Distribution Of Artifacts Research Articles

Mapping lateral stratigraphy at Palaeolithic surface sites: A case study from Dhofar, Oman

Open-air accumulations of chipped stone debris are a common feature in arid landscapes, yet despite their prevalence, such archives are often dismissed as uninformative or unreliable. In the canyonlands of Dhofar, southern Oman, lithic surface scatters are nearly ubiquitous, including extensive, multi-component workshops associated with chert outcrops. These sites typically display chronologically diagnostic features that correspond to distinct taphonomic states, which in turn appear linked to spatial distribution, with more heavily weathered artifacts often found farther from the chert outcrops. We propose that post-depositional modifications and spatial distributions of chipped stone artifacts reflect site formation processes and, under certain conditions, may provide relative chronological information when absolute dating methods are unavailable. Our study tests this hypothesis by mapping artifact distribution and lithic taphonomy across a series of surface sites in southern Oman, spanning the Lower, Middle, and Upper/Late Palaeolithic periods. The results largely support our model, offering valuable insights into surface site formation and technological change over time. While these findings serve as broad predictive markers for age, their applicability for analyzing finer-scale assemblage variability remains to be determined. Future taphonomic recording systems should aim to quantify surface modifications to enhance replicability for such studies.

Mapping Stratigraphy and Artifact Distribution with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-Based Three-Dimensional Models—A Case Study from the Post Research Area in Northwestern Texas, USA

This study applies UAV-based photogrammetry to map and examine the stratigraphy and archaeological artifact distribution in two localities within the Post research area in northwest Texas. A DJI Inspire 1 UAV equipped with a Zenmuse X5 camera captured nadir and oblique images. These were processed using Agisoft Metashape to generate 3D models. These models enabled the precise mapping of stratigraphic boundaries, revealing the distinctions between Triassic-age bedrock, Pleistocene-age alluvial deposits, and Holocene-age aeolian sediments. Field surveys from 2022 to 2024 documented over 5000 artifacts with sub-centimeter accuracy, including diagnostic projectile points and ceramics. This research highlights the advantages of UAV-derived 3D models in rapidly and accurately documenting stratigraphy and archaeological data. It demonstrates the value of UAV technology for visualizing landscape-scale processes and artifact contexts, offering a new approach to understanding the interactions between geomorphology and archaeology. The findings contribute to advancing UAV applications in both geomorphological and archaeological research.

Time-lapse Full Waveform Inversion with a new gradient-weighting strategy applied to marine seismic data

Time-lapse full waveform inversion (FWI) has the potential to reveal high-resolution reservoir production-related velocity changes. However, time-lapse FWI can introduce inversion artifacts, which might mask the true time-lapse signature within the reservoir zone, especially for the inversion of field data examples. We implement sequential bootstrap time-lapse FWI on marine seismic data from North Australia and observe noticeable inversion artifacts. To better understand these time-lapse FWI artifacts, we implement time-lapse FWI using the seismic data with different frequency bands and observe the distribution of the potential true time-lapse signature and inversion artifacts.On the inverted δVp (P wave velocity change) models using data with different frequency bands, the distribution of inversion artifacts exhibits inconsistencies, while the inverted δVp at the reservoir remains consistent. In order to comprehend these observations, we analyze the origin of these time-lapse artifacts from a theoretical perspective and find that a portion of these artifacts may arise from inversion null space and differences in data residuals between baseline and monitoring inversions. Building on these insights, we develop a novel time-lapse FWI method to suppress these inversion artifacts. We use the energy of the inverted δVp utilizing data with a lower dominant frequency band as a gradient-weighting term for time-lapse FWI using data with a higher dominant frequency band. The test of the novel time-lapse FWI method on marine data demonstrates its capability to suppress inversion artifacts effectively. The inverted δVp primarily reflects the 4D response, which is interpreted to be the softening of the reservoir caused by gas coming out of the solution within the oil column due to a pressure drop within the reservoir. To validate this data-driven research solution, we conduct tests on the SEG Advanced Modeling 4D (SEAM4D) model and synthetic 4D data where we know the true underlying earth models and time-lapse reservoir changes.

RESULTS OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELDWORK IN THE DISTRICTS OF DAK SONG AND DAK MIL, DAK NONG PROVINCE, IN 2018

This study investigates the archaeological potential of Dak Nong Province, Vietnam, as revealed by fieldwork in the Dak Song and Dak Mil districts. We conducted field surveys at various sites, resulting in the discovery of a rich prehistoric heritage in the region, despite challenges posed by complex natural conditions. While artifact distribution and concentration vary across sites, we identified significant concentrations in areas near lakes, rivers, and streams. We find that at locations such as Village 9A, volcanic Lake Dak Mil, and Tay Son Village, traces of concentration are faint. In contrast, at sites such as Dak Peur Border Gate and Tan Lap Village, there are traces of a dense population and long occupation by prehistoric people. The prehistoric inhabitants of Dak Mil and Dak Song districts often lived along lakes, rivers, and streams that did not dry up in the dry season; they lived in a large area and were highly mobile. Our preliminary research highlights the value of Dak Nong Province in studying the early stages of prehistory and cultural development in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam. This also underscores the importance of preserving and promoting archaeological heritage in Dak Mil and Dak Song districts.

The Taskuduk Camp Site in the Northern Caspian Sea (preliminary results of the study)

The article presents the results of a study of the Taskuduk site in 2023, located in the Kharabalinsky district of the Astrakhan region. These investigations were a continuation of the 2022 research. An aim of excavations was the clarify cultural layer boundaries and obtain new materials. Planographic analysis allowed the authors to determine the borders of the cultural layer. The stratigraphic analysis gave the possibility for artifact distribution. The excavations provided an increase in the information base of sources about the Late Neolithic of the Northern Cis-Caspian region. A representative collection of stone tools has significant importance. A homogeneous combination of products from different types of raw materials has been proven. The specificity of microscrapers in the Late Neolithic stone industry was established by a typological method. The adze with traces of processing and polishing was found. The unique arrow point, which is untypical for the stone industry of this region was determined. The application of technical and technological analysis as well as the thin section analysis of pottery allowed the authors to determine the recipes of ceramic pastes. A lot of vessels have an influx on the inside of the corolla. This pottery feature has analogies with the vessels of the Dzhangar and Orlovka cultures. On the base of gas chromatography analysis of the charred food crusts on ceramics the diet of ancient people was reconstructed. The study of a representative collection of animal bones provided information about the economic strategy on this site. The radiocarbon dating supports the Late Neolithic age of this site.

Some first observations on ant-nest morphology and micromorphology, the effects of wildfires, and their implications for the understanding of archaeological features

Ants are among the soil mesofauna that cause significant bioturbation at the location of their nests. They can have significant impact on the preservation of soil features and on post-depositional artefact distribution. Moreover, there is discussion on the natural or anthropogenic nature of so-called ‘pit-hearth’ features dating to the Mesolithic. Such features are common in parts of the Netherlands, NW Belgium, and NW Germany, and form an important body of evidence in the study of hunter-gatherer landscape use. However, it has been hypothesized that these features represent ant nests burnt due to climate-related wildfires, instead of anthropogenic pit hearths, and are therefore of little archaeological value, other than as a potential proxy for climate conditions. Considering the lack of direct evidence on underground characteristics of ant nests, we investigated the characteristics of two wood ant nests: Oone abandoned and one accidently burnt in a wildfire c. 10 years earlier. We trenched through the ant nest remains and used micromorphology to study the characteristics of the ant-influenced soil profiles. The surface domes of the ant nests had disappeared, leaving behind a bowl-shaped depression. In the burnt ant nest, a thin band of charred litter-like organic material was all that was left over from the burned superstructure. These depressions seem not to reach deeper than the top of cemented podzol Bhs-horizons. Surrounding and underneath the depression, extensive networks of tunnels and chambers were found in the B- and C-horizons. If archaeological artefacts had been present on the site, they would have become buried and moved to the top of the B-horizon. Any soil features would have been destroyed. Moreover, the extensive tunnel and chamber network extending from the depression would potentially affect the botanical record and the OSL signal of the deposits.Comparison of our results with Mesolithic pit-hearth features shows substantial differences between the two types of remains. Ant nest depressions do not extend into (cemented) podzol B horizons, whereas Mesolithic pit hearths typically have their base in the C horizons. The extensive tunnelling in B- and C-horizons of large ant nests has not been observed in Mesolithic pit-hearth features. On the other hand, the large amount of charred humus and charcoal fragments in Mesolithic pit hearths are lacking in the burned ant nest we studied. We therefore conclude that Mesolithic pit-hearth features are not the result of the burning down of ant nests, but should be regarded as anthropogenic features.

Working in Tandem to Uncover 3D Artefact Distribution in Archaeological Excavations: Mathematical Interpretation through Positional and Relational Methods

In recent years, the most advanced pioneering techniques in the computing field have found application in assorted areas. Deep learning approaches, including artificial neural networks (ANNs), have become popular thanks to their ability to draw inferences from intricate and seemingly unconnected datasets. Additionally, 3D clustering techniques manage to associate groups of elements by identifying the specific inherent structures exhibited by such objects based on similarity measures. Generally, the characteristics of archaeological information gathered after extraction operations align with the previously mentioned challenges. Hence, an excavation could be an opportunity to use these prior innovative computing approaches. Our objective is to integrate software techniques to organise recovered artefacts and derive logical conclusions from their spatial location and the correlation between tangible attributes. These results can statistically improve our approach to investigations and provide a mathematical interpretation of archaeological excavations.

Not only domestic spaces: dismantling short‐term occupations in Level 497D of Cova Gran de Santa Linya (Pre‐Pyrenees, Spain)

ABSTRACTThe Early Upper Paleolithic Level 497D of Cova Gran (Pre‐Pyrenees, Spain) comprises large assemblages of lithics, fauna, hearths, ash accumulations and well‐preserved refitting sequences. This provides exceptional information to analyze spatial patterns and deepen our understanding of the socio‐economic behavior of these human groups. This large interdisciplinary dataset has allowed us to carry out a detailed spatial study based on density analysis, geostatistics, fabric analysis and orientation techniques, revealing a structuring of the activities performed within the rock shelter. The distribution and accumulation of lithic artifacts, fauna and refits, and their association with the 10 hearths and ash accumulations, show that different types of activities were developed at the site, as well as showing the different uses of the hearths. 497D is a palimpsest where several short‐term occupations and/or activities could have occurred in a relatively short period of time, avoiding prolonged exposure to biotic and abiotic post‐depositional factors that could have significantly disturbed this well‐preserved assemblage. This level shows a place visited several times in relation to the development of specific activities, with movements throughout the landscape for the exploitation of local and regional resources, and less so its use as a domestic space. This implies that the central settlement, or dwelling space, would have been located somewhere other than Cova Gran.

Life on Pálava Hills in the Urnfield period through the perspective of a metal-detecting survey

Abstract Pálava is a complex of prominent limestone hills in South Moravia, with extensive traces of prehistoric activities. This study presents the results of a long-term metal-detecting survey of the Pálava Hills and their surroundings. It focuses on findings dated to the Bronze Age and especially to the Urnfield period with 673 from the topsoil recovered artefacts. The study monitors the functional composition of the items within the dataset, as well as the spatial distribution of individual artefacts. The data from the surveys allow comparisons between the enclosed sites at the Stolová hora, Kotel, and Děvín hills, and the open satellite settlements in the hinterland. The results are also used for a comparison with other Moravian Bronze Age sites that have been surveyed with the same method. The study also includes a metallographic analysis of 177 objects. The results create a picture of an intensively used hillfort at Stolová hora, which in the Urnfield period represented a centrepiece of a broader agglomeration, and at some point, also probably of the whole region.

Geoarchaeology, preliminary study of relationship analysis between geological conditions and the Megalithic sites in the candidate of Ternate Geopark, North Maluku

Abstract Geopark is a concept of sustainable development with three main components: geological diversity, cultural diversity, and biodiversity, with the ultimate goal of protecting the Earth’s diversity, environmental preservation, and broader earth science education. Geological and cultural diversity in a geopark concept does not stand alone, but there is a relationship. Ternate Island is a volcanic island with Gamalama Mts as a Quaternary Volcano. The area around the volcano is comfortable because there is sufficient water despite the eruption disaster. Megalithic artefacts such as menhirs and pseudo dolmens are cultural products closely tied to the significant stone tradition. Megalithic remains on Ternate Island are represented by the presence of Jere, a local term to refer to the sacred places usually represented by menhirs and whole boulders in 56 locations. The regent government plans to develop it as an island geopark. Before being proposed, a study of geological, biological, and cultural diversity must be carried out to propose establishing a geoheritage and preparing a Geopark proposal document. This initial research uses the overlay method to identify geological conditions, determine the distribution of megalithic artefacts, and analyze their relationships.

An interactive task-based method for the avoidance of metal artifacts in CBCT

PurposeIntraoperative cone-beam CT imaging enables 3D validation of implant positioning and fracture reduction for orthopedic and trauma surgeries. However, the emergence of metal artifacts, especially in the vicinity of metallic objects, severely degrades the clinical value of the imaging modality. In previous works, metal artifact avoidance (MAA) methods have been shown to reduce metal artifacts by adapting the scanning trajectory. Yet, these methods fail to translate to clinical practice due to remaining methodological constraints and missing workflow integration.MethodsIn this work, we propose a method to compute the spatial distribution and calibrated strengths of expected artifacts for a given tilted circular trajectory. By visualizing this as an overlay changing with the C-Arm’s tilt, we enable the clinician to interactively choose an optimal trajectory while factoring in the procedural context and clinical task. We then evaluate this method in a realistic human cadaver study and compare the achieved image quality to acquisitions optimized using global metrics.ResultsWe assess the effectiveness of the compared methods by evaluation of image quality gradings of depicted pedicle screws. We find that both global metrics as well as the proposed visualization of artifact distribution enable a drastic improvement compared to standard non-tilted scans. Furthermore, the novel interactive visualization yields a significant improvement in subjective image quality compared to the state-of-the-art global metrics. Additionally we show that by formulating an imaging task, the proposed method allows to selectively optimize image quality and avoid artifacts in the region of interest.ConclusionWe propose a method to spatially resolve predicted artifacts and provide a calibrated measure for artifact strength grading. This interactive MAA method proved practical and effective in reducing metal artifacts in the conducted cadaver study. We believe this study serves as a crucial step toward clinical application of an MAA system to improve image quality and enhance the clinical validation of implant placement.

The first peoples of the Atacama Desert lived among the trees: A 11,600- to 11,200-year-old grove and congregation site

In deserts, water has been singled out as the most important factor for choosing where to settle, but trees were likely an important part of the landscape for hunter-gatherers beyond merely constituting an economic resource. Yet, this critical aspect has not been considered archaeologically. Here, we present the results of mapping and radiocarbon dating of a truly unique archaeological record. Over 150 preserved stumps around five Late Pleistocene/Early Holocene archaeological campsites (12,800 to 11,200 cal BP) show that trees were key features in the creation of everyday habitats for the first inhabitants of the Atacama Desert. At two of these sites, QM12 and QM35, the spatial and chronological correlation between trees and hearths reveals that people located their homes under the tree canopy. At residential site QM35, artifact distribution coincides with a grove dated to ~11,600 to 11,200 cal BP. A third residential area (QM32) occurred along the grove margins ~12,000 to 11,200 cal BP. Based on the distinct cultural material of these two camps, we propose that two different groups intermittently shared this rich wetland-grove environment. The tree taxa suggest a preference for the native Schinus molle, a tree scarcely present on the landscape today, over the endemic, nitrogen-fixing Strombocarpa tamarugo, both for toolmaking and firewood and even though the S. tamarugo was locally more abundant. Together with the spatial and chronological coincidence of campsites, hearths, and trees, we propose that people spared the most abundant and resilient species to create their homes, in turn promoting fertility oases amid the Atacama's hyperaridity.

Two Letters from B.P. Grenfell to C.T. Currelly in the Royal Ontario Museum Archive: New Evidence for the Acquisition of Egyptian Antiquities in Canada

This article presents and comments upon two unpublished letters, presently housed at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), written by B.P. Grenfell in Oxyrhynchus to his Egypt Exploration Fund (EEF) colleague C.T. Currelly. Though brief, the letters provide valuable insights into matters pertaining to the activities of the EEF at the turn of the twentieth century, including the social relationships between various EEF excavators and how such relationships contributed to the movement of artifacts out of Egypt in general and irregularities in the practice of artifact distribution in particular. They also offer new details about the various means by which Currelly was acquiring Egyptian artifacts at a formative time for what would become Canada's foremost archaeological museum, the ROM.

A multi-proxy geochemical and micromorphological study of the use of space and stratigraphy of a Viking-age house in Ribe, Denmark

High-definition approaches are currently revolutionizing our understanding of the archaeology of urban archives. Multi-proxy studies at a high spatial resolution offer especially an opportunity to capture their high data potential. Here we present a study of complex floor layers from an occupation phase dating to c. AD 790–830 uncovered in the Viking-age emporium Ribe, Denmark (c. AD 700–900). In order to better understand stratigraphy and the use of indoor space, mapping for soil geochemistry (portable X-ray fluorescence analysis, pXRF) on a high-resolution grid (0.25 × 0.25 m, n = 1059), was combined with targeted sampling for soil micromorphology and artefact distributions. The results show that the studied occupation phase was composed of several short-lived floor phases belonging to two consecutive houses that had been sampled in conjunction, and which exhibited a complex stratigraphy. The older house phase had a primarily domestic function, where ten functional areas could be defined, and are interpreted as designated spaces for food preparation, storage, sitting or sleeping, and weaving. A younger house phase contained a metal workshop in addition to domestic functions. Methodologically, a number of new, potentially anthropogenic, elements of archaeological interest, such as arsenic, manganese and sulfur, were identified that may contribute to interpretations, while the multi-proxy approach elucidates the refined scale at which we can understand a complex stratigraphic sequence and the integrity of its units. This study shows how the various aspects of Viking-age urban life (craft production, domestic life) were integrated, and sheds light on the dynamics of urban occupation.

How to assess the accuracy of volume conduction models? A validation study with stereotactic EEG data.

Volume conduction models of the human head are used in various neuroscience fields, such as for source reconstruction in EEG and MEG, and for modeling the effects of brain stimulation. Numerous studies have quantified the accuracy and sensitivity of volume conduction models by analyzing the effects of the geometrical and electrical features of the head model, the sensor model, the source model, and the numerical method. Most studies are based on simulations as it is hard to obtain sufficiently detailed measurements to compare to models. The recording of stereotactic EEG during electric stimulation mapping provides an opportunity for such empirical validation. In the study presented here, we used the potential distribution of volume-conducted artifacts that are due to cortical stimulation to evaluate the accuracy of finite element method (FEM) volume conduction models. We adopted a widely used strategy for numerical comparison, i.e., we fixed the geometrical description of the head model and the mathematical method to perform simulations, and we gradually altered the head models, by increasing the level of detail of the conductivity profile. We compared the simulated potentials at different levels of refinement with the measured potentials in three epilepsy patients. Our results show that increasing the level of detail of the volume conduction head model only marginally improves the accuracy of the simulated potentials when compared to in-vivo sEEG measurements. The mismatch between measured and simulated potentials is, throughout all patients and models, maximally 40 microvolts (i.e., 10% relative error) in 80% of the stimulation-recording combination pairs and it is modulated by the distance between recording and stimulating electrodes. Our study suggests that commonly used strategies used to validate volume conduction models based solely on simulations might give an overly optimistic idea about volume conduction model accuracy. We recommend more empirical validations to be performed to identify those factors in volume conduction models that have the highest impact on the accuracy of simulated potentials. We share the dataset to allow researchers to further investigate the mismatch between measurements and FEM models and to contribute to improving volume conduction models.

Unique accessories and connection network of a Gepid Period child burial. New data on the distribution of early medieval ivory artefacts

AbstractThe Gepid Period row cemetery at Tiszaug-Országúti bevágás was unearthed in 2018–2019. Grave 301 was one of the outstanding burials amongst the 194 graves unearthed thus far. It kept the remains of a 9–11-year old boy, who was laid to rest in a scale-down burial created according to the funerary customs of the area and era but dressed in a mortuary costume and provided with goods befitting adult men. He had a purse hanging from his belt, containing an iron knife, and some pieces of flint. A double-row antler comb was placed beside his head. A cast copper alloy belt buckle with a shield-shaped pin base and punch-mark decoration fastened his clothing on the front. While buckles of this type were widely used at that time, the closest analogies to the punch-mark decoration could be collected from the Carpathian Basin. Based on those, the burial could be dated to the mid or late 6th century AD. Another outstanding feature of the cemetery was the four burials (including Grave 301) where the deceased were laid to rest in coffins made from or imitating log boats.Grave 301 also contained a rounded conical ivory object. The optical microscope and vibration spectroscopy analyses confirmed the initial hypotheses of the finders about the raw material of the artefact. Despite carrying out a comprehensive survey for analogies and an analysis of production and use-related marks, we could not determine what the object could have been used for; it may be a semi-finished product, but it could also be a toy or amulet. At any rate, it was made from a raw material which was extremely rare in the eastern part of the Carpathian Basin in the period in question. Grave 301 was positioned in a cluster comprising more child burials, with the graves of two adult women at the fringes; the ongoing archaeogenetical investigations may shed light on the connections between them.

The role of Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) on landscape dynamics and lithic taphonomy in La Pastosa Islet, North Patagonia, Argentina

This study presents the results of a systematic survey of La Pastosa Islet, located 700 m off the west coast of Río Negro, Argentina. This small islet has the particularity of hosting the northernmost colony of Magellanic penguins ( Spheniscus magellanicus) to date and contains evidence of its use by hunter-gatherer groups during the late Holocene. This growing colony started around 2002 and has had a significant impact on the subsurface archeological record of the islet by increasing erosion and exposing buried materials through nest excavation, particularly lithic artifacts. The spatial analysis of the distribution of artifact and penguin burrows indicates that the actions of the latter generated a “snapshot” of the subsurface distribution of the lithic record. The observed distribution suggested higher discard rates at the center of the islet. Furthermore, this study shows the synergy between both types of records in the formation dynamics of the lithic landscape and the agency of penguins as active landscape engineers. Finally, the obtained results have important implications for the management of the protected sector of the recently established Islote Lobos National Park, within which the study area is located.

Tracking the emergence of an organized use of space: A direct comparison of the spatial patterning within Middle and Upper Paleolithic open-air sites

Although the ‘organization of space’ is said to be one of the defining characteristics of modern human behavior, the identification and documentation of such organization has proven to be elusive, especially as rendered in artifact patterning. Without directly comparing artifact patterns within multiple sites, there is no benchmark with which to conclude one site to be more or less ‘organized’ than another. We can objectively identify patterns within the distribution of archaeological materials, but the decision of whether that patterning constitutes as ‘organized’ is entirely subjective without a comparative model. In this paper, I present the results of a study in which the spatial distribution of artifacts within nine Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites in France are directly compared to one another, and discernible changes in patterning can be identified. The differences in spatial patterning between the Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites suggest that the organization of space likely became increasingly formalized into and throughout the Upper Paleolithic alongside other cultural norms of behavior. Though more sites are needed to thoroughly document this phenomenon, this study suggests that direct comparisons of spatial patterning have the potential to yield more objective results on the question of spatial organization.

From Tents to Pit Houses: A Quantitative Study of Dwelling Trends in Mesolithic Norway, 9500–4000 bc

A quantitative analysis of 150 Mesolithic dwellings in Norway, dated to between 9500 and 4000 cal bc, forms the core of a chronological and regional study based on fifteen variables, including floor size and shape, floor modifications and wall features, internal hearths, numbers and distribution of artefacts, traces of maintenance or reuse, and the number of dwellings per site. The study identifies a distinct change in dwelling traditions between the Early and Middle Mesolithic, around 8000 cal bc. Tents are typical of the Early Mesolithic, whereas remains of pit houses dominate in all later phases of the Mesolithic. The study also sheds light on variability in dwelling traditions after 8000 cal bc, which appears to relate to changes in social structure, growing territoriality, and regional differences.

A multi-method approach with machine learning to evaluating the distribution and intensity of prehistoric land use in Eastern Iberia

The present study seeks to better understand the coupling of social and biophysical systems during the late Pleistocene and Holocene, a period characterized by changing interglacial conditions as well as human population expansion and intensified ecosystem management. The approach consists of a combination of patch-based archaeological survey methods, sediment column sampling for paleoenvironmental data, geospatial analysis, and machine learning for chronological unmixing, allowing the systematic evaluation of the distribution and intensity of prehistoric land use in the study area of eastern Mediterranean Iberia. Occupational and Land Use Intensity maps developed from continuous distributions of surface artifacts as well as a summed probability density curve developed from 14C dates indicate low but steady human presence in the study area during the Middle Paleolithic and Upper Paleolithic with a marked decrease of human presence across the Pleistocene/Holocene boundary. The Early (and Middle) Neolithic saw the most ubiquitous and intensive occupation of the study area followed by a significant decline during the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic. The charcoal analysis also supports this pattern. Early Neolithic farming strategies may not have been damaging initially during the climatic regime of the Early Holocene but exacerbated the impacts of higher temperatures and summer droughts, with a loss of the most productive farmland, seen at the onset of the Late Neolithic. Similar boom-bust population trends have been documented throughout Europe during these same time spans and may indicate a recursive interaction or “coupling” between global and regional climate events and human land use strategies.