Summary:The implications are discussed of the first five seasons of a regional project to investigate the Neolithic sequence and environment, and the context in which monuments great and small were built, in the area around Avebury, north Wiltshire, England. A five‐phase local sequence is proposed. There was a varying mosaic of clearances, and settlement density may have been low. the episodic character of monument building stands out. With the exception of Silbury Hill, none of the monuments need indicate significant social ranking, and more attention can be given to their sacred character and to the tradition which produced the