ABSTRACT
At this point the waters of the Colne River ran through a wide floodplain, cutting a gravelly route due south towards its confluence with the mighty Thames barely 15 km downstream. The lower slopes leading to the river allowed access to the waters, to the flint and chert nodules glinting in its shallows that sufficed for knapping, and to fording points that could be used to trap fish and disadvantage prey in the hunt. The patchy stands of pine trees provided wood for fuel and for replenishing the hafts and shafts of tools and weapons. After several months of snow the region was greening up; although it was still cold, reindeer were passing through in number on the way to their spring calving grounds and, here and there, small herds of wild horse grazed on the grassy tundra. From the high ground above this place their numbers could be seen for a great distance across the floodplain and their movements studied. The familiar path of the Thames and Colne – preserved as folk knowledge despite infrequent visits to this edge of the world – had guided these people here.
