The material culture of long-distance connections: the lithic evidence from Neolithic Orkney

Orkney, in the far north of Scotland, is often portrayed as a distant and remote place, separated from mainland Britain by a treacherous stretch of water. Yet in the Neolithic it was home to a thriving and well-connected community.This paper explores the material culture that bears witness to these long-distance and examines what the distribution of these artefacts in Orkney can tell us about the role the Stenness- Brodgar monument complex and how the community within it created and maintained these connections. It is argued that distinct concentration of imported artefacts found in the Stenness-Brodgar monument complex indicates that this area was the final destination of many long-distance journeys.