A New Perspective on an Old Problem
A new book by University of Wales Lampeter archaeologist, Professor Andrew Fleming, presents a radical new interpretation of life on the archipelago of St Kilda, once home to the most remote community in Britain.
The book St Kilda and the Wider World: Tales of an Iconic Island is the first general account of the islands for more than 30 years and transforms our understanding of an extraordinary place.
 Cover of the book: St Kilda and the Wider World: Tales of an Iconic Island |
 Professor Andrew Fleming |
After 10 years of fieldwork and research, Professor Fleming suggests that far from being penalised by its isolation, St Kilda may have played a special role within its region. Written records reveal a well-organised, economically diverse and culturally rich community with lifeways not essentially different from those on other Hebridean islands. Archaeological finds of prehistoric stone tools - originally obtained from a hillside scarred with numerous dolerite quarries - and extensive walled field systems, have shown that there was a viable community here, growing crops from at least 2000 BC, with interesting links to distant Orkney and Shetland.
The traditional story of St Kilda emphasises the islanders’ ‘struggle for existence’ on the edge of the Atlantic, and mostly blames the St Kildans for the problems which led to the evacuation in 1930, citing their conservatism, socialism, devotion to the Free Church, or failure to cope with the modern world. Professor Fleming’s work disputes these findings, arguing that the St Kildans actually dealt very well with living 40 miles out in the Atlantic. His work is perhaps particularly timely in 2005, the 75 th anniversary of the islands’ evacuation.
St Kilda and the Wider World: Tales of an Iconic Island (Windhaven Press, ISBN: 1-905119-00-3) is published on 4 May 2005 and may be purchased from bookshops in Lampeter, ordered from any bookshop, or purchased online from www.amazon.co.uk.
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Andrew Fleming is a prehistorian and landscape archaeologist at the University of Wales Lampeter. His previous books include The Dartmoor Reaves, which won the annual book prize at the British Archaeology Awards, and Swaledale: Valley of the Wild River.
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The Department of Archaeology & Anthropology at the University of Wales, Lampeter offers foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and occasional short courses. For further information on the department and these courses, visit www.lamp.ac.uk/archanth
For further information, please contact:
Prof Andrew Fleming
Tel: 01570 424791
Email: a.fleming@lamp.ac.uk
Web:www.lamp.ac.uk/archanth
Postal Address: Department of Archaeology & Anthropology, University of Wales, Lampeter, Ceredigion. SA48 7ED.
Or
Dr Jane Norris-Hill
Tel: 01570 424799
Email: j.norris-hill@lamp.ac.uk
Web:www.lamp.ac.uk
Postal Address: External Affairs, University of Wales, Lampeter, Ceredigion. SA48 7ED
