The 30th ArchaeoSciences Seminar

The Research Institute of the University of Bucharest (ICUB), in collaboration with "Vasile Pârvan" Institute of Archaeology of the Romanian Academy, is pleased to announce the 30th ArchaeoSciences Seminar.

These seminars are an original initiative of our division that aims to provide a setting for professionals in the Archaeological Sciences field from different parts of the world to share knowledge and transmit meaningful information about the latest issues regarding the current methods and approaches used to study the past. It is also a chance for Romanian students to learn more about the various interdisciplinary aspects of archaeology.

This seminar will take place on 30 March 2023 at 12:00 am (EET), and our guest speaker is Professor Clive Bonsall from Edinburgh University (UK).

He will give a lecture entitled “Who Built Lepenski Vir?”.

Abstract

Lepenski Vir in Iron Gates section of the Danube Valley is one of the most famous and unusual archaeological sites in Europe. Though widely regarded as primarily a hunter-gatherer settlement, the features that set Lepenski Vir apart from other ‘Mesolithic’ sites in the region – the presence of a large number of trapezoidal plan buildings with prepared lime plaster floors, often containing sculpted boulders and burials inserted through the floors – have been shown to date to the period 6200–5950 cal BC when Neolithic farmers were colonising the central and northern Balkans.

Ever since the discovery and excavation of the Stone Age sites in the Iron Gates gorge in 1960s, there has been an ongoing a debate about the role that Neolithic farmers played in the creation of the ‘Lepenski Vir culture’. Recent developments in the field of ‘archaeogenetics’ (the study of ancient DNA), which have established the genetic ancestry of over 30 individuals buried at Lepenski Vir and several other Iron Gates sites, have reignited this debate.

This lecture reviews the evidence and re-examines the question, Who Really Built Lepenski Vir?

Professor Clive Bonsall studied prehistory and archaeology at Sheffield University with Colin Renfrew and Paul Mellars. Between 1974-1978 he held a junior research post at the British Museum, moving to a lectureship in Edinburgh in 1978. After promotion to Senior Lecturer and then Reader, Clive Bonsall was awarded a Personal Chair in Early Prehistory in 2009. Currently, he holds the title of Emeritus Professor of Early Prehistory at Edinburgh University. Professor Bonsall is author/co-author of 9 books and nearly 200 scientific articles.

His research focuses on the post-glacial hunting-gathering (Mesolithic) and early farming (Neolithic) societies of Britain and continental Europe. He conducted fieldwork in Britain, Slovenia and Romania – worked in Romania since 1991 and recently completed 12 seasons of fieldwork at Schela Cladovei in SW Romania, with Adina Boroneanț ("Vasile Pârvan" Institute of Archaeology of the Romanian Academy).

We look forward to exciting discussions!

ArchaeoScience#RO Team