Vegetation history at the multi-period prehistoric complex at Ballynahatty,Co. Down,Northern Ireland

Palaeoecological methods can provide an environmental context for archaeological sites, enabling the nature of past human activity to be explored from an indirect but alternative perspective. Through a palynological study of a small fen peatland located within the catchment of a multi-period prehistoric complex at Ballynahatty, Co. Down, Northern Ireland, we reconstruct the vegetation history of the area during the early prehistoric period. The pollen record reveals tentative evidence for Mesolithic activity in the area at 6410–6220 cal BC, with woodland disturbance identified during the Mesolithic–Neolithic transitional period ca. 4430–3890 cal BC. A more significant impact on the landscape is observed in the Early Neolithic from 3950 to 3700 cal BC, with an opening up of the forest and the establishment of a mixed agricultural economy. This activity precedes and continues to be evident through the Mid-Neolithic during which megalithic tombs and related burial sites were constructed at Ballynahatty. Due to chronological uncertainties and a possible hiatus in peat accumulation in the fen, the contemporary environment of the Ballynahatty timber circle complex (constructed and used ca. 3080–2490 cal BC) and henge (dating to the third millennium cal BC) cannot certainly be established. Nevertheless, the pollen record suggests that the landscape remained open through to the Bronze Age, implying a long continuity of human activity in the area. These findings support the idea that the Ballynahatty prehistoric complex was the product of a gradual and repeated restructuring of the ritual and ceremonial landscape whose significance continued to be recognised throughout the early prehistoric period.     

Bronze Age Textiles from the North Caucasus: New Evidence of Fourth Millennium BC Fibres and Fabrics

Summary.   Textiles from the North Caucasus Majkop culture (3700–3200 cal BC) site of Novosvobodnaya were selected for a programme of examination. Wool, flax and cotton-like plant-fibre threads were identified. This is the oldest example of wool so far identified in the archaeological record. Weaving techniques employed in making the textiles included the use of tablets or discs, and a simple frame. In addition, two dyeing techniques using tannin dyes have been determined.     

The Holocene fluvial history of the Tremithos river (south central Cyprus) and its linkage to archaeological records

This study aims to reconstruct the Holocene fluvial history of the Tremithos river, south central Cyprus and examine linkages to regional and local archaeological records. Three stratigraphic profiles (Sp1, Sp2 and Sp3) located in the lower valley have been investigated using sedimentology and magnetic parameters. The ¹⁴C dating of 10 samples reveals mid-Holocene ages for Sp1 and Sp2, while the upper most part of Sp3 can be attributed to the early to mid-Holocene. Two main phases of vertical accretion have been recognised: the first, recorded in the lower most part of Sp3, could not be dated but might relate to the late Glacial period. It is not associated with any archaeological artefacts. The second, recorded in all profiles, dating from ca. 5000 to ca. cal 2800 BC, spans the Late Neolithic Sotira (cal 4800/4000 BC) and Late Chalcolithic (cal 2900–2500 BC) cultures. The sediments of Sp1 and Sp2 are up to 8–10 m thick and mainly composed of fine material. However, an intercalated phase of coarse sediment has been identified at the beginning of the third millennium BC, indicating a sudden change in river dynamics, potentially associated with the 5.2 ka rapid climate change regional event. Typical mid-Chalcolithic (ca. cal 3300–3050 BC) ceramics found in a palaeosol in Sp2 indicate for the first time human occupation of the Tremithos river terraces. Two other palaeosols have also been recognised in Sp3 and radiocarbon dated to ca. cal 5600–4100 BC and ca. cal 2900–2600 BC, respectively. These results make it possible to propose a palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Holocene evolution in the Tremithos valley and to make a preliminary assessment of the relative roles of tectonics, climate and anthropogenic forcing.     

MISPLACED MONUMENTS?: A REVIEW OF CEREMONY AND MONUMENTALITY IN FIRST MILLENNIUM CAL BC CORNWALL

Both large‐ and small‐scale ceremonial monuments are a well‐known feature of the third and second millennia cal BC. However, from the middle of the second millennium cal BC the character of the evidence changes, firstly with the appearance of widespread settlement remains, and then in the earlier first millennium cal BC with the appearance of hillforts. This paper considers the evidence from a number of newly discovered enclosures in Cornwall, which, given their similarity to much older ceremonial monument forms, have unexpectedly been found to date from the first millennium cal BC. The implications of these discoveries are discussed as well as the evidence for possible Atlantic Connections across the Irish Sea.     

Impulses of agro-pastoralism in the 4th and 3rd millennia BC on the south-western coastal rim of Norway

Abstract

A review of the available archaeological and palaeoecological evidence from the coastal heathlands of south-western Norway was compiled to reveal the processes of neolithisation proceeding from the Early Neolithic towards the generally accepted breakthrough in the Late Neolithic, 2500/2350 cal. BC. South-western Norway then became part of the Scandinavian, and thus the European, agricultural complex. Three phases of forest clearance are recorded — from 4000–3600 cal. BC, 2500–2200 cal. BC and 1900–1400 cal. BC. Deforestation was intentional and followed a regional pattern linked to the geology and topography of the land. In the first period (4000–2500 cal. BC), forage from broad-leaved trees was important, while cereal cultivation was scarcely recorded. Agro-Neolithic (here referring to agriculturally-related Neolithic) artefacts and eco-facts belonging to the Funnel Beaker and Battle Axe culture are rare, but pervasive. They must primarily be considered to be status indicators with a ritual function; the hunter-gatherer economy still dominated. The breakthrough in agro-pastoral production in the Late Neolithic was complex and the result of interactions between several variables, i.e. a) deforestation resulting from agriculture being practised for nearly 1500 years b) experience with small-scale agriculture through generations and c) intensified exchange systems with other South Scandinavian regions. From 2500/2350 cal. BC onwards, two distinct environmental courses are noticeable in all pollen diagrams from the study area, indicating expansion in pastoralism, either towards heath or towards grassland and permanent fields.     

Cultural interactions during the Ubaid and Halaf periods: Tell Kurdu (Amuq Valley,Turkey) obsidian sourcing

In order to decipher cultural influences, the inter-regional contacts of the Tell Kurdu settlement have been investigated through obsidian sourcing for the Halaf and Ubaid phases (c. 5700–4300 cal. BC). The chemical composition of nine artifacts from three archaeological levels of the site have been determined and compared to source data obtained in our laboratory or available in the literature. Trace and major element analyses were performed respectively by inductively coupled plasma - mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES). The results assignments point out five distinct sources which highlight northwestward and eastward connections. Besides the “traditional” procurement areas (Göllü Dag and Nemrut Dag massifs; Bingöl region), the development of new exploitation centers (northeast Anatolia and northeast Van lake) is noteworthy. These results of obsidian provenances are compared to those of other raw materials and production originating from distant areas, in order to outline Tell Kurdu trade networks during the Halaf and Ubaid periods.     

Late Holocene Artifact Patterns and the Introduction of Herding to Semi-Arid Coastal Namaqualand,South Africa

ABSTRACT

Considerable change occurred in the Late Holocene Later Stone Age of Namaqualand, northwestern South Africa. Focusing on stone artifacts, pottery, and ostrich eggshell beads, the cultural sequence for the area is described. Two additions are identified, complicating the traditional model for the introduction of herding into the country. From the mid-Holocene onward, lithic assemblages are based on milky and/or clear quartz and cryptocrystalline silica and initially contain many backed tools with scrapers more common during the first millennium BC. These are hunter-gatherer assemblages. During the final centuries BC, backed bladelet-rich assemblages based on clear quartz appear, with the earliest examples demonstrating typological continuity with the existing assemblages. About 1,500 years ago, expedient assemblages lacking retouch and based on poorer quality quartz appear. The three types co-occur during the last 1,500 years, occasionally in combination with one another. This contrasts strongly with other parts of South Africa where just two distinct assemblage types are identified, suggesting that the hunter-gatherer-herder dichotomy is not universally valid. The artifact patterns between about 200 cal BC and cal AD 500 and the introduction of livestock suggest considerable cultural and social change, heralding the onset of a local Neolithic, but the exact mechanisms remain unclear.     

Reviews

Book reviewed in this article: The Encircled Sea: The Mediterranean Maritime Civilization. SARAH ARENSON Le Navire Genois de Villefranche—un naufrage de 1516(?)—Archaeonautica no. 9. MAX GUÉROUT, E. RIETH, J.-M. GASSEND and B. LIOU The Periplus Maris Erythraei Greek text with introduction, translation, and commentary by LIONEL CASSON Trafalgar. Countdown to Battle 1803–1805. ALAN SCHOM The Giglio Wreck: A wreck of the Archaic period (c. 600 BC) off the Tuscan island of Giglio. An account of its discovery and excavation: a review of the main finds. MENSUN BOUND Archaeonautica 7. BERNARD LIOU (Ed.)     

THE MECHANISM OF DEVELOPMENT OF THE VOLGA DELTA AND ITS GROWTH PROSPECTS

The delta of the Volga River on the Caspian Sea is a highly dynamic form, whose growth has been affected by a combination of physical and human factors. Rapid delta growth in recent years has resulted in a deterioration of both physical and economic conditions (navigation problems, inadequate moisture supply, overgrowing of shallows with vegetation, loss of spawning grounds). Regression analysis yields a number of relationships between the inflow of water and suspended sediments, on the one hand, and delta growth, on the other hand, with a distinction between periods of a lowering of the Caspian Sea level and relative stability. The regression equations are used to project the likely future evolution of the delta. The only combination of conditions that is likely to limit further delta growth by the year 2000 is the stability of the Caspian Sea level and a period of average moisture supply. In all other cases, the delta is likely to continue its undesirable advance.     

Osteological and paleodietary investigation of burials from Cova de la Pastora,Alicante, Spain

We present results of osteological and isotopic analyses of human remains from Cova de la Pastora (Alcoi, Alicante, Spain) and discuss the implications in light of a new sequence of radiocarbon dates indicating that the cave was used as a burial site in the Late Neolithic (ca. 3800–3000 cal BC), Chalcolithic (ca. 3000–2500 cal BC), Bell Beaker Transition (Horizonte Campaniforme Transicional - HCT; ca. 2500–2200 cal BC) and the Bronze Age (ca. 2200–1500 cal BC). Similarities in stable isotopic values of C and N indicate little variation in subsistence between men and women, and a similar nutritional base from the Late Neolithic to the Bronze Age. This pattern of stability is augmented by evidence of trauma and disease found on numerous skulls in the collection. Since no clear associations of specific grave goods with certain individuals based on sex or age could be determined, the only suggestion of social inequality lies in the burial practice itself, where certain individuals were interred in caves while others were not.     

Obsidian hydration at high elevation: Archaic quarrying at the Chivay source,southern Peru

We examine obsidian hydration as a means to date archaeological sites at high elevation in the central Andes, and in particular quarry sites that are difficult to date by radiocarbon means. The Chivay obsidian source lies in a volcanic depression above the Colca Valley in Arequipa, Peru (71.5355° S, 15.6423° E) at 4950 masl. We compare obsidian hydration readings from one quarry and two workshop locations. Ninety-one flakes from the quarry pit, and 61 and 33 flakes from the workshops were analyzed for hydration bands. Of these, 68 from the quarry, and 54 and 33, respectively from the workshops produced at least one culturally meaningful hydration band. As expected, obsidian appears to hydrate slowly at this high elevation. Yet, variation in hydration readings is low within stratigraphic contexts, suggesting relatively narrow windows of knapping activities in each excavation level. A small number of radiocarbon dates allow us to develop a preliminary hydration rate for Chivay obsidian in this high elevation location. Hydration data indicate that intensive quarrying began by 3800 cal. BC and stopped ca. 2300 cal. BC. By contrast, the two workshops appear to have been deposited 2900 and 1200 cal. BC, and 2700 and 2400 cal. BC. The data are consistent with an uptick in obsidian use by at least the Terminal Archaic period.     

Hesitant hunters: a review of the introduction of agriculture in western Norway

Abstract

Evidence for the introduction of agriculture in western Norway is presented, using three categories of data: (1) palaeobotanical data, including pollen diagrams from lakes, bogs and archaeological sites, focusing on the presence of cereals, Plantago lanceolata L. and anthropogenic pollen indicators, and charred macro remains of cereals from archaeological sites; (2) osteological data, focusing on the occurrences of bones of cattle, sheep and goats in three rock-shelters, and the bone material from one open-air Neolithic site; (3) archaeological data, including artefacts indicating agricultural practices, distribution of residential settlement sites, and stray finds. The evidence for agricultural activity at the beginning of the fourth millennium BC (Early Neolithic, EN) is low, whereas the presence of both cereals and animal husbandry is indicated in the palaeobotanical material from the Middle Neolithic A (MNA, 3400–2600 cal. BC). The earliest record of domesticated animal bones is dated to the Middle Neolithic B (MNB, 2600–2200 cal. BC), while palynological and archaeological data also indicate an expansion in the area cultivated by early farmers. All data confirm the establishment of an agrarian society and animal husbandry in the Late Neolithic (LN, 2200–1700 cal. BC). It is concluded that agriculture was introduced into western Norway by the indigenous hunter-fisher populations. During this process, social and ideological factors played principal roles.     

The Early TRB 'Ploughmarks' from Sarnowo in Central Poland: A New Interpretation

The parallel, charcoal-filled depressions beneath a long-barrow at Sarnowo (Wлocлawek district, central Poland) have usually been interpreted as cultivation-furrows, and have been widely cited in the archaeological literature as evidence for use of the light plough, despite their early date (mid-fifth millennium cal BC) and context (early TRB). Since unambiguous ploughmarks only occur in northern Europe a millennium later, this is an anomaly. Here it is suggested that a more plausible explanation is that they represent the burned timber elements of a building, which would account for the plentiful traces of charcoal and burnt daub. The earliest evidence for the plough in Europe would thus date to the fourth millennium cal BC.     

Pollen-Analytical Results from Lake Katajajärvi – Aspects of the History of Settlement in the Finnish Inland Regions

Abstract

The Early Metal Period (1800 cal BC–AD 300) of the Finnish inland regions is characterized by a scarcity of archaeological remains. Its latest stages, in particular, have proved to be difficult to interpret. This paper discusses the continuity of settlement in the Early Metal Period as indicated by archaeological survey and pollen-analytical data. The study area is situated in Repovesi National Park in southeastern Finland. The pollen analysis was constructed from a sediment sequence taken from Lake Katajajärvi. The archaeological survey data from Repovesi National Park supports earlier hypotheses of the small number of Early Metal Period sites. In the pollen data, the first anthropogenic impact is recorded from about 2600 BC onwards, with weak signs of cultivation around 2370 BC. From around 1900 BC onwards a clear change in tree, shrub and herb pollen percentages indicates anthropogenic impact, possibly grazing, in the area. The pollen-analytical results also revealed a cultivation period of about 900 years at the end of the Early Metal Period, providing proof of continuity in settlement during a period characterized by a scarcity of archaeological material. A new beginning of cultivation from cal AD 1160 to 1250 onwards can be considered as indicating population growth, developing settlements and the colonization of new areas. The results from Repovesi are challenging from an archaeological point of view, because they represent slash-and-burn cultivation that appears to have been practised in total wilderness conditions. Comparison of the Lake Katajajärvi results with other areas raises new questions that call for a discussion of early slash-and-burn cultivation in new perspective.     

The definition and duration of the Beaker Culture in the Spanish Balearic Islands: a radiocarbon survey

This paper presents 45 radiocarbon dates demonstrating International Bell Beaker cultural contact and interaction with the Island of Mallorca, c. 2500 cal BC to 1300 cal BC. The radiocarbon documentation is accompanied by supporting artefactual and architectural evidence that demonstrates long-range seaborne exchange and a high degree of social complexity outside the Iberian Peninsula. The evidence has been collected over a thirty-four year period (1962–1996) from a number of sites which include cave, rock shelter, open-air settlement and ritual contexts. These demonstrate social, religious and economic activities which show an unusually rich variation and complexity, giving indications of social differentiation and local technological skills, such as water- and animal-management, architectural construction, as well as lithic, ceramic, metallurgical and other production, over some twelve hundred years.     

A New Megalithic Dolmen from the Balearic Island of Mallorca: Its Radiocarbon Dating amd Artefacts

This paper examines and discusses a 'dolmenic' structure recently discovered on the Spanish Balearic Island of Mallorca. This form of megalithic tomb architecture is the least studied of the many different types of local prehistoric monuments. Only seven dolmens are known in the Balearics (Mallorca and Menorca) and the Pityoussa Group (Ibiza and Formenterra) and only two of these have radiocarbon dating, circa 1750 cal BC to 1550 cal BC. The new structure, the Dolmen of Son Oleza, according to recent findings is the oldest example so far dated. A recent series of nine radiocarbon dates and two earlier analyses cover a period of circa 2200 cal BC to circa 1800 cal BC. The Olezian Dolmen is also the first to have yielded abundant Bell Beaker pottery and associated artefacts. It also reveals geological and architectural characteristics that are unlike other local dolmens, characteristics that by dating and artefact evidence identify it as a possible Balearic prototype. Furthermore, the Olezian Dolmen's location close to the Chalcolithic Old Settlement of Son Oleza, where identical dates and artefacts have been found, strongly suggests this settlement's contemporaneity and direct association with the Dolmen. This aspect, along with the other emerging evidence, is completely new to the question of Balearic dolmens, giving us fresh insight as to their chronology, function and socio-religious importance and significance.     

Palaeogeographical reconstructions of Lake Maliq (Korça Basin,Albania) between 14,000 BP and 2000 BP

Since the early 1990s, excavations of a protohistoric lakeside settlement in the Korça basin carried out by a French–Albanian archaeological team have induced geomorphological and palynological studies about the sedimentary records of Lake Maliq. These studies allow us to distinguish a series of centennial-scale high and low lake level events between 4200 and 4000 cal BP (2899–2637 BC/2843–2416 BC) and 2600 cal BP (822–671 BC), probably due to large-scale climate changes (in the Mediterranean basin). In addition, the sediment sequence also gives evidence of a millennial-scale trend of lake level rise. It appears to be an interplay between lake level rises and falls against tectonic subsidence of the basin allowing accommodation space for sediment deposition.The variations of the lake's level and the lake's surface area influenced the development and the abandonment of the nearby lakeside settlements (like the tell of Sovjan). In order to prepare an archaeological survey around the now dried up lake, we made a 3D model of the Holocene deposit from the lake including these lake level results, geomorphological mapping, excavation data, numerous core logs, AMS ¹⁴C dating and SRTM DEM data. The GIS model allowed us to propose four palaeogeographical reconstructions of the extension of Lake Maliq: around 14,000 BP, during the Mesolithic (around 9000 BP – 8781–8542 BC), the Early/Middle Bronze Age transition (around 3800 BP – 2310–2042 BC) and the Iron Age (2600 BP – 822–671 BC). A map of the thickness of the sediments above potential archaeological layers is also proposed.     

Absolute chronology of fluvial events in the Upper Dnieper River system and its palaeogeographic implications

A set of 121 radiocarbon and OSL dates has been compiled from the Upper Dnieper River and tributary valleys, Western European Russia. Each date was attributed according to geomorphic/sedimentological events and classes of fluvial activity. Summed probability density functions for each class were used to establish phases of increasing and reducing fluvial activity. The oldest detected reduction of fluvial activity was probably due to glacial damming at LGM. Within the Holocene three palaeohydrological epochs of millennial-scale were found: (1) high activity at 12,000–8,000 cal BP marked by large river palaeochannels; (2) low activity at 8,000–3,000 cal BP marked by formation of zonal-type soils on -floodplains; short episodes of high floods occurred between 6,500—4,400 cal BP; (3) contrasting hydrological oscillations since 3,000 cal BP with periods of high floods between 3,000–2,300 (2,000) and 900–100 cal BP separated by long interval of low floods 2,300 (2,000)-900 cal BP when floodplains were not inundated — zonal-type soils were developing and permanent settlements existed on floodplains. In the last millennium, four centennial-scale intervals were found: high flooding intervals are mid-11–mid-15^th century and mid-17–mid-20^th century. Intervals of flood activity similar to the present-day were: mid-15–mid-17^th century and since mid-19^th century till present. In the context of palaeohydrological changes, discussed are selected palaeogeographic issues such as: position of the glacial boundary at LGM, role of changing amounts of river runoff in the Black Sea level changes, floodplain occupation by Early Medieval population.     

Local diversity in settlement,demography and subsistence across the southern Indian Neolithic-Iron Age transition: site growth and abandonment at Sanganakallu-Kupgal

The Southern Indian Neolithic-Iron Age transition demonstrates considerable regional variability in settlement location, density, and size. While researchers have shown that the region around the Tungabhadra and Krishna River basins displays significant subsistence and demographic continuity, and intensification, from the Neolithic into the Iron Age ca. 1200 cal. BC, archaeological and chronometric records in the Sanganakallu region point to hilltop village expansion during the Late Neolithic and ‘Megalithic’ transition period (ca. 1400–1200 cal. BC) prior to apparent abandonment ca. 1200 cal. BC, with little evidence for the introduction of iron technology into the region. We suggest that the difference in these settlement histories is a result of differential access to stable water resources during a period of weakening and fluctuating monsoon across a generally arid landscape. Here, we describe well-dated, integrated chronological, archaeobotanical, archaeozoological and archaeological survey datasets from the Sanganakallu-Kupgal site complex that together demonstrate an intensification of settlement, subsistence and craft production on local hilltops prior to almost complete abandonment ca. 1200 cal. BC. Although the southern Deccan region as a whole may have witnessed demographic increase, as well as subsistence and cultural continuity, at this time, this broader pattern of continuity and resilience is punctuated by local examples of abandonment and mobility driven by an increasing practical and political concern with water.     

New AMS Dates from the Lambourn Long Barrow and the Question of the Earliest Neolithic in Sourthern England: Repacking the Neolithic Package?

This paper reassesses the chronological status of the Lambourn long barrow, which has provided one of the earliest dates from a mortuary monument in Britain. Three new AMS dates on short-lived material indicate that the construction and primary use phase of the monument lies within the period 3760–3645 cal BC, and that the earlier estimate obtained on charcoal (4555–3780 cal BC) is likely subject to the old wood effect, or is residual. This is followed by a consideration of the implications of the new dates in the context of the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition, the timing of which remains poorly understood. It is argued that the evidence is increasingly pointing to a more rapid neolithization process, and that this had implications for the mechanisms involved.