Alexa Dufraisse

Firewood economy during the 4th millennium BC at Lake Clairvaux, Jura, France

Abstract This paper presents the results of charcoal analyses from two waterlogged sites located at Lake Clairvaux in the French Jura and dated to the period between 3700–3500 BC. The economy of firewood intended for domestic use was characterised in accordance with the spatial organisation of the sites on the lakeshore, the economic context and the environment. Because gathering modes mainly depend on the available biomass and resource proximity, charcoal spectra are representative of the exploited woodland. However, as firewood gathering is a major and vital activity, the Neolithic societies established a firewood economy closely linked to their social organisation and way of life and to the environment.

Wood for Building: Woodland Exploitation for Timber Procurement in the Prehistoric and Protohistoric Balearic Islands (Mallorca and Menorca; Western Mediterranean)

Woodlands provide human societies with a wide range of plant materials that are crucial to social life. Wood fulfils different kinds of needs, from energy supply to timber; so its use in a large va...