The Danube Corridor Hypothesis and the Carpathian Basin: Geological, Environmental and Archaeological Approaches to Characterizing Aurignacian Dynamics

Abstract

Early Upper Paleolithic sites in the Danube catchment have been put forward as evidence that the river was an important conduit for modern humans during their initial settlement of Europe. Central to this model is the Carpathian Basin, a region covering most of the Middle Danube. As the archaeological record of this region is still poorly understood, this paper aims to provide a contextual assessment of the Carpathian Basin's geological and paleoenvironmental archives, starting with the late Upper Pleistocene. Subsequently, it compiles early Upper Paleolithic data from the region to provide a synchronic appraisal of the Aurignacian archaeological evidence. It then uses this data to test whether the relative absence of early Upper Paleolithic sites is obscured by a taphonomic bias. Finally, it reviews current knowledge of the Carpathian Basin's archaeological record and concludes that, while it cannot reject the Danube corridor hypothesis, further (geo) archaeological work is required to understand the link between the Carpathian Basin and Central and Southeastern Europe.

New data for the Early Upper Paleolithic of Kostenki (Russia)

“…Our results from Kostenki 17/II are evidence for AMH activity on the East European Plain by ~36 ka BP (41 ka cal BP), approximately contemporary with early AMH-associated Upper Paleolithic assemblages elsewhere in Europe. These results must therefore be incorporated into future models of the vector(s) of initial AMH dispersal into Europe, and provide an important counterpoint to prevailing models that are heavily focused on dispersal along the Danube or Mediterranean coast (Conard and Bolus, 2003;Mellars, 2006a,b;Hoffecker, 2009;Nigst et al, 2014;Benazzi et al, 2015;Chu, 2018 blade and bladelet production at the site followed unipolar strategies, with large, straightprofiled bladelets produced from burin-cores. The frequency of burin-cores in the assemblage indicates the overall importance of bladelet (rather than blade) production.…”

The Paleolithic in Hungary

“…Characteristic Aurignacian lithic assemblages were reported only from open-air sites yet unexcavated in eastern Hungary, for instance Nagyréde near Mátra Mountains (Chu 2018;Chu et al 2018;Lengyel et al 2006). Typologically, the carinated endscraper, nosed endscraper, carinated burin, busked burin and retouched blades are clear characters of the Early Aurignacian.…”

Thinking Outside the Box at Open-Air Archeological Contexts: Examples From Loess Landscapes in Southeast Romania

“…The role of the Danube as a corridor for prehistoric humans into Europe remains an intriguing hypothesis. However, this concept is based on a small handful of sites at geographic endpoints of the proposed route (Conard and Bolus, 2003;Chu, 2018), coupled with paleoenvironmental data suggesting that the region represented a relatively mild refuge during glacial phases (Fitzsimmons et al, 2012;Obreht et al, 2017). Substantial and widespread volcanic ash deposits in the lower Danube catchment (Anechitei-Deacu et al, 2014;Veres et al, 2013), deriving from the Campanian Ignimbrite eruption coeval with modern human arrival into Europe and projected Neandertal extinction (Fedele et al, 2008), have further sparked animated debate (Lowe et al, 2012;Fitzsimmons et al, 2013).…”