Abstract
North African coastal Middle Stone Age (MSA) sites are key to study the development and expansion of early H. sapiens. El Mnasra cave on the Atlantic coast of Morocco (Témara region) is a crucial site associated with MSA archaeological materials considered advanced cognitive hallmarks of behavioural innovation, such as numerous Nassariidae perforated shells, hematite pigments, bones industry and coastal resources exploitation. We provide new trapped-charges dates (OSL and combined US-ESR ages). Our Bayesian modelling strengthens the new lithostratigraphic interpretation of the cave stratigraphic units (US) and we propose an updated chronostratigraphic model for the Middle Stone Age archaeo-sequence of El Mnasra Cave. We confirm a human presence between 124–104 ka, earlier than what the previous OSL and US-ESR data showed. Our time range intervals allowed us to also extend the age of the MSA occupations considerably to the MIS 4/3 (~62–30 ka), marked by the disappearance of the Nassariidae perforated shells. Outstandingly, our model pushed back the age of the largest record of Nassariidae perforated shells and placed the age of their use by the Aterian groups at El Mnasra from the MIS 5d-5b (~115–94 ka).
Highlights
Over the last twenty years, northern, southern and eastern African sites have yielded Middle Stone Age (MSA) archaeological materials often hailed as advanced symbolic and cognitive hallmarks of so-called behavioural innovations
We present eight new dates for North African MSA occupations at El Mnasra cave: (i) two optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of sediment samples to date the end of the MSA; and(ii) six U-series combined to the Electron Spin Resonance dating of animal teeth from the stratigraphical unit with the highest MSA human occupations and evidence of behavioural innovations (e.g. Nassariidae perforated shells)
Considering the Central Age Model (CAM), sample EM-1701 is dated at 48.63 ± 6.87 ka, and sample EM-1702 is dated at 55.52 ± 5.28 ka
Summary
Over the last twenty years, northern, southern and eastern African sites have yielded Middle Stone Age (MSA) archaeological materials often hailed as advanced symbolic and cognitive hallmarks of so-called behavioural innovations. In these regions, these artefacts (e.g. bifacial foliated stone tools, ochre and pigments, perforated marine shell beads, bone artefacts, engraved stones/ochre and ostrich eggshells) are between ~150 and ~50 thousand years (ka) old and associated with Homo sapiens MSA occupations [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]. Considered as an MSA techno-complex specific to North Africa, the Aterian (~ 150 ka to 40 ka, [21,22,23,24,25,26,27]) is defined by the presence of tanged and foliated tools in the lithic assemblages (Fig 1) [4, 28,29,30]
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