Late Neolithic Research Articles

A Flint Industry from the Pottery Neolithic Lodian Hamlet at Nahal Yarmuth 38, Central Israel

ABSTRACT Nahal Yarmuth 38 in Central Israel comprises a PPNB layer (mid-10th millennium cal BP), and a PN layer assigned to the Lodian culture (first third of the 8th millennium cal BP). The Lodian site of NY38 was a small (ca. 500 m2) hamlet with one main oval stone-built structure and adjacent activity areas. This paper focuses on the lithic assemblage of the PN Lodian layer allowing a glimpse into the life of a single household hamlet repeatedly occupied by Lodian farmers/herders. The lithic assemblages are flake-dominated and show flake, microflake, blade, and bladelet production trajectories. Heat treatment was recognized on cores and some of the blade blanks. Typologically the assemblage is dominated by retouched flakes, notches and denticulates, and low numbers of retouched blades and bladelets. Perforators, burins and scrapers appear in low frequencies; arrowheads and bifacial tools are rare while sickle blades constitute 11% of the tools.

The Flint Assemblage of the Pottery Neolithic Site of Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 29–52)

The Flint Assemblage of the Pottery Neolithic Site of Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 29–52)

The Pottery Neolithic Settlement at Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 1–27)

The Pottery Neolithic Settlement at Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 1–27)

The Groundstone Assemblage from the Pottery Neolithic Site at Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 53–59)

The Groundstone Assemblage from the Pottery Neolithic Site at Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 53–59)

Remains from the Pottery Neolithic Period andEarly Bronze Age at Tel Magal(Hebrew, pp. 1*–38*; English summary, pp. 115–116)

Remains from the Pottery Neolithic Period andEarly Bronze Age at Tel Magal(Hebrew, pp. 1*–38*; English summary, pp. 115–116)

Geomorphological Setting and Palaeoenvironment of the Pottery Neolithic Site at Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 61–64)

Geomorphological Setting and Palaeoenvironment of the Pottery Neolithic Site at Tel Yosef (Tell esh-Sheikh Ḥasan) (pp. 61–64)

Lod (Newe Yaraq): A Late Roman Pottery Kiln and Pottery Neolithic A (Jericho IX/Lodian) Remains (with contributions by Anat Cohen-Weinberger, Tamar Schick, Hamoudi Khalaily and Moshe Sade) (pp. 1–36)

Lod (Newe Yaraq): A Late Roman Pottery Kiln and Pottery Neolithic A (Jericho IX/Lodian) Remains (with contributions by Anat Cohen-Weinberger, Tamar Schick, Hamoudi Khalaily and Moshe Sade) (pp. 1–36)

Excavations at Tel Lod: Remains from the Pottery Neolithic A, Chalcolithic, Early Bronze Age I, Middle Bronze Age I and Byzantine Periods (pp. 141–218)

Excavations at Tel Lod: Remains from the Pottery Neolithic A, Chalcolithic, Early Bronze Age I, Middle Bronze Age I and Byzantine Periods (pp. 141–218)

Beisamun: An Early Pottery Neolithic Site in the Hula Basin (pp. 1–61)

Beisamun: An Early Pottery Neolithic Site in the Hula Basin (pp. 1–61)

Naḥal Yarmut: A Late Pottery Neolithic Site of the Wadi Rabah Culture, South of Naḥal Soreq (pp. 1*–29*)

Naḥal Yarmut: A Late Pottery Neolithic Site of the Wadi Rabah Culture, South of Naḥal Soreq (pp. 1*–29*)

Ancient DNA reveals diverse community organizations in the 5th millennium BCE Carpathian Basin.

We present a comprehensive genetic investigation of Late Neolithic (LN) and Early Copper Age (ECA) populations living in the Carpathian Basin, leveraging whole genome data from 125 previously unreported individuals. Using population genetics, kinship analyses and the study of networks of identity-by-descent haplotype segment sharing, we elucidate the social and genetic dynamics of these communities between 4800-3900 cal BCE. Despite changes in settlement patterns, burial practices, and material culture, we document a high degree of genetic continuity. While one set of individuals we analyzed from a large community cemetery was genetically diverse, another site was more homogenous and closed, with numerous consanguineous relationships and evidence of patrilineality and patrilocality. These results document radically different kinship systems in contemporaneous ECA communities using similar material culture and living only about 100 km apart.

Neural plasticity in early potters: Shape analysis and TMS-EEG co-registration trace the rise of a new motor skill.

In this study, we explored the biocultural mechanisms underlying ancient craft behaviours. Archaeological methods were integrated with neuroscience techniques to explore the impact on neuroplasticity resulting from the introduction of early pottery techniques. The advent of ceramic marked a profound change in the economy and socio-cultural dynamics of past societies. It may have also played a central role in developing new craft skills that influenced the neural plasticity of the potters. Coiling, one of the most widespread neolithic techniques, requires precise hand movements and the ability to regulate finger pressure to shape the clay without deformation. In a pilot study involving intensive training in neolithic pottery, we used TMS-EEG co-registration to monitor a group of participants and we examined the shape of the artefacts they made before and after training. Our findings suggest changes in the functional properties of the primary motor cortex (M1) responsible for the control and execution of actions. We also observed an improvement in symmetry and consistency of the artefacts and a significant reduction in errors. This multidisciplinary approach sheds light on the mechanisms of material culture's variation in the archaeological field and provides promising insights into the co-evolution of technology and human skill.

Aspects of the Late Eneolithic. Sălcuţa Culture Pottery (II)

Starting with the first half of the 20th century, many (sau a lot) archaeological sites have been discovered in the Lower Olt Valley, dated chronologically and culturally in the second half of the 5th millennium BC, in the Late Eneolithic, the Sălcuța culture. Detailed description of the main site, Sălcuța – Piscul Cornișorului, are available in the monograph published by Dumitru Berciu in 1961. Pottery is an element of material culture that is especially useful in establishing chronological and cultural data. Therefore, in this article were analyzed a number of 17 vessels (unpublished or less known) from a technological, morphological and stylistic point of view belonging to the Sălcuţa culture. The frequency of the forms and ornamentations within the major pottery form type categories provide additional evidence of a shared ceramic tradition at the large or small settlements in the Oltenia region. That’s why, we consider it necessary to present the repertoire of the Sălcuța-type settlements, providing an overview of the research history. We mention that the analyzed pottery comes from the archaeological collection of the Olt County Museum.

Ḥorbat Ṭurit (South): A Late Pottery Neolithic Ephemeral Site in the ‘Akko Plain

Ḥorbat Ṭurit (South): A Late Pottery Neolithic Ephemeral Site in the ‘Akko Plain

Identification of laccol as a paint binder in Neolithic pottery from China

Some precious painted pottery have been excavated from a late Neolithic site (6000-5300 BP) in China recently. The materials and technique of the paint were comprehensively studied. The analytical techniques conducted include optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM-EDS), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight-mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) and thermally assisted hydrolysis-methylation pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (THM-Py-GC/MS). The results revealed the painted pottery is lacquer-painted pottery, which is the earliest evidence of using laccol as binding media to paint pottery. Moreover, a two-layer structure of the paint technique was found. Cinnabar and a kind of yellow dye were detected in the first layer, while iron red was determined in the ground layer. Laccol, instead of urushiol as a binding medium, was identified in both two layers. Laccol is the maker compound from the tree of Toxicodendron (Rhus) succedanea, which mainly grows in Vietnam. Its presence in the painted pottery represents that the use of Toxicodendron (Rhus) succedanea resource can be as early as the late Neolithic period in China. The possibility of the origin of laccol was also discussed in the paper.

Subsistence and population development from the Middle Neolithic B (2800-2350 BCE) to the Late Neolithic (2350-1700 BCE) in Southern Scandinavia.

The present study aims to explore the hypothesis of a link between a population increase derived from intensified food production and the development from the widespread cultural diversity of the Middle Neolithic B (MNB) to the cultural unity towards the end of the Late Neolithic (LN) in Southern Scandinavia. We explore this through quantitative modelling of radiocarbon dates, aoristic time series of material culture and palynological data. On this basis, we propose three main results that may explain the transformation: (1) A supra-regional population increase, culminating in the middle of the LN (c. 2100 BCE). (2) A depopulation in Western Jutland at the transition from the MNB to the LN (c. 2400-2300 BCE) counterbalanced by a population increase in North and East Denmark. (3) A population boom in Southern Sweden around 2250-2000 BCE, possibly leading to migrations towards west. Furthermore, we propose an overall decline in population in the final LN (c. 1850 BCE).

DEMOGRAPHIC PATTERNS IN HYLLIE MOSSE (SCANIA, SWEDEN): ESTIMATING ABSOLUTE POPULATION BETWEEN THE LATE NEOLITHIC AND THE EARLY BRONZE AGES

SummaryThis paper reconstructs the population dynamics within the Hyllie Mosse region (Scania, Sweden) from 2400 to 1600 BC. South‐western Scania is particularly well‐known thanks to extensive archaeological work in the past decades, making it one of the most thoroughly investigated areas in Sweden. The Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age periods are of paramount importance in understanding the socio‐cultural transformations within the Baltic region. By integrating a comprehensive database of longhouses from Scania with the available archaeological data from the Hyllie Mosse area, this study provides absolute demographic estimates through a transparent and replicable methodology. It highlights that the region experienced a significant peak in human occupation between 2000 and 1800 BC, followed by a decline. In prehistoric times, the area was covered by a relatively large bog, and was therefore not uniformly settled. At its peak, it is estimated that the region, approximately 9.7 km2 in size – 4 km2 of which have been archaeologically investigated – could have supported 75 to 150 inhabitants.

Technology and provenience of the oldest pottery in the northern Pannonian Basin indicates its affiliation to hunter-gatherers

Consensus holds that pottery technology came to Central Europe from the Northern Balkans with independent pottery traditions existing concurrently in Eastern Europe. An unusual grass-tempered pottery dating back to around 5800 cal BC found in lake sediments at Santovka, Slovakia, predated the earliest known Neolithic pottery in the region (~ 5500 cal BC), suggesting unexplored narratives of pottery introduction. Analyses of the pottery’s technology, origin, and grass temper shedding light on ceramic traditions' spread can unveil mobility patterns and community lifestyles. Our findings indicate a non-local provenance, low temperature firing, Festuca sp. grass temper and unique rectangular or cylindrical vessel shapes which align with Eastern European hunter-gatherer practices. Moreover, the pottery style and technology have no analogies in the contemporary Danubian pottery traditions and have more similarities to those of the Eastern traditions. The pottery's raw materials likely originated from distant areas, indicating extensive territorial access for its creators. Our findings imply late Mesolithic hunter-gatherers as the probable artisans and with implications for the site's significance in the late Mesolithic landscape.

Neolithic Yersinia pestis infections in humans and a dog

Yersinia pestis has been infecting humans since the Late Neolithic (LN). Whether those early infections were isolated zoonoses or initiators of a pandemic remains unclear. We report Y. pestis infections in two individuals (of 133) from the LN necropolis at Warburg (Germany, 5300–4900 cal BP). Our analyses show that the two genomes belong to distinct strains and reflect independent infection events. All LN genomes known today (n = 4) are basal in the phylogeny and represent separate lineages that probably originated in different animal hosts. In the LN, an opening of the landscape resulted in the introduction of new rodent species, which may have acted as Y. pestis reservoirs. Coincidentally, the number of dogs increased, possibly leading to Y. pestis infections in canines. Indeed, we detect Y. pestis in an LN dog. Collectively, our data suggest that Y. pestis frequently entered human settlements at the time without causing significant outbreaks.

Dating the beginning of the Pottery Neolithic in South Iran: Radiocarbon dates from Tol-e Sangi, the Fars

AbstractThe Fertile Crescent of Southwest Asia is considered one of the main centers of the first Neolithization worldwide. However, the dating and processes of its spread to neighboring regions have yet to be studied. This study reports new chronological data from the Fars highlands, southeast of the Fertile Crescent. Although the Pottery Neolithic in Fars has long been believed to have started in the late 7th millennium BC, recent excavations at Tepe Rahmatabad have suggested a date half a millennium earlier, raising controversy. Our data from Tol-e Sangi, a stratified site with Pre-Pottery (PPN) and Pottery Neolithic (PN) cultural deposits, support the advent of the Pottery Neolithic at the beginning of the 7th millennium BC. This suggests that despite the late arrival of the food production economy in the Fars highlands, which is dated from the mid-8th millennium BC, subsequent cultural development followed a path similar to that of the eastern wing of the Fertile Crescent.