Rock art research is challenging, especially due to the lack of associated archaeological contexts to inform chronology. Early approaches focused on the description of motifs, chronology, with few attempts at interpretation. Ronald Morris is a notable exception, having published a list of 104 possible interpretations for rock art (Morris 1979). It was not until the 1990s that the introduction of Landscape Archaeology to rock art studies by Richard Bradley provided tools for wider interrogation of the social and cultural roles of the carvings.
Building on approaches by Irish archaeologist and diplomat Eóin MacWhite and Galician archaeologist Ramon Sobrino Lorenzo-Ruza (who identified possible connections between the rock art of Iberia, Britain and Ireland), combined with inspiration from Ronald Morris (who was interested in landscape aspects related to the carvings), Bradley developed the first systematic study on the contextual relationship between Atlantic Rock Art and the landscape (eg Bradley 1997). Bradley identified potential associations between the location of rock art and fertile areas of land, routeways, and other significant landmarks. His research revolutionised rock art studies and inspired many researchers up to present day.
Landscape studies are still one of the main approaches in rock art research, often involving complex spatial, statistical and computational analysis (eg O’Connor 2006, Fairén-Jiménez 2007, Valdez-Tullett 2019). While Landscape Archaeology offered new dimensions for understanding rock art, and brought the field closer to mainstream archaeology, the study of the motifs became largely overlooked. Recent research has recognised the importance of bringing all elements of rock art together (rock art, rock media, landscape location) for better understanding its character, context, and purpose (eg Valdez-Tullett 2019, Barnett et al 2024).