Eastern pioneers in westernmost territories? Current perspectives on Mesolithic hunter–gatherer large-scale interaction and migration within Northern Eurasia

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to present a dynamic approach to material culture that may inform new perspectives on large-scale hunter-gatherer interactions and migrations within Early Holocene northern Eurasia. Recent analyses of technological aspects on a large geographical scale, challenge previous research hypotheses that derive the Mesolithic of Norway from a purely West European late Palaeolithic tradition, and highlights the existence of cultural traits which were shared by a wide range of hunter-gatherers within northern Eurasia in the Holocene. A new technological concept for lithic blade production, referred to as the conical core pressure blade concept, can be traced in the Norwegian archaeological record from the Preboreal/Boreal transition. It is suggested that the introduction of the concept represents the first migration of people and technological knowledge from the eastern Russian plains and the Baltic into the north-westernmost part of Europe. Yet, there have been few attempts to discuss the Norwegian archaeological record in relation to such an eastern cultural tradition. In the following exploration of how the hypothesis relates to the Norwegian archaeological record, results from technological analysis of previously only preliminarily surveyed blade assemblages from southeastern Norway will be presented and discussed against conceptions of the principles of technological transmission and change.

Holocene vegetation change in northernmost Fennoscandia and the impact on prehistoric foragers 12 000–2000 cal. aBP– A review

“…a BP the archaeological data indicate a migration across land from present‐day Russian territory into northern Finland and onto the NE coast of the investigation area (Rankama & Kankaanpää ; Sørensen et al . ; Damlien ; Günther et al . ).…”

Ancient DNA from chewing gums connects material culture and genetics of Mesolithic hunter-gatherers in Scandinavia

“…The technological analysis conducted for the purpose of this study, shows that the lithic artifacts from the deep pit display clear affiliation with the eastern pressure blade technology, as documented from a large number of sites in northern and western Scandinavia, eastern Fennoscandia, and the East European Plain 9–11, 23 . No artefacts diagnostic to the preceding Early Mesolithic blade technology, that would indicate chronological or technological mixing, were observed (Supplementary note 1).…”

Norway: Submerged Stone Age from a Norwegian Perspective

“…This relatively large population would have enabled a rapid colonisation of the Norwegian coast in the Preboreal period (Berg-Hansen 2017). There is also growing evidence at the beginning of the Boreal period for the spread of new immigrants into northern Norway entering from the North East (Sørensen et al 2013;Damlien 2014Damlien , 2016Günther et al 2018).…”