British Archaeology, no 22, March 1997: Reviews

NEOLITHIC AND BRONZE AGE SCOTLAND
PJ Ashmore
Batsford, £15.99
ISBN 0-7134-7531-5 pb

There have been many exciting early prehistoric discoveries in Scotland in recent years - the extensive settlement of Barnhouse in Orkney, the Holywood cursus complex near Dumfries, the Den of Boddam flint mines in the North East, and the Rotten Bottom bow from the Borders. All are of great significance for understanding the early settlement of Britain, and together with the extensive excavation of more familiar monuments, provide a picture of early Scotland unimaginable to previous generations. These sites are often very well preserved by southern English standards, and many of the new sites have been radiocarbon-dated, ensuring a chronology to be envied by other countries.

Patrick Ashmore, a Principal Inspector of Ancient Monuments at Historic Scotland, has been closely involved in many of these projects and is largely responsible for the dating programme. He is therefore well placed to summarise the mate rial and has provided an exciting and innovative overview. The new dated sites form the backbone of the book, and they have been arranged into periods of 500 years, providing the basis for each chapter. This objective view of developments raises interesting points but also creates problems. The reliance on securely dated sites means that many of the classic sites of Scottish prehistory have been ignored - even though many provide an unparalleled insight into prehistoric behaviour. There is still nothing to compare with the settlement sequence at Jarlshof or the mortuary rituals of Midhowe, and yet these sites only appear on the periphery of the narrative.

Each chapter is organised as a tour of Scotland, starting in the Northern Isles and moving around the country in a clockwise direction. This tends to result in a repetitive description of sites which are very similar, and the book would have benefited from a more thematic approach. Nevertheless, it provides a useful introduction to the riches of Scottish prehistory.

Niall Sharples, formerly an Inspector at Historic Scotland, is a Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Wales, Cardiff

NEW-BORN CHILD MURDER
Mark Jackson
Manchester, £35.00
ISBN 0-7190-4607-6 hb

In the 18th century, many illegitimate children had to be supported at the expense of the parish. The hostility of local tax-payers, coupled with the moral shame of bearing a bastard child, gave every incentive for such pregnancies to be concealed and the child secretly murdered. In this book about 18th century women accused of infanticide, Mark Jackson's main source of evidence is court records from northern England. He discusses the law during the period, examines ways in which women fell under suspicion and how cases were brought to court, and considers aspects of court procedure and evidence. He also discusses (and tries to explain) differing contemporary attitudes towards women accused of this crime.

Given the surreptitious nature of the act, witnesses were rare, so the prosecution was generally forced to rely on circumstantial evidence. The difficulties this presented led to the passing of a statute in 1624, by which if the mother could be shown to have concealed the death of the child then this alone was enough to convict her of its murder. By the 18th century, the 1624 act was widely seen as draconian by the courts, and in practice prosecutors still had to prove that the baby was born alive and that the accused had murdered it. Medical evidence played an increasing part in trials - bodies were examined for signs of violence, and autopsies were performed to try and establish whether the child was born alive or dead. Despite the prominence given to medical testimony it was recognised at the time to be generally inconclusive, so it often helped the defence more than the prosecution. This is reflected in a strikingly low level of convictions (less than five per cent). The sympathy shown by the judiciary and many medical writers towards accused women was not, however, mirrored in their communities. Neighbours, particularly women, were often very hostile.

Despite being based on a PhD thesis, this book is well-written, and Jackson - a Lecturer in the Wellcome Unit for the History of Medicine at Manchester - leavens it with plenty of examples to illustrate his points.

Dr Simon Mays, a Human Skeletal Biologist at English Heritage, has studied infanticide in the Roman period

A FESTIVAL OF NORFOLK ARCHAEOLOGY
eds Sue Margeson, Brian Ayres and Stephen Heywood
Norfolk & Norwich Arch Soc, £7.99
ISBN 0-952-8119-0-1 pb

The Norfolk & Norwich Archaeological Society is one of the oldest in the country and has recently celebrated its 150th anniversary with, amongst other events, the publication of this collection of essays summarising recent archaeological discoveries in the county. This book does not attempt to be a comprehensive county history; but the idea of looking at the entire time-scale of the region's history through its material remains, with only one essay dealing with written records, is new and exciting.

Environmental archaeology shows that arguably the most important event in man's history - the change from nomadic hunting to sedentary farming - was a gradual one, taking place from the Late Palaeolithic and through the Mesolithic periods. We often associate prehistoric archaeology with ritual and burial sites, but this book explores recent discoveries which help us understand the economy and settlement patterns of the county. What is clear is that Norfolk was a wealthy area, where gold and bronze objects of fine workmanship continue to be found. In the post-Roman period, it has long been evident from place-names that Viking influence was important, particularly in the east, but it is only through recent finds - both the lowly possessions of Scandinavian farmers and the finer ones of the military élite - that we begin to understand the real extent of the Viking contribution to the history of Norfolk.

The continued wealth of the county, suppporting a high population through the Middle Ages, can be studied through its rich legacy of church architecture and the remains of long-abandoned villages. The period after 1700 is also approached through its landscape and buildings, and the archaeological method of studying country houses and their parks is particularly rewarding in a county with three of the most important 18th century examples still standing (Houghton, Holkham and Wolterton). Industrial archaeology may not usually be associated with a `rural' county, but Norfolk contributed to industrial progress in a number of ways, such as flax manufacture and cement production.

This is a refreshing group of essays that perhaps shows the way that collecting information for county histories may go in the future.

Susanna Wade Martins is the author of `A History of Norfolk' (Phillimore, 1984)