2024. Chronological modeling on a calibration plateau: implications for the emergence of agriculture in the Dutch wetlands (original) (raw)
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Radiocarbon, 2024
Short-duration archeological sites situated entirely within plateaus in the radiocarbon calibration curve pose unique challenges for our understanding of past processes at regional and global scales. This paper aims to overcome these limitations by leveraging the specific characteristics of two depositional contexts, the Early Neolithic Swifterbant Culture sites S3 and S4, located in the Dutch wetlands. These sites are of exceptional significance as they provide the earliest conclusive evidence of crop cultivation and animal husbandry outside the expansion of Linearbandkeramik (LBK) farmers in northwestern Europe. Here, we present a customized approach that combines radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modeling, predicated on vertical sequences of short-lived plant remains. Our innovative approach enables us to determine, at a fine scale, the temporal position and duration of the prominent archeological contexts at S3 and S4, and explore the chronological relationship between the two sites. Through our analysis, we propose a new chronology for the onset of Neolithization in the Dutch wetlands.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2022
The emergence of animal husbandry in the Netherlands remains the subject of much speculation. Challenges in identifying domesticated animals among the faunal remains, inconsistent excavation documentation, and flawed radiocarbon analysis have resulted in questionable chronologies. This paper examines the available radiocarbon evidence from selected sites which are the mainstay of early examples of domesticated animals in the Netherlands, between 5000 and 4000 BCE. 1 We approach the legacy data in two ways: by employing principles of chronometric hygiene to reassess the radiocarbon datasets of selected sites and by exploring the use of such data for future studies in chronology by means of Bayesian chronological modelling. The latter is demonstrated with a case study, whereby we employ legacy data from Hardinxveld-Giessendam De Bruin in Bayesian models to demonstrate that, despite their shortcomings, such dates remain a valuable resource for much needed future chronological analysis.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2022
The emergence of animal husbandry in the Netherlands remains the subject of much speculation. Challenges in identifying domesticated animals among the faunal remains, inconsistent excavation documentation, and flawed radiocarbon analysis have resulted in questionable chronologies. This paper examines the available radiocarbon evidence from selected sites which are the mainstay of early examples of domesticated animals in the Netherlands, between 5000 and 4000 BCE. 1 We approach the legacy data in two ways: by employing principles of chronometric hygiene to reassess the radiocarbon datasets of selected sites and by exploring the use of such data for future studies in chronology by means of Bayesian chronological modelling. The latter is demonstrated with a case study, whereby we employ legacy data from Hardinxveld-Giessendam De Bruin in Bayesian models to demonstrate that, despite their shortcomings, such dates remain a valuable resource for much needed future chronological analysis.
2021. Timing and Pace of Neolithisation in the Dutch Wetlands (c. 5000-3500 cal. BC
2021
This article presents an overview of the current evidence on the process of Neolithisation in the Dutch wetlands. Over the years, several models have been proposed with different perspectives on the timing and pace of the process: a long transition, an early short transition, and a late short transition. The applicability of any of these models is, of course, dependent of the evidence. In this article, we briefly discuss recently obtained data from the Netherlands on vegetation disturbance (woodland clearing), soil disturbance (tillage), cereal cultivation, animal husbandry, and the use of ceramics. The data discussed involve palynological, sedimentary, micromorphological, archaeobotanical, zooarchaeological, as well as lipid analyses. Hence, it is concluded that from the mid fifth millennium cal. BC onwards, various aspects of a more "Neolithic lifestyle" become apparent in the archaeological record, including cereal cultivation on a structural, but small-scale basis in wetland environments. However, despite the "gradual" tendency that can be observed, the evidence is as yet inconclusive with regard to any of the models, due to persisting limitations of the datasets, potential regional variability, and aspects of scale. A new project, the Emergence of Domestic Animals in the Netherlands (EDAN), aims at a better understanding of animal husbandry through aDNA and isotope analyses, within a framework of statistical chronological modelling. We expect this project to enhance the debate greatly.
Timing and Pace of Neolithisation in the Dutch Wetlands (c. 5000-3500 cal. BC
De Gruyter Open Archaeology, 2021
This article presents an overview of the current evidence on the process of Neolithisation in the Dutch wetlands. Over the years, several models have been proposed with different perspectives on the timing and pace of the process: a long transition, an early short transition, and a late short transition. The applicability of any of these models is, of course, dependent of the evidence. In this article, we briefly discuss recently obtained data from the Netherlands on vegetation disturbance (woodland clearing), soil disturbance (tillage), cereal cultivation, animal husbandry, and the use of ceramics. The data discussed involve palynological, sedimentary, micromorphological, archaeobotanical, zooarchaeological, as well as lipid analyses. Hence, it is concluded that from the mid fifth millennium cal. BC onwards, various aspects of a more "Neolithic lifestyle" become apparent in the archaeological record, including cereal cultivation on a structural, but small-scale basis in wetland environments. However, despite the "gradual" tendency that can be observed, the evidence is as yet inconclusive with regard to any of the models, due to persisting limitations of the datasets, potential regional variability, and aspects of scale. A new project, the Emergence of Domestic Animals in the Netherlands (EDAN), aims at a better understanding of animal husbandry through aDNA and isotope analyses, within a framework of statistical chronological modelling. We expect this project to enhance the debate greatly.
PLOS ONE, 2023
The archaeological sites of Hardinxveld-Giessendam de Bruin and Polderweg, situated in the Rhine-Meuse delta, are the best-preserved Mesolithic sites in the Netherlands. Due to the early appearance of domesticated animals in their faunal assemblage, they are also integral to the research of the emergence of animal husbandry in the region. This study focuses on the precise chronology of the sites, using radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling of both newly acquired and legacy radiocarbon dates. To mitigate the risk of erroneous dates, we dated the bone collagen of 26 herbivorous and one aquatic mammals from clear archaeological contexts and discovered that the most recent occupational phases at both sites are several centuries younger than previously thought. This is consistent with material evidence of lifestyle changes in the final phase at Hardinxveld-Giessendam de Bruin, which is now, according to our chronology, contemporaneous with the similar patterns produced in the region.
PLos One, 2023
The archaeological sites of Hardinxveld-Giessendam de Bruin and Polderweg, situated in the Rhine-Meuse delta, are the best-preserved Mesolithic sites in the Netherlands. Due to the early appearance of domesticated animals in their faunal assemblage, they are also integral to the research of the emergence of animal husbandry in the region. This study focuses on the precise chronology of the sites, using radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling of both newly acquired and legacy radiocarbon dates. To mitigate the risk of erroneous dates, we dated the bone collagen of 26 herbivorous and one aquatic mammals from clear archaeological contexts and discovered that the most recent occupational phases at both sites are several centuries younger than previously thought. This is consistent with material evidence of lifestyle changes in the final phase at Hardinxveld-Giessendam de Bruin, which is now, according to our chronology, contemporaneous with the similar patterns produced in the region.
Radiocarbon, 2014
The Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in the wetland margins of the southern North Sea basin occurred well over a millennium after the transition in neighboring loess regions. This article investigates the possible role of hydrological dynamics in the presence of the last hunter-gatherer-fishermen in these wetland regions. A Bayesian modeling approach is used to integrate stratigraphic information and radiocarbon dates both from accurately datable archaeological remains and key horizons in peat sequences in the Scheldt floodplain of northwestern Belgium. This study tests whether the Swifterbant occupation of the study area was contemporaneous with hiatuses in peat growth caused by organic clastic sedimentation due to increased tidal influences and local groundwater rise. The results suggest that the appearance of this culture followed shortly after the emergence of a brackish tidal mudflat landscape replacing a freshwater marsh.
Journal of Archaeology in the Low Countries 3(1/2), 31-46, 2011
The Noordoostpolder is an archaeologically rich area in the central Netherlands. A sediment profile, situated on a dune slope, was sampled near a Neolithic settlement site on the former island of Schokland. To reconstruct the local and regional vegetation around a Neolithic settlement, pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs and macrofossils were analyzed. The lowest part of the profile represents mid-Holocene peat growth on Pleistocene cover sand. Based on anthropogenic indicators like Cerealia and apophytes, the impact of early Neolithic people living in the nearby settlement was prominent. In addition to the pollen record, the spores of coprophilous fungi appeared to be valuable palaeoenvironmental indicators for human impact. The sampled sequence shows the effects of a rising water table related to sea level rise. The results support Cappers and Raemaekers' () model of small-scale wetland farming in the early Neolithic.
""The understanding of the neolithisation process in the Netherlands has increased considerably during the last decades. A coherent overview of the archaeobotanical research on the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture was, however, lacking until now. This thesis aims to provide a better understanding of the neolithisation process in the Dutch wetlands by means of the reconstruction of the natural vegetation, human impact, plant use and cultivation practises at the time of the Late Mesolithic, the Swifterbant culture and the Hazendonk group. The study is a literature study based on the analysis of published and unpublished data on pollen, seeds and fruits, wood, charcoal and tubers from four wetland regions. The extensive botanical data sets of recently excavated sites have been combined and compared with evidence of earlier investigations, resulting in a coherent overview and new interpretations. The evidence from the Dutch wetlands has furthermore been compared with that of comparable cultural groups in Northwestern Europe.""