An Overview of the Archaeological, Radiocarbonic and Palaeoclimatic Record at the Iberian Peninsula During the Middle to Upper Paleolithic Transition

Abstract

The Iberian Peninsula is a significant region for studying the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic Transition (MUPT). Broadly speaking, this transition refers to the period when anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens, AMH) first appeared in the archaeological record of Palaeolithic Europe and the later extinction of Neanderthals in Europe. The Iberian Peninsula is a significant region for studying the causes of the replacement of Neanderthals by Anatomically Modern Humans, as it was one of the last places where these Neanderthals lived. Many theories have been proposed to explain the disappearance of Neanderthals, ranging from competition with Homo sapiens to environmental factors, such as climate change. Here we explore the relationship of the replacement of the Neanderthal by AMH populations and its relationship with climate change, by providing an overview of the archaeological and climate records in Iberian Peninsula during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition (MUPT). Through the use of a relational database (combining archaeological information and radiocarbon dates), Summed Probability of Calibrated Radiocarbon Dates (SPCD), paleoecological records, GIS and Spatial modelling, this chapter examines the timing of the distribution of last Neanderthals and the entrance and distribution of AMH and its populational fluctuations in Iberian periods of climate change.