Testing a hypothesis about the importance of the quality of raw material on technological changes at Abric Romaní (Capellades, Spain): Some considerations using a high-resolution techno-economic perspective

Abstract

Abstract:Technological changes have been identified in several European Middle Palaeolithic sites. Specifically, the turnover in discoid and Levallois knapping methods has traditionally been explained by raw material constraints that are usually related to foraging areas and mobility strategies of Neanderthal groups. While Levallois production requires high homogeneous blocks, predominant discoid techno-complexes have generally been interpreted as better adapted to the scarcity of high quality raw material, not only for the lowest degree of control in products morphology, but also for their multitask characteristics. Nevertheless, the impact of the quality of raw material has never been systematically studied. Furthermore, technological analyses usually consider the lithic assemblage as a whole and do not dissect assemblages to identify single events, which are units that are needed to interpret relationships between technological organisation, human mobility, economic strategies, and settlement patterns. Here, we present an application of technological analysis with a high-resolution approach to investigate, in detail, how raw material quality affected production and how Neanderthals managed the low quality of Sant Martí de Tous chert within Levallois and discoid concepts. We used Raw Material Units and refits as units of analysis with a diacritical approach. The results suggested that the Levallois organisation of the reduction sequence in layer O included a phase of selection of the block and its systematic cutting-down, as well as quite standardised productive procedures and a high fragmentation of the productive sequence within the landscape. In layer M discoid sequences showed a high internal variability as a response to raw material constraints, and most of the production was usually manufactured at the site. Data implied that factors others than the quality of raw material determined the technological turnover at Abric Romaní, suggesting that social organisation and settlement patterns have most probably played a more significant role than foraging area.

Here and now or a previously planned strategy? Rethinking the concept of ramification for micro-production in expedient contexts: Implications for Neanderthal socio-economic behaviour

“…Thanks to its expedient features, almost any individual in the human group inhabiting the site could have performed this behaviour; it was advantageous in the case of participation in production and functional tasks by people with different degrees of knapping skills. In this respect, it is interesting to note that the overall technological organisation in this layer was based on the application of informal production methods that were highly adapted to the morphological constraints of the raw material, allowing resource diversification and reduction of technological costs (Chacón et al, 2013;Vaquero et al, 2015;Romagnoli et al, 2016a). The implementation of complexity in the Late Middle Palaeolithic is now well established due to the identification of symbolic behaviour, such as the use of ornaments and pigments (Bar-Yosef Mayer et al, 2009;Zilhão et al, 2010;Peresani et al, 2013;Soressi et al, 2013;Romandini et al, 2014); increased technological elaboration, including non-lithic adaptations (Carbonell and Castro-Curel, 1992;Mallye et al, 2012;Solé et al, 2013;Romagnoli et al, 2016b); and the use of mastics and multi-component tools (Villa et al, 2009;Pawlik and Thissen, 2011;Rots, 2015).…”

“…The most exploited chert formation was Sant Martí de Tous (SMT, 75.7%), located approximately 15 km north-west from the site and characterised by blocks with variable degrees of homogeneity (Soto et al, 2014;Gómez de Soler, 2016). The constraints imposed by the heterogeneous grain-size and homogeneity of SMT chert blocks and the lack of strict criteria for block selection at the beginning of the chaînes opératoires were efficiently bypassed through the implementation of highly flexible knapping methods allowed by the application of a bifacial exploitation concept in which alternating bifacial and secant and bifacial and orthogonal removals were extracted from the same core (Romagnoli et al, 2016a). The most distant chert outcrops that had been exploited by Neanderthals at the site were in the Panadella formation (PAN) approximately 25 km north-west from the site.…”

Using archaeological data and sediment parameters to review the formation of the Gravettian layers at Krems‐Wachtberg

“…In the case of large assemblages, raw material‐based approaches have been demonstrated to be powerful tools to make a useful selection for lithic refitting (e.g. Cahen, 1987; Bleed, 2004; Romagnoli et al ., 2016). Due to various constraints (sample size, time, expertise, funding) it is not always possible to examine each artefact.…”

“…Macroscopic pre‐grouping relied on rock texture, visible impurities, transparency and colour ( cf . Romagnoli et al ., 2016). Microscopic examination focussed on petrographic criteria including microstructure, i.e.…”

On identifying Palaeolithic single occupation episodes: archaeostratigraphic and technological approaches to the Neanderthal lithic record of stratigraphic unit xa of El Salt (Alcoi, eastern Iberia)

“…Our technological analyses are based on the RMU concept (cf. Adler et al 2003;Conard and Adler 1997;Roebroeks 1988). The raw material groups were defined by the combination of geophysical traits, such as grain size, inclusions, halos, opacity or cortex type, macroscopically and microscopically identified and analysed (Machado et al 2017;Molina et al 2010).…”