Photo Credit: Prof. Graeme Barker
Our new paper provides high-resolution data into the seasonality of prehistoric shellfish exploitation at the Haua Fteah (northern Cyrenaica, Libya). The research applies laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to analyse Mg/Ca ratios in Patella caerulea Linnaeus 1758 shells recovered from the Haua Fteah by past human populations. This work was carried out in collaboration with Professor Graeme Barker (University of Cambridge) and Professor Chris Hunt (Liverpool John Moores University), leaders of the Cyrenaican Prehistory Project (CPP), who directed the excavations at Haua Fteah from 2007 to 2015.
Our dataset spans ~5,000 years, from the Capsian to the Neolithic (Late Pleistocene to Early–Mid Holocene), providing one of the most detailed seasonal reconstructions for the site. Results indicate that limpet gathering occurred throughout the year, with a higher frequency during winter and autumn. This pattern suggests that marine resource use at Haua Fteah was more consistent than previously assumed.
Seasonality patterns by Mg/Ca ratios represented as the number of specimens organised by Early Capsian and Capsian and Neolithic phases at the Haua Fteah.
By comparing our results with previous seasonality studies on different mollusc species, we demonstrate that seasonal collection patterns varied between taxa. This variability points to flexible and species-specific marine exploitation strategies, possibly influenced by:
- Availability of food resources
- Energetic return
- Mollusc processing techniques
Overall, the results indicate that limpet exploitation at Haua Fteah was part of a diversified subsistence system, in which marine molluscs were preferentially collected during autumn and winter but provided a reliable resource exploited throughout the year from the Capsian to the Neolithic periods.
Reference
Arniz-Mateos, R., Hunt, C., Barker, G., Hausmann, N. (2026). Seasonality from Mg/Ca ratios of prehistoric shellfish exploitation (Patella caerulea Linnaeus, 1758) at the Haua Fteah (Libya, North Africa). Environmental Archaeology.
