Lithic technological choices of late Neandertals in a mountain environment south of the Ebro Valley, Iberian Peninsula (Peña Miel level e)

Garaizar, Joseba Ríos; Eixea, Aleix

doi:10.1007/s12520-021-01360-x

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…Many of these sites are close to the natural corridors of the Mesomediterranean biogeographical region (for example, the Ebro valley or Duero valley). Thus, the persistence of Neanderthal populations in the Supramediterranean region might be related to movements to inner areas during mild conditions, as suggested by previous research 34 , 35 . This idea is reinforced by the fact that the disappearance of the Mousterian in the Supramediterranean region coincided with its disappearance in the Mesomediterranean region.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 52%

Ecosystem productivity affected the spatiotemporal disappearance of Neanderthals in Iberia

et al. 2022

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What role did fluctuations play in biomass availability for secondary consumers in the disappearance of Neanderthals and the survival of modern humans? To answer this, we quantify the effects of stadial and interstadial conditions on ecosystem productivity and human spatiotemporal distribution patterns during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition (50,000–30,000 calibrated years before the present) in Iberia. First, we used summed probability distribution, optimal linear estimation and Bayesian age modelling to reconstruct an updated timescale for the transition. Next, we executed a generalized dynamic vegetation model to estimate the net primary productivity. Finally, we developed a macroecological model validated with present-day observations to calculate herbivore abundance. The results indicate that, in the Eurosiberian region, the disappearance of Neanderthal groups was contemporaneous with a significant decrease in the available biomass for secondary consumers, and the arrival of the first Homo sapiens populations coincided with an increase in herbivore carrying capacity. During stadials, the Mediterranean region had the most stable conditions and the highest biomass of medium and medium–large herbivores. These outcomes support an ecological cause for the hiatus between the Mousterian and Aurignacian technocomplexes in Northern Iberia and the longer persistence of Neanderthals in southern latitudes.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 52%

Ecosystem productivity affected the spatiotemporal disappearance of Neanderthals in Iberia

et al. 2022

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“…Blade and bladelet production in the regional Middle Paleolithic are very rare, and never formed part of the structural productions for the Mousterian Neandertals [ 37 – 40 ]. Additionally, there are no MTA-B assemblages in the Cantabrian Region [ 41 ], while and backed tools associated with Mousterian assemblages, like the Abri Audi knifes, are very rare in the Northern Iberian Peninsula [ 33 , 42 , 43 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The intrusive nature of the Châtelperronian in the Iberian Peninsula

et al. 2022

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Multiple factors have been proposed to explain the disappearance of Neandertals between ca. 50 and 40 kyr BP. Central to these discussions has been the identification of new techno-cultural complexes that overlap with the period of Neandertal demise in Europe. One such complex is the Châtelperronian, which extends from the Paris Basin to the Northern Iberian Peninsula between 43,760–39,220 BP. In this study we present the first open-air Châtelperronian site in the Northern Iberian Peninsula, Aranbaltza II. The technological features of its stone tool assemblage show no links with previous Middle Paleolithic technology in the region, and chronological modeling reveals a gap between the latest Middle Paleolithic and the Châtelperronian in this area. We interpret this as evidence of local Neandertal extinction and replacement by other Neandertal groups coming from southern France, illustrating how local extinction episodes could have played a role in the process of disappearance of Neandertals.

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“…Quartzite was worked similarly to that found in Level e, and the presence of more exhausted cores reveals that flint was exploited more intensely. These differences, added to the changes in environmental conditions, reveal that what is now Level g was more intensely or recurrently occupied, thanks to more favourable weather conditions, whereas the harsher conditions experienced at Level e allowed for a more occasional, perhaps seasonal, occupation (Rios‐Garaizar and Eixea 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low‐cost technologies in a rich ecological context: Hotel California open‐air site at Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain

Santamaría

Ruíz

Arnold

et al. 2023

J Quaternary Science

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Hotel California is part of a network of open‐air Neanderthal sites located in the Sierra de Atapuerca (Burgos, Spain). In this study, we examine the technology of the lithic assemblages recovered from this site's archaeological levels 3 to 7, which are characterised by the use of local raw materials, non‐hierarchical centripetal exploitation systems, systematic production of flakes and few retouched items. This type of expedient technology is repeated throughout the entire sequence, which spans Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 3 to 4. Through a comparison with the technocomplexes and occupation histories of surrounding sites – including a re‐evaluation of the published chronology for the nearby site of Fuente Mudarra, which is now dated exclusively to MIS 5 – we examine whether the detected pattern is applicable to the rest of the Atapuerca Mousterian record and if this expedient behaviour has equivalents in other sites in the region. Our findings show that the lithic procurement, exploitation and configuration strategies employed at the Sierra de Atapuerca open‐air sites were constant over broad time periods spanning MIS 5 to 3, in contrast to the technological sequences observed at other nearby sites on the Northern Iberian Plateau. The recurrent settlement of these open‐air Neanderthal sites over tens of thousands of years and the consistent use of expedient technologies during different occupation periods is likely attributable to the rich ecological context of the Sierra de Atapuerca environs.

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Lithic technological choices of late Neandertals in a mountain environment south of the Ebro Valley, Iberian Peninsula (Peña Miel level e)

Cited by 8 publications

References 61 publications

Ecosystem productivity affected the spatiotemporal disappearance of Neanderthals in Iberia

Ecosystem productivity affected the spatiotemporal disappearance of Neanderthals in Iberia

The intrusive nature of the Châtelperronian in the Iberian Peninsula

Low‐cost technologies in a rich ecological context: Hotel California open‐air site at Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain

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