The stratified Early to Late Mesolithic sequence at Trou Al'Wesse (Modave, Belgium)

Ongoing excavations on the terrace of the cave site of Trou Al’Wesse (Modave,
Belgium) have yielded evidence from a stratified sequence dating from the end of
the Early Mesolithic to the Early Neolithic. Stratum 4b is divided into a series of
laterally superimposed facies ( - ), each of which contains palimpsests of lithics
and fauna. The oldest facies ( ) has been dated to 9000±40 BP (Beta-209871) and
the most recent ( ) to 6650±70 BP (Lv-1751). These dates demonstrate the regular
re-occupation of the site during the Early and Late Mesolithic, with a significant
occupational hiatus during the Middle Mesolithic. Isolated human remains include
a cranial fragment dated to 6540±45 BP (OxA-10561) and a deciduous incisor.
The interdisciplinary project integrates geological, archaeological and
environmental data to address hypotheses related to continuity and change across
the Pleistocene-Holocene transition and human response to changing
environmental conditions, change during the Mesolithic period, and the
Mesolithic-Neolithic transition.