# The first Neolithic boats in the Mediterranean: The settlement of La Marmotta (Anguillara Sabazia, Lazio, Italy)

## TL;DR

This paper presents the discovery of Neolithic boats in Italy, showing early Mediterranean navigation and technological skills that aided human expansion.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into Neolithic boat technology and its role in Mediterranean expansion.

## Key findings

- Five canoes and a nautical object were found at La Marmotta, indicating advanced boat-building skills.
- The chronology of the canoes suggests a high level of technological specialization in Neolithic societies.
- The findings highlight the role of navigation in the rapid expansion of Neolithic people across the Mediterranean.

## Abstract

Navigation in the Mediterranean in the Neolithic is studied here through the boats that were used, the degree of technical specialisation in their construction and, above all, their chronology. After a brief explanation of the exceptional site of La Marmotta, the characteristics and chronology of the five canoes found at the settlement and one of the nautical objects linked to Canoe 1 are discussed. This will allow a reflection on the capability of Neolithic societies for navigation owing to their high technological level. This technology was an essential part in the success of their expansion, bearing in mind that in a few millennia they occupied the whole Mediterranean from Cyprus to the Atlantic seaboard of the Iberian Peninsula.