Boric&Miracle2004-AMS-Padina I H Vodenica

DUSAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE
MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE

DANUBE GORGES: NEW AMS DATES FROM PADINA AND
HAJDUCKA VODENICA (SERBIA)
Summary. In this paper we present 17 new AMS dates from the

MesolithicEarly Neolithic sites of Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica and discuss
the continuity and nature of occupation at them in the context of the
MesolithicNeolithic transformations in the Danube Gorges region (northcentral Balkans), c.100005500 Cal BC. The dates indicate long occupation
sequences and help refine the stratigraphies of the two sites. They, also enable
us to date architectural features, burial positions and bone/antler tools, and to
further our understanding of the impact of the noted aquatic reservoir effect
on radiocarbon dating of human and dog remains from this region. Finally,
these dates suggest continuity of occupation at sites other than Lepenski Vir in
the Danube Gorges at the time of the MesolithicNeolithic transition,
c.63005950 Cal BC.
introduction
Since the excavation of MesolithicEarly Neolithic sites in the Danube Gorges (Iron
Gates) region of the north-central Balkans (Fig. 1) in the 1960s and 1970s it has not been easy
to estimate the actual depths of the occupational sequences or to phase numerous human burials
and architectural features to particular chronological periods. This situation is due to the complex
stratigraphic superposition of features and the nature of occupation at these locations. New AMS
dates from two sites Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica in the Danube Gorges,1 which we present
here, allow us for the first time i) to distinguish clearly Mesolithic and Early Neolithic contexts
at the site of Padina, ii) to obtain the first radiometric dates for the site of Hajdu cka Vodenica,
iii) to provide further information about the noted freshwater reservoir effect in this region with
regard to differences in dating human burials and associated bone tools, iv) to date specific burial
positions found in this culture complex, and v) to date specific typological categories of
antler/bone tools. We further examine whether the distribution of the current radiometric
1
Six AMS dates (OxA-9052, OxA-9053, OxA-9054, OxA-9055, OxA-9056, OxA-9034) were obtained in the
course of the NERC-funded project directed by Alasdair Whittle (Whittle et al. 2002) and the remaining seven
AMS dates from Padina and four dates from Hajdu cka Vodenica came through the NERC-funded ORADS facility
in the course of Du san Bori cs Ph.D. project, supervised by Preston Miracle, and in collaboration with the
excavator of Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica, Borislav Jovanovi c.
OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY 23(4) 341371 2004

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK
and 350 Main Street Malden, MA 02148, USA.
341
MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES
2225'
ROMANIA
Baile Herculane
DANUB
E
Privod
Alibeg
Vodneac
Razvrata
Icoana
Veterani
Climente I & II
Cuina
Ilisova
Turcului
Izlaz
Padina
Stubica
4430'
Lepenski Vir
Vlasac
>1000
700-1000 m
500-700 m
300-500 m
100-300 m
< 100 m
Svinita
Virtop
Ostrovul Banului
Schela Cladovei
Hajducka
Vodenica
Velesnica
Ostrovul
Corbului
SERBIA
cave sites
open-air sites
0
25
Kula
Ostrovul Mare
km 875 & 873
km
Figure 1
Map of the Danube Gorges with Mesolithic and Early Neolithic sites.
evidence in this region indicates continuity of occupation during the Mesolithic and Neolithic
periods.
conventional and bone collagen radiocarbon dates from padina

Padina (4430 N 2225 E) is situated in the Upper Gorge of the Danube in the vicinity
of the sites of Lepenski Vir and Vlasac (Fig. 1). There are three excavated sectors of this
settlement along the Danubes bank with a complex stratification of the remains of several
prehistoric and later periods (Jovanovi c 1969a, 1987). A superposition of Mesolithic and Early
Neolithic features and finds was noted in all three sectors. Mesolithic architectural features were
mainly represented by elongated stone constructions, primarily in Sectors II (Fig. 2) and III (Fig.
3; see Fig. 7), while an Early Neolithic date for buildings with trapezoidal floors has been
suggested on the basis of the associated Early Neolithic Star cevo-Krs-Cri s pottery found in
situ on their floors (Jovanovi c 1969a, 1987; Bori c 1999, 2002b, fig. 2). The trapezoidal buildings
were found only in Sectors I (Fig. 2) and III.
There are nine previous conventional radiocarbon dates from Padina. Six dates on bone
collagen samples from all three sectors were made at the British Museum (Table 1), five on
human bones (BM-1143, BM-1144, BM-1146, BM-1147 and BM-1404) and one on a bear bone
(BM-1403) (Burleigh and Zivanovi c 1980; Radiocarbon 24, 1689). These dates indicated a
mostly Early Mesolithic occupation at the site. On the other hand, three charcoal dates (GrN8229, GrN-8230 and GrN-7981) came from trapezoidal structures in Sector III (Table 2), i.e.
OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY
342
Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004
DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE
Figure 2
Architectural features and burials, Sectors III, Padina; provenance of dated samples marked (plan: courtesy B. Jovanovi c).
343
344
Figure 3
Architectural features and burials, Sector III, Padina; provenience of dated samples marked (plan: courtesy B. Jovanovi c).
table 1
ivanovi c 1980, table 1). All dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9
Bone collagen dates from Padina (after Burleigh and Z
(Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998)
lab ID
context
burial position
species
14
C Age
(bp)
Cal BC at
1 s.d.
Cal BC at
2 s.d.
BM-1146
Burial 12
(Sector III)
flexed/right,
perpendicular to the
Danube head
upslope/away from
the Danube
Homo sapiens
9331 58
87208470
87508330
BM-1404
Burial 39 (?)2
(?)
Homo sapiens
9292 148
87308290
91508200
BM-1147
Burial 14
(Sector III)
(?)
Homo sapiens
9198 103
85408280
86908230
BM-1144
Burial 7
(Sector II)
extended, perpendicular
to the Danube
head upslope/away
from the Danube
Homo sapiens
8797 83
82007650
82507600
BM-1403
(?) Sector III
n/a
Ursus arctos
8138 121
75406800
75506700
BM-1143
Burial 2
(Sector I)
extended, parallel to
the Danube head
downstream
Homo sapiens
7738 51
66406480
66506460
table 2
Charcoal dates from Padina (source: Groningen Database). All dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey
1995, 2001) using INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998)
lab ID
context
material
14
GrN-8229
GrN-8230
GrN-7981
trapezoidal bldg(?) hearth

occupation layer(?)
trapezoidal bldg(?)
charcoal
charcoal
charcoal
6570 55
7100 80
7075 50
C Age (bp)
Cal BC at 1 s.d.
Cal BC at 2 s.d.
56105470
60605840
60005840
56305380
61605780
60305800
from hearths and charred remains of timber beams of roofs and posts that framed the upper
construction of buildings (Groningen Database, obtained from Centrum voor Isotopen
Onderzoek, Groningen; see Bori c 1999, fig. 6). At the moment we lack more precise information
about the exact provenience of the latter dates at the level of building associations. However,
these dates indicate that the occupation of trapezoidal structures coincides with the duration of
the Early Neolithic in the wider region (cf. Whittle et al. 2002).
ams dates and correcting the aquatic reservoir ages in the danube gorges
Absolute dating by using Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) on human and
domesticated dog bone samples in the Danube Gorges is affected by the freshwater reservoir
effect (cf. Bonsall et al. 1997, 2000; Cook et al. 2002; Whittle et al. 2002). This situation is due
to the substantial intake of both freshwater and migratory fish, and possibly other food sources
2
ivanovi c 1980 mention it as Infans I. However,

It is not clear to what burial this date relates. Burleigh and Z
there is no burial marked as Infans I at Padina (see Roksandi c 1999, Appendix I).

345
rich in protein, depending on the complexity of the food web (Grupe et al. 2003; Bori c et al.
in press). This situation makes the measurements older due to the deposition of old carbon
(e.g. Lanting and van der Plicht 1998) and requires a correction of uncalibrated measurements.
These corrections are critical for the dating of specific contexts and for the question regarding
the continuity of occupation at Padina.
Here, for the correction of the freshwater reservoir effect, we adopt one of three methods
suggested by Cook et al. (2002). According to that study, one should apply the correction of
200500 years to those dated human burials with high d15N values, depending on individual
values of d15N and d13C and their ratios. In order to estimate the correction factor for the reservoir
effect, these authors take the highest d15N value of +17 measured for an adult individual from
Lepenski Vir (Burial 89a: Bonsall et al. 1997, table 5) as an end-point for a 100 per cent aquatic
diet while an end-point of +8 is equated with a 100 per cent terrestrial diet (Cook et al. 2002,
81). Cook et al. suggested three methods of correcting the freshwater reservoir effect in the
Danube Gorges on the basis of d15N values of particular human burials and associated ungulate
bone tools/weapons that were either found as grave offerings with dated burials or were
embedded in a skeletal part of deceased humans (the latter due to violent encounters) from the
site of Schela Cladovei (ibid., table 3). They approximate a weighted mean age offset for a 100
per cent diet to 540 70 radiocarbon years. According to Method 1, the applied correction factor
depends on the percentage of estimated aquatic diet and it is calculated with regard to d15N
values (e.g. the value of +15.1 indicates 79 per cent of aquatic diet). Method 2 relies on all
the data from table 3 in Cook et al. (2002) and applies the correction factor of 440 45 years
offset (100 per cent aquatic diet) for those measurements that show d15N values are >+13 and
220 23 years offset (50 per cent aquatic diet) when d15N values are between +10 and +13.
Finally, Method 3 relies on 19 dated bone artefacts from Schela Cladovei, which relate to the
Mesolithic period, and ten dated human burials from the same period, calculating a weighted
mean of this series of measurements for an average human diet with d15N values of 15.4
table 3
Corrected ages for human and dog AMS dates with d15N values >+10 (affected by the aquatic reservoir effect) from
Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica using all three methods suggested by Cook et al. (2002). The d15N values used to
estimate percentage of aquatic diet
lab ID
Padina
OxA-11106
OxA-11104
OxA-11105
OxA-11107
OxA-9053
OxA-9056
burial/
specimen
no.
species
14
C age
(bp)
21
11
15
1a
8.70/358/1
8.70/347/1
Homo
Homo
Homo
Homo
Canis
Canis
10095
10000
9480
7975
7685
7625
Homo
Homo
Homo
Homo
8645
7990
7980
7875
Hajdu cka Vodenica

OxA-11128 8
OxA-11127 12
OxA-11126 15-younger
OxA-11109 20
d15N
()
protein
(aquatic?)
signal (%)*
corrected
14
C age (bp)
Method 1
55
60
55
50
60
55
14.1
13.0
13.7
15.5
11.3
12.5
67
55
63
84
37
50
9733
9703
9140
7521
7485
7355
72
72
70
77
65
65
9655
9780
9040
7535
7465
7405
71a
64b
71a
67a
64b
60b
9668
9649
9078
7439
7449
7306
72
72
70
77
65
65
65
55
50
55
16.0
15.8
15.6
16.1
89
86
84
90
8146
7526
7526
7389
90
81
77
84
8205
7550
7540
7435
79a
71a
67a
71a
8077
7441
7444
7301
90
81
77
84
corrected
14
C age (bp)
Method 2
corrected
14
C age (bp)
Method 3
* used for Methods 1 and 3; a = 100 per cent reservoir correction applied (440 45 years); b = 50 per cent reservoir correction
applied (220 23 years).
346
approximated to 638 70 years. We find Method 1 inadequate, pretending to provide

unattainable accuracy, which is at the current state of research unrealistic. Moreover, it is
misleading to suggest that +17 indicates a 100 per cent aquatic diet in humans, and one should
be reminded that d15N values signal the contribution of protein in general, which can be a
combination of several protein-rich food sources and not only fish (cf. Boric et al. in press). On
the other hand, Method 3 relies on a limited number of artefacts from Schela Cladovei that were
not associated with particular burials, only assuming the contemporaneity of the two. In fact,
all three methods are to some degree speculative and at best tentative at present, relying on a
rather limited number of dated burials and associated artefacts from Schela Cladovei alone.
However, in order to approximate the real age of samples affected by the freshwater reservoir
effect we have corrected new AMS dates from Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica by all three
methods (Table 2).
In the following discussion all new dates with d15N values >+10 from these two sites
are corrected according to Method 2 (see Tables 46). Although Method 2 provides only a rough
table 4
AMS dates on animal bones and antler from Padina (OxA-9055, OxA-9034, OxA-9053, OxA-9056, OxA-9052 and
OxA-9054 after Whittle et al. 2002). AMS dates with d15N values >+10 corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect
according to Method 2 as described by Cook et al. (2002, 82). All dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk
Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998)
a = 100 per cent reservoir correction applied (440 45 years); b = 50 per cent reservoir correction applied (220 23
years)
lab ID
sample
context
species
skeletal
element &
inv. no.
S#
d15N
()
d13C
()
14
C age
(bp)
corrected
14
C age
(bp)
Cal BC at
2 s.d.
OxA-11102
underneath
House 14
Cervus
elaphus
astragalus
8.70/377/5
4.6
-20.0
9990 55
n/a
99659275
OxA-9055
midden,
Profile 3
segm. 1,
exc. level 3
Cervus
elaphus
mandible
7.70/191/1
P5
4.7
-20.8
8445 60
n/a
76007340
OxA-9034
above House
12 under
the level
with animal
bones
Canis
familiaris
tibia
8.70/289/15
P1
8.6
-17.7
7755 65
n/a
n/a
OxA-11108
offering in
Burial 1 a
Cervus
elaphus
antler tool
12
6.2
-20.9
7750 50
n/a
66506460
OxA-9053
underneath
House 18
Canis
familiaris
ulna
8.70/358/1
P3
11.3
-17.7
7685 60
7465 64b
64406210
OxA-9056
floor of
House 9
Canis
familiaris
tibia
8.70/347/1
P6
12.5
-18.1
7625 55
7405 60b
64106090
OxA-11103
hearth of
House 17
Mammalia
bone tool
IB 395
7.2
-22.4
7315 55
n/a
62506025
OxA-9052
floor of
House 18
Cervus
elaphus
antler
7.70/169/1
P2
6.6
-22.2
6965 60
n/a
59905720
OxA-9054
underneath
House 15
Mammalia
worked bone
8.70/ku ca 15/1
P4
5.7
-21.5
6790 55
n/a
57805560

347
table 5
AMS dates on human bones from Padina. All dates corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect according to Method
2 as described by Cook et al. (2002, 82) and dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995,
2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998)
a = 100 per cent reservoir correction applied (440 45 years); b = 50 per cent reservoir correction applied
(220 23 years)
lab ID
burial no.
& context
burial position
skeletal
element
S#
d15N
()
d13C
()
14
C age
(bp)
corrected
14
C age
(bp)
Cal BC at
2 s.d.
OxA-11106
21 (stone
construct.)
seated (?)
rib
10
14.1
-18.9
10095 55
9655 71a
92508790
OxA-11104
11
(beneath
House 15)
extended,
perpendicular
to the
Danube
head upslope/
away from
the Danube
rib
13.0
-18.9
10000 60
9780 64b
93608920
OxA-11105
15
(stone
construct.)
seated with
crossed legs
trapezium
13.7
-19.0
9480 55
9040 71a
84507960
OxA-11107
1a
(Sector I)
extended,
perpendicular
to the
Danube
head upslope/
away from
the Danube
long bone
frag.
11
15.5
-17.9
7975 50
7535 67a
64706230
estimate of the correction factor, we find it still the most realistic among the three offered
methods. Method 2 closely relies on the relationship between dated burials affected by the
freshwater reservoir effect and unaffected associated artefacts. It also takes into account
differences in the d15N values in a realistic way with regard to the quality and type of date
presently at our disposal. One should not forget, however, that these associated ungulate artefacts
are only relatively contemporaneous with the individuals in whose burials they were found, and
it would be reasonable to expect that the obtained date for these artefacts is always at least
marginally older than the true age of the deceased.
ams radiocarbon dating at padina

Recently, 13 new AMS dates were obtained for Padina. Nine dates were made on animal
(Table 4) and four on human bones (Table 5).
In the case of Burial 1a (OxA-11107, uncorrected 7975 50 bp), both the skeleton and
the associated antler mattock were dated in Sector I (see Fig. 2). Due to the correction for the
freshwater reservoir effect for the deceased, the actual date could only be in the same range or
younger than the associated antler mattock, which was dated in the range 6650 to 6460 at 95
per cent probability (OxA-11108, 7750 50 bp). The age offset between the dated burial and
the dated tool is 225 71. On the other hand, by applying the correction for the freshwater
348
table 6
AMS dates on human bones from Hajdu cka Vodenica. All dates corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect according
to Method 2 as described by Cook et al. (2002, 82) and calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey
1995, 2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998)
a = 100 per cent reservoir correction applied (440 45 years); b = 50 per cent reservoir correction applied (220
23 years)
lab ID
burial no.
& context
burial position
skeletal
element
S#
d15N
()
d13C
()
14
C age
(bp)
corrected
14
C age
(bp)
Cal BC at
2 s.d.
OxA-11128
8 (older
hearth)
extended,
parallel to the
Danube head
upstream
cranial
frag.
20
16.0
-18.6
8645 65
8205 79a
74807050
OxA-11127
12
(flooring
of the
sacrificial
hearth
area)
extended,
perpendicular
to the Danube
head upslope/
away from
the Danube
cranial
frag.
19
15.8
-17.3
7990 55
7550 71a
65006230
OxA-11126
15
younger
(grave
chamber)
extended,
parallel to the
Danube head
downstream
rib
18
15.6
-18.6
7980 50
7540 67a
64706230
OxA-11109
20 (grave
chamber)
extended,
parallel to the
Danube head
downstream
cranial
frag.
17
16.1
-18.0
7875 55
7435 71a
64406090
reservoir effect according to Method 2 (Cook et al. 2002) the burial is dated in the range 6470
to 6230 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability (corrected 7535 67 bp). In this case the deceased
seems to be at least 100 years younger than the tool placed in the burial. This date indicates a
very late (terminal) Mesolithic3 occupation of this portion of the site. That this burial belongs
to the local Mesolithic tradition in this region can further be suggested on the basis of its burial
position an extended inhumation placed perpendicular to the Danube with its head pointing
upslope/away from the Danube (cf. Radovanovi c 1996, 160224; see below for the same
position and date characterizing Burial 12 at Hajdu cka Vodenica). Burial 1a was placed directly
on the bedrock (Fig. 4). The physical anthropologist who first examined the skeleton noted that
the postcranial skeleton is gracile and that the measurement indices are characteristic of
Neolithic skeletons ( Zivanovi c 197374, 141). While Zivanovi c (197374) identifies the
deceased as adult male, in a more recent analysis of this skeleton, Roksandi c sexed the individual
as old adult male? (1999, Appendix I). The associated antler mattock (OxA-11108, Fig. 5) falls
under the typological category of tools that are frequently found in MesolithicEarly Neolithic
contexts at sites in the Danube Gorges (e.g. Srejovi c and Letica 1978; Boroneant 2001). Yet,
3
The designation Mesolithic is used only as a heuristic tool here, and primarily to describe an archaeological
context with no Early Neolithic pottery (for a discussion with regard to theoretical, conceptual and empirical
problems of using Mesolithic/Neolithic labels in the Danube Gorges see Bori c in press a, in press b).

349
Figure 4
ivanovi c 197374, T. 1.1).
Burial 1a (OxA-11107), Sector I, Padina (photo: after Z
currently, there are a limited number of dates for bone and antler tools only from the site of
Schela Cladovei (Cook et al. 2002), and one would need more dated bone/antler tools to provide
a firmer chronology for certain typological groups.
The correction for the freshwater reservoir effect should also be applied to three dated
dog bones, which were found immediately on or below floors of trapezoidal buildings in Sector
III (Fig. 3). The isotopic values of the dogs are most probably indicative of a similar diet to that
of humans, where a larger proportion of protein was from freshwater fish, particularly
anadromous fish, reflecting the higher d15N values in aquatic ecosystems. Humans might have
fed the dogs with fish remains and/or dogs might have scavenged on the residues of human
consumption. This explanation is largely based on their d13C values (Table 4). The d15N values
of the two dogs (OxA-9053 and OxA-9056) are higher, too, while one dog (OxA-9034) has a
conspicuously low d15N value for this explanation, and would perhaps require a new
measurement. We have corrected two dated dog bones from Padina that have d15N values
>+10 with the same method applied to the dated human samples since dogs show roughly
the same general trend with regard to their d13C and d15N values as that in humans, and according
to a general assumption that dog isotope values in certain instances can be used as proxies for
human diets (Schulting and Richards 2002). However, in the future, one should try to develop
a specific method for the correction of dates for dog bones since humans in the Danube Gorges
are clearly at the top of the food chain and are more enriched in 15N than dogs (see Bori c et al.
in press). With regard to OxA-9034 (House 12) with its relatively low d15N value of +8.6, we
350
Figure 5
AMS-dated antler mattock (OxA-11108) found in Burial 1a, Sector I, Padina.
refrain from applying any correction factor.4 OxA-9056 (uncorrected 7625 55 bp) provides the
date for the occupation and/or abandonment of House 9 in the range 6410 to 6090 Cal BC at
95 per cent probability (corrected 7405 60 bp). On the other hand, the dated dog bone from
House 18 (OxA-9053, uncorrected 7685 60 bp) originates from the area underneath the floor
of this building and would represent a terminus ante quem for the construction and/or occupation
of this later building, dated in the range 6440 to 6210 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability (corrected
7465 64 bp).
Similarly, three new AMS dates made on ungulate bones, which do not require the
correction for the freshwater reservoir effect, further reaffirm the Early Neolithic context of
4
Due to its d13C value, which is almost identical to two other dog measurements, we may assume that the actual
date for this individual has to be 200500 years younger.

351
trapezoidal buildings. Thus, OxA-11103 (7315 55 bp) dates a bone projectile point (Fig. 6)
from the hearth of House 17 in Sector III, indicating the occupation/abandonment of this
building in the range 6250 to 6025 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability. A sample from House 18
(OxA-9052, 6965 60 bp) and another from House 15 (OxA-9054, 6790 55 bp) indicate a
later phase of the Early Neolithic occupation at the site after 6000 Cal BC, i.e. they fall in the
range 5990 to 5720 and 5780 to 5560 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability. Significantly, these
latter dates come from Houses 18 and 15, which on the basis of their archaeological context
could well be among the latest buildings to be occupied at the site (cf. Jovanovi c 1987). There
is also an expected chronological difference between OxA-9053 (sample beneath House 18) and
OxA-9052 (sample on the floor of House 18), which are vertically stratified within the same
building. In sum, these samples derive from bones found in association with Early Neolithic
pottery, and they date the earliest phase of the Early Neolithic period in this region. This period
overlaps with the beginnings of Early Neolithic settlements in the surrounding areas of the northcentral Balkans with the starting date at around 63006200 Cal BC (cf. Whittle et al. 2002).
Early indications about a significant chronological depth to the occupational sequence
at Padina on the basis of the first collagen dates made on human bones (Table 1), found in
association with the area defined by the excavator as the stone construction of the necropolis
in Sector III (Fig. 7), are now confirmed with new AMS dates. Burials 21 (OxA-11106,
uncorrected 10095 55 bp) and 15 (OxA-11105, uncorrected 9480 55 bp, Fig. 8), also found
Figure 6
AMS-dated bone projectile point (OxA-11103) found inside the rectangular hearth of House 17, Sector III, Padina.
352
Figure 7
Stone construction of the necropolis, Sector III, Padina (plan: courtesy B. Jovanovi c).
in association with the stone construction of the necropolis (Fig. 7) like previously dated Burial
12 (Table 1), despite the necessary correction for the reservoir effect are significantly early,
indicating an Early Mesolithic use of this location as a burial ground in the range 9250 to 8790
and 8450 to 7960 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability (corrected 9655 71 and 9040 71 bp)
(Table 5). Burial 21 is identified as old adult female? and Burial 15 as old adult female
(Roksandi c 1999, Appendix I). Still earlier, Burial 11 (OxA-11104, uncorrected 10000 60 bp),
found partly in an area beneath the floor of House 15 (Fig. 9), falls in the range 9360 to 8920
Cal BC at 95 per cent probability (corrected 9780 64 bp). With regard to Burial 11, one has
to emphasize the difference of at least c.3000 years between OxA-11104 dating Burial 11 and
OxA-9054 dating the construction/occupation of this building (see above). Burial 11 was found
at the level of the stone construction that was found underneath House 15 (Padina field diary
for 13/8/1970), placed in the loess soil, without visible traces of a burial pit ( Zivanovi c 197374,
145). The deceased is identified as an 11-year-old child on the basis of its dental eruption stage
(ibid.; also Roksandic 1999, Appendix I). This individual is characterized by the lowest d15N
value of +13 if compared to other burials dated to the Mesolithic in the Danube Gorges (cf.
Tables 3 and 5; Bori c et al. in press). This difference may significantly relate to the young age
of this individual, which if further confirmed, may significantly differentiate dietary practices
of adults and children during the Mesolithic in this region. In addition, one should note that
there was a damaged area in the floor in the part of the building approximately above Burial 11
353
Figure 8
Burials 15 (OxA-11105) and 16 (sitting positions with crossed legs), stone construction of the necropolis, Sector
III, Padina (photo: courtesy B. Jovanovi c).
(Figs. 3 and 9). Despite such conspicuous damage to the floor, it is unreasonable to expect that
Burial 11 was interred from the level of the building (hence the damaged floor according to this
logic), which would have been an extremely odd outlier to the overall chronology of the
trapezoidal buildings in the Danube Gorges. This particular situation may rather indicate
that there might have been a later awareness about the existence of this burial, and that this
much older burial and other features at the site might have been imbued with some significance
in the course of the Early Neolithic occupation, as traces of previous occupation at the
locale, maintaining some elements of habitual continuity of practices and social memory (for
the same argument with regard to architectural and mortuary evidence at Lepenski Vir see Bori c
2003).
Two new AMS dates also indicate that Sector III at Padina was not used only as a burial
ground during this early phase but most likely also as a seasonal or more permanent occupation
base (for evidence about the seasonality of occupation at the site see Bori c 2002c). OxA-11102
(9990 55 bp) dates the remains of occupation (a red deer bone) beneath (i.e. sealed with the
floor of) House 14 in the range 9965 to 9275 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability, while OxA9055 (8445 60 bp) dates a midden deposit in the area around House 6 in the range 7600 to
7340 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability. Although there is a significant chronological gap of at
least around 1500 calendric years between these two dates, there is a possibility that the location
might have been used continuously over several millennia during the Mesolithic period in the
354
Figure 9
House 15 (OxA-9054), Sector III, Padina; Burial 11 (OxA-11104) was found below the building floor (photo: courtesy
B. Jovanovic).
region. A large series of new dates from single features would be necessary to show clearly
whether the site was continuously or discontinuously occupied during this period.
In terms of dating specific burial positions in the Danube Gorges, Burial 15 is
particularly interesting. This is one of two burials at Padina that were placed in a sitting position
with crossed legs next to each other (Fig. 8; Jovanovi c 1969a, T. XIII.1). Padina is the only site
in the Danube Gorges where two individuals were placed in this way since at all other sites with
seated burials only one sitting individual was found per site. This burial position was noted at
the sites of Lepenski Vir (Burial 69: Srejovi c 1972, fig. 52), Vlasac (Burial 17: Srejovi c and
Letica 1978, 72), Kula (Burial 5: Miki c and Sladi c 1994), Velesnica (Burial 2-skeleton G: Vasi c
1986) and Ostrovul Corbului (Burial 25: Paunescu 1996). In an attempt at relative (stratigraphic)
dating of specific burial positions at the sites in the Danube Gorges, Radovanovi c (1996: for
355
Padina pp. 171174; for Vlasac pp. 20910, 218) assumes that this burial position characterizes
the later phase of the Mesolithic occupation in the region. However, OxA-11105 for Burial 15
at Padina indicates a much earlier Mesolithic date between 8450 and 7960 Cal BC for the
appearance of this burial position, and it will be of some interest to date other burials in the
region placed in the sitting position with crossed legs. The oldest among currently dated burials
from Padina is child Burial 11, an extended inhumation with the orientation westeast
( Zivanovi c 197374, 145), i.e. perpendicular to the Danube. The similar arrangement of Burial
1a in Sector I (OxA-11107 and OxA-11108) (Fig. 4) indicates that this position of extended
inhumations placed perpendicular to the Danube course with their heads pointing upslope/away
from the river relates both to this very late Mesolithic occupation of the site and to the oldest
dated burial at Padina (see below for Burial 12 from Hajducka Vodenica placed in the same
position).
Thirteen new AMS dates from Padina (Fig. 10; OxA is not included in this figure) have
significantly clarified our understanding of the chronological sequence at the site. The dates
indicate that people used and returned to the site over a very long time span, at least from the
Atmospheric data from Stuiver et al. (1998); OxCal v3.9 Bronk Ramsey (2003); cub r:4 sd:12 prob usp[chron]
OxA-11102 999055BP
OxA-11104 978064BP
OxA-11106 965571BP
OxA-11105 904071BP
OxA-9055 844560BP
OxA-11108 775050BP
OxA-11107 753567BP
OxA-9053 746564BP
OxA-9056 740560BP
OxA-11103 731550BP
OxA-9052 696560BP
OxA-9054 679055BP
12000CalBC
10000CalBC
8000CalBC
6000CalBC
Calibrated date
Figure 10
Plot of calibrated AMS dates on animal bones and human burials from Padina; AMS dates with d15N values >+10
corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect according to Method 2 as described by Cook et al. (2002, 82). All dates
calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al.
1998).
356
mid-tenth to mid-sixth millennia Cal BC. This occupation span might have been discontinuous,
with periods of abandonment, i.e. dispersion and renewed aggregation of occupation, up to
around 6300 Cal BC. At this time, most likely, the construction of the first structures with
trapezoidal floors starts at Padina and at other sites in the Upper Gorge of the Danube coinciding
with the appearance of Early Neolithic pottery. This Early Neolithic phase of occupation at the
site can largely be characterized as continuous, most likely from around 6300 to 5500 Cal BC,
when the location was finally abandoned by this regional tradition.
ams radiocarbon dating at hajducka vodenica

Hajducka Vodenica (4428 N 2235 E) is situated at the downstream entrance to the
Lower Gorge of the Danube on the right bank of the Danube (Fig. 1). At Hajducka Vodenica,
there are two distinctive areas of the site (Jovanovi c 1966, 1967, 1969b, 1984). In the first area
rectangular hearths were covered by stone constructions, which were piled up in four distinct
levels. These elongated stone constructions follow the same outline. One could assume a
Mesolithic date for the lowest levels of this construction with abundant bone tools and no pottery.
Early Neolithic pottery of Star cevo-Krs-Cri s type was found in the two upper levels of the
stone construction. This first area of the site remains without radiometric dates. The second area
of the site consists of a grave chamber where a number of burials were placed in extended
positions parallel to the Danube, with their heads pointing downstream (Figs. 1112). The burials
were found behind a rectangular hearth in an area named the sacrificial hearth area, which was
surrounded by a packed flooring of red burned earth (Jovanovi c 1984, 307). Beneath the hearth,
on the lower level, remains of an older hearth and structure were recognized (ibid., 307). Two
large ornamented boulders were found in the front part of the hearth area at a lower level. All
these features were interred into virgin soil (loess-sandy deposit) while the accumulation of
deposits above the features (e.g. Fig. 12) in certain areas reached up to 4 m in height (Jovanovi c
1967, 182).
Four new AMS dates on human burials from the described area at Hajdu cka Vodenica
(Table 6) are the first radiometric dates from this site. Our previous discussion about the
freshwater reservoir effect correction applies here (see above).
Burial 8 (OxA-11128, uncorrected 8645 65 bp) is currently the oldest dated burial as
is also suggested by its stratigraphic position. It was placed before the sacrificial hearth
construction was built on a lower level than the rest of the burials. In contrast to most other
burials at this site, which were placed parallel to the Danube with their heads pointing
downstream, Burial 8 was placed also parallel to the Danube with its head pointing upstream.
This burial provides a terminus post quem for the use of the rectangular hearth and flooring in
the range 7480 to 7050 Cal BC (corrected 8205 79 bp). The deceased is identified as old adult
male? (Roksandi c 1999, Appendix I).
Burial 12 (OxA-11127, uncorrected 7990 55 bp) was placed over a flooring of burned
earth, reddish in colour, that surrounded the area of the sacrificial rectangular hearth. It provides
a terminus ante quem for the use of this structure, and once corrected for the freshwater reservoir
effect falls in the range 6500 to 6230 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability (corrected 7550 71
bp). The deceased has not been sexed; it is identified as an adult individual.
Burials 20, unsexed old adult (OxA-11109, uncorrected 7875 55 bp) and 15younger, unsexed juvenile (OxA-11126, uncorrected 7980 50 bp) were placed inside the
burial chamber, which contained 20 other articulated and partial human skeletons (for various
357
Figure 11
Architectural features and burials, Hajdu cka Vodenica; dated burials marked (plan: courtesy B. Jovanovi c).
358
Figure 12
Isometric view of the sacrificial hearth area, front part of the grave chamber, and Section 3-1, Hajdu cka
Vodenica (adopted after Jovanovi c 1969c, 68 and 1967, fig. 2).
remarks concerning the physical anthropology of these burials see Roksandi c 1999, 2000). After
the necessary correction, Burial 20 falls in the range 6440 to 6090 and Burial 15-younger in
the range 6470 to 6230 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability (corrected 7435 71 and 7540 67
bp). Burial 20 was accompanied by a stone axe (?) placed beside the deceased, while Burial 15younger was accompanied by a herbivore mandible (Radovanovi c 1996, 221).
These three dates (OxA-11127, OxA-11126 and OxA-11109) form a relatively tight
cluster that, at face value, seems to indicate a relatively short period of time during the Late
Mesolithic occupation of the site (Fig. 13). After correction for the reservoir effect the dates fall
in the range 6500 to 6090 Cal BC, which straddles the appearance of the Early Neolithic in the
359
Atmospheric data from Stuiver et al. (1998); OxCal v3.9 Bronk Ramsey (2003); cub r:4 sd:12 prob usp[chron]
OxA-11128 820579BP
OxA-11127 755071BP
OxA-11126 754067BP
OxA-11109 743571BP
8000CalBC
7500CalBC
7000CalBC
6500CalBC
6000CalBC
Calibrated date
Figure 13
Plot of calibrated AMS dates on human burials from Hajdu cka Vodenica; AMS dates with d15N values >+10 corrected
for the freshwater reservoir effect according to Method 2 as described by Cook et al. (2002, 82). All
dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver
et al. 1998).
wider region. This chronological bracketing can perhaps be applied to other articulated
inhumations found in the grave chamber at Hajdu cka Vodenica. On the other hand, a group of
disarticulated bones labelled as Burials 2628 found in the rear of the grave chamber (Fig. 11)
could be of older date. Both hypotheses remain to be tested by future radiocarbon measurements.
In terms of their burial position, the placing of extended inhumations parallel to the
Danube with their heads pointing downstream confirms Radovanovi cs suggestion that this
specific position characterizes the Late Mesolithic phase of burial practices in the Danube
Gorges (1996, 224), what she calls later type of formal disposal areas (1996, 222). However,
it seems that on the basis of our radiometric evidence for Burial 12, which was placed in an
extended position perpendicular to the Danube with its head upslope/away from the Danube,
and is similar to Burial 1a at Padina, both dated to almost exactly the time span between 6500
and 6230 Cal BC, one cannot support Radovanovi cs conclusion that the latter burial position
characterizes exclusively the earlier Mesolithic phase in this region. Her conclusion was
primarily based on her stratigraphic analyses of burials from Vlasac (ibid., 218). Also, it seems
that rather than accepting the claim that frequent orientation of graves parallel to the course of
the river [. . .] became an absolute standard during Hajducka Vodenica Ib (ibid., 222), we are
now able to assert that extended inhumations both oriented parallel to the Danube (heads
pointing downstream) and perpendicular to the Danube characterize Late (terminal) Mesolithic
burial practices at Hajducka Vodenica. The chronological difference is noted in the orientation
of older Burial 8, which was placed parallel to the Danube but with its head pointing upstream.
At present, Hajducka Vodenica appears as a site used as a burial location during the
Mesolithic period from around 7500/7000 Cal BC, and possibly earlier. Again, it is possible that
the site might have been temporarily abandoned for a part of the period between around
7500/7000 to 6500/6400 Cal BC. However, new dates in the future may cover this chronological
gap. Our radiometric evidence shows that the location was certainly used again after 6500/6400
Cal BC for burial purposes. The spatial position of the later phase burials in relation to the early
phase Burial 8 indicates likely recognition of the same location for the same purpose and
possibly by people that belonged to the same culture/regional tradition as those earlier occupants
of the site. This situation, similar to Padina, exemplifies the depths of social memory, since the
360
current chronological gap between these two radiometrically dated phases of occupation at the
site is at least 500 years. The later phase of occupation most likely lasted up until around 6200
Cal BC but perhaps even longer. The presence of Early Neolithic pottery in the presently undated
area of the site (two upper levels of the elongated stone constructions, cf. Jovanovi c 1984,
30910) could tentatively suggest an unbroken continuity of occupation at this location to the
Early Neolithic.
gaps or continuities in the meso-neolithic transformations?

In a recent paper, Bonsall et al. (2002) suggest that there is a chronological gap between
c.82507900 BP (calibrated), i.e. 6300 and 5950 Cal BC in the occupation of all sites in the
Danube Gorges except at the type-site of Lepenski Vir (Srejovi c 1969, 1972).5 In their view,
this discontinuity of occupation on the banks of the Danube in the region was caused by the
8200 BP event (Alley et al. 1997), a global phase of climatic cooling that might have caused
the rise in water-levels of the Danube and frequent flooding of great magnitude and duration of
the sites along the Danubes shores. The onset of this climatic event would significantly
correspond with the appearance of the first Early Neolithic settlements in the wider region of
the Balkans and significant changes in the material culture of the sites in the Danube Gorges
(cf. Whittle et al. 2002; Radovanovi c 1996; Bori c 1999, 2002b). The postulated flooding phase
might have been an important stimulus for culture change (Bonsall et al. 2002, 11).
This scenario is based on evidence of an apparent gap in the distribution of radiocarbon
measurements from the sites of Padina, Vlasac, Schela Cladovei, Icoana, Ostrovul Banului and
Ostrovul Corbului (Bonsall et al. 2002). Only at Lepenski Vir, as emphasized by Bonsall et al.,
is there continuity of occupation during the period between 63005950 Cal BC confirmed by a
continuous sequence of radiocarbon measurements (see also Bori c 1999, fig. 7; 2002b, fig. 5).
In their view, the continuity of occupation at Lepenski Vir was due to its conceptual importance
and sacred character for Mesolithic communities in the region; hence the site could not have
been abandoned or displaced to another location, like other less important sites, despite the
flooding. The postulated flooding of the Danube in the period after 6300, according to these
authors, necessitated the construction of strong, durable floors at Lepenski Vir, which only at
this site were made of concrete-strong limestone, designed to resist flooding (Bonsall et al.
2002, 5), while large stone boulders with carved representations of hybrid fish-human beings
had an apotropaic6 function of appeasing mysterious powers responsible for flooding. The
argument with regard to the durability of trapezoidal floors and stone boulders in the Danube
Gorges in resisting floods has already been previously advanced by Chapman (1993, 107). The
authors rely on the view that the mentioned features could have resisted the incoming floods,
whereas smaller artefacts might have been easily washed away (Chapman 1993, 100, 2000,
195).
5
Bonsall et al. (2002) use dates expressed in BP (calibrated). We use dates expressed in Cal BC years (see Figs.
1415), calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver
et al. 1998). Thus 8200 BP (calibrated) is the same as 6250 Cal BC.
It is not quite clear what kind of meanings Bonsall et al. (2002) evoke by the term apotropaic. The concept of
apotropaic power usually relates to protective qualities (mana) of material objects, visual images and performative
practices against evil eye and other similar magical concepts. For the use of the idea with regard to the possible
instances and significance of apotropaic practices and materialities in the Danube Gorges see Bori c 2002a, 2003;
Bori c and Stefanovi c 2004; Stefanovi c and Bori c in press.

361
This catastrophic scenario concerning the appearance of well-known features at

Lepenski Vir is an innovative and exciting venue of research, and it strongly suggests a
discontinuity of occupational histories between Mesolithic and Early Neolithic periods at all
other sites in the Danube Gorges but Lepenski Vir. However, there are a number of possible
problems with such a scenario with regard to different lines of evidence that we would now like
to examine more closely.
(a) In previous publications concerning the geological history in the formation of
archaeological sites in the Danube Gorges, we find no mention of any evidence about the fluvial
deposits that would indicate that any of the examined sites were flooded either seasonally or
over the longer term (Markovi c-Marjanovi c 1969, 1978; Brnnacker 1971). Indeed, Bonsall et
al. indicate that the evidence of flooding might have been overlooked and would have left little
trace in sedimentological records (2002, 4). We should mention that small pockets of thin
flooding deposits (yellow sterile soil and river pebbles) indeed do appear at Padinas Sectors I
and II (Padina field diaries for 19681970). However, these lenses of fluvial deposition are
scattered across the settlement and appear to relate to the seasonal outburst of mountain creeks
that run into the Danube over the two sectors at Padina (Fig. 2). They do not reflect major
flooding by the Danube. Moreover, the date for the deposition of these fluvial sediments is most
likely Early Holocene, significantly earlier than the flooding phase postulated by Bonsall et al.
(2002). Thus, it does not appear convincing that major floods during the period of c.300 years
would leave no detectable trace.
Furthermore, a reconstruction of the alterations in water-levels of the Danube based on
the recorded data over the last 150 years indicates that even at the time of the greatest floods
in this region architectural features of the MesolithicNeolithic sites were out of reach of the
rising waters of the Danube (Bori c 2002c, fig. 4.8; contra Chapman 1993, 100, 2000, 195).
Undercutting, i.e. riverbank erosion, of certain features at the lowermost portions of
archaeological sites is most likely the consequence of more recent changes in the water-level
regimes of the Danube, due to the melioration works in the Great Hungarian Plain over the last
300 years draining massive amounts of underground water from the Plain into the Danube
river system. This process might have caused the rise of the average water-level of the
Danube in the region of the Danube Gorges over the last several centuries, and, as a more
recent phenomenon, might have been responsible for the evident riverbank erosion of
archaeological sites, making visible sections of stratified deposits in the river profile (cf. Bori c
1999, n. 1, fig. 25).
In sum, we see no direct evidence for major flooding in the region in the period
63005950 Cal BC.
(b) Radiometric dates that Bonsall et al. (2002) use to suggest the continuity of
occupation at Lepenski Vir come from the dated charcoal found on the floors of trapezoidal
buildings. These charcoal samples originate from timber beams of post-framed upper
constructions or from the remains of scattered charcoal found in rectangular stone hearths and
over building floors (Quitta 1975, 283; Bori c 1999, fig. 7, 2002c, Appendix 1). What remains
unclear in the scenario proposed by Bonsall et al. for the construction of durable building floors
at this site to resist floods can be summarized as follows: if the site was periodically flooded
during the period 63005950 Cal BC, including all buildings that were built during this early
phase, how is it possible that the charcoal used for dating (deposited on the floors of these
buildings), and which provided measurements for the abandonment of these structures with dates
covering the period 6300 to 5950 Cal BC, was not washed away by the floods? The same
362
question is relevant with regard to the presence of other smaller artefacts and disarticulated
human bones found on the floors of these buildings. In addition to these dates on material
(charcoal) that would have been washed away in a flood, there are two recent AMS dates (OxA8725 and OxA-8618, cf. Whittle et al. 2002; Boric 2002b, table 1; see Fig. 14) associated with
trapezoidal floors that cover exactly the period 63005950 Cal BC.
(c) In the presentation of old charcoal dates and new AMS dates to suggest the
chronological gap in the sequence, Bonsall et al. (2002, figs. 23) use radiocarbon mean ages
depicted as individual circles/dots. This procedure of visual representation seems
methodologically inappropriate due to the magnitude of the encountered errors at 1 and 2
standard deviations. Thus, if one represents those measurements from Vlasac that are on the
margins of either side of the postulated gap in the range at 95 per cent probability as we have
done in Figure 14, the sharp limits of the suggested chronological hiatus between 6300 to 5950
Cal BC blur. Furthermore, Bonsall et al., for no apparent reason, omit at least two dates from
Vlasac that clearly fall in the range between 6300 and 5950 Cal BC (ibid., fig. 2). These are
Bln-1168 (7475 60 bp) and Bln-1954 (7440 60 bp) (Srejovic and Letica 1978, 129),
indicating dates in the range 6440 to 6220 and 6430 to 6100 Cal BC at 95 per cent probability
(Boric 2002c, table 4.7; see Fig. 147).
(d) Most importantly, our new AMS dates from Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica close
the 63005950 Cal BC gap (Fig. 16). New AMS dates from Padina practically cover the
suggested gap in its entirety, indicating both a final Mesolithic (Burial 1a: OxA-11107 and OxA11108) and an earliest Neolithic use of the site in the period 6300 to 5950 Cal BC with evidence
of occupation of the following trapezoidal buildings in Sector III: House 12 (OxA-9034), House
18 (OxA-9053), House 9 (OxA-9052) and House 17 (OxA-11103). New AMS dates from this
site rule out the possibility of a significant chronological gap between the Mesolithic and
Neolithic periods.
As previously indicated for Hajdu cka Vodenica, after the correction of dates made on
human burials for the freshwater reservoir effect, it is possible to suggest that the site was
occupied during the final Mesolithic phase, but perhaps significantly overlapping with the
development of the Early Neolithic in the wider region of the Balkans, with the dated occupation
up to c.6200/6100 Cal BC (Figs. 13 and 1516). Hajdu cka Vodenica, with only four dates, also
closes the gap. Four dates, however, cannot be viewed as a representative sample from a single
site. This limitation leads us to question the reliability of five, four and two dates from,
respectively, Icoana, Ostrovul Corbului and Ostrovul Banului to demonstrate the discontinuity
of occupation (contra Bonsall et al. 2002, fig. 3). Furthermore, new AMS dates are necessary
to date the upper levels of the stone construction at Hajdu cka Vodenica, where Early Neolithic
pottery appears stratified above Mesolithic remains, and these new dates would provide firm
evidence for a (dis)continuity from the Mesolithic to the Neolithic at this site.
On the basis of the (lack of) flooding evidence, problems with Bonsall et al.s
interpretation of charcoal dates from Lepenski Vir, their omission of some existing dates, as
well as our new AMS dates from Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica, we reject their scenario of
site abandonment caused by a catastrophic flooding associated with the 8200 BP event.
We have not included human bone collagen dates from Padina (Table 1) in Figures 14 and 16. It is reasonable
to assume that these dates on human bones are also affected by the freshwater reservoir effect, and since there
is no information regarding their d15N values we have not been able to apply the correction factor to these dates.

363
364
Figure 14
Distribution of available radiometric evidence for the sites situated in the Upper Gorge of the Danube. AMS dates with d15N values >+10
corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect according to Method 2 as described by Cook et al. (2002, 82). All dates calibrated with OxCal v.
3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998). Solid bars show 1 s.d.; lines show 2 s.d. Black
fill: charcoal/conventional dates; white fill: AMS dates; graded shade: bone collagen.
Sources:
Alibeg: Boronean t 2001; Padina: Whittle et al. 2002; Bori c 2002b; Bori c and Miracle this paper, Table 1; Lepenski Vir: Quitta 1975;
Bonsall et al. 1997, table 5; Whittle et al. 2002; Bori c 2002b; Vlasac: Srejovi c and Letica 1978, 129; Bonsall et al. 1997,
table 3.
Note: Bonsall et al. (1996, table 1, 1997, table 3, 5, 2000, table 3) report the same Lab ID OxA-5827 for Burial 83 from Vlasac and Burial 31a
from Lepenski Vir.
Figure 15
Distribution of available radiometric evidence for the sites situated in the Lower Gorge and the Klju c areas of the
Danube. AMS dates with d15N values >+10 corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect according to Method 2 as
described by Cook et al. (2002, 82). All dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the
INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998). Solid bars show 1 s.d.; lines show 2 s.d. Black fill:
charcoal/conventional dates; white fill: AMS dates.
Sources:
Cuina Turcului: P aunescu 1978; Icoana: Boronean t 2001, 2034; Hajdu cka Vodenica: Bori c and Miracle this paper,
Table 1; Razvrata: Boronean t 2001; Ostrovul Banului: Boroneant 2001; Schela Cladovei: Bonsall et al.
1997; Ostrovul Corbului: P aunescu 1996.

365
Figure 16
Close-up distribution of new AMS dates for Padina and Hajdu c ka Vodenica in the period between 75005500 Cal
BC. AMS dates with d15N values >+10 corrected for the freshwater reservoir effect according to Method 2 as
described by Cook et al. (2002, 82). All dates calibrated with OxCal v. 3.9 (Bronk Ramsey 1995, 2001) using the
INTCAL98 calibration curve (Stuiver et al. 1998). Solid bars show 1 s.d.; lines show 2 s.d. Black fill:
charcoal/conventional dates; white fill: AMS dates; graded shade: bone collagen.
366
Danube Gorges Mesolithic-Neolithic (101 dates)

First Pottery
"8200 BP Event"
18
Late Mesolithic:
Upper+Lower
Gorges
16
C Dates
14
12
No
14
10
8
Early Mesolithic:
Upper Gorges
Epipalaeolithic
5500
6000
6500
7000
7500
8000
8500
9000
9500
10000
10500
11000
11500
12000
12500
13000
Cal BC
Figure 17
Quantitative distribution of radiometric evidence in the Danube Gorges over the chronological span 13000 to 5500
Cal BC (for sources see Figs. 1415).
Furthermore, it could well be that larger series of dates from individual sites, which have been
available for Lepenski Vir and are now also available for Padina, would bridge the postulated
chronological gap. Nonetheless, there is a stark discrepancy in the number of radiometric dates
that cover particular periods in the long development of the Danube Gorges Epipalaeolithic,
Mesolithic and Early Neolithic sequences (Fig. 17). Individual sites (and also particular areas
of respective sites) may exhibit differences in the chronological coverage, i.e. in the intensity
of occupation, as well as in the nature of transformation from the Mesolithic to the Neolithic in
this region during the period from 6300 to 5950 Cal BC. However, the newly available series
of radiometric dates from Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica strongly suggest a continuous
occupation during this period without major chronological gaps at the two sites.
conclusion
New AMS dates from Padina indicate a significant chronological depth for the use of
this site (this also applies to some other sites in the Danube Gorges, such as Vlasac, cf. Fig. 14)
as both a burial ground and a seasonal or semi-permanent settlement, at least from c.9500 Cal
BC. There are significant chronological differences in dating individual human burials, scattered
residual remains and remains found within architectural features, such as trapezoidal buildings.
For the moment, it is difficult to claim unbroken continuity for almost 4000 years, i.e. during
the MesolithicNeolithic development that the available radiometric dates cover at this site, and
we suspect that there were discontinuous phases and (seasonal) episodes of occupation.
367
However, it seems that populations which visited this site over several millennia of the
Mesolithic development belonged to the same material culture/regional tradition throughout the
period, with a good knowledge of the significance of the locale. Furthermore, it seems that there
is no major chronological break in the sequence of radiometric dates at the time when new
material paraphernalia, such as pottery, Balkan yellow-spotted flint and polished stone tools,
appear in this region as general traits of Early Neolithic material culture tradition. We see no
evidence to support a recently suggested scenario of flooding that would have caused the
abandonment of this site in the period 63005950 Cal BC (Bonsall et al. 2002) since a number
of new AMS dates cover exactly this period.
New dates from Hajdu cka Vodenica suggest the Mesolithic use of the site as a burial
ground from at least c.7500 Cal BC. There is a possible gap of around 500 years between the
earlier use and a later use of the site as a burial ground around 6500 to 6100 Cal BC. However,
there might have been a clear recognition of the previous use of the site on the basis of
stratigraphic and spatial relations of earlier and later dated burials and architectural features.
Material culture associations at the site related to the lower two portions of stone constructions
(without pottery and with abundant bone tools) also suggest that the site might have been used
as an occupation settlement/base during the Mesolithic, which should be determined by future
dating of bone tools and animal bones from this area.
This revised chronological framework on the basis of new AMS dates from Padina and
Hajdu cka Vodenica also significantly helps us understand the nature of the Meso-Neolithic
transformations in this region, with abundant indications regarding the chronological overlapping
and cultural coexistence of Mesolithic and Neolithic realms (Boric in press a; in press b).
Further research and new AMS dates from both sites are necessary to achieve a finegrained resolution of the chronological sequences and to discern particularities of very long and
complex occupational histories at these and other locales in the Danube Gorges.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the National Environmental Research Council (UK) for funding new
AMS measurements from Padina and Hajdu cka Vodenica. We are grateful to Borislav Jovanovi c and the
Archaeological Institute in Belgrade for their kind permission to sample osteological material from the
two sites. We also thank Vesna Dimitrijevi c and Borislav Jovanovi c for comments on earlier versions of
this paper.
(DB) Department of Anthropology

Columbia University
452 Schermerhorn Ext.
1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5538
New York, NY 10027
USA
E-mail: db2128@columbia.edu
(PM) Department of Archaeology
University of Cambridge
Downing Street
Cambridge CB2 3DZ
E-mail: ptm21@cam.ac.uk
368
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DUSAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE

Summary. In this paper we present 17 new AMS dates from the

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY 23(4) 341371 2004

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

conventional and bone collagen radiocarbon dates from padina

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DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

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DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

(?) Sector III

trapezoidal bldg(?) hearth

ivanovi c 1980 mention it as Infans I. However,

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

Hajdu cka Vodenica

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

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DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

approximated to 638 70 years. We find Method 1 inadequate, pretending to provide

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

ams radiocarbon dating at padina

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DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

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MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

ams radiocarbon dating at hajducka vodenica

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

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gaps or continuities in the meso-neolithic transformations?

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

This catastrophic scenario concerning the appearance of well-known features at

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DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004

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DU SAN BORI C AND PRESTON MIRACLE

OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

MESOLITHIC AND NEOLITHIC (DIS)CONTINUITIES IN THE DANUBE GORGES

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