0000000000370513
AUTHOR
Agustin Diez-castillo
Developing REE parameters for soil and sediment profile analysis to identify Neolithic anthropogenic signatures at Serpis Valley (Spain)
In this study, patterns of rare earth elements (REE) have been developed and applied for the first time to sediments and soils to identify anthropogenic or natural layers in profiles sampled at several Neolithic settlements in the Serpis Valley area (Alicante, Spain). Most of these sites are characterized by dark brown paleosols that are easily distinguishable from the light brown paleosols of the valley. To demonstrate whether these strata are anthropogenic or natural requires a better geochemical understanding of sediment. Soil samples were taken across six different sites; four sites are associated with archaeological findings (sites BF, LP, PB and AC8); another one is from a natural sec…
Analysis of stratigraphical sequences at Cocina Cave (Spain) using rare earth elements geochemistry
This study investigates the stratigraphical sequence of Cocina Cave (Spain) employing and testing for the first time the capability of rare earth elements as markers of human activities in caves. Located in Dos Aguas (Valencian Community, Spain), Cocina Cave is characterized by the presence of several Holocene archaeological deposits from the final Mesolithic to the present day and is a pivotal site for understanding the socio‐ecological dynamics of the last hunter‐gatherer inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula and the transition to pastoral and agricultural economies in the Western Mediterranean. However, the identification of strata from particular time‐periods in the cave is often difficu…