宜昌中堡岛遗址大溪、屈家岭和哨棚嘴三种文化因素的分析

由于鄂西峡江地区的新石器时代晚期遗存面貌复杂,对于该地区是否存在屈家岭化长期以来存在激烈的争论。本选取湖北宜昌中堡岛作为典型遗址入手,运用化因素分析法,对该遗址的新石器时代遗存材料进行了分析,区分出大溪、屈家岭、哨棚嘴三种化因素,并进而对三种化因素的关系进行了探讨,其结论对于该地区相当于屈家岭化时代遗存的辨识和定性具有重要的参考作用。     

Wild at heart: Approaching Pitted Ware identity,economy and cosmology through stable isotopes in skeletal material from the Neolithic site Korsnäs in Eastern Central Sweden

The Middle Neolithic Pitted Ware Culture on the Baltic Sea islands comprised a common identity distinguished, in part, by an almost exclusively marine diet. Based on evidence from the first stable isotope analysis on Pitted Ware skeletal material from the Eastern Central Swedish mainland, we suggest that this identity was shared by PWC groups in the archipelago of the west side of the Baltic. Fifty-six faunal and 26 human bone and dentine samples originating from the Pitted Ware site Korsnäs in Södermanland, Sweden were analysed, and the data clearly shows that the diet of the Korsnäs people was marine, predominantly based on seal. The isotope data further indicate that the pig bones found in large quantities on the site emanate from wild boar rather than domestic pigs. The large representation of pig on several Pitted Ware sites, which cannot be explained in terms of economy, is interpreted as the results of occasional hunting of and ritual feasting on wild boar, indicating that the animal held a prominent position, alongside seal, in the hunting identity and cosmology of the Pitted Ware people. Further, eleven new radiocarbon dates are presented, placing the Korsnäs site, with a large probability, within Middle Neolithic A.     

The Neolithic of the eastern Baltic

This survey of the Baltic Neolithic, from Vistula to the Gulf of Finland, highlights the results of research during the last 30 years. The primary Baltic Neolithic is represented by two indigenous cultures, Narva and Nemunas. Their hunting, fishing, and gathering subsistence strategies gradually expanded to include domesticated plants and animals. The Comb-and-Pit Ornamented Pottery, Globular Amphora, Corded Ware, Bay Coast, and Boat-Axe cultures are also described. Within the Baltic Neolithic, I emphasize the origin, technology, economy, settlement, ritual, ethnic origins, and relationships among the various Neolithic populations. There is then a discussion of the origin of the Baltic linguistic group (Latvian, Lithuanian, and Old Prussian); this is associated with the appearance of the Late Neolithic Corded Ware culture, whose people integrated with local populations, leading to the development of the Bay Coast culture. Late Neolithic developments are associated with the Finno-Ugrian linguistic group in the northern Baltic.     

INSTRUMENTS OF CONVERSION? THE ROLE OF MEGALITHS IN THE MESOLITHIC/NEOLITHIC TRANSITION IN NORTHWEST EUROPE1

This paper discusses the general conditions which have given rise to megalithic construction techniques, and the specific circumstances under which megalithism became important in Neolithic Europe. It argues that the great elaboration of megalithic constructions in western and northern Europe must be related to the survival there of Mesolithic populations, and that monumentality was an essential element of the cultural rhetoric whereby these indigenous groups were converted to a Neolithic way of life.     

牡丹江流域新石器文化序列与编年

牡丹江流域的新石器时代遗存,自早至晚可区分为振兴文化、亚布力文化、莺歌岭下层文化和石灰场下层文化等四种不同的考古学文化.它们的年代跨度大约在公元前5500年至公元前2000年之间,代表了本地区新石器时代的四个不同发展阶段.这四种新石器文化遗存的辨识及其年代关系的判定,标志着牡丹江流域新石器时代考古学文化编年序列的初步建...     

How was Bell Beaker economy related to Corded Ware and Early Bronze Age lifestyles? Archaeological,botanical and palynological evidence from the Hegau,Western Lake Constance region

Abstract

The Europe wide spread of what has been called the Bell Beaker phenomenon remains an enigma of European prehistory. While most of the recent research stresses the ideological aspects of using Bell Beaker material culture, here we take a regional and economical perspective. We look for the chronological relationships and the economic choices of the Bell Beaker phase and of its closest neighbours in time and space: the Late Neolithic Corded Ware and the Early Bronze Age. We focus on the regional archaeological settlement history and present the hitherto richest European Bell Beaker-associated collection of palaeobotanical macro-remains, together with our high-resolution palynological work on annually laminated lake sediments. These different lines of evidence are tied together by an absolute chronology derived from new radiocarbon accelerated mass spectrometry (AMS) dates (now more than 200) and from the dendrodates from the World Heritage wet preserved pile dwellings. We show the preceding Late Neolithic, the actual Bell Beaker, and the following Early Bronze age economies each relying on different agricultural strategies that focus on distinct parts of the landscape. There is no link obvious between Late Neolithic and Bell Beaker, but there is between Bell Beaker and Early Bronze Age. Related to different modes of production, differences in ideology become visible in food preferences as well as in other parts of the material culture. We conclude that the Bell Beaker economy represents a re-orientation of the mode of production focusing on single, rather small farmsteads which often do not leave a distinct signal in the archaeological record.     

Spatial dimensions increase the effect of cultural drift

The transition from hunter-gathering to agriculture (Neolithic) spread gradually across Europe from the Southeast. A reduction in cultural diversity of crop farming practices has been previously observed by comparing pre-LBK Neolithic sites in Greece and the Balkans (dated about 8500 yr BP) to LBK Neolithic sites in Central Europe (dated about 7000 yr BP). The decrease in crop diversity is statistically significant even when considering only the species less likely to have been subject to smaller productivity due to climatic factors (reductions in growing season, temperature, daylight, etc.). This reduction in cultural diversity has not been explained previously. In this paper we show that spatial drift, which occurred on the front of the advancing wave of pioneer settlements, can explain the observed loss of diversity during the LBK range expansion. Our results suggest that spatial dimensions can have a relevant effect also in other case studies in which cultural drift is important.     

Stone Age exploitation of birds on the island of Gotland,Baltic Sea: a taphonomic study of the avifauna on the Neolithic site of Ajvide

We have conducted a detailed taphonomic study of the avifauna of the Pitted Ware culture site of Ajvide on the Island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea, in order to investigate the fowling patterns and the taphonomic history of the bird remains. We have investigated cultural as well as natural modifications on the bird bones, fragmentation and fracture patterns, and performed a systematic surface modification study. No specific area for the deposition of bird remains or specific bird species was identified. All major anatomical parts of birds are present in the assemblage, but there is a dominance of specimens from the wing elements. Traces of cultural modification were observed on the bones, including cut marks, burning, modification (implements, beads, raw material), and gnawing marks. The bone surface modifications and fracture analysis indicate that the majority of the bird bones at Ajvide did not lie on the soil surface for an extended period of time before being deposited in the soil. Dry fractures increase while fresh fractures decrease towards the upper levels of the stratigraphy, indicating more extensive post‐depositional destruction. This may partly be connected to modern agriculture, but also to later use of the settlement area as a burial ground. The Ajvide assemblage contains a variety of birds living in different biotopes. However, bird hunting was mainly focused on sea birds. Auks and ducks are the most common families in the assemblage. We find it likely that the Ajvide hunters conducted organised hunting expeditions to two nearby islands for the hunting of auks, while it was possible to hunt other birds such as ducks closer to the site. The presence of medullary bone and bones from subadult birds indicates a main hunting season in late spring and early summer. However, comparisons with modern migration patterns indicate that hunting may have occurred throughout the year. Of special palaeozoological interest is the find of gannet (Morus bassanus), which apparently in Neolithic times visited the Baltic area more regularly than today. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Trends in pig product processing at British Neolithic Grooved Ware sites traced through organic residues in potsherds

Gas chromatography (GC), GC-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and GC-combustion-isotope ratio MS (GC-C-IRMS) analyses of absorbed and surface lipid residues preserved in potsherds were used to explore the extent of pig product processing exploitation in the later British Neolithic Grooved Ware tradition. Assessments were made regarding whether porcine lipids were associated with specific Grooved Ware traits, i.e. decoration, substyle, geographical area and type of site. Two hundred and twenty-two Grooved Ware potsherds were analysed, 70% of which contained lipid concentrations considered significant (>5 μg g⁻¹). All the lipid residues were dominated by animal fats, although plant and beeswax were also detected in a small number of extracts. δ¹³C values of the major fatty acid components of degraded animal fats (C_16:0 and C_18:0) were determined for 126 extracts and used to assign ruminant or porcine origins to the residues; 16% of these were found to have a predominantly porcine isotope signature. Statistical associations with pig exploitation were shown to exist with substyle, geographical area and site type, whereas, no relationship was seen between decoration and the type of commodity processed. Intact triacylglycerols were preserved in 19% of the sherds; half of these had distributions consistent with the identifications based on δ¹³C values, the remainder differed either due to the presence of mixed commodities or because lower molecular weight homologues had been lost due to degradation. In addition to the detection of pig exploitation, results from lipid residue analysis showed a good correlation with faunal assemblages, suggesting that stable isotope analysis may be used as a proxy for animal exploitation at sites where bones have not survived.     

KAUP 2014: ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS & RESEARCH HISTORY

The article is a report on field activities of 2014 at a renowned location of Kaup forest near Wiskiauten/Viskiautai, nowadays Kaliningrad oblast of Russia, and a sentimental journey through the research history in a region at the crossroads of ancient communication webs, and more recently – of diverse political agendas. Field activities focused on the so‐called Barrow 1, the only known mound at Kaup dated to the Neolithic, otherwise dotted with burials of the Viking Age. It was an attempt to reconstruct barrow architecture, which has resulted in a deconstruction of previous views based on rather scarce excavation reports of the 19^th – early 20^th century. The Neolithic barrow of Kaup remains a unique testimony of the social complexity and spatial awareness of the early 3rd millennium BC when Europe was under the spell of the Corded Ware and other related cultural phenomena.     

Ancient DNA insights from the Middle Neolithic in Germany

Genetic studies of Neolithic groups in central Europe have provided insights into the demographic processes that have occurred during the initial transition to agriculture as well as in later Neolithic contexts. While distinct genetic patterns between indigenous hunter-gatherers and Neolithic farmers in Europe have been observed, it is still under discussion how the genetic diversity changed during the 5,000-year span of the Neolithic period. In order to investigate genetic patterns after the earliest farming communities, we carried out an ancient mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis of 34 individuals from Wittmar, Germany representing three different Neolithic farming groups (ca. 5,200–4,300 cal bc) including Rössen societies. Ancient DNA analysis was successful for six individuals associated with the Middle Neolithic Rössen and observed haplotypes were assigned to mtDNA haplogroups H5, HV0, U5, and K. Our results offer perspectives on the genetic composition of individuals associated with the Rössen culture at Wittmar and permit insights into genetic landscapes in central Europe at a time when regional groups first emerged during the Middle Neolithic.     

An Absolute Chronological Framework for the Central‐Eastern European Eneolithic

Bayesian analysis of a large corpus of radiocarbon measurements from central and eastern Europe has been performed in order to revisit and modify archaeological models of the spatio‐temporal development of three Eneolithic cultures (the Funnel Beaker, the Globular Amphora and the Corded Ware cultures). While the results place the origins of the Funnel Beaker and the Corded Ware cultures in central‐eastern Poland, it was impossible to specify the place of origin of the Globular Amphora complex.     

THE STEPPE HYPOTHESIS OF INDO‐EUROPEAN ORIGINS REMAINS TO BE PROVEN

Recent genetic studies have claimed to reveal a massive migration of the bearers of the Yamnaya culture (Pit‐grave culture) to the Central and Northern Europe. This migration has supposedly lead to the formation of the Corded Ware cultures and thereby to the dispersal of Indo‐European languages in Europe. The article is a summary presentation of available archaeological, linguistic, genetic and cultural data that demonstrates many discrepancies in the suggested scenario for the transformations caused by the Yamnaya “invasion” some 5000 years ago.     

钧窑始烧年代考

钧窑被称为宋代的五大名窑 ,但考古工作中一直没有可信的材料证明其始烧于宋代 ,近年来国内外学界多撰文将钧窑的始烧年代定在金代以后。本文系统地介绍了 2 0 0 1年发掘禹州神刘家门窑址最早地层的出土器物 ,总结了其器形、胎釉和工艺特征。继之将其与考古发掘的窑址和墓葬材料进行对比 ,探讨了出土早期钧窑器物的窖藏、墓葬和遗址的年代 ,讨论了早期钧窑几项重要工艺的时代特征 ,结合窑址出土的纪年材料 ,证明刘家门窑第一期前段的时代为北宋徽、钦二宗时期 ,这也是钧窑的始烧时间。最后简论了钧窑是仿汝窑产生的 ,在北宋末期与汝窑同时生产。     

The role of waterways in the spread of the Neolithic

The causes and implications of the regional variations in the spread of the incipient agriculture in Europe remain poorly understood. We use population dynamics models to study the dispersal of the Neolithic in Europe from a localised area in the Near East, solving the two-dimensional reaction-diffusion equation on a spherical surface. We focus on the role of major river paths and coastlines in the advance of farming, to model the rapid advances of the Linear Pottery (LBK) and the Impressed Ware traditions along the Danube–Rhine corridor and the Mediterranean coastline, respectively. We argue that the random walk of individuals, which results in diffusion of the population, can be anisotropic in those areas and hence lead to an effective advection. The standard reaction-diffusion equation is thus supplemented with an advection term, confined to the proximity of major rivers and coastlines. The model allows for the spatial variation in both the human mobility (diffusivity) and the carrying capacity, reflecting the local altitude and latitude. This approach can easily be generalised to include other environmental factors, such as the bioproductivity of landscapes. Our model successfully accounts for the regional variations in the spread of the Neolithic, consistent with the radiocarbon data, and reproduces a time delay in the spread of farming to the Eastern Europe, Britain and Scandinavia.     

The Mesopotamian frontier of the Arabian Neolithic: A cultural borderland of the sixth–fifth millennia BC

The material culture of coastal Arabian Neolithic sites of the sixth–fifth millennia BC contains a range of small Mesopotamian-style objects, in addition to Ubaid pottery. There is a significant concentration of such objects at the Kuwaiti sites, H3 and Bahra 1, with lesser amounts in the Central Gulf region and virtually none in the Lower Gulf. The combination of material and symbolic culture at the Kuwaiti sites indicates that their inhabitants could communicate with both Ubaid and Neolithic peoples with equal facility, implying a key role in the region’s earliest experiments in maritime trade. Moreover, the presence in southern Iraq and at Susa of distinctive arrowheads, and possibly Arabian Coarse Ware ceramics, suggests that the range of eastern Arabian Neolithic peoples extended all along the ancient shoreline to the vicinity of the Mesopotamian Ubaid settlements, and even Susiana. The bifacial pressure-flaked arrowheads are of two different types that are well attested in eastern Arabia, though one type is more common in southern Iraq and Susiana, hinting at a local population related to the Arabian Neolithic. These finds are quantified and illustrated in this paper, and indicate a cultural borderland stretching for around 300 km north of Kuwait.     

Spatial–temporal distribution and geographic context of Neolithic cultural sites in the Hanjiang River Basin,Southern Shaanxi,China

Understanding how to live successfully within our environment is among the most pressing challenges facing contemporary society. This paper probes the problem based on comparative analysis and discusses the relationship between the spatial–temporal distribution of the Neolithic cultural sites and the geographic context in the Hanjiang River Basin in the south of Shaanxi Province, China. Archaeological studies have identified 175 Neolithic cultural sites in the study area, with a sequence of Laoguantai (¹⁴C age 8–7 ka BP), Yangshao (¹⁴C age 7–5 ka BP) and the late period of the Neolithic Age (¹⁴C age 5–4 ka BP). The total number of archaeological sites, the distribution area and the density all showed an early ascending and later descending trend, but the proportion of the number of archaeological sites in the study area to the corresponding value of the entire Shaanxi Province declined sharply. Spatially, these sites were concentrated on the terraces of the Hanjiang River and its main tributaries with an altitude of 400–800 m. Multiple data were integrated to clarify the critical effects of tectonic and geomorphologic conditions on the distribution of the Neolithic sites. Further comparisons revealed the correlation of Holocene climate change and environmental evolution with the Neolithic cultural succession in the study area that ameliorated conditions to generally promote the development of the primitive culture while degeneration coincided with the culture's transition or interruption. The discussion on the origin of the primitive culture and the temporal–spatial distribution corresponding to the regional culture differentiation sheds light on the complex and dynamic human–nature interaction system during the Neolithic Age, thus emphasising the wider field-based investigation and high-resolution reconstruction works of the palaeoclimate and palaeoenvironment in the future.     

新石器时代晚期鄂豫陕间文化交流通道的初步研究

考古学文化或早期部族、国族文化的地域间碰撞与交流在地理上当依赖一定的通道,这种文化交流的通道既影响着某一考古学文化的地理分布,同时也是该区文化同周围其它区域文化联系、往来的必要前提。考察这样的地理通道不仅有助于确定考古学文化地理分布及其传播路径,同时也是研究早期区域历史地理的重要内容。本文试图以鄂豫陕间新石器时代晚期主要考古学文化的分布、扩散、交流为研究对象,通过研究这一地区各文化间交流的具体通道,来探讨当时该地理范围内考古学文化碰撞、交流在地理上的表现特征,并探求受自然地理状况影响的文化交流通道对于人文地理格局的影响。