BALTICA 25 BALTICA ARCHAEOLOGIA This Is the 25Th-Anniversary Issue of Archaeologia Early Holocene Communities in the Mesolithic Expe- Baltica
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PREFACE BALTICA 25 BALTICA ARCHAEOLOGIA This is the 25th-anniversary issue of Archaeologia Early Holocene communities in the Mesolithic expe- Baltica. The volume focuses exclusively on research rienced significant changes in the climate, which were into north European Stone Age archaeology in the influenced not only by changes in temperature and chapter ‘The Stone Age in Northern Europe: Changes flora, but also by fluctuations in water levels. These in Landscape, Technologies and Beliefs’. This chapter changes must have been extremely difficult for people covers various themes relating to the three periods of who lived on the shores of the Yoldia and Litorrina the Stone Age, Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic. seas, and Lake Ancylus. In his article, Lars Larsson The articles seek to address important regional aspects presents studies on south and central Sweden, where of the Stone Age, from the development of the recolo- fluctuating water levels influenced people’s choice of nisation of the landscape to technologies and mobile settlement sites. art. The second chapter in the volume is called ‘Mate- There are still few finds made from material of organic rial from the Medieval and the Modern Age: Social In- origin in the archaeological record from stratified set- teraction between Communities’, and presents articles tlements of the Lithuanian Mesolithic. However, the on Medieval and Modern Age archaeology. There are region is characterised by an abundance of stray finds only three papers in this chapter; however, they dis- made during the drainage of wetlands and lakes in the cuss important issues relating to social, religious and 20th century. Some of these are harpoons and slotted political activities. We hope readers enjoy this issue, bone points with flint inserts. Unfortunately, their true and that everyone finds some useful information in this age has not been determined until now. In their article, issue of Archaeologia Baltica! Livija Ivanovaitė and her colleagues set out to solve In the first article, Jakub Mugaj presents the colonisa- this problem. Bone subjects from the River Šventoji, tion process by Hamburgian culture in the lowlands of Obšrūtai and Kamšai were sent for AMS dating and northern Europe using Polish archaeological data. The species identification, as well as for technical and use- article focuses on techniques used in flint processing, wear analysis. which makes the culture comparable with German ar- Mesolithic researchers from across northern Europe eas of Hamburgian culture. The author touches on an have already shown that there was a technological important question about the east Baltic region: were connection between the various Baltic regions. Flint there sites of Hamburgian culture in Lithuania? techniques are no exception either, and travelled hun- The presence of Bromme culture and Ahrensburgian dreds of kilometres. In his article “Kongemose Flint culture in the east Baltic region still remains unclear. Technology in the East Baltic Area. Some Examples Well-established settlements have not yet been found, from Lithuanian Stone Age Sites”, Tomas Rimkus and more of them refer to sandy-type sites and stray seeks to demonstrate the technological link between finds. In his article ‘Grensk Culture in Eastern Belarus: the east and west Baltic Sea regions by demonstrating The Current State of Research’, Aliaksandr U. Kola- variability in microlithic implements. An analysis was sau seeks to present the development of Grensk cul- conducted on rhombic points, of which the main period ture studies and its flint inventory and technology in of existence in the southern part of Scandinavia was Belarus, and to compare it with analogues in Ukraine. during the time of Kongemose culture. Grensk culture in Belarus is known as Late Palaeo- Aleh Tkachou presents techniques, types and decora- lithic culture, and has many technical similarities with tion of Early Neolithic Dubičiai and Nemunas culture the well-known Ahrensburgian culture in northwest pottery in western Belarus, focusing on the basin of the Europe. River Nemunas. Comparisons are made with cultures 7 that established early pottery in the region. The author presents data on the chronology, symbolism, typology also touches on the southern part of Lithuania, where and distribution of decorated amber discs in northern early Dubičiai pottery types have been found. Europe. The next three articles deal with Stone Age issues re- There is also a chapter in this volume with three ar- lating to mobile Neolithic art. In the first article, Ilga ticles on Medieval and Modern Age archaeology. In Zagorska, John Meadows and Marius Iršėnas provide the first, Edvinas Ubis discusses pottery from the 13th new C14 data from Zvejnieki Stone Age graves where and 14th centuries in western Lithuania. The author Preface objects of art were found. These graves date from the analyses local works of ceramics by comparing them sixth to the fourth millennium BC. The article also re- with the Teutonic Order’s ceramics, considered to be considers art objects found in graves, their position in imported. The paper illustrates the integration of local relation to the deceased, and their symbolic meaning. people into the lands ruled by the Teutonic Order on DAS DAS R ININKAS the basis of studies of pottery. R I Marius Iršėnas and his colleagues write about some LGI TOMAS RIMKUS RIMKUS TOMAS A G of the most famous Lithuanian Neolithic art objects, In the second article, Skaistė Ardavičiūtė- elk staffs from the Šventoji settlements. The staffs Ramanauskienė presents data about spoons with apos- were found in the Šventoji 3 and 4B sites in 1972 and tle figures. The main area covered by research in this 1989, during large-scale excavations conducted by the article is the Old Town of Vilnius, the former capital famous Lithuanian archaeologist Rimutė Rimantienė. of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The article discuss- The article tries to look at the staffs from a different es aspects of the identification, material, context and point of view. Use-wear analysis method and analogies provenance of the spoons. with other north European countries were used for this. The last paper in this issue is dedicated to stoneware One of the staffs from the Šventoji 3 settlement was C14 ceramics of Vilnius Old town, presented by Miglė dated for the first time. Urbonaitė-Ubė. Never-before published data shows The last article on Stone Age research also relates to an important connection to Europe’s most important Prehistoric art. Adomas Butrimas, Regina Ulozaitė and stoneware manufacture centres. The author discusses Marius Iršėnas provide new insights on an amber disc the technology of stoneware as well. According to this with cross decoration found in the Daktariškė 5 Neo- data, the earliest stoneware production came to Vilnius lithic settlement. A new method, spectral analysis, was with newcomers from western Europe. applied, by which organic material from the amber or- nament was identified. These discoveries have led to the assumption that the amber ornament used to look Tomas Rimkus totally different to what we see now. The article also Algirdas Girininkas 8 9 ARCHAEOLOGIABALTICA 25.