Middle Palaeolithic Sites Research Articles

First identification of a Neanderthal bone spear point through an interdisciplinary analysis at Abric Romaní (NE Iberian Peninsula)

Osseous industry has been observed at an increasing number of Neanderthal sites. Bone fragments were used for practical purposes, and a range of bone shaping techniques were employed. The variability of bone tools observed in different assemblages reflects considerable functional diversity. However, no bone spear points have been reported from these contexts. A comprehensive analysis of a bone spear point from the Middle Palaeolithic site of Abric Romaní (Barcelona, Spain) is presented. Through an interdisciplinary, multi-technique, and multi-scale approach combining technology, taphonomy, and functional analysis, compelling evidence for manufacture, use, and hafting was uncovered. The specimen exhibits clear signs of intentional knapping. The presence of microscopic linear impact marks, an impact fracture at the tip and potential internal stress fractures indicate its use as a spear. Furthermore, the observed wear pattern and a morphological adjustment of the trabecular tissue support the hafting hypothesis. Abric Romaní contributes to our understanding of Neanderthal hunting behaviour and the significance of composite bone tools in their technological repertoire 50,000 years ago. This discovery highlights the flexibility and adaptability of Neanderthal technology, providing evidence of bone technology that is sometimes obscured in the archaeological record and offering valuable insights into their hunting strategies during the Middle Palaeolithic.

Experimental replication of early human behaviour in bird preparation: a pilot-study focusing on bone surface modification and breakage patterns

The origin of complex behaviour amongst early humans is a subject of heated debate within the scientific community, and the study of small prey remains has become a significant aspect when examining such modern behaviour. Nonetheless, the consumption of small prey by human populations poses analytical difficulties due to the often negligible, or entirely absent, traces on bone surfaces. To address this difficulty, an experimental study focusing on terrestrial avifauna has been prepared, and here we present a preliminary phase of this research. The aim is to distinguish potential modifications on bird bone surfaces and fracture patterns that might facilitate the recognition of human manipulation of avian skeletal remains. Building upon the challenges encountered in the study of archaeological findings recovered from recent excavations in Iberian Middle Palaeolithic sites, the experimental protocol was formulated to encompass the processing of two uncooked and three roasted birds; and the lithic use-wear analysis of the flint flake used in the processing of raw birds. The results showcase distinct patterns of bone surface modifications and breakage between cooked and uncooked birds. Higher numbers of cut marks and manual disarticulation breaks are found on raw animals, whereas roasted animals show no cut marks, local-specific burns and higher bone loss. This pilot-study provides a baseline for future research to further explore the role of avifauna in Neanderthal subsistence and food processing, which may help highlight cultural choices.

Dating the Neanderthal environment: Detailed luminescence chronology of a palaeochannel sediment core at the Palaeolithic site of Lichtenberg in the Lower Saxony, northern Germany

Northern Germany is famous for its numerous Neanderthal (Middle Palaeolithic) archaeological sites and well-preserved palaeoclimate records. Nevertheless, our understanding of how hominins responded to climate fluctuations and adapted to changing environments in this region remains limited because there are only a few reliable, highly-resolved chronological frameworks of long stratigraphic successions. Most of the Middle Palaeolithic sites in this region lack a reliable chronostratigraphy beyond the radiocarbon dating range. In this study, we present a high-resolution optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) chronology derived from a ∼21 m long sediment core (Li-BPa) that was drilled in close proximity to the known Neanderthal site of Lichtenberg. Quartz OSL dating was applied to the upper 6.5 m of the core. Subsequently, the obtained quartz OSL ages were compared with feldspar post-infrared (IR) IRSL (pIRIR) measured at 290 °C (pIRIR290), pulsed IR50 (pre-pIRIR225), and pulsed pIRIR225 ages to select a suitable feldspar signal to date older samples. A comparison of the quartz and feldspar ages indicates that only fading-corrected pulsed IR50 (pre-pIRIR225) and pIRIR225 ages agree well with quartz OSL ages. Finally, the age framework of the sediment sequence was established based on the 11 quartz OSL ages and 23 fading-corrected pulsed IR50 (pre-pIRIR225) and pulsed pIRIR225 ages. The resulting Bacon age-depth model agrees with litho- and biostratigraphic designations, indicating that the whole sequence was deposited between ca. 275 ka and ca. 24 ka, corresponding to the Saalian to Weichselian periods.

MIS5-MIS3 Neanderthal occupations at Amalda III cave (Northern Iberian Peninsula)

The arrival, occupation, and disappearance of Neanderthals in the Cantabrian region is the subject of a long-running debate that continues to this day. Knowledge of the evolution of Neanderthal societies since the end of the Middle Pleistocene in the north of the Iberian Peninsula is greatly impacted by the scarcity of a good chronological framework. This absence of good data creates difficulties in evaluating the cultural adaptations of these populations to environmental changes and their historical dynamics.The Amalda III cave, surveyed in 1983-84, contains a sequence of occupations ranging from the end of MIS5 (Levallois with Mousterian points and bifaces) to the beginning of MIS3 (Vasconian). It is possible to observe substantial changes in the environmental conditions and cultural responses of Neanderthal groups that inhabited the cave. Here we present the first results of the Amalda III sequence, which is currently being excavated by an interdisciplinary team.Our objective is to test, enrich and refine the regional environmental and Neanderthal cultural framework and the transformations that took place between the MIS5 and the MIS3. These new data are compared with the information available from several Middle Paleolithic sites in the region, advancing our understanding of the behavioural adaptations of Neanderthals to different ecological and socio-cultural situations between ca. 100 and 45 kyr BP in the Eastern Cantabrian region. In this way, we will be able to deepen our interpretation of the processes of cultural change of the last groups of Neanderthals that inhabited this region.

Exploring aspects of Neanderthal mobility in the Mani Peninsula: Evidence from Lithic Raw Material procurement and management at Kalamakia Cave, Greece

The Kalamakia cave located on the western Mani Peninsula, southern Greece is a Middle Palaeolithic site dated between ∼100,000 and >39,000 years BP. The aim of this paper is to provide insights into the Neanderthal groups’ mobility by addressing the lithic raw material procurement and management, with reference to the Kalamakia cave assemblage. The methodology included field survey and laboratory analyses, encompassing macroscopic, petrographic, and geochemical ones, for the location and identification of the sources of used lithic raw materials. Local, semi-local and allochthonous lithic raw materials were used by the Neanderthals at the Kalamakia cave to manufacture tools. The presence of various lithic raw materials used at the cave suggests diverse mobility strategies. The semi-local black/grey chert, followed by the allochthonous andesite was mostly used. Andesite transported across an east–west axis presents a long-term stability, both in terms of percentages and the different artefact types transported in both Unit III and IV of the cave. The significant quantities of andesite in the cave’s assemblage suggest non-random mobility, possibly linked to the exploitation of different ecological environments available in the region. The north-western part of the peninsula saw additional exploitation by groups moving along the coastal north–south corridor. However, cherts transported along this axis occurred occasionally, and their quantities were notably smaller in comparison to andesite. The strategic location of the cave close to the intersection of two natural movement routes, may have played a key role in the circulation of Palaeolithic inhabitants, facilitating movements along east–west and north–south axes.

Through Time: Reconstructing Palaeolithic Occupations Through Use-Wear Analysis in the Middle Palaeolithic Site of Ciota Ciara (Borgosesia, Italy)

Lithic use-wear analysis, through defining site function and allowing reconstructing of patterns of human occupation, can contribute to our understanding of archaeological palimpsests. The Ciota Ciara cave represents an excellent case study for this methodology. Multidisciplinary research so far conducted on the materials recovered from the atrial sector of the cave distinguishes three archaeological units from a Middle Palaeolithic occupation of the site: stratigraphic units (SUs) 13, 14, and 15. Each unit is interpreted as referring to a period of numerous, superimposed episodes of human occupation, the characteristics of which we try to reconstruct and present in this work through use-wear studies. The functional analysis of lithic industries from the upper units (13 and 14) has already been published previously; here, we report corresponding new data from the lowest level, SU 15. By comparing the use-wear results from the three units and integrating the findings with data from the geoarchaeological, palaeontological, zooarchaeological, and technological studies, we attempt to reconstruct the different phases of human occupation represented in the site through time, contributing to current interpretations regarding settlement dynamics and human behaviour in the Middle Palaeolithic of north-western Italy.

ESR/U-series dating of palaeontological remains from the Neanderthal site of Mutzig-Rain (Alsace, France)

The Middle Paleolithic site of Mutzig-Rain, discovered in 1992, has been studied through several pits (called M1 to M15) and excavation area since 2009, evidencing several localities and delivering more than 5000 lithic artifacts and 12,000 well preserved paleontological remains. The main excavation M2 sequence corresponds to a collapsed rock shelter, containing several levels of Middle Paleolithic occupation. The faunal assemblage of the main archaeological levels (l.7a to 7c) from this sequence includes woolly mammoth, reindeer, horse, bison and woolly rhinoceros, reflecting both cold climate and a steppe context for the whole sequence, while microfauna from the lower levels (l.7d and l.10) indicate the occasional presence of forests that could correspond to a cooler climate. In 1995, U-series analyses on bones from M8 were attempted but the obtained results did not follow the sample stratigraphic order. Later, an OSL dating study has placed the M2 archaeological sequence as coeval to the onset of the Weichselian glacial stage (MIS5d-5a), between 100 and 80 ka.The good preservation of the abundant faunal remains at Mutzig-Rain has allowed their use for ESR/U-series dating studies and the results obtained on Mutzig horse teeth are given in the present paper. A first set of analyses of teeth carried out from the M2 excavation provided ages around 106-96 ka for levels M2 l.7, in agreement with the OSL data, despite quite systematic evidence of U-leaching from the dental tissues and the consequent use of the Accelerating Uptake (AU) model for the age calculation. A second set of analyses on teeth from the M2 and M8 localities confirms this uranium leaching trend, placing the deposition of these levels ca 133 -122 ka.Taking the whole set of ESR/U-series ages, which are slightly older than the OSL dates, would suggest that the stratigraphic sequence was deposited between ca 130 ka (M8 l. 6 and M2 l.10) and ca 100 ka (M2 l.7), i.e. on a time range covering the Eemian Interglacial (MIS5e) and the subsequent Early Weichselian Glacial stage (MIS5d-5a). However, as the faunal record indicates a cool climate and an open steppe-like environment for the whole archaeological sequence, the ESR/U-series dating to the Eemian Interglacial in the Mutzig-Rain sequence seems unlikely. In order to check the quality of the paleodosimetric reconstruction of the ESR/U-series analyses, an additional isochron study was performed for the two levels for which several teeth were analyzed: M2 l.7 (n = 4) and M8 l.6 (n = 3). This isochron study validates the proposed reconstruction and confirms the Early Weichselian age of these two levels. These results confirm the chronology established previously with OSL and places Mutzig-Rain as a reference site for the understanding of the Neanderthal Middle Palaeolithic occupation in Eastern France.

Taphonomy of the fauna and chert assemblages from the Middle Palaeolithic site of Vajo Salsone, Eastern Italian Alps

The Vajo Salsone site is located at an altitude of 376m a.s.l. on the right slope of the Valpantena valley, in the Veneto Pre-Alps, north of the town of Verona. The site was discovered in 2017 during the construction of a truckable road. It is a small and narrow karst cavity filled with Pleistocene sediments that yield abundant Middle Palaeolithic artefacts and faunal remains, often coated by carbonate encrustations. The lithic assemblage shows the predominance of the Levallois method and is characterised by a large number of retouched elements, including foliated points. These artefacts, typical of the Late Middle Palaeolithic period in central and south-eastern Europe, make Vajo Salsone an exceptional case, as their recovery is rather sporadic west of the Balkan Peninsula and south of the Alps. The fauna is dominated by ungulates, the most abundant being the red deer followed by roe deer, chamois and elk. Among the carnivores, wolf is common, while fox and bear are rare. This fauna suggests an environment characterised by open glades and closed forests, with a discontinuous presence of alpine grasslands and wetlands. Taphonomic analysis of the bone surfaces is complicated by the presence of concretions on most of the remains, which also show a high degree of fragmentation. Post-depositional fractures are common, and weathering is light. Only cervid bones show anthropogenic modifications related to hunting and hominin exploitation such as cut marks, scraping, impacts and burnt modifications. Some long bone diaphysis bear marks testifying to the use of these fragments as retouchers for flint artefacts. Such use has been evidenced at other Middle Palaeolithic sites in the area. Furthermore, the good state of preservation of the occlusal surface enamel of the cervid teeth allowed us to carry out meso and microwear analyses which provided data on seasonality and site occupation. With regard to dental wear analysis, the red deer from Vajo Salsone had mesowear suggesting a mixed feeding and grazing diets, whereas microwear analysis showed that the individuals had a diet between mixed feeding and browsing. The taphonomic study of the site has been integrated by X–RFS analysis of the alterations occurred to the lithic artefacts, which include deep patination and the formation of calcareous crusts. All the data presented here are consistent with the hypothesis of a short-distance displacement of the material from a single archaeological deposit possibly related to human occupation during the warm season.

A fearsome predator-scavenger in Hungary: The role of the cave hyena in the accumulation of the fossil animal remains according to the taphonomic and archaeozoological study of the Middle Palaeolithic site of Érd (Transdanubia, Carpathian Basin)

AbsztraktEz a tanulmány hozzájárul a barlangi hiéna szerepének megértéséhez az érdi állatcsontmaradványok eredete és felhalmozódási folyamata kapcsán, amelyben a neandervölgyi emberek tevékenysége is világosan kimutatható. Megkísérel betekintést nyújtani e ragadozó pusztító potenciáljába Érd és a magyarországi lelőhelyek korpuszában.

Application of scar-pattern analysis to the scrapers from the Lower and Middle Paleolithic site of Yarkh Mountain

Yarkh mountain is one of the oldest and well-known Paleolithic sites in eastern part of Central Asia. Archaeological material, collected on the surface there, is essential for theoretical and empirical study of the origin and evolution of the Paleolithic at the territory of modern Mongolia. This locality with exposed archaeological material on the surface was discovered in 1969. For the last several decades this occurrence and artefacts, collected there, were not a subject of further investigations and analysis. The new methods, developed for analysis of exposed artefacts as well as significant changes in our knowledge in Lower and Middle Paleolithic allow conducting the new study of Yarkh mountain. In this study about, we use the new method – scar-pattern analysis, applying to the scrapers from Yarkh mountain assemblage. Here we, briefly review the possibilities of scar-pattern analysis application to the artefacts from surface assemblages.
 Ярх уулын хянгар зэвсгийн цуулалтын дэс дараалалд хийсэн дүн шинжилгээ
 Товчлол. Дундговь аймгийн Гурвансайхан сумын нутагт орших Ярх уулын дурсгал бол Төв Азийн зүүн хэсэгт орших эртний чулуун зэвсгийн үеийн томоохон дурсгалуудын нэг юм. Энэхүү дурсгал бол Монгол нутаг дахь палеолитын үүсэл хөгжлийг судлахад онол практикийн асар их ач холбогдолтой билээ. 1969 онд Монгол-Зөвлөлтийн хамтарсан чулуун зэвсгийн судалгааны анги анх нээн илрүүлсэн байна. Түүнээс хойш уг дурсгалд археологийн хайгуул, малтлага судалгаа хийгдээгүй одоог хүрсэн юм. Сүүлийн жилүүдэд чулуун зэвсгийн судалгаанд дэвшилтэт, шинэ аргууд нэвтэрч эхэлсэн. Үүнтэй уялдан Азийн бүс нутгийн доод палеолитын талаарх судалгааны үзэл санаа эрс өөрчлөгдсөнийг харгалзан Ярх уулын чулуун зэвсгийн дурсгалыг дахин судлах шаардлагатай болсон юм. Тус өгүүлэлд шинээр нэвтэрсэн судалгааны нэг болох цуулалтын дэс дараалал (scar-pattern analysis)-ын дүн шинжилгээний тусламжтай чулуун зэвсгийн үйлдвэрлэлд хэрэглэгдэж байсан арга технологийг нэхэн сэргээж үзэв. Тус арга зүйг ашиглан Ярх уулын дархны газрын чулуун зэвсгийн зарим олдвор хэрэглэгдэхүүнд тулгуурлан хийсэн үр дүнгийн талаар өгүүлж, судалгааны эргэлтэд оруулж байна. Энэхүү арга нь чулуун зэвсгийг ижил төстэй байдлаар харьцуулахгүй харин хэрхэн яаж хийсэн, түүний цуулалтын аргыг нэхэн сэргээхэд оршино. Ярх уулын хянгар зэвсгийн цуулалтын дэс дарааллыг судалснаар задлан шинжилгээний шинэ арга зүйг танилцуулах, цаашид Монголын чулуун зэвсгийн судалгаанд энэ арга зүйг хэрэглэх боломжийн талаар хөндөн авч үзлээ.
 Түлхүүр үг. Буган хөшөө, хүрлийн хожуу үе, зосон будаг, зэр зэвсэг

Virtual Trip to the Abric Romaní site and its lithic procurement areas

This paper introduces the virtual field trip organised on the occasion of the 13th International Symposium on Knappable Materials in Tarragona from 4th to 6th October 2021, showing the Abric Romaní site (NE Iberian Peninsula) and the chert procurement areas located within a 30 km radius.
 The Abric Romaní section consists of a general presentation of the Middle Palaeolithic site, including a brief description of its 50 m stratigraphic sequence, where more than 20 archaeological levels have been identified dating from 110 to 39 ka BP, and some of the main traits of the archaeological assemblages have been recovered. This was followed by an introduction of the siliceous outcrops of the Panadella cherts approximately 24 km from the Abric Romaní; the Sant Martí de Tous chert outcrops 16 km away and the Valldeperes and Ca l’Alemany chert outcrops at distances of 24 and 25 km, respectively. In all cases, the geological formations, as well as the main chert macroscopic and microscopic characteristics, are described. 
 This paper yields the most relevant aspects of a field trip that had to be recorded due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but which brought us back together and facilitated the presentation of the main source areas frequented by the Neanderthals groups of this referential site.

Techno-economy of lithic raw materials in Piedmont (north-western Italy): A first life-like scenario

Data about Palaeolithic peopling, settlement dynamics and techno-economy of the south-western margin of the Alpine region are sketchy. In this area, the lack of systematic research and the scarcity of lithic raw materials, spread the idea that Piedmont was not inhabited during Palaeolithic. In 2009, the re-starting of the excavations at the Ciota Ciara cave, gave rise to new questions and to the development of research projects at a regional scale.
 The Ciota Ciara cave is the only Middle Palaeolithic site object of multidisciplinary and systematic investigations. Its lithic assemblage, analysed through a techno-economic approach, allows to understand in detail the technological choices and the land mobility of the Neanderthal groups on a local and sub-regional scale. Other Middle Palaeolithic assemblages are known in the region and are all issued from surface collections. They come from the northern part of the region, from Vaude Canavesane, Trino, Baragge biellesi and Colline Novaresi. The technological study of these assemblages led to the identification of strong similarities in the technological choices of the Middle Palaeolithic human groups: they based their technology on the exploitation of vein quartz, a rock diffused all over the regional territory, from time to time accompanied by other local (spongolite, rhyolite, metamorphic rocks, jasper) and allochthonous (radiolarite and flint) lithic resources, with technological adaptation to their quality and mechanical properties both when it comes to predetermined methods (Levallois and discoid) and when expedient reduction sequences are used. Concerning Upper Palaeolithic, the only lithic assemblage issued from an archaeological excavation (and therefore with a clear stratigraphic context) is that from the Epigravettian site of Castelletto Ticino. Other lithic artefacts referable on a techno-typological basis to Upper Palaeolithic are from Trino and Colline Novaresi. As for Middle Palaeolithic, the techno-economic approach used in the analysis of these lithic assemblages, allow to have, for the first time, reliable data at a regional scale.
 In this work we present the data obtained after about ten years of research in Piedmont: they outline a scenario where, even in the limits of analysis mostly based on materials issued from surface collections, we can see both clear differences between the Middle and the Upper Palaeolithic technological behaviours and hypothesise the land mobility of the hunter-gatherers’ groups that inhabited the region.

Разведочные исследования на среднепалеолитических памятниках Нижней Волги в 2023 году

In 2023 the Lower Volga Paleolithic detachment of the IAET SB RAS as part of a Lower Volga Expedition organized by the IHMC RAS continued the study of the Middle Paleolithic site Sukhaya Mechetka located on the northern outskirts of Volgograd, and also carried out exploration work at the Middle Paleolithic sites Chelyuskinets II and Zaikino Pepelishche, located in the Pichuga gully, Dubovskiy district, Volgograd region. The results of the work in 2023 make it possible to plan the continuation of comprehensive studies of the cultural layer of the Sukhaya Mechetka site and to resume the study of the Middle Paleolithic site Chelyuskinets II.

Nikolaevo-Otradnoye II—A New Early and Middle Paleolithic Site in the Northeastern Azov Region

We describe materials from a new Paleolithic site, discovered in 2020 on the right bank of Mius estuary, near its confl uence with the Taganrog Bay of the Sea of Azov, in the southern outskirts of the village of Nikolaevo-Otradnoye, which is in the Neklinovksky District of the Rostov Region. The clearing of a 10-meter-high river-bluff revealed a complex stratigraphy of subaqueous and subaerial Late and Middle Pleistocene rocks. Horizons with lithics and faunal remains were identifi ed. Cultural remains found in the coastal exposure and in the stratigraphic section belong to the Early and Middle Paleolithic. The early stage in the peopling of the Northeastern Azov and the Lower Don regions is documented by Early Paleolithic artifacts found in the subaqueous deposits of layers 5 and 6 (MIS 9–11, ~420– 270 ka BP). Heavil y waterworn patinated lithics include a core-shaped artifact, variou s types of side-scrapers, a scaled piece, fl akes, and chips. This complex is an informative addition to known complexes from the region, including contemporaneous ones. The most interesting is the Middle Paleolithic industry of layer 4 under the Kamenka (?) soil— layer 3, MIS 7. The toolkit consists of a diagonal side-scraper and a chip found in the section, as well as radial and Levallois cores, various side-scrapers, a par tly bifacial tool, spalls , and chips found in the denudation. Technological and typological criteria (primarily the Levallois technology) and the tentative date of non-waterworn patinated lithics make it possible to attribute them to the Early Middle Paleolithic of the southern Russian Plain. It is concluded that cultural remains of the Early Middle Paleolithic, dating to ~243–191 ka BP, have been found in the region for the fi rst time, fi lling the gap in the local Early Middle Paleolithic sequence. In adjacent regions, similar industries have been known since the late 1900s.

Gazma Cave—A Final Middle Paleolithic Site in Azerbaijan: Paleogeography, Chronology, Archaeology

This article describes the Middle Paleolithic industry of Gazma Cave in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan. We present data on the stratigraphy, paleontology, chronology, and archaeology of the site. Six lithological layers were identifi ed, three of which (IV–VI) contain abundant archaeological material. The chronology of the site is based on a series of luminescence ages. The deposition of layers IV–VI formed ~55–40 ka BP. Paleontological, pollen, and grain size analysis offer the possibility of reconstructing Late Pleistocene environments around the cave. Faunal analysis indicates steppe, semi-steppe, and wooded mountains, with riparian forests and reeded areas in the fl oodlands. The analysis of 896 artifacts attests to the predominance of Levallois and parallel reduction. The share of Levallois blanks is high. The most common artifacts are Levallois and Mousterian points and side-scrapers; there are also limaces, knives, and a few indistinct Upper Paleolithic types such as end-scrapers and borers. Ventral basal trimming of points and ventral or dorsal thinning of side-scrapers were widely used. All the main indicators show the Gazma industry corresponds to the fi nal Middle Paleolithic assemblages currently known in the Southeastern Caucasus.Gazma is an expressive MIS 3 example of the Taglar industry.

Archaeological and Experimental Data from the Bipolar-on-Anvil Debitage in the Middle Paleolithic Site of Los Aljezares (Aspe, Alicante, Spain)

ABSTRACT Bipolar debitage has been documented in different chronocultural and geographical contexts. In this paper, we analyze the implications of this type of exploitation in a Middle Paleolithic context where it has rarely been recognized. The observation of the archaeological materials is combined with a geological characterization, which has made it possible to determine the qualities and original morphology of the exploited volumes. These aspects are linked to the type of exploitation carried out. These studies are also combined with experimentation, the results of which show the difficulty of identifying and evaluating this technology in the lithic assemblages.

Agia: An Open-Air Middle Paleolithic Site in Northwestern Greece

The pause in scientific research in the prehistory of Corfu and adjacent areas in Epirus between the years 1969-1990 prompted exploratory field research to locate and record open-air Paleolithic sites threatened by destruction due to residential, commercial, and industrial development. Of the sites discovered and put on record, this paper focuses on Agia (or Ayia), a hitherto unknown Middle Paleolithic site, and examines its position as a probable “kill and butchering” site in the Kokkytos river area. The typological analysis of the lithic assemblage shows an advanced Middle Paleolithic industry of Mousterian and, predominantly, Levalloiso-Mousterian types of Levalloisian tradition with elements of Eastern Mousterian affinities. The paper discusses the diffusion of technology in the coastal areas of Epirus and the island of Corfu and notes the gradual decrease of pure Mousterian technology in favor of Levalloiso-Mousterian as one moves westwards. The paper points to specific candidate sites in the vicinity of Agia and recommends further research.

A conceptual model of multi-scale formation processes of open-air Middle Paleolithic sites in the arid Negev desert, Israel

AbstractOpen-air surface accumulations and scatters of material cultural remains often are perceived as less-reliable archaeological archives, where it is difficult to distinguish anthropogenic versus geogenic formation processes or to assess their specific effects on the integrity of archaeological records. Here we analyze the depositional histories of three Middle Paleolithic open-air sites in the Negev desert of Israel, combining archaeological and geomorphological methods to create a conceptual model of multi-scale effects on the archaeological remains. Relying on the long research history in archaeology and geomorphology in the Negev, we show that integration of archaeological and geomorphological methodologies provides nuanced insights to our understanding of the archaeological record. The links established between regional and local geomorphic processes and lithic taphonomy by applying such a multi-scale analysis further allow back-tracking environmental processes from flint taphonomic attributes. Placing each site within the range of regional and local processes of exposure and burial by using informed and critically evaluated data helps to create a robust regional archaeological data base. We suggest that our approach is useful in other arid zone contexts and may have implications for understanding Pleistocene population movements across such regions.

PALEOLITHIC SITE SUKHAYA MECHETKA (VOLGOGRAD) IN THE CONTEXT OF STRATIGRAPHY AND PALEOGEOGRAPHY OF THE LOWER VOLGA RIVER AREA

The Sukhaya Mechetka is the most important Middle Paleolithic site in the Eastern Europe. The paper presents the analysis of the section, including its cultural layer, in the context of stratigraphy and paleogeography of the Lower Volga River region. The structure of the section represents 11 main stages of sedimentation and paleogeographic evolution of the site territory, which are closely related to global and regional changes in the climate and the level of the Caspian Sea. The base of the section reflects the stage of a river existence on the territory of the site that flowed into the Volga River estuary, formed by the Early Khazarian transgression of the Caspian Sea at the end of the Middle Pleistocene (MIS 6). A long continental period of evolution under multi-directional climate fluctuations of different amplitudes from the Mikulino interglacial (MIS 5e) till the Late Valdai glacial epoch (MIS 2) is reflected in the middle part of the section. The Late Khazarian and Hyrcanian transgressive basins (MIS 5), as well as the Paleo-Khvalynian stage (MIS 3) of the Caspian Sea did not reach the latitude of Sukhaya Mechetka. The stage of Early Khvalynian transgression (MIS 2, 16 190 ± 200 years ago) during the degradation of Ostashkovo glaciation is expressed in the upper part of the section. Three paleosoils have been found that reflect the warming periods of the MIS 5 stage and are related to its 5e, 5c and 5a sub-stages. The middle paleosoil contains a cultural layer assigned to the Micoquian/KMG community of Northern Eurasia. The climate was moderately warm during the Neanderthal settlement of the territory, steppe landscapes dominated the interfluve, and the forests grew in the balka. The Hyrcanian transgression of the Caspian Sea with an estuary in the Volga River valley predetermined a high erosion basis and the formation of a balka with a wide bottom and gentle banks. A permanent fresh watercourse attracted mammals which were an object of hunting for ancient men. All this, obviously, became a basis for the organization of settlement in the Sukhaya Mechetka balka. Correlation of the section with detailed studied loess-soil sections of the Lower Volga River region makes it possible to determine the age of its cultural horizon in between 97-110 thousand years ago.

The Middle Paleolithic of Tsagaan Agui Cave in the Gobi Altai region of Mongolia and its Siberian and Central Asian links

Stratified Middle Paleolithic industries in Mongolia are mostly known from final Middle Paleolithic complexes in the Orkhon and Kharganyn Gol valleys in the north-central part of the country, while Middle Paleolithic sites in the Gobi Desert have not attracted as much attention. Re-analysis of archaeological collections made during excavations of Tsagaan Agui Cave in 1987–1989 have made it possible to define transitional specific tool types as well as the systems of primary flaking employed through different lithic complexes. Recent excavations of Tsagaan Agui in 2021 and 2022 place the lithic complexes first identified there in the 1980s into a more refined chronological sequence. Preliminary technological and typological analyses reveal the non-Levallois Mousterian character of the Middle Paleolithic industry at Tsagaan Agui Cave. Here, we attempt to identify analogs of this industry in Siberia and eastern Asia.