Daily struggles of prehistoric communities in the Iron Gates region during the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic

The main objective of this study is to provide a micro-level observation of everyday activities in the Iron Gates region, in the period between the end of the 7th and mid-6th millennium BC. The principal methodological tool is the application of use-wear analysis on chipped stone assemblages from the Lepenski Vir, Padina and Vlasac sites, where the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic sequence is noted. Besides the general results of the utilization of lithic artefacts, like their employment in various undertakings such as scraping wood and hides, or engraving stone or bones, use-wear analysis can reveal the exact processes behind the activities. The obtained data can indicate the struggles of shaping the available raw materials and the way prehistoric people confronted these quotidian difficulties. The discovered results are crucial for understanding human cognition, but are also proof of the ability of ancient individuals to approach and overcome small-scale crises in everyday life.