenge I, the primary monument, by a ring of internal pits, with cremations deposited
subsequently, and probably central timber settings.
The enclosure tradition in the Late Neolithic encompasses various elements: henges, with
their internal features including stone and timber settings and stone circles; free-standing stone
circles and settings; and circular and oval timber palisades. Their distributions are much wider.
The Ring of Brogar and Stones of Stenness on Orkney, with ditches, banks and stone circles,
mark the northern limit; there are related sites in Ireland. Nearly everywhere formalization is
apparent, indicated by concerns for ordering the approach to, entrance into, and movement around
these bounded spaces, as well as with their orientations and outward views to horizons and other
natural features. Established enclosure traditions were enhanced, both in terms of depositions
of food remains and artefacts, and of the increased monumentality of selected sites. The sacred
geography, already created, was reinforced. While some henges appear as the first large monuments
in their areas, others were added to landscapes long sanctified by older exemplars. Most of the
very large henges, such as at Avebury and Mount Pleasant in central-southern England, occur
within such established complexes (Figure 4.7). The explanation of this has often been sought
purely in terms of political power, but the strength of the sacred traditions of long-lived holy
areas should not be underestimated.
Henges generally have ditches inside their earthwork banks. Their sizes vary considerably,
attaining considerable diameters (350 m up to nearly 500 m) at Avebury, Mount Pleasant,
Durrington Walls and Marden (Wainwright 1989). The smaller henges generally have one
entrance, and the larger two, and exceptionally more. These exhibit the general concern for
setting, approach and entrance. At Avebury, the approach from the south was by the double stone
row of the West Kennet Avenue. A massive stone circle inside the ditch provides the first division