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For nearly 4000 years, this hunting and gathering habit
endured, until these early groups encountered new peoples,
who had knowledge of farming. The first wheat and barley,
the first raising of sheep and cattle in the agricultural
north-east would have started about 4000 BC. (Suggest continuity
by illustration of early agriculturist, alongside modern
tractor.)
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Whitehill |
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Above their fields these
people built long cairns, set against the skyline - burial
places which speak of the importance of their ancestors
-and also suggest a community which worked together to
build these stone monuments. A few of these still survive
today as landmarks set in the modern landscape of farming. |
Howe o' the Mearns |
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The most important material for stone tool users was flint. This splits
into sharp fragments which can be made into cutting or scraping tools.
Though beach flint can be found on some localities along the east coast,
north-east Scotland only has one main inland site - at Den of Boddam,
south of Peterhead. Here the shallow pits from quarrying activities
can still be seen. This is the first example of industry in Aberdeenshire,
around 3000BC.
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