Timothy Darvill
Dados Biográficos
| ID | 643604 |
|---|---|
| NOME | Timothy Darvill |
| PRENOMES | Timothy |
| SOBRENOME | Darvill |
| ASSINATURA | DARVILL T |
| AFILIAÇÕES | Bournemouth University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-2887-9622 |
| VERIFICADO | Sim |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 64 |
| TOTAL DE CITAÇÕES | 194 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 60 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 4 |
| PRIMEIRO ANO DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 1983 |
| ANO MAIS RECENTE DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2025 |
| ÍNDICE H | 8 |
Beyond cultural heritage therapy
It is widely accepted that visiting culturally humancentric heritage sites is potentially therapeutic, although how this process unfolds is still relatively under studied. Most studies reviewed see interventions through the lens of Cultural Heritage Therapy or, if human heritage is not foregrounded, ecotherapy. In this paper, these approaches are critiqued for their polarised stance, leading to a suggestion that an interdisciplinary approach coul…
Local and exotic sources of sarsen debitage at Stonehenge revealed by geochemical provenancing
The application of novel geochemical provenancing techniques has changed our understanding of the construction of Stonehenge, by identifying West Woods on the Marlborough Downs as the likely source area for the majority of the extant sarsen megaliths at the monument. In this study, we apply the same techniques to saccharoid sarsen fragments from three excavations within and outwith the main Sarsen Circle to expand our understanding of the provena…
Figures in the Rock? Experiencing the Avebury Cove at the Midsummer Sunrise
Despite published accounts suggesting the absence of solstitial alignments built into the architecture of the stone circle complex within the classic henge at Avebury, north Wiltshire, UK, empirical observations show that the group of stones and the space between them known as the Cove opens towards the midsummer sunrise. Although the window of visibility looking out from the Cove is broad, the sunrise position, on Monkton Down, is central to the…
Times they are a-changin’
Debates about archaeological interpretation are always healthy and welcome, and when, as here, arguments are not killed off, they inevitably become stronger. Importantly, the comments by Magli and Belmonte (2023) serve as a reminder that reconciling conflicting theoretical perspectives is never easy when times are changing. Grounded in positivism, their critique draws upon assumptions that become justificatory assertions. For better or worse, arc…
Archaeology of powerful stones in the Australia‐Pacific region
Over millennia, and right across the globe, people have invested time and energy to create cultural landscapes that revolve around or incorporate powerful stones. Questions about the structured nature, distribution, source, or placement of stones (both within physical and meta‐physical worlds), pose intriguing theoretical and methodological challenges. Emic and etic perspectives may provide additional insights into the complex (often animate) nat…
Mythical rings? Waun Mawn and Stonehenge Stage 1
In a recent Antiquity article, Parker Pearson and colleagues (2021) presented results from excavations at Waun Mawn in south-west Wales, interpreting the site as a dismantled stone circle and source for some of the Bluestone pillars used in the Aubrey Holes at Stonehenge. Here, the author examines the evidence, showing that alternative interpretations are possible. Waun Mawn is argued to represent a series of smaller stone settings, typical of ce…
What haven't we found? Recognising the value of negative evidence in archaeology
Large-scale development-led archaeology has changed the very nature of archaeological datasets. In addition to the familiar positive evidence of structures and deposits, there is now a wealth of 'true-negative' evidence: the confirmed absence of archaeological remains. Making good use of such data presents a challenge and demands new ways of thinking. Using case studies based on recent developer-led work in the UK, the authors suggest that focusi…
Keeping time at Stonehenge
Scholars have long seen in the monumental composition of Stonehenge evidence for prehistoric time-reckoning-a Neolithic calendar. Exactly how such a calendar functioned, however, remains unclear. Recent advances in understanding the phasing of Stonehenge highlight the unity of the sarsen settings. Here, the author argues that the numerology of these sarsen elements materialises a perpetual calendar based on a tropical solar year of 365.25 days. T…
When Worlds Collide
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British Pioneers and Fieldwork Traditions
Jochen Holger Schutkowski Biological Anthropologist Specializing in Scientific Studies to Reconstruct Diet, Disease, and Mobility in Ancient Populations
Historic Landscapes and Mental Well-Being
British Pioneers and Fieldwork Traditions
Lift up mine eyes unto the hills
Spirit in the Sky
Ever decreasing circles
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
Megalithic tombs, barrows, and enclosures in fourth millennium BC Britain
The date and distribution across Britain of megalithic monuments and related structures dating to the fourth millennium BC is briefly outlined, together with on overview of contemporary enclosures. Studies of the distribution of human body parts show that in southern Britain during the period c.3800–3300 BC long barrows and oval barrows were built and used by the same communities that also created causewayed enclosures. The situation in western a…
Houses of the Holy
Stonehenge in central southern England is internationally known. Recent re-evaluations of its date and construction sequence provides an opportunity to review the meaning and purpose of key structural components. Here it is argued that the central stone structures did not have a single purpose but rather embody a series of symbolic representations. During the early third millennium this included a square-in-circle motif representing a sacred hous…
A Bronze Age Round Barrow Cemetery, Pit Alignments, Iron Age Burials, Iron Age Copper Working, and Later Activity at Four Crosses, Llandysilio, Powys
Excavation undertaken at the Upper Severn valley round barrow cemetery at Four Crosses, Llandysilio, Powys, between 2004 and 2006 has increased the known barrows and ring ditches to some twenty-seven monuments within this complex, and revealed additional burials. Based on limited dating evidence, and the data from earlier excavations, the majority of the barrows are thought to be constructed in the Bronze Age. The barrows are considered part of a…
Britain
Revisiting Old Friends
P eterborough W are is now recognized as the dominant ceramic tradition of the middle N eolithic in southern B ritain during the period 3400–2800 BC , part of a wider north E uropean family of Impressed W ares. Drawing on an extensive inventory of 600 recorded assemblages constructed by enriching previous lists with the results of development‐driven research carried out over the last 20 years or so, this paper reviews the production, distribution…
Open-Air Rock-Art Conservation and Management
Polychrome Pottery from the Later Neolithic of the Isle of Man
This article reports the discovery of colour-decorated pottery dating to the third millennium bc from the Isle of Man, the earliest yet known from the British Isles. Scientific studies of the vessel highlight technical aspects of its manufacture which are then used to situate the vessel in a wider social and cultural context through a brief review of its wider biography. The choice of colours — white, black and red — and their arrangement on the …
Open-Air Rock-Art Conservation and Management
Ancient oracles
As economic and social uncertainty pervades our world, the oracles of antiquity have a growing appeal. There have been many publications on this theme in recent years, including a useful and wide-r
Stonehenge remodelled
We are pleased to present the latest account of the sequence of burial and construction at the site of Stonehenge, deduced by its most recent excavators and anchored in time by the application of Bayesian radiocarbon modelling. Five prehistoric stages are proposed, of varied duration, and related by our authors to neighbouring monuments in the Stonehenge environs. While it may never be possible to produce a definitive chronology for this most com…
A question of national importance
When General Pitt-Rivers was appointed as first Inspector under the 1882 Act, which first protected British Ancient Monuments, the Act's Schedule named just 50 sites nationally. Although many monuments have been added to the Schedule since then, the growth in knowledge of the long and intensive occupation of England has been such that the current total of nearly 13,000 scheduled monuments amounts to only 1 in 50 of the sites thought to exist.In m…
Stonehenge excavations 2008
The following paper is the first published account of an excavation that took place at Stonehenge during April 2008. As this was the first excavation to take place within the stone circle for some forty years, the excavation has attracted an uncommon degree of interest, hence its publication in the Antiquaries Journal as an interim account of work in progress, in the form of an edited transcript of a paper first given at the Ordinary Meeting of t…
Excavations at Cherhill, North Wiltshire, 1967
A sequence of deposits ranging in date from Late-glacial to the present produced detailed evidence of environmental changes, reflecting both climatic fluctuations and the effects of human activities. A Later Mesolithic occupation horizon, with lithic industry and associated faunal remains, is dated at about 5280 bc. It was sealed by a deposit of tufa. An irregular linear excavation, dated at about 2765 bc, is interpreted as a quarry; the backfill…
Prehistoric Britain
Tim Darvill examins the development of human societies in Britain from the earliest times down to the Roman Conquest, as revealed by available archaeological evidence. Special attention is given to six themes which are traced through all phases of prehistory: subsistence, technology, ritual, trade, society and population. Ideal for extramural course use, Prehistoric Britain is a book that can be read for pleasure by anyone interested in the early…
Excavations at Stackpole Warren, Dyfed
Excavations of sites spanning the Beaker to early Roman periods at Stackpole Warren, Dyfed, are described. The sites are in an area of blown sand which enhanced their preservation and led to the separation of several horizons. The earliest is a buried soil beneath the blown sand which contained Mesolithic to Bronze Age artefacts. At site A, there was a roundhouse associated with Early Bronze Age pottery and dated to 1620±70 and 1400±70 BC uncal.,…
The Circulation of Neolithic Stone and Flint Axes
This paper examines the distribution of stone and flint axes in Wales and the mid-west of England based on systematically collected data. Typological variations within the category of implements generally known as axes are discussed, and the distribution of the largest group, true axes, analysed. Three types of distribution are identified: regional distribution, local distribution and waterborne distribution. Proximity of source is shown to play …
Stonehenge, Wiltshire, UK
An extensive high-resolution geophysical survey covering 2 km 2 was undertaken to the north of Stonehenge in June and October 2011. The survey is important in providing, for the first time, abundant detail on the form and structure of the Stonehenge Cursus, including the recognition of entrances in both of the long sides. Much additional information about the internal form of round barrows in the Cursus Round Barrow Cemetery, the course of the Av…
Stone Circles, Oval Settings and Henges in South-west Wales and Beyond
Topographical and geophysical surveys carried out in August 2002 at three monuments in the Preseli Hills of Pembrokeshire are reported: Bedd Arthur, Gors Fawr and Meini Gwyr. Previously unrecorded features were revealed at all three sites, most spectacularly at Meini Gwyr which, from the evidence of geophysical survey, appears to be a multi-phase monument that includes a double pit-circle, hengi-form monument and embanked enclosure with an intern…
Research frameworks for World Heritage Sites and the conceptualization of archaeological knowledge
Research has a central place in the identification and definition of World Heritage Sites, and increasingly in their ongoing management and conservation. Using the example of Stonehenge in central southern England, attention is drawn to the formulation of a research framework as a means of providing a transparent and structured approach to the planning and execution of high quality research. Ultimately, however, research has to be useful and soci…
AMS dating of the Manx Ronaldsway Neolithic
The Ronaldsway Culture of the Isle of Man was recognized as a classic later Neolithic assemblage over 50 years ago; its dating and duration have been matters of debate. AMS radiocarbon determinations from carbonaceous deposits on Ronaldsway-style pots resolve chronological questions, while new research provides a more secure social context
Rock and soul
Place production through the formal process of ‘place-making’ and the more informal evolutionary expediency of ‘place-marking’ has become a major theme of sustainable development, conservation and regeneration in recent decades. Popular music heritage has played a part in this, and has great potential to contribute more. This article explores the ways in which tangible and intangible heritage combine to underpin place-production linked to popular…
SPACES - exploring Neolithic landscapes in the Strumble-Preseli area of southwest Wales
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
Glandy Cross
Excavations at the Glandy Cross monumental complex during 1991 and 1992 formed part of an integrated programme of evaluation, rescue, and research by Dyfed Archaeological Trust (DAT). Enclosures, pit circles, standing stones, and cairns were excavated and their environs systematically surveyed. Radiocarbon dates show the monumental complex to have been constructed between c. 2190–1530 cal BC. However, the earliest activity at the site may date to…
Revisiting Old Friends
P eterborough W are is now recognized as the dominant ceramic tradition of the middle N eolithic in southern B ritain during the period 3400–2800 BC , part of a wider north E uropean family of Impressed W ares. Drawing on an extensive inventory of 600 recorded assemblages constructed by enriching previous lists with the results of development‐driven research carried out over the last 20 years or so, this paper reviews the production, distribution…
Governing from the Grave
Mortuary treatments are ways in which archaeologists can learn about the culture and lifestyle of past societies, in terms of how they view the dead. The dead, however, can continue to play a role in the lives of the living, which may also be reflected in funerary rites and burial treatments. This article explores the social agency of the dead, focusing on the ‘vampire burials’ of the post-medieval Polish site of Drawsko 1. These burials, identif…
Beyond Stonehenge
Recent investigations at Stonehenge have been accompanied by new research on the origin of the famous 'bluestones', a mixed assemblage of rhyolites and dolerites that stand among the much taller sarsens. Some of the rhyolite debitage has been traced to a quarry site at Craig Rhosyfelin near the Pembrokeshire coast; but fieldwork on the upland outcrops of Carn Menyn has also provided evidence for dolerite extraction in the later third millennium B…
Ironworking in the Bronze Age? Evidence from a 10th Century BC Settlement at Hartshill Copse, Upper Bucklebury, West Berkshire
Excavations at Hartshill Copse in 2003 uncovered evidence for Late Bronze Age settlement, securely dated to the 10th century BC , associated with long alignments of closely set posts: prehistoric landscape features with few known parallels. Extensive sampling of the settlement remains yielded quantities of burnt flint and plain Post Deverel-Rimbury potsherds, and, quite unexpectedly, a substantial quantity of iron hammerscale. This paper presents…
Value systems and the archaeological resource
The paper deals with the various values held by people for the heritage, specifically the archaeological heritage. Attention is directed away from economic values towards sociological interpretations – sets of assumptions, beliefs and knowledge‐sets which may be termed ‘value systems’. Such value systems underpin and inform individual and collective attitudes and, by implication, approaches to the physical and experiential environment. After exam…
Identifying and protecting historic landscapes
Six years ago, Darvill and colleagues reported (ANTIQUITY 61: 393-408) on the Monuments Protection Programme, a new English initiative to build, from a century of haphazard acts of site protection, a set of balanced judgements and priorities by which to recognize ancient places that are more precious, genuinely of a national importance. The Programme, they tell ANTIQUITY, has now completed the first-stage review of information in local sites and …
Keeping time at Stonehenge
Scholars have long seen in the monumental composition of Stonehenge evidence for prehistoric time-reckoning-a Neolithic calendar. Exactly how such a calendar functioned, however, remains unclear. Recent advances in understanding the phasing of Stonehenge highlight the unity of the sarsen settings. Here, the author argues that the numerology of these sarsen elements materialises a perpetual calendar based on a tropical solar year of 365.25 days. T…
The Cronk yn How Stone and the Rock Art of the Isle of Man
Reappraisal of an early 20th century excavation at the Cronk yn How round barrow near Ramsey in the Isle of Man suggests that a stone pair was demolished during the 3rd millennium BC to make way for a round barrow with a single central burial. It is suggested that one of the stones from the original pair was decorated with a series of motifs before being incorporated into the barrow. Some of the motifs used find parallels amongst later Neolithic …
A Cup-marked Stone from Dan-y-garn, Mynachlog-Ddu, Pembrokeshire, and the Prehistoric Rock-art from Wales
A small panel of mobiliary rock art containing two cup-mark motifs discovered in north Pembrokeshire in August 2002 is described and compared with other finds of rock art from Wales. Although the sites with passage-grave style rock art in north Wales are well-known, the more widespread yet less impressive cup-mark dominated panels found mainly around the upland fringes of the country have received relatively little attention. A provisional corpus…
Local and exotic sources of sarsen debitage at Stonehenge revealed by geochemical provenancing
The application of novel geochemical provenancing techniques has changed our understanding of the construction of Stonehenge, by identifying West Woods on the Marlborough Downs as the likely source area for the majority of the extant sarsen megaliths at the monument. In this study, we apply the same techniques to saccharoid sarsen fragments from three excavations within and outwith the main Sarsen Circle to expand our understanding of the provena…
Excavations at a Neolithic Enclosure on The Peak, near Birdlip, Gloucestershire
Surveys and excavations in 1980–1 confirmed Peak Camp as a Neolithic enclosure on a flat promontory of the Cotswold escarpment overlooking the Severn Valley just 1 km south of Crickley Hill. Although heavily eroded by quarrying the site can be reconstructed as having two concentric arcs of boundary earthworks forming an oval plan which was probably open to the north where a steep natural slope defined the edge of the site. A section through the o…
Excavations at Cherhill, North Wiltshire, 1967
A sequence of deposits ranging in date from Late-glacial to the present produced detailed evidence of environmental changes, reflecting both climatic fluctuations and the effects of human activities. A Later Mesolithic occupation horizon, with lithic industry and associated faunal remains, is dated at about 5280 bc. It was sealed by a deposit of tufa. An irregular linear excavation, dated at about 2765 bc, is interpreted as a quarry; the backfill…
A question of national importance
When General Pitt-Rivers was appointed as first Inspector under the 1882 Act, which first protected British Ancient Monuments, the Act's Schedule named just 50 sites nationally. Although many monuments have been added to the Schedule since then, the growth in knowledge of the long and intensive occupation of England has been such that the current total of nearly 13,000 scheduled monuments amounts to only 1 in 50 of the sites thought to exist.In m…
Excavations on the Site of the Early Norman Castle at Gloucester, 1983–84
INVESTIGATIONS AT 28–32 Commercial Road, Gloucester, provide the first excavated evidence for the first Norman castle. Parts of the bailey surface and motte ditch were explored. Gullies, pits and post-holes attributable to the occupation and use of the castle were found in the bailey; one pit contained the remains of a tabula board with bone inlay and a complete set of counters. Sealed beneath the bailey surface were the remains of a substantial …
The Circulation of Neolithic Stone and Flint Axes
This paper examines the distribution of stone and flint axes in Wales and the mid-west of England based on systematically collected data. Typological variations within the category of implements generally known as axes are discussed, and the distribution of the largest group, true axes, analysed. Three types of distribution are identified: regional distribution, local distribution and waterborne distribution. Proximity of source is shown to play …
Excavations at Stackpole Warren, Dyfed
Excavations of sites spanning the Beaker to early Roman periods at Stackpole Warren, Dyfed, are described. The sites are in an area of blown sand which enhanced their preservation and led to the separation of several horizons. The earliest is a buried soil beneath the blown sand which contained Mesolithic to Bronze Age artefacts. At site A, there was a roundhouse associated with Early Bronze Age pottery and dated to 1620±70 and 1400±70 BC uncal.,…
Identifying and protecting historic landscapes
Six years ago, Darvill and colleagues reported (ANTIQUITY 61: 393-408) on the Monuments Protection Programme, a new English initiative to build, from a century of haphazard acts of site protection, a set of balanced judgements and priorities by which to recognize ancient places that are more precious, genuinely of a national importance. The Programme, they tell ANTIQUITY, has now completed the first-stage review of information in local sites and …
Planning, Tourism, and Cultural Landscapes
A group of experts convened by the Cultural Heritage Committee of the Council of Europe has recently been considering the question of cultural landscapes with a view to publishing a European Recommendation on the conservation and management of Cultural Landscape Areas. The background to this initiative is summarised and the sections dealing with matters relating to tourism are outlined. Three interconnecting levels of approach, strategic planning…
Value systems and the archaeological resource
The paper deals with the various values held by people for the heritage, specifically the archaeological heritage. Attention is directed away from economic values towards sociological interpretations – sets of assumptions, beliefs and knowledge‐sets which may be termed ‘value systems’. Such value systems underpin and inform individual and collective attitudes and, by implication, approaches to the physical and experiential environment. After exam…
The Monuments At Risk Survey
Another step has started in trying to figure out just what the collected archaeology of England amounts to - this time, with its change in mind
The Monuments at Risk Survey
Another step has started in trying to figure out just what the collected archaeology of England amounts to — this time, with its change in mind
AMS dating of the Manx Ronaldsway Neolithic
The Ronaldsway Culture of the Isle of Man was recognized as a classic later Neolithic assemblage over 50 years ago; its dating and duration have been matters of debate. AMS radiocarbon determinations from carbonaceous deposits on Ronaldsway-style pots resolve chronological questions, while new research provides a more secure social context
Julian Cope. The modern antiquarian
Julian Cope. The modern antiquarian: A premillennial odyssey through megalithic Britain. 438 pages, 600+ colour illustrations. 1998. London: Thorsons; 0-7225-3599-6 hardback £29.99 - Volume 73 Issue 279
Glandy Cross
Excavations at the Glandy Cross monumental complex during 1991 and 1992 formed part of an integrated programme of evaluation, rescue, and research by Dyfed Archaeological Trust (DAT). Enclosures, pit circles, standing stones, and cairns were excavated and their environs systematically surveyed. Radiocarbon dates show the monumental complex to have been constructed between c. 2190–1530 cal BC. However, the earliest activity at the site may date to…
Neolithic Houses in Northwest Europe and beyond
Lecture summaries 1999 - 2000
Four lecture summaries:Roman Britain as protectorate, political symbol and military training-groundScience and the passed: the archaeology of excrementScottish hydro-hotels and the tourist industry in 19th-century ScotlandThe Billown Neolithic Landscape Project, Isle of Man: changing perceptions of the western seaways in early prehistory
Prehistoric Britain
Tim Darvill examins the development of human societies in Britain from the earliest times down to the Roman Conquest, as revealed by available archaeological evidence. Special attention is given to six themes which are traced through all phases of prehistory: subsistence, technology, ritual, trade, society and population. Ideal for extramural course use, Prehistoric Britain is a book that can be read for pleasure by anyone interested in the early…
SPACES - exploring Neolithic landscapes in the Strumble-Preseli area of southwest Wales
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
It's better to dig than dance
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
A Cup-marked Stone from Dan-y-garn, Mynachlog-Ddu, Pembrokeshire, and the Prehistoric Rock-art from Wales
A small panel of mobiliary rock art containing two cup-mark motifs discovered in north Pembrokeshire in August 2002 is described and compared with other finds of rock art from Wales. Although the sites with passage-grave style rock art in north Wales are well-known, the more widespread yet less impressive cup-mark dominated panels found mainly around the upland fringes of the country have received relatively little attention. A provisional corpus…
Stone Circles, Oval Settings and Henges in South-west Wales and Beyond
Topographical and geophysical surveys carried out in August 2002 at three monuments in the Preseli Hills of Pembrokeshire are reported: Bedd Arthur, Gors Fawr and Meini Gwyr. Previously unrecorded features were revealed at all three sites, most spectacularly at Meini Gwyr which, from the evidence of geophysical survey, appears to be a multi-phase monument that includes a double pit-circle, hengi-form monument and embanked enclosure with an intern…
The Cronk yn How Stone and the Rock Art of the Isle of Man
Reappraisal of an early 20th century excavation at the Cronk yn How round barrow near Ramsey in the Isle of Man suggests that a stone pair was demolished during the 3rd millennium BC to make way for a round barrow with a single central burial. It is suggested that one of the stones from the original pair was decorated with a series of motifs before being incorporated into the barrow. Some of the motifs used find parallels amongst later Neolithic …
Ironworking in the Bronze Age? Evidence from a 10th Century BC Settlement at Hartshill Copse, Upper Bucklebury, West Berkshire
Excavations at Hartshill Copse in 2003 uncovered evidence for Late Bronze Age settlement, securely dated to the 10th century BC , associated with long alignments of closely set posts: prehistoric landscape features with few known parallels. Extensive sampling of the settlement remains yielded quantities of burnt flint and plain Post Deverel-Rimbury potsherds, and, quite unexpectedly, a substantial quantity of iron hammerscale. This paper presents…
Research frameworks for World Heritage Sites and the conceptualization of archaeological knowledge
Research has a central place in the identification and definition of World Heritage Sites, and increasingly in their ongoing management and conservation. Using the example of Stonehenge in central southern England, attention is drawn to the formulation of a research framework as a means of providing a transparent and structured approach to the planning and execution of high quality research. Ultimately, however, research has to be useful and soci…
Stonehenge complete - By Christopher Chippindale
Therapeutic Landscapes
Archaeology (45 obras) · History (45 obras) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (34 obras) · Geography (34 obras) · History (23 obras) · Ancient history (15 obras) · Geology (14 obras) · Archaeological Research and Protection (13 obras) · Art (13 obras) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (13 obras)