DC9: The management of Stone Age coastal sites in different environments across Europe: status, challenges, prospects

DC9 will deal with the status, challenges and prospects of the heritage management of Stone Age (STA) coastal sites in today’s coastal areas across different geographical regions and national borders of Europe, in the light of infrastructure development and environmental and climatic challenges, which threaten these sites.

Cases from SE-Norway, W-France, N-Spain and W-Latvia will be compared. The scope and modes of threats through current development, ways of preservation as well as the extent and methods of archaeological documentation (through e.g. rescue excavation, research excavation, citizen science etc.) will be analysed and compared in the light of the different national heritage management systems. 

DC9 will thus critically reflect the impact but also limits of cultural heritage management in different STA coastal landscapes in different countries and will thus both gain from and contribute in an innovative way to critical heritage studies. 

In terms of method, DC9 will

• compare different cultural landscapes and environments (case-studies) in which these sites are embedded today, including aspects of their modern development (synergy with DC1) 
• compile a catalogue of STA coastal sites in these areas, documented in national and regional databases, reports and literature (synergy with DC3) 
• compare how the heritage management systems in the different countries deal with these sites, with regard to preservation, integration into modern landscapes, or archaeological excavation (synergy with DC8). 

This will be undertaken through study of literature and study-visits in the respective areas. This innovative comparative approach will be a pilot-study and will allow to address the international current state of affairs of managing the STA coastal sites in a cross-regional perspective, identify challenges and to formulate best practices.  

Expected results

• To give an overview over different systems of management and administration of STA coastal sites in different European countries and environments. 
• To assess their strength and weaknesses, and how they could learn from each other and cross-fertilize. 
• To provide important prospects of how to optimize administration and management of coastal sites in a sustainable way to make them known and visible in their cultural environments, which will lead to a better protection of these sites. 

The project provides training for a career within international archaeological, cultural and environmental heritage management (preservation/administration) and policy-making, Green European heritage management and landscape protection.