The goal of this project is to understand the relationship between warfare and exchange among the first Early Neolithic farming communities to appear in northeastern Belgium (c. 5000-4700 BC). During two field seasons, it will focus on two adjoining 'settlement clusters' (c. 40 sites each) of the Linienbandkeramik (LBK) culture in the Upper Geer and Yerne river valleys. These clusters are distinguished from one another by location and the materials of their ground stone 'shoe-last' adzes, a ubiquitous and distinctive LBK artifact.
This project will ascertain the distribution of LBK villages encircled by ditch-palisade fortifications in these clusters. As five fortified villages have already been found along the northern limits of both settlement clusters, this project will focus on villages in the centers of and along the border between them. This information is crucial for determining who the LBK villagers regarded as adversaries-Mesolithic foragers beyond the LBK zone, other LBK settlement clusters or LBK villages within the same cluster-- and what, if any, commodities were exchanged with them.
The project will also investigate the kinds of commodities exchanged between villages of the same cluster, between these two clusters and, at greater distances, with other LBK clusters or Final Mesolithic foragers beyond the LBK occupation zone. The commodities of interest are LBK ceramics, Limburg ceramics (arguably made by Final Mesolithic foragers), flint blades, grindstones and, when preserved, wild or agricultural plants. A principal goal is to determine which commodities these ancient villagers exchanged with 'others' whom they regarded as hostile based upon the location of their fortifications. Three theoretical propositions will be evaluated: 1) that exchange and hostilities are mutually exclusive; 2) that exchanges and warfare are closely linked; and 3) that only certain kinds of exchanges, especially in commodities geographically restricted to one group, are linked to hostilities.
The team will be one of the first to employ innovative geophysical surveying techniques ('remote sensing') for archaeological purposes in this region. Specifically, the project will use Differential Magnetometer (DM) and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) surveys to locate fortification ditches and household rubbish pits at selected Upper Geer and Yerne sites. The buried features located by DM and GPR will be ground truthed by excavations to recover artifacts, plant remains, pollen samples and datable materials. The artifacts recovered will be later analyzed by a variety of techniques.e.g. SEM microscopy, Energy Dispersive Spectra and X-ray Diffraction.to determine the sources of raw materials and the locations of production.
The broader impacts this project include: 1) the doctoral research of two UIC graduate students working on the project; 2) International collaboration with peers at Belgium's Institute of Natural Sciences; and 3) the archaeological training of undergrads from Belgian universities to be used as crew. This project will evaluate interpretations regarding the social and economic contexts that encourage or discourage warfare. It will also contribute to social scientific studies of pre-capitalist exchange.
By examining the interaction between Mesolithics and Neolithics along a frontier, the interaction of LBK villages and settlement clusters, and the influence of conflict on LBK settlement patterns, this project will contribute significantly to our knowledge of the first farming communities in Europe.
