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What is the Mesolithic? |
What is meant by the term 'Mesolithic'? - A convenient definition would be the 'Middle Stone Age', or hunting and gathering societies of the early Holocene, pre-dating the introduction of farming. The original division of the Stone Age into Palaeolithic and Neolithic was based on changes in technology and subsistence, e.g. Palaeolithic hand axes to Neolithic polished stone tools, hunting to farming. The Mesolithic cannot be easily defined in these terms. In 1922, San-Perrier suggested that the presence of microburins (the by-products of microlith manufacture) indicated Mesolithic occupation. However, not all Mesolithic groups made microliths. In the 1920s, Schwantes suggested the Mesolithic was a period of forest adaptation with flint axes as the type-fossil. The use of aquatic resources was also thought to be characteristic of the Mesolithic, but this excludes inland sites. No one technology/subsistence strategy is characteristic of the Mesolithic, so one definition would be early Postglacial hunter-gatherers, ending with ending with the introduction of agriculture. However, this did not occur at the same time in all parts of Europe. Also, not all Mesolithic cultures fit into the 'between 10,000 BP and before agriculture' timescale. Rozoy criticised the modern definition because it saw the period begin with a geological event and end with a cultural advancement. He proposed that the Mesolithic was the era of hunting with bow and arrow, so could be defined by a significant (i.e. over 10%) numbers of microlith armaments. Again, this definition does not suit all Mesolithic groups - not all used bows, and not all used microlithic arrowheads - some used bone instead. Dennell also criticised this definition because deglaciation was a long drawn-out process lasting from c. 14,000 BP to 7/6,000 BP - the whole of Europe did not enter the Postglacial period at 10,000 BP, therefore the term 'Mesolithic' only had local significance. He saw it as a period of recolonisation of Europe by people using traditional (i.e. wild) resources. Zvelebil in 1986 stated that a simple chronological definition was not adequate; the period was characterised by increasing social complexity. There is no exact definition, so is 'Mesolithic' a valid term? Terminology relating to the Mesolithic varies regionally and can be confusing. Definitions and usage have changed over time. For example: 'Maglemosian' (the presence of large flint
axes) was originally confined to coastal areas in the Balkans. Now it
is connected to the early Mesolithic in southern Scandinavia |
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