The Bell Beaker phenomenon (BBP) has for over a hundred years been considered a pinnacle of later prehistory with the transition from stone to bronze use. This fine volume focuses on the somewhat overlooked domestic sphere of the BBP from a pan-European perspective. It provides a comprehensive picture of continuity and change between existing traditions and BBP settlement practices. It is the latest edited volume from the Archéologie & Goblets association, and marks a refreshing diversification from a focus on burial customs and grave goods. A well-crafted introduction by Alex Gibson is followed by seventeen chapters from an impressive line-up of specialists. Each presents the evidence, with a slightly different approach to the topic, within their regional contexts.
The Iberian Peninsula is considered in chapters on southern Portugal (Valera et al), north-western Portugal (Prieto-Martínez), central Iberia (Garrido-Pena) and Andalusia (Lazarich). As their title suggests, Valera et al make the distinction between sites with Beakers and Beaker sites. Helpfully, they review the Chalcolithic as well as the BBP, and discuss the ‘Ferradeira horizon’. All chapters about Iberia present a picture of continuity and reinterpretation of some aspects, with change shown through intensification of social display, interaction and landscape use and organisation. Increased agriculture is noted from the palaeoenvironmental and archaeobotanical information, though the presentation of albeit scant evidence could be stronger.
The Western Mediterranean basin is addressed by chapters on Mediterranean France (Lemercier et al), Sardinia and Sicily (Melis) and northern and central Italy (Baioni et al). From the evidence in Sardinia, Sicily and Mediterranean France, a mixing of BBP with existing cultural traits is inferred. The picture in Italy is different and more complex, presented as sub-regions where understanding varies due to quantity and quality of excavation. All chapters agree that the BBP is not unified but displays considerable regional variation in architecture and settlement. A common theme, as presented by earlier chapters, is an acknowledgement of the intensification of agriculture and land use.
Central Europe, the largest and most geographically diverse area covered, has chapters on eastern France and Switzerland (Besse et al), southern (Strahm) and central (Spatzier and Schunke) Germany, Austria (Kern et al), Bohemia and Moravia (Turek), Hungary (Reményi et al) and Poland (Czebreszuk and Szmyt). As one might expect, the picture here is the most varied, in terms of existing groups dominated by the Corded Ware complex and the quality and amount of data. While domestic architecture and pottery assemblages are at the forefront of discussions, approaches are holistic. Other strands of evidence include lithics such as the spread of Grand Pressigny daggers, and to some extent archaeobotanical and zooarchaeological remains. Following a strand that runs through the book, these chapters present a lack of cultural unity within the BBP, though proximity to waterways appears to be a common factor. Agricultural intensification associated with the BBP is also a recurring theme.
North-west Europe is discussed in chapters on Denmark (Sarauw), the Netherlands (Kleijne and Drenth), Britain and Ireland (Gibson) and Atlantic France (Nicholas et al). The role of developer-led archaeology in enriching local sequences is highlighted. In Denmark, this is already well established. In France, the impact has been arguably the most transformative, highlighting a local tradition around Brittany of oval buildings. However, in the Netherlands and in Britain and Ireland evidence of domestic architecture is still comparatively sparse.
There is a long-standing difficulty of finding settlements of Beaker using people, with a range of arguments for this having been presented in theoretical terms over the years, as Gibson reminds readers in his concluding chapter. His synthesis is helpful, especially with reference to the fission and fusion of Corded Ware and Bell Beaker influences.
Bringing together a volume of this geographical scope and cultural diversity is no mean feat, and the quality of the contributions and editing should be commended. The book is well illustrated, though there is some variation in quality among the figures, as one might expect. Presentation is generally traditional with a high number of figures comprising architectural plans as well as unavoidable pottery typologies. Tables of modelled radiocarbon dates are particularly welcome.
As an up-to-date review covering the full geographical scope of the BBP, this is a comprehensive, essential, reference volume for anyone working on the subject. To move the picture on, there is scope for embracing more scientific methods of analysis such as aDNA, stable isotope and others as they are developed. A book such as this would be a golden opportunity to propose a research framework for further work.
