The Stonehenge People: An Exploration of Life in Neolithic Britain 4700-2000 BC [Paperback]

A wonderful book in every sense of the word, a true gem. If you too have nursed a life long fascination for the distant past and the fragmentary remains that have survived into our lives, you will find this book a revelation, no, an avalanche of revelations into the lives of our distant ancestors in British Isles.

The author treads a finely balanced path between the fine detailed scientific study of the archaeologist and the misty eyed dreamers of the new age visionary to evoke a new synthesis of what life felt like to those distant, forgotten people. Taking the results of countless meticulous surveys of monuments and artefacts throughout these isles and the related sites in Europe, he has lyrically brushed off the dust then carefully pieced them together like some massive jigsaw into a picture of such detail and clarity that I, for one, will never be able to look at some obscure, tattered little stone circle in the same way again.

This book has answered so many questions for me, put the whole subject of Stonehenge, who built it - and why - into its' true context for perhaps the first time. Many archaeologists must revile his name as he has overturned hundreds of tentative conclusions from so many digs by taking one long step backwards and reconsidering all of their work as a body and letting it speak for itself. In a way, it feels like he has organised a school reunion for a group of senior citizens, then taken notes of the flood of interconnections he'd never seen, or suspected, before and then re-written the whole subject again from scratch. In a similar way, the dreamers and crystal gazers, forever capitalising on their imagined fantasies of distant Arthur's battling dragons over Glastonbury in some timeless Golden Age must also be cursing into their beer as their visions crumble before this crystal clear - but loving - hard, steady look into the real lives of our forefathers of some 200 generations ago.

Frankly, I was gobsmacked when I first read this one and promptly ran out to buy my own copy. It was out of print - I was outraged, so outraged that I promptly set out to photocopy the whole thing to make sure I wouldn't loose this gem. Happily they've re-printed it - and it's available online, which is where I bought my latest, much valued copy. (It struck me also that its' a silly con of a world when a silicon chip is the only way to get the low down on the ultimate silicon chippers of all time...)

Environmental constraints and overuse of resources forced changes in lifestyle over the centuries. Neolithic peoples originally inhabited the fertile landscape as farmers. Their crops, however, quickly depleted the soil. Castleden cites a study in Denmark of Neolithic einkorn wheat reducing soil nutrients in only three seasons. Loss of fertility drove people to new locations or converted to a pastoral existence. In either case, the ommunities remained small and tightly integrated, with settlements only a few kilometres apart. The conditions also inhibited experimenting in farming or lifestyles. Maintenance of a secure life took precedence over trying the novel. The resulting conservatism led to a commonalty of thinking. We see evidence of that in the multitude of Neolithic religious sites. Stonehenge, Avebury,
Woodhenge, are distinct from each other in many ways, but their basic pattern is consistent.

Conservative rural life instilled fertility rituals dealing with crops and cattle breeding. Respect for surviving elders led to cults dealing with death. Castleden argues that it wasn't worship of the dead, but death itself that occupied their thoughts and practices. Burial rituals and cemetaries ultimately produced the great henges and stone monuments. Castleden acknowledges that the artefacts associated with the ditches, banks and the stone circles are the chief source of information we have in conceiving Neolithic life. One missing element, and he finds this highly significant, are structures for defence or other evidence of conflict. There are no large collections of arrowheads or spear blades found at the henge sites. From this he derives Neolithic society as essentially peaceful, with communities acting in relative harmony. Such an environment facilitated trade and information exchange. He traces the major likely trade routes across Southern Britain and across to Brittany in France. This view counters the long-held belief that these people were kept brutish and ignorant by being in a constant state of battle. He rightly argues that such a social milieu wouldn't have allowed the construction of such sites as Avebury or Stonehenge. He can't resist comparison with modern societies.

Castleden has enhanced a fluent presentation with numerous photographs, diagrams and maps. There is some presentation of contending views on various aspects of the topic. Perhaps the most surprising topic is the enigma of Stonehenge's source of the massive bluestones. Rejecting the "glacial erratics" position of Aubrey Burl, Castleden accepts the Presli Hills source. However, he proposes the most novel form of transport yet suggested. Instead of the usual Presli to Severn Estuary route some propose, Castleden argues for an all-sea route around Land's End. He contends some form of trimaran would easily make the journey. Oxen-pulled sledges managed the final leg.

Although this book focuses on southern Britain of the era, the approach can be successfully applied elsewhere, even for other times. Castleden's easy prose and frank approach to the material makes this book useful and informative. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]