Book Review: The Story of Silbury Hill by Jim Leary and David Field
Submitted by Runemage on Friday, 14 January 2011 Page Views: 11454
Multi-periodCountry: England County: Wiltshire Type: Artificial MoundInternal Links:
It's not until almost the end of the book (page 181) that the authors reveal why this particular work was chosen. I won’t spoil it by saying why, but it’s a very nice touch.
The first part of this book is a detailed and interesting historical account of who did what and when at Silbury from its inception to the Millennium and as far as the authors can ascertain, the reasons for their actions.
English Heritage came in for a fair amount of criticism from several quarters for the time it took from discovery of the hole in the top of Silbury to actually being seen to be doing something about it. This account explains the complexities of their position and many of the obstacles they encountered, both expected and unforseen.
Anyone who has undertaken restoration of an old property will nod sagely, knowing that to achieve objective H from starting point A, it’s impossible to proceed in a straightforward eight-step alphabetical order because every step has some snag or other which needs remedial work or needs a complete re-think, so to complete those eight steps, it involves making at least 50. The budget for such projects, when having to take into account all of the extra steps, instead of being anything like the original costings is more like pick a number, double it, add two noughts then take away the number you first thought of.
The first-hand accounts of the finds in the tunnels are fascinating, of course they are factual but there’s a much more modern empathic and interpretative thread throughout the book than an account written by archaeologists would suggest. The authors give examples of other ancient cultures and their worldviews where known and make an effort to try and work out what the ancient inhabitants of the area around Silbury may have understood about their world.
As an example of this, the authors cite an interesting parallel in the Hopewell culture’s mounds - muddy earth at the centre represented their creation myth and subsequent layers of soils were designed to be read and understood in their mythology and worldview, not just looked upon as only soil.
On finding a very thin layer of grey material brought in to Silbury at ground level to make the floor of the first mound, the authors say, "the idea that the ground could have been prepared before any construction had begun would profoundly affect our understanding of the origins of the site, suggesting that the location had already seen considerable activity before monument construction began. If the Hill already attracted people it may have already been special, perhaps even sacred ground"
They also emphasise that the process of construction is as important as the finished form. Did the ancients sit down with their equivalent of a blueprint and construct Silbury from scratch? No, it was done in stages over several generations, but importantly, each phase had meaning to the contemporary society who created it. Do bear in mind that the only evidence the authors have is what they discovered in the existing tunnels and the hole in the top. The rest of the mound remains unexcavated until such time in the future there’s either a pressing need or a way to do so without damage. For the time being, every section of the tunnels is recorded and preserved in Virtual Reality to enable much further study to be done.
In addition to the content about Neolithic Silbury itself, a totally unexpected find was made in nearby fields. A small Roman town slowly revealed its presence and gave more continuity of human occupation to the surrounding land.
This book will appeal to a wide audience, no matter what your interest in Silbury, there’ll be something in here you didn’t know, I’m sure. Also, it lays a lot of the rumour and conjecture about the excavation and restoration to rest.
Silbury is a truly unique monument and the hard work by so many people that has resulted in the new-found knowledge shared in this book is a huge achievement. We have an exclusive set of images taken from inside the tunnel during the restoration in our gallery, and see the rest of our vast collection of information on Silbury here.
Review by Runemage, and apologies for the lateness of this review, which was caused by our review copy getting lost in the arctic wasteland that was East Yorkshire at the end of last year.
The Story of Silbury Hill, By Jim Leary and David Field.
Paperback, 224 pages
Published by English Heritage
ISBN: 1848020465
RRP: £14.99
From £10.61 at Amazon.co.uk
We would like to know more about this location. Please feel free to add a brief description and any relevant information in your own language.
Wir möchten mehr über diese Stätte erfahren. Bitte zögern Sie nicht, eine kurze Beschreibung und relevante Informationen in Deutsch hinzuzufügen.
Nous aimerions en savoir encore un peu sur les lieux. S'il vous plaît n'hesitez pas à ajouter une courte description et tous les renseignements pertinents dans votre propre langue.
Quisieramos informarnos un poco más de las lugares. No dude en añadir una breve descripción y otros datos relevantes en su propio idioma.