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Submitted by Astronomer on Thursday, 26 August 2004 Page Views: 5641
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  Prehistoric Cheshire submitted by PaulM
by Victoria and Paul Morgan, Landmark Collector's Library (2004). ISBN 1 84306140 6
Vicky and Paul Morgan are well known as two of the most prolific contributors to Megalithic Portal. Both authors are not only well qualified to write this book but are a formidable team, sharing complimentary expertise in researching, describing and interpreting their subject.
They rightly point out that most books about Cheshire’s history begin with the Roman occupation. Little has been written about its prehistory. Cheshire’s physical landscape has constrained its prehistory into quite localised areas: the Wirral peninsular and the western border with Wales; the mid-Cheshire ridge; and the eastern moorlands bordering Greater Manchester to its south-east and extending into Staffordshire. In a largely agricultural county, extensively developed in post-Roman times and down to the present, these are the regions in which can still be found evidence of ancient inhabitation extending back to our Mesolithic ancestors. Evidence is still scarce for reasons the Morgans take time to explain; nevertheless it is there.
The oldest megalithic structure in Cheshire is the Bridestones, near Congleton. It is regarded as an outlier to the more extensive and somewhat later Beaker culture of the Peak District, well documented elsewhere*. Using Bridestones as a marker, the Morgans skilfully construct a timeline, from the Mesolithic to the Iron Age around interconnecting themes; ritual monuments, Bronze Age burial sites and ancient standing stones, that ably describes their adopted county and puts it into the wider context of north-west British and European prehistory.
There is much prehistoric archaeology in Cheshire still to be professionally described. Many of the sites listed in the SMR have not been excavated. Paul and Vicky do not shy away from including some speculative interpretation of those still awaiting professional investigation. As highly respected, free-lance researchers they perform via their new book a valuable service in bringing these sites to our attention before land development endangers their very existence.
Theirs is perhaps the most comprehensive exposition of Cheshire's prehistoric landscape and monuments to date and will probably remain so for a very considerable time. An extensive gazetteer of sites, lists of references, a bibliography and a glossary append the closely printed 169 pages of well-illustrated text. Prehistoric Cheshire is worth every penny of a very modest £19.95.
* Victoria and Paul Morgan. 2001. Rock Around the Peak. Sigma Leisure. ISBN: 1-85058-742-6
Review by Kevin Kilburn
What the experts think:
"This is indeed a landmark volume. It covers the long prehistory of Cheshire from first to last. Here is rock art, stone circles, burial cairns, ending with the Iron Age bog burials including the multiply-executed Lindow Man. The book is clearly arranged, well-written, finely illustrated, detailed, even introducing some stone circles previously unknown to me. It is a very welcome and magisterial introduction to the little-known early centuries of Cheshire."
Aubrey Burl, rchaeological Consultant and author of The stone circles of Britain, Ireland and Brittany
"Victoria and Paul Morgan’s beautifully presented book brings together
Cheshire’s little known prehistoric sites and landscapes in an absorbing account of this sometimes overlooked aspect of the county’s distant past. Thorough, informed and well-researched, Prehistoric Cheshire is likely to remain the definitive book on the subject for many years to come."
Neil Mortimer, British Archaeology magazine
"This well presented volume brings together in accessible form much on the often neglected and undervalued prehistoric sites of Cheshire. Previously much of this information was not readily available to the general reader and this book fulfils a valuable role and will surprise many, who before now; have been unaware of the county’s rich and diverse ancient heritage."
Dr John Barnatt, Senior Survey Archaeologist
The Peak District National Park Authority
Note: Copies of Prehistoric Cheshire are available in our online shop.
 Prehistoric Cheshire submitted by PaulM
Sadly Paul Morgan made it on to this photo. The authors of "Prehistoric Cheshire" at Bookland in Nantwich.
 Prehistoric Cheshire submitted by PaulM
Portal Editor (at that time) Vicky Morgan being interviewed by the reporter from BBC Radio Stoke at The Bridestones in Cheshire.
Mercifully co-author Paul (face for radio) Morgan is behind the camera.
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Re: Prehistoric Cheshire (Score: 1)
by Thorgrim on Thursday, 26 August 2004
(User Info | Send a Message) | | Fantastic reviews -even Burl has been shown circles that he didn't know about! | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Prehistoric Cheshire (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Sunday, 16 January 2005 | | Generally coherent, with adequate photographs, but perpetual errors of fine detail subvert the total argument.
Alan Garner.
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Re: Prehistoric Cheshire (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Sunday, 16 January 2005 | | Nah Alan...Get with the program. It's a thoroughly decent book...Nothing to get picky about, enthusiasm carries it along nicely. |
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Prehistoric Cheshire now £7 (Score: 1)
by ShropshireTraveller on Thursday, 19 October 2006
(User Info | Send a Message) | | Copies of this worthy book have been spotted for £7 each in The Works in Manchester... maybe others in the region have it at this price too. | [ Reply to This ]
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