Description
Anthropologists Johnston (George Washington U.) and Wailes (emeritus, U. of Pennsylvania), along with other workers on the project, present the full description of their work to date on the Iron Age royal site and its archaeology. Some of the descriptions and characterizations of artifacts have been updated from the interim reports issued over the years. Chapters report on the strategy and execution of the excavation; artifacts such as lithic remains, iron, and worked bone; special analyses; biological remains; chronology; Dún Ailinne's role in folklore, myth, and the sacred landscape; the social and cultural context; and other aspects. The book contains 91 b&w figures, and the 113 color and b&w plates are included on the accompanying CD-ROM. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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The site of Dún Ailinne is one of four major ritual sites from the Irish Iron Age, each said to form the center of a political kingdom and thus described as "royal." Excavation has produced artifacts ranging from the Neolithic (about 5,000 years ago) through the later Iron Age (fourth century CE), when the site was the focus of repeated rituals, probably related to the creation and maintenance of political hegemony. A series of timber structures were built and replaced as each group of leaders sought to claim ancient descent from a deep past and still create something unique and lasting.Pam J. Crabtree and Ronald Hicks provide analyses on, respectively, biological remains and Dún Ailinne's role in folklore, myth, and the sacred landscape, while Katherine Moreau examines bronze and iron artifacts and Elizabeth Hamilton, slag.Content of this book's CD-ROM may be found online at this location: http://core.tdar.org/project/376584.University Museum Monograph, 129
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