Joan García1,
Kenneth Martínez1, Antoni Canals1, Jordi Rosell1, Ethel
Allué1 Diego Angelucci3, Dolores García-Antón Tressierras1,
Rosa Huguet2, Pamira Saladié1
1 Àrea de
Prehistòria. Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Plaça Imperial Tarraco, 1 43005 Tarragona
España
2
Departamento de Paleobiología. Museo
Nacional de Ciencia Naturales. C/ José Gutierrez Abascal, 2 28005 Madrid, España
3
Dipartimento di Sienze Geologiche e Paleontologiche. Università di Ferrara. Corso Ercole
I d'Este, 32. I-44100 Ferrara, Italia
Email: JoanGarcia@prehistoria.urv.es
and Kenneth@prehistoria.urv.es
-----------------------------------
The archaeological sites from the
Northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, with later Middle Palaeolithic and early Upper
Palaeolithic which show datings between 30 and 40 kyr BP, has aroused controversy in
relation to the coexistence of Neanderthals and Homo
sapiens. These populations occupied and organised themselves in the same territory
exploiting the same resources.
The information obtained from the
systematic study of the site of Las Fuentes de San Cristòbal, contributes with
significant data to explain this controversy. The Fuentes de San Cristòbal record has
provided dates in relation to the palaeoeconomy, occupation strategies, palaeoecology etc.
in a 5 meters sequence with 9 archaeological layers. The lithic material, the faunal
associations and the hearths permit to explain a spatial organisation, which show long
term occupation at the sites. The hearths were the focus of this spatial organisation.
The coexistence of these two
communities based in the different datings of the regional sites shows that there were no
physical borders and that the presence of the Upper Palaeolithic communities did not
influenced on the mousterians ones. The later kept the same technology until 30 kyrs BP.
Chacón, M. G., Fernández, M. C., Martínez, K. & Rando, J. M.
This paper presents the results of
the study of the archaeological record and the spatial patterning of the Abric Romaní
level K, the first unit of the whole stratigraphic succession which were excavated in
extent (279 m2). The archaeological record of the unit is distributed in
archaeostratigraphically well defined anthropic accumulations. The results are interpreted
under a paleoethnographically perspective.
A clear pattern has been documented
in the occupied surface. The productive activities are associated to the hearth
structures. Inside the anthropic accumulations we found the largest ones with higher
density of materials, where several production and consumption activities have been
documented, and smaller accumulations, which are complementary to the other ones, as it is
shown by lithic refitting analysis results. This study shows the existence of two
different and complementary zones: one is located inside the shelter related to household
activities, and the other one, located outside, related to specialized and intensive
activities.
This multidisciplinary study includes
the lithic assemblage technological and functional analysis, the bone assemblage taxonomic
and taphonomic analysis, and, finally, the spatial analysis of the site record. We try to
reach a global interpretation about the activities and their spatial organization, to
determine what kind of surface occupation strategies were applied in order to extend the
available information about the behaviour pattern of Upper Pleistocene hominids.
The level K of Abric Romaní is an example of the high complexity degree of intrasite functional organization in the Middle Palaeolithic settlements.
Manuel Vaquero, Area de
Prehistoria. Universitat Rovira i Virgili Pl. Imperial Tarraco, 1, 43005
Tarragona, España
---------------------------------
The hearth-related assemblages
are a key feature for understanding the behavioural patterns of neandertals. The central
role played by hearths in settlement strategies has been well documented by
ethnoarchaeology among hunter-gatherer groups. In recent years, an increasing amount of
evidence has been archaeologically obtained indicating that these features were also a
well-defined spatial unit in Middle Palaeolithic sites. This has important implications in
order to evaluate the cultural capabilities of neandertals, since the location of
activities around hearths reflects the social structure and the communication abilities of
culturally modern groups. The excavations carried out at the Abric Romaní site
(Capellades, Barcelona, Spain) have provided good examples of hearth-related assemblages
in a well defined spatial and cronostratigraphic context. The analysis of the
archaeological remains associated to these features indicates that the neandertal
behaviour shows characteristics similar to those described for modern hunter-gatherers.
From this point of view, these features suggest an approach to neandertal social
structure.
Jesús F. Jordá-Pardo, Laboratorio de Estudios del
Paleolítico. Dpto. de Prehistoria e Historia Antigua. Facultad de Humanidades.
Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia. C/ Senda del Rey, s/n. Ciudad
Universitaria. E28040 Madrid (Spain). E. Mail: jorda-sm@teleline.es
----------------------------
The Upper Jarama Valley (Guadalajara,
Spain) is located on the southern slope of the eastern part of the spanish Central Range.
In this area Jarama river cuts and runs through a narrow strip of dolomite and limestone
(Upper Cretaceous) tilted towards the south-west and affected by a strong karstification.
This karstic system is spanned by Jarama River, creating a karstic canyon with many caves
and rockshelters in the cliffs of both banks. Some of these caves have Quaternary
stratigraphic records. Jarama VI rockshelter is located on the left bank of Jarama River,
20 m above the river; the archaeological excavation accomplished showed the following
lithostratigraphic sequence:
- Level 4. Carbonated white sands
product of the rock substratum weathering.
- Level 3. Grey, brown and red-brown
sands and matrix clay conglomerate with shale gravels and quartzite and shale pebbles in
abundance and also angular blocks and pebbles of limestone. They come from autochthonous
contributions provided by cryoclastic processes from cave ceiling which have been reworked
later by the river water on the rockshelter outmost area, incorporating also fluvial
clasts. There are Mousterian lithic industry, as well as bone remains from macromammals (Bos/Bison
sp., Rupicapra rupicapra, Cervus elaphus, Equus caballus and Rhinocerotidae
indet.) and micromammals (Microtus sp., Rodentia indet.).
- Level 2. Sands and silts
alternation. The sandy facies correspond to overflowing deposits containing many
sedimentary structures. On the top of the
stratum silt materials derived from the flood plain, there are bone remains and Mousterian
lithic industry scattered, and occasionally are disposed in a concentrated way around a
small combustion structure (Beta-56639). Intrusions of archaeological materials are also
detected in the sand levels produced by the postdepositional biological activity. These
typically fluvial deposits, where overflowing and flood plain facies are detected, have
their origin in a fluvial superflood. At the top part of this level and inside the rock
shelter there are clastic intercalations plenty of Mousterian lithic artefacts with a
radiocarbon date (Beta-56638). The faunal remains are represented by macromammals (R.
rupicapra, C. elaphus), micromammals (Pliomys cf. lenki, Microtus
arvalis-agrestis group, Apodemus sp., cf. Oryctolagus cuniculus y
Rodentia indet), birds (Alectoris rufa, Pica pica and Pyrrhocorax graculus),
amphibious (Pelobates cultripes) and Pisces indet.
- Level 1. Reddish sands and clays
with angular autochthonous limestone pebbles. Its lower limit is erosive. The level origin
is due to the autochthonous contributions derived from cryoclastic processes from the cave
ceiling and fine materials diffuse swept away in a cold and dry environment. This level
contains a huge archaeological lithic artefacts accumulation from the Early Upper
Paleolithic, as well as bone remains of macrommals (Bos/Bison sp., R. rupicapra,
C. elaphus, E. caballus, Rhinocerontidae indet. and Canidae indet.), micromammals
(Soricidae indet., M. arvalis-agrestis group, Allocricetus bursae, Sciurus
vulgaris, cf. O. Cuniculus and Rodentia indet.), birds (A. Rufa, Coturnix
coturnix, Columba livia/oenas, Bubo bubo, Falco sp., P. pica, Pyrrocorax, P.
graculus, Corvus corone and Corvidae indet.), reptiles (Lacerta lepida), and
anphibious (Bufo bufo). Furthermore, from a level collapse between two consecutive
excavation seasons it was recovered a Homo sp. tooth. A material intrusion from
this level in level 2 has provided the following radiocarbon date Beta-56640 obtained
through charcoal.
- Level K. Breccia and stalagmitic
crust.
In order to get an isotopic
chronology for the different levels of the site, a radiocarbon or 14C dates
series was accomplished. For this reason three charcoal samples were sent to the Beta
Analytic Inc. Laboratory at Miami (Florida, USA). In a first approach, the radiocarbon
dates from Jarama VI locate the site in the chronostratigraphic scale. Therefore, both
dates Beta-56639 32.600 + 1.860 BP and Beta-56638 29.500 + 2.700 BP let
placed the upper part of level 2 somewhere on the Later Upper Pleistocene, between the
isotopic stages 3 and 2. While the Beta-56640 23.380 + 500 BP would place level 1
in the middle of the isotopic stage 2.
Both earlier dates (Beta-56639 and
Beta-56638) have been obtained associated to mousterian industries and they open new
perspectives for studying of this period in the central part of the Iberian Peninsula. In
fact, Jarama VI level 2 is some 8.000 year earlier than the highest Mousterian level from
Romaní rockshelter (Barcelona) dated through Uranium series1. Likewise, this
date is 6.000 years earlier than AMS 14C dates obtained on the aurignacian
levels from Arbreda cave (Gerona)2 and El Castillo cave (Cantabria)3.
This date agrees with those from Zafarraya (Málaga), located between 32-29 ka4.
In such a context, Jarama VI dates establish the long-term lasting of the Middle
Paleolithic on the Iberian Peninsula, phenomenon already showed in the last years by some
researchers5, 6. Another evidence for the Middle Paleolithic settlement in the
area is found on several sites from Guadalajara Province. Some of them even have
neandertalians palaeoanthropological remains, as in Los Casares and Los Torrejones cave,
although in the latter the remains are ascribed to Homo cf. neanderthalensis.
According to sample Beta-56638, its location inside level 2 indicates accurately the
limits of its upper part. The wide scope of the sample makes an overlap with the former,
Beta-56639, whose typical deviation is also wide. Likewise the former sample, this one
comes from a Middle Paleolithic stone industries context, allowing a long term lasting of
these industries around 30 ka in this part of the Spanish central plateau. Furthermore,
this date is also related to the long term lasting of the Middle Paleolithic in other
areas of the Iberian Peninsula5, 6, 7.
The third date shows certain
interpretation problems. Until now, the level 1 has been allocated to the Middle
Paleolithic, but the nature of their technological remains, made mainly on quartz and rock
crystal, makes difficult such an identification. There are in addition some elements quite
similar to those from the Upper Paleolithic, like the little abrupt retouched pieces, for
instance. Therefore, waiting for accomplishing the techno-tipological study, this date
could be considered an intrusion of the sediments and charcoal from level 1, which could
be located somewhere at the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic. In a wider context, this
date can be correlated with the one from N.V.12-B level from Nerja cave (Málaga),
UBAR-342 23.400 + 2.300 BP, corresponding to one of the base levels of the cave
where have been found lithic industries ascribed to the Early Upper Paleolithic8.
Within a second approach to the data
from the site record, the sedimentological characteristics of Jarama VI deposits can be
interpreted in palaeoclimatic terms. So, levels 1 and 3 are related to cold climatic
episodes, the lower (level 3) moister and the upper (level 1) drier. Level 2 shows both
moist and temperate climate with super-floods9 events that caused a fluvial
sedimentation on the rock shelter (due to a huge flood of Jarama River), similar to those
described in other fluvial environments.The silt sedimentation of the ending of this
specific process of the inundation plain - the ending of this specific process - is dated
by the sample Beta-56639 circa 32.600 + 1.860 BP. The Jarama VI sedimentary
sequence begins with a sterile level originated on the stratum alteration. A cold
autochthonous clastic deposit follows it with a human occupation clearly located on the
Middle Paleolithic (level 3) that has not been possible to date through the 14C
method. The upper part of the level was affected by a strong erosion due to a huge
palaeoflood, which caused the sedimentation of a sandy series (sub-level 2.3) that ends in
flood silts (sub-level 2.2). On these silts, once the water withdrew, occasional Middle
Paleolithic human occupations are shown. These occupations are dated between Beta-56639
32.600 + 1.860 BP date, which shows the flood ending, and Beta-56638 29.500 +
2.700 BP, corresponding to autochthonous clastic sedimentation inserted on the upper part
of the silts (sub-level 2.1). There is a stratigraphic hiatus due to erosion processes
that separates level 2 and level 1. Level 1 has a cold autochthonous clastic nature
containing many human occupation remains from Early Upper Paleolithic age. Although these
remains could not be directly dated by radiocarbon method, they could be dated through an
indirect way, when admitting for this level the Beta-56640 sample dated circa 23.380 +
500 BP.The sequence is sealed by a stalagmitic crust today almost disappeared.
The radiocarbon dated from Jarama VI
are a major contribution for establishing a chronostratigraphic sequence for the Later
Upper Pleistocene in an area of the Iberian Peninsula where there hardly were any isotopic
data. At the same time, new perspectives relating Middle and Upper Paleolithic human
activities in the central part of Spain are opened, an area not much studied and known.
Furthermore, within the Spanish scene, these radiocarbon dates show the lasting of
cultural elements from the Mousterian (Middle Paleolithic) ascribed to Homo
neanderthalensis until recent dates of the Upper Pleistocene, establishing in this
area the location of the cultural change between the Middle and Upper Paleolithic.
References
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Acknowledgements:
This study has been accomplished in the setting of the project Prehistoric
Research on the Upper Jarama Valley (Valdesotos, Guadalajara, Spain) directed by J.F.
Jordá-Pardo and financed by the Government of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain).