A refined chronology for the Middle and early Upper Paleolithic sequence of Riparo Mochi (Liguria, Italy)

Frouin, Marine; Douka, Katerina; Dave, Aditi Krishna; Schwenninger, Jean‐Luc; Mercier, Norbert; Murray, Andrew; Santaniello, Fabio; Boschian, Giovanni; Grimaldi, Stefano; Higham, Thomas

doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103211

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…The available chronological framework supports a north-to-south terrestrial diffusion route of the PA 97 . Notably, the oldest PA occupations at Mochi on the Ligurian coast coincide with the modeled age for the onset of the Uluzzian at Castelcivita 16,18 . The Uluzzian is currently attributed to Homo sapiens 7,19 , and this fragmented cultural landscape suggests that complex biocultural processes were ongoing between at least 44 and 40 ka.…”

Section: Contextualizing the Lithic Assemblages From Layers Rsa' Gic ...supporting

confidence: 55%

“…In Italy, carinated technology is more markedly associated with regions where foragers relied on low-quality raw materials and/or small-sized pebbles 38 , 119 , 130 , suggesting that inter-regional differences in the frequency of carinated cores may also be influenced by the quality and abundance of raw materials. Delving into this research question may also help explain why, in certain regions such as northern Italy, the PA–EA shift is either not evident 27 , 32 or occurs later 16 , 17 than at Castelcivita. This discussion, however, should be deferred until new dating frameworks and comprehensive assessments of the integrity of lithic assemblages are thoroughly addressed for all sites.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some of the most crucial sites for understanding the early stages of the Aurignacian lie to the south of the Alps and along the Italian Peninsula 13,14 . In northern Italy, the onset of the Aurignacian is dated to ~ 43-42 ka cal BP [15][16][17] . Notably, at the sites of Riparo Bombrini and Grotta di Fumane (Fig.…”

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confidence: 99%

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A pre-Campanian Ignimbrite techno-cultural shift in the Aurignacian sequence of Grotta di Castelcivita, southern Italy

Falcucci,

Arrighi,

Spagnolo

et al. 2024

Sci Rep

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The Aurignacian is the first European technocomplex assigned to Homo sapiens recognized across a wide geographic extent. Although archaeologists have identified marked chrono-cultural shifts within the Aurignacian mostly by examining the techno-typological variations of stone and osseous tools, unraveling the underlying processes driving these changes remains a significant scientific challenge. Scholars have, for instance, hypothesized that the Campanian Ignimbrite (CI) super-eruption and the climatic deterioration associated with the onset of Heinrich Event 4 had a substantial impact on European foraging groups. The technological shift from the Protoaurignacian to the Early Aurignacian is regarded as an archaeological manifestation of adaptation to changing environments. However, some of the most crucial regions and stratigraphic sequences for testing these scenarios have been overlooked. In this study, we delve into the high-resolution stratigraphic sequence of Grotta di Castelcivita in southern Italy. Here, the Uluzzian is followed by three Aurignacian layers, sealed by the eruptive units of the CI. Employing a comprehensive range of quantitative methods—encompassing attribute analysis, 3D model analysis, and geometric morphometrics—we demonstrate that the key technological feature commonly associated with the Early Aurignacian developed well before the deposition of the CI tephra. Our study provides thus the first direct evidence that the volcanic super-eruption played no role in this cultural process. Furthermore, we show that local paleo-environmental proxies do not correlate with the identified patterns of cultural continuity and discontinuity. Consequently, we propose alternative research paths to explore the role of demography and regional trajectories in the development of the Upper Paleolithic.

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Section: Contextualizing the Lithic Assemblages From Layers Rsa' Gic ...supporting

confidence: 55%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A pre-Campanian Ignimbrite techno-cultural shift in the Aurignacian sequence of Grotta di Castelcivita, southern Italy

Falcucci,

Arrighi,

Spagnolo

et al. 2024

Sci Rep

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“…A growing body of data suggests that this biocultural process was the result of multiple migrations, some of which might have been very old and less successful (Benazzi et al, 2011;Harvati et al, 2019;Hublin et al, 2020;Slimak et al, 2022). By 42 thousand years ago, however, Aurignacian assemblages are found all along the Mediterranean basin and Central Europe, making this technocomplex the most solid archaeological evidence for the definitive spread of Homo sapiens populations (Benazzi et al, 2011(Benazzi et al, , 2015Davies, 2007;Frouin et al, 2022;Higham et al, 2014;Hoffecker, 2009;Hublin, 2015;Mellars, 2006;Teyssandier et al, 2010;Wood et al, 2014). The association between Aurignacian assemblages and Homo sapiens remains is solid (Dujardin, 2001;Verna et al, 2012).…”

Section: Foreword Definition and Geographymentioning

confidence: 99%

Unravelling technological behaviors through core reduction intensity. The case of the early Protoaurignacian assemblage from Fumane Cave.

Lombao,

Falcucci,

Moos

et al. 2023

Preprint

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This paper investigates core reduction intensity in the early Protoaurignacian lithic assemblage from Fumane Cave in northeastern Italy. Here, reduction intensity was used as a means to characterize blank selection strategies and raw material management, explore the variability of knapping strategies throughout the reduction sequence by reconstructing the operatory field of core assemblages, and finally address the relationship between blades and bladelets. The latter aspect was particularly important to gain insights into the behavioral and chrono-cultural significance of laminar productions in the framework of the Aurignacian technocomplex. To meet these goals, experimental work was conducted thanks to 3D scanning technology to compare different methods and variables for measuring reduction intensity, including the percentage of non-cortical surface, the Scar Density Index (SDI), and a novel adaptation of the Volumetric Reconstruction Method (VRM). Results demonstrate the effectiveness and potential of adapting VRM for studying reduction intensity in Upper Paleolithic laminar cores, and the provided R scripts and datasets will enable this method to be applied to other contexts with little or no modification of the workflow. The reduction intensity measures applied to the Protoaurignacian assemblage from Fumane Cave reveal slight variations depending on the abundance and proximity of available raw materials selected for blank production. Not surprisingly, the most abundant raw material variety – the Maiolica – has the largest number of less reduced cores, although reduction is fairly high across all cores discarded at the site. The observed variability in the operatory field and the interrelation between blade and bladelet productions underscore the complexity and flexibility of Protoaurignacian human behavior, which also complicate a definitive separation between the operatory fields of blade and bladelet productions. These findings are particularly important to emphasize the importance of considering reduction intensity when examining technological variability and human behavior in Aurignacian studies. We hope that the proposed adaptation of the VRM and the effective combination with other measures of reduction will allow future studies to rightfully incorporate reduction intensity as a temporal component in studies on stone tool production to enhance our understanding of the adaptive behaviors of Homo sapiens in diverse ecological settings and better frame the development of the Upper Paleolithic.

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The evolution of pyrotechnology in the Upper Palaeolithic of Europe

Murphree

Aldeias

2022

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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Pyrotechnology, the ability for hominins to use fire as a tool, is considered to be one of the most important behavioural adaptations in human evolution. While several studies have focused on identifying the emergence of fire use and later Middle Palaeolithic Neanderthal combustion features, far fewer have focused on modern human fire use. As a result, we currently have more data characterizing the hominin fire use prior to 50,000 years before present (BP), than we do for Upper Palaeolithic of Europe. Here we review the available data on Upper Palaeolithic fire evidence between 48,000 and 13,000 years BP to understand the evolution of modern human pyrotechnology. Our results suggest regional clustering of feature types during the Aurignacian and further demonstrate a significant change in modern human fire use, namely in terms of the intensification and structural variation between 35,000 and 28,000 years BP. This change also corresponds to the development and spread of the Gravettian technocomplex throughout Europe and may correspond to a shift in the perception of fire. Additionally, we also show a significant lack of available high-resolution data on combustion features during the height of last glacial maximum. Furthermore, we highlight the need for more research into the effects of syn- and post-depositional processes on archaeological combustion materials and a need for more standardization of descriptions in the published literature. Overall, our review shows a significant and complex developmental process for Upper Palaeolithic fire use which in many ways mirrors the behavioural evolution of modern humans seen in other archaeological mediums.

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A refined chronology for the Middle and early Upper Paleolithic sequence of Riparo Mochi (Liguria, Italy)

Cited by 6 publications

References 63 publications

A pre-Campanian Ignimbrite techno-cultural shift in the Aurignacian sequence of Grotta di Castelcivita, southern Italy

A pre-Campanian Ignimbrite techno-cultural shift in the Aurignacian sequence of Grotta di Castelcivita, southern Italy

Unravelling technological behaviors through core reduction intensity. The case of the early Protoaurignacian assemblage from Fumane Cave.

The evolution of pyrotechnology in the Upper Palaeolithic of Europe

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