Search results for "lithic"

Symbolic use of marine shells and mineral pigments by Iberian Neandertals 115,000 years ago.

2018

U-Th dating of archaeological deposits of Cueva de los Aviones provides evidence for Neandertal symbolism 115,000 years ago.

Quantifying the evolution of animal dairy intake in humans using calcium isotopes

2021

International audience; The contribution of dairy products to modern human diets has a debated role in the expansion of Neolithic economies and the dynamics of demographic transitions. While current methods allow discussing dairy production and processing, no approach allows reconstructing quantitatively its effective consumption. Calcium isotopes (δ44/42Ca) potentially represent such a marker due to the abundance of isotopically fractionated Ca in dairy products. Here, we test Ca isotope sensitivity to dietary intake of dairy product: we first used a dietary model based on a compilation of available data of dietary Ca sources; we then compared the modelled outputs to available and newly ac…

Dietary freshwater reservoir effects and the radiocarbon ages of prehistoric human bones from Zvejnieki, Latvia

2016

Abstract Aquatic food resources (fish and molluscs) were exploited intensively at Riņņukalns, a Neolithic freshwater shell midden at the outlet of Lake Burtnieks, north-eastern Latvia. Stable isotope data (δ 15 N and δ 13 C) from a rich fishbone assemblage and a wide range of terrestrial species complement published results on faunal samples from the famous prehistoric cemetery and settlement at Zvejnieki, on the same lake. Stable isotope data show that freshwater food resources made substantial but varying contributions to human diets at Zvejnieki and Riņņukalns throughout the Mesolithic and Neolithic. Our research has also shown significant radiocarbon freshwater reservoir effects (FRE) i…

Earliest salt working in the world: From excavation to microscopy at the prehistoric sites of Ţolici and Lunca (Romania)

2018

Abstract Since the Early Neolithic, salt has played an important role in the social and economic development of populations. Consequently, the study and comprehension of salt management strategies have become a significant component of current archaeological research. This study is part of an interdisciplinary research program consisting of excavations and detailed analyses on two Early Neolithic salt working sites situated in the sub-Carpathian region of Romania, Lunca and Ţolici (county Neamţ). These remarkably well-preserved sites are characterised by stratified deposits several meters thick. Detailed stratigraphic descriptions were followed by optical microscopy analysis (soil micromorp…

A technological crossroads: Exploring diversity in the pressure blade technology of Mesolithic Latvia

2018

Obsidian from the Site of Piano dei Cardoni, Ustica (Palermo, Italy): Preliminary Results on the First Occupation of the Island

2021

Abstract New investigations on Ustica (Palermo, Sicily) originated from the need to improve our knowledge of the island’s archaeological and environmental heritage. Through field surveys, particular attention was paid to human occupation in the Neolithic phases and focused on the less investigated southern side of the island. The systematic survey of the area of Piano dei Cardoni in 2018 brought to light a new Middle/Late Neolithic site, already partially documented in the literature. The island was settled for the first time during these phases, as also testified from the area of Punta Spalmatore. The presence of Serra d’Alto, incised dark burnished, and Diana styles suggests that the site…

Entorno 3D para el análisis y la recreación virtual de las actuaciones arqueológicas en Cueva de la Cocina (Dos Aguas, Valencia, España)

2017

Con este trabajo pretendemos presentar nuestro procedimiento de digitalización de información de campo (gestión de datos) y su imbricación en la reconstrucción estratigráfica virtual (virtualización) de la Cueva de la Cocina (Dos Aguas, Valencia, España). La herramienta principal para la implementación del Sistema de Información Geográfica (SIG) ha sido OpenJUMP, mientras que para la recreación tridimensional (3D) del entorno virtual de la cueva se han utilizado MeshLab, ParaView, CloudCompare y R. De acuerdo con los datos recuperados durante las excavaciones de los últimos años en la cueva -2015 y 2016-, se presenta el estado actual de la virtualización de la estratigrafía en los sectores …

Ivory Craftsmanship, Trade and Social Significance in the Southern Iberian Copper Age: The Evidence from the PP4-Montelirio Sector of Valencina de la…

2013

Because of its great potential to provide data on contacts and overseas trade, ivory has aroused a great deal of interest since the very start of research into Iberian late prehistory. Research recently undertaken by the German Archaeological Institute in Madrid in collaboration with a number of other institutions has provided valuable contributions to the study of ivory in the Iberian Copper Age and Early Bronze Age. One of the archaeological sites that is contributing the most data for analysing ivory from the Copper Age in southern Iberia is Valencina de la Concepción (Seville), which is currently the focus of several debates on the development of social complexity. This article contribu…

Paleogenetic and morphometric analysis of a Mesolithic individual from Grotta d'Oriente: An oldest genetic legacy for the first modern humans in Sici…

2020

Abstract Grotta d’Oriente, a coastal cave located on the island of Favignana (Sicily, Italy) is a key site for the study of the early human colonization of Sicily. Inside the cave, during different field excavations, three burials attributable to the Late Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic were found. The Mesolithic Oriente B individual, directly dated at 9,377 ± 25 uncal BP, was previously assigned to HV1 haplogroup using a traditional approach. However, it is well known that PCR based methods are prone to erroneous haplotype or haplogroup determination. In order to redefine the mitochondrial lineage of this Mesolithic hunter-gatherer and explore its phylogenetic position, we target-enriche…

Earliest evidence of Neolithic collective burials from Eastern Iberia: Radiocarbon dating at the archaeolgoical site of Les Llometes (Alicante, Spain)

2016

AbstractIn the Valencia region of Spain, the dominant use of natural caves for collective burials during the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods has been documented. Collective burials are central to the hypothesis about social relationships in Copper Age societies from Iberia, and key to interpreting kinship-based societies. Les Llometes (Alcoi, Alicante) is one of the biggest collective burial sites existing in eastern Iberia. This article presents the direct14C dates on 25 skeletal remains at the site. The results indicate that the site was used as a burial place from the end of the 5th millennium cal BC until the end of the 4th millennium cal BC, and is a first milestone for future …