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The Beaker phenomenon in Britain is typically represented by a particular form of pottery and its inclusion in graves with flexed or crouched inhumations referred to as Beaker burials. Analysis of the full range of burial evidence, however, reveals a high degree of variability in funerary rites including cremation and skeletal disarticulation. Summed probability distribution analysis of radiocarbon dates provides evidence for continuity of these other, atypical rites from the pre-Beaker Late Neolithic (c.3000–2450 cal bc) through the Chalcolithic (c.2450–2200 cal bc) and into the Early Bronze Age (after c.2200 cal bc). Regional diversity is apparent in Beaker period funerary treatments and grave good provision between these typical and atypical rites, as is differential selection of rites on the basis of age and biological sex. This evidence for within and between community funerary diversity has implications for understanding the large-scale processes of cultural and genomic transformation across this period of major transition in British prehistory.

ABSTRACTThe expansion of isotope analyses has transformed the study of past migration and mobility, sometimes providing unexpected and intriguing results. This has, in turn, led to media attention (and concomitant misrepresentation) and scepticism from some archaeologists. Such scepticism is healthy and not always without foundation. Isotope analysis is yet to reach full maturity and challenging issues remain, concerning diagenesis, biosphere mapping resolution and knowledge of the drivers of variation. Bold and over-simplistic interpretations have been presented, especially when relying on single isotope proxies, and researchers have at times been accused of following specific agendas. It is therefore vital to integrate archaeological and environmental evidence to support interpretation. Most importantly, the use of multiple isotope proxies is key: isotope analysis is an exclusive approach and therefore single analyses provide only limited resolution. The growth in isotope research has led to a growth in rebuttals and counter-narratives. Such rebuttals warrant the same critical appraisal that is applied to original research, both of evidence for their assertions and the potential for underlying agendas. This paper takes a case study-based approach focusing on pig movements to Neolithic henge complexes to explore the dangers encountered in secondary use of isotope data.

ABSTRACTNew radiocarbon (14C) dates suggest a simultaneous appearance of two technologically and geographically distinct axe production practices in Neolithic Britain; igneous open-air quarries in Great Langdale, Cumbria, and from flint mines in southern England at ~4000–3700 cal BC. In light of the recent evidence that farming was introduced at this time by large-scale immigration from northwest Europe, and that expansion within Britain was extremely rapid, we argue that this synchronicity supports this speed of colonization and reflects a knowledge of complex extraction processes and associated exchange networks already possessed by the immigrant groups; long-range connections developed as colonization rapidly expanded. Although we can model the start of these new extraction activities, it remains difficult to estimate how long significant production activity lasted at these key sites given the nature of the record from which samples could be obtained.

•Portable XRF, widely used in archaeological provenancing, is unsuitable for use with excavated lithic artefacts without mechanical abrasion of the artefact surfaces prior to analysis.•ICP-MS analysis remains a robust tool for geochemical provenancing of excavated lithic artefacts, providing the samples are sufficiently large.•Geochemical analysis indicates that large sarsen boulders used in the construction of Stonehenge were sourced from at least two different locations in the Marlborough Downs.•Sarsen of undetermined use was brought to Stonehenge from several different areas, two of which include Bramdean, Hampshire (51 km from the monument) and Stoney Wish, East Sussex (123 km from the monument).

Reflections on and approaches to interdisciplinary collaboration in archaeology, cultural geography and performance. With the outline of a potential methodology and proposals for practice that draw upon experiences of creative endeavours in the field and in which scholarly and artistic are combined; and with reference to a series of performative outcomes.

AbstractIn 1992 two Middle Neolithic adult skeletons were excavated by South Yorkshire Archaeological Services from beneath a rock overhang at Scabba Wood (SE527019), near Sprotbrough, within one of the valleys north of the Don Gorge. In 1994, the Yorkshire Archaeological Society’s Doncaster branch carried out a geophysical survey of a rectangular enclosure (SE530019), previously recognised by air photography, north-east of the wood, and in 1996 they began the excavation of a stone-walled, sub-rectangular enclosure within the wood, 150 m south of the rock overhang (SE530107). In 1997 and 1998 they were joined by a team from Sheffield University that also continued investigations at the stone-walled enclosure and along the rock overhang. Finds indicate occupation from the Late Iron and Roman period and Neolithic and Early Bronze Age use of the rock overhang for the disposal of the dead.

Recent treatments of burial practices in prehistoric Europe have tended to emphasise the variety of practices that are apparent in any given period; contra previous views which tended to emphasise homogeneity over time. In the spirit of more recent considerations that emphasise a more holistic approach, the current article presents investigations of human remains interred within and around a single monument at Cranborne Chase, Dorset, UK. By taking a synthetic approach giving equal weight to taphonomy, archaeothanatology, histological analysis, scanning electron microscopy, micro-CT scanning, experimentation and contextual dating, a more nuanced picture has been revealed, where the dead were dealt with in ways that were both more complex and considerably more protracted than might otherwise be assumed. In particular, several lines of evidence point to practices aimed at the protracted curation of the dead as articulated bodies with at least some soft tissue persisting. This observation is of particular importance in light of previously published claims for ‘mummification’ in Bronze Age Britain. It suggests that such practices may have been both widespread and persistent over time.

•Stone wedges were among the most common tools at Stonehenge’s bluestone megalith quarries in Wales.•Three stone wedges were found in situat the bluestone quarry of Craig Rhos-y-felin.•Two of these wedges with evidence of being driven into joints around a pillar.•Geochemical analysis confirmed that these two wedges had been introduced into these joints from elsewhere.

The article discusses archaeological and geological research on the possibility that some of the bluestones in the prehistoric monument Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England, were sourced from Wales.

A Neolithic stone circle at Waun Mawn, in the Mynydd Preseli, west Wales, has been proposed as the original location of some dolerite megaliths at Stonehenge, including one known as Stone 62. To investigate this hypothesis, in-situanalyses, using a portable XRF, have been obtained for four extant non-spotted doleritic monoliths at Waun Mawn, along with two weathered doleritic fragments from a stonehole (number 91). The data obtained have been compared to data from spotted and non-spotted dolerite outcrops across the Mynydd Preseli, an area known to be the source of some Stonehenge doleritic bluestones, as well as data from in-situanalysis of Stone 62 (non-spotted dolerite) and ex-situanalysis of a core taken from Stone 62 in the late 1980′s.

The article focuses on the initation of the Stonehenge Riverside Project in England. It notes that the archaeological project is initiated by several professional archaeologists including Mike Parker Pearson, Colin Richards and Chris Tilley and university students and volunteers. It claims that in this project, the aforementioned people have conducted excavations across the Stonehenge World Heritage Site.

This paper outlines a new software tool, Water Modeler, which is a component of a Coastal Zone Decision Support System. The Water Modeler can analyze a time series of water-level records (tide gauge observations) to determine the risk associated with a high water level from a storm surge event or long-term sea-level rise. The new tool has been applied in two case studies in Nova Scotia, Canada, where coastal flood-risk maps have been derived from high-resolution LiDAR digital elevation models. The first case study is for Annapolis Royal on the Bay of Fundy side of the province, while the second looks at the Kingsburg area of Lunenburg County on the Atlantic shore. The Saint John, New Brunswick, and Halifax tide gauge records were used for Annapolis Royal and Kingsburg, respectively, in the Water Modeler to examine the risks of coastal flooding. The Groundhog Day storm of 1976, which caused coastal flooding around the Bay of Fundy, was used as a benchmark for Annapolis Royal. At current rates of sea-level rise, 22 cm/century, the average return period of this water level is 43 years (65 percent probability) and there is a very high probability (99 percent) that it will reoccur within 121 years. If relative sea-level rise rates increase to 80 cm/century from climate change, then the average return period reduces to 23 years, and there is a 99 percent probability of reoccurrence within 55 years. The benchmark storm used from the Halifax water record was Hurricane Juan, which occurred in September 2003. The cumulative flood-level probabilities were calculated for this water level and a return period of 95 years was determined, with an average return period of 52 years (65 percent probability) under current sea-level conditions. The combination of geomatics tools, such as high-resolution LiDAR digital elevation models (DEMs) for coastal flood inundation and the Water Modeler to estimate the associated risk, allows coastal communities to better plan for the future.

This paper outlines a new software tool, Water Modeler, which is a component of a Coastal Zone Decision Support System. The Water Modeler can analyze a time series of water-level records (tide gauge observations) to determine the risk associated with a high water level from a storm surge event or long-term sea-level rise. The new tool has been applied in two case studies in Nova Scotia, Canada, where coastal flood-risk maps have been derived from high-resolution LiDAR digital elevation models. The first case study is for Annapolis Royal on the Bay of Fundy side of the province, while the second looks at the Kingsburg area of Lunenburg County on the Atlantic shore. The Saint John, New Brunswick, and Halifax tide gauge records were used for Annapolis Royal and Kingsburg, respectively, in the Water Modeler to examine the risks of coastal flooding. The Groundhog Day storm of 1976, which caused coastal flooding around the Bay of Fundy, was used as a benchmark for Annapolis Royal. At current rates of sea-level rise, 22 cm/century, the average return period of this water level is 43 years (65 percent probability) and there is a very high probability (99 percent) that it will reoccur within 121 years. If relative sea-level rise rates increase to 80 cm/century from climate change, then the average return period reduces to 23 years, and there is a 99 percent probability of reoccurrence within 55 years. The benchmark storm used from the Halifax water record was Hurricane Juan, which occurred in September 2003. The cumulative flood-level probabilities were calculated for this water level and a return period of 95 years was determined, with an average return period of 52 years (65 percent probability) under current sea-level conditions. The combination of geomatics tools, such as high-resolution LiDAR digital elevation models (DEMs) for coastal flood inundation and the Water Modeler to estimate the associated risk, allows coastal communities to better plan for the future.

Certain numeric puzzles, known as ‘magic letters’, each have a finite permutation group associated with them in a natural manner. We describe how the isomorphism type of these permutation groups relates to the structure of the magic letters.

The abodes of the dead or the ancestors are not always those places where mortal remains are laid to rest. This chapter investigates how we might identify prehistoric monuments, ostensibly not funerary in character, as being places of the ancestors. It examines the case of Stonehenge within the context and landscapes of Neolithic Wessex to explore the symbolic significance of the wooden and stone materials out of which the great monuments of the Neolithic in England were constructed. This concern with “materiality” is extended to the ceramics of that period, showing that similar structuring principles were in use not only in the contexts of use for certain ceramic styles but also in the tempering agents added to their clays. This is an attempt at a contextual archaeology in which the duality of structure and agency is central to understanding the prehistoric past.

A technique suitable for computer application has been developed whereby whole rock major element analyses are corrected for X-ray detectable nonclay minerals and used to set up simultaneous equations which are solved to give clay mineral abundances. A theoretical evaluation of the approach by graphical methods enables the intrinsic errors to be very clearly assessed. Errors are minimized when SiO2, A12O3, and K2O are used as variables but only slightly increased if total Fe2O3+ MgO is substituted for SiO2. Quartz and CO2content are the only data normally required which cannot be determined by X-ray fluorescence. Results compare favorably with estimates obtained by XRD and other methods, being more accurate than XRD and equally precise provided the rock does not contain clay minerals other than the kaolin group, the mica group, and chlorite. Errors are large when the clay mineral phases comprise more than 35% chlorite and as yet undetermined when smectite exceeds 10%. The method is ideally suited to the analysis of large numbers of mudstones of fairly similar mineralogy especially where XRF equipment with direct output to a computer is available. Разработан удобный для использования компьютера метод,с помощью которого корректируется анализ всех главных элементов пород за влияние неглинистых минералов, обнаруживаемых рентгеноскопическим методом,и одновременно выводятся уравнения, решение которых дает относительное содержание глинистых минералов. Теоретическая оценка этого подхода графическими способами показывает, что он позволяет очень хорошо выявлять существенные ошибки. Ошибки уменьшаются, если SO2, Al2O3 и К2O использУются как переменные, но только немного увеличиваются, если Fe2О3+ MgO полностью замещает SiO2. Содержание кварца и CO2 являются обычно единственными необходимыми данными, которые не могут быть определены методом флюоресценции рентгеновских лучей. Сравнение результатов с оценками, полученными с помощью ДРЛ и другими методами, показ ало, что предлагаемый метод является более точным, чем ДРЛ и в такой же мере воспроизводим при условии, что порода не содержит глинистых минералов кроме каолиновой группы, группы слюд и хлорита. Ошибки велики, когда глинистые минеральные фазы включают более 35% хлорита, и неопределенны, когда содержание смектита превосходит 10%. Метод идеально подходит для анализа большого числа аргиллитов с примерно одинаковым минералогическим составом особенно, когда в наличии имеется оборудование ФРЛ с прямым выходом на компьютер. Eine passende Methode für Computer-Anwendung wurde entwickelt indem Hauptelementanalysen für mit Röntgenstrahlen auffindbare Nicht-Tonmin eralien korrigiert wurde und dazu benutzt wurden, Gleichungen mit drei Unbekannten aufzustzen, welche für Häufigkeiten der Tonmineralien gelöst wurden. Eine theoretische Auswertung der graphischen Bestimmungsmethoden macht es möglich, die wesentlichen Fehler klar zu sehen. Fehler sind auf ein Minimum reduziert, wenn SiO2Al2O3und K2O als Variable benutzt werden, aber werden leicht erhöht, wenn Fe2O3und MgO zusammen für SiO2substituiert werden. Die Quartz-und Kohlendioxydgehalte sind normalerweise die einzigen notwendigen Daten, die nicht durch Röntgenfluoreszenz bestimmt werden können. Resultate schneiden im Vergleich mit Bestimmungen, die durch XRD und andere Methoden erhalten wurden, günstig ab, weil sie exakter als XRD sind und genau so präzise vorausgesetzt, keine sonstigen Mineralien als die zu den Kaolin- und Glimmergruppen gehörigen und Chlorit anwesend sind. Grosse Fehler erscheinen, wenn die Tonphasen mehr als 35% Chlorit enthalten und sind noch nicht bestimmt worden, wenn mehr als 10% Smektit vorhanden ist. Die Methode ist ide al für die Analyse einer großen Anzahl von Schluffsteinen mit ziemlich ähnlichen mineralogischen Eigenschaften, besonders wenn ein Röntgenfluoreszenz-apparat mit direktem Ausgang in einen Computer erhältlich ist. Une technique a été développée qui peut être adaptée à des applications à l’ordinateur. Dans celle-ci, les analyses d’élément principal de roche entière sont corrigées pour les minéraux non-argileux détectables aux rayons-X et utilisées pour établir des équations simultanées qui sont résolues pour donner les abondances des minéraux argileux. Une évaluation théorique de l’approche par méthode graphique permet l’assessement clair des erreurs intrinsèques. Les erreurs sont les moindres lorsque SiO2, Al2O3, et K2O sont utilisés comme variables, et seulement légèrement plus importantes lorsque tout le Fe2O3+ MgO est substitué pour du SiO2.Les contenus de quartz et de CO2sont les seules données normalement requises qui ne peuvent pas être déterminées par la fluorescence aux rayons-X. Les résultats peuvent être favorablement comparés à des estimations obtenues par diffraction aux rayons-X (X.R.D) et par d’autres méthodes, étant plus exacts que la diffraction aux rayons-X et tout aussi précis que celle-ci, àcondition que la roche ne comprenne pas de minéraux argileux autres que ceux du groupe kaolin, ou des groupes des micas et des chlorites. Les erreurs sont grandes quand les phases de minéral argileux comprennent plus de 35% de chlorite, et l’importance de ces erreurs est jusqu’à présent indéterminée lorsque le contenu de smectite dépasse 10%. Cette méthode s’ adapte idéalement à l’analyse de grands nombres d’argi-lites de minéralogie relativement semblable, particulièrement dans les cas où l’équipement de fluorescence aux rayons-X (X.R.F) directement relié à l’ordinateur est disponible.

People visit places. Proposed here is an integration of approaches to place, one originating in performance, the other in archaeology. Archaeology is a major means of dealing with site histories and material traces, a key component of tourist heritages. Performance, and experimental site-specific theatre, is a powerful vehicle for integrating, into ‘deep maps’, informations generated by diverse practices, from archaeology to poetry through travelogue, genealogy, journalism and memoir. The focus here is upon experiences of place and the politics of landscape in contemporary Wales—forest plantations burying old landscapes, and valleys drowned by reservoirs serving English conurbations. The question is addressed—how may place be documented, how are sites to be worked with? The storyteller-guide is a performative figure who can enable the interconnectedness that is the experience of material place, incorporating informations, the factual and the fictive. Running through this nexus are the forms of archaeological time and ruin, memory, sensuous knowing and the creativity of a cultural poetics.

In 1729 a book entitled Madagascar: or Robert Drury's Journal During Fifteen Years Captivity on that Islandwas published in London. It describes the shipwreck of an East Indiaman on the south coast of Madagascar, the enforced stay of the crew at the royal capital of the Antandroy people, the crew's escape and massacre, the survival of the midshipmen, including Drury, as royal slaves, and Drury's eventual escape to the English colony of St. Augustine. It purports to be his authentic account, digested into order by a transcriber or editor and published at the request of his friends. A certification of its authenticity is provided at the front of the first edition by Captain William Mackett, the ship's captain who brought Drury back to England, and the author states that if anyone doubts the veracity of his tale or wishes for a further account, he is “to be found every day at Old Tom's Coffee-house in Birchin Lane, London.”The tale bears many superficial resemblances to Defoe's Robinson Crusoeand Knox's An Historical Relation of Ceylonand the anonymous editor is at pains to state in the preface that the book was undoubtedly likely to be “…taken for such another romance as ‘Robinson Crusoe’…” whereas it was “…nothing else but a plain, honest narrative of matter of fact.” If this is the case, then Drury's account provides a fascinating insight into the world of an emergent Malagasy kingdom at the beginning of the eighteenth century. This was a crucial moment in Madagascar's history, when the European world of long-distance trade, slaving, and piracy was exerting a strong impact on the local people, culminating in colonization by France two centuries later.

Those with established epilepsy frequently visit emergency departments (ED) for uncomplicated seizures. The ambulance service might be able to help reduce these. The service currently transports most seizure patients it sees to ED, despite clinical need often seeming to be lacking. Via semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of 19 paramedics we explored why this might be. Participants were recruited from 5 (of the 11) ambulance services in England and the College of Paramedics. Data were analysed thematically. Participants’ highlighted how various factors, beyond clinical need, can influence their care decisions when managing seizures and mean conveyance to ED remains the default management plan. Factors included continued lack of access to patients’ medical histories, few alternative care pathways, time constraints, and limited seizure management training. Most were receptive to further training, providing content, format and delivery recommendations. Participants were particularly keen to learn how to better differentiate seizures and criteria for non-conveyance. A range of organisational, structural, professional, and educational factors may need to be attended to so as to reduce unnecessary conveyance of seizures. Our findings can be used to inform the development of seizure management training, which might ultimately benefit paramedic confidence and quality of patient care.

The article profiles the jazz musician Lee Konitz. It notes that Konitz always play solo aside from guesting to other known musicians and really play well . Konitz says that he got his inspiration from Charlie Parker, Lennie Tristano, and Lester Young who demonstrated a way to play that went deeper than virtuoso musicality.

The article features English jazz drummer Martin Drew. Martin states that he never set out to become a jazz drummer, he just loved the drums. According to Martin, if a person goes through life without hearing music, they are incomplete and certain emotions are not there for them. It is stated that the drummer prefers playing in a time signature with a key centre.

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to articles in previous issues including "Royal Recognition for Excellence in Hospital Food," by James Mills in the February 2012.

The article discusses the author's experience at the British Hospital Caterers Association's 2007 national conference, held at the Hilton London Metropole on April 26 and 27. Highlights mentioned include an impromptu opening speech by Lord Waldegrave, the Awards Ceremony, at which he won the Outstanding Service Award, and the Branch Dinner.

Diseases of banana, abaca and enset. Edited by D. R. Jones. Published in 1999 by CABI Publishing, CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8DE, United Kingdom. 544 p., hardback. ISBN: 0-85199-355-9. Price: £85.00 (US$160.00) (email:orders@cabi.org).

The Luteoviridae. Edited by H. G. Smith and H. Barker. Published in 1999 by CABI Publishing, CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon, OX10 8DE, United Kingdom. 320 p., hardback. ISBN: 00-85199-324-9. Price: £60.00 (US$110.00) (email:orders@cabi.org).