This publication presents the results of the 2005-2007 excavations at Swifterbant S4, carried out by the Groningen Institute of Archaeology. S4 is a well-preserved Neolithic wetland site (c. 4300-4000 cal. BC) located within the Swifterbant river system in the Netherlands. We present the landscape setting, the various finds categories and the spatial patterns with three research themes in mind. Theme 1 concerns the environmental setting, subsistence and site function. We conclude that the Swifterbant hunter-gatherer-farmers exploited a mosaic-type landscape. Theme 2 deals with developments in site function during the occupation and exploitation history of the site. This analysis leads to the observation that episodes of cultivation and settlement alternated at S4. Theme 3, the use of space, was difficult to study due to the fragmented nature of the excavation plan. This site monograph makes Swifterbant S4 the most comprehensively published site of the Swifterbant river system.

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Contents

1 Introduction
D.C.M. Raemaekers 7

2 Landscape development and stratigraphy
M. Schepers & I. Woltinge 15

3 The ceramics
D.C.M. Raemaekers, J.W. Bembom, S. Dresscher, A. Koops-Besijn & E. van de Lagemaat 24

4 The stone industry
I. Devriendt 34

5 The flint industry
I. Devriendt 42

6 The vegetation and exploitation of plant resources
M. Schepers & N. Bottema-Mac Gillavry 51

7 The use of domestic and wild animals
H. Kranenburg & W. Prummel 76

8 The human remains
E. Smits 95

9 Features and spatial analysis
J. Geuverink 98

10 Conclusions
D.C.M. Raemaekers & J.P. de Roever 107