Inter-site Relationships at the End of the Early Neolithic in North-western Europe, Bartonian Flint Circulation and Macro-features Matching Method

ABSTRACT

This paper demonstrates the potential of fine-grained technological analysis to provide new insights for a better anthropological understanding of raw material distribution. The spatial segmentation of the chaîne opératoire is demonstrated using an original method focusing on the matching of macro-features of tertiary Bartonian flint. The outcrops of this raw material occur in the Paris Basin and the distribution network for this type of flint at the end of the early Neolithic in north-western Europe is no longer in question. This study focuses on its circulation toward the Blicquian sites, located some 150 km from the outcrops. The analysis of levels of skill and technical traditions of the production show a very rapid switch in the modalities of distribution indicating that the same culture and “network” probably involved different social interactions between groups over time.

KEYWORDS:

• Early Neolithic
• north-Western Europe
• distribution networks
• macro-features method
• skill levels

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my sincerest thanks to the editor and referees for the richness and quality of their comments. I hope that the result is commensurate with the value of the help they have given me.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Solène Denis presented her doctoral thesis at Paris Nanterre University in December 2014. She is currently a post-doctoral researcher in Namur University at the LIATEC laboratory and her research focuses on the lithic industries of the first agro-pastoral societies of north-western Europe.