The Cro-Magnon babies: Morphology and mortuary implications of the Cro-Magnon immature remains

Abstract

Although the adult skeletons discovered in 1868 at the Cro-Magnon site (Dordogne, France) have been studied several times, the immature remains known as Cro-Magnon 5 and exhumed at the same time were only analyzed in detail once, some thirty years ago. Since then, doubts have persisted concerning, in particular, the minimum number of immature individuals present in the assemblage. A re-analysis of these immature remains (cranial fragments and long bone diaphyses) documents the presence of three neonates and one older infant in the sample. They are morphologically and metrically similar to recent and Late Pleistocene modern human infants, although the metaphyses of one femur are modestly unusual. They also document an unusual mortuary age profile at Cro-Magnon, with four infants, three older adults, and an additional adult, which raises questions about the manner of selection of individuals deposited in the Cro-Magnon rock-shelter.

Complex mortuary dynamics in the Upper Paleolithic of the decorated Grotte de Cussac, France

“…The Cussac sample is composed of teenagers and adults with no evidence of infant or juvenile remains. This demographic profile is not uncommon for the Gravettian, but it is for southwestern France, where infants and children are relatively abundant (19,26,27). Cussac L2A displays an unusually small body size and limb proportions, as well as unusual skull morphology, for a Gravettian male (15, 16) (SI Appendix).…”

Describing Cro-Magnon: The femora, tibiae and fibulae

“…Although the human skeletal assemblage from the site was described in variable detail by Broca (1868) and Pruner-Bey (1868), and reassessed 100 years later by and Dastugue (1967), these human remains from Cro-Magnon have remained poorly known despite the incorporation of data from them into Late Pleistocene comparative analyses. In this context, and in the framework of a broader refocus on western Eurasian Upper Paleolithic human paleobiology, we have undertaken the reassessment of the Cro-Magnon human remains (Villotte and Balzeau, 2018;Partiot et al, 2020;.…”

Disentangling Cro-Magnon: The dental and alveolar remains

“…Although described in relative detail by and Pruner-Bey (1865-75) shortly after their discovery, and reassessed 100 years later by , the human skeletal assemblage from Cro-Magnon has remained poorly known despite the incorporation of various elements into Late Pleistocene comparative analyses. In this context, and in the 3 framework of a broader refocus on western Eurasian Upper Paleolithic human paleobiology, we have undertaken the reassessment of the Cro-Magnon human remains (Thibeault and Villotte, 2018;Villotte and Balzeau, 2018;Partiot et al, 2020;Villotte et al, 2020); in this contribution, we provide a description and reassessment of the dental and alveolar remains of the adults.…”