THE NEWEST LITHIC, BONE AND ANTLER MATERIAL AND ITS RESEARCH FROM THE EARLY HOLOCENE SITES
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 2021-03-28

The  area  of  coastal  Lithuania  contains  several  major  country‘s  rivers  system,  palaeolagoons  and  peat-bogs  (part  of  them  as  former lakes), however this area is still lacking early Holocene sites and material from them, compared to the inland region. This situation was influenced by the quite complex geological development of the region due to the changes in the water level of the Baltic Sea in the early Holocene and the lack of field works. Nevertheless, most of the obtained material comes as the stray finds, found during drainage and peat exploatation works. On the other hand, in recent years, research with available archaeological material has intensified. More new excavations have been carried out, as well as revisions of the old collections at the museums. Technological  analysis  of  articles  was  adapted  to  the  bone  and  antler  findings  from  the  Late  Mesolithic  settlement  of  Smelte  and the stray T-axe from the submerged Late Mesolithic settlement on the seabed near Melnragė beach (Klaipėda region). These are some of the findings that symbolize rich osseous industry and the mobile art in the coastal Lithuania during the Atlantic. One of  the  most  important  sites  in  this  area  is  Aukštumala.  It  is  located  on  the  fluvioglacial  island  in  the  former  lake,  which  is  now  transformed into a peat-bog. The newest excavation showed that the island contains three sites and all of them belongs to the leaf-shape  points  technology,  better  known  as  the  Swiderian  culture.  Currently  that  is  the  most  earliest  known  occupation  in  the current area of Lithuanian coast. The lithic assemblage contains typical Swiderian points, axes, scrapers and knives, also a big part of lithics assemblage compromises of non-flint material. For better understanding of sites economy and communitie‘s relation to the wider region, use-wear and flint material chemical analysis were accomplished.


Author(s): Rimkus, Tomas (Klaipėda University, Institute of Baltic Region History and Archaeology)