Fishing in the Adriatic at the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition: Evidence from Vela Spila, Croatia

Abstract

Recent excavations at the site of Vela Spila, Korčula, on the Adriatic coast of Croatia have yielded a substantial assemblage of fish bone dating to the Mesolithic and Neolithic period. Few similar assemblages have been recovered to date, and zooarchaeological analysis of the material from Vela Spila provides an insight into the choices and practices associated with fishing across the crucial Mesolithic–Neolithic transition, and across a period of coastal change due to rising sea levels, in this area. Specialised capture and processing of mackerel (Scomber japonicus) in the Mesolithic period was indicated, with estimates indicating nearly half a tonne of mackerel processed at the site. A decrease in quantity of fish bone recovered from the Mesolithic to Neolithic phases is matched by a change in fishing strategy to opportunistic coastal fishing in the Neolithic periods. Fishing is discussed in relation to the broader lived context of the Mesolithic and Neolithic in the Adriatic, particularly its place within dietary practices and maritime activity.

Keywords:

• Vela Spila
• Croatia
• Fishing
• Mesolithic
• Mackerel
• Adriatic

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dinko Radić from the Cultural Centre, Vela Luka, for providing access to the material, as well as Sheila Hamilton-Dyer and Tamara Vučetić for their knowledge of fishes and fishing in the Mediterranean and Adriatic, Stašo Forenbaher for comments on sea-level change, and V. Pia Spry-Marqués for comments on earlier drafts of this paper. Acknowledgement is also due to the hard-working ‘Bone Team’ at the Vela Spila excavations. This work was initially prepared by Clare Rainsford as an MSc thesis, submitted to the University of York. We thank two anonymous referees for their comments on the original draft.