ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that the very structure of megalithic space – space which limits the actor's choice of movement through enclosure or boundedness – may guide understanding and interpretation of the monument in certain directions, and may thereby lead to the constitution of certain forms of subjectivity and epistemic mode. Correlations between decorative motif and passage grave space may also be a significant dimension of the experiential encounter with monumental space. The buckler motif is the only symbol to be preferentially located within passages. It has often been suggested that the buckler motif – if it is at all representational – may illustrate an anthropomorphic figure. The axe motifs etched onto passage grave slabs are strongly reminiscent of the polished axes first seen in circulation during the Neolithic.
