Tephra studies and the reconstruction of Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic cultural trajectories

d’Errico, Francesco; Banks, William E.

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2014.05.014

Cited by 27 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 78 publications

(104 reference statements)

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“…48 and references therein, Proto-Aurignacian levels according to ref. 49) reveal that the final stages of this techno-culture approach the 14 C age of either CI eruption or of the cultural levels from the CI-sites sealed by the tephra (Fig. 4).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

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High-precision 14C and 40Ar/39Ar dating of the Campanian Ignimbrite (Y-5) reconciles the time-scales of climatic-cultural processes at 40 ka

Giaccio

Hajdas²,

Isaia

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

198

165

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The Late Pleistocene Campanian Ignimbrite (CI) super-eruption (Southern Italy) is the largest known volcanic event in the Mediterranean area. The CI tephra is widely dispersed through western Eurasia and occurs in close stratigraphic association with significant palaeoclimatic and Palaeolithic cultural events. Here we present new high-precision 14C (34.29 ± 0.09 14C kyr BP, 1σ) and 40Ar/39Ar (39.85 ± 0.14 ka, 95% confidence level) dating results for the age of the CI eruption, which substantially improve upon or augment previous age determinations and permit fuller exploitation of the chronological potential of the CI tephra marker. These results provide a robust pair of 14C and 40Ar/39Ar ages for refining both the radiocarbon calibration curve and the Late Pleistocene time-scale at ca. 40 ka. In addition, these new age constraints provide compelling chronological evidence for the significance of the combined influence of the CI eruption and Heinrich Event 4 on European climate and potentially evolutionary processes of the Early Upper Palaeolithic.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…48 and references therein, Proto-Aurignacian levels according to ref. 49). The temporal extent of the Heinrich Event 4 (HE4), in both radiocarbon and calendar time-scales, is also shown.…”

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

High-precision 14C and 40Ar/39Ar dating of the Campanian Ignimbrite (Y-5) reconciles the time-scales of climatic-cultural processes at 40 ka

Giaccio

Hajdas²,

Isaia

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

198

165

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Some authors argue that the emergence of key cultural innovations in our lineage, including complex bone technology, is not the direct consequence of the emergence of anatomically modern humans in Africa. The emergence, disappearance, and reemergence of behavioural innovations among both African and Eurasian populations should instead be attributed to demographic and social events, triggered partially by climatic factors (Backwell et al, 2008;d'Errico and Banks, 2013;d'Errico and Stringer, 2011;Hovers and Belfer-Cohen, 2006;Powell et al, 2009). For these authors, the evolution of human societies in the last 300 ka has followed many paths, not necessarily progressive or incremental in nature, in which the material expression of modern cognition is represented by different mosaics of cultural innovation, which need to be understood and traced at a regional scale.…”

Section: Asian Bone Tools and The "Behavioural Modernity' Debatementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Examples of formal bone tool production in Africa come mostly from coastal or near-coastal South African Middle Stone Age (MSA) sites, including Blombos Cave, (d' Errico and Henshilwood, 2007;Henshilwood et al, 2001), Klasies River (d' Errico and Henshilwood, 2007), Sibudu Cave (Backwell et al, 2008;d'Errico et al, 2012a), and Border Cave (Backwell et al, 2008;d'Errico et al, 2012a). A point tip, a mesial fragment, an almost complete spear point, a tanged bone point and 26 awls are reported from M1 and M2 layers at Blombos Cave, with ages of~84e72 ka (Henshilwood et al, 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ma'anshan cave and the origin of bone tool technology in China

Zhang

d’Errico

Backwell

et al. 2016

Journal of Archaeological Science

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“…Other factors contributing to the difficulty in testing the foregoing hypotheses include persistent uncertainties in the chronology of archaeological sites at the so called Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in Europe (23)(24)(25) and in the taxonomic affiliation of their inhabitants during this period (26)(27)(28).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A rock engraving made by Neanderthals in Gibraltar

Rodriguez‐Vidal

d’Errico

Pacheco

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

237

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The production of purposely made painted or engraved designs on cave walls-a means of recording and transmitting symbolic codes in a durable manner-is recognized as a major cognitive step in human evolution. Considered exclusive to modern humans, this behavior has been used to argue in favor of significant cognitive differences between our direct ancestors and contemporary archaic hominins, including the Neanderthals. Here we present the first known example of an abstract pattern engraved by Neanderthals, from Gorham's Cave in Gibraltar. It consists of a deeply impressed cross-hatching carved into the bedrock of the cave that has remained covered by an undisturbed archaeological level containing Mousterian artifacts made by Neanderthals and is older than 39 cal kyr BP. Geochemical analysis of the epigenetic coating over the engravings and experimental replication show that the engraving was made before accumulation of the archaeological layers, and that most of the lines composing the design were made by repeatedly and carefully passing a pointed lithic tool into the grooves, excluding the possibility of an unintentional or utilitarian origin (e.g., food or fur processing). This discovery demonstrates the capacity of the Neanderthals for abstract thought and expression through the use of geometric forms.Middle Paleolithic | symbolism | art | Iberia | cognition

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Tephra studies and the reconstruction of Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic cultural trajectories

Cited by 27 publications

References 78 publications

High-precision 14C and 40Ar/39Ar dating of the Campanian Ignimbrite (Y-5) reconciles the time-scales of climatic-cultural processes at 40 ka

High-precision 14C and 40Ar/39Ar dating of the Campanian Ignimbrite (Y-5) reconciles the time-scales of climatic-cultural processes at 40 ka

Ma'anshan cave and the origin of bone tool technology in China

A rock engraving made by Neanderthals in Gibraltar

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