Archaeologist and Writer
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also … Read More “Let them eat corn” »
Max Planck (1858-1947) was a trailblazer of quantum theory, that confusing branch of physics which describes the inherent unpredictability of the very small. It’s kind of appropriate, then, that researchers at his namesake foundations – two of the Max Planck Institutes in Germany – are shedding uncertainty in the tiny world of molecular archaeology. It’s … Read More “The Ghost of the Sea” »
After a long pause, the blog is back – and it’s a blog of surprises. These particular surprises reached my attention through both British Archaeology magazine and the online news pages of Science. For those of you lucky enough to have full-blown access to Science, the reference is this: Smith, O., Momber, G. et al. … Read More “Fashionably early?” »
Happy February, readers! I hope you’re not too wet. Now, I was lucky enough to receive as a Christmas present this excellent volume: Cunliffe, B. (2012). Britain Begins (Oxford University Press; Oxford). The prolific and erudite knight Professor Sir Barry Cunliffe probably needs no introduction for the readership of this blog but, for the curious, … Read More “Domesticated Bliss” »
It’s always a pleasure when agricultural archaeology and related disciplines hit the headlines, and it’s happened at least twice recently. BBC News has courteously flagged up two pieces of new research, indicating the hitherto unexpected sophisication of farming and diet in prehistory. This very day, we learn that “Prehistoric Europeans spiced up their cooking.” And, … Read More “Of Mustard and Manure” »
The writing of this post was only ever a matter timing – a question of ‘when’ not ‘if’. Once I’d started an occasional series of blog posts about the origins of agriculture, I knew I’d have to write one (or several) about the very beginnings, the true origins – the first farming in the history … Read More “The Mists of Time” »
The answer: when it’s a socio-cultural strategy. OK, bear with me. Cast your mind back to a previous post about Neolithic farming in Britain. As you may recall, archaeobotanists Stevens & Fuller have recently argued that crop husbandry had something of an abortive start in Britain: fading out around the Middle Neolithic and only returning … Read More “When is an agricultural strategy not an agricultural strategy?” »
A relative of mine has recently asked me how agriculture came about in the first place. It’s a fair enough question. We’re all so familiar with the concept of farming, that it’s hardly obvious how our distant ancestors moved from hunting and gathering to tilling the hateful earth. Indeed, I don’t (yet) have an answer … Read More “Britain goes nutty” »