'A simply outstanding book' 'Astonishing' '[A] rich treasure-trove
of photographs of objects' 'The book truly is a delight, and is a
'book of the ancestors' in a very real sense.' 'Highly
recommended.' - Sacred Hoop Magazine, March 2022 Stonehenge is one
of the best known, but most misunderstood, monuments in the world.
Contrary to common belief, it was not a static, unchanging
structure built by shadowy figures or druids. Rather it represents
the cumulative achievement of numerous generations who were woven
into a complex and widespread network of cultural interactions,
environmental change and belief systems. This publication, which
accompanies the first exhibition about Stonehenge ever staged in
London, uses the monument as a gateway to explore the communities
and civilisations active at the time of its construction and
beyond, between 4,000 and 1,000 BCE. Recent archaeological findings
regarding the origin of Stonehenge's striking 'bluestones' have
reignited interest in this ancient wonder, the people who built it
and the beliefs they held. Through the 'iconic' structure,
spectacular objects of precious and exotic material and more
humble, personal objects, authors Duncan Garrow and Neil Wilkin
examine the dramatic cultural and societal shifts that
characterised the world of Stonehenge, including the introduction
of farming and development of metalworking. Covering a period of
thousands of years, the publication traces the appearance of the
first monuments in the landscape of Britain around 4,000 BCE, the
arrival of the bluestones from the Preseli Hills in Pembrokeshire
1,000 years later, all the way up to a remarkable era of
cross-Channel connectivity and trade between 1,500 and 800 BCE.
Through a new study of the enigmatic and beautiful objects made and
circulated during the age of Stonehenge, connections are charted in
the shared religious practices and beliefs of communities from
across Britain, Ireland and continental Europe. The presence of
other stone and wooden circles hundreds of miles from Salisbury
Plain - including Seahenge, discovered on a beach in Norfolk in
1998 - is further evidence of these shared ways of thinking. At a
critical moment in the narrative of Stonehenge, around 2,500 BCE,
the significance of the cosmos and the heavens expressed through
the construction of stone circles and megalithic passage tombs
began to wane and portable objects gained increasing importance.
This key transformation is demonstrated by a highlight object from
Germany: the Nebra Sky Disc, a bronze disc inlaid with gold symbols
believed to represent the sun, a crescent moon and the Pleiades
constellation. More modest items found in tombs, burials and
settlements are no less important in shedding light on the
development of ideas relating to identity, religious practices, and
relationships between the living and dead. Monuments such as
Stonehenge cannot be understood in isolation. Stonehenge was not
always a static, monolithic structure: over generations it was
adapted and added to by communities that changed and developed the
landscape on which it still stands today.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
