Unearthed, the ancient 'halls of the dead' that are 1,000 years OLDER than Stonehenge

[Judi Lynn]

Unearthed, the ancient 'halls of the dead' that are 1,000 years OLDER than Stonehenge

• Manchester archaeologists have found communal halls that were first 'ritually' burned and then covered over with soil to form large barrows
  
  
• The buildings were burned down when the head of the family died
  
  
• The structures were discovered on top of Dorstone Hill in Herefordshire and are thought to date to about 3,800BC
  
  
• Archeologists have found two stone axe-heads, a flint hand knife and an arrowhead and have described the discovery as a 'very important find'

By Sarah Griffiths
PUBLISHED: 12:41 EST, 30 July 2013 | UPDATED: 12:58 EST, 30 July 2013

Ancient 'halls of the dead' pre-dating Stonehenge are being heralded by archaeologists as the first monuments of their kind to be found in the UK.

The two earth long barrows were uncovered on top of Dorstone Hill in Herefordshire and are thought to date to about 3,800BC, almost 1,000 years before the famous stone circle in Wiltshire was built, according to Professor Julian Thomas, of the University of Manchester.

Archaeologists who have spent a month excavating the mounds say they have removed fine examples of flint weapons and tools, thought to have been buried in the barrows when first created or later left as offerings to the dead.

Professor Thomas said the site was the only one of its type in the UK where 'the halls of the living became the halls of the dead', with the long communal halls first 'ritually' burned and then covered over with soil and turf to form the large barrows.

He said: 'With this phenomenon of deliberately burning down buildings, tending the fire over a period of days, the argument is that you burn these down when the head of the family dies.

More:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2381487/Ancient-Dorstone-Hill-halls-dead-1-000-years-OLDER-Stonehenge.html#ixzz2aYUA7R6D

[Judi Lynn]

1. Two Neolithic-Era Burial Halls Discovered in UK Countryside

Two Neolithic-Era Burial Halls Discovered in UK Countryside
July 30, 2013

Archaeologists from the University of Manchester and the Herefordshire Council have unearthed the remains of two large halls that were constructed more than 6,000 years ago. The burned and buried halls, which were discovered atop Dorstone Hill, near Peterchurch in Herefordshire, are believed to have been constructed between 4000 and 3600 BC.

Some of the charred wood at the site shows the character of the structure of the buildings as they may have looked above ground. The researchers suggest these buildings were used by entire communities, but do not have enough information to determine how large each structure was. However, based on the length of the Neolithic-era barrows beneath each of the buildings, the researchers estimate the halls to have been 100 and 230 feet long, respectively.

The team also believes the buildings were deliberately burned down after construction and the remains of the buildings were incorporated into two unique burial mounds on the hilltop. Even though the halls were burned, much detail is still preserved in the larger barrow. The team has found carbonized structural timbers, postholes that offer positions of original uprights and the burnt remains of stakes of the internal partitions. Also, the burial mounds are composed of burnt clay, which implies the daub from the walls of the buildings was used in the burial process.

The smaller barrow was found to contain a 23-by-8-foot mortuary chamber with huge sockets that would have held upright tree trunks at each end. The massive posts “bracketed a linear ‘trough’ lined with planks, which would have held the remains of the dead.”

“This find is of huge significance to our understanding of prehistoric life — so we’re absolutely delighted,” noted Julian Thomas, Professor of archaeology at the University of Manchester, who co-directed the excavation. “It makes a link between the house and a tomb more forcefully than any other investigation that has been ever carried out.

More:
http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112909857/6000-year-old-neolithic-houses-of-dead-discovered-073013/

[alan_phillips]

2. I love hearing about this kind of stuff :)

History has always been my favorite subject. Anytime a story like this bubbles up it fascinates me. The questions of who they were and why they did things are fun to see answered. Maybe I picked the wrong career path

[BlueToTheBone]

3. Well, I hope you have

found your right forum! Welcome to DU! This is a very diverse treasure of info,