Duncan Garrow
Biographic Data
| ID | 264265 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Duncan Garrow |
| GIVEN NAMES | Duncan |
| FAMILY NAME | Garrow |
| SIGNATURE | GARROW D |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Reading |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-3164-2618 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 33 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 203 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 31 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 2 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2005 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 9 |
At the Water’s Edge: Photogrammetry in Extreme Shallow-Water Environments
Coastal, riverine, and lacustrine environments have played a central role in the development of human societies, yet locating and documenting this record of activity in littoral environments have proven difficult. Terrestrial survey methods reach their limit at the water’s edge, whereas marine geophysical equipment often struggles in depths of less than 1 m. This “white ribbon” of missing data represents a persistent methodological gap but one th…
Materializing mortality: Re‐enchanting grave goods in the British Museum using mixed‐method approaches to audience research
Grave goods are among the most common, but at the same time most powerful, objects on display in many museums. They possess the rare—often latent—ability to convey both particular and universal themes and to collapse chronological and cultural differences by connecting the shared embodiment of museum visitors and past people. To explore these values, this study draws on the results of two phases of in‐depth, mixed‐methods audience research before…
Scottish archaeological islands: A Historiographical Analysis and the Legacy of Antiquarian Research
Crannogs, enigmatic artificial islands dotting the landscapes of Scotland and Ireland, have been subjects of intrigue and debate for centuries. These complex sites exhibit a remarkable time-depth of use, often revealing multiple phases or periods, coupled with a great diversity in their structural forms and settings. Moreover, the extensive yet fragmented early historiography of crannog research has left a lasting legacy on our modern understandi…
From overlooked objects to digital 'icons: Evaluating the Role of Social Media in Exhibition Making and the Creation of More Participatory and Democratic Museums
This article highlights the opportunity for social media to play a greater role in critically and democratically evaluating museum displays and exhibitions in order to increase their popular appeal. By comparing datasets obtained from traditional (often in-person) evaluation techniques with those expressed by visitors using social media platforms, it is possible to assess the relative strengths and weaknesses of each, resulting in a more holistic…
Making finds matter: Using charismatic objects, people power and digital technologies to build a better future for archaeological finds in Scotland
From enigmatic carved stone balls to the patched breeches of an 18th-century bog body, many archaeological finds from Scotland are, without doubt, fabulous. Through these objects and the practices they embody, we can imagine alternative ways of living and thinking, wonder at past people’s ingenuity and skill, and revisit significant moments in our own lives. Archaeological finds are also often fragile, scattered across diverse locations, and ofte…
Alternative icons: Rethinking symbols of power in 'The World of Stonehenge
Current debates surrounding decolonisation and the democratisation of display are a critical issue for prehistoric collections as well as more recent material. The objects most likely to symbolise prehistory in museum displays, and thus in the popular imagination-those made of precious, skilfully worked materials-are a restricted group of iconic things, often interpreted as reflective of social status rather than anything more personal or spiritu…
Neolithic Crannogs in the Outer Hebrides (and Beyond?): Synthesis, Survey, and Dating
In this paper we present a three-stranded investigation of all ‘archaeological islands’ (including crannogs) across Scotland, with a particular focus on the Outer Hebrides. The first strand is a synthesis and critical review of the archaeological record relating to 582 ‘archaeological island’ sites. This research enabled us to characterise the nature of any previous work (including dating evidence) undertaken on each, and thus to establish the fi…
Grave Goods: Objects and Death in Later Prehistoric Britain
Britain is internationally renowned for the high quality and exquisite crafting of its later prehistoric grave goods (c. 4000 BC to AD 43). Many of prehistoric Britain's most impressive artefacts have come from graves. Interred with both inhumations and cremations, they provide some of the most durable and well-preserved insights into personal identity and the prehistoric life-course, yet they also speak of the care shown to the dead by the livin…
Spectrums of depositional practice in later prehistoric Britain and beyond. Grave goods, hoards and deposits 'in between
This paper critically evaluates how archaeologists define 'grave goods' in relation to the full spectrum of depositional contexts available to people in the past, including hoards, rivers and other 'special' deposits. Developing the argument that variations in artefact deposition over time and space can only be understood if different 'types' of find location are considered together holistically, we contend that it is also vital to look at the po…
Covering the Dead in Later Prehistoric Britain: Elusive Objects and Powerful Technologies of Funerary Performance
This paper examines the containment and covering of people and objects in burials throughout later prehistory in Britain. Recent analyses of grave assemblages with exceptionally well-preserved organic remains have revealed some of the particular roles played by covers in funerary contexts. Beyond these spectacular examples, however, the objects involved in covering and containing have largely been overlooked. Many of the ‘motley crew’ of pots and…
Neolithic crannogs: Rethinking settlement, monumentality and deposition in the Outer Hebrides and beyond
The Mesolithic–Neolithic Transition in the Channel Islands: Maritime and Terrestrial Perspectives
This paper investigates the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition in the Channel Islands. It presents a new synthesis of all known evidence from the islands c.5000–4300 bc , including several new excavations as well as find‐spot sites that have not previously been collated. It also summarizes – in English – a large body of contemporary material from north‐west France. The paper presents a new high‐resolution sea‐level model for the region, shedding lig…
Stepping Stones to the Neolithic? Radiocarbon Dating the Early Neolithic on Islands Within the ‘Western Seaways’ of Britain
The western seaways – an arc of sea stretching from the Channel Islands in the south, up through the Isles of Scilly, the Isle of Man, and the Outer Hebrides to Orkney in the north – have long been seen as crucial to our understanding of the processes which led to the arrival of the Neolithic in Britain and Ireland in the centuries around 4000 cal bc . The western seaways have not, however, been considered in detail within any of the recent studi…
Continental Connections
The tip of the iceberg? Reply to responses
We would like to thank all four authors for their thoughtful responses to our paper and the assemblage it describes. In some cases those comments confirmed things we had thought already, but in others they surprised us, confronting us with ideas that we had never previously considered. Collectively this has made us think hard about future research possibilities
Microliths and maritime mobility: A continental European-style Late Mesolithic flint assemblage from the Isles of Scilly
Dating the Dead: A High-Resolution Radiocarbon Chronology of Burial Within an Early Bronze Age Barrow Cemetery at Over, Cambridgeshire
This paper outlines the results of a programme of radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling relating to an Early Bronze Age barrow cemetery at Over, Cambridgeshire. In total, 43 dates were obtained, enabling the first high-resolution independent chronology (relating to both burial and architectural events) to be constructed for a site of this kind. The results suggest that the three main turf-mound barrows were probably constructed and used succe…
New models of North West European Holocene palaeogeography and inundation
This paper presents new 500 year interval palaeogeographic models for Britain, Ireland and the North West French coast from 11000 cal. BP to present. These models are used to calculate the varying rates of inundation for different geographical zones over the study period. This allows for consideration of the differential impact that Holocene sea-level rise had across space and time, and on past societies. In turn, consideration of the limitations…
Technologies of Enchantment?: Exploring Celtic Art: 400 BC to AD 100
"Celtic art includes some of the most famous archaeological artefacts in the British Isles, such as the Battersea shield or the gold torcs from Snettisham. However, this body of material has usually been considered from an art historical point of view. Technologies of Enchantment? Exploring Celtic Art attempts to resituate Celtic art back within its archaeological context, looking at how it was made, used, and deposited. Based on the first compre…
Settlements
The Art of Community
This chapter summarizes the book's main arguments, which emphasize the integral role of fine metalwork in cycles of cultural transformation and in the difficult process of negotiating changing identities from the Late Iron Age onwards. It considers the broader context in which Celtic art played a role, looking further at the links between people and things within the ontologies of the Late Iron Age and Early Romano-British periods.
Reply to responses
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Odd deposits and average practice. A critical history of the concept of structured deposition
This paper presents a critical history of the concept of 'structured deposition'. It examines the long-term development of this idea in archaeology, from its origins in the early 1980s through to the present day, looking at how it has been moulded and transformed. On the basis of this historical account, a number of problems are identified with the way that 'structured deposition' has generally been conceptualized and applied. It is suggested tha…
Grey waters bright with Neolithic argonauts? Maritime connections and the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition within the ‘western seaways’ of Britain, c . 5000–3500 BC
Careful examination of the probable natural conditions for travel in the North Sea and Irish Sea during the late Mesolithic are here combined with the latest radiocarbon dates to present a new picture of the transition to the Neolithic in the British Isles. The islands of the west were already connected by Mesolithic traffic and did not all go Neolithic at the same time. The introduction of the Neolithic package neither depended on seaborne incom…
Refitting Etton: Space, Time, and Material Culture Within a Causewayed Enclosure in Cambridgeshire
This paper considers the dynamics of deposition around and across the causewayed enclosure at Etton, Cambridgeshire. As a result of detailed re-analysis (particularly refitting) of the pottery and flint assemblages from the site, it proved possible to shed new light both on the temporality of occupation and the character of deposition there. Certain aspects of our work challenge previous interpretations of the site, and of causewayed enclosures i…
Odd deposits and average practice. A critical history of the concept of structured deposition
This paper presents a critical history of the concept of 'structured deposition'. It examines the long-term development of this idea in archaeology, from its origins in the early 1980s through to the present day, looking at how it has been moulded and transformed. On the basis of this historical account, a number of problems are identified with the way that 'structured deposition' has generally been conceptualized and applied. It is suggested tha…
New models of North West European Holocene palaeogeography and inundation
This paper presents new 500 year interval palaeogeographic models for Britain, Ireland and the North West French coast from 11000 cal. BP to present. These models are used to calculate the varying rates of inundation for different geographical zones over the study period. This allows for consideration of the differential impact that Holocene sea-level rise had across space and time, and on past societies. In turn, consideration of the limitations…
Grey waters bright with Neolithic argonauts? Maritime connections and the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition within the ‘western seaways’ of Britain, c . 5000–3500 BC
Careful examination of the probable natural conditions for travel in the North Sea and Irish Sea during the late Mesolithic are here combined with the latest radiocarbon dates to present a new picture of the transition to the Neolithic in the British Isles. The islands of the west were already connected by Mesolithic traffic and did not all go Neolithic at the same time. The introduction of the Neolithic package neither depended on seaborne incom…
Dating Celtic Art: A Major Radiocarbon Dating Programme of Iron Age and Early Roman Metalwork in Britain
This paper presents the first substantial set of radiocarbon determinations for the later Iron Age decorated metalwork known as Celtic art in Britain. Hitherto this material has been dated relatively on the basis of changes in decoration and form, which were then linked to materials with some absolute date. The latter process has tended to give relatively late dates, as most of the material with a firm date stems from the last century BC or after…
Pit Clusters and the Temporality of Occupation: An Earlier Neolithic Site at Kilverstone, Thetford, Norfolk
This paper discusses 226 earlier Neolithic pits found at Kilverstone in Norfolk. In particular, it focuses on the dynamics involved in the site's creation, investigating what had happened to the material found in the pits prior to deposition, and exploring the material connections (refitting sherds and flints) across the site. As a result of these material insights, it proved possible to shed important light on the character of that place in part…
Dating the Dead: A High-Resolution Radiocarbon Chronology of Burial Within an Early Bronze Age Barrow Cemetery at Over, Cambridgeshire
This paper outlines the results of a programme of radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling relating to an Early Bronze Age barrow cemetery at Over, Cambridgeshire. In total, 43 dates were obtained, enabling the first high-resolution independent chronology (relating to both burial and architectural events) to be constructed for a site of this kind. The results suggest that the three main turf-mound barrows were probably constructed and used succe…
Spectrums of depositional practice in later prehistoric Britain and beyond. Grave goods, hoards and deposits 'in between
This paper critically evaluates how archaeologists define 'grave goods' in relation to the full spectrum of depositional contexts available to people in the past, including hoards, rivers and other 'special' deposits. Developing the argument that variations in artefact deposition over time and space can only be understood if different 'types' of find location are considered together holistically, we contend that it is also vital to look at the po…
Refitting Etton: Space, Time, and Material Culture Within a Causewayed Enclosure in Cambridgeshire
This paper considers the dynamics of deposition around and across the causewayed enclosure at Etton, Cambridgeshire. As a result of detailed re-analysis (particularly refitting) of the pottery and flint assemblages from the site, it proved possible to shed new light both on the temporality of occupation and the character of deposition there. Certain aspects of our work challenge previous interpretations of the site, and of causewayed enclosures i…
Stepping Stones to the Neolithic? Radiocarbon Dating the Early Neolithic on Islands Within the ‘Western Seaways’ of Britain
The western seaways – an arc of sea stretching from the Channel Islands in the south, up through the Isles of Scilly, the Isle of Man, and the Outer Hebrides to Orkney in the north – have long been seen as crucial to our understanding of the processes which led to the arrival of the Neolithic in Britain and Ireland in the centuries around 4000 cal bc . The western seaways have not, however, been considered in detail within any of the recent studi…
Placing pits: Landscape Occupation and Depositional Practice During the Neolithic in East Anglia
This paper takes Neolithic pits as a starting point from which to investigate the broader issues of settlement and deposition in Britain at that time. It suggests that while sites made up primarily, and often only, of pits have recently been incorporated much more readily into accounts of the period, they are still not well understood. It is only by investigating the character of occupation across the landscape as a whole, and the nature of depos…
The Mesolithic–Neolithic Transition in the Channel Islands: Maritime and Terrestrial Perspectives
This paper investigates the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition in the Channel Islands. It presents a new synthesis of all known evidence from the islands c.5000–4300 bc , including several new excavations as well as find‐spot sites that have not previously been collated. It also summarizes – in English – a large body of contemporary material from north‐west France. The paper presents a new high‐resolution sea‐level model for the region, shedding lig…
Covering the Dead in Later Prehistoric Britain: Elusive Objects and Powerful Technologies of Funerary Performance
This paper examines the containment and covering of people and objects in burials throughout later prehistory in Britain. Recent analyses of grave assemblages with exceptionally well-preserved organic remains have revealed some of the particular roles played by covers in funerary contexts. Beyond these spectacular examples, however, the objects involved in covering and containing have largely been overlooked. Many of the ‘motley crew’ of pots and…
Neolithic crannogs: Rethinking settlement, monumentality and deposition in the Outer Hebrides and beyond
Microliths and maritime mobility: A continental European-style Late Mesolithic flint assemblage from the Isles of Scilly
Artefacts between disciplines. The toothbrush and the axe
This paper takes the form of a dialogue between an archaeologist and a sociologist. In recent years, interdisciplinary working has become increasingly fashionable within academia. The aim of our exchange was to establish exactly what implications this way of working has for understandings of material culture. Our methodology was simple, involving the 'archaeological' and 'sociological' analysis of two different objects. In undertaking this work, …
Reply to responses
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Alternative icons: Rethinking symbols of power in 'The World of Stonehenge
Current debates surrounding decolonisation and the democratisation of display are a critical issue for prehistoric collections as well as more recent material. The objects most likely to symbolise prehistory in museum displays, and thus in the popular imagination-those made of precious, skilfully worked materials-are a restricted group of iconic things, often interpreted as reflective of social status rather than anything more personal or spiritu…
Pit Clusters and the Temporality of Occupation: An Earlier Neolithic Site at Kilverstone, Thetford, Norfolk
This paper discusses 226 earlier Neolithic pits found at Kilverstone in Norfolk. In particular, it focuses on the dynamics involved in the site's creation, investigating what had happened to the material found in the pits prior to deposition, and exploring the material connections (refitting sherds and flints) across the site. As a result of these material insights, it proved possible to shed important light on the character of that place in part…
Pits, Settlement and Deposition during the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age in East Anglia
The fundamental aim of this piece of research is to consider pit sites in substantial detail in order to answer such questions. In doing so, a number of other important issues are confronted, including the nature of settlement/landscape occupation, and the role of deposition as a practice. In East Anglia, Neolithic and Early Bronze Age pits have been found in particularly large numbers. At the same time, in comparison to other regions, relatively…
Placing pits: Landscape Occupation and Depositional Practice During the Neolithic in East Anglia
This paper takes Neolithic pits as a starting point from which to investigate the broader issues of settlement and deposition in Britain at that time. It suggests that while sites made up primarily, and often only, of pits have recently been incorporated much more readily into accounts of the period, they are still not well understood. It is only by investigating the character of occupation across the landscape as a whole, and the nature of depos…
Artefacts between disciplines. Response to responses
As is often the way, a ‘finished’ article disguises aspects of its own production and gives an overly orderly account of theoretical and methodological moves which were not especially planned. In responding to our commentators and in coming clean about our own working methods we have some confessions to make. In making these admissions we continue what has by now become a conversation about matters of interdisciplinarity and about our approach to…
Artefacts between disciplines. The toothbrush and the axe
This paper takes the form of a dialogue between an archaeologist and a sociologist. In recent years, interdisciplinary working has become increasingly fashionable within academia. The aim of our exchange was to establish exactly what implications this way of working has for understandings of material culture. Our methodology was simple, involving the 'archaeological' and 'sociological' analysis of two different objects. In undertaking this work, …
Rethinking Celtic Art
Dating Celtic Art: A Major Radiocarbon Dating Programme of Iron Age and Early Roman Metalwork in Britain
This paper presents the first substantial set of radiocarbon determinations for the later Iron Age decorated metalwork known as Celtic art in Britain. Hitherto this material has been dated relatively on the basis of changes in decoration and form, which were then linked to materials with some absolute date. The latter process has tended to give relatively late dates, as most of the material with a firm date stems from the last century BC or after…
Refitting Etton: Space, Time, and Material Culture Within a Causewayed Enclosure in Cambridgeshire
This paper considers the dynamics of deposition around and across the causewayed enclosure at Etton, Cambridgeshire. As a result of detailed re-analysis (particularly refitting) of the pottery and flint assemblages from the site, it proved possible to shed new light both on the temporality of occupation and the character of deposition there. Certain aspects of our work challenge previous interpretations of the site, and of causewayed enclosures i…
Archaeology and anthropology: Understanding Similarity, Exploring Difference
Grey waters bright with Neolithic argonauts? Maritime connections and the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition within the ‘western seaways’ of Britain, c . 5000–3500 BC
Careful examination of the probable natural conditions for travel in the North Sea and Irish Sea during the late Mesolithic are here combined with the latest radiocarbon dates to present a new picture of the transition to the Neolithic in the British Isles. The islands of the west were already connected by Mesolithic traffic and did not all go Neolithic at the same time. The introduction of the Neolithic package neither depended on seaborne incom…
Technologies of Enchantment?: Exploring Celtic Art: 400 BC to AD 100
"Celtic art includes some of the most famous archaeological artefacts in the British Isles, such as the Battersea shield or the gold torcs from Snettisham. However, this body of material has usually been considered from an art historical point of view. Technologies of Enchantment? Exploring Celtic Art attempts to resituate Celtic art back within its archaeological context, looking at how it was made, used, and deposited. Based on the first compre…
Settlements
The Art of Community
This chapter summarizes the book's main arguments, which emphasize the integral role of fine metalwork in cycles of cultural transformation and in the difficult process of negotiating changing identities from the Late Iron Age onwards. It considers the broader context in which Celtic art played a role, looking further at the links between people and things within the ontologies of the Late Iron Age and Early Romano-British periods.
Reply to responses
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Odd deposits and average practice. A critical history of the concept of structured deposition
This paper presents a critical history of the concept of 'structured deposition'. It examines the long-term development of this idea in archaeology, from its origins in the early 1980s through to the present day, looking at how it has been moulded and transformed. On the basis of this historical account, a number of problems are identified with the way that 'structured deposition' has generally been conceptualized and applied. It is suggested tha…
New models of North West European Holocene palaeogeography and inundation
This paper presents new 500 year interval palaeogeographic models for Britain, Ireland and the North West French coast from 11000 cal. BP to present. These models are used to calculate the varying rates of inundation for different geographical zones over the study period. This allows for consideration of the differential impact that Holocene sea-level rise had across space and time, and on past societies. In turn, consideration of the limitations…
Dating the Dead: A High-Resolution Radiocarbon Chronology of Burial Within an Early Bronze Age Barrow Cemetery at Over, Cambridgeshire
This paper outlines the results of a programme of radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling relating to an Early Bronze Age barrow cemetery at Over, Cambridgeshire. In total, 43 dates were obtained, enabling the first high-resolution independent chronology (relating to both burial and architectural events) to be constructed for a site of this kind. The results suggest that the three main turf-mound barrows were probably constructed and used succe…
Continental Connections
The tip of the iceberg? Reply to responses
We would like to thank all four authors for their thoughtful responses to our paper and the assemblage it describes. In some cases those comments confirmed things we had thought already, but in others they surprised us, confronting us with ideas that we had never previously considered. Collectively this has made us think hard about future research possibilities
Microliths and maritime mobility: A continental European-style Late Mesolithic flint assemblage from the Isles of Scilly
The Mesolithic–Neolithic Transition in the Channel Islands: Maritime and Terrestrial Perspectives
This paper investigates the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition in the Channel Islands. It presents a new synthesis of all known evidence from the islands c.5000–4300 bc , including several new excavations as well as find‐spot sites that have not previously been collated. It also summarizes – in English – a large body of contemporary material from north‐west France. The paper presents a new high‐resolution sea‐level model for the region, shedding lig…
Stepping Stones to the Neolithic? Radiocarbon Dating the Early Neolithic on Islands Within the ‘Western Seaways’ of Britain
The western seaways – an arc of sea stretching from the Channel Islands in the south, up through the Isles of Scilly, the Isle of Man, and the Outer Hebrides to Orkney in the north – have long been seen as crucial to our understanding of the processes which led to the arrival of the Neolithic in Britain and Ireland in the centuries around 4000 cal bc . The western seaways have not, however, been considered in detail within any of the recent studi…
Covering the Dead in Later Prehistoric Britain: Elusive Objects and Powerful Technologies of Funerary Performance
This paper examines the containment and covering of people and objects in burials throughout later prehistory in Britain. Recent analyses of grave assemblages with exceptionally well-preserved organic remains have revealed some of the particular roles played by covers in funerary contexts. Beyond these spectacular examples, however, the objects involved in covering and containing have largely been overlooked. Many of the ‘motley crew’ of pots and…
Neolithic crannogs: Rethinking settlement, monumentality and deposition in the Outer Hebrides and beyond
Spectrums of depositional practice in later prehistoric Britain and beyond. Grave goods, hoards and deposits 'in between
This paper critically evaluates how archaeologists define 'grave goods' in relation to the full spectrum of depositional contexts available to people in the past, including hoards, rivers and other 'special' deposits. Developing the argument that variations in artefact deposition over time and space can only be understood if different 'types' of find location are considered together holistically, we contend that it is also vital to look at the po…
Archaeology (20 works) · History (19 works) · Geography (18 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (17 works) · Geology (13 works) · Geology (10 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (10 works) · Art (9 works) · History (9 works) · Philosophy (9 works)