Mesolithic in Northwestern Germany: Investigations on landscape use and cultural interrelations

• Applicant: Dr. Svea Mahlstedt
• Subject Area: Prehistory and World Archaeology
• Term: since 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 422135171

The planned project is designed to investigate two newly recovered and very well preserved Mesolithic sites in Northwestern Germany.The Mesolithic is situated chronologically between the end of the glacial period and the introduction of farming at the beginning of the Neolithic. In the northern part of central Europe the current state of research on the Mesolithic is very unbalanced. The aim of the planned project is to improve the state of current research in Northwestern Germany significantly.Between 2019 and 2022 about 23 sites were tested for good preservation conditions of Mesolithic find layers during the DFG project “Mesolithic in Northwestern Germany. A survey for water-logged sites”. Out of ten sites, which showed a generally good potential, two revealed very well preserved waterlogged Mesolithic sediments: The site of Neuenwalde 135 is situated in the district of Cuxhaven between the rivers Weser and Elbe. The site has provided evidence of intense and enduring Mesolithic activities with a clear spatial and temporal distribution in the context of an excellent preservation of organic material. The activity phases date to the early Mesolithic between 7400 to 8500 cal BC as well as to the second half of the Mesolithic between 6000 and 4500 cal BC.The site of Osteel 2 in the western East Frisian district of Aurich has revealed several birch bark mats, which date to the 5th mill. cal BC. They were used as flooring on the edge of the wetter parts of the lowlands. Similar situations and finds are known from several Mesolithic sites in Northern Germany and Denmark. The planned project aims to investigate the Mesolithic landscape and its inhabitants in the areas of Neuenwalde and Osteel in terms of land use, material culture and chronological development. The comparative and complementary study of both regions will lead for the first time to a differentiated insight into the Mesolithic between the rivers Ems and Elbe.Therefore, further excavations of representative parts of the two areas are planned. The find material and landscape-archaeological results will provide together with a robust chronology based on radiocarbon dates the key for a structuring of the Mesolithic in that area.For a better understanding of activities, developments and decision processes during the Mesolithic occupation in Neuenwalde and Osteel ethnological analogies are taken into account.The improvement of survey strategies for the recognition of Stone Age sites in Northwestern Germany is an additional methodological aim of the project.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants