San Antonio College Library

Like all human activities, ritual customs, intended to gain advantage or avert disaster by supernatural means, have left their mark on the archaeological record. Yet archaeologists are often reluctant to recognize evidence of behavior that has no obvious material purpose. Even where they realize that something unusual has occurred, they will put forward every other possible explanation in terms of accident or functional utility, however improbable....

"Archaeologist Aubrey Burl, for more than thirty years a specialist in the study of stone circles, selects a dozen attractive and evocative rings for close examination. Each of the twelve sites illuminates a particular archaeological question - the purpose of stone circles, their construction, age, distribution, design, art, legend and relation to astronomy."--Jacket.

Traces the history of the Anglo-Saxon civilization in England from the 5th to the 11th centuries as revealed by archaeologists' excavations and laboratory tests.

"The majority of papers at the conference and in this volume focus on the cathedral, aspects of its architectural development, the wonderful east window and its stained glass, the fine medieval woodwork and extraordinary paintings on the backs of the choir stalls and the ceiling of the Prior's Tower. The castle and other important churches and monastic sites in Cumbria are also examined, together with the Bishop's residence at Rose Castle, and an...