Back to Uluzzo – archaeological, palaeoenvironmental and chronological context of the Mid–Upper Palaeolithic sequence at Uluzzo C Rock Shelter (Apulia, southern Italy)

Abstract

The tempo and mode of Homo sapiens dispersal in Eurasia and the demise of Neanderthals has sparked debate about the dynamics of Neanderthal extinction and its relationship to the arrival of H. sapiens. In Italy, the so‐called ‘Transition’ from Neanderthals to H. sapiens is related to the Uluzzian technocomplex, i.e. the first archaeological evidence for modern human dispersal on the European continent. This paper illustrates the new chronology and stratigraphy of Uluzzo C, a rock shelter and Uluzzian key site located in the Uluzzo Bay in southern Italy, where excavations are ongoing, refining the cultural sequence known from previous excavations. Microstratigraphic investigation suggests that most of the deposit formed after dismantling of the vault of the rock shelter and due to wind input of loess deflated by the continental shelf. The occasional reactivation of the hydrology of the local karst system under more humid conditions further contributed to the formation of specific layers accumulating former Terra Rossa‐type soil fragments. Superposed on sedimentary processes, strong bioturbation and the mobilization and recrystallization of calcite have been detected. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages from Uluzzo C Rock Shelter are congruent with previously published radiocarbon ages obtained on shell beads and tephrachronology from adjacent sites preserving the Uluzzian technocomplex such as Grotta del Cavallo, confirming the onset for the Uluzzian in the area to ca. 39.2–42.0 ka. The OSL chronology from Uluzzo C also provides a terminus post quem for the end of the Mousterian in the region, constraining the disappearance of the Neanderthals in that part of Italy to ≥46 ± 4 ka.

Integrating ZooMS and zooarchaeology: New data from the Uluzzian levels of Uluzzo C Rock Shelter, Roccia San Sebastiano cave and Riparo del Broion

“…From a cultural point of view, the stratigraphic sequence of Uluzzo C includes a Romanellian layer (A); a sterile layer (B); two Uluzzian layers (C, D); a layer composed by a mixture of Upper Palaeolithic and Mousterian deposits (E); and a large sequence of Mousterian layers (F-L) [ 37 – 39 ]. This sequence was confirmed by the recent excavations, as well as by sedimentological and micromorphological analyses (for a detailed description see [ 40 ]).…”

“…Considering the warm climate of the area (17.6° C is the recorded average annual temperature [ 60 ]) the proximity to the sea, the state of preservation of the remains (i.e. frequent and abundant carbonatic concretions), and the alkaline nature of the sediment with a high amount of carbonates [ 40 ], the scarcity of collagen was expected since these soil characteristics are known to induce the degradation of the organic matter in the samples [ 61 – 64 ]. At Roccia San Sebastiano the better organic preservation of the samples compared to Uluzzo C yielded more data from both the morphological analysis and the ZooMS.…”

“…The latest investigations (2016–2019) involved the stratigraphic excavation of SUs 3, 15+17 (published in [ 24 ]) and SUs 21+22+23+25 which were identified as three distinct phases of the same level of occupation characterised by Uluzzian lithic industry [ 24 ]. Based on the single-grain OSL chronology, the grand weighted mean age for the Uluzzian occupations—layers C, D and E (OSL samples ULOC 3, 4, and 5)—is 40.6±1.4 ka [ 40 ].…”

Shell disc beads and the development of class-based society at the K2-Mapungubwe settlement complex (South Africa)

“…Shell disc beads (SDB) are found in the archaeological record from across the globe since at least 60 kya through to recent times (e.g. Hartzell 1991;Allen et al 1997;Mellars 2006;Bouzouggar et al 2007;Texier et al 2010;Villa et al 2012;Balme and O'Connor 2017;Miller et al 2018;Medchill et al 2020;Gamble 2020;Spinapolice et al 2022;Miller and Wang 2022;Kozuch 2022;Turgeon 2022). In southern Africa, shell beads are often discussed in the context of the region's mobile hunter-gatherer communities (e.g.…”