Neolithic Landscape of Rudston

Copyright: P.A.Clark, 2004

The Neolithic Ritual Landscape of Rudston

Introduction This paper will consider the Early Neolithic ritual landscape surrounding Rudston in East Yorkshire. This area is a richly multi-period landscape centering on the spur of chalk topped by the Rudston monument overlooking the dramatic eastward bend of the Gypsey Race. This landscape may rival Stonehenge in its ritual significance within the British Isles. Unfortunately, due to its nature, this paper will only be a very cursory and preliminary consideration. From the global perspective, life's biological foundations and its natural environment would seem to be the strongest influences. Yet, for the individual, life is also shaped by society and the culture it has adopted. In both nature and society processes and structures are repeated. The key distinction being that cultural forms are repeated wilfully and not merely due to lack of change. Through their adopted ways of life humans have shaped the natural environment itself. (Bellaby, 1999; Haralambos, 2000) Geology & Ecology Rudston is situated in the centre of the Great Wolds Valley as it takes a dramatic 90 degree turn eastward. This valley is the largest and broadest of the many valleys cutting into the Yorkshire Wolds. These chalk downlands are the northernmost outcrop of a band of chalk curving northwards from the Downs of Wessex through the Lincolnshire Wolds breaking into the North Sea in the north of East Yorkshire. At their highest the Wolds reach 243m, yet the major part rarely rises to 150m. The Wolds seem like an island in the midst of the low-lying and wetter vales and plains to the west, north and east.
(Haigh 2004; Manby et al 2003; Stoertz 1997)
Extent of Cretaceous chalk in England

The Great Wolds Valley carries the Gypsey Race which once ran from Wharam le Street

eastward along through the northern Wolds, turning south at Burton Fleming and then dramatically turning eastward again at Rudston, reaching the sea at Bridlington. The Gypsey Race is the only permanent watercourse in the high Wolds - although today, north of Rudston, it often disappears on the surface.

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Neolithic Landscape of Rudston

Copyright: P.A.Clark, 2004

Well-drained, normally shallow calcareous soil overlay the chalk base. Some deeper soils are found around the edge of the Wolds. These can be combined with clay and sand which cause seasonal drainage and waterlogging problems. Over the course of human occupation the Wold's soil seems to have changed. Barrow excavations often reveal a thick layer of stone-free brown forest soil having been present at the time of their construction. All this has made the area attractive to farmers for millennia. (Manby 1980) Environmental samples from below the
The Yorkshire Wolds

Kilham Long Barrow suggest a forested Wolds in the earliest Neolithic.

Woodland clearance seems to have followed swiftly and a pattern of neglect with woodland renewal having been repeated at least twice before the barrow was built. As would be expected the valley floor contained wetland species, whilst the valley sides were grasslands. Ericaceae and Pinus may have existed on the slopes further downstream. Pollen records from Willow Garth and Kilham suggest an open, mixed agricultural landscape before 4300BP, during the early Neolithic. The Holderness plain, to the east and south of the Wolds, was covered in fen and reed swamp. All this made the Great Wold Valley even more attractive for settlement.
(Abramson, 2001; Manby 1970; Stoertz 1997)

Early Neolithic Structures of Yorkshire Wolds The Early Neolithic structures of the Yorkshire Wolds include Long Barrows, mortuary enclosures and Cursus monuments. The Long Barrows consist of unchambered mounds between two parallel ditches from which the mound material was extracted. Whilst they are normally orientated East-West the larger example (TA075677) at Rudston is SE-NW. The second Rudston Long Barrow (TA077675) is evidenced by a pair of short linear ditches 200m to south of the above Long Barrow. The eastern ends of the Long Barrows at Rudston are slightly wider. Excavation at a number of sites suggests that many Long Barrows were converted to Round Barrows - thus many more may yet be discerned.
(Manby, 1988; Manby et al, 2003; Stoertz, 1997)

Excavations of some Long Barrows in the Wolds indicate timber-built mortuary structures beneath them. A number of elongated and rectilinear structures, identified
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Neolithic Landscape of Rudston

Copyright: P.A.Clark, 2004

through aerial photographic evidence, have been tentatively interpreted as such mortuary enclosures. (Manby et al, 2003; Stoertz, 1997) Kinnes sees the Yorkshire pre-mound structures as, Forecourt-Chamber-Mortuary, rather than the southern form of, Forestructure-Facade-Chamber or Facade-Mortuary-Chamber.
(Manby et al, 2003)

No causewayed enclosures have been securely recognised in this region. In their place cursus monuments abound - in particular around Rudston.

Early Neolithic Landscape of Rudston The Neolithic modification of the Rudston landscape appears to have started with the construction of the two Long Barrows on the horizon just over 2km directly west of the spur where the Rudston Monument now stands. We have no way of knowing when this, the largest standing stone remaining in England, was erected. However, it is felt by many to have been during the Neolithic. Whether the stone was raised as the focus for the ritual transformation of the landscape around it or whether it was raised to emphasise the ritual significance of this spur is open to question. Nevertheless, it would not be surprising if the dramatic 90o eastward turn of the Gypsey Race had long been a focus for reverence and awe prior to the Neolithic. This striking change of course in the Great Wolds Valley forms a natural amphitheatre with the spur as its focus.

The Yorkshire Wolds are bereft of permanent free-flowing water supplies apart from the Gypsey Race. Due to modern demands on the water table, the Race hardly flows much above Rudston. However, in historical times its flow was ample enough to power watermills. (Manby et al, 2003) The name Gypsey [the "g" is hard as in "give"] is thought to derive from the Norse word "gypa", signifying a whirlpool or sudden rush of waters. Even today locals remember prophetic power being attributed to periods when the Gypsey ran - Drayton and Defoe in the 18th century noted that the Gypsey prophesied plague. In the 19th century the young people of Bishop Burton would still go out to "meet the Gypsey". (Bulmer, 1892) It is likely the Gypsey Race has inspired awe and been imbued with ancient power and mystique since the Mesolithic.

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Neolithic Landscape of Rudston

Copyright: P.A.Clark, 2004

A unique cluster of four, possibly five, cursii were built around Rudston with their focus being the eastward turn in the Gypsey Race.
Rudston cursii and Long Barrows in relation to Gypsey Race - after Riley 1988 & Stoertz 1997

A relative chronology for three of these cursii can be suggested based on their physical relationships. Cursus A seems to be the earliest, with "C" being built next, followed by ""D" - although Kinnes suggests these last two were contemporaneous. (Kinnes,
1984; Manby, 2003) Cursus A has a

unique dog-leg shape extending northward from Woldgate, to the south of Rudston, running down the slope passing west of the village it crosses the Gypsey Race at a right angle, terminating to the north at Bridlington Gate. Cursus C runs from the west passing north of Rudston crossing the Race at right angles. It intersects "D" through breaks in the ditches of that cursus and terminates as it meets the edge of "A". Cursus D is the longest, at 3.7km. It runs directly south, paralleling the Race from its southward turn east of Burton Fleming. Cursus B approaches Rudston from the Southwest, its full length and terminus have still to be determined. Stoertz has identified what she feels may be a fifth, smaller cursus-like feature just south of the village and running in a North-Easterly direction.
(Chapman, 2003; Manby, 2003; Stoertz, 1997) None of these cursii aligns directly with

the standing stone; rather they seem to form a boundary around the spur on which it stands. The main foci and raison d'etre seeming to be this portion of the Gypsey Race and the springs rising nearby. Barclay & Bayliss have assessed the radiocarbon evidence for five cursii and assigned their construction to the second half of the fourth millennium cal. BCE.
(Barclay et al, 1999) Excavations at Pits Plantation, south of Rudston, on cursus A's

ditches suggest an Early Neolithic date for a re-cut of the eastern ditch. A pit cut through the secondary sand-fill of this re-cut contained nothing other than a carefully placed single Ogival arrowhead in pristine condition. This arrowhead was so delicate it could never have been used and its careful positioning certainly suggests ritual

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Neolithic Landscape of Rudston

Copyright: P.A.Clark, 2004

deposition. Manby associates Ogival arrowheads with Towthorpe-style pottery from the early to middle Neolithic. (Abramson, 2001; Manby 1988) Such evidence takes the beginnings of cursus construction much earlier than had been previously suspected. The unique dog-leg course of "A" has been used by Chapman to investigate the relationship between its form and function. He looks at two possible explanations: i.e. following the easiest route and a need to maintain links with the surrounding ritual landscape. Using GIS techniques of "cost-surface analysis" and "cumulative viewshed analysis" he convincingly hypothesises "A's" route was determined by a need to constantly view the western horizon, with its two prominent Long Barrows, along its entire length. (Chapman, 2003) Thus, as with the Dorset Cursus, it would seem Cursus A makes very little sense except to someone inside it. In fact cursii, despite their size, would not have been the most visible elements in a landscape.
(Barret et al, 1991) This supports the notion of their liminality. The overall route and

viewshed of Cursus A would seem to confirm the status of the representative dead as part of the unchanging world. This landscape had probably been viewed with awe since the Mesolithic. Its Neolithic modification probably begins with the construction of two Long Barrows overlooking - and clearly visible from - the miraculous right-angle bend of the Gypsey Race and the spur above it. (Dymond, 1966) The inclusion of these barrows into the landscape may have been seen as confirming the sanctity of this area by the presence of representative ancestors. Cursus A may have been built in an attempt to explain to emerging generations the significance of this awesome place. It was carefully constructed to ensure that all along its length the western horizon containing the Long Barrows was visible. Other cursii followed, further sanctifying and explaining this holy place. Discussion Bradley suggests building monuments impacts people's consciousness firstly by creating a sense of place. Secondly, he suggests that these monuments longevity implies a change of meaning is possible from one period to another. These points suggest that the very building and operation of monuments involves and creates "a subtle change in perceptions of place" and brings about a new sense of time.
(Bradley, 1993)

The setting aside of a large and potentially very productive area of land for ritual purposes implies an imperative that was overwhelming in nature. It is a sanctification which seems to continue on into the Bronze Age. This is evidenced not just by the

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Neolithic Landscape of Rudston

Copyright: P.A.Clark, 2004

placing of barrows but also by the seeming existence of a Bronze Age lithic exclusion zone near the cursii. However, they had no compunction in using them for burial.
(Abramson, 2001)

Conclusion It is all too easy to view the construction of such landscapes with our modern understanding of labour. For many pre-modern societies the concepts of work and non-work are irrelevant. According to Thompson the necessities of a task determined how hard people worked and when. (Haralambos, 2000) If such was the case in the Neolithic we can see these constructions possessing a high degree of necessity within their societies. The very existence of these ritual landscapes and the monuments within them suggests the societies building them were prepared to invest large amounts of time and energy on "work" that gave no direct return in terms of food and shelter. Alternatively, it may suggest a culture which could only envisage security if such propitiation was carried out. Bradley points out that an intensification of food production is required to meet the needs of ritual. (Bradley, 1993) This would suggest a society that could produce sufficient surplus to free up such time and effort. Society would also have to be stable enough for a sufficient period of time to accomplish such feats. Additionally, people over a wide area must have shared common values and world-views to agree that these monuments served a common purpose. They would have needed an adequate degree of "political" agreement or structure to coordinate such efforts. Such agreement or structure would have needed to be capable of community decision-making over a wide number of territorial groups. The lack of any recognised early settlement evidence suggests agreement to set aside this wide area of prime land. We also need to appreciate that the process of construction and the very existence of these monuments itself brings about irreversible changes in consciousness and society. Various later monumental structures, such as Maiden's Grave and numerous barrows, would seemingly gain additional status by their erection within this landscape. It may then be hypothesised that it was this very process of landscape modification that paved the way for the more structured political entities evident in East Yorkshires Bronze Age. End

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Bibliography Abramson, P, with Chapman,H., Ellis, S., Makey, P. & Manby, T., 2001 Excavations at Pits Plantation, Rudston in East Riding Archaeologist vol. 10, East Riding Archaeological Society, Hull. Barclay, A. & Bayliss, A., 1999 Cursus Monuments & the Radiocarbon Problem in Barclay, A. & Harding, J. Pathways & Ceremonies: the Cursus Monuments of Britain & Ireland Neolithic Studies Group Seminar Papers 4, Oxbow Books, Oxford. Barret, J., Bradley, R. & Green, M. 1991 Landscapes, Monuments & Society Cambridge UP. Bellaby, P. 1999 The Life Course in Gubbay et al, 1999 Bowden, M. (ed) 1999, Unravelling The Landscape Tempus Publishing Ltd., Brimscombe Port Stroud. Bradley, R., 1984 The Social Foundations of Britain Longman, London. Bradley, R. 1993 Altering the Earth Monographs of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Edinburgh, available on http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/library/psas/monograph08.cfm accessed 2/03/04. Buckley, D., Hedges, J. & Brown, N. Excavations at a Neolithic Cursus, Springfield, Essex, 1979-85 in Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society The Prehistoric Society, London. Bulmer, T., 1892 History, topography, and directory of East Yorkshire (with Hull) Imprint Preston: T.Bulmer & Co. Chapman, H., 2003 Rudston Cursus A - Engaging with a Neolithic landscape in its landscape setting using GIS in Oxford Journal of Archaeology vol. 22:4, p.345-356 Dymond, D., 1966 Ritual Monuments at Rudston, E. Yorkshire, England in Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society The Prehistoric Society, London. Gubbay, J., Middleton, C. & Ballard, C. 1997 The Student's Companion to Sociology Blackwell, Oxford. Giddens, A., 2001 Sociology Blackwell, Oxford. Grant, J., Gorin, S., & Fleming, N., 2002 The Archaeology Coursebook Routledge, London. Haigh, M. 2004 The Gypsey Race and the Great Wolds Valley Sacred Landscape available on http:www.northernearth.co.uk/perm/gypsey.htm accessed 29/02/04

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Haralambos, M., Holbourn, M. & Heald, R., 2000 Sociology, Themes & Perspectives Harper Collins, London. Hinchcliffe, J. & Schadla-Hall (eds) 1980 The Past Under the Plough Directorate of Ancient Monuments & Historical Buildings, Occasional Paper 3, London. Hunter, J. & Ralston, I. (eds), 1999 The Archaeology of Britain Routledge, London. Kinnes, I. 1984 Prhistoric Sites in the Great Wold Valley in The Archaeological Journal vol.141 Royal Archaeological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, London. Loughlin, N. & Miller, K., 1979 A Survey of Archaeological Sites in Humberside Humberside Joint Archaeological Committee, Hull. Manby, T., 1970 Long Barrows of Northern England: Structural & Dating Evidence in Scottish Archaeological Forum Volume 2, p.1-26, Glasgow. Manby, T. 1980 The Yorkshire Wolds: Field Monuments & Arable Farming in Hinchcliffe et al 1980 p.61-69 Manby, T. (ed), 1988 Archaeology in Eastern Yorkshire University of Sheffield. Manby, T., Moorhouse, S. & Ottaway, P. (eds), 2003 The Archaeology of Yorkshire - An assesment at the beginning of the 21st century Yorkshire Archaeological Society Occasional Paper No. 3, YAS, Leeds. Renfrew, C., 1973 Before Civilisation Jonathon Cape, London. Stoertz, C., 1997 Ancient Landscapes of the Yorkshire Wolds RCHME, Swindon.

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