Mesolithic Horizons

Mesolithic Horizons marks the publication of the proceedings of the seventh international conference on 'The Mesolithic in Europe' (Belfast 2005). The numbers attending these five-yearly conferences continue to grow - testimony to the growing interest in a period that less than fifty years ago was seen by many as either a 'hiatus' between two more interesting periods, or as a poorly understood phase of little consequence. This is an enormous compendium of research published in two volumes with over 140 papers drawn from the whole of Europe, ranging from the European Arctic to many parts of the Mediterranean, and from the British Isles to Russia. These papers cover recent research on virtually all aspects of the European Mesolithic. They are grouped into twelve thematic sections that cover topics as diverse as regional studies that explore settlement, economic identity and mobility, as well as the critical analysis of individual settlement sites, and the significance of ritual. The crucial issue of the process of colonisation that took place at the end of the Ice Age and issues of transitions in the Mesolithic are extensively covered. For the first time the publication of the conference contains an index and consolidated bibliography, which will make these volumes invaluable research tools.