These papers highlight recent archaeological work in Northern England, in the commercial, academic and community archaeology sectors, which have fundamentally changed our perspective on the Neolithic of the area. Much of this was new work (and much is still not published) and has been overlooked in the national discourse. The papers cover a wide geographical area, from Lancashire north into the Scottish Lowlands, recognising the irrelevance of the England/Scotland Border. They also take a broad chronological sweep, from the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition to the introduction of Beakers into the area. The key themes are: the nature of transition; the need for a much-improved chronological framework; regional variation linked to landscape character; links within northern England and with distant places; the implications of new dating for our understanding of the axe trade; the changing nature of settlement and agriculture; the character of early Neolithic enclosures; and the need to integrate rock art into wider discourse.

This volume is based on a session entitled 'Interpreting the Ambiguous' at the 2001 Institute of Field Archaeologists (IFA) annual conference at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is hoped that the 13 papers will be of value to anyone planning archaeological interpretation work in the near future. They range over large expanses of both space and time. While they vary considerably in terms of subject matter, they are all united by one basic aim: the desire to encourage people to think for themselves about the past. The contributors are: (1) 'So much history in this landscape. So much confusion, so much doubt.' Paul Frodsham; (2) Sowing the seeds of doubt. The presentation of the past to the public. Emma Carver; (3) Virtually the Ice Age. Interpreting the Palaeolithic archaeology of Creswell Crags. Ian Wall; (4) Telling stories. Archaeology, interpretation and the National Trust at Avebury. Ruth Taylor; (5) The Maelmin Heritage Trail. Archaeological research and the public. Clive Waddington; (6) Drama on Gardom's Edge. The use of theatre groups in public interpretation of prehistory. Bill Bevan; (7) Changing interpretations.Public access and interpretation on a developer-funded excavation at Braehead, Glasgow. Ronan Toolis and Clare Ellis; (8) 'Valley of the First Iron Masters'. A case study in inclusion and interpretation. Peter Halkon; (9) Roundhouses in the Landscape. Interpreting the Iron Age at Castell Henllys. Phil Bennett; (10) High Street, Londinium. Reconstructing Roman London. Hedley Swain; (11) Access to the evidence. Interpretation of an excavation at a Scottish castle. Adrian Cox; (12). 'But didn't the horses drown?' Interpreting historic narrowboats in the Working Boats Project. Jo Bell; (13) Whither interpretation? Peter Stone.