Neolithic Phase Research Articles

Early farmers in northwest Turkey: First dietary isotopes study of human diet at Neolithic Barcın Höyük

Barcın Höyük is one of the oldest Neolithic settlement sites in northwest Anatolia, with early layers of occupation radiocarbon dated to ca. 6600 cal BC. The Neolithic phase at the site (ca. 6600–6200 cal BC) has seven layers of occupation, and shows a number of affinities, in terms of structure and zooarchaeological remains, with contemporary sites in the coastal area near Istanbul (Özdoğan, 2015). The available zooarchaeological evidence suggests a diet of terrestrial fauna, with some inclusion from freshwater aquatic species. This study investigates the nature of human diet at Barcın Höyük through carbon and nitrogen analysis of human and animal bone collagen, and examines whether there is any isotopic evidence for a shift in diet after the re-organisation of the site at ca. 6200 cal BC. Here we present 75 human and faunal analyses from the Neolithic layers at Barcın Höyük. Two new radiocarbon dates on human skeletons are also included in the study.

Hearth plate from the pile-dwelling site of Palù di Livenza

The Palu di Livenza wetland lies at the foot of the Cansiglio plateau in the Pordenone area in north-east Italy. It preserves a Neolithic pile-dwelling settlement. Thanks to the richness of deposits, Palu di Livenza is inscribed on the World Heritage List of UNESCO in the transnational serial property ‟Prehistoric pile-dwellings around the Alps” together with other 18 northern Italian localities. The latest investigations, carried out at the Sector 3 since 2013, have revealed a well-preserved stratigraphic sequence with three main phases of pile-dwellings ranging between the second half of the 5th and the first half of the 4th millennium cal BC. The paper presents the remains of a combustion feature, probably a hearth plaster plate, found during the last excavations campaigns in the abandonment levels attributed to the Late Neolithic phase.

Multi-proxy evidence of Late Quaternary climate and vegetational history of north-central India: Implication for the Paleolithic to Neolithic phases

The Quaternary fluvial sequences of the Belan river in north-central India preserves the signature of prehistoric human settlement from Paleolithic to Neolithic interval. The settlement history in the Belan valley has been attributed to be driven by climatic fluctuations, although quantitative climate data from the valley is lacking. For the first time, we have analysed oxygen and carbon isotopes in soil carbonates (δ18OSC and δ13CSC) and hydrogen and carbon isotopes in n-alkane of paleosol (δDC29 and δ13CC29) from chronologically well-constrained six archaeological sites to understand the climate-cultural relationship. The chronological sequences were refined by Bayesian statistics using ChronoModel 1.5.The δDC29 and δ18OSC values, proxies for rainfall, indicate two phases of isotopic depletion during ∼100 to 75 ka and ∼18 to 3 ka implying intensification of monsoon. During ∼75 to 25 ka, the δDC29 and δ18OSC values show fluctuation in the monsoonal rainfall. Higher δDC29 and δ18OSC values during ∼25 to 18 ka suggest an arid environment, which corresponds to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The present study suggests that climate was the driving force for fluvial incision and aggradation at a regional scale during ∼100 to 3 ka. The δ13CC29 and δ13CSC values suggest that the C4 plants dominated in a mixed C3-C4 environment between ∼75 and 25 ka. The abundance of C4 plants sharply decreased during the early-Holocene. Comparison between climatic conditions and the temporal variation in the number of archaeological sites suggest climate-driven shifts in population density or local migration of prehistoric humans during the Middle Paleolithic to Early Neolithic phase.

On the transition from hunting-gathering to food production in NE Morocco as inferred from archeological Phorcus turbinatus shells

Processes behind the shift from hunting-gathering to food production lifestyle are multifaceted and not yet completely understood. The Mediterranean coast of NW Africa provides an eclectic transitional pattern, namely, a very hesitant transition to food production. The distribution and abundance of early Neolithic domesticated species is disparate and region specific. Climate and environmental change have been often considered as an important influencing factor for this transition. This hypothesis was tested using archeological shells of the rocky intertidal gastropod Phorcus turbinatus recovered from the Ifri Oudadane site in NE Morocco. The oxygen isotope composition (δ18O) of the shell was used to examine whether the hesitant transition to food production was linked to a local climate shift in the Mediterranean Maghreb. Intrashell δ18O values suggest a marked temperature increase from >7.6 to ~7.0 cal. ka BP, the time when Neolithic innovations first appear on site. An additional increase in temperature from ~7.0 to <6.8 cal. ka BP matches with the beginning of the main occupation phase and the doubtless breakthrough of cultivation at Ifri Oudadane. This apparent warming trend, although considered preliminary, seems to match well with warming tendency observed in several published regional climate proxies. Therefore, a temperature shift may have played a role in the timing and implementation of food production in the area. Last growth episode δ18O values suggest that shellfish were harvested throughout most of the year, with noticeable intensification during the cooler half of the year. This preliminary pattern was fairly consistent throughout the Epipaleolithic and early Neolithic phases, pointing to a probable near year-round site occupation rather than a single season settlement. Future research on Ifri Oudadane and other NW African archeological records are much needed to assess whether these patterns persist in Morocco and other Epipaleolithic and early Neolithic settlements in the western Mediterranean Maghreb.

Trapping or tethering stones (TS): A multifunctional device in the Pastoral Neolithic of the Sahara.

The Pierres de Ben Barour, also known as trapping or tethering stones (TS), are stone artefacts with notches or grooves usually interpreted as hunting devices on the basis of rock art engravings. Though their presence is a peculiar feature of desert landscapes from the Sahara to the Arabian Peninsula, we know little about their age, context and function. Here we present a new approach to the study of these artefacts based on a large dataset (837 items) recorded in the Messak plateau (SW Libya). A statistically-based geoarchaeological survey carried out between 2007 and 2011 in Libya, alongside landscape and intra-site analyses of specific archaeological features (such as rock art, settlement and ceremonial contexts), reveal that these artefacts were used for a prolonged period, probably from the early Holocene. This was followed by a multifunctional use of these devices, particularly during the Pastoral Neolithic phase (ca. 6400–3000 cal BC), with the highest concentrations being found near ceremonial contexts related to cattle burials.

An examination of the worked bone and antler assemblage at Uğurlu (Gökçeada, Turkey)

Worked bone and antler tools were regularly used by prehistoric societies in northwest and western Anatolia to create and maintain everyday items. Uğurlu, one of the most important pre­historic sites in the north east Aegean, shows extensive evidence of bone and antler tool manufac­ture. This article examines the Uğurlu osseous assemblage from its inception during the Early Neo­lithic (6800 cal BC) to the middle Chalcolithic (4300 cal BC). A typology is established which labels the 534 items uncovered thus far, supported by contextual information. A comparison with other bone tool assemblages in the region is also presented, highlighting group similarities and type differences. The results show that few bone tools were found in the Early Neolithic Phase VI (6800– 6600 cal BC), while pointed tools dominate Phase V (6600–5900 cal BC). The established Neolithic Phase IV (5900–5600 cal BC) witnesses a dramatic growth in the number of bone tools produced, which is steadily adapted with the advent of the Chalcolithic Phase III (5500–4900 cal BC). During this transition between the Neolithic and Chalcolithic, certain tool types decline in number and manufacturing style changes. In the middle Chalcolithic Phase II (4500–4300 cal BC), bone objects seem to be crudely made, possibly reflecting the emergence of local traditions.

An examination of the worked bone and antler assemblage at Uğurlu (Gökçeada, Turkey)

Worked bone and antler tools were regularly used by prehistoric societies in northwest and western Anatolia to create and maintain everyday items. Uğurlu, one of the most important pre­historic sites in the north east Aegean, shows extensive evidence of bone and antler tool manufac­ture. This article examines the Uğurlu osseous assemblage from its inception during the Early Neo­lithic (6800 cal BC) to the middle Chalcolithic (4300 cal BC). A typology is established which labels the 534 items uncovered thus far, supported by contextual information. A comparison with other bone tool assemblages in the region is also presented, highlighting group similarities and type differences. The results show that few bone tools were found in the Early Neolithic Phase VI (6800– 6600 cal BC), while pointed tools dominate Phase V (6600–5900 cal BC). The established Neolithic Phase IV (5900–5600 cal BC) witnesses a dramatic growth in the number of bone tools produced, which is steadily adapted with the advent of the Chalcolithic Phase III (5500–4900 cal BC). During this transition between the Neolithic and Chalcolithic, certain tool types decline in number and manufacturing style changes. In the middle Chalcolithic Phase II (4500–4300 cal BC), bone objects seem to be crudely made, possibly reflecting the emergence of local traditions.

Early Neolithic agriculture (2700–2000 bc) and Kushan period developments (ad 100–300): macrobotanical evidence from Kanispur in Kashmir, India

Here we report the results of an archaeobotanical study carried out on Ceramic Neolithic (2700–2000 bc) and Kushan period (ad 100–300) deposits at Kanispur, Kashmir, northern India. Botanical evidence from the Ceramic Neolithic phase reflects a nascent agriculture based on cold-tolerant crops (barley, wheats, lentil, field pea and grass pea) related to farming patterns of adjacent cultures and possibly evidence for the earliest cultivation in the valley. The Kushan period is characterized by a double-cropping pattern, suggesting a change in agricultural practices associated with a population recovery following a post-Neolithic decline. Finds of Juglans regia, and Prunus cf. amygdalus shells in ceramic Neolithic levels, and Vitis cf. vinifera, Emblica officinalis and Ziziphus cf. nummularia in addition to J. regia, and P. cf. amygdalus during Kushan times suggest that horticulture and foraging played an important role in the diet of the occupants. The present dataset provides new absolute dates for the subsistence economy of the Ceramic Neolithic population in the Kashmir Valley. We also present the oldest directly dated wheat and barley in Kashmir.

The Cave of Pan, Marathon, Greece—AMS Dating of the Neolithic Phase and Calculation of the Regional Marine Reservoir Effect

AbstractThe Cave of Pan is located on the N/NE slope of the hill of Oinoe (38°09′31.60′′N, 23°55′48.60′′E), west of modern Marathon. In rescue excavation campaigns during the last three years, among other finds, charcoal and seashell samples were also collected. The purpose of this study is the accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dating of the cave’s anthropogenic deposits and the calculation of the regional marine reservoir effect during the Neolithic period. For that purpose, 7 charcoal pieces and 1 seashell were dated. Our results show that the cave was used from the second quarter of the 6th millennium (Middle Neolithic period) until the beginning of the 5th millennium BC. Additionally, one sample collected from a depth of 2 cm from the present surface of the cave yielded an age falling within the 6th century AD, giving thus the absolute time span of the cave use. Moreover, the radiocarbon (14C) ages of one pair of charcoal-seashell samples showed that the marine reservoir age R(t) in the estuarine Marathon Bay region during the 5th millennium BC is 775±57 yr and the local sea surface reservoir deviation ΔR is found to be 402±6314C yr (within 1σ).

Geochemical and mineralogical fingerprints to distinguish the exploited ferruginous mineralisations of Grotta della Monaca (Calabria, Italy)

This study examines the geochemical and mineralogical variations in the ferruginous mineralisations that crop out within Grotta della Monaca, which is considered to be the most striking and best known example of a prehistoric iron mine-cave from the southern Apennines (Calabria, Italy). Previous archaeological research identified three local and distinct ancient exploitation phases of these ferruginous mineralisations: (1) an Upper Palaeolithic phase; (2) a Late Neolithic phase; and (3) a post-Medieval phase. These materials, which have various forms of complex mineralogical admixtures and range in colour from yellow-orange to red and darker brown shades, mainly consist of iron oxides/hydroxides (essentially goethite and lepidocrocite), which are often mixed with subordinate and variable amounts of other matrix components (carbonates, sulphates, arsenates, silicates and organic matter). Such ferruginous mineralisations generally correspond to geochemically heterogeneous massive dyke/vein/mammillary/stratiform facies that are exposed within the local caves along open fractures and inclined bedding planes and that partially cover cave wall niches/notches/pockets and ceiling cupolas/holes. Selected samples/sub-samples are analysed through a multi-technique approach with a handheld portable X-ray Fluorescence, X-ray Diffraction, micro-Raman and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscope (both conventional and attenuated total reflection), which is combined with subsequent multivariate statistical analysis of the elemental concentration data. The geochemical and mineralogical results are used to individualise similar compositional clusters. As expected, the identified groups, each of which has very specific geochemical-mineralogical “fingerprints” and spatial distributions, enable us to identify the sampled ferruginous mineralisations. These specific mineral resources can be compared to similar raw materials that are found in other neighbouring archaeological sites, with obvious implications toward understanding local exploitation strategies through time and the exchanges and kinship networks of these materials.

Demography of the Early Neolithic Population in Central Balkans: Population Dynamics Reconstruction Using Summed Radiocarbon Probability Distributions.

The Central Balkans region is of great importance for understanding the spread of the Neolithic in Europe but the Early Neolithic population dynamics of the region is unknown. In this study we apply the method of summed calibrated probability distributions to a set of published radiocarbon dates from the Republic of Serbia in order to reconstruct population dynamics in the Early Neolithic in this part of the Central Balkans. The results indicate that there was a significant population growth after ~6200 calBC, when the Neolithic was introduced into the region, followed by a bust at the end of the Early Neolithic phase (~5400 calBC). These results are broadly consistent with the predictions of the Neolithic Demographic Transition theory and the patterns of population booms and busts detected in other regions of Europe. These results suggest that the cultural process that underlies the patterns observed in Central and Western Europe was also in operation in the Central Balkan Neolithic and that the population increase component of this process can be considered as an important factor for the spread of the Neolithic as envisioned in the demic diffusion hypothesis.

The bone industry in the Capsian and Neolithic contexts of Eastern Maghreb: A technological and functional approach

Tools manufactured from hard animal materials were widely used in North Africa both in the Epipaleolithic and in the Neolithic delete. This article discusses how a methodology based on the technological, typological and functional analyses of several Capsian series from the Tébessa region (Algeria) lead to identification of specific techno-economic indicators of bone production suggestive of a vivid cultural exchange among groups living in the same territory. Over time, the application of the same methodology on a larger number of samples might possibly establish whether the technical tradition on animal hard material identified in the Tébessa region is all there is to the Capsian culture or whether it is only one among diversified practices.The juxtaposition of the data collected for this study with those from the Neolithic bone Rivière Collection (Capéletti Cave, Algeria) has revealed innovative techno-economic indicators along all the steps of the chaîne opératoire. The partial change that the hard animal material manufacture underwent from the Epipaleolithic to the Neolithic phase is also in line with the transformation by other cultural material categories during the same period. The introduction of allochthonous elements along the North African coast during the Neolithic phase had an impact on the local settlement and economy.

Caractérisation technique et culturelle de la céramique du site lacustre de Conjux 3 (lac du Bourget, Savoie) : le Néolithique final des avant-pays savoyards en question

Caractérisation technique et culturelle de la céramique du site lacustre de Conjux 3 (lac du Bourget, Savoie) : le Néolithique final des avant-pays savoyards en question

THE MIDDLE–LATE NEOLITHIC TRANSITION AT KOUPHOVOUNO

The site of Kouphovouno, just south of Sparta, is one of the main Neolithic sites in Laconia. It was first settled in the Middle Neolithic period and developed into a large village with remains occupying some 4–5 hectares. A joint team from the British School at Athens and the Ecole française d'Athènes carried out excavations at the site in 2001–6. There is evidence for occupation during the Bronze Age, and for an extensive Late Roman villa, but this article concentrates on the chronology of the site during the Middle and Late Neolithic phases. The evidence from stratigraphic sequences, pottery typology, seriation and Bayesian analysis of the radiocarbon dates is brought together to present a detailed chronological sequence covering the periodc.5800–5000bc. In particular the analysis relies on the results from two deep soundings, one excavated in Area C carried down to the natural sediments underlying the site and exposing the earliest period of occupation, and the second in Area G covering the later Middle Neolithic and much of the Late Neolithic phase. The findings from Kouphovouno are placed more generally in the context of finds from other sites in the Peloponnese and in particular in relation to the important sequence from Franchthi Cave. On the basis of the evidence it is argued that the transition from Middle Neolithic to Late Neolithic in southern Greece was not abrupt, as had previously been thought, but showed a gradual evolution. This finding has implications for our understanding of the process of transformation that southern Greece underwent in the course of the later sixth millenniumbc.

Understanding the Stability of Early Iron Age folks of South India with Special Reference to Krishna-Tungabhadra- Kaveri, Karnataka; Their Past-Present-Future

There are about 1933 Early Iron Age Megalithic sites spread across South India. The Early Iron Age of South India is implicit either in the form of burial sites, habitation sites, habitation cum burial sites, Iron Age rock art sites, and isolated iron smelting localities near a habitation or burials. This paper is an attempt to take a rough computation of the potentiality of the labour, technology and quantity of artifact output that this cultural phase might have once had, in micro or in macro level. Considering the emergence of technology and its enormous output in Ceramics, Agriculture, Metallurgy and Building up Burials as industries by themselves, that has economic, ethnographic and socio-technique archaeological imprints. This helps in understanding two aspects: one, whether they were nomadic, semi settled or settled at one location; two, the Diffusion versus Indigenous development. A continuity of late Neolithic phase is seen into Early Iron Age and amalgamation of Early Iron Age with the Early Historic Period as evident in the sites like Maski, Brahmagiri, Sanganakallu, Tekkalakota, T-Narasipur. In few cases, Iron Age folks migrated from one location to the other and settled on the river banks in large scale like that in Hallur and Koppa. In rare cases, they preferred to climb up the hill and stay on the rocky flat surface for example Aihole and Hiere Bekal– sites which are located close to or on the banks of the river or its tributaries of Krishna-Tungabhadra- Kaveri.Keywords: Labour, Industry, Production, Megaliths, Nomadic, Semi Settled, Early Iron Age.

Wild fruit use among early farmers in the Neolithic (5400–2300 cal bc) in the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula: an intensive practice?

The archaeobotanical record of 24 sites from the Neolithic period (5400–2300 cal bc) in the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula is evaluated. Remarkable amounts of data have recently been obtained for the early and middle Neolithic phases. Most of the studied sites were dry and they only yielded charred plant material. Among dry sites, several types of context were evaluated: dwelling areas, hearths, roasting pits and byres. Material was also analysed from a waterlogged cultural layer of one early Neolithic lakeshore site, La Draga. Quercus sp. (acorns), Corylus avellana L. (hazelnuts), Pistacia lentiscus L. (mastic fruits) and Vitis vinifera L. var. sylvestris (wild grapes) were among the most frequently encountered fruits and seeds. Their presence in the archaeobotanical record clearly maps their past ecological distribution in the region. There are differences observed between the charred dry-land material and the waterlogged uncharred material. Wild fruits were mostly present in an uncharred state in La Draga. Therefore, their consumption could go unnoticed in dry sites when fruits were eaten raw or without roasting. Larger amounts of charred remains of certain wild fruits like acorns and hazelnuts found in mountain areas are highlighted as potential evidence of the regular practice of roasting, potentially indicating regional traditions. All in all, our results support an intensive wild plant use at least during the first 1,300 years of the Neolithic period. Evidence of wild plant food consumption becomes scanty towards the second phase of the middle and the late Neolithic (4th and 3rd millennium cal bc). This, however, might also be due to taphonomic reasons.

Fishing in the Adriatic at the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition: Evidence from Vela Spila, Croatia

Recent excavations at the site of Vela Spila, Korčula, on the Adriatic coast of Croatia have yielded a substantial assemblage of fish bone dating to the Mesolithic and Neolithic period. Few similar assemblages have been recovered to date, and zooarchaeological analysis of the material from Vela Spila provides an insight into the choices and practices associated with fishing across the crucial Mesolithic–Neolithic transition, and across a period of coastal change due to rising sea levels, in this area. Specialised capture and processing of mackerel (Scomber japonicus) in the Mesolithic period was indicated, with estimates indicating nearly half a tonne of mackerel processed at the site. A decrease in quantity of fish bone recovered from the Mesolithic to Neolithic phases is matched by a change in fishing strategy to opportunistic coastal fishing in the Neolithic periods. Fishing is discussed in relation to the broader lived context of the Mesolithic and Neolithic in the Adriatic, particularly its place within dietary practices and maritime activity.

La temporalidad del recinto de fosos de Perdigões: cronología absoluta de estructuras y prácticas sociales

Thirty five radiocarbon dates for the Neolithic and Chalcolithic ditched enclosure of Perdigoes (Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal) are presented. After a discussion of some of the problems of dating negative structures, a chronological sequence is presented for the ditch structures and for the social practices related to funerary behaviours and the manipulation of human remains. A clear Neolithic phase is identified, well separated chronologically from the Chalcolithic one. The possibility of the gradual and eventually interrupted development of the site, is discussed. Funerary contexts and the manipulation of human remains are present from the earliest phase of the site, but the practices became significantly diverse during the 3 rd millennium by the end of which the site seems to decay and significant activity seems to stop.

Late Mesolithic and early Neolithic forest disturbance: a high resolution palaeoecological test of human impact hypotheses

The transition in north-west Europe from the hunter–gatherer societies of the Late Mesolithic to the pioneer farming societies of the early Neolithic is not well understood, either culturally or palaeoecologically. In Britain the final transition was rapid but it is unclear whether novel Neolithic attributes were introduced by immigrants who supplanted the native hunter–gatherers, or whether the latest Mesolithic foragers gradually adopted elements of the Neolithic economic package. In this study, relatively coarse- (10 mm interval) and fine-resolution (2 mm), multi-proxy palaeoecological data including pollen, charcoal and NPPs including fungi, have been used to investigate two phases of vegetation disturbance of (a) distinctly Late Mesolithic and (b) early Neolithic age, at an upland site in northern England in a region with both a Neolithic and a Late Mesolithic archaeological presence. We identify and define the palaeoecological characteristics of these two disturbance phases, about a millennium apart, in order to investigate whether differing land-use techniques can be identified and categorised as of either foraging or early farming cultures. The Late Mesolithic phase is defined by the repetitive application of fire to the woodland to encourage a mosaic of productive vegetation regeneration patches, consistent with the promotion of Corylus and to aid hunting. In this phase, weed species including Plantago lanceolata, Rumex and Chenopodiaceae are frequent, taxa which are normally associated with the first farmers. The early Neolithic phase, including an Ulmus decline, has characteristics consistent with ‘forest farming’, possibly mainly for domestic livestock, with an inferred succession of tree girdling, fire-prepared cultivation, and coppice-woodland management. Such fine-resolution, potentially diagnostic land-use signatures may in future be used to recognise the cultural complexion of otherwise enigmatic woodland disturbance phases during the centuries of the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition.

Understanding the Stability of Early Iron Age folks of South India in Special Reference to Krishna-Tungabhadra- Kaveri, Karnataka; Their Past-Present-Future

There are about 1933 Early Iron Age Megalithic sites spread across south India. The Early Iron Age of south India is implicit either in the form of burial sites, habitation sites, habitation cum burial sites, Iron Age rock art sites, and isolated iron smelting localities near a habitation or burials. This paper is an attempt to take a rough computation of the potentiality of the labour, technology and quantity of artifact output that this cultural phase which might once had, in micro or in macro level. Considering the emergence of technology and its enormous output in Ceramics, Agriculture, Metallurgy and Building up Burials as industries by themselves: that has economic, ethnographic and socio-technique archaeological imprints. This helps in understanding two aspects: one, whether they were nomadic, semi settled or settled at one location. Second, the Diffusion versus Indigenous development. A continuity of late Neolithic phase is seen into Early Iron Age and amalgamation of Early Iron Age with the Early Historic Period as evident in the sites like Maski, Brahmagiri, Sanganakallu, Tekkalakota, T-Narasipur. In few cases, Iron Age folks migrated from one location to the other and settled on the river banks in large scale like that in Hallur and Koppa. In rare cases, they preferred to climb up the hill and stay on the rocky flat surface for example Aihole and Hiere Bekal. Sites which are located close to or on the banks of the river or its tributaries of Krishna-Tungabhadra- Kaveri.Keywords: Labour, Industry, Production, Megaliths, Nomadic, Semi Settled, early Iron Age.