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Soil and Sediment-Based Cultural Records and the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site Buffer Zones

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Soil and Sediment-Based Cultural Records and the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site Buffer Zones Soil and Sediment-based Cultural Records and The Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site Buffer Zones Jonathan Paul Cluett Statement of Originality I hereby confirm that this is an original study conducted independently by the undersigned and that the work contained herein has not been submitted for any other degree. All research material has been duly acknowledged and cited. Signature of candidate: __________________________ Date: __________________________ Abstract The designation of World Heritage Sites (WHS) by UNESCO is the principal international and formally recognised strategy allowing the conservation of sites of outstanding cultural value throughout the world. This study demonstrates that soils and sediments influenced by cultural activities retain cultural records (soils and sediments-based cultural records, hereafter abbreviated to SSBCR) associated with WHS, and further the understanding and contribute to the cultural value of WHS. Considering The Heart of Neolithic Orkney WHS and its surrounding landscape as the study location, systematic fieldwork is combined with geoarchaeological analyses including soil organic matter content, pH, particle size distribution, phosphorus concentration, soil magnetism and thin section micromorphology to determine the nature of the SSBCR. Chronologies of the formation of SSBCR and of palaeo-environmental records were ascertained using radiocarbon analyses and optically stimulated luminescence analysis. Findings of particular importance to the interpretation of the WHS are the identification of a Late Neolithic SSBCR located between the WHS monuments. This SSBCR is a valuable cultural record of a specific Late Neolithic community and provides significant insight into the interaction between settlement and ritual aspects of the Orcadian Late Neolithic. An understanding of these interactions is of crucial importance to a fuller interpretation of the WHS and to the wider discussion of the Orcadian Neolithic. The implications of this research to other WHS designated for their cultural value are discussed, together with future conservation considerations for this specific WHS. ii Acknowledgements Firstly, I would like to thank my supervisors Professor Ian Simpson and Dr Paul Adderley for their continued support and advice throughout this project. Financial support was provided through a University of Stirling Studentship awarded by the Faculty of Natural Sciences and by Historic Scotland, who, through Patrick Ashmore also provided additional financial support for radiocarbon analyses. I am extremely grateful for all financial support. Particular thanks must go to those on Orkney whose company made fieldwork a pleasurable experience in even the foulest of weather, and who took time to educate and instruct me concerning archaeology. Nick Card, Jane Downes, Julie Gibson and Judith Robertson, your help, friendship and support are greatly appreciated. I would also like to acknowledge the willingness and co-operation of the landowners Mr Bain, Mr Tullach and Mr Slater to the successful completion of this project. I am indebted to Bill Jamieson for his ever patient help with the figures and to John Gater of GSB Prospection, and David Griffiths for allowing me to include magnetometry figures. I am grateful for the support of close friends at The Church at Stirling and to all who have kept me invigorated by participating in the many adventures and mid week sorties to the hills. I am particularly grateful for the continued friendship of Crona O’Shea and Adam Scott, my anam cara whose friendship is more valuable to me than I am able to convey in this text. The immense love, support and encouragement given to me by my wife, Helen, and the welcome distraction of my daughter Ellie have enabled me to finish this thesis, as has the continued love, interest and support of my parents, Mike and Elaine Cluett and my parents in law Peter and Pat Herbert. Thank you. iii Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 - RATIONALE ............................................................................. 1 1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................1 1.2 Soil as a Cultural Record ..............................................................................................................3 1.3 Neolithic Orkney............................................................................................................................8 1.3.1 Soils and Sediments in Construction ........................................................................................10 1.3.2 Soils and Fuel Resource Utilisation..........................................................................................11 1.3.3 Soils, Sediments and Food Production .....................................................................................12 1.4 Conserving Orkney’s Neolithic Cultural Record......................................................................17 1.4.1 World Heritage Site (WHS) Designation..................................................................................17 1.4.2 The Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site (WHS)....................................................19 1.5 Research Opportunities ..............................................................................................................24 1.5.1 The Identification of Soils and Sediments-Based Cultural Records (SSBCR) .........................25 1.5.2 The Interpretation of Soils and Sediments-Based Cultural records (SSBCR) ..........................25 1.5.3 Research Questions...................................................................................................................27 CHAPTER 2 - RESEARCH DESIGN I; FIELD SITES AND CHRONOLOGY 29 2.1 Field Sites .....................................................................................................................................29 2.1.1 Identification of Settlement Sites..............................................................................................30 2.1.2 The Ness of Brodgar.................................................................................................................34 2.1.3 Wasbister ..................................................................................................................................35 2.1.4 Barnhouse Neolithic Settlement and Big Howe .......................................................................37 2.1.5 Skara Brae.................................................................................................................................39 2.1.6 Control Sites .............................................................................................................................42 2.2 Chronology...................................................................................................................................43 2.3 Radiocarbon Dating ....................................................................................................................44 2.3.1 Charcoal....................................................................................................................................45 2.3.2 Bone..........................................................................................................................................46 2.3.3 Soil Organic Matter ..................................................................................................................47 2.3.4 Sampling Strategy.....................................................................................................................50 2.4 Optically Stimulated Luminescence Dating (OSL)...................................................................51 2.5 Conclusion....................................................................................................................................54 CHAPTER 3 - RESEARCH DESIGN II; QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE ANALYSES ................................................................................................ 55 3.1 Field Observations and Sampling ..............................................................................................55 3.2 Quantitative Analyses .................................................................................................................56 3.2.1 Soil Organic Matter Content.....................................................................................................56 3.2.2 Soil pH......................................................................................................................................58 3.2.3 Soil Particle Size Distribution...................................................................................................60 3.2.4 Soil Phosphorus ........................................................................................................................62 3.2.5 Soil Magnetism.........................................................................................................................70 3.2.6 Thin Section Micromorphology................................................................................................73 iv 3.3 Qualitiative Research ..................................................................................................................77 3.4 Conclusion....................................................................................................................................79 CHAPTER 4 - CONTROL SITES
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