2 4 e e km
HUMAN POPULATIONS 53
which Httle is known. They existed at least during period II. East of Sittard, Stein and Elsloo there are large concentrations of traces of occupation, among which those of the Aldenhovener Platte are the best- known. These areas were inhabited during all the periods which were found in Southern Limburg (Dohrn-Ihmig 1974).
These places, where bearers of the Linearbandkeramik culture lived, are shown in figure 8. When contacts with other LBK people outside the own living area between the rivers Maas and Geleen existed, these were directed to the south-west and particularly to the east. In as far as the physical condition of the terrain is concerned, the contact should not have been difiicult to establish. Figure 8 also shows the relief and the large water-courses. Neither water, nor important differences of altitude obstructed contacts. Whether contacts really took place is of course a different matter.
T h e LBK settlements from an area extending with a radius of 10 km around Hienheim, have become known in the first place by surface-collections made during surveys. They are located in the territories of the municipalities Hienheim Ldkr. Kelheim and Irnsing Ldkr. Kelheim, and have been called Hienheim- Fuchsloch, Irnsing-Schanze and Irnsing 1. In Autumn 1975, Modderman carried out excavations at Hienheim-Fuchsloch and at Irnsing-Schanze, among other things in order to obtain a more accurate date for these settlement areas. T h e soil traces at Irnsing-Schanze turned out to have disappeared almost completely by erosion. Hienheim-Fuchsloch provided more data. These are still being studied. It is obvious, however, that Hienheim-Fuchsloch existed simultaneously with Hienheim (van de Velde 1976 verbal Information). The scanty data concerning Irnsing-Schanze and Irnsing 1 make anv such statement impossible. During our surveys we could discover no other settlement areas with LBK matcrial. The places are shown in figure 3 as well as in figure 17.
In figure 3 there is, be it beyond the 10 km radius, one more site: Herrnwahlthann Ldkr. Kelheim. This is a first indication that the group of settlements at Hienheim is not isolated, but that there are more LBK settlements within a radius of 30 km. The respective areas, where LBK occupation has been proved, are shown in figure 9. There are settlements near Ingolstadt and a very large concentration has been found south of Regensburg. In both areas traces of occupation have been found, which date from the same period as Hienheim. It follows from the distribution m a p that Hienheim might have maintained most contact with areas in the east and in the west. There is clearly an axis along the river Donau. Linearbandkeramik has never been found north of Hienheim; it appears that LBK settlements are represented rarely in the south. Obstacles in the terrain should not have hampered possible contacts. T h e main obstacle is on the way between Hienheim and Regensburg. If one travels along or on the Donau, a place must be passed where the Donau streams through the Jurassic reef limestone via a gorge: the VVeltenburger Schlucht. T h e current is very fast at this place and the sides of the valley are high and steep. But one can easily travel overland south of the gorge.
The LBK occupation around Sittard, Stein and Elsloo on the one hand and around Hienheim on the other hand is concentrated in certain areas, as show figures 8 and 9. Between these concentrations no traces of the Linearbandkeramik culture are found, apart from some isolated objects. Especially as far as Southern Limburg is concerned, this is certainly not a hiatus due to lack of investigation. There are two possibilities with regard to the occupation of the " e m p t y " areas: 1) nobody lived there, 2) another population group lived there. The latter could then have been a group with a Mesolithic way of life. From both regions Late- Mesolithic sites are known. For Southern Limburg mention may be made of the place Sweykhuizen,
54 THE ENVIRONMENT
vvhich is located 5 km south of Sittard, on the east bank of the river Geleen (Wouters 1952/1953, Bohmers & Wouters 1956). Moreover, fmds have been made north of Sittard (Newell 1970, van Haaren & Modderman 1973). For Hienheim, we remind the reader of sites along the Altmühl (Naber 1973) and of traces ofoccupation near Sarching Ldkr. Regensburg (Schönweiss & Werner 1974). An absolute date of these places is unfortunately not available yet. It seems, however, that the inhabitants of LBK settlements had something t o d o with a Mesolithic tradition, asinfluencesofthis tradition can bcfound in the typology of the (lint artcfacts (Newell 1970,Taute 1973/1974b). For Newell the simultaneous presence of LBK and Late-Mesolithic in Southern Limburg is therefore certain: " T h e Mesolithic microliths, recovered from Bandkeramik contexts . . . are unmistakable indications of the contemporaneity of the Mesolithic and Linearbandkeramik populations and also that contact and acculturation took place". (Newell 1970 p. 167, see also Newell 1973 p. 408). Taute, however, could hardly prove such contacts for Southern Germany. He remarks that only very few indisputable indigenous artefacts have been found in a LBK-context. Neither does he wish to make a connection between ground stone adzes in Mesolithic context (e.g. at Sarching) and a Neolithic influence. Yet, the periods in which the Late- Mesolithic and the Early-Neolithic were present in Southern Germany, overlapped each other at least partially, so that contact is not excluded. T h e difficultics experienced in trying to prove such contacts are attributed by Taute to the low density of the Late-Mesolithic population and/or a rapid acculturation (Taute 1973/1974 a and b). All in all it is probable, in our opinion, that the areas which were not occupied by the Linearbandkeramik culture, were used by people with a Mesolithic tradition. We consider a contact between both population groups not excluded.