British Neolithic Rock Art in its Landscape

Studing the relationship of rock art to its landscape context can contribute to a better understanding of how it was used. This paper discusses the methods of the study of open-air rock art, using as a case study the Neolithic rock art from the county of Northumberland (northern England). A GIS analysis is employed with three primary objectives: to create a systematic and objective description of the landscape in which these rock art sites are located, to identify trends and recurrences in the location of rock art sites in relation to distinctive landscape features, and to explore the association of rock art sites with other components of the landscape in terms of intervisibility and movement. Preliminary results of this analysis indicate that variables such as relative elevation and slope were significant in the placement of rock art in Northumberland, and rock art panels appear to have been located to maximize visibility from natural routes of movement between uplands and lowlands.