The surface-dwelling from layer I of Mira site: Main features and interpretations

Situated in Dnieper valley, in the central part of continental Ukraine, the site of Mira yields two well-preserved Palaeolithic occupation levels, possessing features of true living floors. The uppermost layer I, presenting remains of autumn-winter seasonal occupation, is dated to between 32,000 and 31,000 cal BP. Layer I contains EUP assemblage combining the technological and morphological features of local Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. Layer I includes many various objects, like pits, postholes, hearths, bone and ashes accumulations etc. Remains of sub-circular surface-dwelling construction with an area of about 14.5 m² were recognised in the uppermost layer due to numerous postholes and specific characteristics of the living floor. Micro-stratigraphic and spatial features recognise two distinct construction elements, namely the external irregular spherical contour and the inscribed slightly asymmetrical rectangular contour. An entrance, associated with four ashy lenses of likely smoke hearths, was recognised oriented east-wards toward a current river channel. This outer, close to the entrance, zone of construction contains numerous flints, in particular, flint tools, thousands tiny debris and waste-flakes of tool resharpening and reshaping, as well as bone ornaments and ornamented bone pieces, and also a fragment of a human molar. On the contrary, the practically free lithics though containing plenty of burned organic material, the back part of the construction, likely separated from the outer zone by a special partition, was seemingly served as a sleeping zone. It is possible to conclude about the recovery of remains of permanent carcass surface cylindrical dwelling that found analogies in ethnographical records. Keeping in mind the age and geographical position, we deal with the earliest instance of complicate surface-dwelling construction currently known in the steppe area of the East European plain.     

A general view of the lower Palaeolithic of Turkey

Turkey is one of the rich countries in terms of the Lower Palaeolithic period. The favourable climatic and environmental conditions and quality stone raw material resources in the Pleistocene period caused the country to be heavily occupied by the people of the Lower Palaeolithic. Turkey has biface and flake industries of the Lower Palaeolithic period. Biface industries are more common in open-air sites and are often linked to the Acheulean. Biface tools are only found in the deposits of Karain Cave. The eastern and south-eastern parts of Turkey are the densest regions in terms of biface industries. This density decreases towards the west. However, this general appearance may have resulted from the insufficient level of excavations and surveys of Palaeolithic archaeology throughout the country. In this article, we try to draw a general framework of the Lower Palaeolithic period in Turkey, based on the important Lower Palaeolithic settlements in the country.     

Test excavations and initial results at the Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites of Gilvaran,Kaldar, Ghamari caves and Gar Arjene Rockshelter,Khorramabad Valley,western Iran

This paper introduces the excavations in several Paleolithic sites in the Khorramabad Valley, Western Iran. Apart from the two well-known sites of Ghamari Cave and Gar Arjene rock shelter, first excavated by Frank Hole and Kent Flannery in the 1960s, the Gilvaran and Kaldar caves were excavated for the first time. Here we present the stratigraphy of these sites, general data from the lithic assemblages, and the identifications of a small part of the faunal remains. Preliminary results are showing that all of the sites were occupied from the Middle and Upper Paleolithic onward, and therefore provide great potential for the study of the transition between these cultural periods. Our preliminary techno-typological observations show that the lower levels of the Gilvaran and Ghamari sequences may represent an early phase of the Middle Paleolithic.     

New anthropological data from Cussac Cave (Gravettian,Dordogne, France): In situ and virtual analyses of Locus 3

Cussac Cave presents a unique combination of parietal art and several hundred parts of scattered human remains, dated to the Middle Gravettian (29–28,000 cal BP). The cave is protected as a National Heritage site. As a result, only noninvasive bioanthropological analyses are allowed, consisting of in situ observations and the study of 3D models obtained by photogrammetry. Here we present the first results of these analyses of the human remains from Locus 3. Only 65 of the 106 human skeletal fragments and bones could be firmly identified. Virtual analyses were carried out on 3D models of 16 skeletal elements so that osteometric data could be provided. Despite the limitations inherent in studying commingled remains and those specific to Cussac Cave, the search for virtual pair-matching, articular congruence, and osteometric sorting allowed the allocation of twelve bones to three individuals, one late adolescent and two adults.     

Archaeological records indicate a complex history of Pleistocene hunter-gatherer societies in Arabia

Paleolithic research on the Arabian Peninsula is still in its early stage. During the last decade, however, an increasing number of field projects were conducted and added significant data to the record. This development in addition to substantial paleoenvironmental research on Pleistocene climate and habitat changes creates a promising setting for research on human evolution in arid landscapes. Here I provide an overview of the main Paleolithic field projects conducted in Arabia and summarize their results.     

Identification of Quina and Vasconian technocomplexes in Gatzarria Cave (north-western Pyrenees), based on the stratigraphic,taphonomic and technological revision of the Georges Laplace collections

The archaeo-sequence of Gatzarria Cave (Ossas-Suhare, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France), in the northwestern foothills of the Pyrenees, records several phases of the Middle Palaeolithic and the initial stages of the Upper Palaeolithic. This type of deposit in a karstic context enables us to characterize diachronic changes in industries and to demonstrate the relative preservation of the assemblages. This cavity was excavated by Georges Laplace between 1951 and 1976 and contains a complex stratigraphy that was exposed to significant post-depositional processes. It was thus essential to test that the archaeological levels were intact before any techno-economic analysis. Several recent studies have questioned the homogeneity of the archaeological remains in the back of the cave. This article focuses on the sequencing of the industries attributed to the Quina and the Vasconian, based on the correlation of different types of taphonomic and typo-technological analyses (density of remains, surface conditions, refits, spatial distribution, analysis of the fieldwork notebooks). Ultimately, this work sheds light on the sequencing of lithic technocomplexes at a macro-regional scale in a relatively poorly-documented key zone between northern Aquitaine and the Cantabrian mountains.     

More than blades. Early Middle Palaeolithic of the Levant

The Early Middle Palaeolithic (EMP) in the Levant dated between 250 and 150 ka is a unique period characterised by the systematic production of elongated blanks using different reduction strategies: Levallois, Laminar and core on flake are involved. The hallmark of the EMP blade industries is different types of retouched points but the production of other blanks categories as bladelets, small flakes and triangular flakes is also evident. Such a broad-based approach to lithic resources of foragers relocating through the Levant during the EMP could reflect the behavioural adaptations of hominins and adjustments in their subsistence strategies as well as management of time and division of special activities, consequently leading to a marked anticipation of needs. The techno-typological diversity is visible in the mode of production but at the same time, it reflects the narrow variation that is shared among all known EMP sites. This seems to indicate that at this time the demographic organisation in the region may be closely linked within a cohesive geographical and chronological framework.     

Ivory Ornaments of the Aurignacian in Western Europe: Case studies from France and Germany

Here we present an overview of the personal ornaments of the Swabian Aurignacian and the Early Aurignacian sites of south-western France made from mammoth ivory. The production sequences for the serial manufacture of beads from these sites are quite similar. While the Swabian sites have yielded numerous different types of beads with a focus of the double-perforated bead, the nearly exclusive use of one bead-type, the perle en forme de panier, is striking at the sites of south-western France. Following the presentation of major inventories of ivory ornaments in the two regions concerned, we discuss potential factors underlying both the differences and the similarities we observe in these assemblages.     

The open-air Paleolithic site of Mirak,northern edge of the Iranian Central Desert (Semnan,Iran): Evidence of repeated human occupations during the late Pleistocene

The northern edge of the Iranian Central Desert has provided valuable evidence of terminal Pleistocene human settlements. Mirak constitutes one of the largest open-air lithic scatters in the region, consisting of eight natural mounds. Fieldwork was initiated in 2015 by the joint Iranian-French program at Mirak 8. Preliminary results have demonstrated at least three successive phases of human occupation during the MIS3: an upper layer with clear Upper Paleolithic affinities and a maximum age of 28 ky, a lower layer with clear Middle Paleolithic affinities that dates around 47 ky, and an intermediate layer with mixed characteristics that can be seen as an intermediate Paleolithic phase which dates between 28 ± 2 and 38 ± 2 ky. At the time when Upper Paleolithic cultures originated in the Zagros Mountains, cultures with clear Middle Paleolithic affinities persisted nearby along the northern edge of the Iranian Central Plateau.     

The onset of Late Paleolithic in North China: An integrative review of the Shuidonggou site complex,China

Shuidonggou (SDG) attracts scholars who are interested in Late Paleolithic of China, even east Asia, from generation to generation since 1923 when rich lithic artifacts and animal fossils were discovered at locality 1. During the past almost one century, many excavations have been conducted by different institutes at different localities of SDG. Numerous data has been obtained and tens of thousands of artifacts were yielded. The understanding of nature and context of SDG is increasing gradually with the repeated excavation and in-depth research. The present paper reviewed the formal excavations and achievements in SDG. Especially, a series investigations and excavations since 2002 have been emphasized. After this long-term fieldwork, the geographic range of SDG has extended far beyond the range suggested by previous findings. The presence of discrete cultural horizons at various SDG localities indicate repeated use and occupation of the area by early human groups between 50–10 kya with a gap in LGM. During the repeated occupations, diverse and complex behaviors including gathering various plants, heat treatment preparation for knapping, making ornaments, engraving were identified using different kinds of methods and techniques by scholars. Paleoenvironmental reconstruction based on pollen analysis suggests that late Pleistocene/early Holocene human utilization of the SDG area occurred primarily around 32–24 kya and 13–11 kya when climatic conditions were more favorable. Years of excavations and researches make progress with nature of SDG. However, the issues about Initial Upper Paleolithic assemblages in SDG, origin/disappearance of Levallois-like technology in China are still open to debate. Further excavation and research at SDG1 will clarify these issues.     

New advances on the Aurignacian in the central Iberian Mediterranean basin

This study aims to obtain a chronological and cultural framework of the Evolved Aurignacian in the central Iberian Mediterranean basin and find agreement between this framework and other sequences of the Iberian southeast. Over the last few years, there has been remarkable progress in the research of the Evolved Aurignacian sites in the Valencian area, making a review of the main characteristics of the technocomplex on a regional scale necessary. The recent fieldwork carried out in Cova de les Malladetes (Valencia) and in Cova de les Cendres (Alicante) have been key to understanding the lithic, osseous and ornament assemblages ascribed to the Evolved Aurignacian. Several Bayesian modelled ages have been constructed from the large dataset of chronological dates obtained at Malladetes and Cendres, as well as in other sites. The Bayesian models have allowed us to chronologically place the characteristics of the analysed assemblages. The present research supports the importance of the Aurignacian as the first technocomplex of the Upper Palaeolithic in this area of the Iberian Peninsula.     

First occurrence of the extinct deer Haploidoceros in the Iberian Peninsula in the Upper Pleistocene of the Cova del Rinoceront (Castelldefels,Barcelona)

The Cova del Rinoceront is the first site in the Iberian Peninsula where the genus Haploidoceros has been documented. This discovery of abundant remains is also its first recorded occurrence in Europe during the Upper Pleistocene. The new fossil record strengthens claims that this genus was widely distributed during the Pleistocene, occupying a longer time span at least until MIS 5. Cranial and post-cranial skeletal remains ascribed to this species were recovered from the uppermost layers of the Cova del Rinoceront. The diagnostic features that allow these remains to be unequivocally assigned to H. mediterraneus, include their cranial morphology and antler shape, comprising two sickle-shaped beams, curving backwards and laterally, and a long frontal basal tine. This paper highlights the problems of deer systematics and identification given the high degree of fragmentation of the genus, their relatively homogeneous morphology, a virtual absence of reliable characters and the overlap of measurements between species.     

The paleobiology of two adult skeletons from Baousso da Torre (Bausu da Ture) (Liguria,Italy): Implications for Gravettian lifestyle

This article presents the main skeletal characteristics of the two largely unpublished Gravettian adult skeletons from Baousso da Torre (Liguria, Italy). BT1 and BT2 were two adult tall males, who died aged respectively between 20 and 50 years, and between 20 and 30 years. Their body proportions fall within the range of variation known for the middle Upper Paleolithic, and their skeletal remains are characterized by considerable osteometric values, which fall consistently in the upper part of the Upper Paleolithic male sample variation. They show a high degree of upper limb lateralization, implying that they were likely involved in strenuous and/or repetitive unimanual tasks. They also exhibit very robust lower limbs, likely related to repeated long-distance travels in mountainous terrains. These results are in total agreement with previous hypotheses on Late Pleistocene population behavioral patterns.     

Phytosaur remains (Reptilia,Thecodontia)from the Upper Triassic of North-Eastern Thailand

The recently discovered late Triassic vertebratelocality at Chulabhorn Dam (North-Eastern Thailand) has yielded incomplete remains (jaw fragments and teeth) of phytosaurs, which are apparently indicative of a form related to Belodon and Rutiodon. They can be interpreted as showing that in the late Triassic North-Eastern Thailand was already biogeographically part of Laurasia.     

Early human dispersal at the western edge of the Eastern European plain: Data from Ukraine

The current state of research on Lower Palaeolithic sites in Ukraine within its 1991 borders is the focus of this paper. Over the last 10–15 years, many new sites have been discovered in different parts of the eastern European area of the country, reassessed some old materials. In the central European region of the country, in the Ukrainian Transcarpathia, important new stratified Lower Palaeolithic sites have also been found. The current Ukrainian Lower Palaeolithic records demonstrate hominin presence in mountainous areas (Carpathians, Crimea) and the valleys of all major rivers, namely the Dniester, Southern Buh, Dnieper and Severskiy Donets. The article presents a brief review of the main currently known Lower Palaeolithic assemblages. Available geological, geomorphological, biostratigraphical data and ESR dates allow defining their age between 1.2 and 0.4 Myг; sites correlate with few warm phases between MIS 35 and MIS 11. Earlier sites, very tentatively dated at around 2 Myг, gravitate towards the seashore and mountainous areas. Later sites witness steady, though not continuous, colonisation of East European plain fringe areas. The main regularities of geographical setting, chronology, morphological and technological characteristics of assemblages of the Lower Palaeolithic sites of the Western segment of the East European plain are characterised. Typologically, industries are mainly characterised as belonging to Mode I. Core-and-flake industries survives to the Holsteinian. Essential difficulties in lithic raw materials supply could probably be a reason for the rise of a peculiar pattern of technological behaviour that involved mainly bipolar knapping and widely applied trimming technique of shaping the working edges of tools. Some signals of probable population movements penetrated the territory of Ukraine by the Asia Minor “western” trajectory and by Caucasian “eastern” way are revealed.     

Revised radiolarian zonation of the Upper Cretaceous Izumi inter-arc basin (SW Japan)

The radiolarian zonation of the Izumi Group is revised for an integrated biostratigraphy across the Campanian/Maastrichtian boundary, together with the ammonite occurrence, fission track and magnetostratigraphic calibration of the acidic tuff key beds. The significance of direct correlation in the same sections, between macro- and micro-fossils (i.e. between relatively near-shore nektonic and turbiditic planktonic-fauna) is discussed in relation to the litho- and bio-facies of the Izumi group. Late Cretaceous paleoceanographic changes inferred from the studied radiolarian fauna represent a regional marker event for the chronostratigraphic correlation of continental shelf to turbidite deep-sea sequences, which accumulated on a mid latitudinal margin facing towards the NW paleo-Pacific. The proposed Campanian/Maastrichtian boundary is at the limit between Pachydiscus awajiensis and Nostoceras hetonaiense ammonite zones. This boundary corresponds to the radiolarian last occurrence of Amphipyndax pseudoconulus (= A. enesseffi), Archaeodictyomitra sliteri, Dictyomitra formosa, D. koslovae and Rhopalosyringium magnificum at the top of the Myllocercion acineton Assemblage Zone (uppermost Campanian), and the first occurrence of Clathrocyclas gravis and Dorcadospyris sp. A, at the base of the Maastrichtian C. gravis Assemblage Zone. The new data settle partly a chronostratigraphic discrepancy between radiolarian and ammonite zonations in the Izumi Group, which was pointed out previously by Ishida et al. (2010).     

A Levalloisian jasper cache from the Arts Bogdyn Nuruu massif in the Gobi Altai Mountains,southern Mongolia

A Pleistocene deposit of jasper cores was discovered in the Gobi Altai Mountains, within the Arts Bogdyn Nuruu massif in southern Mongolia. It was situated on a mountain ridge above the Khutul Usny valley at a height of ca. 1500 m a.s.l., away from human settlement (N44°16′09.3″, E102°53′41.5″). Examination of traces of the artefacts’ use proved that at least some of them display evidence of working. Technological analysis of the artefacts revealed that the find should be related to the Levallois-Mousterian population of the central Asian Middle Palaeolithic. The cache from Arts Bogdyn Nuruu is the first discovery of this type recorded within the Gobi Desert. It is a potential source of information contributing to the discussion of the specific nature of raw material exploitation, the dynamics of settlement and hunting strategies in the Altai region.     

Palaeoenvironment and palaeoclimate in the western Liguria region (northwestern Italy) during the Last Glacial. The small mammal sequence of Riparo Mochi (Balzi Rossi,Ventimiglia)

Riparo Mochi is considered a key site for the Middle–Upper Palaeolithic chrono-cultural sequence in the Mediterranean area. Climatic and environmental conditions have been reconstructed after the study of the small mammal assemblage by means of linear regression method and the Habitat Weighting method. The climate proxies for the late Mousterian and Proto-Aurignacian (cultural units I to G) indicate an environment with a relative high percentage of forest component during two cold and one relative warm oscillations. Open environments with low temperatures are registered for the Gravettian (cultural Unit D) allowing a possible relation to the Heinrich 3 Event. The final Gravettian (cultural Unit C) shows a relative warm peak, tentatively related to Greenland Interstadial 2. The late Epigravettian (cultural Unit A) is characterized by a high percentage of forest-related environment suggesting that this horizon formed during the Bølling–Allerød Interstadial. Finally, the Riparo Mochi sequence contributes to reconstruct the processes of faunal changes along the northern Tyrrhenian coast in a period of climatic instability, especially during the end of Marine Isotope Stage 3 when foraging groups adopted different mobility strategies between southern France and the Italian peninsula.     

Dysomma alticorpus,a new species of cutthroat eel from the Gulf of Aqaba,Red Sea (Teleostei: Synaphobranchidae)

The cutthroat eel Dysomma alticorpus n. sp. is described based on a single specimen collected in a trammel net at a depth of 350 m off Eilat, Israel, Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. The new species belongs to the Dysomma anguillare species complex, which comprises species possessing a well-developed pectoral fin, intermaxillary teeth, a uniserial row of 7–15 large compound teeth in the lower jaw (which may be followed by a few smaller teeth), and an anteriorly situated anus with the trunk shorter than the head length. It is characterised by a combination of the following characters: origin of the dorsal fin well anterior to the base of the pectoral fin, predorsal length 13.8% TL; preanal length 22.8% TL; three compound teeth on the vomer; head pores: IO 4, SO 3; M 6; POP 0; AD 1, F 0, ST 0; lateral-line pores: predorsal 4, prepectoral 8, preanal 14, total 57–58, the last at the posterior two-thirds of the total length; MVF 7–16–115; total vertebrae 115. Dysomma alticorpus n. sp. is compared with other species of the genus. A revised key to the species of the genera Dysomma and Dysommina is provided.     

New data on the Rectogordius (foraminifera) abundance zone (Latest Carboniferous: Gzhelian) of the Zaladou Formation (east-central Iran,Tabas block,Shishtu section)

The Rectogordius (Foraminifera) abundance zone is described in the east of the Shishtu village in the Ozbak Kuh Mountain. The samples were collected in the Zaladou Formation., which is 60 m thick and composed of shales, sandstones, sandy limestones, microconglomerate, bioclastic limestones, coral limestone and fusulinid limestones. The Rectogordius abundance zone was found in sandy bioclastic limestone. It displays two species and three subspecies of this foraminifer, including Rectogordius iranicus, R. iranicus gadukensis, R. minimus and R. minimus shishtuensis n. subsp., R. iranicus ozbakensis n. subsp. The age of this abundance zone is considered to be Gzhelian, due to the distribution of Rectogordius in Central Iran (Ozbak Kuh; Zaladou Formation), central and eastern Alborz (Emarat Fm.), Sanandaj-Sirjan zone (Vazhnan Formation), as well as in the Donets, Arctic Canada, Afghanistan, and the Carnic Alps. The genus Rectogordius is possibly restricted to the northern Paleotethys margin, northern Cimmerian margin, shelf of the Uralian Ocean as far as the northernmost part of North America. Two new subspecies Rectogordius minimus shishtuensis n. subsp. and Rectogordius iranicus ozbakensis n. subsp. are described.