Yasur-Landau et al./Mediterranean Resilience, 1. Introduction

The Mediterranean basin has been a crossroad for cultures and civilizations from earli- est prehistory until today. In particular, the eastern Mediterranean’s Levantine coast has been the land and sea bridge between Africa and Southwest Asia for early hominins; the first farmers and pastoralists; invading armies; international traders across the millen- nia; and more. With growing concerns about climate and environmental change, it has been recognized by the international scholarly community that the coastal zone along the Mediterranean eastern littoral provides a unique outdoor laboratory for investigating how social groups of varying size, from Neolithic villages to historic empires, have adapted to climate, environment, and cultural change in ‘deep time’. Mediterranean Resilience – Collapse and Adaptation in Antique Maritime Societies addresses many of these issues, utilizing new methods and theoretical models.