Preface -- 1 Introduction -- 1.1 Introduction -- 1.2 Spatial and chronological framework -- 1.3 Past research -- 1.4 Research questions -- 1.5 Methodology -- 1.5.1 Database -- 1.5.2 Functional analysis -- 1.5.3 Spatial analysis -- 2 Theory and Interpretational Framework -- 2.1 The distinction between ritual and profane -- 2.2 Reconstructing structures -- 2.3 Isolating patterns -- 2.3.1 Pattern disturbing processes -- 2.3.2 Minimizing pattern disturbance -- 2.4 Interpreting patterns -- 3 The Funnelbeaker Culture -- 3.1 Introduction -- 3.2 The early Neolithic of the north-west European plain -- 3.2.1 Neolithisation -- 3.2.2 The rise of the Funnelbeaker Culture -- 3.2.3 Colonization or acculturation -- the Dutch Funnelbeaker Culture -- 3.3 Settlement patterns and ecology -- 3.3.1 Crop-cultivation as a technology -- 3.3.2 Settlement location and farming strategy -- 3.4 TRB funerary traditions -- 3.4.1 Introduction -- 3.4.2 Megalithic tombs -- 3.4.3 Non-megalithic graves -- 3.5 Routes of exchange -- 3.5.1 Axes -- 3.5.2 Other links between the north- and west-group -- 3.5.3 TRB roads -- 3.6 TRB rituals -- 3.6.1 Introduction -- 3.6.2 Depositions -- 3.6.3 Causewayed enclosures -- 3.6.4 Tombs, enclosures and natural places -- 4 On the Physical Attributes of Flint Axes -- 4.1 Typology and chronology -- 4.2 General metrical observations -- 4.3 TRB axes -- 4.3.1 Grave contexts -- 4.3.2 Wet context finds -- 4.4 Craftsmanship -- 5 Functional Analysis -- 5.1 Introduction -- 5.2 General patterns -- 5.3 Grave contexts -- 5.4 Depositions -- 5.4.1 Unused axes -- 5.5 The exception to the rule -- 6 Spatial Analysis -- 6.1 Introduction -- 6.2 Natural landscape of depositions -- 6.3 Cultural landscape of depositions -- 7 Concluding Remarks: The Character of Depositions -- 7.1 Introduction -- 7.2 Physical properties of deposited axes.

7.3 Functional analysis -- 7.4 Spatial analysis -- 7.5 Conclusion -- 8 Knowledge, Gifts and Sacred Possessions -- 8.1 Introduction -- 8.2 Craftsmanship -- 8.2.1 Knowledge and know-how -- 8.2.2 Cosmological knowledge -- 8.2.3 Cosmological knowledge and craftsmanship -- 8.3 Gift exchange -- 8.3.1 Introduction -- 8.3.2 Commensurability and reciprocity -- 8.3.3 Inalienable possessions -- 8.3.4 Knowledge as an inalienable possession -- 8.4 Sacred objects and gifts to the gods -- 8.4.1 Introduction -- 8.4.2 What makes sacred objects sacred? -- 8.4.3 What kind of objects are sacred objects? -- 8.4.4 The fourth obligation -- 8.5 The significance of landscapes -- 8.5.1 The inalienability of landscapes -- 8.5.2 Monuments as inalienable places -- 8.5.3 The significance of boundaries -- 9 Not-an-Axe Biography -- 9.1 Introduction -- 9.2 Composition of depositions -- 9.3 Deposition -- 9.3.1 Introduction -- 9.3.2 When did deposition take place? -- 9.3.3 Where did deposition take place? -- 9.4 Ochre and the significance of wrapping -- 9.4.1 Ethnographic examples of wrapping -- 9.4.2 The significance of wrapping -- 9.5 A life of exchange -- 9.5.1 Production -- the start of a life of exchange -- 9.5.2 Exchange between knowledgeable agents -- 9.6 Production -- 9.6.1 Production sites -- 9.6.2 The nature and origin of meaning -- 9.7 Why were flint nodules deposited? -- 10 Axe Deposition in its Cultural Context -- 10.1 Introduction -- 10.2 Wetland depositions and megalithic tombs -- 10.3 The significance of axes -- 10.3.1 The symbolic value of axes -- 10.3.2 Farming and TRB identity -- 10.3.3 Agriculture as part of a cosmological system -- 10.4 Conclusion -- 11 Depositions Through Time: TRB and SGC Depositions -- 11.1 Introduction -- 11.2 SGC depositional practices -- 11.2.1 Introduction -- 11.2.2 SGC & TRB axe depositions -- 11.2.3 SGC & TRB graves.

11.3 Changing categories -- 12 Concluding Remarks: The Meaning of Depositions -- 12.1 Introduction -- 12.2 The authentication of meaning -- 12.3 The production of meaning -- 12.4 TRB cosmology and knowledgeable exchange partners -- 12.5 Deposition in natural places -- 12.6 Depositions as a widespread phenomenon -- References -- Appendix 1: The Database -- Appendix 2: Axe Typology -- Appendix 3: Residue Analysis -- Appendix 4: Microscope Photographs -- Acknowledgements.