Pitted ware culture: Isotopic evidence for contact between Sweden and Denmark across the Kattegat in the Middle Neolithic, ca. 3000 BC

Abstract

The Pitted Ware Culture emerged during the Neolithic around 3400 BCE in east-central Sweden and quickly spread south and west to various parts of southern Scandinavia. For the next millennium these groups exhibited less interest in agricultural activity and a general return to the hunting and gathering of wild animals and plants with a focus on seals in some coastal areas. Pitted Ware Culture arrived in northeastern Denmark after 3100 BCE. One of the most important sites of this period was at Kainsbakke, on the peninsula of Djursland. One deep pit at the site contained unusual numbers of bear, red deer, European elk, and boar remains. This study focuses on the isotopic proveniencing of some of these animal remains to evaluate their origins. Confirmation of the import of some of the animals, probably from western Sweden, suggests possible shared ritual activity at the central Kainsbakke site. This evidence also confirms the navigating skills of Neolithic peoples in northern Europe.