The Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age period (2500-1800 BC) was dominated by an influx of newcomers. The 'Beaker People' are so called because of the richly decorated pottery drinking vessels they buried with their dead. These were the first metalworkers - copper and bronze possessions now occasionally appear in such burials.

Through the Middle and Later Bronze Age (1800-650 BC), the population continued to grow and lowland landscapes in areas such as the Breckland became more and more ordered as field systems, roads and settlements expanded. Many burial mounds of the rich and powerful - the famous 'Round Barrows' - have been found locally. The men who were buried here often display weapons of war such as bronze swords and spears, as well as axes, together with possessions of great beauty, sometimes in gold or jet. Ritual was now an important feature of life - ritual sites and objects that represent symbols of power were becoming more spectacular. This, after all, was the 'Age of Stonehenge'.