The opportunity to have a detailed look at intriguing Iron Age jewellery (Figs 43-45), take a spin round Skara Brae or a round trip round the Ring of Brodgar (Figs 46-51) may not offer much specific help to someone engaged in serious academic research in the area (Mithen 2000). It is also worth recognising that digital resources, particularly reconstructed images, can have their own particular drawbacks - Eiteljorg (2000), for example, warns against the overpowering realism of 'compelling computer images which risk inadvertently implying certainty where it cannot exist'.
Select thumbnails to access the relevant SCRAN resource.
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| Figure 43: Insect brooch | Figure 44: Penannular brooches | Figure 45: Copper alloy coil |
But at the very least high quality digital resources offer a sure source of satisfaction for anyone interested in the world around them and provide fuel for the intrinsic motivation, the pleasure and spontaneity that is at the heart of good learning. Moreover, in a massive resource like SCRAN you never quite know what you are going to find next. This delight is something that SCRAN tries to capture through its feature called My Kind of Thing where academics are invited to choose their favourite object from the SCRAN resource base and explain its significance to them.
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| Figure 46: Henge monument and stone circle at Ring of Brodgar, Orkney Islands | Figure 47: Ring of Brodgar, Stenness, Orkney | Figure 48: Ring of Brodgar (Quicktime VR panorama) |
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| Figure 49: Skara Brae: a tour of ancient Orkney: No. 16 Ring of Brodgar | Figure 50: Ring of Brodgar | Figure 51: Ring of Brodgar, Stenness, Orkney |
Last updated: Wed Aug 28 2002
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