The Prehistory Guys

Latest Episodes:

SWS-16 | On Orkney with Michael's Dirty Trowel Jul 18, 2019

Show notes

It seems ages since we last posted a podcast. But it's only just over a month - it must be that we've been incredibly busy! And some of that business is down to Michael's excursion to Orkney to take part in a three-day field archaeology course at the Cairns Broch dig on South Ronaldsay.

Yes, the new trowel was well and truly broken in and in this episode, Rupert grills Michael about his adventure and actually manages to extract some interesting information from him about the dig and his hands-on archaeological experience. (Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition).

NOTE: if you're interested in following up on the background to the topics covered in this podcast, for the monthly subscription rate of $1 a month, you can have access to the show notes for this show, and much more content besides, by becoming a member on Patreon. Go to the Patreon page for this podcast and become one of our valued Patreon supporters now!

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SWS-015 | Exploring a Prehistoric Timeline Jun 15, 2019

Show notes

Since we began this podcast in March 2018, archaeological facts and finds have been coming at us fast and furious - so much so that it's becoming hard to keep track of what happened where and in what order!

So, in an effort to claw back some clarity, we've begun compiling a Timeline of Prehistory.

The simple question: "what was going on in the rest of the world when megalith building was happening in Britain?" has thrown up some surprising facts. In order to give some context to the Neolithic and early Bronze Age this side of the Channel, we explore what was going on in the world from 8,000 to 2,000 BC.

We hope you find it as eye-opening as we did!

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SWS-X003 | Axe Heads & Identity | Dr. Katharine Walker Jun 06, 2019

Show notes

Back in November 2018, we found ourselves sitting on the front row for the a lecture in the Wiltshire Museum by Dr. Katharine Walker of Bournemouth University entitled 'Taking Sides, Scandinavian Flint Axe type in Britain'. This wasn't really an accident because, as you probably know, the subject of axe-heads, their meaning, production and trade is one that we find ourselves returning to often in the podcast. We kept in communication with Dr. Walker after the talk and we were very pleased when she agreed to do a Standing with Stones podcast interview with us.

In it, we chat about her work, her experiences and the insights that pursuing her fascination with neolithic axeheads has given her.

Dr Katharine Walker is a prehistorian specialising in the Neolithic of northwest Europe and is a Visiting Research Fellow at Bournemouth University. She gained a first class degree in Archaeology from the University of Bristol; an MA in the European Neolithic from Cardiff University, funded by the AHRC; and a PhD from the University of Southampton entitled ‘Axe-heads and Identity: an Investigation into theRoles of Identity Formation in Neolithic Britain.’

And that’s about all you need to know for the time being - Oh, that and the fact that we recorded the interview in the saloon of a 43 ft sailing boat in Southampton marina.

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SWS - 014 | Ubiquity: Counting the Stones May 11, 2019

Show notes

We tend to thing of our ancient monuments as being special, unique places. But when you begin to count them, it slowly dawns on you that for our ancestors, they were commonplace. In Standing with Stones podcast number 14, Michael and Rupert discuss this aspect of our heritage - and ask whether appreciation of their ubiquity changes our appreciation of them.

As well as our regular features, 'Question Time' this month sparks a debate as to the utility of the Aubrey Holes at Stonehenge; were they used to predict lunar and solar eclipses? Or is there number and form merely contingent on chance and location?

NOTE: if you're interested in following up on the background to the topics covered in this podcast, for the monthly subscription rate of $1 a month, you can have access to the notes for this show, and much more content besides, by becoming a member on Patreon. Go to the Patreon page for this podcast and become one of our valued Patreon supporters now!

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SWS Podcast #013 | The Great Circles of Cumbria Apr 05, 2019

Show notes

As you'll have guessed already, this month we're off to Cumbria and the Lake District to wander the Great Stone Circles, ponder their purpose and hopefully enlighten you about their grandeur and importance. Oh, and of course, there'll be a boundary pushed, some news, a new stonehead, a question answered and a little whimsey.

By the way, if you're interested in the show notes, we've moved them to the Patreon page for this podcast and will be continuing to do so in the future. Patreon supporters will have exclusive access to them from now on as a reward for their support (along with many other perks!). If you want to access the show notes, follow the link and become one of our valued Patreon supporters now! It needn't cost you more than $1 a month. SHOW NOTES HERE.

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SWS - 012 | Dartmoor Mar 13, 2019

Show notes

"Dartmoor is one of my favourite places in the whole of England, and I've been exploring here for over twenty years. Three hundred and sixty five square miles of rolling moors, with a huge variety of prehistoric structures. It's so unspoilt - in archaeological terms - it gives us a much clearer idea of what the whole country used to be like".

So says Rupert at the beginning of the Dartmoor segment of our 2008 film 'Standing with Stones'. Twelve years on from the making of the film, we muse on what's special about this magical place and give some useful pointers about getting the most out of a visit to the moors.

PLUS: domesticated dogs from 14,000 years ago; megaliths of the Westrn Sahara; Secrets of the Ice; 12,000 year old petroglyphs from India - and, of course, our regular features.

SHOW NOTES AT STANDINGSTONES.NET

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SWS-X002 | A Conversation with Dr. Bettina Schulz Paulsson Mar 04, 2019

Show notes

A few weeks ago in the middle of February 2019, articles began appearing in the media linking Stonehenge, sailors and the megalithic culture of Brittany. To us, something didn't smell quite right about that and it didn’t take long to find out that most of these articles were, in one way or another, misrepresenting, and at worst completely mangling a serious, deep and very painstaking piece of academic research by Dr. Bettina Schulz Paulsson of the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

In a book published in 2015 and in a recent short paper, Dr. Schulz Paulsson describes how the radio carbon dates taken from nearly two and a half thousand megalithic and pre-megalithic sites in Western Europe show a radiation of a megalithic culture in the 5th and 4th millenia BC from North West France and in particular coastal Brittany down the Atlantic seaboard and round into the Mediterranean.

How better to clear up any misunderstandings than to talk to the source of the work herself? And so it was a great honour when Dr. Schulz Paulsson agreed to be on our show.

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SWS - 011 | Making a Megalithic Story Feb 09, 2019

Show notes

This month we take an inward look at part of the process that went into the making of Standing with Stones; just how did we choose which sites to include in the film? It's a response to the oft-asked question: "Why the heck did you leave (insert personal favourite site here) out?" We do our best to answer.

PLUS: A VERY ancient tiara, a submerged settlement in the Hebrides, a 4,000 year old child's rattle and for the grown-ups - a 4,000 year old board game. Oh, and the Stonehead of the Month is a dog.

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SWS - 010 | Was There A Beaker Revolution? Jan 27, 2019

Show notes

Was there a Beaker revolution? Both Rupert and Michael are surprised to find that despite a lot of detailed archaeological and genetic evidence, there is much confusion as to what exactly was going on in Britain and Northern/Central Europe 4,500 years ago. However, what is clear is that big changes happened, especially in Britain - where wholesale population change occurred over a few hundred years. What are we to make of this?

Plus:Neolithic beasts of burden, Mesolithic chewing gum, The Folkton Drums and an exhibition of archaeological howlers. And Michael and Rupert fight for the "Grouchy Hat'!

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SWS-009 | Archaeoastronomy Dec 17, 2018

Show notes

In a very special 1 hour 45 minute extended episode (you have been warned), Michael & Rupert explore the science of archaeoastronomy and surprise themselves at how long they are able to talk on the subject. However, there's still time for pushing a boundary, some news, a question, a Stonehead of the Month and a fascinating bit of neolithic audio whimsey.

Show notes not available at time of publication but will be available soon at https://www.standingstones.net/sws-009-archaeoastronomy

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