DOI chapter:
Changing Worlds – The Spread of the Neolithic Way of Life in the North
DOI chapter:Klimscha, Florian; Neumann, Daniel: A longue durée perspective on technical innovations in the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic of the North European Plain
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.66745#0395
394
A longue duree perspective on technical innovations in the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic of the North European Plain
animals from the meat production and use them as
a ‘motor’, as well as tools and knowledge about how
to build yokes, reins, wheels, and a chassis.
Mesolithic hunter-gatherer-fishers lacked many
of these preconditions and the necessary experimen-
tation with new technologies to adopt them to their
own necessities. For a long time they also lacked
any context in which both experimentation and pro-
duction, which did require considerable labour and
reorganisation (i. e. investment), could be backed54.
The import of exotic axes (and possibly many other
objects and ideas) from the south might have been
motivated by struggles for status, but the more cost-
intensive developments of ploughing, wagon con-
struction, and metal casting all took place within
the later stage of the Early Neolithic, as well as the
distribution of battle-axe types from the North Sea
to the Black Sea (Klimscha 2016, 115). Here new
research needs to focus on.
REFERENCES
Amkreutz this volume: L. Amkreutz, A view from Dogger-
land - interpreting the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition
in the Lower Rhine Area wetlands (5,500-2,500 calBC).
Angeli 1967: W. Angeli, Der Depotfund von Stollhof. An-
nalen des Naturhistorischen Museums Wien 70, 1967,
491-496.
Ten Anscher 2012: T. Ten Anscher, Leven met de Vecht: Schok-
land-P14 en de Noordoostpolder in het neolithicum
en de bronstijd. PhD-Thesis, University of Amsterdam
(Amsterdam 2012).
Ten Anscher / Knippenberg this volume: T. Ten Anscher /
A. Knippenberg, Unexpected dimensions of a Swift-
erbant settlement at Medel-De Roeskamp (the Neth-
erlands).
Arca 2011: A. Arca, Entre Bego et Vai Camonica Une cle
pour mieux comprendre 1’origine de 1’art rupestre dans
les Alpes. Bulletin d’Etudes Prehistoriques et Archeo-
logiques Alpines 2011, 71-91.
Bakker 2004: J. A. Bakker, Die neolithischen Wagen im
nordlichen Mitteleuropa. In: M. Fansa /S. Burmeister
(eds.), Rad und Wagen. Der Ursprung einer Innovation.
Wagen im Vorderen Orient und Europa. Beiheft der Ar-
chaologischen Mitteilungen aus Nordwestdeutschland
40 (Mainz 2004) 283-294.
54 We do not suggest a capitalist mechanism here, but want
to stress that hunter-gatherers have limited resources and need
a motivation to spend parts thereof on a rather vaguely defined
idea without any direct gains.
Bakker et al. 1999: J. A. Bakker /J. Kruk /A. E. Lanting /
S. Milisaukas, The earliest evidence of wheeled ve-
hicles in Europe and the Near East. Antiquity 73,1999,
778-790.Banffy 2013: E. Bunffy, The Early Neolithic
of the Danube-Tisza Interfluve. BAR International Se-
ries 2584 = Archaeolingua Central European Series 7
(Oxford 2013).
Banffy 2019: E. Banffy, First Farmers of the Carpathian
Basin. Changing Patterns in Subsistence, Ritual and
Monumental Figurines. Prehistoric Research Papers
8 (Oxford 2019).
Behre 2008: K. E. Behre, Collected seeds and fruits from
herbs as prehistoric food. Vegetation History and Ar-
chaeobotany 17, 2008, 65-73.
Behre / Kucan 1994: K. E. Behre / D. Kucan, Die Ge-
schichte der Kulturlandschaft und des Ackerbaus in
der Siedlungskammer Flogeln, Niedersachsen, seit der
Jungsteinzeit. Probleme der Kiistenforschung im siidli-
chen Nordseegebiet 21 (Oldenburg 1994).
Bogucki 1993: P. Bogucki, Animal Traction and Household
Economies in Neolithic Europe. Antiquity 67, 1993,
492-503.
Both / Fansa 2011: S. Both / M. Fansa (eds.), Oh schaurig
ists fibers Moor zu gehn. 220 Jahre Moorarchaologie
(Mainz 2011).
Brozio 2016: J. P. Brozio, Megalithanlagen und Siedlungs-
muster im trichterbecherzeitlichen Ostholstein (Bonn
2016).
Brozio et al. 2019: J. P. Brozio / J. Muller / M. Furholt /
W. Kirleis / S. Dreibrodt / I. Feeser / W. Dorfler /
M. Weinelt / H. Raese / A. Bock, Monuments and
economies. What drove variability in the middle-
Holocene Neolithic? The Holocene 2019: doi.
org/10.1177/0959683619857227.
Budd / Ottaway 1991: P. Budd / B. Ottaway, The properties
of arsenical copper alloys: implications for the develop-
ment of Eneolithic metallurgy. In: P. Budd / B. Chapman /
C. Jackson / R. Janaway / B. Ottaway (eds.), Archaeo-
logical Sciences 1989. Oxbow Monograph 9 (Oxford
1991) 132-142.
Budd / Ottaway 1995: P. Budd / B. Ottaway, Eneolithic
arsenical copper: chance or choice? In: B. Jovanovic
(ed.), Ancient Mining and Metallurgy in Southeast Eu-
rope. International Symposium, Donji Milanovac, May
20-25, 1990 (Belgrad 1995) 95-102.
Burmeister 2004a: S. Burmeister, Der Wagen im Neolithi-
kum und in der Bronzezeit: Erfindung, Ausbreitung
und Funktion der ersten Fahrzeuge. In: M. Fansa / S.
Burmeister (eds.), Rad und Wagen. Der Ursprung einer
Innovation. Wagen im Vorderen Orient und Europa.
Archaologische Mitteilungen aus Nordwestdeutschland,
Beiheft 40 (Mainz 2004) 13-40.
A longue duree perspective on technical innovations in the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic of the North European Plain
animals from the meat production and use them as
a ‘motor’, as well as tools and knowledge about how
to build yokes, reins, wheels, and a chassis.
Mesolithic hunter-gatherer-fishers lacked many
of these preconditions and the necessary experimen-
tation with new technologies to adopt them to their
own necessities. For a long time they also lacked
any context in which both experimentation and pro-
duction, which did require considerable labour and
reorganisation (i. e. investment), could be backed54.
The import of exotic axes (and possibly many other
objects and ideas) from the south might have been
motivated by struggles for status, but the more cost-
intensive developments of ploughing, wagon con-
struction, and metal casting all took place within
the later stage of the Early Neolithic, as well as the
distribution of battle-axe types from the North Sea
to the Black Sea (Klimscha 2016, 115). Here new
research needs to focus on.
REFERENCES
Amkreutz this volume: L. Amkreutz, A view from Dogger-
land - interpreting the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition
in the Lower Rhine Area wetlands (5,500-2,500 calBC).
Angeli 1967: W. Angeli, Der Depotfund von Stollhof. An-
nalen des Naturhistorischen Museums Wien 70, 1967,
491-496.
Ten Anscher 2012: T. Ten Anscher, Leven met de Vecht: Schok-
land-P14 en de Noordoostpolder in het neolithicum
en de bronstijd. PhD-Thesis, University of Amsterdam
(Amsterdam 2012).
Ten Anscher / Knippenberg this volume: T. Ten Anscher /
A. Knippenberg, Unexpected dimensions of a Swift-
erbant settlement at Medel-De Roeskamp (the Neth-
erlands).
Arca 2011: A. Arca, Entre Bego et Vai Camonica Une cle
pour mieux comprendre 1’origine de 1’art rupestre dans
les Alpes. Bulletin d’Etudes Prehistoriques et Archeo-
logiques Alpines 2011, 71-91.
Bakker 2004: J. A. Bakker, Die neolithischen Wagen im
nordlichen Mitteleuropa. In: M. Fansa /S. Burmeister
(eds.), Rad und Wagen. Der Ursprung einer Innovation.
Wagen im Vorderen Orient und Europa. Beiheft der Ar-
chaologischen Mitteilungen aus Nordwestdeutschland
40 (Mainz 2004) 283-294.
54 We do not suggest a capitalist mechanism here, but want
to stress that hunter-gatherers have limited resources and need
a motivation to spend parts thereof on a rather vaguely defined
idea without any direct gains.
Bakker et al. 1999: J. A. Bakker /J. Kruk /A. E. Lanting /
S. Milisaukas, The earliest evidence of wheeled ve-
hicles in Europe and the Near East. Antiquity 73,1999,
778-790.Banffy 2013: E. Bunffy, The Early Neolithic
of the Danube-Tisza Interfluve. BAR International Se-
ries 2584 = Archaeolingua Central European Series 7
(Oxford 2013).
Banffy 2019: E. Banffy, First Farmers of the Carpathian
Basin. Changing Patterns in Subsistence, Ritual and
Monumental Figurines. Prehistoric Research Papers
8 (Oxford 2019).
Behre 2008: K. E. Behre, Collected seeds and fruits from
herbs as prehistoric food. Vegetation History and Ar-
chaeobotany 17, 2008, 65-73.
Behre / Kucan 1994: K. E. Behre / D. Kucan, Die Ge-
schichte der Kulturlandschaft und des Ackerbaus in
der Siedlungskammer Flogeln, Niedersachsen, seit der
Jungsteinzeit. Probleme der Kiistenforschung im siidli-
chen Nordseegebiet 21 (Oldenburg 1994).
Bogucki 1993: P. Bogucki, Animal Traction and Household
Economies in Neolithic Europe. Antiquity 67, 1993,
492-503.
Both / Fansa 2011: S. Both / M. Fansa (eds.), Oh schaurig
ists fibers Moor zu gehn. 220 Jahre Moorarchaologie
(Mainz 2011).
Brozio 2016: J. P. Brozio, Megalithanlagen und Siedlungs-
muster im trichterbecherzeitlichen Ostholstein (Bonn
2016).
Brozio et al. 2019: J. P. Brozio / J. Muller / M. Furholt /
W. Kirleis / S. Dreibrodt / I. Feeser / W. Dorfler /
M. Weinelt / H. Raese / A. Bock, Monuments and
economies. What drove variability in the middle-
Holocene Neolithic? The Holocene 2019: doi.
org/10.1177/0959683619857227.
Budd / Ottaway 1991: P. Budd / B. Ottaway, The properties
of arsenical copper alloys: implications for the develop-
ment of Eneolithic metallurgy. In: P. Budd / B. Chapman /
C. Jackson / R. Janaway / B. Ottaway (eds.), Archaeo-
logical Sciences 1989. Oxbow Monograph 9 (Oxford
1991) 132-142.
Budd / Ottaway 1995: P. Budd / B. Ottaway, Eneolithic
arsenical copper: chance or choice? In: B. Jovanovic
(ed.), Ancient Mining and Metallurgy in Southeast Eu-
rope. International Symposium, Donji Milanovac, May
20-25, 1990 (Belgrad 1995) 95-102.
Burmeister 2004a: S. Burmeister, Der Wagen im Neolithi-
kum und in der Bronzezeit: Erfindung, Ausbreitung
und Funktion der ersten Fahrzeuge. In: M. Fansa / S.
Burmeister (eds.), Rad und Wagen. Der Ursprung einer
Innovation. Wagen im Vorderen Orient und Europa.
Archaologische Mitteilungen aus Nordwestdeutschland,
Beiheft 40 (Mainz 2004) 13-40.