Nowadays Great Brittain is separated from the European Continent by the North Sea. This, however, hasn’t always been the case. Due to sea-level changes as a result of climatic changes and the...Show moreNowadays Great Brittain is separated from the European Continent by the North Sea. This, however, hasn’t always been the case. Due to sea-level changes as a result of climatic changes and the cyclical repetition of glacials and interglacials the North Sea Basin has repeatedly been exposed to the open-air during the Pleistocene. Numerous finds, recovered by fishermen and dredgers while executing their work, indicate that this glacial plane was inhabited by a wide variety of animal species. It is beginning to become clear, due to the recovery of worked flint material, that early human must have been part of the inhabitants. The importance of the North Sea Basin for archaeological research has repeatedly been stressed. The archaeology in the seabed is threatened by several activities that affect the North Sea bottom. The trawling of fish boats, the construction of oil rigs and offshore windmill parks and the marine aggregate industry all have a huge effect on the seabed, possibly destroying archaeological remains while executed. The actual implementation of archaeological fieldwork as part of these bottom stirring activities is minimal and mainly focused on maritime archaeology. The goal of this thesis is to explore the possibilities for palaeolithic research in the North Sea Basin. It does so by analyzing archaeological research on-land and it’s possibilities for offshore archaeology and by evaluating different projects that have been set up over the last year to improve Paleolithic archaeological research on the North Sea bed over the border. In this way the strengths and weaknesses of the research as it is executed this days can be reviewed. The outcome should lead to new insights and a best-practice for setting up a solid archaeological research strategy before the execution of bottom disturbing activities. Crucial to this research strategy is a multidisciplinary approach in which the potential of all executed steps is explored. Recent research methods can be improved by changing the current focus on the object to a focus on the context of archaeological remains. Paleolithic material is useless without knowledge about the landscape and environment in which it has been used and deposited.Show less
In 1976, there were plans for a big golf resort in Wijchen-Berendonck. It was known that this piece of land was full with archaeology. A big excavation followed. In April 1976 a lined well was...Show moreIn 1976, there were plans for a big golf resort in Wijchen-Berendonck. It was known that this piece of land was full with archaeology. A big excavation followed. In April 1976 a lined well was found. The well was filled with hundreds of finds. These finds were stored in boxes in the faculty for archaeology in Leiden for 36 years! The journals of the excavation say that the well was lined with wattle work. Most of the finds are ceramics. The other finds were either too small or too fragile to be used as a dating marker. The dating of the well, which is solely based on the ceramic finds, must be around phase F of the Iron Age in the Netherlands. This date is the secondary use of the well as a refuse pit. The real date of the well, as a provider of drinking water, must have been before this.Show less
Doel van deze scriptie is de relatie tussen rock art en het landschap in de bronstijd te onderzoeken. Rock art is een geschikt medium voor een bredere studie naar de prehistorische samenleving en...Show moreDoel van deze scriptie is de relatie tussen rock art en het landschap in de bronstijd te onderzoeken. Rock art is een geschikt medium voor een bredere studie naar de prehistorische samenleving en de bewoning en het gebruik van het landschap. De regio Bohuslän in Zweden is als onderzoeksgebied gekozen daar er zich een grote concentratie rock art bevindt en er zeer gedetailleerde, recente onderzoeken beschikbaar zijn. Het rock art onderzoek in Bohuslän is van oudsher, maar zelfs tot op de dag van vandaag, geregeerd door het aardse paradigma. De laatste jaren is er een begin gemaakt met het vestigen van een nieuw maritiem kader. De meest voorkomende figuratieve motieven in Bohuslän zijn petrogliefen van boten. Het lijkt er op dat die op een betekenisvolle locatie aan de kust liggen. Ze wijken sterk af van de rock art uit de omgeving. De grootste rock art sites met de meeste afbeeldingen van boten zijn in de nabijheid van de kust gelokaliseerd, terwijl rock art sites met afbeeldingen van grote mensfiguren zich op de hoger gelegen gebieden bevinden. Zou het om een locatie kunnen gaan waar de lokale elite zijn reizen begon? De onderzoekers zijn het er over eens dat de samenleving in de bronstijd de vorm van een “chiefdom” heeft. Er zijn echter vele verschillende vormen van een “chiefdom”, van sterk hiërarchisch tot meer egalitair. De rock art kan ons een aanwijzing geven over de mate van hiërarchie binnen de “chiefdoms” en daarmee de sociale structuur van de samenleving in Bohuslän.Show less
In 1975 plans were made for a recreational park east of Wijchen. During the research of the area, it became clear that this place was of great archaeological interest. So it was decided that...Show moreIn 1975 plans were made for a recreational park east of Wijchen. During the research of the area, it became clear that this place was of great archaeological interest. So it was decided that excavation was necessary. The excavation commenced in spring 1976 and took several years. During the excavation two house plans were identified and great quantities of pottery collected. Unfortunately, there has been no documentation in the thirty years since the excavation with exception of site plans. Therefore there is a great shortage of information. In the past years some students did some thesis-research on the subject of Wijchen-Berendonck and they discovered that this site contained mainly Iron Age material. The houses have been dated to Early and Middle Iron Age as well. In this thesis a small part in the northwest of the site is studied. At this part of the site only two structures are evident: two small barns. The focus of this thesis is on the pottery found in four large pits. The results of this research indicate that the material is from the Iron Age also and so it is suspected that the collection also contains Early and Middle period. However this is not clear enough, which is due to the lack of information and documentation. To achieve more clearance in this project we need to wait for the research results of masterstudent Marloes Luijten, who is studying the rest of the site at the moment.Show less
This paper investigates the Wartberg-Stein-Vlaardingen-complex as proposed by Louwe Kooijmans (1983) A systematic comparison was made of chronology, pottery, burial rituals, settlements, and...Show moreThis paper investigates the Wartberg-Stein-Vlaardingen-complex as proposed by Louwe Kooijmans (1983) A systematic comparison was made of chronology, pottery, burial rituals, settlements, and subsistence of these three cultural groups. Stein and Vlaardingen show many similarities in pottery which lead to the suggestion that they might have been one cultural phenomenon, with Stein being the dry component and Vlaardingen the wet component. However, this disregards the differences in other aspects of material culture. The Wartberg-culture is geographically far apart and show some important differences. The main conclusion of this paper is that there is not enough common ground for the Wartberg-Stein-Vlaardingen-complex set apart from other middle and late neolithic cultures in Western Europe. The relations of the Wartberg-culture with Stein- and Vlaardingen-group are not as close as propesed by Louwe Kooijmans (1983).Show less
De Bandkeramische vindplaats Maastricht-Belvédère 1988 ligt op een middenplateau op de Caberg in Limburg. Alhoewel de Caberg geografisch gezien dichterbij de Heeswatercluster ligt, lijkt de...Show moreDe Bandkeramische vindplaats Maastricht-Belvédère 1988 ligt op een middenplateau op de Caberg in Limburg. Alhoewel de Caberg geografisch gezien dichterbij de Heeswatercluster ligt, lijkt de Bandkeramische bewoning van de Caberg in verschillende aspecten beter aan te sluiten bij de Bandkeramische bewoning van de Graetheidecluster. De Bandkeramische vindplaatsen van de Caberg worden gedateerd in de fasen 1C t/m 2D, waarbij de nadruk ligt op bewoning in de fasen 1C/1D. De vindplaatsen zijn daarnaast allen slechts één à twee fasen bewoond. Bovendien hebben ze een relatief lage spreiding van sporen. Deze kenmerken gelden ook voor de Bandkeramische vindplaats Maastricht-Belvédère 1988, wat het idee versterkt dat de Bandkeramische bewoning van de Caberg beter past bij de Bandkeramische bewoning van de Graetheidecluster, dan bij die van de Heeswatercluster.Show less
This thesis is about the opinion of developers about archaeological research and the archaeological law and regulatory. The changes started after the signature of the Pact of Valletta, which should...Show moreThis thesis is about the opinion of developers about archaeological research and the archaeological law and regulatory. The changes started after the signature of the Pact of Valletta, which should protect the archaeological soil archive in Europe and encourage spreading the knowledge about archaeology to the public. Since 1999 it was possible for commercial archaeological enterprises to obtain a digging license and in 2007 the new monument regulation was implemented in The Netherlands. This was the beginning of a new era for the archaeologists. It means that when developers disturb the archaeological soil archive, they are obligated to pay for the archaeological research. This regulation provided a lot jobs and security for the conservation of the archaeological information and there are several enterprises that are specialized in public archaeology. All benefits, but what does the developer who pays all this feels about it? Five developers were interviewed on the subject and they all say it is a good thing this regulation is implemented and archaeological research has become a part of the process of development. The negative side of archaeological research is that it is unpredictable in terms of money and time. Besides this risk the product of archaeological research is not very useful for the developers. They would like to see more in return for their investment, for example through the media attention. When an archaeological find is published in a paper, they could mention the name of the developers if he cooperates well with the archaeologists. This would provide archaeology with an extra value for the developer.Show less
In this bachelor thesis I investigate whether Neanderthals had a sexual division of labour or not. I established three hypotheses: 1) Neanderthals had a sexual division of labour where males hunt...Show moreIn this bachelor thesis I investigate whether Neanderthals had a sexual division of labour or not. I established three hypotheses: 1) Neanderthals had a sexual division of labour where males hunt and females gather plant foods and perform other activities, 2) Neanderthals had a sexual division of labour where males and females hunt but males perform the most dangerous tasks, 3) there was no sexual division of labour and males and females hunted and gathered in equal amounts. To find out if Neanderthals had a sexual division of labour, a meta-study of two osteological analyses applied to Neanderthal bones was performed. The first methods that was used was a comparison of the shape and robusticity of male and female Neanderthal limb bones compared to samples of modern human huntergatherers and sedentary populations. Secondly the distribution of trauma across the skeletons of male and female Neanderthals was compared. In both of the analyses the evidence pointed towards the first hypothesis. The evidence however was too limited. The small sample size of sexable Neanderthals was the largest issue. I concluded that according to the data gathered in this thesis hypothesis 1 is the most likely. However, none of the three hypotheses can be rejected confidently due to the limited evidence.Show less
The discovery of remains of a lion in the Gran Dolina cave (Atapuerca, Spain) with pronounced signs of butchering makes one wonder why hominids would want to hunt for a large carnivore without...Show moreThe discovery of remains of a lion in the Gran Dolina cave (Atapuerca, Spain) with pronounced signs of butchering makes one wonder why hominids would want to hunt for a large carnivore without projectile weapons. These lion remains are special, but not unique in the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic of Europe. Traces of hunting for lions and wolves are present at a limited number of sites, and procurement of brown bear and cave bear is widespread. In this paper I explore a costly signalling explanation for hunting on these large carnivores. The costly signalling theory states that animals can use signalling to show a quality that is otherwise not easily observed. If the signal is truly costly, this guarantees a level of honesty and receivers of the signal can benefit by responding to it. In our hominid case, strong men can show their hunting quality by engaging in risky hunts for large carnivores. Observing females will then preferentially mate with those males and competitors will be deterred. Anthropological studies apply costly signalling theory to explain deviations from the expected patterns of optimal foraging theory. I will discuss an anthropological case study and then return to the archaeological situation to asses the value of costly signalling for hunting for large carnivores in the European Palaeolithic. Showing the results of signalling in the archaeological record is difficult, but indirect observations can be used. The main value of costly signalling theory lies in its ability to explain economically unexpected behaviour and in introducing sexual selection to European Palaeolithic archaeology.Show less
By research of ‘occupational stress markers’ (markers on the skeleton which appear during life because of repeated acts), archaeologists have learned a lot about the lifestyle of people from the...Show moreBy research of ‘occupational stress markers’ (markers on the skeleton which appear during life because of repeated acts), archaeologists have learned a lot about the lifestyle of people from the past. Since the beginning of the last century a lot of research has been done on these markers of occupational stress. However there is also a lot of uncertainty and disagreement about the research on these markers. For example, there are several different terms in literature which are meaning approximately all the same, there are different scoringsystems in use and not every study takes the non-mechanical factors, which can play a role by the appearance of the markers, into account. This study is showing how an occupational stress marker exactly appears, which factors are necessary for this and which other factors (like body size and age) also can play a role in the appearance. I also give examples of the activities we can derive from the markers and the reliability of these results. I give a review of the different scoringsystems which are used today, as well. Herewith I come to an overview about what occupational stress markers, and related terms, exactly are. About what archaeologists can do with it. About the reliability of the results. And what the most recent opinions are, researches take today about these markers of occupational stress.Show less
In this thesis one of the most exceptional aspects of Upper-Palaeolithic art is discussed, namely the occurrence and meaning of therianthropes, human-animal hybrids. Their first undisputed...Show moreIn this thesis one of the most exceptional aspects of Upper-Palaeolithic art is discussed, namely the occurrence and meaning of therianthropes, human-animal hybrids. Their first undisputed occurrence started in the Aurignacian (40-28 ky), which happened to coincide with the arrival of AMH in Europe. After this point, therianthropes are found throughout the entire human history, in a wide variety of worldwide cultures. What makes them so appealing is not just their ambiguous visual nature, but in particular their enigmatic meaning and the different ways they are perceived. Already since the early days of therianthrope research, their meaning has aroused much debate. Interpretations of l'art pour l'art, totemism, hunting magic and means of communication have passed the review. A widely professed theory is the shamanistic interpretation, put forward by South-African scholar David Lewis-Williams. He proposed that therianthropes were hybrid creatures seen by shamans during the last stage of a trance, in which all sorts of visions would merge with each other. In recent years the neurocognitive approach has gained many followers: this theory applies cognitive neuroscience to evolutionary cognitive archaeology. This in order to interpret specific patterns of archaeological evidence, in terms of the cognition of those who produced it and the evolutionary occurrence of specific features of human cognition. According to the proponents of this model, therianthropes are a classical example of the capabilities of the modern mind, that is able to merge two or more separate abstract concepts into one. All necessary components of this ability are believed to have evolved over thousands of years and probably started in H. heidelbergensis. Both theories have some appeal, yet they remain close to impossible to prove, because it is so hard to make inferences about the state of mind of Palaeolithic people and their intentions behind the production of enigmatic creatures such as therianthropes.Show less
The aim of this thesis is to study the function of prehistoric hearths and to take the first step in creating guidelines for the excavation, sampling and analysis of prehistoric hearths. Although...Show moreThe aim of this thesis is to study the function of prehistoric hearths and to take the first step in creating guidelines for the excavation, sampling and analysis of prehistoric hearths. Although the study of hearths and their function can provide valuable information about past human behaviour there appear to be no real guidelines available for this type of research. This results in loss of valuable information and possible misinterpretation of hearths. Part 1 of this thesis gives an introduction of various aspects of hearths, such as their origins, their forms and functions, different types of fuel and some analysis methods that can be applied to study them. Part 2 consists of a case study of a hearth from the French middle Neolithic site Trinité-sur-Mer. For this study one of the 15 hearths present at the site was analysed in order to determine its function. For this purpose reflectance analysis carried out on the charcoal fragments from three different samples from the hearth in order to get an idea of the temperatures that were reached in the hearth. Some specific choices regarding the manner of sampling and processing the samples were made and phytolith analysis was carried out to determine whether these choices resulted in as little damage and loss of material as possible. It was found that the choices made within this study had the desired effect. Furthermore the reflectance analysis and fuel determination showed that the hearth from Trinité-sur-Mer probably was a domestic hearth fuelled with wood of Quercus sp. and reached temperatures of at least 400 °C.Show less
Verschillende onderzoeken hebben bijgedragen aan de discussie over de morfologische “adaptatie” van de Neanderthalers. Wat is de verklaring voor hun robuuste lichamen, grote neuzen en korte...Show moreVerschillende onderzoeken hebben bijgedragen aan de discussie over de morfologische “adaptatie” van de Neanderthalers. Wat is de verklaring voor hun robuuste lichamen, grote neuzen en korte ledematen? De afgelopen 130.000 tot 30.000 jaar bewoonden de Neanderthalers delen van West-Europa tot in de Levant. In deze periode van ongeveer 100.000 jaar is er klimatologisch veel veranderd, zo zijn er glacialen geweest die bepaalde streken bijna onbewoonbaar hebben gemaakt voor deze uitzonderlijke mensen. De morfologie van de Neanderthalers is zeer belangrijk geweest bij het trotseren van deze koude gebieden, maar ook in de wat warmere gebieden zoals de Levant moesten de Neanderthalers zich kunnen aanpassen. Aan de hand van dit onderzoek wordt er getracht te ontdekken of er uberhaupt morfologische verschillen zijn, wat deze verschillen dan inhouden en hoe deze verschillen samenhangen in relatie tot het vroege klimaat. Of zijn er ook andere verklaringen mogelijk?Show less
Deze scriptie handelt over de vondstlaag 2/1 van het meer bekken Neumark-Nord 2 gelegen in Sachsen-Anhalt te Duitsland. Neumark-Nord is een archeologische vindplaats bestaande uit 2 meer bekkens...Show moreDeze scriptie handelt over de vondstlaag 2/1 van het meer bekken Neumark-Nord 2 gelegen in Sachsen-Anhalt te Duitsland. Neumark-Nord is een archeologische vindplaats bestaande uit 2 meer bekkens daterend uit het Eem en 1 meerbekken uit het Holstein waarbij zowel archeologische als paleontologische objecten zijn gevonden. Het doel van dit onderzoek is nagaan welke taphonomische processen invloed hadden op het ontstaan van de archeologische site en op welke manier dit zich uit op de vondstassemblage uit laag 2/1c. Uit het onderzoek komt naar voren dat een groot deel van het assemblage bloot heeft gestaan aan zowel horizontale als verticale verplaatsing, dit blijkt uit de totale hoeveelheid vondsten en de grootte van de vondsten per vierkante meter. Ongeveer de helft van de vuurstenen artefacten groter dan 10 mm was gebroken, dit is waarschijnlijk het resultaat van golven of van processen zoals slope wash. Aangezien het meer gedurende een lange periode droog heeft gestaan, zal de invloed van golfbewegingen gering zijn geweest. De Neumark-Nord sites hebben bloot gestaan aan zowel C-transforms als Ntransforms, deze zijn samen verantwoordelijk voor de vorming van de vindplaats, zoals deze nu bij archeologen bekend is. De opgravingstechnieken hadden een grote invloed op de vondstassemblage. Een deel van de vierkante meters moest op een andere manier worden opgegraven, vanwege tijdsdruk. Het resultaat hiervan is duidelijk te zien aan het feit dat de hoeveelheid vondsten uit deze vierkante meters opmerkelijk lager is dan de vondsten uit de andere vierkante meters.Show less
In deze scriptie wordt ingegaan op de chronologische relatie tussen de grafheuvels en de huizen van Angelslo-Emmerhout (gemeente Emmen). Hierbij is onderzocht of de grafheuvels werden opgeworpen...Show moreIn deze scriptie wordt ingegaan op de chronologische relatie tussen de grafheuvels en de huizen van Angelslo-Emmerhout (gemeente Emmen). Hierbij is onderzocht of de grafheuvels werden opgeworpen naast bestaande huizen, of dat de huizen zijn aangelegd naast oudere grafheuvels. Bij de site Angelslo-Emmerhout is er voor deze onderzoeksvraag sprake van een ideale situatie. De grafheuvels en de huizen liggen hier namelijk met elkaar verweven. In totaal ging het om elf grafheuvels en 33 huisplattegronden. Om met deze gegevens de onderzoeksvraag te kunnen beantwoorden, was het van belang dat de grafheuvels en de huizen gedateerd werden. Dit laatste was niet erg eenvoudig, omdat de grafheuvels en de huizen al in de jaren '60 waren opgegraven door het BAI en er daarom sprake was van verouderde onderzoeksmethoden en documentatie. Hierbij kwam overigens ook nog dat de opgravinggegevens slechts summier gepubliceerd zijn. Desalniettemin is het toch gelukt om de onderzoeksvraag te kunnen beantwoorden. Uit de grafheuvelgegevens bleek dat de oudste grafheuvels waren opgeworpen in het laatneolithicum A en dat ook in de vroege bronstijd en in de overgangsperiode middenbronstijd A naar midden-bronstijd B, nog zeker twee grafheuvels waren opgeworpen. Of er na deze periode nog grafheuvels zijn gebouwd is niet duidelijk. Wel bekend is dat de meeste secundaire bijzettingen dateren uit de periode midden-bronstijd B. Bij de huisplattegronden waren slechts van drie Emmerhout huistypes de 14C-dateringen bekend. Omdat deze gegevens niet erg representatief zijn, is ook gekeken naar de algemene datering van de huistypes Emmerhout en Elp. Hieruit bleek dat beide types dateren uit de midden-bronstijd B en de late bronstijd. Uit de grafheuvel- en plattegronddateringen bleek vervolgens dat de grafheuvels ouder waren dan de huizen en dat de huizen dus moeten zijn aangelegd naast reeds bestaande grafheuvels. Met deze uitkomst werden ook de bevindingen van Q. Bourgeois en D.Fontijn 2008 ondersteund. Zij zijn namelijk van mening dat de meeste bekende huizen werden aangelegd naast reeds bestaande grafheuvels.Show less
