Potingair
books and e-books on
archaeological materials, artefacts, practices and landscapes
Series: Early Materials and Practices
Precious Landscapes: Scotland' native gold and silver
Alan J Hall and Effie Photos-Jones
Publication date : November 2015
Alan J Hall recently retired as Senior Lecturer at the University of Glasgow where he taught geoarchaeology. His specialist research interests are in mineralogy, geochemistry and gold exploration.
In the autumn of 1606, Sandy Maund, a Scottish collier, while prospecting for coal by the "Silver bourne, under the hill called Kerne-Popple" in the central valley of Scotland, made a chance discovery of native silver. Sir Bevis Bulmer of Leadhills, well known metallurgist and assayer of his time, analysed Sandy Maund's sample of the silver ore and found it ‘riche …wondrous riche’. This was the start of a mining 'adventure' in the Bathgate Hills which would end up costing King James VI of Scotland (James I of England) a considerable sum of money.
Precious Landscapes: Scotland’s Native Gold and Silver gives an account of Scotland’s exploitation of its native precious metals deposits by highlighting the historical and geoarchaeological context of the localities where precious metals have been extracted in the past. These landscapes are steeped in history. Nevertheless, although there is little to be seen today in terms of material remains, they bear testimony to periods of intense activity. The authors revisit these landscapes and in the process painstakingly reconstruct a period and also reflect on the eternal fascination that people have with their surrounding metals-rich landscapes.
Series: Archaeology, Ritual and the Landscape
The Sacred Waters of Argyll:
exploring healing waters within their archaeological landscapes
Alex Alexander and Allan Stroud
Publication date : November 2015
Alex Alexander and Allan Stroud are young archaeologists with a continuing interest, over the last few years, in the holy wells of various regions of Scotland. Their interest led them to develop a multi-disciplinary approach towards their study. The Sacred Waters of Argyll is the first of three books aiming to raise awareness of these important natural features. Many of them are now threatened with extinction.
Healing springs have played a significant role in the folklore of many cultures in most geographical regions. In Scotland, these natural features are referred to as ‘holy wells’ and some have been venerated since pagan times. The traditions associated with these wells have survived in many areas, suggesting that some holy wells and their landscape are imbued with a spirituality that transcends chronological periods and religious belief systems. But are they really healing?
The sacred waters of Argyll: exploring healing waters within their archaeological landscapes presents the research underpinning a select number of healing wells that survive in Argyll; it uses a hydro-geoarchaeological approach. The book is written in the form of a guidebook in order to encourage the reader to visit the locales, with the aid of clearly laid-out itineraries. In the process, the visitor is made aware of the geological, historical and archaeological landscape that surrounds each well. Once at the well, photographs and plan drawings, together with the results of water testing, help to give an account of why these wells may have been thought of as ‘special’.