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The important discoveries of Lower Palaeolithic artefacts in stratigraphical context within Lower and early Middle Pleistocene deposits in the western continental part of Europe along the rift systeme of the Rhine Valley are pointing at the possible continuous presence of hominins since the Lower Pleistocene. This paper reports on lithic industry from its early appearance at around 1.3 million years (Ma) at the site of Münster-Sarmsheim to the latest pre-Elsterian period at around 0.6 Ma at Mauer, Mosbach, and Miesenheim.

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To understand the wood-fuel contamination problems faced by the ancient glass industry, some Roman glass fragments and beads were analysed for carbon by the elegant, non-destructive deuteron activation technique based on C-12(d,n)N-13 nuclear reaction. Carbon was found in all analysed glasses, covering a mass concentration range from 160 ppm to 2.2%, indicating that some fuel contamination was present in all samples. The higher concentration of 0.94 to 2.2% observed in some beads indicates that carbon was added intentionally as a “component” to the glass melt to obtain an amber colour.