ceremonial landscape

The Ancient World

The Hill of Tara, once the seat of the High Kings of Ireland, is a site steeped in mythology and history, dating back over 5,000 years. At the centre of the image lies the Mound of the Hostages, an ancient…

Below Overlooking excavations at the Ness of Brodgar in Orkney. This site is home to dozens of large Neolithic buildings, the first of which was discovered 20 years ago. The Stenness Stones and the remains of Barnhouse’s late Neolithic settlement lie just across the bridge.

The Ness of Brodgar: marking 20 years of Neolithic discoveries

Since the first hints of Neolithic masonry emerged at the Ness of Brodgar in 2003, two decades of excavations have uncovered an extraordinary complex of monumental stone buildings dating back 5,000 years. The site continues to revolutionise our understanding of this period of prehistory both in Orkney and further afield, and last summer Carly Hilts visited the site and spoke to Nick Card to find out the latest news from the Ness.

Stonehenge Quiz

Which 12th-century chronicler suggested that Stonehenge had originally been transported from Ireland to Salisbury Plain with help from the wizard Merlin?

Opposite Works to install a 317km gas pipeline in south Wales have offered archaeologists the opportunity to carry out one of the longest excavations in Wales one of their most significant discoveries was a previously unknown Neolithic henge at Vaynor Farm in Carmarthenshire. Its remains can be seen in the foreground, while the pipeline corridor stretches away into the distance.

Carmarthenshire’s missing monument: how one of the biggest excavations in Wales uncovered a long-lost henge

The installation of the South Wales Gas Pipeline allowed archaeologists to investigate a 317km corridor stretching from the Pembrokeshire Coast to Gloucestershire. Their finds have illuminated more than 10,000 years of human history, including the previously unknown remains of Britain’s most south-westerly Neolithic henge. Current Archaeology's Carly Hilts reports.

Mega-henges: the evolution of Mount Pleasant’s monuments

It was long thought that huge and complex monuments like Mount Pleasant in Dorset had developed over many centuries – but new dating evidence suggests that the diverse elements of this site came together much faster than previously imagined, with intriguing implications for our understanding of these late Neolithic enclosures. Carly Hilts reports.

BELOW The primary burial was found with a range of high status grave goods. RIGHT The site of the skatepark excavation is located within a wider ceremonial landscape.

Bronze Age burials at Lechlade skatepark

Archaeological investigations in Lechlade-on-Thames, Gloucestershire, have revealed two very unusual Bronze Age burials in an extensive ceremonial landscape spanning many phases of prehistory. The excavations were carried out by Foundations Archaeology in 2017, in advance of the construction of a…