Grooved ware people
Encyclopedia
Most Neolithic
cultures in Britain
are best identified by the pottery remains which they left. A large number of apparently unrelated cultures seem to have produced urns which have characteristic grooves near the top rim, hence the name grooved ware people.
One way in which the tradition may have spread is through trade routes up the west coast of Britain, but what seems unusual is that although they shared the same style of pottery, different regions still maintained vastly different traditions. Evidence at some early Henge
s (Mayburgh, Ring of Brodgar
, Arbor Low
) suggests that there were staging and trading points on a national 'motorway' during the Neolithic and Bronze Age
. This evidence perhaps explains how Cumbria
n stone axes found their way to Orkney
.
In Orkney
, a variation on grooved ware
, Unstan ware
, emerged. The people who used Unstan Ware had totally different burial practices. but still managed to co-exist with their Grooved Ware counterparts. Some hybrid chambered cairn
s have emerged in this region, containing architectural features of both the Maeshowe
subclass and the Orkney-Cromarty stalled subclasses of cairn.
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
cultures in Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
are best identified by the pottery remains which they left. A large number of apparently unrelated cultures seem to have produced urns which have characteristic grooves near the top rim, hence the name grooved ware people.
One way in which the tradition may have spread is through trade routes up the west coast of Britain, but what seems unusual is that although they shared the same style of pottery, different regions still maintained vastly different traditions. Evidence at some early Henge
Henge
There are three related types of Neolithic earthwork which are all sometimes loosely called henges. The essential characteristic of all three types is that they feature a ring bank and ditch but with the ditch inside the bank rather than outside...
s (Mayburgh, Ring of Brodgar
Ring of Brodgar
The Ring of Brodgar is a Neolithic henge and stone circle on the Mainland, the largest island in Orkney, Scotland...
, Arbor Low
Arbor Low
Arbor Low is a Neolithic henge monument in the Peak District, Derbyshire, England. Arbor Low is located in the White Peak zone of the Peak District in Derbyshire . The White Peak is a Carboniferous Limestone plateau lying between approximately 200-400m OD...
) suggests that there were staging and trading points on a national 'motorway' during the Neolithic and Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
. This evidence perhaps explains how Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
n stone axes found their way to Orkney
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
.
In Orkney
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
, a variation on grooved ware
Grooved ware
Grooved ware is the name given to a pottery style of the British Neolithic. Its manufacturers are sometimes known as the Grooved ware people. Unlike the later Beaker ware, Grooved culture was not an import from the continent but seems to have developed in Orkney, early in the 3rd millennium BC, but...
, Unstan ware
Unstan ware
Unstan ware is the name used by archaeologists for a type of finely made and decorated Neolithic pottery from the 4th and 3rd millennia BC. Typical are elegant and distinctive shallow bowls with a band of grooved patterning below the rim, using a technique known as "stab-and-drag". A second version...
, emerged. The people who used Unstan Ware had totally different burial practices. but still managed to co-exist with their Grooved Ware counterparts. Some hybrid chambered cairn
Chambered cairn
A chambered cairn is a burial monument, usually constructed during the Neolithic, consisting of a cairn of stones inside which a sizeable chamber was constructed. Some chambered cairns are also passage-graves....
s have emerged in this region, containing architectural features of both the Maeshowe
Maeshowe
Maeshowe is a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave situated on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. The monuments around Maeshowe, including Skara Brae, were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. It gives its name to the Maeshowe type of chambered cairn, which is limited to Orkney...
subclass and the Orkney-Cromarty stalled subclasses of cairn.