Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère – Le Moustier (abri inférieur)

La station éponyme du Moustier a joué un rôle important dans la définition et la caractérisation du Moustérien à la fois dans le sud-ouest de la France et dans le monde entier. Composé de trois habitats superposés (Le Trou du Brechou, l’abri supérieur et l’abri inférieur), le gisement est situé à la confluence de la Vézère et du Vimont. Sans nul doute, notre connaissance de l’abri inférieur et de sa stratigraphie est pour l’essentiel due au travail réalisé par D. Peyrony au début du xxe s. La..

Combining quantitative approaches to differentiate between backed products from discoidal and Levallois reduction sequences

Backed flakes (core edge flakes and pseudo-Levallois points) represent special products of Middle Paleolithic centripetal flaking strategies. Their peculiarities are due to their roles as both a technological objective and in the management of core convexities to retain its geometric properties during reduction. In Middle Paleolithic contexts, these backed implements are commonly produced during Levallois and discoidal reduction sequences. Backed products from Levallois and discoidal reduction sequences often show common geometric and morphological features that complicate their attribution to one of these methods. This study examines the identification of experimentally produced discoidal and recurrent centripetal Levallois backed products (including all stages of reduction) based on their morphological features. 3D geometric morphometrics are employed to quantify morphological variability among the experimental sample. Dimensionality reduction though principal component analysis is combined with 11 machine learning models for the identification of knapping methods. A supported vector machine with polynomial kernel has been identified as the best model (with a general accuracy of 0.76 and an area under the curve [AUC] of 0.8). This indicates that combining geometric morphometrics, principal component analysis, and machine learning models succeeds in capturing the morphological differences of backed products according to the knapping methodThis research has been supported by the project SI1/PJI/2019-00488 funded by Comunidad Autonoma de Madrid and Universidad Autonoma de Madrid. FR research studies are also supported by the project ID2019-103987GBC33 funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovatio

The contribution of 2D and 3D geometric morphometrics to lithic taxonomies: Testing discrete categories of backed flakes from recurrent centripetal core reduction

Paleolithic lithic assemblages are usually dominated by fakes and display a high degree of morphological variability. When analyzing Paleolithic lithic assemblages, it is common to classify fakes into categories based on their morphological and technological features, which are linked to the position of the fake in the reduction sequence and how removals are organized in a given production method. For the analysis of Middle Paleolithic lithic assemblages, two categories of fakes are commonly identifed: core–edge fakes and pseudo-Levallois points. A third type, core–edge fakes with a limited back, is also commonly found in the archaeological literature, providing an alternative category whose defnition does not match the two previous types but shares many of their morphological and technological features. The present study addresses whether these three fakes constitute discrete categories based on their morphological and technological attributes. 2D and 3D geometric morphometrics are employed on an experimental set composed of the three categories of fakes to quantify morphological variation. Machine learning models and principal components biplots are used to test the discreteness of the categories. The results indicate that geometric morphometrics succeed in capturing the morphological and technological features that characterize each type of product. Pseudo-Levallois points have the highest discreteness of the three technological products, and while some degree of mixture exists between core edge fakes and core edge fakes with a limited back, they are also highly distinguishable. We conclude that the three categories are discrete and can be employed in technological lists of products for the analysis of lithic assemblages and that geometric morphometrics is useful for testing for the validity of categories. When testing these technological categories, we stress the need for well-defned and shared lithic analytical units to correctly identify and interpret the technical steps and decisions made by prehistoric knappers and to properly compare similarities and diferences between stone tool assemblages. These are key aspects for current research in which open datasets are becoming more and more common and used to build interpretative techno-cultural models on large geographical scales. Now more than ever, lithic specialists are aware of the need to overcome diferences in taxonomies between diferent school tradition

Provenance, modification and use of manganese-rich rocks at Le Moustier (Dordogne, France)

The use of colouring materials by Neanderthals has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years. Here we present a taphonomic, technological, chemical-mineralogical and functional analysis of fifty-four manganese rich lumps recovered during past and on-going excavations at the lower rockshelter of Le Moustier (Dordogne, France). We compare compositional data for archaeological specimens with the same information for twelve potential geological sources. Morphometric analysis shows that material from Peyrony’s excavations before the First World War provides a highly biased picture of the importance of these materials for Mousterian groups. These early excavations almost exclusively recovered large modified pieces, while Mn-rich lumps from the on-going excavations predominantly consist of small pieces, only half of which bear traces of modification. We estimate that at least 168 pieces were not recovered during early work at the site. Neanderthals developed a dedicated technology for processing Mn-rich fragments, which involved a variety of tools and motions. Processing techniques were adapted to the size and density of the raw material, and evidence exists for the successive or alternating use of different techniques. Morphological, textural and chemical differences between geological and archaeological samples suggest that Neanderthals did not collect Mn-rich lumps at the outcrops we sampled. The association and variability in Mn, Ni, As, Ba content, compared to that observed at the sampled outcrops, suggests that either the Le Moustier lumps come from a unique source with a broad variation in composition, associating Mn, Ni, As, Ba, or that they were collected at different sources, characterized either by Mn-Ni-As or Mn-Ba. In the latter case, changes in raw material composition across the stratigraphy support the idea that Neanderthal populations bearing different stone tool technologies collected Mn fragments from different outcrops. Our results favour a use of these materials for multiple utilitarian and symbolic purposes.publishedVersio

La grotte Castaigne (Commune de Torsac, Charente) : un site oublié riche en vestiges humains du Pléistocène

Au sein de PACEA, nous développons une dynamique scientifique sur la diversité techno-économique et les restes humains associés au Moustérien. En 2019-2020 nous avons ainsi entrepris la révision des collections de la grotte Castaigne (Torsac, Charente). Fouillée par L. Duport dans les années soixante, le matériel issu de ces recherches avait échappé à l’attention de la communauté malgré l’existence d’au moins deux néandertaliens différents identifiables dans les documents écrits. Nos recherch..

MTA-B or not to be ? Recycled bifaces and shifting hunting strategies at Le Moustier and their implication for the late Middle Palaeolithic in southwestern France

International audienc

Analyse techno-économique d'un assemblage Discoïde du Moustérien récent de l'abri inférieur du Moustier (Dordogne, France)

International audienc

MTA-B or not to be ? Recycled bifaces and shifting hunting strategies at Le Moustier and their implication for the late Middle Palaeolithic in southwestern France

International audienc

Le Moustier: a century of research

International audienc

MTA B or not to 'B', that is the question? Ongoing work concerning unpublished lithic and faunal material from Le Moustier

International audienc