Maarten van Hoek The Geography of Cup-and-Ring ... - StoneWatch

Swedish distribution moreover echoes the general preference to
execute cup-and-rings along major routes through the interior.
With the odd exception (for instance the stone from Klinta, Öland,
Sweden; Burenhult 1973: 60), the complex cup-and-rings of Scandinavia
(Fig. 91) are mainly found in Hordaland, Norway; in Bohuslän, Sweden,
and in a band of rock art through the interior of Sweden, running east
towards the coast near Lake Mälar and Norrköping. It may be
significant that both Hordaland and Bohuslän face west, towards the
British Isles.
This specific distribution pattern seems to confirm the idea that
Scandinavia was influenced from the west (SW) during the Neolithic,
although one may wonder how close the relationship between the rock
art of Scandinavia and the British Isles was. It is notably most
remarkable that there is not a single engraving of a boat of the Nordic
type in the whole of the British Isles. Only in Jonathan’s Cave on the
east coast of Scotland there might be one depiction of a ship (Morris
1981: Pl. 77). Also in Galicia, only one boat engraving (of uncertain
date) at Santa Maria de Oia, has been reported (Vázques 1997: Fig 46).
If indeed there existed close contacts between Scandinavia and the
rest of Europe during the Bronze Age, one may wonder why these
contacts did not result in the diffusion of the typical Nordic boat
engravings and “sun” symbols across the British Isles.
Perhaps this is explained by a salient difference between the Neolithic
and Bronze Age cultures. The Neolithic culture generally was more
communal of character, which may have created a pan-European rock
art tradition, dominated by the cupule and surrounding ringmarks. The
Bronze Age cultures on the contrary were more idiosyncratic and their
art is more focussed on (local-regional) symbols of power and
hierarchy. It remains most remarkable, however, that the British Isles
did not develop a Bronze Age rock art tradition at all (only very few
definite Bronze Age engravings occur; mainly comprising axe-heads:
Figs 173 and 174), especially in the light of its wealth of Neolithic
rock art and its position between Galicia and Scandinavia, two areas
with distinct Bronze Age rock art traditions.
Yet, it is highly probable that, during the Neolithic, there was direct
contact between Scotland and especially the west coasts of Norway and
Sweden. Consequently, cupules and, later, cup-and-ring art may have
been introduced by people who travelled from the British Isles to
Scandinavia (as shown in Fig. 183), using the prevailing winds and sea
currents. Influence from the south, from central Europe and the Alpine
region, can not be ruled out either, as several major prehistoric routes
crossed the continent, for instance from the plains of the river Po in
Italy, through the Alps, towards Denmark and further north.
M. van HOEK: 144
GEOGRAPHY