Beyond the core? An investigation into the early Neolithic of the North Isles of Orkney, with a focus on the chambered tomb sequence

Abstract

The Orkney islands are renowned for their rich Neolithic archaeological record. Recently considerable work has been undertaken on Orkney’s Mainland around sites such as the Ness of Brodgar but less attention has been given to the periphery islands that make up the archipelago. Similarly, a comprehensive study of its chambered cairns has not been published since 1989. Working with the benefit of more recent enhancements of the Orcadian early Neolithic archaeological record this research considers the early Neolithic chambered cairns of the North Isles of Orkney. Using a combination of desk-based assessment and fieldwork, it examines the tomb thematic by considering three key areas; chronology, structural phasing and spatial analysis. The earliest evidence for the Neolithic is potentially in the North Isles and it is arguable that the centre of early Neolithic activity sits there. It is only towards the later Neolithic that the social core shifts to the Mainland. In addition to this a new axial alignment technique has been developed that has identified nuances within construction mythologies employed by the builders that identifies phasing and suggests a longevity of tomb use. This indicates that many early Neolithic tombs were multi-phase and therefore in use over a longer period when compared to other early Neolithic monuments of Britain and Ireland. This thesis also demonstrates that chambered tombs were not located by virtue of a universal social template but instead each island had different needs and requirements and people built each tomb to comply with those requirements. This thesis also introduces two new hypotheses namely that chambered tombs were purposely aligned upon settlements and tombs were intrinsically associated with marine and terrestrial routeways and travel strategies.