Motorways of Prehistory? Boats, Rivers and Moving in Mesolithic Ireland

Abstract: This article presents a critical review of the way inland navigation is constructed in the archaeological literature as an essential component of mobility in Mesolithic Ireland, with a particular focus on boats and rivers. Against a scarce background of direct archaeological and environmental evidence, a content analysis of the academic discourse highlights a dominant processual approach structured around three themes: seafaring and pioneering “events”; boat technology and performance; broad generalisations about the land- and waterscape. It is argued that such a narrative could be usefully revisited by adopting a small-scale, high-resolution approach that would explore human and material agency and integrate analogy as a method.

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Motorways of Prehistory? Boats, Rivers and Moving in Mesolithic Ireland ; volume:9 ; number:1 ; year:2023 ; extent:9 ; Open archaeology ; 9, Heft 1 (2023) (gesamt 9)

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Moucheron, Martin

Further information

• DOI: 10.1515/opar-2022-0305
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-2023071514192521709237
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 14.08.2025, 11:00 AM CEST