The Bronze Age

There were some differences though, apart from pottery, the burial practices of the two groups were almost entirely different. The beaker using people were interred in single graves rather than the collective burials of the Neolithic. The graves themselves were often constructed in a cist with a covering cairn. These graves often contained personal possessions such as jet buttons and necklaces, flint arrowheads, archers wristguards and the distinctive beaker pottery. Many typological schemes have been built up for this pottery mainly focussing on changes in form and decoration. Although the beaker changed in style it had a very long life lasting down to c.1600-1500 BC.

Clava cairns
The Clava type cairs are all located in the Inverness and Spey valley areas. The images below show two of the cairns in the care of Historic Scotland at Balnuaran of Clava.

Clava cairn   Close	Skara Brae   Close
Clava cairns (click images for enlargements)

Metallurgy was a huge technological leap forward for humanity, involving much more in the way of expertise than stoneworking required. Metal ores are far less evenly distributed than flint and other stones and this encouraged trade, and in some areas conflict as control of the access to these ores became important. Scotland had several sources of both copper and gold, copper was found in Lanarkshire, the Ochil Hills, Knapdale, Glen Esk and Loch Ness. Gold could be mined in Upper Clydesdale, western Perthshire and Sutherland. Bronze requires tin, however, and the only source of this in Britain is in Cornwall. This encouraged contact between Scotland and south west England as well as with Ireland.

After around c.1400 BC new bronzeworking techniques were introduced which allowed the production of sophisticated cast pieces. Socketed implements were now possible through the use of two or more piece closed moulds. Palstave axes appeared which eventually become socketed axe heads. Dirks, long swords and spearheads were introduced and these gradually ousted the short daggers of the early bronze age. By this point a warrior aristocracy had probably emerged who could control access to the sources of wealth and would have patronised the smiths who produced the bronzework.

Human skulls at the Liddle Burnt Mound, Orkney	Liddle Burnt Mound, Orkney

Bronze was not the only prized item, with gold and jet being highly prized also. Most of these items are found in burials such as the magnificent wristguard with four gold studs found in a cist burial at Culduthel in Inverness. Jet necklaces are widely distributed and have been found at Poltalloch, Argyll and Pitkennedy, Angus. There was a gradual move away from inhumation to cremation in cinerary urns. The urns were placed upside down in the grave, sometimes with personal items such as pins or jewellery. Cremations have also been found 'loose' in kerbed cairns, which are found widely in Scotland and have been excavated at Strontoiller near Oban, Fowlis Wester in Perthshire and Logie Newton in Aberdeenshire. Some of these cremation burials and cemeteries are associated with large standing stones such as at Orwell in Kinross-shire.

Several examples of Bronze Age settlement sites have been excavated. At Lairg 54 hut circles were discovered in an area measuring 3.5km by 0.3km in Achany Glen. 71 per cent of the hut circles produced radiocarbon dates in the 2nd millennium BC. The remains seem to have been of a scattered community or unenclosed village. There were traces of cultivation underneath the hut circles suggesting continued cultivation back into the Neolithic. At the time of the Bronze Age the fields were enclosed by rubble dykes, formed from field clearance debris. During the second millennium there was a gradual environmental degredation resulting in more upland areas being cleared for farmland. There is evidence that in the 12th century BC there was a dramatic drop in population that did not recover for over 700 years.

Cairnpapple Hill, West Lothian

With this drop in population there appears to have been a move away from an arable towards pastoral economy. Itinerant smiths were still at work, however, and hoards of scrap metal have been discovered, as at Peelhill in Lanarkshire where 28 broken or damaged spearheads and a sword were found. Among late Bronze Age metalwork there are some items which may be associated with horses. Rings found at Glentanar and Braes of Gight are probably from a horse harness. In central Europe at this time a warrior aristocracy had appeared which is now called Celtic, the first signs of them appeared in Scotland at around 700 BC.

History Books on the Bronze Age:

Author	Title	Published	Price	Order Now From: From:
Ashmore, P.	Neolithic & Bronze Age Scotland	1996	£15.99 or $29.95	Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
The story of Scotland from the first farmer to the beginning of the Iron Age, a period which covers the construction of settlements and the enigmatic stone circles. Another fine addition to the Historic Scotland series. 1. An untilled land 2. Farmers from 4000-3500BC 3. Regional Diversity increases 3500-3000BC 4. Temples of the Earth and Sky 3000-2500BC 5. Cults of Conquerors 2500-2000BC 6. Villagers 2000-1500BC 7. Mastering the Land 1500-1000BC 8. A Time of Swords 1000-750BC.
Barclay, Gordon	Temples and Tombs	1998	£5.99 or $13.45	Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
The coming of the first farmers to Scotland about 6000 BC saw the beginning of the transformation of Scotland's landscape from wild to domestic, the beginnings of the felling of the primeval forests and the building of monuments on the land. This book covers this period.
Feachem, R.W.	Guide to Prehistoric Scotland	1992	£12.99	Amazon.co.uk
The numerous prehistoric monuments and sites which survive in Scotland include many that are widely known, but a great many more that are hardly ever visited. This guide, again available, contains examples of both types. Having placed these prehistoric and Pictish survivals in their human and chronological setting, the author provides fully annotated alphabetical lists under subject headings. Complete with full Ordnance Survey map references, photographs and drawings, the guide is not only an invaluable work of reference; it will enable both amateur archaeologists and interested visitors to locate and interpret the most important visible remains of prehistoric Scotland.
Oram, R.	Scottish Prehistory	1996	£8.99 or $17.95	Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
This handbook on the archaeology of prehistoric Scotland incorporates a gazetteer of key sites and monuments. It ranges from the seventh millennium BC, through the Neolithic period and the Bronze Age, to the emergence of the early historic kingdoms after the Celtic Iron Age.
Piggott, S.	Scotland Before History	1990	£6.95	Amazon.co.uk
Ritchie, Graham & Anna	Scotland: Archaeology and Early History	1991	£15.50 or $17.95	Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
An authoritative coverage of the early history of the country and the archaeological evidence that we have for the people who inhabited it. Deals with early farming communities, henge monuments, early metalworking, early Celts, the Romans, Britons and Angles, and the Picts.
Ross, Stewart	Ancient Scotland	1991	£19.99	Amazon.co.uk
A fine popular introduction to the history of the ancient races of Scotland and the relics they have left behind them. Covers the Beaker Folk, the first Celts, the Roman invasion, the Picts and the Vikings.