The mesolithic of Konispol cave, Albania

Abstract

We report here on the first documented Mesolithic occurrence in an Albanian archaeological site. The site is Konispol Cave, near the town of Konispol in the Sarandë district of southernmost Albania (see Figure 1). This cave is the focus of a multi-year collaborative research project, co-directed by MuzaferKorkuti of the InstitutiArkeologjik in Tirane and Karl Petruso of the University of Texas at Arlington(1)

After initial work in 1989-902, excavations were carried out at Konispol Cave in 1992, 1993, and 19943. Analyses of artifactual, faunal, geophysical, geoarchaeological, and paleoethnobotanical data are still underway, but some preliminary information about the Mesolithic at Konispol Cave can be presented.