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The work reported in this article explores stone knapping learning processes through the study of a Late Upper Palaeolithic workshop in the Italian Alps, so as to contribute to the framework of today's debate on social learning. Social learning is an essential process for human evolution as it fosters the development of brain districts, the building of knowledge and the acquisition of new skills. Results suggest that knapping learning was likely a structured activity at the site. Moreover, this analysis helped the reconstruction of the social organisation and composition of this past group of hunter-gatherers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a list of publications by Jiří Svoboda, including the origins of the Upper Paleolithic in Moravia.

Objectives: Aims of the study are to initially describe and comparatively evaluate the morphology of the new Zhaoguo M1 upper limb remains, and contextualize upper limb functional adaptations among those of other worldwide Upper Paleolithic (UP) humans to make inferences about subsistence‐related activity patterns in southwestern China at the Pleistocene–Holocene boundary. Materials and methods: The preserved Zhaoguo M1 skeletal remains include paired humeri, ulnae, and radii, among others. These specimens were scanned using micro‐computed tomography to evaluate internal structural properties, while external osteometric dimensions of the Zhaoguo M1 upper limb elements also were acquired. Both sets of measurements were compared to published data on Neandertals, and Middle and Upper Paleolithic modern humans. Results: The upper limb elements of Zhaoguo M1 display a suite of characteristics that generally resemble those of other contemporary Late UP (LUP) modern humans, while robusticity indices generally fall within the upper range of LUP variation. The Zhaoguo M1 upper limb elements display fewer traits resembling those of late archaic humans. The Zhaoguo M1 individual exhibits diaphyseal asymmetry in several upper limb elements suggesting left hand dominance. When evaluating the full range of magnitudes of humeral bilateral asymmetry in the comparative sample, Zhaoguo M1 falls at the lower end overall, but yet is relatively higher than contemporary LUP modern humans specifically from East Eurasia. Discussion The Zhaoguo M1 individual suggests typical LUP modern human upper limb morphology persisted in southwest China until the end of the last glacial period. Upper limb bone asymmetry of Zhaoguo M1 also indicates that behavioral activities attributed to a hunter‐gatherer tradition apparently extended through the Pleistocene–Holocene transition in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This paper presents the results of a recent systematic review of the zoomorphic figures of the Romito shelter, a key site for Upper Palaeolithic rock art and one of the best‐preserved in Europe. The research led to the discovery of two new animal figures and re‐examines the chronology of the rock art evidence and the chrono‐stylistic data. The zoomorphic figures are discussed within the wider chrono‐cultural frame of Magdalenian figurative productions, casting new light on the Palaeolithic rock art phenomenon of southern Italy. This seems to go beyond the fixed limits of the 'Mediterranean artistic province', being part of the bigger contemporary picture of the Magdalenian cultures and extended over a broader territory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The type–token distinction and the notion of 'tokenization' are proposed as analytical tools that may help us understand better the emergence of numbers and mathematical thinking from the non-mathematical cultural practices of the Upper Palaeolithic such as painting, decorating portable objects, or making ornaments from beads, as described in recent studies in cognitive archaeology. While the type–token distinction has been a salient element in recent debates in the philosophy of mathematics, it seems not yet to have been registered in those areas of cognitive archaeology concerned with numbers—and yet it may help to identify the circumstances under which the conceptual potential of cultural artefacts develops. The concept of tokenization permits us to identify a plausible link between non-numerical cultural resources and the emergence of numerical thought patterns. This approach offers a way of appreciating the role of artefacts without raising the notoriously difficult question of their original 'meaning'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mughr el-Hamamah (Jordan) Layer B contains an Early Upper Palaeolithic stone tool assemblage dating to around 39–45 kya cal b.p. This assemblage is unusual in that it samples human forager activities around the ecotone between the Transjordanian Plateau and the palaeo-lake (Lake Lisan) that filled much of the Jordan Valley during Late Pleistocene times. This paper describes that assemblage, comparing it to other Levantine Upper Palaeolithic assemblages of equivalent antiquity. The Mughr el-Hamamah Layer B assemblage appears most similar to Early Ahmarian assemblages, but it departs from typical such assemblages in ways that may reflect local conditions' influence on human activities carried out in and near the cave. Mughr el-Hamamah raises new questions about changes in residential mobility, off-site provisioning and foraging activity, and on-site task diversity in the Early Upper Palaeolithic period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The appearance of art as a constant component of human culture is attributed to several Upper Paleolithic traditions. The record of earlier artistic manifestations is rather scanty and chronogeographically varied, although crucial for studies of human behavioral evolution. Here we describe an engraved bone from the Middle Paleolithic site of Quneitra, depicting an image similar to that of another artwork found in the same layer. The results of the comparative study indicate that the two artworks from Quneitra share a unique quality of illusion—artistic manipulations that create optical effects described as the "complementary effect." These artistic manipulations articulate cognitive properties of the human mind at large and can be explained through the prism of the Gestalt principles of perception. The results of this study suggest that illusion is part and parcel of artistic creation from its beginnings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a response to our initial demonstration of the extreme sensitivity of Bayesian models for the Western European Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition, Higham and Heep attempt to refute some of our arguments. They maintain that our modifications to their individual site models bear no meaningful impact and hence Higham et al.'s overall conclusion of a Mousterian-Châtelperronian coexistence in France remains valid. Such a scenario would considerably alter current perceptions of late Neanderthal cultural dynamics and potential interactions with modern human groups across Western Europe. Given the role of the Châtelperronian in on-going discussions concerning the final Neanderthals, establishing a reliable chronological framework for this techno-complex is fundamental. In addition to the high susceptibility of Bayesian models to even minor modifications, we maintain that secure, taphonomically tested contexts are the necessary prerequisite for model construction. We would like to take this opportunity to quickly address several of their context-specific criticisms and their general misinterpretation of the overall aim of our original critique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A response by the authors to a paper which suggests that some of the Bayesian models they have developed from various archaeological sites are not reliable and cannot be used in dating the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition, is presented. Topics covered include issues that should be considered when conducting Bayesian modelling and testing the resulting models, testing the modified La Quina model, and critique of the radiocarbon dating and modelling of the Swabian site in Germany.

Abstract Several questions remain regarding the timing and nature of the Neanderthal-anatomically modern human (AMH) transition in Europe. The situation in Eastern Europe is generally less clear due to the relatively few sites and a dearth of reliable radiocarbon dates. Claims have been made for both notably early AMH and notably late Neanderthal presence, as well as for early AMH (Aurignacian) dispersal into the region from Central/Western Europe. The Kostenki-Borshchevo complex (European Russia) of Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) sites offers high-quality data to address these questions. Here we revise the chronology and cultural status of the key sites of Kostenki 17 and Kostenki 14. The Kostenki 17/II lithic assemblage shares important features with Proto-Aurignacian material, strengthening an association with AMHs. New radiocarbon dates for Kostenki 17/II of ∼41–40 ka cal BP agree with new dates for the recently excavated Kostenki 14/IVw, which shows some similarities to Kostenki 17/II. Dates of ≥41 ka cal BP from other Kostenki sites cannot be linked to diagnostic archaeological material, and therefore cannot be argued to date AMH occupation. Kostenki 14's Layer in Volcanic Ash assemblage, on the other hand, compares to Early Aurignacian material. New radiocarbon dates targeting diagnostic lithics date to 39–37 ka cal BP. Overall, Kostenki's early EUP is in good agreement with the archaeological record further west. Our results are therefore consistent with models predicting interregional penecontemporaneity of diagnostic EUP assemblages. Most importantly, our work highlights ongoing challenges for reliably radiocarbon dating the period. Dates for Kostenki 14 agreed with the samples' chronostratigraphic positions, but standard pre-treatment methods consistently produced incorrect ages for Kostenki 17/II. Extraction of hydroxyproline from bone collagen using preparative high-performance liquid chromatography, however, yielded results consistent with the samples' chronostratigraphic position and with the layer's archaeological contents. This suggests that for some sites compound-specific techniques are required to build reliable radiocarbon chronologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence of human activity and hominin remains are very scarce inland on the Iberian Peninsula. This fact raises the issue of the scarcity of evidence that Paleolithic Homo sapiens occupied this area outside of the littoral margins (Atlantic, Cantabrian, and Mediterranean coasts). Here, we comparatively describe a human right adult navicular bone recovered in the Cueva de los Torrejones site, located in the village of Tamajón (Guadalajara, Spain). This fossil was preliminarily established as belonging to Homo cf. neanderthalensis, due to the late Pleistocene faunal association, mainly because of the presence of Crocuta crocuta and Panthera pardus. The metrical and morphological study of the navicular T93-S3.27 from Cueva de los Torrejones clearly differentiates it from Neandertals and their ancestors, the hominins from Sima de los Huesos, allowing for this fossil to be taxonomically assigned with confidence as H. sapiens. The navicular from the Cueva de los Torrejones is absolutely and relatively medio-laterally narrow with a low wedging index as those of fossil and modern H. sapiens, and clearly different of Neandertals. The increased discoveries and publications of new naviculars belonging to genus Homo, together with the findings of P. pardus and C. crocuta in more recent chronologies in the Iberian Peninsula, are compatible with this reevaluation. We propose a probable chronology for this fossil between 12 and 15 ka and ca. 25 ka, based on the biostratigraphy and the oldest presence of H. sapiens in the Iberian Peninsula. This work confirms the human presence within the Iberian Peninsula during the Upper Paleolithic and reopens the question of the peopling of the inner Peninsula during this period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the excavations of the Upper Palaeolithic site at Mogyorósbánya several non-utilitarian artefacts were found. Beside the earlier published piece of fossil resin (amber) and lumps of red ochre, more than one hundred Palaeogene and Neogene fossil molluscs, large foraminifers, corals and trace fossils from at least three different geological formations, as well as numerous fragments of phyllite were documented. Pebbles of this soft shale were most probably collected from the alluvium of the Danube river. The majority of the pieces show clear traces of scraping and along the periphery of the largest artefact rhythmic incisions are visible. Even if this piece is not a ready-made object, it can be compared to the limestone and sandstone pebbles found on the Epigravettian site of Pilismarót-Pálrét. Another interesting artefact of unknown function is a carefully shaped but strongly fragmented piece with sharp edge. Fossils of the Eocene Epoch were easily accessible in the region of Mogyorósbánya, while the nearest fossiliferous outcrops of the Oligocene and Pannonian sediments are found 15-17 km in south-eastern direction from the site. Few gastropod shells show unambiguous traces of human modification. Typically, among the 16 Melanopsis fossils found in a single square meter only three pieces were manufactured. On the other hand, the majority of the Dentalium and worm tube fragments were cut and their surfaces show intense rounding and shine. The not modified Nummulites, corals and large internal casts of gastropods were most probably collected by Prehistoric humans because of their unusual form. This interesting group of the Mogyorósbánya artefacts and are compared to the fossils published from the Pilisszántó I rockshelter and to the not modified fossils from Moravia and Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The archaeological record of the early Upper Paleolithic on the central plain of Eastern Europe yields evidence for the repeated hunting of horses in small herds. Several major sites contain large bone beds that represent the butchered remains of a mare band. The bone beds are consistently associated with expedient tools, often made on local raw materials, that are typical of mass kill sites and carcass-processing areas in other settings (for example, North American Plains). Many of these sites may have been occupied by people related to the Aurignacian technocomplex, which otherwise is poorly represented on the central East European Plain, their industrial affiliation obscured by the profusion of expedient tools (often classified as Middle Paleolithic types) related to mass-processing of horse carcasses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The origin of images (defined as figurative drawings and including paintings and engravings) constitutes a question that remains unresolved. Ernst H. Gombrich (1971) and Whitney Davis (1986) have formulated hypotheses that prioritize different fundamental factors in their appearance in the European Upper Paleolithic. The current article identifies some problematic assumptions and oversights of these models, and proposes an alternative model for the origins of drawing in the Paleolithic. For Gombrich, images were originally suggested by shapes in natural features, such as cracks and evocative rocks, upon which people imposed semantic values. People would have discovered horses and bulls in vaguely suggestive rock surfaces and would have highlighted them with colors to render them visible to other onlookers. Whitney Davis reverses this process: objects (as evocative rocks) are no longer perceived as marks; rather, marks (traced by hand) are seen as objects. "Once marks are perceived as things, the full analogical power of the line is logically derived and even detached from mere experience of perceptual ambiguity." Gombrich's hypothetis is paradoxal, as it requires the intellectual ability of "seeing as"- through the previous existence of "natural" images - to explain the emergence of such an ability as intentional drawing. But in David's view, the birth of images arises as a happenstance, even considered as a "logical" and necessary possibility inscribed in lines, that keeps drawing activities separated from any intentionality. If figurative tracings were only a technical development latent in the power of lines, they would have given form to all kinds of figures instead of being so strictly circumscribed to a limited range, namely animals and sexually-charged figures. In that sense, making images reveals an expectation, rooted in drawing activities, that emerges through the specific technical innovation of drawing: the outline. It encircles the dimension of time, internal to the line, in the spatial unity of a surface. It is an inherent and primary symbol of a living body. The visual threshold of resemblance arises from this significant shift. The outlined figures embody the limits of time (death and regeneration) through the sexual theme; and they embody spatial limits, through the animal/species theme. With these living ensembles of simultaneously shared and divided spaces, the question of identity (similar/dissimilar, unity/diversity) begins to be visually revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of loci are associated with highly heritable schizophrenia and the prevalence of this mental illness has had considerable negative fitness effects on human populations. Here we focused on one particular schizophrenia-associated gene that encodes a sialyltransferase (ST8SIA2) and is expressed preferentially in the brain with the level being largely determined by three SNPs in the promoter region. It is suggested that the expression level of the ST8SIA2 gene is a genetic determinant of schizophrenia risk, and we found that a geographically differentiated non-risk SNP type (-type) has significantly reduced promoter activity. A newly developed method for detecting ongoing positive selection was applied to the ST8SIA2 genomic region with the identification of an unambiguous sweep signal in a rather restricted region of 18 kb length surrounding the promoter. We also found that while the -type emerged in anatomically modern humans in Africa over 100 thousand years ago, it has increased its frequency in Asia only during the past 20–30 thousand years. These findings support that the positive selection is driven by psychosocial stress due to changing social environments since around the last glacial maximum, and raise a possibility that schizophrenia extensively emerged during the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The southern Greek archaeological site of Franchthi Cave, with occupation dating from the Upper Paleolithic, remains the only site in southern Greece that both spans the shift from foraging to farming and has produced systematically recovered plant remains associated with this important transition in human prehistory. Previously reported archaeobotanical remains from the site derive exclusively from the cave interior, as none were recovered from outside the cave on the Franchthi Cave Paralia. This article reports the first evidence for plant use in the settlement area outside the cave, as provided by Ave seed impressions in Early Neolithic ceramic sherds from the Paralia. Significantly, this new data expands the range of crops represented at the site during the Early Neolithic to include einkorn wheat (Tritìcum monococcum L.), pushing back its appearance at Franchthi by several centuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Spal: Revista de Prehistoria y Arqueologia de la Universidad de Sevilla is the property of Spal. Revista de Prehistoria y Arqueologia de la Universidad de Sevilla and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Vasco-Cantabrian region of northern Spain, together with southwestern France, is one of the richest areas in terms of Paleolithic cave art, but, until recently, by far the highest concentration of sites had been in the central-western sector: the provinces of Cantabria and Asturias. In contrast, the eastern sector, the Basque Country--between the Asón River and the Pyrenees--was thought to have a significantly lower density of cave art loci, and few of them were major "sanctuaries." The density of cave art sites seemed to increase again in the central French Pyrenees. This unequal distribution was difficult to explain given the homogeneity in the distribution of undecorated (i.e., habitation) Upper Paleolithic sites, as well as the lack of major lithological or orographic differences between the eastern and central-western sectors of the region. In addition, the important geostrategic position of the Basque Country between southwestern France and northwestern Iberia seemed to contradict the marginal role traditionally suggested by the parietal art record. During the past decade, however, research projects aiming to address the issue of the so-called Basque rock art void have led to the tripling of the number of known decorated caves in the eastern sector. Some of the very recent discoveries, notably in Atxurra, Armintxe, and Aitzbitarte IV, fall into the category of major cave art sites. The evidence presented here contributes to a fuller understanding of artistic production, human connections, and settlement dynamics during the entire Upper Paleolithic among the Cantabrian, Pyrenean, and Aquitaine regions, underlining the importance of the Basque Country record. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diverse landscapes and ecosystems stretching across Europe led to diverse hunter-gatherer cultural records during the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic. In response to abrupt climatic forcing, starting around the Late Glacial Maximum and followed by climatic events such as the Bølling–Allerød and the Younger Dryas in the Terminal Pleistocene, archaeological data pertaining to cultural and behavioral shifts of hunter-gatherers continue to be explored on a regional and pan-regional scale. Here we present an initial summary, which includes new and published data on faunal analyses from multiple open air sites that span the Late Pleistocene to the Holocene, dated between the Late Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic (20,000–6000 uncal 14 C BP) in the southern steppe of Eastern Europe. For this area, this is the first study to compile the cultural and faunal data with geo-referenced localization and radiometric dates of the archaeological sites. Taken together, faunal assemblages from the Epigravettian are characterized by low diversity and are often dominated by one species of large game, including bison and equids, whereas the Mesolithic diet is characterized by higher inter-site variability subsisting on large ungulate and greater emphasis on freshwater resources. This study contributes to the general knowledge concerning the last phases in the evolution of the Eurasian hunter-gatherers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In March 2016, archaeological excavation was undertaken at four areas of land at Oxlease Farm, Cupernham Lane, Romsey, Hampshire. The fieldwork recovered a lithic assemblage from all four excavation areas, although the majority was recorded from a single flint-bearing deposit in Area 1. The assemblage included several elements that may belong to the Terminal Upper Palaeolithic Long Blade industry, as well as three flints of Mesolithic date. A small number of undated features were also uncovered, including pits and possible postholes, which may have been of a prehistoric date. A small and residual assemblage of Late Roman (3rd - 4th century AD) pottery was also recovered from probable medieval/post-medieval field boundary ditches or plough furrows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the many Palaeolithic discoveries in the Bistriţei Valley, an impressive collection of lithic materials (almost 3,000 pieces) have been collected, over the years, from Izvorul Alb-Bicaz (north-eastern Romania). Most of the items come from surface recoveries and at this moment no site has been accurately located. We present an analysis of the first collection of lithic materials found at Izvorul Alb in 1977 and 1978, recovered from two distinct places, Baicu and Piciorul Gol. Our observations point to several differences between the items collected in the two places. Generally, some of the items come from a late Palaeolithic level, Epigravettian or even Epipalaeolithic, and the rest of lithic materials may belong to Gravettian traditions sensu lato. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present the first results of the micromorphological study of the anthropic sequence from the Upper Paleolithic site of Poiana Cire;ului (Neamţ County). The stratigraphic succession of the layers attributed to the Gravettian occupation was studied on the Western, Northern and Eastern profiles, in Section V. After the resin impregnation and the subsequent induration, the samples were processed in order to obtain the thin sections for the optic microscopy study. Thin sections were analysed using a polarising petrographic microscope (Olympus BX 60). The stratigraphic units were systematically described and interpreted, and the identification of the sedimentary facies was achieved at magnifications between x100 and x600, using standard methods. The study was centred on the characterization of the sedimentary matrix, and of the anthropogenic features, in order to identify the units corresponding to anthropic and natural forming processes, and to characterize from this point of view the studied occupational sequence from Poiana Cire;ului. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Zephyrus is the property of Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Present-day hunter-gatherers (HGs) live in multilevel social groups essential to sustain a population structure characterized by limited levels of within-band relatedness and inbreeding. When these wider social networks evolved among HGs is unknown. To investigate whether the contemporary HG strategy was already present in the Upper Paleolithic, we used complete genome sequences from Sunghir, a site dated to ~34,000 years before the present, containing multiple anatomically modern human individuals. We show that individuals at Sunghir derive from a population of small effective size, with limited kinship and levels of inbreeding similar to HG populations. Our findings suggest that Upper Paleolithic social organization was similar to that of living HGs, with limited relatedness within residential groups embedded in a larger mating network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous dating of the Vi-207 and Vi-208 Neanderthal remains from Vindija Cave (Croatia) led to the suggestion that Neanderthals survived there as recently as 28,000-29,000 B.P. Subsequent dating yielded older dates, interpreted as ages of at least ~32,500 B.P. We have redated these same specimens using an approach based on the extraction of the amino acid hydroxyproline, using preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (Prep-HPLC). This method is more efficient in eliminating modern contamination in the bone collagen. The revised dates are older than 40,000 B.P., suggesting the Vindija Neanderthals did not live more recently than others across Europe, and probably predate the arrival of anatomically modern humans in Eastern Europe. We applied zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS) to find additional hominin remains. We identified one bone that is Neanderthal, based on its mitochondrial DNA, and dated it directly to 46,200 ± 1,500 B.P. We also attempted to date six early Upper Paleolithic bone points from stratigraphic units G1, Fd/d+G1 and Fd/d, Fd. One bone artifact gave a date of 29,500 ± 400 B.P., while the remainder yielded no collagen. We additionally dated animal bone samples from units G1 and G1-G3. These dates suggest a co-occurrence of early Upper Paleolithic osseous artifacts, particularly split-based points, alongside the remains of Neanderthals is a result of postdepositional mixing, rather than an association between the two groups, although more work is required to show this definitively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the 1980 s, acoustic studies of Upper Palaeolithic imagery in French caves—using the technology then available—suggested a relationship between acoustic response and the location of visual motifs. This paper presents an investigation, using modern acoustic measurement techniques, into such relationships within the caves of La Garma, Las Chimeneas, La Pasiega, El Castillo, and Tito Bustillo in Northern Spain. It addresses methodological issues concerning acoustic measurement at enclosed archaeological sites and outlines a general framework for extraction of acoustic features that may be used to support archaeological hypotheses. The analysis explores possible associations between the position of visual motifs (which may be up to 40 000 yrs old) and localized acoustic responses. Results suggest that motifs, in general, and lines and dots, in particular, are statistically more likely to be found in places where reverberation is moderate and where the low frequency acoustic response has evidence of resonant behavior. The work presented suggests that an association of the location of Palaeolithic motifs with acoustic features is a statistically weak but tenable hypothesis, and that an appreciation of sound could have influenced behavior among Palaeolithic societies of this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on trapezoids, a weapon technology of the Initial Early Upper Paleolithic (the IEUP) in the Japanese Islands. A series of shooting and stabbing experiments using replicated trapezoids were conducted to evaluate weapon technology functions during the IEUP. The shooting and stabbing experiments were designed to investigate several factors, including impact velocity, weight of shafts, and hafting methods affecting the formation of impact fractures. Results of the shooting and stabbing experiments and comparisons between experimental specimens and archaeological specimens suggest that hunting weapons equipped with trapezoids had a mechanism of a cushion at their hafting parts or connected parts between shafts and fore-shafts. I was able to identify functional properties (i.e., lethality and strength) of obsidian trapezoids through experiments. Comparisons also indicate that specimens from the Doteue site contain several trapezoids broken by high impact. A characteristic fracture pattern on the broken specimens in both the archaeological specimens and the experimental specimens suggests that hunting weapons equipped with trapezoids were used with complex projectile technologies. Hunting weapons equipped with trapezoids were intended for specific functions. This research identifies complexity in producer decisions involving hunting tool production in the IEUP in the Japanese islands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neolithization processes are among the most significant changes that have occurred in human history. The timing, order, and appearance of new behavioral elements and causes of behavioral change have been widely investigated. In the Japanese Archipelago, transitions from the Upper Paleolithic to Jomon show the first appearances of Neolithic behavioral elements. Research has commonly yielded inter-regional perspectives comparing technological changes with climate and landscape changes. This paper provides intra-regional comparisons of different environmental variables with technological changes focusing on southern Kyushu, Japan. This paper compares data on climate fluctuations, sea level changes, volcanic eruptions and impacts, and biomes with data on the appearance of and changes in pottery technology and variability, supplemented with studies of stone tools and archaeological features. Results suggest that climatic fluctuations, sea level changes, and biome variability may have had significant impacts on behavioral changes and that volcanic eruptions should be evaluated on an intra-regional and site-based scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents the main skeletal characteristics of the two largely unpublished Gravettian adult skeletons from Baousso da Torre (Liguria, Italy). BT1 and BT2 were two adult tall males, who died aged respectively between 20 and 50 years, and between 20 and 30 years. Their body proportions fall within the range of variation known for the middle Upper Paleolithic, and their skeletal remains are characterized by considerable osteometric values, which fall consistently in the upper part of the Upper Paleolithic male sample variation. They show a high degree of upper limb lateralization, implying that they were likely involved in strenuous and/or repetitive unimanual tasks. They also exhibit very robust lower limbs, likely related to repeated long-distance travels in mountainous terrains. These results are in total agreement with previous hypotheses on Late Pleistocene population behavioral patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we compare different infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) signals for dating archaeological deposits. The IRSL and the more recently developed post-IR IRSL (pIR-IR) methods were investigated using polymineral fine grains extracted from the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic western excavation area in the site of La Ferrassie (Dordogne, SW France). The IRSL data measured at 50 °C (IR 50 ) are compared to those obtained with the elevated pIR-IR signals measured for two stimulation temperatures, 225 °C (pIR-IR 225 ) and 290 °C (pIR-IR 290 ). The signals are documented in terms of bleaching and fading rates. In addition, comparisons of the IR 50 ages corrected either with the H + L method (Huntley and Lamothe, 2001) or with the dose rate correction method (DRC, Lamothe et al. , 2003) are presented. Results show that the polymineral fine grains give a reasonable estimate of the burial age of the samples. The IR 50 and pIR-IR 225 provide the most reliable ages when they are corrected using the DRC method (because of saturation effects). The polymineral ages are then compared with the previously obtained ages on K-feldspar coarse grains, quartz OSL (Guerin et al. , 2015) and radiocarbon ages with the aim of accessing information on the depositional processes. It appears that further comparison of polymineral fine grains to coarse grains is beneficial to evaluate bleaching. Moreover, the polymineral results either confirm or refine the chronology of the La Ferrassie sequence proposed by Guérin et al. (2015), that is, the Mousterian layers range from marine isotope stage (MIS) 5 to the middle of MIS 3. In particular, i) the base of Layer 3 is pushed back to the end of MIS 4 or beginning MIS 3 and ii) the chronological attribution of Layers 4 and 5 is confirmed as MIS 3. Finally, the chronology of the Aurignacian layer (Layer 7) is strengthened by all the feldspars results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the role of humans in anthropogenic climate change, also known as the Anthropocene. According to humanist Dipesh Chakrabarty, Anthropocene involves reconciling events from different timescales. Topics include changing nature of environment, harvesting of fish and shellfish in late Upper Paleolithic period, and advent of modern synthesis of evolutionary theory and population genetics.

In the transition from the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic, the autochtonous cultural units -- the Szeletian on both sides of the western Carpathians and the Jerzmanowician north of the Continental Divide -- are opposed to the allochtonous units such as the Bohunician and the Aurignacian. This paper concentrates mostly on the question of the origins of the Szeletian, rooted in the Micoquian of the Carpathian basin. We have attempted to document a more complex process of the Micoquian -- Szeletian transformation and propose a hypothesis that claims polymorphous origins of the Szeletian. The links between the different variants of the Szeletian are documented by the circulation of lithic raw materials between the Carpathian basin and the territories north of the Carpathians and the Sudetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current state of research, Palaeolithic open-air sites in the Swabian Jura are not very numerous nor in the most cases well researched, although a great potential for these sites exists. The main problem is, that over the last decades, Palaeolithic research in the Swabian Jura focused mainly on cave sites and that subsequently, open-air sites existed mostly in the shadows of these well known caves. The data basis for our research composed of a large number of stone artefacts. Based on meticulous typological and technological analyses of stone artefacts recovered either by surface prospections or by excavations, we were able to identify several new Palaeolithic open-air sites in this region that cover a time span from the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic. The Middle Palaeolithic is present at Börslingen-Eisenberg, Wippingen-Sonderbuch (both Alb-Donau-Kreis) and Waldstetten-Schlatt (Ostalbkreis). An Early Upper Palaeolithic component is proven for all previous sites as well, but additionally we can name the Magdalenian site Heubach-Sand (Ostalbkreis). These sites have in common, that they are all connected to raw-material outcrops situated either directly on site or in their immediate surroundings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Thiasos is the property of Edizioni Quasar di Severino Tognon s.r.l. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the Northern Hemisphere, the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) is recognized as a cold and dry period that marks the maximum southward extension of the Scandinavian Inlands in Europe. In Asia, the ice sheet did not expand from the Arctic into Siberia, yet the LGM had a significant impact at high latitudes and elevations, as well as in regions with a continental climate. How much these changes affected the human occupation of Siberia and Mongolia is still a matter of debate and various models dealing with continuity, discontinuity, demographic movement and adaptation have been put forth. The present paper is a critical review of available empirical data regarding the impact of the LGM on landscapes and human settlements in Mongolia. This review underscores the caveats in the data collected and further analyses are proposed to test several basic hypotheses. The results obtained suggest that during Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 3 and MIS 2, there were hiatuses in the human occupation of Mongolia. These gaps are potentially linked with significant changes in climate. It is recognized that one of the main breaks in the cultural sequence is associated with the LGM, suggesting that Mongolia experienced periods of depopulation associated with this dramatic climatic change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The MIS 3/2 transition (Denekamp interstadial and beginning of the LGM) is a crucial point in time for understanding adaptation of modern humans to climate. The Southern Caucasus is a unique place to study human ecology within this time period because it served as a refugium during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and thus allows us to study how human populations responded to the climatic shifts during the Last Glacial. This study presents the results of the paleoecological analysis of Dzudzuana cave during the MIS 3/2 transition using small mammal community structure as a proxy for paleoenvironment. Of the four units in Dzudzuana (Units A through D), Unit C, divided into subunits C5 to C1, has been dated to 27–24 ka cal BP and the MIS 3/2 transition. Thus, Unit C allows for a diachronic analysis throughout this important time period. Small mammals were found primarily in subunit C2 and C1. Analysis of the small mammal assemblages of Dzudzuana subunits C2 and C1 confirm the paleoecological reconstruction obtained from macrobotanical remains, and suggest a refugium habitat during the last phase of MIS 3 and the onset of the LGM. Comparison with a contemporaneous site in the region (Satsurblia) suggests a high spatial-temporal mosaic habitat in the region. Small refugium areas within the Rioni River valley and its tributaries that enjoyed ameliorated climatic conditions and proximity to water resources may have promoted local human habitation. Furthermore, results suggest that the small mammal assemblages of Dzudzuana are non-analogue communities typical of European Denekamp assemblages, and provide a new datum point for the faunal remains during this time period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The symbolic behavior of human beings usually is manifested in different ways such as figurative art, musical traditions, spoken language or complex funerary behavior. The Paleolithic sites of the Swabian Jura contain a rich archaeological record including the oldest evidence of musical instruments and figurative art which indicates complex cognitive abilities of the Paleolithic Homo sapiens that colonized Europe. Nevertheless, there is no evidence for burials in the Swabian caves during the Paleolithic. This raises questions regarding the kind of mortuary practices that existed in this region during the Paleolithic. In this paper, we address these questions from a taphonomic perspective by analyzing the hominin remains recovered in caves of the Swabian Jura. Whatever the funerary behavior was during the Early and Middle Upper Paleolithic, we have no evidence to document these practices. The Magdalenian hominin remains from Brillenhöhle, however, display anthropic modifications that have been hotly debated in the past. Our taphonomic analysis indicates that the assemblage displays traces of butchery similar to those recorded in the faunal remains. In addition to the cut marks, we have documented intentional breakage and human tooth marks, suggesting that the consumption of human corpses took place during the Magdalenian at Brillenhöhle. Similar anthropic modifications have also been documented in Magdalenian horizon at Hohle Fels. This suggests that the cannibalism practices during the Magdalenian were more common than previously expected during the Magdalenian in the Swabian Jura. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our study investigates the paleoenvironmental conditions of an Upper Paleolithic site found in the excavation of the North Adriatic Susak Island. Our research explores the range of the loess and loesslike sediments deposited on rudist limestone which is the substratum of the island. We studied the Quaternary sediments by a coherent paleoenvironmental assessment method. The geomorphological and the various chronological analysis contribute significantly to the extension of our knowledge on the paleoenvironmental conditions of the Upper Paleolithic site (Radiocarbon age is 31,830 ±720 yr BP) on Susak Island. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Menez-Dregan I is a Lower Palaeolithic site situated at Plouhinec, Finistère, in Brittany. It is an ancient marine cave whose roof has gradually collapsed. Layer 4 from the site of Menez-Dregan I is the last occupation of this deposit, at the boundary between the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic. Geological correlations tend to place layer 4 in MIS 9 or 7, although the only TL dating obtained for this level gave an age of 223 ± 23 ka. This study focuses on the lithic industry from the 1991–2004 excavations and was undertaken in order to capture the various types of technical behaviour that could illustrate the transition between the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic. We present the lithic industry of this layer, which simultaneously combines Lower Palaeolithic characteristics, such as large quantities of pebble tools (due to the environment of the site), and the emergence of characteristics that are common to the Middle Palaeolithic, such as standardisation of flake production, or adapting knapping methods to the dimensions of the raw materials (discoid knapping for quartzite, bipolar flaking on an anvil for small flint pebbles). The lithic industry from layer 4 and its three levels (4a, 4b and 4c) has been analysed. Layer 4 of Menez-Dregan I has been attributed to the “Colombanian” on the basis of the composition of its lithic industry: a predominance of cobble tools amongst heavy-duty tools, retouched light-duty tools on flake-supports comprising mostly notches and denticulates, and a knapping method akin to the “SSDA – Clactonian”. The Levallois method is absent, bifaces are absent or extremely rare, and there are few scrapers. The Colombanian proves to be a Lower Palaeolithic industry contemporary with the classic Acheulean, but typologically distinct. However, standardisation of flake production leads us to foresee a change in the lithic industry of layer 4, and highlights a transitional period from the Lower Palaeolithic to the Middle Palaeolithic in the latest occupation of this deposit. This study is a contribution to the documentation of the diversity and variability of Lower and Middle Palaeolithic lithic industries, demonstrating that the large amount of cobble tools in layer 4 is an unchanged component due to environmental constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cave of Aldène (Cesseras, Hérault, France) is usually known for the preservation of its upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic evidence. However, older occupations are located at the entrance and the collapsed zone of this vast karst network. Unfortunately, companies looking for phosphate had earlier truncated this original filling and only nine Paleolithic stratigraphic outliers (T1 to T9) remained. Repeatedly excavated by the Museum of Prehistoric Anthropology of Monaco, from 1971 until 1998, they mainly registered Acheulean (cf. Tayacian) and Pre-mousterian activities. As interdisciplinary studies and radiometric dating ( 230 Th/ 234 U and ESR) were undertaken, it was possible to set up chronostratigraphic and paleoenvironnemental contexts, which mostly extend from the end of MIS 13 up to MIS 5.5. The results obtained in the different units also allowed the correlation of remote layers. Our recent study has focused on technocomplexes with the aim to update the technical behaviors of the Paleolithic knappers that lived along Cesse River, at the entrance of Aldène cave. Petroarcheology joined to technological and morphofunctional analyses have figured out technical evolution and features, even within the successive lithic Acheulean cultures. The technology and the function of the occupations incited Aldène groups to reorient their economic strategies. They abandoned the available fluviatile resources for more siliceous and remote materials (>6 km). Furthermore, percussion and pebble tools associated sometimes with rare bifacial pieces and large flake tools appear to predominate exclusively in the oldest layers (MIS 13–10). In these assemblages, debitage flakes are obtained by Elementary (unipolar or bipolar), SSDA, semi-tournant non-laminar and Discoïd (MIS 11) methods. Retouched products consist of scrapers, notched tools and points (Quinson, Tayac, bilateral). Based on a relative and comparative technological distribution, the first technical transformation emerges in MIS 9. The industries contain more handaxes, rare cleavers and include the premises of the Levallois concept. Thereafter, those technical way and needs will be confirmed (MIS 7–8) with a clear presence of handaxes, increased Levallois products, decrease of percussion and pebble tools, and absence of large flake tools. In layer B, the identification of Levallois blades production and the presence of a Mousterian point reveal the occurrence of Mousterian knappers (MIS 6). The vast archeostratigraphic sequence of Aldène gives us the opportunity to describe the main technical innovations, such as the appearance of Levallois concept throughout the evidence of old structure settlements (fireplaces, slabbed stone pavement). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Demography is increasingly being invoked to account for features of the archaeological record, such as the technological conservatism of the Lower and Middle Pleistocene, the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition, and cultural loss in Holocene Tasmania. Such explanations are commonly justified in relation to population dynamic models developed by Henrich [Henrich J (2004) Am Antiq 69: 197-214] and Powell et al. [Powell A, et al. (2009) Science 324(5932): 1298-1301], which appear to demonstrate that population size is the crucial determinant of cultural complexity. Here, we show that these models fail in two important respects. First, they only support a relationship between demography and culture in implausible conditions. Second, their predictions conflict with the available archaeological and ethnographic evidence. We conclude that new theoretical and empirical research is required to identify the factors that drove the changes in cultural complexity that are documented by the archaeological record. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main goal of this work is to illustrate the interpretative potential of regionally oriented tool-use-life approaches to infer patterns of mobility, occupational intensity, and assemblage formation processes. We apply a wide reduction analysis to 15 Late Upper Paleolithic lithic assemblages. We perform an exploratory data analysis to observe reduction intensity tendencies among the different assemblages, and we characterize reduction distribution patterns using Weibull probability distribution functions. To avoid sampling effects, resampling and bootstrapping were performed. The Weibull profiles of the analyzed data show different degrees of occupational intensity and/or length that are not observable through the classical techno-typological approaches. A referential reduction space is also simulated to create a frame to interpret our results in a more absolute scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The newly identified Paleolithic site Sima de Las Palomas de Teba hosts an almost seven-m-thick sediment profile investigated here to elucidate the rock shelter's chronostratigraphy and formation processes. At its base, the sediment sequence contains rich archeological deposits recording intensive occupation by Neanderthals. Luminescence provides a terminus ante quem of 39.4 ± 2.6 ka or 44.9 ± 4.1 ka (OSL) and 51.4 ± 8.4 ka (TL). This occupation ended with a rockfall event followed by accumulation of archeologically sterile sediments. These were covered by sediments containing few Middle Paleolithic artifacts, which either indicate ephemeral occupation by Neanderthals or reworking as suggested by micromorphological features. Above this unit, scattered lithic artifacts of undiagnostic character may represent undefined Paleolithic occupations. Sediment burial ages between about 23.0 ± 1.5 ka (OSL) and 40.5 ± 3.4 ka (pIRIR) provide an Upper Paleolithic chronology for sediments deposited above the rockfall. Finally, a dung-bearing Holocene layer in the uppermost part of the sequence contains a fragment of a human mandible dated to 4032 ± 39 14 C yr BP. Overall, the sequence represents an important new site for studying the end of Neanderthal occupation in southern Spain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Tyragetia is the property of National Museum of History of Moldova and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Recent archaeological work in northeast Portugal has led to the identification of two Upper Paleolithic sites in an area traditionally considered lacking in Old Stone Age evidence: Trás-os-Montes. The new research reveals the existence of the first Upper Paleolithic sequence to the north of the Portuguese Douro (Duero). The Middle Solutrean site of Foz do Medal on the left bank of the Sabot-River adds relevant data to the discussion about human adaptations during the Last Glacial Maximum and the gap in knowledge regarding the use of interior territories in the Iberian Peninsula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]