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Cille Pheadair Mike Parker Pearson

Cille Pheadair By Mike Parker Pearson

Summary

A ground-breaking multi-disciplinary account of the archaeology of a single Norse farmstead on South Uist in the Outer Hebrides.

Cille Pheadair Summary

Cille Pheadair: A Norse Farmstead and Pictish Burial Cairn in South Uist by Mike Parker Pearson

Cille Pheadair is one of more than 20 Viking Age and Late Norse settlements discovered on the island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides (Western Isles), off the west coast of Scotland. Its unusually well-preserved stratigraphic sequence of nine phases of occupation, including five longhouses and many smaller buildings, provides a remarkable insight into daily life on a Norse farmstead during two centuries of near-continuous occupation c. AD 1000 1200. Although the excavation at Cille Pheadair was a rescue project undertaken before the site was destroyed by coastal erosion, it provided an opportunity to address important research questions about the domestic use of space, agricultural economy, and relationships with the wider world beyond the Outer Hebrides. Careful and ground-breaking analysis of preserved house floors provided profound insights into the changing use of space within a Norse longhouse and its surrounding outbuildings. The rich assemblage of pottery, ironwork, gold and silver reveals that the inhabitants of Cille Pheadair had long-distance connections across the Viking world. A battery of scientific studies, including faunal and floral analyses, isotopic and lipid residue analyses, and soil chemistry, have revealed much about the social and economic dimensions of life on a Norse farm. Detailed survey and excavation in South Uist, reveals a remarkable picture of Norse-period settlement across this island which was part of the insular Viking world between Ireland and Norway, becoming part of the Kingdom of Man and later the Kingdom of the Isles. Cille Pheadairs status as an ordinary, if wealthy, farmstead can be contrasted with the much larger and longer-lived high-status settlement at Bornais to the north. The two sites together provide a fascinating insight into similarities and differences within the settlement hierarchy of the time that makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the Viking world.

About Mike Parker Pearson

Mike Parker Pearson is Professor of British Later Prehistory at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London. A distinguished prehistorian, he has been involved with many major projects, including leading the recent Stonehenge Riverside Project. Mark Brennand is Senior Historic Environment Officer for Cumbria County Council. After completing his BA in Archaeology at the University of Sheffield, he worked in East Anglia and supervised excavations at Cille Pheadair in the 1990s. Jacqui Mulville is Professor of Archaeology at Cardiff University. A distinguished bioarchaeologist, she is a field archaeologist with 35 years of excavation experience whose research focuses on osteoarchaeology, human and animal identities, and island archaeologies concentrated on Britain. Helen Smith has been Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at Bournemouth University, specialising in the analysis of archaeobotanical remains, having completed her PhD in Archaeology at the University of Sheffield on traditional farming practices of the Western Isles.

Table of Contents

List of figures List of tables Contributors Acknowledgements 1. Cille Pheadair and the Norse period in South Uist M. Parker Pearson 2. The Pictish burial cairn, cal AD 640780 M. Parker Pearson, J Williams, A. Chamberlain, P. Marshall, J. Montgomery, J. Evans and C. Chenery 3. Initial construction and occupation (phase 1), starting cal AD 9451020 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand, C. Ellis, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville and C. Ingrem 4. The earliest deposits above the pits (phase 2), starting cal AD 9451020 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand, C. Ellis, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville and C. Ingrem 5. The first stone longhouse: House 700 (phase 3), constructed cal AD 10301095 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand, , H. Manley, H. Smith, P. Marshall, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville and C. Ingrem 6. The second stone longhouse: House 500 (phase 4), constructed cal AD 10601110 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand, H. Manley, H. Smith, P. Marshall, C. Ellis, J. Bond, C. Paterson, E.J. Pieksma, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem, P. Austin and J. Williams 7. Modification of House 500 (phase 5), rebuilt cal AD 10701125 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand, H. Manley, H. Smith, P. Marshall, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin 8. The sheds (phase 6), constructed cal AD 11001155 M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand, H. Manley, H. Smith, P. Marshall, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin 9. The eastwest longhouse: House 312 (phase 7), constructed cal AD 11051160 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand,, H. Manley, H. Smith and P. Marshall, C. Ellis, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin 10. The last longhouse: House 007 (phase 8), constructed cal AD 11401205 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand, H. Manley, H. Smith and P. Marshall, C. Ellis, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin 11. Reuse and abandonment of the ruins of House 007 (phase 9), ending cal AD 11601245 M. Parker Pearson, M. Brennand,, H. Manley, H. Smith and P. Marshall, J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin 12. The ceramics J. B. Bond, E.J. Pieksma, D. Dungworth and M. Parker Pearson 13. The combs, ornaments, weights and coins C. Paterson with contributions by M. Parker Pearson and E. Besly 14. The bone and antler tools C. Paterson 15. The iron knives, tools and weapons M. Parker Pearson 16. The stone artefacts M. Parker Pearson, G.D. Gaunt, C. Paterson, M. Edmonds and K. Martin 17. Industrial activity D. Dungworth, M. Parker Pearson and H. Smith 18. The faunal remains mammals J. Mulville, A. Powell, J. Williams, C. Ingrem and J.R. Jones 19. The faunal remains birds, fish and molluscs J. Best, J. Cartledge, C. Ingrem, E. Walters, H. Smith and M. Parker Pearson 20. The human remains A. Chamberlain 21. The carbonized plant remains and wood charcoal H. Smith, S. Colledge and P. Austin 22. Absorbed and visible organic residues L. Cramp and R.P. Evershed 23. Soil micromorphology C. Ellis 24. Radiocarbon dating P. Marshall, M. Parker Pearson and G. Cook 25. The Cille Pheadair farmstead in its context B.E. Crawford and M. Parker Pearson Bibliography Index

Additional information

NPB9781785708510
9781785708510
1785708511
Cille Pheadair: A Norse Farmstead and Pictish Burial Cairn in South Uist by Mike Parker Pearson
New
Hardback
Oxbow Books
2018-07-26
656
N/A
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