Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2025

Reevaluating the LBK to Post-LBK Transition on the Northwestern Edge of Central Europe: A Comparative Model

Résumé

This paper examines the north-western margins of Central Europe, focusing on the regions encompassing Western Belgium, the Netherlands, and North Rhine-Westphalia. Historically, modern national borders have restricted studies on the transition from the Linearbandkeramik (LBK) culture to post-LBK cultures, which appear to follow distinct cultural trajectories. In Belgium, the transition was marked by the shift from the LBK to the Blicquy/Villeneuve-Saint-Germain culture. North Rhine-Westphalia experienced a significant population decline before the arrival of Grossgartach/Planig-Friedberg communities, while the Netherlands has long been viewed as devoid of post-LBK traces. However, recent excavations in the valley floors of the Meuse and Rhine rivers show that these locations seem to be preferred. There are now multiple sites indicating a post-LBK shift in settlement location. Furthermore, some research suggests evidence of mobility between the Aldenhoven Plateau and the Netherlands at the end of the LBK (e.g., Balkowski 2017). The sharp reduction from approximately 300 LBK sites to two Blicquian sites in eastern Belgium (Jadin 2003) could also reflect a broader population decline within the same phenomenon, eventually associated with a major crisis illustrated by the emergence of ditched enclosures, two of which are precisely the one delivering the only Blicquy culture elements known in Hesbaye (Bosquet & Fock, 2024). For the Netherlands, a similar reduction is noted. The presence of three ditch enclosures dating to the end of the LBK adds to the notion of a major crisis. Their defensive function is however still debated (Van Wijk, forthcoming). Moreover, the study of micro-regions within these broader cultural trajectories reveals contrasting patterns: from a breakdown in transmission networks in western Belgium to a degree of continuity on the eastern side of the same Bliquy/VSG entity (Denis et al. 2024a, b). In this paper, we aim to advance understanding of the LBK to post-LBK transition through transnational comparisons of new data. With this multidisciplinary approach, we hope to better understand the diverging regional trajectories at the end of the LBK. Although the data from the various regions are heterogeneous, we will present a multi-proxy synthesis that integrates different scales of analysis, from micro-regional to macro-regional, to compare the diverse processes and cultural trajectories at the end of the LBK period. Balkowski, N. (2017). From Merzbachtal to the Graetheide ? Mobility at the end of the Linear Pottery Culture. In S. Scharl and B. Gehlen (eds.), Mobility in Prehistoric Sedentary Societies, Papers of the CRC 806 Workshop (Cologne, 26-27 June 2015), Rahden/Westf, pp.119–128. Bosquet D. & Fock H., 2024. Rise and Fall : settlement dynamics of LBK groups in Middle Belgium loess belt (5150-4950 cal. BC) based on the new Meuse ceramic chronology, Journal of Archaeological science-Reports, 61, 10 p., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2024.104940 Denis, S., Deramaix, I., Jadin, I., Cagnato, C., Cayol, N., Gehres, B., Goemaere, E., Gomart, L., Hamon, C., Teetaert, D., Vanbrabant, Y. and Zeebroek, M. (2024a). Ath “Les Haleurs”, deux occupations Rubané et Blicquy/Villeneuve-Saint-Germain (Néolithique ancien). Mécanismes de transition culturelle par l’étude intégrée des productions. Anthropologica et Praehistorica 135: 7–126. Denis, S., Gomart, L., Burnez-Lanotte, L. and Allard, P. (2024b). Transmission of Lithic and Ceramic Technical Know-how in the Early Neolithic of Central-Western Europe: Shedding Light on the Social Mechanisms Underlying Cultural Transition. Journal of Neolithic Archaeology 26: 31–63. Jadin, I. (2003). Trois petits tours et puis s’en vont...La fin de la présence danubienne en Moyenne Belgique, Etudes et Recherches Archéologiques de l’Université de Liège, Liège.

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hal-05008972 , version 1 (27-03-2025)

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  • HAL Id : hal-05008972 , version 1

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Solène Denis, Pierre Allard, Luc Amkreutz, Dominique Bosquet, Isabelle Deramaix, et al.. Reevaluating the LBK to Post-LBK Transition on the Northwestern Edge of Central Europe: A Comparative Model. Kiel Conference, Scales of Social, Environmental and cultural changes in Past Societies, Kiel University, Mar 2025, Kiel (Allemagne), Germany. ⟨hal-05008972⟩
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