Prehistoric Rock Art In Cumbria

Many exciting discoveries of prehistoric rock art have been made recently in Cumbria. They are included in this complete account of the earliest human communication, some 4-5000 years ago on outcrop rock, earthfast boulders, burials and other ritual structures. They are in some of Britain's most beautiful places. Professor Richard Bradley writes: "This book captures beautifully Stan's feeling for the countryside and flair for this kind of research. It is the work of a born teacher, who wishes to share his knowledge and enjoyment with other people. What he says is important, and how he says it is important too. Like the carvings he has done so much to publicise, this book is accessible to everyone." It follows his complete survey of Northumberland rock art, which Christopher Chippindale, of Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology described as "a first-rate book . . . written from Stan Beckensall's great knowledge with an inviting charm, splendidly illustrated with his photographs and drawings, well produced in a manageable size."

The authors present details of their new discoveries together with an up-to-date account of the known archaeology of the area in a comprehensive gazetteer of sites and locations. Paul Brown's three-dimensional illustrations highlight the major panels of rock art in the key northern valleys of seven dales that span the three counties of North Yorkshire, Cumbria and Durham, including the charismatic dales of Swaledale and Wensleydale. Rock art, its situation within the prehistoric landscape and its relationship to other archaeological features, is clearly discussed. Paul and Barbara Brown have been researching and studying rock art in Britain over two decades and the landscape of the Northern Dales is familiar home territory. They have contributed a considerable number of important new sites to the archaeological record that are described in detail including Copt Howe in Great Langdale, Cumbria and the recent discovery of a spiral that had been incorporated within a rock art panel on a former North Yorkshire Moor. The presence of a spiral, the first in these stunning northern Pennine dales, highlights the significance of its rock art and reinforces a possible route-way from the dales into Cumbria and links with the Passage Grave Art of the west coast and beyond into Ireland.

This lavishly illustrated volume presents a state of the art survey of the ancient rock art of Britain and Ireland. Bringing together new discoveries and new interpretations, it enhances our understanding and further establishes ancient British and Irish rock art as a significant archaeological assemblage worthy of attention and additional study.

Stan Beckensall is renowned for his work, done on an entirely amateur basis, discovering, recording and interpreting Atlantic rock art in his home county of Northumberland and beyond. Presented on his 90th birthday, this diverse and stimulating collection of papers celebrates his crucial contribution to rock art studies, and looks to the future.

In this latest book the prolific Stan Beckensall returns to his principal specialism, Britains prehistoric rock art.

While much has been achieved in understanding and managing weather effects and erosion phenomena affecting ancient imagery within the relatively protected environments of caves and rock-shelters, the same cannot be said of rock-art panels situated in the open-air. Despite the fact that the number of known sites has risen dramatically in recent decades there are few examples in which the weathering and erosion dynamics are under investigation with a view to developing proposals to mitigate the impact of natural and cultural processes. Most of the work being done in different parts of the world appears to be ad-hoc, with minimal communication on such matters between teams and with the wider archaeological community. This richly illustrated book evaluates rock-art conservation in an holistic way, bringing together researchers from across the world to share experiences of work in progress or recently completed. The chapters focus on a series of key themes: documentation projects and resource assessments; the identification and impact assessment of weathering/erosion processes at work in open-air rock-art sites; the practicalities of potential or implemented conservation interventions; experimentation and monitoring programs; and general management issues connected with public presentation and the demands of ongoing research investigations. Consideration is given to the conservation of open-air rock-art imagery from many periods and cultural traditions across the Old and New Worlds. This timely volume will be of interest to conservators, managers, and researchers dealing with aesthetic and ethical issues as well as technical and practical matters regarding the conservation of open-air rock-art sites.

This comprehensive work takes a broad view of what rock art entails, covering the history of rock art research and the discovery of many new sites. The author illustrates the different symbols and motifs that are found throughout the British Isles, and shows where they occur in landscapes and monuments. It is a book that captures the excitement of discovery and examines the various theories about the origin, use and meaning of rock art. Stan Beckensall also explains the problems of accurate conservation, recording, and display.