Dalland, M. and Wickham-Jones, C. R. (1998). A small mesolithic site at Fife Ness, Fife, Scotland. Internet Archaeology 5. Vol 5, York: Internet Archaeology. https://doi.org/10.11141/ia.5.1.
 Title The title of the publication or report |
A small mesolithic site at Fife Ness, Fife, Scotland | ||||||||||||||
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Issue The name of the volume or issue |
Internet Archaeology 5 | ||||||||||||||
Series The series the publication or report is included in |
Internet Archaeology | ||||||||||||||
Volume Volume number and part |
5 | ||||||||||||||
Biblio Note This is a Bibliographic record only. |
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Licence Type ADS, CC-BY 4.0 or CC-BY 4.0 NC. |
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0
International Licence |
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Publication Type The type of publication - report, monograph, journal article or chapter from a book |
Journal | ||||||||||||||
Abstract The abstract describing the content of the publication or report |
In the summer of 1996 work to build a new golf course on the coast at Crail in Fife, Scotland, uncovered a small patch of dark soil associated with microliths. Excavation revealed an arc of seven pits or post-holes, a hearth site and several other pit-like features. There was a small lithic assemblage, and also a quantity of carbonised hazelnut shell, samples of which were sent off for radiocarbon assay.The site was remarkable for several reasons:SizeIts size (75m2) was unusual in that most mesolithic sites in Scotland (and elsewhere) are often much larger. Small sites have played an important role in theoretical interpretations of the mesolithic way of life, but few have been excavated.Lithic assemblageThe lithic assemblage was small, even for such a small site, and comprised solely of flint, which is very rare in Scotland. There was relatively little knapping debris, but several retouched tools, over half of which were narrow blade microliths. The microliths were very interesting because they were dominated by crescentic microliths, while more common types such as scalene triangles were absent.DatesA series of fourteen radiocarbon dates were obtained for the site and all centred round the same period: between 7400 and 7600 BC, calibrated. This was earlier than had been expected, and is an interesting addition to knowledge of the early settlement of eastern Scotland since most other early dates have been from west coast sites.The similarity of the dates adds weight to the argument that the site represents a single occupation which, in view of its size, is likely to have been of short duration. This, and the nature of the lithic assemblage, have lead us to the interpretation that the site was a specialised camp site, probably making use of coastal resources. | ||||||||||||||
Year of Publication The year the book, article or report was published |
1998 | ||||||||||||||
Locations Any locations covered by the publication or report. This is not the place the book or report was published. |
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Locations Any locations covered by the publication or report. This is not the place the book or report was published. |
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Source Where the record has come from or which dataset it was orginally included in. |
ADS Library
(ADS Library)
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Created Date The date the record of the pubication was first entered |
02 Apr 2019 |
