Bournemouth University

School of Conservation Sciences

Content only version

Joint Day School

Unquiet Lands: People and Landscapes in Prehistoric North West Europe

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The chalk landscape that Neolithic communities inherited
Mike Allen

This paper explores and challenges some of the long standing and fundamental assumptions about the nature of the chalk downland that Neolithic communities observed and occupied. It will consider the ubiquity and composition of climax woodland and of the brown forest soils associated with it. But we explore the significance differences this made to the occupation and use of the chalklands, the nature, diversity and pattern of prehistoric activity of the familiar and well-studied chalkland that we believe are so well understood.
How much of the pattern of settlement and monument building was defined by human choice and landscape configuration, and how much was predetermined by variations in the natural ecology? This paper will demonstrate the importance of detailed palaeo-environmental studies to our fundamental understanding of the human ecology of prehistoric communities and their actions and activities.