To date, in Africa, evidence for animal processing and consumption in caves routinely used as living spaces is only documented in the late Middle Pleistocene of the North and South of the continent ...and postdates the Middle Pleistocene in East Africa. Here we report the earliest evidence in a North-African cave (Grotte des Rhinocéros at Casablanca, Morocco) of cut, percussion and human gnawing marks on faunal remains directly associated with lithic knapping activities in the same space and in a well-documented stratified context. Ages for this Acheulean site are provided by the dating of herbivorous teeth to 690-720 ka and 520-550 ka (lower and upper sets) by combined Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) and U-series techniques. Traces of butchery on gazelle, alcelaphin, and zebra bones demonstrate that hominins had primary access to herbivore carcasses. Hominins brought and consumed meat in the cave, as documented by herbivore bones bearing human tooth marks concentrated in a circumscribed area of the excavation. In Africa, this site provides the earliest evidence for in situ carcass processing and meat-eating in cave, directly associated with lithic production and demonstrates the recurrent use by early Middle Pleistocene hominins of a North African cave site 400 000 years before that by Homo sapiens at Jebel Irhoud (Morocco).
Depuis 2006, plusieurs projets collectifs de recherche (PCR) « Réseau de lithothèques », fédérés depuis 2019 dans le cadre d’un groupement de recherche (GDR), procèdent au recueil d’importants ...volumes de données spatialisées sur les silicites en France métropolitaine. Un inventaire exhaustif et harmonisé des lithothèques sur ces matériaux est également en cours. Divers dispositifs techniques numériques ont été utilisés pour la production, la mise en commun, l’analyse, le partage et la restitution de données spatiales : dessin assisté par ordinateur, systèmes d’information géographique, systèmes de gestion de bases de données, plateformes de partage et de publication de données, applications nomades. Au fur et à mesure de la mise en œuvre de ces outils, des questionnements méthodologiques et épistémologiques sont survenus. Ils concernent notamment la conception et la mise en œuvre de ces dispositifs pour des chercheurs d’horizons disciplinaires différents (archéologie, préhistoire, géographie, pétrographie, minéralogie, géochimie, etc.) dont les pratiques sont modifiées, à des degrés divers, par les conditions et les contextes de mise en pratique des dispositifs numériques.
for axe head production in Bartonian (Eocene) silicite close to the mining complex of Jablines. They are attributed by the associated set of tools and the archaeological background to the later part ...of the Paris Basin Middle Neolithic (c. 4300–3700 BCE). The main characteristics of the knapping places are bifacial shaping to produce axe head preforms. Petrographical analyses show at first examination a close relation to the same silicite beds as those exploited at Jablines. Beside this, some of the artefacts indicate another way of raw material gathering which could match with the Bartonian silicite procurement on a larger scale. The workshop places may be distinguished as places of different function, mostly devoted to the first steps of preparation (roughing and shaping processes), but another to shaping stages, and a last one essentially concerned with the finishing of manufacturing rough-outs. Considering the very rare fragments of preforms collected on the site and the high quality of the rejected waste products, the skill level was high. From the first flaking of the block, contrary to what is usually inferred, indirect percussion was used since the first flaking of the block. These workshops add to the information from the other known similar places in this region of the Marne area, including the mining complex of Jablines itself. There were no settlements next to the mines, but in the surrounding areas, and the related distance remains to be explained.
The Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition in Europe witnessed the replacement and partial absorption of local Neanderthal populations by Homo sapiens populations of African origin
. However, this ...process probably varied across regions and its details remain largely unknown. In particular, the duration of chronological overlap between the two groups is much debated, as are the implications of this overlap for the nature of the biological and cultural interactions between Neanderthals and H. sapiens. Here we report the discovery and direct dating of human remains found in association with Initial Upper Palaeolithic artefacts
, from excavations at Bacho Kiro Cave (Bulgaria). Morphological analysis of a tooth and mitochondrial DNA from several hominin bone fragments, identified through proteomic screening, assign these finds to H. sapiens and link the expansion of Initial Upper Palaeolithic technologies with the spread of H. sapiens into the mid-latitudes of Eurasia before 45 thousand years ago
. The excavations yielded a wealth of bone artefacts, including pendants manufactured from cave bear teeth that are reminiscent of those later produced by the last Neanderthals of western Europe
. These finds are consistent with models based on the arrival of multiple waves of H. sapiens into Europe coming into contact with declining Neanderthal populations
.
In the wake of the discovery of numerous large blade workshops at Le Grand-Pressigny site (Indre-et-Loire, France), which initially aroused great interest, the mid-Loire Valley region became central ...to studies of flint diffusion. Despite the quality of the initial work, the widely shared view now is that the capacity for this concept to continue to provide useful archaeological modelling has diminished. Establishing real and actual correlations between archaeological objects and geological samples remains difficult, making it almost impossible to determine the source of certain materials represented in an archaeological series. In response to this problem, the French collective research project "Réseau de lithothèque en région Centre-Val de Loire" assembled about 30 amateur and professional researchers from various European institutions to work on three strategic missions:
Mission 1: establish a list of current lithotheques (“rock-libraries” or comparative collections), verify their contents and complete them if necessary;
Mission 2: link the major types of depositional environments with the properties acquired by flint through its life;
Mission 3: spread knowledge and information both within the project and to all interested persons.
The project is closely associated with similar French programs already in place in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Aquitaine regions. The ultimate objective is to build a national and international community around a common project, bringing participants together regularly to share knowledge and technical expertise.
L’étude pétroarchéologique des matériaux issus de l’unité archéo-stratigraphique badegoulienne F2 de la grotte du Rond du Barry (Polignac, Haute-Loire), fondée sur le concept de chaîne évolutive de ...la silice, nous a permis de mettre en évidence 42 types de silicifications, dont 30 sont d’origines connues. Nos résultats diffèrent de ceux des études précédentes, aussi bien en termes de fréquence de type de silex qu’en termes de diversité lithologique et gîtologique. Bien que des déplacements d’objets en quantité non négligeable sur une distance supérieure à 270km soient mis en évidence, les silex issus de la sphère semi-locale sont les plus abondamment utilisés devant les silicifications locales et lointaines. Cette étude constitue la première approche détaillée de l’univers minéral exploité au Badegoulien dans le Sud du Massif central.
A petroarchaeological study, based upon the concept of the evolutionary chain of silica, was undertaken on raw materials from the Badegoulian of unit F2 of the Rond du Barry cave (Polignac, Haute-Loire). Our study reveals the use of 42 types of flint from 30 known sources. These results differ from those of previous studies, both in terms of frequency of acquired raw material as well as in terms of geological and gitological variety. Raw materials were derived from up to 270 km distant but the flint used most frequently comes from semi-local sources in preference to that from local or far distant sources. This is the first detailed description of raw material gathering during the Badegoulian in the South Massif Central.
Résumé. Les questionnements abordés dans cet article portent sur l’homogénéité et les relations spatiales entre l’ensemble belloisien et le Laborien. Nous avons pris pour cadre géographique d’étude, ...la (réputée) marge méridionale du Belloisien : la France centrale. Cet espace est jalonné par plusieurs gisements clés de la transition Pléistocène-Holocène, notamment Muides-sur-Loire, Champ-Chalatras et le Cuze de Sainte-Anastasie. C’est à travers l’étude de l’industrie lithique de ces trois sites que nous questionnons les réseaux de relations à l’extrême fin du Paléolithique. Cet espace est également situé à l’écart des grandes dynamiques de recherche universitaire. Il nous faut donc interroger la notion de frontière à travers l’œil du « préhistorique » ou du « préhistoriens », suivant une analyse pétrotechno-typologique. Les résultats mettent en évidence une fréquentation de gîtes communs et une gestion économique des matériaux parfois semblables entre les trois sites étudiés. Ce réseau de relations complexes met en exergue la porosité entre les appellations préhistoriennes. De plus, l’identification de savoir-faire laboriens, à partir de silicites du sud du Bassin parisien, ainsi que la circulation de grands supports laminaires au sein de sites laborien, confirme cette perméabilité. Ces premières observations alimentent l’hypothèse d’une imbrication d’un sous-système technique belloisien à une tradition plus large : le Laborien.
Abstract. The aim of this paper is about discussing to the homogeneity and relationship of the Belloisian tradition with the more southern Laborian. In this regard, we choose central France, the reputed southern margin of Belloisian, to be the geographical framework of this study. It is punctuated by key sites belonging to the Pleistocene-Holocene transition: Muides-sur-Loire, Champ-Chalatras and Cuze de Sainte-Anastasie. What we are questioning in this article are the networks relationships between the Belloisian and the Laborian traditions through the study of lithic industry. This research area is on the fringes of the major dynamic’s university programs too and involves research traditions that differ regionally. We therefore also question the notion of “prehistoric” or “prehistorian” boundaries through a petro-techno-typological analysis of lithic series. In this case study, the techno-economic data shows a frequentation of common outcrops and economic management of the silicites for the three sites. This complex network of relationships between groups shows the porosity between the prehistorian designation. The identification of laborian “know-how” from silicites in the south of the Paris Basin and the circulation of large laminar supports corroborate this fact. So finally, these results lead us to propose the hypothesis of an interweaving of a Belloisian technical sub-system with a Laborian tradition, now well defined.
The aim of this paper is about discussing to the homogeneity and relationship of the Belloisian tradition with the more southern Laborian. In this regard, we choose central France, the reputed ...southern margin of Belloisian, to be the geographical framework of this study. It is punctuated by key sites belonging to the Pleistocene-Holocene transition: Muides-sur-Loire, Champ-Chalatras and Cuze de Sainte-Anastasie. What we are questioning in this article are the networks relationships between the Belloisian and the Laborian traditions through the study of lithic industry. This research area is on the fringes of the major dynamic’s university programs too and involves research traditions that differ regionally. We therefore also question the notion of “prehistoric” or “prehistorian” boundaries through a petro-techno-typological analysis of lithic series. In this case study, the techno-economic data shows a frequentation of common outcrops and economic management of the silicites for the three sites. This complex network of relationships between groups shows the porosity between the prehistorian designation. The identification of laborian “know-how” from silicites in the south of the Paris Basin and the circulation of large laminar supports corroborate this fact. So finally, these results lead us to propose the hypothesis of an interweaving of a Belloisian technical sub-system with a Laborian tradition, now well defined.
Résumé. Les questionnements abordés dans cet article portent sur l’homogénéité et les relations spatiales entre l’ensemble belloisien et le Laborien. Nous avons pris pour cadre géographique d’étude, la (réputée) marge méridionale du Belloisien : la France centrale. Cet espace est jalonné par plusieurs gisements clés de la transition Pléistocène-Holocène, notamment Muides-sur-Loire, Champ-Chalatras et le Cuze de Sainte-Anastasie. C’est à travers l’étude de l’industrie lithique de ces trois sites que nous questionnons les réseaux de relations à l’extrême fin du Paléolithique. Cet espace est également situé à l’écart des grandes dynamiques de recherche universitaire. Il nous faut donc interroger la notion de frontière à travers l’œil du « préhistorique » ou du « préhistoriens », suivant une analyse pétrotechno-typologique. Les résultats mettent en évidence une fréquentation de gîtes communs et une gestion économique des matériaux parfois semblables entre les trois sites étudiés. Ce réseau de relations complexes met en exergue la porosité entre les appellations préhistoriennes. De plus, l’identification de savoir-faire laboriens, à partir de silicites du sud du Bassin parisien, ainsi que la circulation de grands supports laminaires au sein de sites laborien, confirme cette perméabilité. Ces premières observations alimentent l’hypothèse d’une imbrication d’un sous-système technique belloisien à une tradition plus large : le Laborien.
The data is the result of four PCR1s: “Réseau de lithothèques en Centre-Val-de-Loire,” “Réseau de lithothèques en Nouvelle Aquitaine,” “Réseau de lithothèques en Auvergne Rhône-Alpes,” “Les Silicites ...Cénozoïques d’Île de France” and the GDR2 “SILEX.” These projects and their resulting data are based on a common method of production and validation. Thus, they provide for a harmonized description of the siliceous rock formations by department, using the BRGM’s3 Bd Charm-50 data (source: Infoterre website4). The data can also be consulted and downloaded using GIS software in the form of WFS (ArcGis Feature Service).
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