Les éléments de parure au Paléolithique supérieur en Belgique

Considering that body ornaments are, through the choice of the elements, good cultural markers, along with the transitional geographical position of Belgium in the Palaeolithic, an up-to-date study of the body ornaments has been undertaken to catch the diffusion and contact phenomenon next to the influences in the lithic industries between regions. Despite the fact that the observations made take cultural value once they are considered in a broader frame than the actual political boarders of the country, cultural and chronological tendencies in terms of “fashions” within the Belgian material have nevertheless confirmed their informational potential.     

Hommes et environnements au Paléolithique supérieur en Ukraine continentale et en Crimée : introduction

Research, conducted under the ANR project “Mammouths”, on “the end of the mammoth steppe: Man/Environment relationship during late Pleniglacial in Eastern Europe”, is the subject of several contributions, a part of them is published in this volume, under the heading “Humans and environments during Upper Paleolithic in mainland Ukraine and Crimea”, in the French journal L’anthropologie.     

Zaozer'e, un nouveau site du Paléolithique supérieur ancien dans le nord-est de l'Europe. Rapport préliminaire

This paper presents preliminary archaeological and chronostratigraphical data obtained during pilot excavations of one of the northernmost European Early Upper Palaeolithic sites, Zaozer'e, situated on the western slope of the Middle Urals.     

Paléogéographie des chasseurs de l’Europe du Paléolithique supérieur : répartition et spécialisation des sites

During the Upper Paleolithic, Europe was occupied by human populations mainly living from hunting of big terrestrial mammals. A repartition of fauna and of archeological sites was done with a database: a repartition of Upper Paleolithic sites in central and western Europe. This study shows that the european space was structured following several factors; climate, environment, cynegetic behaviours… We observe a partition of Europe with a mediterranean area with mainly deer, and ibex and an atlantic area with reindeer. Equally, most of the occupations are localized in the “aquitano-cantabric horn” around the Gulf of Gascony. The occupation of Europe undergone a pulsation with a retreat of occupations toward the west and the south during the glacial maximum, then a colonization of North Europe during the Tardiglacial climatic amelioration.     

L’utilisation des reliefs pariétaux dans la réalisation des signes au Paléolithique supérieur

For a long time, the images of the Upper Paleolithic were represented in a way that emphasized their aesthetic qualities and ignored the specific characteristics of their natural supports. It is more damageable as the architecture of the decorated caves plays a real part, at different levels, in the elaboration of the parietal devices. As omnipresent elements of these devices, the signs play a determining part in this architecture. Analysing the links between the signs and their direct supports brings to light the various ways in which parietal devices can be used and also the integration and research for the volumes and frame. A study led inside the caves on a sample of 692 signs, distributed in the franco-cantabric paleolithic space, makes apparent the variety of the graphic choices left to the artists standing in front of the wall.     

Le Paléolithique moyen et supérieur de la Hongrie du nord : nouvelles investigations dans la région d’Eger

The region of Eger town at the foot of the Bükk Mountains in Northeastern Hungary has particular importance for the understanding the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic periods of the Carpathian Basin. One of the key-problems is the association of carinated tools and foliate points in the lithic assemblages of the sites. New investigations at the Egerszalók-K?vágó site give fundamental data for the animated discussion on the relation between Aurignacian and Szeletian.     

Les industries du Paléolithique inférieur dans le Caucase méridional

Acheulean sites are located in almost every areas of Georgia. Most of the time, in Western Georgia, there are few bifaces; these are more common in Eastern Georgia (except in the basins of the Iori and Alazani rivers). In general, the Acheulean of the Southern Caucasus looses rapidly the bifacial shapes and develops into the Typical Mousterian, the Levalloisian and the Charentian.     

Madonna dell'Arma (San Remo, Italie) : expression locale de la végétation ligure au cours du Paléolithique moyen

Pollen analysis of Madonna dell’Arma cave inside part (Liguria, Italy) allowed us to reconstitute, at local scale, the Ligurian coastal vegetation between the end of the last interglacial period and the beginning of the pleniglacial. This transition period shows an important representation of arboreal cover and a persistence of thermophilous elements that allowed us to considerate the western Liguria as a periglacial refuge. During the end of the last interglacial, xerophytic, halophytic herbs and shrubs taken over from a Mediterranean pre-forest unit in the first slopes constituted the coastal zone. The nearness of Argentina torrent and the Armea influenced, in the coast, the existence of marshy zones colonized by hygrophilous trees. In the Ligurian lowlands spread out sclerophyllous and mesophilous forests according to altitude. The beginning of the pleniglacial is indicated in the sequence by increases of Pinus, Cupressaceae and Artemisia in the context of a decline in the thermophilous components. This picture of vegetation has become integrated into the multidisciplinary studies of the site and contributed to the elaboration of palaeoclimatic hypothesis similar as those revealed by the fauna.     

Sols et structures d’habitat du Paléolithique supérieur, nouvelles données depuis les Cantabres : la Galerie Inférieure de La Garma (Cantabrie, Espagne)

A brief review is done of the history of the research on Upper Paleolithic floors and structures, with a general outline of the main substantive and theoretical-methodological aspects. On the resulting “state of the art” we present the preliminary results of the study of the occupation evidences from the Lower Gallery of La Garma. In essence, it constitutes an astonishing ensemble of extensive Middle Magdalenian occupation floors, exceptionally rich and quite well preserved, including several structures and associated with rock art paintings and carvings of that period. The potential of the site is superlative, and the research’s project already begins to offer some interesting results of which this article is a fairly small advance.     

L’industrie microlithique du Paléolithique inférieur de Bizat Ruhama, Israël

Bizat Ruhama is a lower Palaeolithic site in the southern coastal plain of Israel. The site was recently dated to ca. 1ma. In terms of lithic industry, Bizat Ruhama is a unique phenomenon amongst the Lower Palaeolithic sites in the Levant. The lithic assemblage of the site is characterized by the production of small (ca. 25mm) tools, flakes and cores. An in-depth technotypological study was made in attempt to reconstruct the production mode of these artifacts. The results presented here reveal a well-developed cognitive production process, which includes selection of special-sized raw material, production of desired blanks and their subsequent shaping into tools. The implications of this study contribute significantly to our understanding of the phenomenon of lower Palaeolithic microlithic industries in Eurasia.     

Stratégie de débitage et mode de façonnage des industries du Paléolithique inférieur en Chine et en Europe entre 1 Ma et 400 000 ans: Ressemblances et différences de la culture de l’homme de Yunxian et Acheuléen européen

These stone tools from Yunxian with other Lower Paleolithic sites in South China, for example, the site Lantian (Shanxi, China) and the site Bose (Guangxi, China), indicates that there are many common characteristics among these industries. There are choppers, chopping-tools, picks, hand-axes, cleavers and scrapers. Long ago we thought that there are not hand-axes in China. In fact, there are lots of hand-axes in China and these hand-axes existed more earlier than those in Europe. The hand-axe appeared in China before 800,000 years old and it barely arrived in Europe before 600,000 years old. The quaternary deposits of the site of Yunxian Hominid (Hubei, China) are at least dated to 800,000 years old. A large quantity of lower Paleolithic material was discovered. The types of the tools are choppers, picks, scrapers, hand-axes and cleavers. The pebbles tools make up the majority of the implements. Small flake tools are relatively rare. The lithic industries comparison of the two regions has help us to know the cultural evolution in China and Europe.     

Le Paléolithique Supérieur dans la moyenne vallée de l’Ebre

After 30 years of research, we begin to perceive an incipient outline of the Upper Palaeolithic in the central Ebro Valley. The assembled data permit us to speak of human occupation on the Southern face of the Pyrenees, but also on the borders of the Iberian Mountains and of the Ebro basin. All these sites seem to mark the passageways from and to the neighbour territories, emphasizing the communication pathway role of the Iberian basin.     

Le site Paléolithique de Suyanggae, Corée

The Suyanggae site is an open-air site in central part of South Korea. This site was discovered in 1980 and seven excavations have been carried out from 1983 to 1996. As a result, many stone artefacts were unearthed and 49 stone tool workshops were known. This site contains 5 cultural layers and the most important one is the Upper Paleolithic layer. This layer is dated to be 16,400 ~ 18,630 BP by ¹⁴C dating. It shows a massive blade production and microblade technique. It is one of the crucial sites for understanding the Upper Paleolithic of Korea.     

Techniques et activités des hommes du Paléolithique supérieur sur le site de Wangfujing - Oriental Plaza, Pékin, Chine

More than 2000 pieces of cultural relics were unearthed from the Oriental Plaza site, including stone artifacts, bone artifacts, fossils, hematite powder, fire use remains and plant root and foliage. By analyzing these remains in refitting stone and bone artifacts, in experimentally producing some artifacts, and comparing with ethnologic data, it is concluded that the Oriental Plaza site is a seasonal human activity site, that humans had been making a life of hunting and collecting food, can make stone artifacts, bone artifacts to kill their quarries, use fire to cook their food, and at the same time they also conducted some religion activities.     

Figurines du Paléolithique supérieur en matière minérale plastique cuite d’Afalou Bou Rhummel (Babors, Algérie). Premières analyses par spectroscopie d’absorption Infrarouge

From 1983 to 1993, S. Hachi’s last excavations at the Afalou Bou Rhummel (Algeria) Babors coastal shelter have contextually produced numerous anthropological and zoological, clay figurines, all hand made and cooked, among Iberomaurusian Late Upper Palaeolithic remains. Regarding Maghrebian territories (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya), these so peculiar documents are strictly related to 15?000-11?000 BP levels, although deeper archaeological levels are 18?000 BP. Twenty eight small samples (less 1mg) were analysed through infrared absorption spectroscopy (IR) so as to precise, through typical transformation of the major mineral involved: kaolinite, smectites, and amorphous silicates, the final degree of temperature reached after cooking. These documents were all intentionally cooked between 500 and 800 °C. Local clay was obviously picked up for figurine elaboration.     

Le paléolithique supérieur au sud du Portugal : le site de Vale Boi

Before the 90s, data on Paleolithic human occupation of southern Portugal was very scarce. During the last decade, the knowledge of the Upper Paleolithic of Algarve increased substantially due to the work of a research team based at the University of Algarve. The present paper is a report on the recent results from Algarve, focusing specially on the site of Vale Boi. It will present the chronology and stratigraphy of different human occupations from the early Upper Paleolithic up to the early Neolithic. It will focus on aspects of zooarchaeology and the exploitation of large and medium mammals as well as on marine fauna. In addition, we will present new data on stone and bone tools. Finally, we will also refer to the social and symbolic aspects present at the site, base on shell and teeth pendants and to an engraved plaquette with animal motifs.     

Les ostracodes du Néogène supérieur du littoral nord-ouest marocain entre Tanger et Asilah

Ostracodes populations have been studied in 19 samples from the upper Neogene of the Atlantic coast of NW of Morocco, between Tangier and Asilah. One hundred and two species belonging to 53 genera have been indentified. Analysis of the species assemblages allowed to reconstruct the palaeoenvironmental evolution of these deposits. This begins with the transgression of the upper Tortonian which corresponds to a relatively deep circalittoral environment. The series continues by deposits showing a general regressive character, punctuated by few transgressives pulses. Shallowing starts at the end of the upper Tortonian with the deposition of calcarenites in massive banks, in an infralittoral exposed environment. This facies pass towards the top to a detrital facies, assigned to the Messinian and deposited under high energy conditions in a shallow-marine environment. The lower Pliocene transgression shows a more generalized character. The maximum deepening corresponds to the grey clay facies deposited in the external infralittoral environment, relatively protected and rich in phytal biotopes. The more recent deposits are shallower, from coastal environments, and show a more limited extension.     

L’industrie en calcaire du site Paléolithique d’Isernia la Pineta : un modèle interprétatif de stratégie comportementale

The studies and the researches carried out in the last years on the Palaeolithic site of Isernia La Pineta have brought to consider in new way the activities realized by the human group that lived the basin of Isernia during the Middle Pleistocene offering an important key of interpretation of the behavioural strategies of the prehistoric man. The analysis of the exploitation of the raw material has confirmed the presence on the site of two different lithotypes: flint and limestone; the lithological dichotomy is related to the functional dichotomy of the raw material that seems to have conditioned the activities of the human group in different areas of the site. The necessity to deepen the study on the limestone has derived from the evidence brought to light in the last excavation campaigns of a remarkable concentration of the flaked limestone pebbles and the flake scars in some areas of the explored archeosurfaces, particularly on the 3a and on the overlooking layers. The present study has the purpose to explain the characteristics of the limestone finds both in reference to the raw material and to its state of preservation both to the technotypological evidences and its spatial distribution with the purpose to better understand the modalities of the exploitation of the raw material. The information collected until today have permitted to obtain a precise knowledge of the environmental context and the territorial resources exploited by the human group showing an opportunistic capability to find the most advantageous behavioural solution for the necessities of subsistence.     

La macrofaune du Pléistocène supérieur d’El Harhoura 2 (Témara, Maroc) : données préliminaires

The El Harhoura 2 cave is situated in the commune of El Harhoura in the Temara region (Morocco). The entrance faces west, towards the ocean, around 200 m away from the current shoreline and about 16 m above sea level. The stratigraphy has currently 11 levels numbered from top to bottom. Level 1 is attributed to the early Neolithic. The archaeological material from level 2 places it within the Upper Palaeolithic (Iberomaurusian). Levels 3 to 11 are assigned to the Middle Palaeolithic (Aterian). Since 1977, a surface of 37 m² has been excavated, yielding particularly abundant remains of a large mammal fauna study in this paper.