Paleoindian ochre mines in the submerged caves of the Yucatán Peninsula, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Abstract

<jats:p>Investigations in the now-submerged cave systems on the Yucatán Peninsula continue to yield evidence for human presence during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. Skeletal remains are scattered throughout the caves of Quintana Roo, most representing individuals who died in situ. The reasons why they explored these underground environments have remained unclear. Here, we announce the discovery of the first subterranean ochre mine of Paleoindian age found in the Americas, offering compelling evidence for mining in three cave systems on the eastern Yucatán over a ~2000-year period between ~12 and 10 ka. The cave passages exhibit preserved evidence for ochre extraction pits, speleothem digging tools, shattered and piled flowstone debris, cairn navigational markers, and hearths yielding charcoal from highly resinous wood species. The sophistication and extent of the activities demonstrate a readiness to venture into the dark zones of the caves to prospect and collect what was evidently a highly valued mineral resource.</jats:p>

Fell points from Merín Lagoon, Uruguay: new data and their relevance to the peopling of south-eastern South America

“…The discovery of submerged Palaeoindian sites in Florida (USA) and Mexico (e.g. Faught 2004; MacDonald et al 2020) supports this interpretation, as do finds of fishtail points from Margarita Island (Venezuela), which was probably joined to the continent via the exposed Atlantic shelf during the Late Pleistocene (Nami 2016). Given these indications, and the fact that many Fell point sites and finds are located in the ‘Southern Cone’ of South America, the study of Palaeoindian evidence from locales near the Atlantic seaboard is particularly significant.…”

Invasive and Non-Invasive Analyses of Ochre and Iron-Based Pigment Raw Materials: A Methodological Perspective

“…In order to take into account their geological and mineralogical diversity, multi-analytical approaches were favoured (Table 1). A common attribute of successful ochre studies is the combination of two main types of analyses: petrographic or mineralogical analyses on one hand; elementary analyses on the other (see e.g., [4,24,25,28,29,32,34,[40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47]).…”

“…The scanning mode allows for the analysis of areas of several hundred micrometers, but also of small particles of no more than 1 or 2 µm [96]. This makes SEM-EDXS analyses ideal for the characterization of a matrix or cement that is composed of clay particles with silt and sand-sized inclusions dispersed in it (combination of both semi-quantitative and qualitative approaches; [16,27,37,42,46,74]). Proton beams have a higher penetration depth, but it is still lower than the penetration depth of an X-ray beam [95,97].…”

Arte rupestre y biogeografía humana en el norte del Neuquén (Patagonia): lineamientos conceptuales para el estudio multiescalar de procesos de comunicación visual y circulación de información

“…Se aplican técnicas físico-químicas de análisis (por ej. Microscopía, RAMAN, SEM-EDS) para profundizar en diversos aspectos de los motivos rupestres (composicionales, técnicos, visuales, de inversión laboral, temporales) que conllevan el potencial de revelar información -intencional o no intencional-sobre las prácticas involucradas en la producción rupestre y sus implicancias en términos de movilidad, territorialidad y organización espacial humana, entre otros aspectos (Fiore 2009;Sepúlveda 2009Sepúlveda , 2020MacDonald et al 2019MacDonald et al , 2020; entre otros). De forma excepcional, como en el caso de aplicación utilizado aquí como ejemplo, esta información resultó un insumo fundamental para avanzar en la generación de cronologías cronométricas (Romero Villanueva et al 2021b).…”