Rock Crystal Reduction at the Early Neolithic site of Dorstone Hill, Herefordshire, and its wider British and European con

Resumen

Assemblages of worked rock crystal (pure hyaline quartz) in British and Irish prehistoric contexts are scarce. As a result, the published record contains little in the way of detailed accounts of the technological process and reduction strategies for this material, in contrast to a number of sites in continental Europe. This paper presents the analysis of a new assemblage of rock crystal from Dorstone Hill, Herefordshire, dating to the Early Neolithic. This analysis focuses primarily on the methods of crystal reduction, and identifies a systematic approach to it that demonstrates that Neolithic knappers at this site had an inherent understanding of the specific material characteristics of rock crystal. However, comparison of the reduction strategy employed at Dorstone Hill with European materials demonstrates that rock crystal can be worked in a number of different ways, and that the sequence at Dorstone represents an approach that was not just dictated by the material properties. Furthermore, the absence of utilised pieces or formal tools made from rock crystal, leads us to suggest that the act of working the exotic material was significant, as opposed to its tool-making potential. We conclude by outlining future avenues for British and Irish rock crystal research, and reinforce the importance of technological analysis of rarer and lesser published materials