Spread and Evolution of the First Harvesting Technologies in the Balkan Area

The Balkans are key area for understanding the diffusion of the Neolithic into the Central and Western Mediterranean. Farmers rapidly spread, within a few centuries, over a large geographical area, from the Peloponnese to the Vardar and Struma valleys, reaching a few centuries later the northern Balkans. Into these new territories, Neolithic people brought a complex package of ideas, knowledge and technologies, comprising domesticated plants and agricultural practices. In this presentation, we will approach the diffusion of farming through the analysis of the harvesting tools used by the first Neolithic communities. Harvesting tools are an important source of information on agricultural systems, and can provide data on the social, economic and technological organization of the migrating groups. The use-wear analysis of the so-called ‘glossy blades’ allow us to reconstruct the harvesting techniques adopted by the Neolithic farmers that moved into the Balkans. Data obtained from the study of a number of flaked stone assemblages from relevant archaeological sites suggest the existence of strong affinities in the way people harvested the cereals over a large area, from Thessaly to Slavonia. Our results are discussed in the light of the information obtained from previous research on the harvesting technologies of the first farmers in the Central and Western Mediterranean.Peer reviewe