Shell beads of the Last Hunther-Gatherers and Earliest Farmersin South-Western Europe

Abstract

[EN] This paper analyses the suspended objects of adornment made from marine mollusc shells that have been recorded at Mesolithic and Neolithic sites in southwest Europe. Particular attention will be given to taxonomic determination, technological aspects and the strategies utilised to obtain the raw materials for these objects. The distribution of certain species and the types of ornamentation used by the last hunter-gatherers and first farming communities will also be discussed.