Editing Islands of the Clyde (section)

=== Prehistory ===
[[File:MachrieMoorStones.jpg|thumb|Machrie Moor [[standing stone]]s, [[Isle of Arran|Arran]]]]

[[Mesolithic]] humans arrived in the area of the Firth of Clyde during the 4th millennium BC, probably from [[Ireland]]. This initial arrival was followed by another wave of [[Neolithic]] peoples using the same route. In fact, there is some evidence that the Firth of Clyde was a significant route through which mainland Scotland was colonised during the Neolithic period.<ref>Noble (2006) p. 30</ref> The inhabitants of Argyll, the Clyde estuary, and elsewhere in western Scotland at that time developed a distinctive style of megalithic structure that is known today as the [[Chambered cairn#Clyde-Carlingford court cairns|Clyde cairn]]s. About 100 of these structures have been found. They were used for interment of the dead. They are rectangular or trapezoidal, with a small enclosing chamber into which the person's body was placed. They are faced with large slabs of stone set on end (sometimes subdivided into smaller compartments). They also feature a forecourt area, which may have been used for displays or rituals associated with interment.<ref name=N104>Noble (2006) pp. 104–05</ref> They are mostly found in Arran, Bute, and Kintyre. It is thought likely that the Clyde cairns were the earliest forms of Neolithic monument constructed by incoming settlers. However, only a few of the cairns have been [[radiocarbon dating|radiocarbon dated]]. A cairn at Monamore on Arran has been dated to 3160 BC, although other evidence suggests that it was almost certainly built earlier than that, possibly around 4000 BC.<ref name=N104/><ref name= Murr113>Murray (1973) pp. 113–131</ref><ref>Morris, John H. [http://www.scottish.antiquities.ukonline.co.uk/ "Sailing through Scottish Antiquities"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060411094805/http://www.scottish.antiquities.ukonline.co.uk/ |date=11 April 2006 }} scottish.antiquities.ukonline.co.uk. Retrieved 4 February 2011.</ref><ref>[http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search_item/index.php?service=RCAHMS&id=40086 "Arran, Monamore, Meallach's Grave"] Scotland's Places.Retrieved 4 February 2011.</ref> The area also features numerous [[standing stone]]s dating from prehistoric times, including six [[stone circle]]s on Machrie Moor in Arran, and other examples on Great Cumbrae and Bute.<ref>[http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search_item/index.php?service=RCAHMS&id=40618 "Great Cumbrae Island, Craigengour"] Scotland's Places.Retrieved 4 February 2011.</ref><ref name=Cow27>Cowie, Trevor "The Bronze Age" in Omand (2006) pp. 27–30</ref>

Later, [[Bronze Age]] settlers also constructed megaliths at various sites. Many of them date from the 2nd millennium BC. However, instead of [[chambered cairns]], these peoples constructed burial [[cist]]s, which can be found, for example, on Inchmarnock. Evidence of settlement during this period, especially the early part of it, is scant.<ref name=Cow27/><ref>Haswell-Smith (2004) p. 22</ref> However, one notable artifact has been found on Bute that dates from around 2000 BC. Known today as the “Queen of the Inch necklace,” it is an article of jewellery made of [[Jet (lignite)|lignite]] (commonly called “jet”).

During the early [[Iron Age]], the [[Brython]]ic culture held sway. There is no evidence that the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] occupation of southern Scotland extended into these islands.<ref name= Murr113/><ref>[http://www.butemuseum.org/ "The Queen of the Inch Necklace and Facial reconstruction"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619111013/http://www.butemuseum.org/ |date=19 June 2010 }}. Bute Museum. Retrieved 5 September 2010.</ref>