Anderson-Whymark, Hugo

Garrow, Duncan

Murray, Chris

Sheridan, J A

English

National Museums Scotland Research Repository

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sheridan, Alison (2014) Spectacular Neolithic finds emerge from the lochs of Lewis, 
Past: the Newsletter of the Prehistoric Society , No.76; APR 2014 p. 1.  0965-1381 
 
 
 
http://repository.nms.ac.uk/1201 
 
 
Deposited on: 10 June 2014 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
NMS Repository – Research publications by staff of the National Museums Scotland 
 
http://repository.nms.ac.uk/  
Spectacular Neolithic finds emerge from the lochs of Lewis
PASTThe NewSLeTTer of The PrehiSToric SocieTy
 Registered Office: University College London, Institute of Archaeology, 31–34 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PY                 http://www.prehistoricsociety.org/   
Number 76                                                April 2014
Chris Murray, a sport diver, has been making some remarkable 
discoveries of Neolithic pottery on the beds of several lochs 
in the Isle of Lewis. The pottery is very similar to other finds 
of Hebridean Neolithic pottery, for example the assemblages 
from Eilean an Tighe and Eilean Dòmhnuill (Loch Olabhat), 
both in North Uist. At least one Unstan Bowl – a specific 
vessel type shared between the Hebrides, Orkney and north 
mainland Scotland – is included among the finds.
 By a lucky coincidence, it has proved possible to obtain 
radiocarbon dates from encrusted organic residue from 
three of the vessels (all large decorated Hebridean Neolithic 
cooking pots) from three of the lochs. Mark Elliott, the 
Conservation Officer at Museum nan Eilean, Stornoway, 
who tragically died on New Year’s Eve, had drawn the finds 
to the attention of Alison Sheridan. In collaboration with 
Hugo Anderson-Whymark and Duncan Garrow, these 
samples (plus three from residues on pottery from Eilean an 
Tighe) were dated at the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator 
Unit as part of the Stepping Stones to the Neolithic project 
(http://www.neolithicsteppingstones.org/_/Home.html). 
Sadly, Mark did not live to see the results, but he would 
have been delighted to learn that the pots date to between 
c. 3600 BC and c. 3300 BC, in line with expectations. Full 
details will be published in Discovery and Excavation in 
Scotland in 2015 and in the Stepping Stones project’s planned 
radiocarbon dating paper. Furthermore, Bristol University’s 
Richard Evershed has kindly agreed to analyse the sherds to 
identify the pots’ former contents. The dates give no reason to 
suspect the presence of marine lipids. Interestingly, however, 
one of the only two Neolithic pots in Professor Evershed’s 
recent NERC-funded project, Changing Patterns of Marine 
Product Exploitation in Human Prehistory via Biomarker 
Proxies in Archaeological Pottery (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.
gov/pubmed/24523264), to have produced evidence for 
marine lipids was a Hebridean Neolithic pot from Bharpa 
Langais, South Uist.
 As with the North Uist finds, the Lewis discoveries point 
towards the existence of Neolithic settlements on islets in 
lochs. The state of preservation of the pottery is superb and 
there is every chance that other well-preserved waterlogged 
settlement evidence is present. However, there are currently 
no plans to excavate since, in order to do justice to the sites, 
a vastly expensive operation would be necessary – including 
a major programme of waterlogged organics conservation, 
for which Scotland is decreasingly well-equipped.
Alison Sheridan (National Museums Scotland), 
Chris Murray (diver), Duncan Garrow (University of 
Reading) and Hugo Anderson-Whymark (University of York)
Large Hebridean 
Neolithic jar 
being lifted from 
Loch Langavat 
(photo: Chris 
Murray).
Unstan Bowl emerging from the waters of Loch Arnish 
(photo: Chris Murray).


Spectacular Neolithic finds emerge from the lochs of Lewis

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