The work presented in this dissertation explores the nature of agro-pastoral strategies developed by Neolithic farmers as a way to understand how early food production was inter-twined with environmental and socio-economic opportunities and constraints. Towards this end, a multi-isotope approach is used to address questions of scale and intensity of crop cultivation and animal management at the archaeological sites of Kouphovouno, southern Greece, Makriyalos, northern Greece, and Çatalhöyük, south-central Turkey. Measurements of stable carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and strontium isotope values of carbonized plant remains, human and animal bone collagen and animal tooth enamel are used to examine the similarities and differences in the types of treatments that individual species of plants and animals received during the agricultural cycle at the distinct locations. The results show that farmers at the three sites developed variable methods for exploiting the arable and pastoral landscape and catering to their economic and culinary needs. The discussion considers the implications of these findings to our understanding of the complexity and adaptability of early farming systems.

Cremated bone occurs in many archaeological sites as small grey and white fragments. The high temperatures reached during heating induce structural, chemical and isotopic changes to bone apatite (the inorganic fraction of bone). These changes are investigated here by infrared spectroscopy and mass spectrometry (d13C, d18O and 87Sr/86Sr) in both modern heated bone and archaeological cremated specimens. The results of various heating experiments (in laboratory and natural conditions) highlight the significant carbon and oxygen exchanges with the fuel used as well as with bone organic matter (mainly collagen). While not informing on dietary practice and hydrology as is the case with unburned bone, the d13C and d18O values of calcined samples together with infrared results provide information on the conditions in which the bone was heated (e.g. presence of fuel, size of the pyre, temperatures reached, dry or fresh bone, etc.). In parallel, the effect of heat on the strontium present in bone is minimal, if not undetectable. Furthermore, as observed through artificial contamination experiments, post-burial alterations also appear to be extremely limited, which is to be expected due to the higher crystallinity of calcined bone apatite compared to tooth enamel and unburned bone. These experiments demonstrate that calcined bone provides a reliable substrate for mobility studies using its strontium isotope composition. The application of these results to the study of six Neolithic and one Bronze Age sites from Ireland showed the possibility of discriminating cremated individuals that ate food originating from different regions, as well as highlighting possible variations in cremation practices between different sites. The results of this thesis greatly extend the application of strontium isotopes to places and periods in which cremation was the dominant mortuary practice, or where unburned bone and enamel do not survive. They also provide insights into the reconstruction of ancient cremation practices.

The aim of this thesis was to reconstruct dietary choices for Neolithic populations in Anatolia and Poland using stable isotope analysis, and to examine the extent to which local environmental factors in these regions affected the isotope values recorded from skeletal collagen. In total 278 new δ13C and δ15N values were obtained from human and animal bone collagen for this project (161 from the site of Oslonki 1, 59 from Barçin Höyük, and 58 from the site of Aktopraklik). From an environmental perspective, the multi-level statistical modelling highlighted a clear relationship with δ13C and δ15N and moisture availability, which was most evident through the proxy of mean annual precipitation (MAP). The modelling highlighted a 0.4‰ decrease in d13C for every 100mm decrease of MAP, and a 0.5‰ decrease in d15N for every 100mm decrease between sites. The δ13C and δ15N values for the North-West Anatolian sites are the first dietary isotopic studies for the Neolithic period in the region. The values are largely commensurate with the dietary isotope studies from Neolithic sites located on the Central Anatolian plateau, with the caveat that the North-West sites perhaps had a greater reliance on herbivore protein (instead of plant protein) than their plateau counterparts. The dietary reconstruction of Oslonki 1 uncovered a rather unexpected outcome - namely that status exerted a degree of control over human diet. If this is indeed true it will be the earliest evidence in Europe of a distinct relationship between the socioeconomic status and diet of an individual.

This thesis summarizes the knowledge obtained by a research on the part of the Neolithic site in Chotěšov, District of Pilsen - South. The main objective of the thesis was to comment on the structure of this site, to describe particular objects, to determine and interpret mutual relations and try to ascertain their dating. The thesis concludes with a comparison of the results of this site's analysis with neolithic sites of broader West Bohemian region, primarily of those adjacent to the locality described in this work. All this should contribute to a better understanding of a way, intensity and a process of the colonization of West Bohemia in the neolithic period. Drawings and photographs of selected objects along with a completed set of typical earthenware and a neolithic stone industry of the given locality are included in the appendixes.

Genf, Universit́e, Diss.

La thèse porte sur la mise au jour d'une séquence culturelle continue dans le nord-ouest du Gabon, sur le territoire de la Province de l'Estuaire.<p>Cette séquence démarre avec les traces des derniers chasseurs-collecteurs datées avant 4.000 bp, se poursuit avec la présence des premiers villages avant 2.600 bp, se développe avec l'arrivée des premières populations métallurgistes vers 1.900 bp et se termine un peu après l'arrivée des premiers européens sur la côte Atlantique entre 1471-1475.<p>Ces quelques quatre millénaire d'histoire sont construits autour d'un protocole d’analyse détaillée des poteries, principaux traceurs des ensembles culturels et de leurs échanges.<p>A chaque grande époque culturelle (Néolithique puis Age du Fer), les données de l'estuaire du Gabon sont comparées et enrichies par toutes les autres informations archéologiques compilées au Gabon.<p>Dans le cadre d'une synthèse régionale, toute la documentation relative à la néolithisation en Afrique Centrale du Cameroun à l'Angola est réétudiée en utilisant la même grille d'analyse, et une nouvelle modélisation de l'expansion du système de production villageois est proposée.<p>Enfin, tous les éléments qui portent sur les premières traces de réduction du fer sont repris, critiqués, et une chronologie plus sûre de l'expansion de cette métallurgie est proposée.<p> / Doctorat en philosophie et lettres, Orientation histoire de l'art et archéologie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

A paleodemographic analysis was conducted using skeletal data from Jōmon period sites in Japan. 15P5 ratios were produced as proxy birth rate values for sites throughout the Jōmon period. Previous studies based on numbers of residential sites indicated a substantial population increase in the Kantō and Chūbu regions in central Japan, climaxing during the Middle Jōmon period, followed by an equally dramatic population decrease, somewhat resembling changes that occurred during a Neolithic Demographic Transition (NDT). The Jōmon are viewed as a relatively sedentary, non-agricultural group, and provided an opportunity to attempt to separate the factors of sedentism and agriculture as they relate to the NDT. Skeletal data showed fairly stable trends in birth rates, instead of the expected increase and decrease in values. This discrepancy calls into question the validity of previous studies. The stable population levels suggest that sedentism alone was not the primary driver of the NDT. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Thesis (doctoral)--Lunds universitet, 1984. / Extra t.p. with thesis statement and English abstract inserted. Summary in English. Includes bibliographical references (p. 212-232).

La culture Blicquy/Villeneuve-Saint-Germain marque la fin des traditions danubiennes (Néolithique ancien) dans le nord de la France et en Belgique. Les onze sites étudiés sont localisés en Belgique et correspondent au faciès blicquien de cette entité culturelle. Deux aires d’implantation, distantes d’une centaine de km sont distinguées (en Hainaut et en Hesbaye). La mise en œuvre d’une analyse techno-économique de l’industrie lithique blicquienne visait à répondre à un double objectif : restituer l’organisation socio-économique de la production lithique et les relations entretenues entre les différentes zones de peuplement de cette culture. Cette étude souligne la structure duale de la production lithique. Un groupe de tailleurs produit des éclats ou des outils facettés en contexte domestique. Un autre groupe de tailleurs, disposant de compétences spécifiques, débite des lames au sein de chaque maisonnée. Mais les arguments convergent pour envisager le déplacement de ces tailleurs d’une unité d’habitation à l’autre, voire d’un site à l’autre, suggérant alors une spécialisation intra- voire intercommunautaire de cette production laminaire. La diffusion du silex de Ghlin, originaire du bassin de Mons, atteste du déplacement de tailleurs depuis le Hainaut vers la Hesbaye. La diffusion du silex tertiaire bartonien, issu du Bassin parisien, est plus polymorphe. Le déplacement de tailleurs du Bassin parisien vers le Hainaut est envisagé mais n’est certainement pas exclusif. L’intensité des relations entre les villages transparaît à travers cette étude, témoignant de l’importance des échanges dans la vie socio-économique de ces communautés. / In the North of France and Belgium, the Blicquy/Villeneuve-Saint-Germain culture marks the end of the Danube traditions (Early Neolithic Period). The eleven sites found in Belgium belong to the Blicquian features of this cultural entity. Two settlement areas, separated by 100 km, are highlighted (in Hainaut and in Hesbaye). An analysis of the technical and economical characteristics of the Blicquian lithic industry was performed in order to describe the socio-economic organization relating to the lithic production as well as the relationships between the different settlements areas of this culture. The study concluded that there were two distinct types of production. A group of knappers produced flakes and facetted tools in a domestic context. Another group of knappers, who had specific skills, produced blades which were found in each house. However, arguments converge to suggest that the latter moved from one house to the next and even from a site to another, suggesting some kind of specialization of the laminar production in the community or even among several communities. The circulation of Ghlin flint (probably originating from Hainaut) shows that some knappers moved between Hainaut and Hesbaye. The circulation of tertiary bartonian flint (originating from the Paris Basin) was following more diverse modalities. Some knappers may have moved from the Paris Basin to Hainaut, but it is certainly not the only way that Bartonian flint was introduced on the Blicquian sites. This study shows the intensity of the relations between villages, demonstrating the importance of exchanges for the socio-economical welfare of those agro-pastoral communities.

Folgender Artikel stellt die nach der politischen Wende in Sachsen gefundenen und bisher nur aus Vorberichten bekannten Glockenbechergräber vor. Die archäologisch-kulturelle Zuordnung der Gräber steht im Vordergrund, da einige Gräber keine oder kulturunspezifische Beigaben enthielten. Durch die Analyse eines internen und externen Grabkontextes kann der Großteil der Gräber der archäologischen Kultur mit Glockenbecher zugeordnet und die mit den Gräbern in Beziehung stehenden Befunde interpretiert werden. Weiterhin wird die Beziehungen zwischen den archäologischen Kulturen Glockenbecher und Aunjetitz thematisiert und auf besondere Aspekte der Glockenbecherbestattungssitte in Nordwestsachsen eingegangen. / This article presents the Bell Beaker graves found in Northwest Saxony after 1989. Because some of the burials contained none or only culturally non-specific grave goods, the overall analysis focused on the cultural classification of the graves. Investigation of the internal and external grave context allowed to classify the majority as graves of the Bell Beaker Culture and subsequently to interpret the features related to the graves. Furthermore the relationship between the Bell Beaker and Únetice Culture is discussed and special regional aspects of Bell Beaker burial customs are described in detail.