Wikipedia:Today's featured list/November 26, 2012
Prehistory in Scotland ends with the arrival of the Romans in southern Scotland in the 1st century AD and the beginning of written records. The first indications of humans in prehistoric Scotland occur only after the ice retreated in the 11th millennium BC and the current Flandrian interglacial began. Initially, sea levels were lower than at present due to the large volume of ice that remained; the Orkney archipelago and many of the Inner Hebridean islands were attached to the mainland, as was the present-day island of Great Britain to Continental Europe. Many of the archaeological sites (example pictured) are in the Highlands and Islands, possibly because of the relatively sparse modern populations and consequent lack of disturbance. Differentiating the various periods of human history involved is a complex task. The Paleolithic lasted until the retreat of the ice, the Mesolithic until the adoption of farming, and the Neolithic until metalworking commenced. (Full list...)