PalArch » PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe

BOOK REVIEW: PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe, 5(1) (2010)

PalArch Editor (AV) — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 07:13:39 +0000

Yardeni Vorst about Rose, S. 2007. The Medieval Sea. – London/New York, Hambledon Continuum.

This book by Susan Rose deals with aspects of the sea and seafaring in Medieval times in Northern Europe, the Mediterranean and North Africa. Through time (the period 1000-1500 AD) Rose illustrates the difference in Europe in attitudes towards the sea, in shipbuilding practices and how changing coastlines and rising sea levels together with change in the political climate could alter all this in decades…

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Hans Paijmans & Alex Brandsen. 2010. Searching in Archaeological Texts. Problems and Solutions Using an Artiﬁcial Intelligence Approach. – PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Egypt/Egyptology, 7(2) (2010)

PalArch Editor (AV) — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 15:50:04 +0000

Abstract Searching in documents using full text indices is a powerful tool for retrieving relevant portions of text. However, performance is impeded by ambiguity in texts: similar words may have totally different meanings according to context. This also is true if the words are numbers, periods and place names, especially in archaeological and historical contexts. A new way of indexing texts allows for better and easier searching. This system has been developed in a collaboration between the RCE (The Dutch National Service for Cultural Heritage) and the University of Tilburg. With Open Boek, it is possible to search on chronological and geographical expressions, as well as regular keywords. In the newest version of Open Boek a number of additions to the system have been made to further improve the functionality.

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BOOK REVIEW: PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe, 4(2) (2009)

Palarch Editor (IJJN) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:42:31 +0000

A.J. Veldmeijer about Roder, H. Ed. 2008. Schuhtick. Von kalten Füßen und heißen Sohlen. – Mainz am Rhein, Philipp von Zabern

These are good times for lovers of shoes and books about shoes: the exhibition “Schuhtick. Von kalten Füßen und heißen Sohlen” can still be visited in Bremen (until 28 March 2010), after which it moves to Mannheim (until 15 November 2010) and only Saturday 3 October, the homage-exhibition about the great pioneer of the study of leather, Olaf Goubitz, opened in the Shoe- and Leather Museum, Waalwijk (The Netherlands). Several books have been published lately, which include, besides the books on the design on footwear: “Stepping through Time. Archaeological Footwear from Prehistoric Times until 1800” by Olaf Goubitz, Carol van Driel-Murray and Willy Groenman-Van Waateringe, “The Art of the Shoe” by Marie-Josèphe Bossan and “Shoes. A History from Sandals to Sneakers”, which is edited by Giorgio Riello and Peter McNeil. …

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BOOK REVIEW: PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe, 4(1) (2009)

Palarch Editor (IJJN) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:35:16 +0000

C. Vermeeren & K. Hänninnen about Muir, R. 2008. Woods, Hedgerows & Leafy Lanes. – Stroud, Tempus Publishing

This book by Richard Muir is about woodlands, hedgerows and leafy lanes in England and in particular the human infl uence on such landscape elements. It should be possible to recognize and interpret, with the assistance of the book, traces of human interference such as the management of woodlands, grazing or charcoal production. Aspects such as place names and folklore in connection with trees are also discussed.

The book is handy to use and looks attractive, with beautiful reproductions in both black and white and color and its tables are comprehensible. …

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BOOK REVIEW: Palarch’s Journal of Vertebrate Palaeontology, 6(5) (2009)

Palarch Editor (IJJN) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 11:49:23 +0000

André Veldmeijer about Verhagen, A. & D. Mol. 2009. De Groote Wielen: er was eens…Wie woonden er in De Groote Wielen in de ijstijd? – Norg, DrukWare

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NEWS: Spectacular discovery of first‐ever Dutch Neanderthal Fossil skull fragment unveiled by Minister Plasterk in National Museum of Antiquities

PalArch Editor (AV) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:11:24 +0000

Foto: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig (D)

For the first time ever, a fossil of a Neanderthal has been discovered in the Netherlands. The skull fragment, over 40,000 years old, with its characteristically thick Neanderthal eyebrow ridge, was found off the coast of Zeeland, dredged up from the bottom of the North Sea. Huge quantities of fossil bones have been brought to the surface from this seabed since 1874, however, this is the first time a Neanderthal fossil has been found. The unique discovery was officially unveiled on the 15th of June by Ronald Plasterk (Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science) at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (National Museum of Antiquities) in Leiden, where it is on display to the public starting from June 16th.

The discovery of the first Neanderthal fossil on Dutch territory is of tremendous importance to the cultural heritage of the Netherlands and a milestone for Dutch archaeology and palaeontology. The discovery also underlines the archaeological and geological richness of the North Sea. During the Ice Age, this area was mostly a dry lowland plain rather than a sea. Stone tools of Neanderthals and large quantities of fossil bones of mammoths and other Ice Age animals have been trawled up from the bottom of the North Sea regularly. Never before have researchers found fossils of the actual Neanderthals themselves, though.

The skull fragment was found a few years ago by an amateur palaeontologist among the waste of a shell‐fishing dredger. The material was dredged from the Middeldiep, a region of the North Sea located some 15 kilometres off the Zeeland Province coast. Accordingly, the exact location of the find is unknown.

Foto: Erik van Goederen

An international research team led by the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (Leipzig) has extensively studied the Neanderthal fossil from the North Sea. They did so in cooperation with some staff from the University of Leiden. Comparison with Neanderthal skulls found elsewhere revealed that the fragment belonged to the skull of a young man. There is a small cavity in the bone fragment caused by a benign tumour that was probably present from birth. Research into the chemical composition of the bone reveals that his diet primarily consisted of meat, which is very characteristic for Neanderthals. The full research results are soon to be published in the ´Journal of Human Evolution´.

The study was made possible in part by years of dedication of amateur palaeontologists in the North Sea coastal region.

From 16 June to 27 September 2009, the fossil can be seen as part of the exhibition ´Neanderthal from the North Sea´ at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden. The Natural History Museum (London) and Museum Boerhaave (Leiden) are devoting attention to the discovery at the same time.

(Photo: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany)

NEWS: PalArch launches its new web site

Palarch Editor (IJJN) — Wed, 06 May 2009 06:55:36 +0000

The PalArch Foundation has today launched its new web site. For the time being, only new publications are accessible, but we are going to transport our archives to the new site this summer. Of course, all publications will remain freely accessible.

The new architecture we use offers some exciting new possibilities, in particular the possibility to receive automatic updates through dedicated RSS feeds and via e-mail.

Warrimont, de, J.P.L.M.N. 2007. Prospecting Middle Palaeolithic open-air sites in the Dutch-Belgian border area near Maastricht. – PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe 1, 3: 40-89

PalArch Editor (AV) — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 15:07:51 +0000

Abstract Since 1981 a series of brickyard quarries to the north and west of Maastricht, in the municipalities of Maastricht (The Netherlands) and Lanaken (Belgium), have been intensively and successfully prospected for human artefacts and faunal remains from the Pleistocene by scrutinising the vertical sections of exposed loess, which in many places is over ten m deep. These efforts were accompanied by extensive geostratigraphic surveys, which have been crucially important in dating the finds and reconstructing the palaeolandscape. Excavation programmes as well as ancillary studies were subsequently carried out at three of these quarries: Maastricht-Belvédère, Veldwezelt-Hezerwater and Kesselt-Op de Schans, each of which yielded multiple Middle Palaeolithic occupation horizons. This article describes the history of these excavations and studies, looking in some detail at the preliminary prospecting work that led to the discovery of this wealth of archaeological open-air sites. A separate description is provided of the litho- and chronostratigraphic frameworks of the three quarries, which has been key in establishing the chronology of Pleistocene occupation of this area. There is particular focus on the landscape and traces of occupation during the Belvédère Interglacial complex at Maastricht-Belvédère and the Weichselian Glacial at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater. The traces of fire and the macrofaunal remains encountered in the respective archaeological horizons are also discussed, and in particular their significance: are these natural phenomena or evidence of interventions by Pleistocene humans?

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Stapert, D. 2007. Neanderthal children and their flints. – PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe 1, 2: 16-39

PalArch Editor (AV) — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 15:00:23 +0000

Abstract As pioneer studies at the Magdalenian sites of Pincevent and Etiolles have shown, refitting analyses can reveal the presence of those learning the craft of flint knapping, i.e. children. This approach was successful especially at Upper Palaeolithic sites. Learners can be recognized by their incompetent flaking, and also by typical beginners’ errors such as ‘face battering’ and ‘stacked steps,’ as shown in experiments by Shelley (1990). For reasons unknown to me, and in contrast to the Upper Palaeolithic, it is quite unusual to come across children in the literature about the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic. In most cases, ‘flint failures’ from these periods are attributed to poor-quality raw material. In this paper it is argued, by means of several examples, that in many cases children may be responsible. In his monograph about the main Saalian find level in the Maastricht-Belvédère quarry, De Loecker (2006) mentions that at Site K relatively many cores show phenomena such as stacked steps and face battering. It is suggested that this reflects the presence of children practising their flint knapping skills, rather than the poor quality of the local raw material. The absence of the classic Levallois technology, and the use of the simpler discoidal cores instead, may also be seen in this light. This article describes a series of implements from several sites of the Rhenen Industry in The Netherlands, dating from the Early Middle Palaeolithic. A ‘pic’ and a handaxe-like core reveal incompetent flaking, and the pic-like object also shows ‘face battering’ on both faces. These artefacts, as well as several small cores and a ‘micro-Levallois-flake,’ are interpreted a specimens made by learners in the art of flint working. A miniature handaxe, only 4.4 cm long, is tentatively interpreted as an instructive toy made by an adult for a child. Finally, a few enigmatic objects from the Late Middle Palaeolithic in the northern parts of The Netherlands are also interpreted as pieces worked by children. In the discussion chapter, the literature is searched for further possible examples of this phenomenon. It is concluded that the activities of children are overlooked in studies of the older phases of the Palaeolithic. + erratum.

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Bringmans, P.M.M.A. 2007. First evidence of Neanderthal presence in Northwest Europe during the Late Saalian ‘Zeifen. – PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Northwest Europe 1, 1: 1-15

PalArch Editor (AV) — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 14:53:20 +0000

Abstract The Middle Pleistocene to Late Pleistocene transition (MIS 6/5e transition), which has been observed within the loamy sediments of the VLL and VLB sites at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater, was a period of remarkable change in both climate and environment. Indeed, the incipient VLL-VLB soil horizons at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater seem to represent Late Saalian phases of pedogenesis under boreal conditions just prior to the MIS 6/5e transition. The pedostratigraphical position provides a firm basis to conclude that the VLL and VLB soil horizons at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater represent the terrestrial equivalent of the Late Saalian ‘Zeifen Interstadial’ (MIS 6.01), whereas the capping GSL unit seems to represent the terrestrial equivalent of the so-called ‘Kattegat Stadial’. Indeed, assuming that Northwest Europe was too hostile for humans during the extremes of MIS 6 and given the pattern highlighted by Gamble (1986) that Northwest Europe seems to be a bit of a wasteland during MIS 5e, then the VLL and VLB sites at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater offer unique snapshots of people appearing in Northwest Europe for a short spell (MIS 6.01) and then going away again. Indeed, during the period of climatic amelioration during the ‘Zeifen Interstadial’ (ca. 133,000 years BP), which followed the Saalian Glacial Maximum (ca. 135,000 years BP), Northwest Europe probably saw a significant demographic expansion and the development of ‘new’ Middle Palaeolithic technologies. During the Middle Pleistocene to Late Pleistocene transition phase, semi-rotating parallel/prismatic and opportunistic core reduction strategies and ‘small tools’ were in place at the VLL site at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater. So-called ‘expedient’ core reduction strategies wereused to flake locally-found low-quality lithic raw materials. At the VLB site at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater, the same trend towards ‘parallel’ core reduction was also present. However, it is very interesting to see that at the VLB site, Levallois core reduction has also been attested.

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