Upper Adriatic prehistoric landscapes reconstructed by new study

A collaborative study by the University of Southampton and the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics (OGS) has reconstructed the lost prehistoric coastal landscapes of the Upper Adriatic. The research details how these environments evolved between 9000 and 4000 BCE.

By combining existing sediment core data with new high-resolution geophysical surveys, researchers identified various depositional environments, including coastal barriers, lagoons, marshes, and delta systems. These landscapes were shaped by rising sea levels that progressively submerged plains and wetlands.

The findings suggest these coastal wetlands were resource-rich areas that attracted Mesolithic hunter-gatherer communities and early agricultural societies. However, the continuous rise in sea levels forced these populations to constantly adapt to a rapidly changing territory.