A closer look at an eroded dune landscape: first functional insights into the Federmessergruppen site of Lommel-Maatheide

Abstract

The vast Federmessergruppen site of Lommel-Maatheide, which is located in the Campine region (Northern Belgium), revealed the presence of numerous Final Palaeolithic concentrations situated on a large Late Glacial sand ridge on the northern edge of a contemporary lake. This situation offers a unique possibility for a large-scale functional analysis in order to understand the occupation of such a Late Glacial dune landscape. The variable preservation state of the lithic artefacts permitted to evaluate in detail the impact of post-depositional processes on the potential of functional studies. Also, the impact of excavation protocols on the preservation of wear traces and residues was eval-uated, in particular the impact of mechanical sieving. The integrated functional research that included the microscopic examination of wear traces, fractures and residues, next to experimentation, permitted the identification of a range of crafting and hunting activ-ities, thereby demonstrating the potential of such assemblages for obtaining innovative insights into Late Glacial site dynamics in spite of a varying preservation state.