Overview

Neolithic cultural groups are traditionally determined on the basis of pottery distribution, and ceramic clusters have therefore been conflated with cultural ones. Though there has been general acknowledgement of the methodological and theoretical problems with this practice, it is still common. This volume aims to find a solution to this problem, by investigating this topic using burial customs. It includes data from nearly five hundred burials at fifty sites around the Mediterranean, thus providing wide-ranging but detailed evidence. The funerary evidence is presented in a thorough catalogue along with several maps and illustrations. The author, using spatial analysis, then combines his findings with the more traditional conclusions taken from ceramic evidence to provide a more nuanced set of conclusions. It thus provides a dynamic and detailed account of the complexities of Neolithic society in southern Europe.