New Palaeolandscape reconstructions for the Northern Adriatic: coastal environments and ecologies of the last hunter-gatherers

Ongaro, Samuele (2025) New Palaeolandscape reconstructions for the Northern Adriatic: coastal environments and ecologies of the last hunter-gatherers. Eleventh International Conference on the Mesolithic in Europe, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy. 15 - 19 Sep 2025.

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

The Northern Adriatic region is one particularly rich in Mesolithic sites, as testified by the numerous discoveries made in the Eastern Alps, the Trieste and Slovenian Karst, and Istria. While a decisive picture has been painted for higher altitude regions, our knowledge of the lowland occupation in this period is still limited to stray finds and occasional surface scatters. This is because of a variety of factors, including the geomorphological setting of the region, the impact of human activities on the current plain, and post-glacial sea level rise. Due to the latter, the Early Holocene coastlines are now submerged, thus strongly affecting archaeological visibility and hindering our understanding of the Mesolithic in the region. Therefore, this paper will present new palaeolandscape reconstructions for the Northern Adriatic, with the aim to explore the possible environments exploited by Mesolithic coastal communities in the area. This will be based on the analysis of unpublished sub-bottom profiles, which will be integrated with available sea level index points and environmental data. Thus, different paralic and coastal environments will be identified, changing over space and time and ranging from lagoons and estuaries to freshwater marshes and deltas. Finally, data from archaeological sites in the area will allow to investigate the relation between hunter-gatherers and these environments, with significant implications for a number of issues, including coastal resources exploitation and the spread of farming in the region.

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