Ślady osadnictwa mezolitycznego i neolitycznego we wsi Kokotów, gm. Wieliczka, woj. małopolskie, stanowisko 20

The article presents the results of rescue excavations undertaken in connection with the construction of A4 motorway. The site is situated in the south-eastern outskirts of Cracow, in the area of the vast, sandy valley of the Vistula river. That area is distinguished from the predominant area of loess highlands in terms of the environmental conditions, particularly good for gathering and hunting, grazing cattle and obtaining various resources. The survey of that and several other, similarly located sites show that the zone became attractive, apart from the period of dominance of gathering and hunting communities, as late as in the Eneolithic and the early Bronze Age. The 161 pits, as well as the pottery and flint artefacts, recorded in Kokotów in the area of 0.56 ha, present the following chronological profile: a Mesolithic temporary campsite followed by a multiphase, but, in all cases, rather temporary presence of the Funnel Beaker culture community, the Corded Ware culture, the Mierzanowice and Trzciniec cultures. An important element of the nature of the profile of exploitation of that zone in the Eneolithic period and the early Bronze Age on the site in Kokotów are quite numerous relics connected with making and using flint axes, which may suggest obtaining wood.