Scenes from Prehistoric Life: From the Ice Age to the Coming of the Romans

by Francis Pryor

An invigorating journey through Britain's prehistoric landscape, and an insight into the lives of its inhabitants. 'Highly compelling' Spectator, Books of the Year 'An evocative foray into the prehistoric past' BBC Countryfile Magazine 'Vividly relating what life was like in pre-Roman Britain' Choice Magazine 'Makes life in Britain BC often sound rather more appealing than the frenetic and anxious 21st century!' Daily MailIn Scenes from Prehistoric Life, the distinguished archaeologist Francis Pryor paints a vivid picture of British and Irish prehistory, from the Old Stone Age (about one million years ago) to the arrival of the Romans in AD 43, in a sequence of fifteen profiles of ancient landscapes. Whether writing about the early human family who trod the estuarine muds of Happisburgh in Norfolk c.900,000 BC, the craftsmen who built a wooden trackway in the Somerset Levels early in the fourth millennium BC, or the Iron Age denizens of Britain's first towns, Pryor uses excavations and surveys to uncover the daily routines of our ancient ancestors. By revealing how our prehistoric forebears coped with both simple practical problems and more existential challenges, Francis Pryor offers remarkable insights into the long and unrecorded centuries of our early history, and a convincing, well-attested and movingly human portrait of prehistoric life as it was really lived.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Prehistory, Anthropology, Archaeology, British Literature, Science

361 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 5, 2021

About the author

Francis Manning Marlborough Pryor MBE (born 13 January 1945) is a British archaeologist who is famous for his role in the discovery of Flag Fen, a Bronze Age archaeological site near Peterborough, and for his frequent appearances on the Channel 4 television series Time Team.

He has now retired from full-time field archaeology, but still appears on television and writes books as well as being a working farmer. His specialities are in the Bronze and Iron Ages.

His first novel, Lifers’ Club, is due to be published in 2014.

Reviews

[Ian]

DNF at 35%. I just couldn’t get along with this book. During the last chapter that I read, I found myself starting to skim. It’s time to give up when that happens. I must acknowledge though, that at the time of writing, the book had an average GR rating of 4.25. My opinion is therefore a minority one.

I don’t DNF a lot of books. I think that, deep down, I regard not finishing a book as some sort of moral failing on my part. Also, over the years my pre-selection has got better, and I generally know the type of book I am going to like. I thought this one would be perfect for me, but I found it really heavy going and wasn’t getting the sense I was learning a great deal.

The book’s chapters look at various archaeological sites in the UK, from different periods of pre-history, with the idea of letting the archaeology tell us about the lives of the inhabitants. It sounded great, but personally I didn’t feel any the wiser after the first few chapters. The book has a strong emphasis on the spiritual life of our ancestors. I don’t doubt that was important, but it seemed to feature to the exclusion of everything else.

Maybe the later chapters feature sites where there was better evidence for drawing conclusions, but I just didn’t get that far…

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whoops, it looks like I’m in the minority again! I’ll try to be diplomatic.

Over recent months, I’ve developed a bit of an addiction to Digging for Britain, particularly for its prehistoric elements. (I know, hot girl summer!) Perhaps that explains why I was drawn to Scenes From Prehistoric Life. ‘Scenes’ seems like an apt title for this one: there does not seem to be any continuity between the disparate episodes. Pryor’s argument/train of thought meanders without any true objective, to such an extent I sometimes found myself wondering what point it was he was actually trying to make in each chapter. The paragraph order lacked coherence, giving the book a rather staccato feel.

Besides from lacking direction, I just found this a little… dry. It’s not exactly a thrilling personal narrative, although Pryor is at pains to inject anecdotes that only serve to make the book a tad self-absorbed; when I was a student at Cambridge etc. etc. Again, I found my interest waning during these interludes. Sadly, I threw in the towel at the halfway mark.

If this is something that appeals to you, I would highly recommend Professor Alice Roberts’s Ancestors which, in essence, has much the same objective (relating prehistory, although through burials as opposed to ‘scenes’) but does so in a more engaging manner, with a significantly deeper pathos and nuance.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging stroll through prehistoric Britain, focusing on scenes - based on particular landscapes and archaeological sites - of everyday life from roughly a million years ago through to the Roman conquest. Although the book covers many of the well-known finds, it approaches the telling of them in a different way by painting a fuller picture that is akin to the sort of 'feel' one has when undertaking fieldwork. Pryor attempts to make each scene immersive and accessible by relating it to the fundamentals of humanity - aspects we would recognize like preparing meals, enjoying social and family gatherings, or travelling. In writing this way, we also naturally get to hear about scenes from Pryor's own past, his experience of farming and living a more rural way of life, the digs he's been on and how he's reacted to them. Some might perhaps complain that this is too self-absorbed, but Pryor's point is to make the prehistoric past relatable, and to show the similarities between us and our ancestors rather than focusing on the differences. And he does this remarkably well. Although the cynical might occasionally roll their eyes over the basic optimism he has in the human condition, Pryor has written a book that is gentle yet informative, full of nostalgia but also hope for the future.

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recommend reading this science book about excavations and reconstructions of prehistoric life, over several evenings, to let each chapter or scene stand alone. The author, an archaeologist, explains throughout how his own farming, sheep-herding, chats with modern carpenters building his house, sailing on a reconstructed prehistoric wood boat, etc. enlightened his world views.

We are also shown how archaeology is carried out with difficulty at times; as permits are not available, until a factory or shopping centre is about to be built, at which point there is a scramble to find any artefacts and traces. Crop marks, which are outlines of former dwellings and fortifications buried beneath the soil, show up at different times of year. They are spotted from the air. Geophys, which sounds out the structures without disturbing them, may then be used. Major monuments like Stonehenge, Woodhenge and hilltop ring forts each get a chapter.

The author wrote this largely during lockdown, while surrounded by some of the scenery that would have gladdened the eyes of Bronze Age and Iron Age farmers and herders. He demonstrates that small communities were linked well by roads and tracks across the islands. The demarcations we know now, Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, were established by scientists in Denmark who needed a structure for their museum collections of items. But the vast majority of artefacts found preserved in the wet fenland were made of wood. It's good to state these points, because many readers have not been trained in archaeology and don't know the background of the science. At the same time, we are told that those studying Roman Britain are often from a different branch of scholarship, which may be more literature based.

Notes P 306, Index P 327 - 338 in my hardback. There are good photos, I would have liked more, but we can look online. Great use of the lockdown. This is an unbiased review.

[Graham Mott · Rating 4 out of 5]

An very interesting book about life in prehistoric Britain but not entirely convinced that it was all everyone living in harmony with each other and nature. I think more recent history suggests that as soon as there is something to fight for, resources, land, produce and people settle down then fairly perpetual and brutal warfare is the result.

Not so sure why prehistoric man should have any more regard for his environment than anyone since and not simply used up anything they had the technology and resources to do so. The disappearance or megafauna like mammoths and giant sloths and even Neanderthal man being cases in point.

[Natalia Hartford · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book I also read in preparation for a weekend course on Neolithic monuments and the landscapes they find themselves in. Though I thought the first half of this book quite interesting, while reading the second half of the book I frequently caught myself thinking "this is a bit repetitive" and "there is the Time Team again". This book has been at least partially been written during covid lockdowns, perhaps this isolation has had an effect on writing this book.

[Stewart Monckton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book - but the author does mention 'ritual' so often it is in danger of become a cliché.

SM

[Adam Deedman · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy read, with some great storytelling to bring to life a part of our history which seems so distant!

[Ondřej Plachý · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just randomly stumbled upon this book and decided to give it a go. I really enjoyed parts where author tried to reconstruct prehistoric life with items, structures, landscapes. This was the strongest point. I especially enjoyed his explanation why Stonehenge was not build in efficient way but rather by ritualising the whole process of moving the stones to the site as a form of religious ritual of sorts.

There are two weak points from my perspective - no maps. Sorry I'm not from UK and him randomly giving names and examples doesn't help. I also don't want to read with laptop and google maps constantly on (you know how it works you have laptop in front of you and in 5 mins you are not reading but going through social media).

Second weak point - too much personal stuff. He is probably well known in UK, but again I have zero knowledge of his life, work etc. So too much of that for me.

But the core of the book is really solid and I might read something else from him!

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Another fascinating read from Francis Pryor. I've been working slowly through this book, enjoying the slight side- tracks and byways, as the author thinks on about an allied or occasionally a related but different topic. You're rarely disappointed. Thanks indeed for the recommendation of Alfred Enderby's fish from Grimsby...I've found a local stockist and will definitely try it out....

Fish...in a book on archaeology? Why not?

Standing in a hut circle on Dartmoor, many years ago, I was thinking about how these people lived, what they ate and how they lived and that has stayed with me for all the years in between, so Francis Pryor's books have happily taken me to places other than the explanations given at school in the 1950's and 1960's. I've enjoyed all his books!

So, thanks Francis Pryor! Hope you got through lockdowns many and various.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

We tend to think that people in the past judged everything from a practical perspective: were certain changes going to benefit the occurrence of wild game, or the growth of cereal crops? But in reality, they would also have had an emotional response to any changes that were happening around them. [loc. 638]

Fifteen 'scenes', beginning half a million years ago (Boxgrove, Happisburgh) and concluding with snapshots of life in Roman Britain: they're not so much scenes from prehistoric life -- though there's quite a bit of informed speculation -- as scenes from an archaeologist's life, rich with anecdote and simile. I enjoy Pryor's writing (for instance, in Britain BC) and found the subjective, discursive flavour of these essays rather engaging. Pryor is at pains to point out that the inhabitants of prehistoric Britain were anatomically and neurologically the same as modern humans: that their lives were as complex and varied as our own, and that they were swayed by emotional as well as practical considerations.

I especially enjoyed the chapter on Seahenge, which contextualised the creation of the monument: at least 51 people worked on the timbers, judging by the distinct marks left by different axes. Pryor likens the cost of an axe around 2000 BC to the cost of a car around 2000 AD (a comparison I found compelling) and speculates that the larger axes were wielded by younger, stronger men, while smaller axes -- used for more precise work -- belonged to older, more experienced workers. Pulling together evidence from dendrochronology, axe-marks and the archaeological excavations at the site, Pryor depicts a ritual occurring in the spring of 2049 BC, and ties it to theories about wood representing life and stone (or, in north Norfolk, earth) representing death.

This probably isn't the best book to read about archaeological excavations, or the introduction of bronze, or neolithic burial customs: but it is a splendid book if you want to appreciate a lifetime's experience in archaeology, and a humane and compassionate perspective on those who left traces of their lives in the British landscape.

[Laurent Reinhardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought this in Edinburgh in early September and finally read it on BWI-MSP and MSP-SAN flights this week. Enjoyed it very much, both the prehistoric narrative that goes back 900,000 years in the UK and Ireland, as well as insights into what archaeologists and anthropologists do. Although not specifically about the period covered in the title, the following nicely summarizes the value of digging into the past to better understand where we came from.
"The two or three centuries that followed the withdrawal of the last Roman troops from Britain, in the years around 410 AD, have often been described as the Dark Ages - an inaccurate term that I detest, mainly because it suggests that the Romans brought light, which then vanished when they withdrew. . . .in the 1960s, at places like Mucking in Essex and elsewhere, archaeologists returned to the excavation of post-Roman sites, but at a much larger scale than had been possible previously; what they revealed was very different from the, by then, widely accepted view of an anarchic age of darkness. Their findings have been enhanced and confirmed by research in subsequent decades and we now see the the Post-Roman Anglo-Saxon period as an exciting time of change and innovation." p291

[mina-mae alexander · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5)
I loved how this book tended to focus on the mundane parts of ancient life like cooking in the bronze age, personal spirituality in the neolithic and just walking from place to place in the paleolithic. I spend a lot of time thinking about the stone age n prolly romanticising it as a form of escapism from late stage capitalism (lol) but anyway its these mundane things i wonder about most: what was daily life like for these people? This book answers this really well and in the best way, has left me with even more questions!! (It would be impossible to write comprehensivley in just one book!) Above all this book reveals how sophisticated these people were (not brandishing a stone club, hitting themselves on the head saying ugg) and describes aspects of their lives in a way thay feels so human. In the best buts if this book I found i was always thinking "yeah that makes sense i can see why they would have done that" or "hey i do that too!!"

In the latter half of the book Francis Pryor kinda goes down these personal anecdote tangents allllll the time. The thing is i feel like he started growing on me (call that character development??) so i never hated these tangents, although I feel like you would have to already be really into the stone age and archeology to not find this book boring at times. Pryor spent years excavating the fens and he is constaantly refering to this. I saw hes actually written another book about aancient life in the east anglian fens so i think i will have to read that at some point, im intrigued to read something more specific to a particular time frame and location.

I would recommend Ancestors by Alice Roberts to read first as i feel like that was more universally enjoyable but would still recommend this book as a follow up if you happened to get a bit obsessed with the stone age!!!!

Anyway thanks to mao i feel a but more inclined to write some slightly more comprehensive book reveiws! Need to go an review ancestors properly soon..

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mix of extreme detail and fanciful speculation, visiting twelve sites in (mostly) prehistoric Britain that begin with the first trace of hominids in the area of Europe that would become Britain once the ice retreated and continuing to the Roman days. I'm not familiar with British prehistoric sites in general, save for Stonehenge, so this was a nice -- if extremely detailed at times - tour of places that reveal how little we know. Pryor frequently urges the reader to understand how dramatically our understanding can shift with context, both physical- and knowledge base. For instance, an axe head buried under a preserved wooden trackway might seem like an accident -- but then other trackways also have hatchets underneath them, and we realize there is more meaning to be found here than we can know. Stonehenge is not an isolated site, for instance, but is surrounded by burrows, and understanding its story involves grasping how that landscape was used and what it mean to Britons thousands of years ago. This is not a light read, but if you like archaeology it should prove interesting.

[Dr Susan Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first of Pryor's books that I have read although I've seen him often on the BBC Time Team. His thoughts on the practice and history of archaeology in UK are interesting but with his stress on the humanity of the discipline rather than the science, I feel he musses something. Both should be combined. His examples are mostly in the east Fens, south and far north Scotland, whereas my hope to Learn about my own home areas in S Staffs and Shropshire are mussing. However, I was pleased to learn about updated work at Stonehenge and Maiden Castle, which I have visited as well as his work at Flag Fen where I went in the mid 2010s. I liked his timeline approach but again would have liked to see comparison with living cultures such as indigenous Australians when discussing e,g, Stone Age to later hunter gatherers. The photos in the paperback are poor whereas the line drawings, some by his wide Maisie Taylor a specialist on prehistoric wood, are good. Rather Pryor focused in the text and lacking a wider bibliography, but I suppose he is entitled to cite his own books.

[Matthew Romero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, it is somewhat waffly in its approach, and it is not especially academic. The frequent wandering tangents that Pryor engages in, providing some light to his backstory are unashamedly grumpy old man in their tone and the tying of modern day events to past triumphs and tragedies are tenuous at best. And yet this is an enjoyable, easy to understand and visualise trip through Britain's pre-historic past with plenty of diagrams and photos to important historic sites, where our earliest influences on the landscape can be felt and breathed.

Thanks to Mr Pryor, I am now well aware that our ancestors weren't a bunch of wicker man burning, pot stew munching troglodytes who could not read and couldn't build houses. I think he would call that mission accomplished.

An enjoyable, if somewhat unfocused 7/10.

[LJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars
This completely changed my view of prehistoric life. I found this book absolutely fascinating and very well written. I really liked the informal tone and relished the many different topics discussed. It is a perfect blend of archaeology, history and the study of cultures. I enjoyed it very much.

The only thing that I disliked was how autobiographical this got on numerous occasions. I understand that the author is well known in his field but I don't need to be reminded in every chapter that he was in Time Team, nor the many books and titles of them at every chance. It just felt a little off.

Otherwise, this was a great book and inspired me very much to read more about this subject. I especially enjoyed the chapters on stone circles and hill forts.

[Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

"There is a tendency to view the prehistoric past as somehow inferior to the modern world - to believe that we have 'progressed' beyond such superstitious beliefs. I disagree profoundly with this rather patronizing view of our ancestors."

The author has written this more as a chatty stroll through the various ancient sites of Britain, focusing on the landscape and the people who lived there rather than bogging the reader down with minutely detailed facts. It is clear that he has a deep respect for the inhabitants of the past and their achievements. Fascinating to read of sites lesser known to me - Stonehenge yes, but Seahenge? I'd never heard of it before.

[GBL · Rating 5 out of 5]

In fifteen scenarios from prehistoric Britain, Francis Pryor explores the life of our ancestors from the earliest period of our history to the aftermath of the Roman invasion.

Using his extensive experience and knowledge of the prehistoric period of Britain, Pryor focuses on specific archaeological settings to show how our ancestors lived within the landscape and climate of the time.

Pryor is an entertaining writer, often using personal experiences and reflections to highlight the past. He uses his own experience as an archaeologist to question accepted theories and ideas, while acknowledging the work done by those who have dug before him.

[Etsq · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF.
I don’t think the book is bad necessarily, but it does not deliver what the title or synopsis promise. I wanted to read a book about our ancestors lives, instead I got a meandering biography of the author, random facts about UK geography and its history of archeology with little information about actual prehistoric societies.
I didn’t pick up this book to learn about the authors childhood memories of some random countryside village in the 50s!!!!
The few scenes he does describe are interesting but superficial. In the end, I abandoned the book after reading about 25%, because it just made me feel bored and frustrated :(

[Jai · Rating 5 out of 5]

I sort of feel like I'm sitting in a snug at the pub listening to Francis Pryor. His power of description paints pictures. Maybe too genteel for hard-core readers, yet for insight to those of us delving into our past, all his books are ideal reading. I've learned so much, think more & have broadened my knowledge & my appetite has been whetted for deeper digging (I'm funny)
I highly recommend all books by Francis Pryor.

[Katharine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book, but often wished there were more pictures to accompany the text. Lots of the descriptions of places would have been greatly aided by diagrams and photos. There were a few in there, but not enough and because of this I feel I have not learnt as much from the book as I could have. A map at the beginning with all the sites mentioned would have been helpful too.
I would happily have paid more for the book to have included these.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slower read clearly designed to be picked up, read for a "scene" (chapter) and put back down again. Nevertheless, an engaging look at not just holes in the ground and sherds of pottery, but at the people who dug them or used them. Francis Pryor is adept at bringing prehistory to life and putting seemingly isolated moments into a broader and more human context - even if everything does end up revolving around family and ritual!

[Toons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyable read. If your idea of the stone age comes from source material such as the Flintstones and Captain Caveman, then this book is for you. Humanises prehistory, painting a picture of the complex, sophisticated and cultured society of our ancestors, not the club wielding savages we are brought up to believe.

[Kirk Mayer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and engaging summaries of prehistoric life in the UK at interesting points and locations. Does exactly what it says on the cover, and does it well. Not quite up to the standard of his earlier books, for example Britain BC and Britain AD. He’s also got the climate change bug, so disappears down rabbit holes on this now and then.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and Informative

A very readable insight not British prehistory. Francis Prior has the ability to highlight the the human side of the past. I found his references to woodworking very interesting indeed. The breadth of time covered necessarily makes this a broad brush narrative. However there is enough detail to give an impression of the lives of our predecessors.

[Steve M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not up to his usual standard. Too fragmented and in places repetitive but this was probably the result of COVID distraction/interruption. This was a vehicle for speculation (based on archaeological evidence) some of which was credible and some not. Nonetheless, an enjoyable read and a reminder that British history is so much more than what happened after the Roman conquest.

[MRS S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. My interest in history has always been in social aspects: how people interacted, what they ate and wore, how they thought, how they structured their lives and created their homes. The farther back in time one looks, the harder it is to find solid information. That is where this book comes in. Fascinating - I will be reading it again.

[SophieJaneK · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting perspective into the daily lives of Bronze age people. Thoughtful, intuitive and insightful. This book opens ones mind to think differently about all the things we have been previously taught about prehistory. Out of all the books of Francis Pryor's which I have read, this is the most accessible.

[Alex Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

Often shallow and seems to tell us more about the author than about prehistory. An example quote:

Archeology is about people in the past: how they lived, how they worked, how they relaxed and how they died. They have been the focus of my professional life and I have often felt humbled by the daunting task that faced me. Whatever else I might do, I cannot let them down.