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Evidence of Scotland's earliest human populations found on Skye

Evidence of Scotland's earliest human populations found on Skye

Daily Record29-04-2025
Proof of one of the earliest human settlements in Scotland has been discovered. Tools and stone circles were among the discoveries made in one of the country's most iconic locations. Archaeologists and researchers made the discoveries on the Isle of Skye . The team was headed by Karen Hardy, Professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of Glasgow. The stone tools discovered have been dated to a period known as the Late Upper Palaeolithic era. This puts them at around between 11,000 and 11,500 years of age . The wider implications of the discoveries have been examined in detail. Highly detailed maps of local glacier formations were used to investigate an unusual group of stone circular structures that appear to lie underneath modern sea level. These sites were found by Professor Hardy and local archaeologist Martin Wildgoose. Their pair's discovery means that the west coast now features the biggest concentration of evidence for these pioneer human populations anywhere in Scotland, as well as revealing that early humans ventured significantly further north than previously thought. Professor Karen Hardy commented: "This is a hugely significant discovery which offers a new perspective on the earliest human occupation yet known, of north-west Scotland." The team included representatives from the universities of Leeds, Sheffield, Leeds Beckett, and Flinders in Australia. Together, they worked together to reconstruct the local landscape and changing sea levels. This period immediately followed the Younger Dryas—also known as the Loch Lomond Stadial. Much of west Scotland was buried under ice, with groups of nomadic hunter-gatherers most likely of the Ahrensburgian culture from northern Europe, crossed Doggerland—an area that is now covered by the North Sea—and established themselves on Skye. Back then, the landscape of Scotland would have looked very different to today. Professor Hardy added: "The journey made by these pioneering people who left their lowland territories in mainland Europe to travel northwards into the unknown, is the ultimate adventure story. "As they journeyed northwards, most likely following animal herds, they eventually reached Scotland, where the western landscape was dramatically changing as glaciers melted and the land rebounded as it recovered from the weight of the ice. "A good example of the volatility they would have encountered can be found in Glen Roy, where the world-famous Parallel Roads provide physical testament to the huge landscape changes and cataclysmic floods that they would have encountered, as they travelled across Scotland." Upon reaching Skye, the early people created tools from stone they found locally. According to Professor Hardy, the settlers purposefully and strategically decided where to base themselves as they chose a location that had good access to coastal and riverine resources—as well as natural materials such as ochre that were highly valued by ancient cultures. The discoveries have been announced in a paper published in The Journal of Quaternary Science. The paper is titled 'At the far end of everything: A likely Ahrensburgian presence in the far north of the Isle of Skye, Scotland'. The paper concludes by stating: "While the number of Ahrensburgian findspots is low, they are spread widely across Scotland, including from the islands of Tiree, Orkney, and Islay, that also imply significant sea journeys, suggesting a larger population than the number of finds might imply. "To date, all Late Upper Palaeolithic sites in Scotland have been discovered by chance, and there is insufficient evidence to address further questions regarding their adaptations and lifestyles. "By reconstructing the geographical limitations imposed by ice sheet evolution, changes in Relative Sea Level and river courses, it may be possible to focus on other likely locations—both onshore and offshore—and begin to uncover more evidence." The paper continues: "Recovering evidence for a LUP presence in Scotland presents challenges unmatched in continental Europe. However, despite being distant from its central area, the evidence from Skye reflects an Ahrensburgian presence at the extreme north- west continental limit, extending their distribution. "The people who made these artefacts originated in the mainland of northwest Europe, crossed Doggerland into what is now Britain, and eventually reached the far north of the Isle of Skye. "Here, they adapted to live in a fragmented, fluctuating, and volatile environment amid melting glaciers, mountains, and oceans – vastly different from the low-lying environments of their homelands on the northwestern edge of the Great European Plain." The sites themselves cannot be visited. However, the landscape these early pioneers encountered can be imagined at Sconser. Approximately 11,000 years ago, following the melting of the last of the Cuillin Mountain glaciers, the sea level would still be lower than today. It would have even been possible to walk to the island of Raasay.
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