Neolithic stonework discovered on Orkney
August 5th, 2010 - 5:48 pm ICT by ANILondon, August 5 (ANI): Archaeologists discovered the first evidence in the UK of stonework painted with a pattern, suggesting Neolithic people enjoyed decorating.
The painted and decorated stones may have been used to enhance important buildings and may have been found in entranceways or areas of the building, which had particular significance.
The structure is a stone with a zigzag chevron pattern in red pigment.
“The use of colour in this particular way was always suspected but this is the first concrete evidence we have of it,” The Scotsman quoted Nick Card, of the Orkney Research Centre for Archaeology, as saying.
The paint seems to have been made from hermatite mixed with animal fat and perhaps milk or egg.
“We’ve always suspected colours was a part of their world.
“This is adding to the dimension of the Neolithic that many archaeologists would have thought but there was no real evidence for,” Card added. (ANI)
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Tags: archaeologists, archaeology, chevron, chevron pattern, concrete evidence, egg, first evidence, hermatite, london, neolithic people, orkney, paint, pigment, scotsman, stonework, zigzag