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Los trabajos arqueológicos reaizados desde la Universidade do Algarve en el sur de Potugal, han cambiado sustancialmente los conocimientos que hasta ahora teníamos sobre el poblamiento palelolítico de esta zona. En este artículo presentamos los primeros resultados sobre el análisis de la industria lítica gravetiense y solutrense del yacimiento de Valle Boi. Abordamos la procedencia de las materias primas explotadas, los sistemas técnicos aplicados en la obtención de los instrumentos y la función de los mismos.

Archaeological investigation of Circum-Alpine lake, or pile, dwellings has afforded unprecedented insight into Neolithic and Bronze Age societies. The discovery in 1989 of a submerged settlement near Rome added an early (eighth millennium BP) geographical outlier to this distribution. Two decades of excavation at La Marmotta have identified more than a dozen dwellings and an enormous assemblage of organic remains. Here, the authors present an overview of the textiles, basketry and cordage recovered, and the tools used to manufacture them. The assemblage paints a more complete picture of the technological expertise of Neolithic societies and their ability to exploit and process plant materials to produce a wide range of crafts. Keywords: prehistoric Europe, Mediterranean Neolithic, underwater archaeology, organic preservation, ancient technologies, woodworking, textile production, Introduction The importance of textiles, basketry and cordage within prehistoric societies is inversely proportional to their presence in the archaeological record. Various taphonomic processes typically deprive us of evidence for [...]

North Macedonia is a crucial region for understanding the spread of agriculture into the Mediterranean and Central Europe. To date, however, the area has been subject to relatively limited archaeological research. Here, the authors present use-wear and archaeobotanical analyses on material from two Neolithic sites, Govrelevo and Vrbjanska Cuka, to investigate practices that were previously unstudied in this part of the Balkans, such as sowing, cultivation and harvesting techniques. The results suggest the presence of permanent crop fields located in wetlands, with autumn and spring sowing, and harvesting using curved sickles. The study illuminates early agricultural practices in North Macedonia and adds to our knowledge of the spread of the Neolithic package across Europe. Keywords: Balkans, North Macedonia, Neolithic, farming, cereal harvesting, archaeobotany, use-wear analysis, Introduction South-eastern Europe is one of the first areas of the Continent with a complete, documented set of Near-Eastern Neolithic innovations, which includes pottery manufacture, architectural techniques, settlement patterns and [...]

This article aims to highlight the right to culture for all people and the need to make it effective. It especially emphasizes access for traditionally neglected people and, in this sense, the importance of relying on the user themselves to achieve this. This article cites resources that can help make institutions more inclusive and provides some easy-to-implement guidelines for improving their accessibility. Likewise, it underlines the importance of collaborating with different groups to create more accessible/democratic institutions and provides examples of good practice. The case studies presented here are two of those carried out by the Inclusive Research and Dissemination group of the Spanish National Research Council This group aims to bring science closer to all audiences. To this end, it uses innovative working methods that emphasize user participation and empowerment. This methodology leads to richer results and more accessible and inclusive materials and resources and, in conclusion, a greater democratization and openness of science and cultural heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Navigation in the Mediterranean in the Neolithic is studied here through the boats that were used, the degree of technical specialisation in their construction and, above all, their chronology. After a brief explanation of the exceptional site of La Marmotta, the characteristics and chronology of the five canoes found at the settlement and one of the nautical objects linked to Canoe 1 are discussed. This will allow a reflection on the capability of Neolithic societies for navigation owing to their high technological level. This technology was an essential part in the success of their expansion, bearing in mind that in a few millennia they occupied the whole Mediterranean from Cyprus to the Atlantic seaboard of the Iberian Peninsula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determining the degree to which humans relied on coastal resources in the past is key for understanding long-term social and economic development, as well as for assessing human health and anthropogenic impacts on the environment. Prehistoric hunter–gatherers are often assumed to have heavily exploited aquatic resources, especially those living in regions of high marine productivity. For the Mediterranean, this view has been challenged, partly by the application of stable isotope analysis of skeletal remains which has shown more varied coastal hunter–gatherer diets than in other regions, perhaps due to its lower productivity. By undertaking a more specific analysis of amino acids from bone collagen of 11 individuals from one of the oldest and best-known Mesolithic cemeteries in the Mediterranean, at El Collado, Valencia, we show that high levels of aquatic protein consumption were achieved. By measuring both carbon and nitrogen in amino acids, we conclude that some of the El Collado humans relied heavily on local lagoonal fish and possibly shellfish, rather than open marine species. By contrast to previous suggestions, this study demonstrates that the north-western coast of the Mediterranean basin could support maritime-oriented economies during the Early Holocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marvellous preservation of organic materials at the Neolithic site of La Draga in north-east Iberia include a range of wooden harvesting tools. The authors examine the wood and flint to describe a range of the earliest harvesting techniques and their diverse applications. Keywords: Iberia, Neolithic, sixth-fifth millennia cal BC, agriculture, cereals, harvesting tools, Introduction The first evidence of the Neolithic in north-eastern Iberia appears about the middle of the sixth millennium cal BC. Until that time, the area had been occupied by hunter-gatherer [...]

In this paper, we present the genesis, development and results of a set of inclusive outreach activities developed through a puppet theatre play about the Neolithic. We present our methodology and techniques for outreach activities, showing the advantages of collaborative work and bottom-up approaches. The text also explains how the initiative was born and how the contacts for its realization were consolidated. All the activities were carried out with the utmost care for the scientific content, since it is essential that the public comes to understand the archaeological information presented and is able to differentiate it from the entertaining and dramatic elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is the most emblematic Neolithic cemetery in the northeastern Iberian peninsula, with a total of 179 documented pit burials. Artifacts made of exogenous raw materials, such as honey flint (southeastern France), jadeite, amphibolite, eclogite and nephrite (Alps and the Pyrenees), variscite (coast of northeastern Iberia), and even obsidian (Sardinia), have been found in the burials. The presence of these raw materials is not exclusive to this necropolis, but they have also been documented in many of the graves of this region during this period. The literature has singled out this funerary practice as the Pit Burials cultural horizon. However, until now the chronology of this funerary practice has not been fully defined, so it was difficult to explain the development of the chronology and the networks through which the materials reached northeast Iberia. New, unpublished radiocarbon (14C) dates of Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús are presented, as well as the results of different statistical analyses and Bayesian modeling that specify its chronology. Through the contribution of new data on the chronology of Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús new clues regarding the temporal dynamics of pit burials and the raw materials exchange networks associated with them are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives The study of subsistence strategies among Neolithic communities in north-east Iberia, late-fifth to early-fourth millennia cal BC, enables a more in-depth study of the activities and behavior of the inhabitants of this region, where paleodiets have been little studied. The objectives of this study are, therefore, to determine the diet and subsistence patterns of those communities and to consider whether any relation existed between their subsistence strategies and environmental, geographic, and/or social factors. Materials and Methods Bone samples from 25 middle Neolithic human individuals at seven archeological sites and comparative faunal samples were analyzed, and compared with contemporary series in Mediterranean Europe. Carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios (δ13C and δ15N) of bone collagen were studied to determine the dietary patterns. Results Dietary habits proved to be similar between communities, apart from some interpopulational variations in subsistence strategies. Their diet was based on C3 terrestrial resources with a major vegetal protein component. Discussion The reported variations in interpopulational subsistence strategies among the compared Mediterranean societies do not seem to be directly related to the settlement region. Together with archeological data, this indicates the influence of socioeconomic factors in the Neolithic human diet. A general tendency toward a lesser use of aquatic resources is seen in this period in Iberia and the rest of the Mediterranean, as also documented for contemporary communities in the west and north of Europe. The data obtained will be important for further studies of socioeconomic patterns in European Neolithic societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As in many other regions, the periodization of the Neolithic in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula was based upon relative dating obtained through ceramic typologies. Moreover, this prehistoric period was structured using nomenclature borrowed from the Neolithization of southern France. A total of 37 new radiocarbon dates for NE Iberia have been recently obtained with appropriate sampling criteria. These results have been used in conjunction with other reliable 14C dates in order to assess the validity of traditional classifications established through the study of ceramic typologies. The gradual improvement in the quality of sample choice and the available archaeological records allowed the selection of 187 dates obtained mostly from short-lived taxa. This has enabled the chronological boundaries to be adjusted as precisely as possible. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The excavations carried out from 1983 to 1985 on an Andorran hillside by the former Andorra National Artistic Heritage Archaeological Research Service revealed one of the most important Neolithic sites in the Pyrenees. Directed by Xavier Llovera and Pere Canturri, the excavations uncovered a settlement with two interesting features: 1) it was located in a high mountain area, and 2) the same place possessed numerous domestic and funerary structures. Both factors have made La Feixa del Moro a key site in the prehistory of both the Pyrenees and the western Mediterranean in general. Three decades later, a pluridisciplinary team has begun a careful review of the documentation, studied the human remains and artefacts in the graves, carried out several forms of biochemical analysis and obtained new radiocarbon determinations for the individuals exhumed in two of the three burials in stone boxes (or cists). The objective is a better understanding of the first farming communities that settled in the Pyrenees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Archaeological examples of violence in prehistory have increased in recent years. The evidence, methodology employed and interpretation of the data have been diverse, but in each case the myth of the 'peaceful past' is questioned. This work provides new data on the issue from the north-eastern Iberian Peninsula, associated with the Bell Beaker culture (c.2800-2350 cal BC). Material from two megalithic tombs, Can Gol I and Can Gol II ( Barcelona Province), in particular a set of flint arrowheads, has been revisited. Use-wear analysis on the arrowheads confirmed the presence of impact fractures. This indicates that the arrowheads were not funerary offerings, but that they entered the graves lodged in the bodies of the deceased. The data from the only site with evidence of massive death by violence in the neighbouring region ( Costa de Can Martorell) reinforce the hypothesis of episodes of conflict and violence during prehistory. However, the interpretation of the nature of such violence remains open to debate: was it an act of warfare or an occasional skirmish? And is the image of the Bell Beaker warrior identified in other European contexts also applicable to this area? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]