Early Neolithic Forts and Villages in NE Belgium: A Preliminary Report

Abstract

The Late Linearbandkeramik (LBK) sites of Belgium, ca. 6300–6000 b.p. (unrecalibrated), represent the villages and hamlets of the first agriculturalists to colonize this region. The preliminary results from excavations at several Late LBK sites in NE Belgium (i.e., the Hesbaye) challenge many traditional notions about the peaceful nature of this colonization and LBK economic and social organization. Three newly-excavated sites in the Hesbaye—Darion, Oleye, and Longchamps—were fortified. Various hypotheses regarding the function of these fortifications are discussed. At present, the most probable is that they were erected to deter raids by indigenous Mesolithic hunter-gatherers, but other plausible hypotheses cannot be entirely excluded. It is also argued that the defense of these sites involved cooperation among several villages. Comparisons between the lithic inventories at these sites and some others nearby indicate that there was village specialization in flint blade and groundstone adze production. Some evidence also suggests village specialization in ceramic production. The homogeneity of adze materials between sites within the Upper Geer “cluster” indicates “pooling” of adze acquisition and centralized redistribution.