TheEarlyNeolithicinGreece
TheFirstFarmingCommunitiesinEurope
FarmersmadeasuddenanddramaticappearanceinGreecearound7000
bc
,bring-ingwiththemdomesticatedplantsandanimals,newceramicsandtechniques,andestablishingsettledvillages.TheywereEurope’sfirstfarmers,butCatherinePerlèsarguesthatthestimulusforthespreadofagriculturetoEuropewasamaritimecol-onizationmovementinvolvingsmallgroupsofpeople.Withlittlecompetitionfromlocalhunter-gatherers,theyrecreatedtoanunusualdegreeacompletelyman-madeenvironment,neglectinglocalresourcesandoftenrelying,despitethecost,ontradewithothercommunitiesratherthanonlocalrawmaterials.Drawingevi-dencefromawiderangeofarchaeologicalsources,includingoftenneglected‘smallfinds’,andintroducingdaringnewperspectivesonfuneraryritualsandthedistrib-utionoffigurines,sheconstructsacomplexandsubtlepictureofearlyNeolithicsocieties,overturningthetraditionalviewthatthesesocietiesweresimpleandself-sufficient.
catherineperles
isProfessorintheDepartmentofEthnologyattheUniversityofParis.Herpublicationsinclude
Préhistoiredufeu
(1977)and
Lesindustries lithiquestailléesdeFranchthi
(3vols.,1987,1990,inpress).
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