Early Bronze Age c 2500 BC

In the Early Bronze Age clearance of trees from the fell tops, combined with a deterioration in the climate, saw the beginning of peat growth in Rowland. On the lowland there is still extensive tree cover although the proportion of elms has been greatly reduced. By the Bronze Age, there is no longer the need for seasonal movement around the landscape in order to maintain the food supplies of a hunter-gatherer society. People now live in round houses, rearing cattle and cultivating cereals in small fields. The prehistoric cattle shown in the foreground are short and stocky, much smaller and hardier than modern breeds.