Mesolithic and Archaic

Mesolithic and Archaic Overview

  • Focus on the transition between Paleolithic and Neolithic periods.

Key Periods and Tools

  • Hunters & Gatherers (Old World)

    • Timeline: 2.5-130,000 BP

    • Tools: Oldowan (A. Habilis), Acheulean (H. ergaster), East Asian Chopping Tool Complex (H. erectus, Archaic H. sapiens)

    • Middle Stone Age: Aterian, Mousterian, Levallois Technique (Neanderthals, Anatomically Modern Humans)

    • Upper Paleolithic: Blade technology in Europe & Asia; PaleoIndian Period in the Americas (Clovis & Folsom cultures).

Early Holocene

  • Climatic Changes:

    • Transition from Pleistocene to Holocene; increased temperatures, impacting vegetation and human settlement.

  • Protoagles in Western Europe: Upper Paleolithic ➔ Mesolithic

Pleistocene-Holocene Transition

  • Major ecological shifts occurred around 12,000 B.P.

Megafaunal Extinction

  • Blitzkrieg Hypothesis: Overkill leading to extinctions across Europe, Asia, and Americas.

  • Environmental changes disrupting communities and habitats.

Vegetation Changes

  • Expansion of forested environments, especially broadleaf types.

  • Decline of lake environments and specialist ecosystems like steppes and tundra.

Carrying Capacity

  • Population estimation around 15,000 BP: ~8.5 million.

  • Carrying capacity exceeded; led to resource exploitation and restricted mobility.

Hunter/Gatherer Strategies

1. Diversification (Broad Spectrum)

  • Exploitation of varied resources: fish, small game, plants.

  • Mixed hunting economy utilizing smaller tools.

2. Mobility Strategy

  • Residential Mobility: Seasonal movement of camps based on resource availability.

  • Logistical Mobility: Subgroups moving from base camps for resource collection.

Jamon Culture (Japan)

  • Timeline: 12,000 BP

  • Seasonal subsistence strategies: hunting in winter, fishing in summer, gathering in spring and fall.

  • Site details: Nittano; structures, hearths, storage, ceremonial points.

Earliest Evidence of Fermentation

  • Found in Norje Sunnansund, southern Sweden (~9,200 years ago), indicating advanced food preservation techniques without salt.

Ertebölle Culture (Denmark & Sweden)

  • Timeline: 6,000 BP; multiple settlements focused on fish and seals.

  • Occupation features: coastal societies, significant burial practices.

Ertebölle Subsistence

  • Diet based on marine and terrestrial resources analyzed through bone chemistry.

Poverty Point (Louisiana)

  • Timeline: 3,700 to 2,700 BP; key for trade and ritual.

  • Extensive earthworks, community organization, and resource management.

Cultures of Intensification and Sedentism

  • With evidence of farming transition; saw plant domestication emerge from these societies.

Features of Mesolithic & Archaic Cultures

  • Increasing reliance on plant resources, storage technologies, and social stratification apparent in archaeological findings.