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The antiquity of the practice of grazing on and/or foddering with seaweed is of interest in terms of understanding animal management practices in northwest Europe, where provision had to be made for overwintering. Orkney holds a special place in this discussion, since the sheep of North Ronaldsay have been confined to the seashores since the early nineteenth century, and are entirely adapted to a diet consisting mainly of seaweeds. Here, we report the results of stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of twenty-five faunal specimens from the Neolithic chambered tomb of Quanterness, Orkney. Three of the 12 sheep analysed show elevated δ13C values that can only be explained by the consumption of seaweed. Radiocarbon dates place two of the three animals in the Neolithic, coeval with the use of the monument for burial, while the third animal dates to the Chalcolithic/Early Bronze Age. The findings are placed into the wider context of previous isotopic analyses of domestic fauna from prehistoric Orkney. A possible disjoint is noted between the results for bone collagen – where seaweed consumption seems to relate to the pre-natal period, since all the animals with high δ13C values are less than ca. three months of age – and previous studies using high-resolution sequential enamel measurements, which suggest a repeated pattern of winter consumption of seaweed in older animals.

Recognition of tremendous variation in the treatment of the dead, both temporally and geographically, has done little to curtail the pursuit of homogenous mortuary rites for monuments which appear, by virtue of their architecture, to be similar. This is aptly demonstrated in considering the Neolithic tombs of Orkney, Scotland. The Orcadian human bone assemblages represent the largest volume for this time period from Britain – a significant resource. However, discrete skeletons are lacking, the researcher being presented with formidable volumes of disarticulated and commingled remains. Themes of transformation, fragmentation and manipulation of the body permeate the literature, conferring significance on the tombs as places of transition. Previously, the inherent complexity of the remains has made them an unattractive proposition for detailed study. New interpretations are derived from examination of excavation reports, rather than the material itself. However, advances in taphonomic analysis means techniques now exist for approaching such complex assemblages. A study has now been successfully carried out on the Orcadian remains, uncovering a wealth of new data. This data draws attention to subtle variations in practice between and within tombs, and advocates for a dramatic reconsideration of the current understanding of the practices and cosmologies associated with these enigmatic structures.

This paper explores the evidence for social structuring principles and other aspects of identity at Man Bac, an early Neolithic (2066–1523 cal. BCE) community in northern Vietnam. Drawing on a wealth of work over the past 15 years, we examine identity with respect to three fundamental classes of data: intrinsic biological variables (age-at-death, sex, kin group, biological ancestry), mortuary treatment, and body modification (patterned tooth removal, or ablation). We find that kin groups, biologically and affinally defined, likely played a substantive structuring role at Man Bac. Moreover, a political tension between genetically and phenotypically distinct groups inhabiting Man Bac appears to be visible in the mortuary record. Social organization aside, shells appear to have had a significant role in referencing cosmological and gendered aspects of identity. Nephrite, with regard to some artefact types, would appear to cite magico-religious and/or elite status components of identity. While unique items, such as a ceramic copy of a barrel drum, may have spoken to exchanges of shamanistic beliefs between northern Vietnam and what is now southern China. Identity at Man Bac would appear to have been complex, fluid, negotiable, and ever changing; or just what one might expect.