ABSTRACT
As an archaeologist the period I have always been particularly interested in is what is known as the Neolithic. For the archaeologist the word ‘Neolithic’ conjures up a range of varied associations. In calendrical time terms it refers to the period in Ireland between 4000 and 2500 BC, but extending over 2,000 years earlier in parts of Europe. It is when we see the beginnings of agriculture, but also the continuity of foraging. This was when the first major human intervention into the then densely wooded Irish landscape was made. The archaeological record indicates a complex set of religious beliefs, including the construction of a range of ceremonial monuments. These monuments occur alongside evidence of the dominance of routine lives. It would seem that people had a great concern with the dead and the ancestors, matched with and perhaps reflecting the lived reality that most people could not expect to live past their early 30s. These are just a few of the images that the word ‘Neolithic’ conveys to archaeologists working with the evidence from this period. Indeed the definition of what the term means is still a matter of considerable debate.
