Woodward Ann - Ritual in Early Bronze Age Grave Goods

Published in the United Kingdom in 2015 by
OXBOW BOOKS
10 Hythe Bridge Street, Oxford OX1 2EW

and in the United States by
OXBOW BOOKS
908 Darby Road, Havertown, PA 19083

Oxbow Books and the individual authors 2015

Hardcover Edition: ISBN 978-1-7829-694-3
Digital Edition: ISBN 978-1-78297-695-0; Mobi Edition: ISBN 978-1-78297-696-7; PDF Edition: ISBN 978-1-78297-697-4

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Woodward, Ann.
Ritual in early Bronze Age grave goods : an examination of ritual and dress equipment from Chalcolithic and early Bronze
Age graves in England / Ann Woodward and John Hunter ; with David Bukach, Stuart Needham and Alison Sheridan ; and
with contributions by Peter Bray, Mary Davis, Sheila Hamilton-Dyer, Duncan Hook, Rob Ixer, Mick Jones, Mark Maltby, Sonia
O'Connor, Philip Potts, Fiona Roe, Lore Troalen, John Watson and Peter Webb.
1 online resource.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.
ISBN 978-1-78297-695-0 (epub) -- ISBN 978-1-78297-696-7 (prc) -- ISBN 978-1-78297-697-4 ( pdf) -- ISBN 978-1-78297-694
3 (hardcover) 1. Copper age--England. 2. Bronze age--England. 3. Grave goods--England. 4. Rites and ceremonies--England-
History--To 1500. 5. Dress accessories--England--History--To 1500. 6. Social archaeology--England. 7. England--Antiquities. 8.
Excavations (Archaeology)--England. I. Hunter, John, 1949- II. Title.
GN778.22.G7
942.01--dc23

2015014192

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the publisher in writing.

Printed in the United Kingdom by Short Run Press, Exeter

For a complete list of Oxbow titles, please contact:

UNITED KINGDOM
Oxbow Books
Telephone (01865) 241249, Fax (01865) 794449
Email:
www.oxbowbooks.com

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Oxbow Books
Telephone (800) 791-9354, Fax (610) 853-9146
Email:
www.casemateacademic.com/oxbow

Oxbow Books is part of the Casemate Group

Front cover: gold-covered shale pendant or button from Upton Lovell G2e, Wiltshire (ID 1450)

Contents

(Chapters by the authors unless otherwise stated)

(with Stuart Needham and Peter Bray)

(with Stuart Needham and Sonia OConnor)

(with Stuart Needham)

(with Alison Sheridan)

(with Alison Sheridan)

(by Stuart Needham with the authors)

(by Stuart Needham with the main authors)

(by Stuart Needham with the main authors)

(by Stuart Needham)

(by Alison Sheridan with the main authors)

(by Alison Sheridan with the main authors)

(by Alison Sheridan)

(by the main authors with David Bukach)

(with Alison Sheridan)

(with Alison Sheridan)

(with Alison Sheridan)

(with David Bukach)

(with David Bukach)

by Stuart Needham

by Peter Bray

by Mark Maltby

by Sonia OConnor

by Mary Davis, Duncan Hook, Mick Jones, Alison Sheridan and Lore Troalen

by Rob Ixer, Philip Potts, Peter Webb and John Watson

by Alison Sheridan and Ann Woodward

Acknowledgements

The work for this volume was undertaken during a six-year research programme, the first three years of which (20079) were spent at the University of Birmingham undertaking fieldwork and recording. This work was funded by the Leverhulme Trust and we are indebted to the Trusts generosity in supporting the venture. It involved the two of us (Professor John Hunter and Dr Ann Woodward) aided by a post-doctoral assistant Dr David Bukach. The team was also supported in the field by other researchers: Dr Alison Sheridan and Mary Davis (jet and jet-like materials); Dr Stuart Needham (gold and selected other objects); Mark Maltby, Dr Sonia OConnor and Sheila Hamilton-Dyer (animal bone); Dr Rob Ixer and Fiona Roe (lithics), and colleagues from the Open University, Dr Philip Potts, Dr Peter Webb and John Watson (PXRF). During the programme compositional analysis was also carried out by Lore Troalen (National Museums Scotland), Duncan Hook (British Museum) and the late Dr J. M. Jones (University of Newcastle). We are indebted to them all for their support, enthusiasm and expertise.

The material was examined at thirteen museums and involved considerable work on behalf of their respective curators in locating and making available appropriate material, and in arranging space for examination, often for several days at a time. Without this level of co-operation and support none of this research would have been possible and the authors are especially grateful to the following for their efforts: Alison Roberts and Suzanne Anderson (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford); Gail Boyle (Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery); Dr Ben Roberts (British Museum, London); Anne Taylor (Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge); Dr David Dawson and Lisa Webb, now Lisa Brown (Wiltshire Heritage Museum, Devizes); Peter Woodwood (Dorset County Museum, Dorchester); Claire Jones (English Heritage Store, Fort Cumberland, Portsmouth); Heather Fitch, now Heather York (Hove Museum, Brighton); Paula Gentil and Martin Foreman (Hull and East Riding Museum); Emma OConnor (Barbican House Museum, Lewes); Alan West (Norwich Castle Museum); Peter Saunders and Jane Ellis-Schn (Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum), and Gill Woolrich (Weston Park Museum, Sheffield).

Collation of the data and most of the writing up process was undertaken by the two of us from 2009 in our so-called retirement and, somewhat apologetically, we would like to thank our partners and families who may have expected more of our time and attention during the last three years. David Bukach has returned to his native Canada and has followed a new career as a professional photographer. We wish him well.

A number of other researchers have added significantly to the text and we are grateful to be able to integrate their specialist knowledge with our own ideas. They brought with them not only their own expertise, but also that of a network of other colleagues. The full list of contributors appears on the title page. Contributions by Dr Alison Sheridan (jet and jet-like materials), Dr Stuart Needham (gold and various other objects), Dr Sonia OConnor (animal bone), and Dr Peter Bray (analysis of copper alloys) all appear under their own names in the main text and in the appendices. Moreover, we are particularly pleased to be able to incorporate their novel research ideas for the first time, notably in Alison Sheridans discussion of jet and jet-like necklaces (). The volume has gained new richness and importance as a result.

Illustrations play a major part in the presentation of the data. The original photographs are the result of David Bukachs splendid photography; several of the collations are also his work. Nadine Ross also produced page collations in some of the earlier chapters. The majority of the line drawings have been provided by Henry Buglass (formerly of the University of Birmingham), with others by Marion ONeil (freelance illustrator) and Peter Woodward. We are indebted to their skills and understanding of what we have been trying to achieve.

Copyright for the text, line drawings, diagrams and tables rest with Oxbow Books and the individual authors. For reproduction of any colour plate permission also needs to be sought from the museums which hold the relevant objects. In the case of a plate which illustrates objects from more than one museum it would be necessary to contact each of the museums concerned (for details see the table below). Attributions of objects within any one colour plate can be determined by consulting the Lists of Objects Studied and Illustrated, which appear at the end of each object type section in the text.