Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition Research Articles

Difference in ecological niche breadth between Mesolithic and Early Neolithic groups in Iberia

The Mesolithic settlement of Iberia was mainly concentrated along the coastal areas, which contrasts with the wide geographic distribution achieved in a relatively short time by Early Neolithic groups. However, there was a chronological delay in the arrival of agriculture in the northern latitudes of Iberia. In the current study, paleoclimate values were interpolated from the composite benthic stable oxygen and ecological niche modelling techniques were used to determine whether these differences in the geographic distributions and spread patterns are consequences of differences in the ecological niches of the last hunter-gatherers and the first farmers. Results show that Mesolithic and Early Neolithic groups were not adapted to different ecological niches, and therefore the slowdown in the incursion of Neolithic groups into the north of Iberia was not due to their incompatibility with the environmental conditions. Furthermore, the adoption of production economies entailed an ecological niche expansion, which became essential for the observed demographic trends and the settlement distribution changes in the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition. We argue that the broader ecological niche of the first farmers probably allowed them to occupy large territories, whereas the narrower ecological niche of Mesolithic groups could have made the last hunter-gatherers more vulnerable to the climatic changes that affected the coastal ecosystems in the Mid-Holocene.

Microbotanical evidence for the spread of cereal use during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the Southeastern Europe (Danube Gorges): Data from dental calculus analysis

Research increasingly suggests that natural and social environments shaped the Neolithic expansion of the farming niche into Europe. The Danube Gorges, on account of its position between the Mediterranean and more temperate regions and the presence of archaeological sites with continuous Mesolithic and Neolithic layers of occupation associated with vast burial grounds is ideal for studying the modality of Neolithization. Previous dietary stable isotope (carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur) studies in the Central Balkan area indicate that many Neolithic humans remained reliant on foraged aquatic resources in the Gorges. Until now, there is no unambiguous evidence of cereal consumption in this region. The possibility that the rich aquatic resources of the Danube river habitats within Central Balkans influenced diet and thus delayed uptake of Neolithic cultigens is unanswered. The extensive skeletal record from sites in the Danube Gorges (Central Balkans) with its long temporal sequence, provides the opportunity to reconstruct plant use during Mesolithic and the Neolithic. To assess when cereals and possibly cultivated plants spread to the region, we analysed the microbotanical remains (starch grains and phytoliths) entrapped in the dental calculus of 81 individuals dating from 9100 to 5500 cal BC, recovered from five sites in the Danube Gorges. This study marks the largest study of dental calculus from this period so far conducted. Added to this, we present new radiocarbon dates (n = 17), bone collagen stable isotope data (δ13C and δ15N; n = 5) and data on caries frequency. This dietary study identifies that the growing of crops commenced in the Early Neolithic circa 6000 cal BC and was brought by farming migrants of north-western Anatolian ancestry into the Danube Gorges. Despite bringing a Neolithic agro-pastoral subsistence practices and cultural novelties in the Gorges, these migrants and their descendants adopted some of the local dietary and cultural traditions, suggesting a mosaic pattern of Neolithization. The resulting data provides a better understanding of the tempo and spread of cereal agriculture practices and the role of cereals in the diet of Danube Gorges inhabitants.

Multi-profile fine-resolution palynology of Late Mesolithic to Bronze Age peat at Cat Stones, Rishworth Moor, Central Pennines, UK

Palynological data from three radiocarbon dated peat profiles at Rishworth Moor in the Pennine hills of northern England provide a record of vegetation change and human impacts in the Late Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. All three cultures have archaeological sites present in the vicinity, with Late Mesolithic sites by far the most abundant, comprising mainly very late assemblages dominated by ‘rod’-shaped microliths. Pollen evidence of vegetation disturbance occurs during all three archaeological periods, and is attributed to the results of human activity. Microscopic charcoal and non-pollen palynomorph analyses support the pollen evidence. Sites at Cat Stones 2 and Cat Stones 3 record evidence of Neolithic and Bronze Age date only. Cat Stones 1 extends into the Late Mesolithic period, and fine-resolution pollen analyses have been applied in this profile to the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition leading up to the mid-Holocene Elm ( Ulmus) Decline, which starts here at c. 494014C BP (5670 cal. BP), a typical date for it in the central Pennines. Bayesian age-depth modelling provides precise ages for the vegetation changes and their spatial correlation. The plateau was dominated by scrub and grassy Calluna heath from the Late Mesolithic onwards. Elevated microscopic charcoal levels and ruderal herb pollen record phases of fire disturbance below the Elm Decline, including a grain of Hordeum cereal-type. Whether this grain represents early cultivation requires further research. Bronze Age impacts are of greater intensity, but disturbances of all three cultural periods are low scale, agreeing with the results of previous research in the Pennines.

Dendro-anthracological tools applied to Scots type pine forests exploitation as fuel during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the southern central pre-Pyrenees (Spain)

This work focuses on the reconstruction of fuelwood procurement during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the southern central Pre-Pyrenees (Spain). The study combines wood charcoal identification with the application of dendro-anthracological approaches in the archaeological sequence of Esplugón (9.4–6.8 kyr cal BP) (Sabiñanigo, Huesca). Scots type pine (Pinus sylvestris tp.) reaches in this record around 90% of exploited firewood in line with its abundance in the inner Iberia mountainous areas during the onset of the Holocene. The classification of pine wood fragments in anthraco-groups is based on the combination of different dendro-anthracological tools: i) pith location tool and wood diameter estimation based on the trigonomethric method tool (ADmodel), ii) the study of growth rate based on the annual tree-ring width measurements, and iii) a modern dendrological dataset. There are hardly any differences observed in firewood procurement between the last hunter-gatherers and the first farmers in the long sequences from rock-shelters with recurrent human occupations. First results from this site point to the exploitation of whole trees but a high use of small pine branches probably from the gathering of branch shedding.

Seasonal Shellfishing across the East Adriatic Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition: Oxygen Isotope Analysis of Phorcus turbinatus from Vela Spila (Croatia)

ABSTRACT The Mesolithic-Neolithic transition is a classic topic of archaeological discussion, and the East Adriatic is of particular interest as a gateway region for agriculture entering Europe from the Near East. Neolithisation along the East Adriatic coast has been characterised as a two-wave process of leap-frog demographic replacement along the Dalmatian coast, followed by a longer process of acculturation further inland. Research on this transition primarily addresses the arrival of Neolithic technology and domesticates, but the view from ‘traditionally Mesolithic’ activities can provide an alternative perspective. This pilot study highlights one such practice, identifying changes in the seasonality of shellfish gathering over the Neolithic transition using material from Vela Spila, Korčula (Croatia). Specimens of the gastropod Phorcus turbinatus from across this transition were assessed using oxygen isotope analysis. Results showed a focus on summer and autumn collection during the Mesolithic, which then shifted to autumn and winter in the Neolithic. These results indicate differences in shellfish gathering and exploitation across the Neolithic transition, and implications for the demographic transition and human-environment interactions are discussed. Shellfishing in the East Adriatic is identified as an area of Neolithisation rather than Mesolithic continuity.

The Elm Decline is Dead! Long Live Declines in Elm: Revisiting the Chronology of the Elm Decline in Ireland and its Association with the Mesolithic/Neolithic Transition

ABSTRACT The Elm Decline (ED), is a marked reduction in Ulmus recognised in pollen diagrams from across north/northwest Europe c. 5-6000 cal BP, the causes of which have been much discussed for over half a century, partly because of its broad chronological correspondence with the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. We present a formal statistical analysis of the ED chronology in Ireland, analysing its association with early Neolithic anthropogenic activity as indicated indirectly by palynological evidence and directly through radiocarbon dated cereal macrofossils. The results derived from pollen records regarded as sufficiently robust for Bayesian modelling indicate the date for the ED ranges from the later Mesolithic to middle Neolithic. Different palynological ‘expressions’ of the ED are identified, and comparison of the ED date range and increases in Plantago lanceolata indicate that although correlation between anthropogenic activity and the onset of the ‘Elm Decline’ can be identified at several sites, this is not consistent. Comparison with the cereal macrofossil record demonstrates that generally the ED occurred prior to the onset of Neolithic cereal cultivation as defined by these data. We discuss implications for understanding the patterns and processes that may underlie the ED and question whether the ‘Elm Decline’ continues to merit the definite article.

Animals and People in the Netherlands’ Past: >50 Years of Archaeozoology in the Netherlands

More than fifty years ago, Anneke T. Clason published the first English-language archaeozoological study on Dutch faunal assemblages. Inspired by the anniversary of this landmark publication, this paper presents a status overview of Dutch archaeozoology organized in twelve themes (e.g. rituals, Mesolithic-Neolithic transition, medieval period). The paper also discusses the common methods applied in Dutch archaeozoology, and includes extensive supplementary material that summarizes data from gray literature in Dutch. Our aim is to provide a guide to archaeozoological questions pertaining to the Netherlands and open a window for researchers working outside the Netherlands to the highly active world of Dutch archaeozoology.

δ18O-inferred salinity fromLittorina littorea(L.) gastropods in a Danish shell midden at the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition

Norsminde Fjord has received extensive geoarchaeological investigation, hosting one of the classic Stone Age shell midden sites in Denmark, and one of the best examples of the widespread oyster decline at the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition. Here, intra-shell δ18O (and δ13C) analyses from the common periwinkle Littorina littorea (L.) are used to infer inter-annual environmental changes at the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition (four from each period). This study utilises a modern δ18O L. littorea-salinity training set previously developed for the Limfjord, Denmark to quantify winter salinity. δ18O values range between +1.6% and +4.0% in the late Mesolithic and ‒6.3% to +2.0% in the early Neolithic. Using maximum δ18O values, winter salinity at the known temperature of growth cessation in L. littorea (i.e. +3.7 ± 1°C) for the first annual cycle of each shell ranges between 25.5 and 26.8 psu (standard deviation (SD): 0.56) for the late Mesolithic, with an average salinity of 26.1 psu. Early-Neolithic shells range between 19.4 and 28.2 psu (SD: 4.59) with an average salinity of 23.7 psu. No statistically significant change in salinity occurs between the late Mesolithic and early Neolithic. This result supports recent diatom/mollusc-based inferences that salinity was not the sole cause of the oyster decline, although some evidence is presented here for more variable seasonal salinity conditions in the early Neolithic, which (along sedimentary change and temperature deterioration) might have increased stress on oyster populations in some years. It is recommended here that for robust palaeoenvironmental inferences, where possible, multiple specimens should be used from the same time period in conjunction with multiproxy data.

Calling Time on Oronsay: Revising Settlement Models Around the Mesolithic–Neolithic Transition in Western Scotland, New Evidence from Port Lobh, Colonsay

For over 120 years, the shell middens of western Scotland and the series of open-air sites on Oronsay have been the focus of debate in European Mesolithic studies. This paper challenges the significance of Oronsay in light of results from the geophysical survey and test-excavation of a new limpet and periwinkle shell midden dated to the late 5th or start of the 4th millennium calbcat Port Lobh, Colonsay that offers fresh evidence to re-evaluate critically the role of Oronsay and coastal resources in island settlement models ahead of the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition. Test excavations recovered a marine molluscan assemblage dominated by limpet and periwinkle shells together with crab, sea urchin, a fishbone assemblage composed mainly of Gadidae, some identifiable bird and mammal bone, carbonised macroplant remains, and pumice as well as a bipolar lithic assemblage and coarse stone implements. Novel seasonality studies of saithe otolith thin-sections suggest wintertime tidal fishing practices. At least two activity events may be discerned, dating from the late 5th millennium calbc. The midden could represent a small number of rapidly deposited assemblages or maybe the result of stocastic events within a more extended timeframe. We argue that alternative research questions are needed to advance long-standing debates about seasonal inter-island mobility versus island sedentism that look beyond Oronsay to better understand later Mesolithic occupation patterns and the formation and date of Oronsay middens. We propose alternative methodological strategies to aid identification of contemporaneous sites using geophysical techniques and lithic technological signatures.

The Mesolithic-Neolithic interface in the Southern Caucasus: 2016–2017 excavations at Damjili Cave, West Azerbaijan

An increasing number of field investigations in Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia have revealed that the Neolithic socio-economy in the Southern Caucasus had emerged by the early 8th millennium cal BP. Although this probably occurred during the expansion of the Southwest Asian Neolithic, the local hunter-gatherer societies might also have contributed to the establishment of the Caucasian Neolithic cultures. However, the absence of well-dated Mesolithic sites immediately preceding the earliest Neolithic has prevented this process from being discussed in detail. This paper reports the discovery of such evidence from the 2016–2017 excavations at the Damjili Cave in West Azerbaijan. Dated from the Mesolithic of the final 9th millennium cal BP, this discovery offers the first opportunity to compare a late Mesolithic cultural assemblage with the early 6th millennium Neolithic one to investigate the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the Southern Caucasus. The new evidence highlights the need to understand the complex nature of Neolithization in the Southern Caucasus, apparently involving both continuity and replacement between the local Mesolithic and the incoming Neolithic socio-economies.

Spearheading into the Neolithic: Last Foragers and First Farmers in the Dinaric Alps of Montenegro

This article presents a summary of new evidence for the Mesolithic in the Dinaric Alps of Montenegro. The region is one of the best areas in south-eastern Europe to study Early Holocene foragers and the nature of the transition to Neolithic lifeways at the end of the seventh and the beginning of the sixth millennium calbcthanks to the existence of biodiverse landscapes and numerous karstic features. We argue that harpoons found at two different sites in this regional context represent a curated technology that has its roots in a local Mesolithic cultural tradition. The continued use of this standardized hunting tool kit in the Neolithic provides an important indication about the character of the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition. We also use this regional case study to address wider questions concerning the visibility and modes of Mesolithic occupation in south-eastern Europe as a whole.

On the distinction of pollen grains of early varieties of Hordeum from Glyceria species: addressing the early cereal cultivation problem in palynology

Pollen grains of primitive varieties of Hordeum vulgare collected by the Gene Bank of the Crop Research Institute, Prague, are compared to pollen of native Glyceria species of the United Kingdom with a view to establishing separation criteria. It is found that a separation of Hordeum vulgare from both Glyceria maxima and Glyceria fluitans is possible according to annular characteristics in combination with grain size as dependent variables. These findings have implications for the identification of cereal-type pollen grains that could be evidence for early cultivation in the Terminal Mesolithic of north-west Europe, and for the use of palynology as a reliable source of palaeobotanical data, particularly in its inland areas. A phase of vegetation disturbance from the pollen site of Dog Hill in the southern Pennine uplands of the UK, an area with a high density of ‘rod’ microlith flint sites, is introduced as a case example using the above protocol. Here, multiple Hordeum-type grains are encountered alongside prominent pollen indicators of disturbance, but also including non-pollen palynomorphs and microcharcoal data, at a date well before the mid-Holocene decline in Ulmus pollen frequencies that is often regarded as marking the beginning of the Neolithic. Confident identification of cereal-type pollen will greatly assist the understanding of the introduction of cultivation and the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition in north-west Europe. The objective of this study is to show the utility of this palynology with respect to defining the ecology of early cultivation in UK uplands.

Reconstruction of Two Mother-Infant Dyads and Obstetrical Consequences of the Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition: A Case Study from Lepenski Vir and Vlasac (Serbia)

The current world population of approximately seven billion people shows that despite the complexities of human birthing, the human species is thriving. Changes in human pelvic morphology resulting from bipedalism and encephalisation, often described as the “obstetric dilemma”, have made the birthing process extremely difficult and risky for both mothers and neonates. The major Mesolithic- Neolithic shift in lifestyle could have had important obstetric consequences. It is often hypothesised that the shift to an agricultural diet, with a lower protein content and higher glycaemic loading than the hunter-gatherer diet, could have led to a decrease in maternal height and an increase in neonatal birth weight, brain size and foetal-pelvic strain, which may have exacerbated the obstetric dilemma. The Mesolithic-Neolithic osteological collection from the Danube Gorges (7400-5500 cal BC, Balkans) provides material (2 pelvises and a neonate skull) to test this hypothesis by virtually reconstructing the fossil dyads and their foetal-pelvic relationship.We compared these dyads with a large obstetrical sample of mother-child dyads with a known birthing history, conducting a lineardiscriminant analysis in order to predict the most probable delivery outcomes for the prehistoric dyads. The results suggest that delivery was dystocic for the Mesolithic motherchild dyad and eutocic for the Neolithic mother-child dyad; obstetrically, the former is notably more efficient. However, due to the small sample size, further research is required with a larger series in order to determine whether the development of obstetrically efficient pelvic bones in the Neolithic was widespread and whether it had an impact on the birthing process and thus potentially contributed to the increasing size of the population.

Reconstruction of Two Mother-Infant Dyads and Obstetrical Consequences of the Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition: A Case Study from Lepenski Vir and Vlasac (Serbia)

Reconstruction of Two Mother-Infant Dyads and Obstetrical Consequences of the Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition: A Case Study from Lepenski Vir and Vlasac (Serbia)

Lepenski Vir chronology and stratigraphy revisited

This article offers a new look at the stratigraphy and chronology of Mesolithic and Neolithic deposits at Lepenski Vir, particularly based on newly available Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) dating and aDNA genomic evidence. It focuses on a detailed analysis of several key contexts for which new radiocarbon dates are available while at the same time reviewing taphonomic and age-offset problems when dating human remains and other materials affected by the aquatic reservoir effect in the Danube Gorges area. The robust chronological evidence as well as available stratigraphic data overwhelmingly show that the start of the main and iconic phase of the occupation of this site, represented by the architecture of trapezoidal buildings and sculpted sandstone boulders, should unequivocally be dated to the period of the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the last two centuries of the seventh millennium cal BC. At this time, local forager populations of distinct hunter-gatherer genetic ancestry came into contact and mixed with incoming Neolithic, farming populations of north-western Anatolian genetic ancestry, based on the available genomic data but also supported by studies of material culture traditions. The article deals directly with the recent criticism of this chrono-stratigraphic model for Lepenski Vir.

From Oysters to Cockles at Hjarnø Sund: Environmental and Subsistence Changes at a Danish Mesolithic Site

ABSTRACTArchaeological fieldwork at Hjarnø Sund in Horsens Fjord (eastern Jutland, Denmark) has explored an eroding Mesolithic shell midden. Its stratigraphy is characterized by two layers, containing marine mollusk taxa typically collected by Mesolithic hunter-gatherers for food. In the field, the lower layer appeared to be dominated by oysters (Ostrea edulis), while the upper one by cockles (Cerastoderma edule), which was confirmed by our zooarchaeological study. Accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon (AMS 14C) dating on shells and paired charcoal samples from the two layers indicate that these are chronologically consecutive (separated by as little as 0–163 yr [95.4%]) and that the oyster-to-cockle shift dated between ~5500–5300 and ~5300–5200 cal BC (around or just after the Kongemose/Ertebølle transition). The shell midden at Hjarnø Sund is, thus, one of the oldest-known in Denmark, demonstrating that intensive shellfish exploitation was a hallmark of the Ertebølle culture from its inception. Oyster-to-cockle shifts, thus, also occurred at times other than the Mesolithic–Neolithic Transition and may have been ultimately caused by local shoreline displacements, resulting from changes in sedimentation, possibly induced by drops in relative sea level.

“To ‘seafood’ or not to ‘seafood’?” An isotopic perspective on dietary preferences at the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the Western Mediterranean

Stable isotope investigations of the Prehistory of the Western Mediterranean have increased exponentially during the last decade. This region has a high number of Mesolithic and Neolithic carbon and nitrogen isotope ratio data available compared with other world areas, resulting from the interest in the “transition” between hunter-gathering and farming. This type of analysis is important as one of the few tools that give direct information on the poorly understood dietary transition from hunter-gatherer to agro-pastoralist subsistence in the Mediterranean Basin. Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis on bulk collagen are especially useful for exploring marine vs. terrestrial protein input and therefore assess marine resource exploitation by these two different lifestyles. Gathering together all isotopic data for these chronologies we show that the Western Mediterranean underwent a unique/distinct Neolithisation process. These data show a gradual dietary shift in aquatic resource consumption during the transition to farming that contrasts to elsewhere in Europe.

A multi-proxy approach to understanding complex responses of salt-lake catchments to climate variability and human pressure: A Late Quaternary case study from south-eastern, Spain

This article focuses on a former salt lake in the upper Vinalopó Valley in south-eastern Spain. The study spans the Late Pleistocene through to the Late Holocene, although with particular focus on the period between 11 ka cal BP and 3000 ka cal BP (which spans the Mesolithic and part of the Bronze Age). High resolution multi-proxy analysis (including pollen, non pollen palynomorphs, grain size, X-ray fluorescence and X-ray diffraction) was undertaken on the lake sediments. The results show strong sensitivity to both long term and small changes in the evaporation/precipitation ratio, affecting the surrounding vegetation composition, lake-biota and sediment geochemistry.To summarise the key findings the main general trends identified include: 1) Hyper-saline conditions and low lake levels at the end of the Late Glacial 2) Increasing wetness and temperatures which witnessed an expansion of mesophilic woodland taxa, lake infilling and the establishment of a more perennial lake system at the onset of the Holocene 3) An increase in solar insolation after 9 ka cal BP which saw the re-establishment of pine forests 4) A continued trend towards increasing dryness (climatic optimum) at 7 ka cal BP but with continued freshwater input 5) An increase in sclerophyllous open woody vegetation (anthropogenic?), and increasing wetness (climatic?) is represented in the lake record between 5.9 and 3 ka cal BP 6) The Holocene was also punctuated by several aridity pulses, the most prominent corresponding to the 8.2 ka cal BP event. These events, despite a paucity of well dated archaeological sites in the surrounding area, likely altered the carrying capacity of this area both regionally and locally, particularly during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition, in terms of fresh water supply for human/animal consumption, wild plant food reserves and suitable land for crop growth.

The Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition and the Chronology of the “elm decline”: A Case Study from Yorkshire and Humberside, United Kingdom

ABSTRACTThe Neolithic in Britain saw the first appearance of domestic plant and animal resources, pottery, polished stone axes, monuments, and new house structures. With the introduction of domesticates and associated subsistence strategies, the Neolithic represents a significant change in human–environment interaction. Other changes have been observed in the palynological record of Britain in the early fourth millennium cal BC, including the elm decline, and archaeologists and paleobotanists have long discussed the degree of human involvement in this. This paper presents the first Bayesian statistical analysis of the elm decline using the case study of the east of Yorkshire and Humberside and key sites in west Yorkshire, and evidence for the last hunter-gatherer Mesolithic material culture and the first Neolithic material culture record. This region is critical because it is the only area of Britain and Ireland where we have robust and accurate published estimates for the timing of the latest Mesolithic activity and timing for the earliest Neolithic activity. Unpacking this perceived chronological correlation between the elm decline and the start of the Neolithic is critical to understanding the scale of human–environment modification at this time, and the nature of the first Neolithic societies in Britain.

The Mesolithic–Neolithic transition: The view from Southwest Europe and the American Southwest

The transition from foraging to farming is certainly one of the most dramatic processes in human history. The use of domesticated plants and animals spread widely across Southwest Europe from the Near East. By contrast, domesticated plants solely moved across the American Southwest from Mexico. Research in Western Europe has traditionally focused on the movement of farming communities across the region which displaced or subsumed local foragers. Recently various aspects of this process have been debated including Mesolithic and Neolithic subsistence packages, continuity versus replacement, regional mobility and sedentism, the nature of early Neolithic villages, and the forager to farmer transition. We will explore this dynamic and varied process through studies conducted in Southwest Europe and the American Southwest. Although these two regions seem quite different, researchers in both areas are grappling with similar research issues.