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Places of Special Virtue: Megaliths in the Neolithic landscapes of Wales

by Vicki Cummings and Alasdair Whittle

This volume explores the landscape settings of megalithic chambered monuments in Wales. Set against a broader theoretical discussion on the significance of the landscape, the authors consider the role of visual landscapes in prehistory, meanings attached to the landscape, and the values and beliefs invested in it. Wales is rich in Neolithic monuments, but the general absence of certain classic monumental forms found in the rest of Britain and Ireland, such as causewayed enclosures, henges, and cursus monuments, seems to have marginalised the Welsh record from many wider discussions on the Neolithic. Instead of seeing Wales as an area which lacks many of these 'classic' components, Cummings and Whittle argue that Wales has its own unique and individual Neolithic which is simply different from the Neolithic found further to the east. It is suggested that this difference may relate to an essentially mobile existence, with strong links back to the Mesolithic period. The authors present three detailed case studies, examining the settings of sites in south-west, north-west and south-east Wales. They outline the history of research for each region, including the previous classification of the monuments and any excavations, and describe the specific landscape settings of the monuments. They assess the significance of a variety of landscape features which would have been visible from the monuments, in particular emphasising the mythological and symbolic significance of the sea, rivers and mountains. An illustrated inventory of sites completes the volume. c224p, 279 b/w figs, 15 col figs (Cardiff Studies in Archaeology, Oxbow Books 2003)

Review Quotes

"makes a real contribution to Neolithic studies."

Mike Pitts
British Archaeology (78) (September 2004)

"much effort and thought has gone into the making of this book"

Alison Sheridan
ANTIQUITY (2006)

"One of the main strengths of this work is that it clearly illustrates the articulation between local, regional and wider traditions of monument building in the Neolithic."

Helen Evans
Assemblage (2004)

"This is an important book... It is knowledgeable, and well written and produced"

Jodie Lewis
Landscape history (2004)

Related Titles

• Neolithic Settlement in Ireland and Western Britain
  edited by Ian Armit, Eileen Murphy, Eiméar Nelis and Derek Simpson

• The Neolithic of the Irish Sea
  by Vicki Cummings, Chris Fowler

• Set in stone: New approaches to Neolithic monuments in Scotland
  edited by Vicki Cummings and Amelia Pannett

• A View from the West: The Neolithic of the Irish Sea Zone
  by Vicki Cummings

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