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Towards a reappraisal of henge monuments: origins, evolution and hierarchies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 February 2014

T. Clare
T. Clare*
Affiliation:
County Planning Department, Cumbria County Council, Kendal, Cumbria LA9 4RQ
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Abstract

A simple derivation of henges from causewayed camps is rejected. Attention is also drawn to a range of neolithic structures, some covered by a mound, some not. Though interpreted as mortuary structures, they have affinities to henges. Henges may thus best be derived from a broad tradition of neolithic structures; this may in turn have been part of a more widely distributed north-west European tradition of both ritual and domestic structures. Within Britain, similarities of form and function suggest that henges should be seen as a parallel development to ring banks, ring ditches and stone circles. Regional preferences rather than distinct regional types of monuments emerged. Later survival of henge traditions into the first millennium is also discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society , Volume 53 , Issue 1 , 1987 , pp. 457 - 477
Copyright
Copyright © The Prehistoric Society 1987

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References

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