Our field data from the Upper Palaeolithic site of Al-Ansab 1 (Jordan) and from a pollen sequence in the Dead Sea elucidate the role that changing Steppe landscapes played in facilitating anatomically modern human populations to enter a major expansion and consolidation phase, known as the "Early Ahmarian", several millennia subsequent to their initial Marine Isotope Stage 4/3 migration from Africa, into the Middle East. The Early Ahmarian techno-cultural unit covers a time range between 45 ka-37 ka BP. With so far more than 50 sites found, the Early Ahmarian is the first fully Upper Palaeolithic techno-cultural unit exclusively and undisputedly related to anatomically modern human populations. In order to better understand the potentially attractive features of the Early Ahmarian environmental context that supported its persistence for over 8,000 years, we carried out a decennial research program in Jordan and in the Dead Sea. This included (1) a geoscientific and archaeological survey program in the Wadi Sabra (Jordan) with a particular focus on excavations at the Early Ahmarian site of Al-Ansab 1 alongside the detailed analysis of Quaternary sediments from the same area and (2) palaeobotanical research based on Quaternary lake deposits from the Dead Sea. Our pollen data from the Dead Sea indicate slow, low frequency vegetational variation with expanding Artemisia steppe, from 60 to 20 ka BP (MIS 3-2). Here, we see a reciprocal assimilation of southern and northern Levantine vegetation zones thereby enhancing a long-lasting south-to-north steppe corridor. The same integration process accelerated about 40 ka ago, when forested areas retreated in the Lebanese Mountains. The process then extended to encompass an area from Southern Lebanon to

No abstract

The paleoecology of the giant deer (Megaloceros giganteus), including its dietary preferences, is poorly known, mainly because reconstructions based on morphological characteristics have produced contradictory results. In this study, we propose to reconstruct the diet of the giant deer from five archaeological sites located in Southern Germany and the Harz Mountains using microwear and mesowear analyses. We also include the results of a review of tooth wear data published during the past decade for ten localities in Europe. The objective is to provide a large- scale vision of the diet of the giant deer and to analyse the spatial and temporal diversity of its dietary habits. According to our results, the dietary traits of the giant deer were found to range from leaf browsing to grass-dominated mixed feeding, depending on the vegetation available regionally and seasonally. The combination of the two proxies, mesowear and microwear, al- lowed us to characterize the dietary flexibility of the giant deer. Finally, we discuss the causes of its extirpation and conclude that its extinction was not likely driven by a narrow dietary niche.

The Levant forms a geographic bridge between Africa and Eurasia, making it a focal point for research on past human dispersals. The Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) of the Levant is commonly associated with Homo sapiens' dispersal from Africa to Eurasia, which is characterised by substantial changes in material culture when compared to the preceding Middle Palaeolithic. While many researchers have noticed considerable variability among these IUP lithic assemblages, a systematic evaluation is currently missing. The study presented here addresses this cavity by employing techno-typological data from relevant Levantine IUP assemblages. Statistical methods, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) allow structuring these assemblages into distinct groups. These groups are then reviewed against palaeogeographic data and techno-economic behaviour patterns. Results show that IUP assemblages in the Mediterranean zone are similar to each other in regards to techno-typology, palaeogeography and techno-economic behaviour, being indicative of residential base camps. Contrastingly, assemblages in the semi-arid zone are more variable in regards to techno-typology and techno-economy, indicating more specialised activities such as hunting/butchering, which is often combined with local raw material exploitation.

A technological approach to the analysis of wooden artefacts from stone-tool using cultures remains underdeveloped relative to technologies from other materials such as stone and bone. However, in recent years archaeologists have begun to approach wood assemblages in a systematic manner, including macro- and micro-analyses of traces, and conducting experiments to build reference samples on manufacturing, use and taphonomy. However, there is as yet a lack of established nomenclature that would facilitate intra-site comparisons. Therefore, this glossary and associated code is a first step to initiate a synthesis and standardisation of analytical terms for early wood technologies from stone-tool cultures. An agreement and clear definition of terms is useful to avoid confusion and overlaps pertaining to all phases that help us understand the biography of wooded artefacts. This glossary and code relies both on the collective expertise of the authors as well as on existing publications, particularly those reflecting recent systematic analyses and descriptions of wood technologies and traces from stone-tool using cultures. As a work in progress, we hope to collaborate and communicate with others working on archaeological wood, particularly pertaining to assemblages from stone-tool using cultures.