The Earliest Neolithic at Vedbæk Fjord, Denmark

Abstract

The investigation of a stratigraphically isolated settlement layer from the Earliest Neolithic (3950 – 3640 cal BC) at the Maglemosegård site, Northeast Zealand, reveals the nature of the Earliest Funnel Beaker horizon by the Stone Age Vedbæk Fjord. The settlement layer at Maglemosegård consists of small concentrations of fi nds, where only the presence of Funnel Beaker ceramics is typologically datable to the Neolithic. This is also the case on other Funnel Beaker sites in the area, where the Neolithic element is diffi cult to recognize from the lithic material and among the faunal remains. This problem of visibility is also relevant in a larger geographical perspective, especially where Early Neolithic and Mesolithic material are present at the same site. The lesson from Vedbæk and elsewhere too, suggests that the character and speed of the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition has to be revised.