THE DANILO BITINJ SITE IN GEOLOGIC CONTEXT

Our site-specific geoarchaeology of the Middle Neolithic Danilo Bitinj site, central Dalmatia, Croatia is both descriptive and analytical, including examination of site paleoecology and taphonomy. The Early Farming in Dalmatia Project, of which Danilo Bitinj is a part, is an interdisciplinary effort toward understanding the origins of European agriculture. Farmed since ~8 ka, the site is located at the center of Danilo Polje, a karstic valley. Soils both on- and off-site are rich and mollic, with a high carbonate content and neutral pH. Other measured pedologic properties (including organic carbon stable isotope geochemistry, electrical conductivity, organic matter content, and granulometry) indicate a relatively stable valley-bottom environment from the Neolithic to the present. Our ceramic typology consists of three petrographically-identified fabric-based types, possibly sourced on-site or within the polje. We also mapped topography, pedology, vegetation, precipitation, and groundwater hydrology throughout the valley and used these attributes to model large-scale soil movement. Current modeling results are inconclusive and raise further questions about polje morphogenesis and possible paleo-topographies.