Project description
Tracing the first settlers in Scandinavia
What do we know about the first humans who settled along the shifting coastlines of the Kattegat and Skagerrak seas? Sea-level changes, glacial retreat, and patchy archaeological data have made it difficult to obtain information. Backed by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the MESK project brings together researchers from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden to shed light on how early humans adapted to dramatic environmental change in one of Europe’s most dynamic prehistoric landscapes. They will use reproducible computational methods and pan-regional datasets. MESK aims to improve dating techniques, map early coastal settlement patterns, and apply quantitative analysis to stone tools to identify cultural differences.
Objective
Modelling the Earliest Human Settlement in the Kattegat-Skagerrak Circumference (MESK) is an interdisciplinary project that will investigate the earliest human settlement along the coastline of Kattegat and Skagerrak in present-day Denmark, Sweden and Norway. This will be done by addressing three fundamental challenges that currently hamper our understanding of the earliest peopling of Scandinavia: (1) Chronological control pertaining to the deposition of the archaeological material, (2) variability in coastal engagement and settlement patterns in regions of varying topography, characterised by dramatic changes due to deglaciation and sea-level change, and (3) the degree to which lithic artefacts associated with the settlements are indicative of cultural differences within the region. Due both to research-historical circumstance and modern organisation of the research sectors, our understanding of the Late Glacial and Early Holocene human dispersal and settlement of Scandinavia continue to be influenced by present-day national and administrative borders. To overcome this issue, MESK will involve the application of reproducible computational methods to pan-regional datasets with the research objectives of (1) analysing coastal settlement patterns relative to the contemporaneous shoreline to assess the coverage and reliability of the archaeological dating method shoreline dating, and (2) employ quantitative methods to taxonomically classify lithic armatures that have traditionally been described qualitatively to define archaeological cultures that are discretely bound in time and space. The project is uniquely positioned to provide a nuanced understanding of how people of the deep past settled in previously uninhabited regions, how they adapted to an at times dramatic sea-level change and will provide researchers concerned with similar questions with tools for implementing shoreline dating, thereby improving our chronological grasp on these key processes of our past.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
8000 Aarhus C
Denmark
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.