to FireHaired, a bit late:
Italian Mesolithic: I have not the sample size (surely small) nor the pictures nor the features in details, only some indexes:
crania
dolichocephalic: CI 72,9 (low enough at Mesolithic when some other population had grown a bit more mesolcehpalic than during old Paleolithic)
vertical index (height / length: VI: 72,7
transversal index (height / breadth: 100,2 mean of both (more informative concerning skull height): 86,5: it places these "Italians" rather among the high skulledpeople, what is not typical of Cro-Magnon and most descendants; but it is a bit less high than South France Meoslithic men -
upper face index (height from glabella to upper teeth): FI: 49,3: one of the most shallow/short faces of everytime in Europe: I've no picture so I cannot say if it is a global face (orbits and Co) breadth trait, or if it is due only to cheekbones arcs (a C-C/Brünn tendancy in Europe)?
orbital ondex: OI: 72,4: among the lowest too: the C-C/Brünn descendants seemed a bit heterogenous at the stage of Mesolithic: here it is low, as in very old times -
lack: lower jaw indexes and form, orbits shapes (OI is only an aspect), frontal profile and so on...
all the way, I would put a shilling to bet on a pire ligneage from Cr-M or C-C/Br: I think reasonable to suppose mixings/crossings were old enough in Europe between the two big ligneages (begun in Central Europe after LGM) to explain the variety of types (individuals and mean groups) caused by mixtures followed by temporary isolation, so hazard caused drift too for some traits in small "families". all the way, the big differences in means and aspects with subsequent Neolithic people, ecludes for me that the evolution could have taken place in Italy.
I wonder if the most of the modifications leading to the typical "mediterranean" it's to say to a set of features becoming the general trend even if not 100% integrated, did not come from East Africa, perhaps in today Erythrea or South Egypte??? only a question here... these traits softened the diverse heritages of alreayd partially gracilized descendants of the two old ligneages in Europe: Cr-M and C-C/Br ??? it's true that some today Erythreans have features which do not recall "black and white" modern crossings (I don't speak about whisky here) and some of the first agricultors in Palestine showed "negroid" tendancies in alveolar prognathy, what is NOT saying THEY WERE SUBSAHRIANS TYPES... a bit more northern the Upper Egyptians Badarians (4000 BC) had brunet white skins, a bit of alveolar (teeth) prognathy, very high skulls with vertical forehead, very small narrow inferior maxillar BUT wavy black or blackish brown hairs without any subsaharian tendancy to frizzy/fuzzy hairs.