Kernel density estimation and transition maps of Moldavian Neolithic and Eneolithic settlement

Abstract

The data presented in this article are related to the research article entitled “Neo-Eneolithic settlement pattern and salt exploitation in Romanian Moldavia” (Brigand and Weller, 2018) [1]. Kernel density estimation (KDE) is used in order to move beyond the discrete distribution of sites and to enable us to work on a continuous surface that reflects the intensity of the occupation in the space. Maps of density per period – Neolithic I (Cris), Neolithic II (LBK), Eneolithic I (Precucuteni), Eneolithic II (Cucuteni A), Eneolithic III-IV (Cucuteni A-B and B) – are used to create maps of density difference (Figs. 1–4) in order to analyse the dynamic (either non-existent, negative or positive) between two chronological sequences.