Objective Coastal societies hold a vital place in Mediterranean history; many of their earliest trajectories, however, are archaeologically obscure due to a rise in sea levels since the last Ice Age. BEFOREtheFLOOD is based on an observation that before it was inundated, the Mediterranean littoral was extremely dynamic (e.g. formation/retreat of marshes, increased soil salinity, rapidly rising sea levels), necessitating constant reactions by its inhabitants. This project aims to study how Neolithic coastal societies in the Eastern Mediterranean pioneered cultural responses to environmental changes, and how these enabled the development of Mediterranean complex societies. The earliest known Mediterranean coastal settlements and their paleo-landscapes, now situated offshore along the Carmel Coast, Israel, will be studied by drilling sediment cores and through underwater excavations, followed by microscopic and chemical analysis in the laboratory that will integrate geoarchaeology, bioarchaeology and paleoenvironmental reconstructions. The project?s novelty lies in its approach, which will generate a high-resolution diachronic model of how hyper-localised environmental dynamics are directly related to archaeological evidence of adaptive solutions. The project will test how Neolithic coastal communities constantly readapted to dynamic environmental processes over time by modifying their environment, and developing new technologies and social interactions (i.e. negotiations with inland farmers) that fostered the establishment of a unique Mediterranean coastal society. BEFOREtheFLOOD will elucidate an important and as-yet unread chapter of a world now lost beneath the sea; one that will help to rewrite the early story of the Eastern Mediterranean coast as the springboard for innovation, adaptation, and connectivity that set the scene for the development of later Mediterranean complex societies. Fields of science humanitieshistory and archaeologyhistoryprehistoryhumanitieshistory and archaeologyhistoryancient historyhumanitieshistory and archaeologyarchaeologyunderwater archaeologyhumanitieshistory and archaeologyarchaeologybioarchaeology Programme(s) HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme Topic(s) ERC-2021-STG - ERC STARTING GRANTS Call for proposal ERC-2021-STG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based Coordinator UNIVERSITY OF HAIFA Net EU contribution € 1 498 938,00 Address Abba khushy blvd mount carmel 31905 Haifa Israel See on map Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00
