The An Corran rockshelter, on the north-east coast of the Trotternish peninsula, Skye, contained a series of shell midden and other deposits with evidence for human occupation from Mesolithic and later periods. A rescue investigation of the site in the winter of 1993-94, immediately prior to anticipated total destruction by rock-blasting for roadworks, included the excavation of a trench dug down to bedrock. A total of 41 separate contexts were identi-fied. Of these, 31 were recent or later prehistoric, the upper levels containing a series of hearths of recent date and an Iron Age copper-alloy pin. The lowest 10 layers were identified initially as Mesolithic on the basis of bone tool and lithic typology, but a series of 18 radiocarbon dates indicates they contain the residues of subsequent prehistoric activity as well. These layers consisted of several distinct areas of midden, below which there were two, possibly three, horizons which probably, based on the presence of broad blade microliths, represent Early Mesolithic activity. The midden layers also contained some human bones radiocarbon-dated to the Neolithic period. The rockshelter was located below an outcrop of baked mudstone and near a source of chalcedonic silica. Both these lithic raw materials were widely used during the Mesolithic as far away as the island of Rum.

/pdf/an-corran-staffin-skye-a-rockshelter-with-mesolithic-and-pylllm9dbj.pdf

An Corran, Staffin, Skye: a rockshelter with Mesolithic and later occupation

The early Mesolithic is a key time in British prehistory. During the preceding Upper Palaeolithic period – when sea-level was lower – Britain was a marginal upland area of northwest Europe. Occupation was climate dependent, usually relatively fleeting, with human groups often operating at the margins of their ranges. The Mesolithic by contrast represents the start of the continuous occupation of the British Isles. This process saw colonisation by groups moving along river systems in the south and along the coast in the north (Conneller and Higham 2015), and, over time, the gradual infilling of the British landscape. Places gained meaning and histories for the first time, and particular places were marked out as important, with evidence for long-term occupation, seemingly from the very start of the period (Conneller et al 2012).

/pdf/the-resettlement-of-the-british-landscape-towards-a-3zvam51eaw.pdf

The Resettlement of the British Landscape: Towards a chronology of Early Mesolithic lithic assemblage types

This paper investigates how former hunter-gatherers living along the southern North Sea coast in NW Europe adapted to long-term and short-term climatic and environmental changes at the beginning of the Holocene. It is argued that contemporaneous hunter-gatherers repeatedly changed their hunting equipment in response to changing climate and environment, not just for functional reasons but mainly driven by socio-territorial considerations. Based on a Bayesian analysis of 122 critically selected radiocarbon dates a broad chronological correlation is demonstrated between rapid changes in the design and technology of stone projectiles and short but abrupt cooling events, occurring at 10.3, 9.3 and 8.2 ka cal BP. Combined with the rapid sea level rises and increased wildfires these climatic events probably impacted the lifeways of hunter-gatherers in such a way that they increasingly faced resource stress and competition, forcing them to invest in the symbolic defense of their social territories.

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0219094&type=printable

Mesolithic projectile variability along the southern North Sea basin (NW Europe): Hunter-gatherer responses to repeated climate change at the beginning of the Holocene

This work provides new insights into human responses to and perceptions of sea-level rise at a time when the landscapes of north-west Europe were radically changing. These issues are investigated through a case study focused on the Channel Islands. We report on the excavation of two sites, Canal du Squez in Jersey and Lihou (GU582) in Guernsey, and the study of museum collections across the Channel Islands. We argue that people were drawn to this area as a result of the dynamic environmental processes occurring and the opportunities these created. The evidence suggests that the area was a particular focus during the Middle Mesolithic, when Guernsey and Alderney were already islands and while Jersey was a peninsula of northern France. Insularisation does not appear to have created a barrier to occupation during either the Middle or Final Mesolithic, indicating the appearance of lifeways increasingly focused on maritime voyaging and marine resources from the second half of the 9th millennium BC onwards.

/pdf/rethinking-human-responses-to-sea-level-rise-the-mesolithic-1pq8xlsdps.pdf

Rethinking Human Responses to Sea-level Rise: The Mesolithic Occupation of the Channel Islands

British and Irish Mesolithic studies have long been characterized by a reliance on broad-scale lithic typologies, both to provide chronologies, and in discussion of ‘cultural’ groups. More recently, traditional narrative structures—period definitions of ‘Early’ and ‘Late’, or culture typologies—have been complemented by a host of other evidence. This has included new studies of site stratigraphy, evidence for seasonality, and material culture chaine operatoire chronologies, which place a greater emphasis on both temporal precision and the lived experiences of Mesolithic peoples. This paper will consider how the study of organic artefacts forces these narrative scales into acute focus, and presents an opportunity to explore the challenges in synthesizing different forms of data. We discuss how the evidence from sites in Ireland and Britain allows for new approaches, and highlight some of the challenges that this evidence presents, not least the perennial issue of moving from site-specific data to broader narratives. While the nature of earlier prehistoric evidence makes this an especially obvious issue for Mesolithic studies, it is one which generally besets archaeology. We suggest that in order to move beyond this in earlier prehistoric studies specifically, we need to make better use of all evidence sources, however seemingly prosaic, including antiquarian collections in museums, and chance and casual finds. Only by including the raft of available data, and recognizing its utility beyond the sum of individual apparently uninspiring parts, can we begin to move from generalizing narratives to more nuanced archaeological understandings of past material worlds.

/pdf/living-mesolithic-time-narratives-chronologies-and-organic-2ujv90wvig.pdf

Living Mesolithic Time: Narratives, Chronologies and Organic Material Culture

This report looks at Early Mesolithic Britain, and in particular the assemblage types known as 'Star Carr', 'Deepcar', and 'Horsham', from the point of view of six independent areas of research: typology, technology, chronology, environment, settlement and origins.

Early Mesolithic Britain: Origins, development and directions: Origins, development and directions

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Early Mesolithic Britain: Origins, development and directions: Origins, development and directions