This course will offer an introduction to the chronology and material culture of the Neolithic of Britain with reference where relevant to Ireland. A series of themes which have emerged in recent years as major research areas will be addressed, including the chronology and mechanisms of the beginning and end of the Neolithic; the significance of material culture and materiality; regionality and identity; and settlement and everyday life.

12x1hr lectures and 8x1hr seminars, timetabled at two hours per week over 10 weeks as scheduled on MyCampus.

None.

None.

The standard assessments for this course are: 

■ Project Output (such as Noticeboard and Supplementary Information document to contextualise this) 50%

■ Exam (90 minutes) 50%

If required, for instance where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, the following alternatives are available: 

■ There are no alternatives to the assessments, but flexible deadlines or extra time can be offered as reasonable adjustment (Students should follow the usual process for extensions). 

Further reasonable adjustments may be provided where necessary. Students are encouraged to consult with the course convenor.  

This course aims to:

■ give a basic understanding of the chronology and material culture of the British Neolithic, focusing on temporal resolution, geographical distribution and regional variation;

■ outline the main arguments concerning the nature of the start, and the end, of the Neolithic in Britain, where necessary drawing on evidence from outwith Britain including Ireland and northwest Europe;

■ present an overview of recent and current theoretical models and trends in British Neolithic studies;

■ draw attention to current excavation and post-excavation results, and consider their implications for our understanding of the British Neolithic

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ explain current theoretical discourse on the Neolithic of Britain and how this discourse arose;

■ discuss critically the main aspects of the British Neolithic and their chronology;

■ evaluate critically the dominant role monumentality has played in Neolithic studies to date;

■ compare and contrast the efficacy of different theoretical and abstract models, particularly the use of social theory.