Early medieval cremation burials in Atlantic northern Britain

This discussion outlines the evidence for cremation burials in Atlantic northern Britain, c. 400–1100 CE. It works through the variety of evidence (absolute dating, artefacts, stratigraphy) and touches on the issues associated with each, before moving onto topics such as the selection and deposition of cremated human remains, monument reuse, and the role of trans- and interdisciplinary research. The evidence is more extensive than usually realised, representing a significant portion of the overall dated cremation burials in northern Britain across all periods, demonstrating that what is often regarded as a Bronze Age practice continued down to the end of the first millennium CE. This, in turn raises questions regarding the use of cremation evidence alone to identify intrusive practices associated with settlement from Scandinavia or from among the Scandinavian diaspora in the period c. 800–1000 CE.