Kyle P. Freund

Sardinian Obsidian Circulation and Early Maritime Navigation in the Neolithic as Shown Through Social Network Analysis

ABSTRACT Scholars typically argue that cultural interaction between the West Mediterranean islands of Sardinia and Corsica and the European mainland took place through the Tuscan Archipelago, via such intermediary islands as Elba and Pianosa. This path is posited as the prime route in and out of these islands for both people and objects throughout prehistory largely due to the belief that early—pre-sail—seafarers would have wished to avoid more treacherous open-sea voyages. This article tests this hypothesis using social network analysis (SNA) to identify the strengths of inter-site relationships through time based on the relative proportions of West Mediterranean obsidian raw materials at 79 Neolithic sites dating from the sixth to fourth millennia BC. We argue that similar patterns of obsidian consumption reflect similar procurement mechanisms and the likelihood of more frequent interactions between the people of these communities. As such, it becomes possible to reconstruct the relationships that mediated the distribution of obsidian across the landscape. Contrary to previous interpretations highlighting the role of Elba and Pianosa in the exchange of obsidian from the geological sources of Sardinia along the coast to northern Italy and France, our results suggest that obsidian also took a more direct open-sea path upwards of 200 km from Corsica to the coastal regions of Provence and Languedoc in southern France. These results are contextualized within broader patterns of obsidian circulation and use and have important implications for debates surrounding Neolithic obsidian procurement, exchange spheres, and early maritime navigation.

Contextualizing the Role of Obsidian in Chalcolithic Sicily (c. 3500 – 2500 BC)

ABSTRACT Through the analysis of 106 obsidian artifacts from eight Chalcolithic sites throughout the island of Sicily (c. 3500–2500 bc) this paper discusses the interplay between the procurement of obsidian raw materials and their consequent reduction, in turn highlighting long-term trends in lithic exploitation from the Neolithic through Chalcolithic eras. By combining obsidian sourcing with techno-typological analysis, this paper takes an initial step toward a more comprehensive understanding of the nature of obsidian exploitation in Chalcolithic Sicily and a more thorough comprehension of how obsidian was distributed from the islands of Lipari and Pantelleria. We in turn argue that when lithic data are analyzed within a chaîne opératoire approach combining analyses from multiple stages of artifact life histories, this information represents a powerful means of engaging with major social science questions, where a particular regional data set can be used to contribute to debates of broader archaeological significance.