Abstractions Based on Circles: Papers on prehistoric rock art presented to Stan Beckensall on his 90th birthday

Stan Beckensall is renowned for his work, done on an entirely amateur basis, discovering, recording and interpreting Atlantic rock art in his home county of Northumberland and beyond. Presented on his 90th birthday, this diverse and stimulating collection of papers celebrates his crucial contribution to rock art studies, and looks to

Presented to Stan Beckensall on his 90th birthday, this diverse and stimulating collection of papers celebrates his crucial contribution to rock art studies, and also looks to the future. It should be of value to students of prehistoric Britain and Ireland, and anyone with an interest in rock art, for many decades to come. Stan has done a phenomenal amount of work over recent decades, on an entirely amateur basis, discovering, recording and interpreting Atlantic rock art (‘cup-and-ring marks’) in his home county of Northumberland and elsewhere. Much of this work was done in the 1970s and 1980s when the subject, now increasingly regarded as mainstream within Neolithic studies, was largely shunned by professional archaeologists. Anyone with an interest in rock art is greatly indebted to Stan, not only for his work and his wisdom, so graciously shared, but also, as the contributors to this volume make clear, for the inspiration he has provided, and continues to provide, for work undertaken by others.

Introduction - Paul Frodsham and Kate Sharpe 1. An apt response? Encounters with cup marks and 'found rock art' in Cumbria - Kate Sharpe 2. Identifying changing ideologies: rock art on and around Neolithic burial monuments in Wales - George H. Nash 3. Recognising Irish rock art: the people behind recent discoveries in Ireland - Aoibheann Lambe 4. Digging into the Ronald Morris archive: a Kilmartin Glen case-study - Kenny Brophy 5. Close encounters: visibility and accessibility of Atlantic rock art in Scotland - Tertia Barnett, Joana Valdez-Tullett and Linda Marie Bjerketvedt 6. Experiencing Achnabreck: a rock art site in Kilmartin Glen, Scotland - Aaron Watson 7. Solar panels - Richard Bradley 8. Cup-marked stones in Bronze Age cairns. Excavations on Fawdon Hill (Redesdale) and other sites in north-east England - Richard Carlton 9. Blawearie: a cairnfield excavation in a rock art landscape - Iain Hewitt and Irene Hewitt 10. The strange story of the Swastika Stone on Ilkley Moor - Keith Boughey 11. Emblems of eternity? Cup-and-ring marks: context and connotation - Paul Frodsham 12. Some thoughts on future fieldwork at open-air rock art sites - Clive Waddington 13. 'The site chose me' - carved rocks and so much more - Aron Mazel 14. The Lord of the Rings - Paul G. Bahn 15. An inspiration for community archaeology volunteers - Phil Bowyer and Andy Curtis A Beckensall bibliography, Introduction – Paul Frodsham and Kate Sharpe 1. An apt response? Encounters with cup marks and ‘found rock art’ in Cumbria – Kate Sharpe 2. Identifying changing ideologies: rock art on and around Neolithic burial monuments in Wales – George H. Nash 3. Recognising Irish rock art: the people behind recent discoveries in Ireland – Aoibheann Lambe 4. Digging into the Ronald Morris archive: a Kilmartin Glen case-study – Kenny Brophy 5. Close encounters: visibility and accessibility of Atlantic rock art in Scotland – Tertia Barnett, Joana Valdez-Tullett and Linda Marie Bjerketvedt 6. Experiencing Achnabreck: a rock art site in Kilmartin Glen, Scotland – Aaron Watson 7. Solar panels – Richard Bradley 8. Cup-marked stones in Bronze Age cairns. Excavations on Fawdon Hill (Redesdale) and other sites in north-east England – Richard Carlton 9. Blawearie: a cairnfield excavation in a rock art landscape – Iain Hewitt and Irene Hewitt 10. The strange story of the Swastika Stone on Ilkley Moor – Keith Boughey 11. Emblems of eternity? Cup-and-ring marks: context and connotation – Paul Frodsham 12. Some thoughts on future fieldwork at open-air rock art sites – Clive Waddington 13. ‘The site chose me’ - carved rocks and so much more – Aron Mazel 14. The Lord of the Rings – Paul G. Bahn 15. An inspiration for community archaeology volunteers – Phil Bowyer and Andy Curtis A Beckensall bibliography