Mollusc exploitation in cantabrian prehistory : research history and theoretical approaches

En este artículo se realiza una revisión crítica de la Historia de las investigaciones sobre la explotación del litoral, y especialmente sobre la explotación de moluscos, durante el Paleolítico superior, el Mesolítico y el Neolítico en la región cantábrica, así como de los marcos teóricos que han influenciado dicha investigación. Desde finales del siglo XIX, el estudio de concheros prehistóricos se llevó a cabo bajo el marco del paradigma histórico-cultural y la influencia de los prehistoriadores franceses. A partir de los años 60 y 70 del siglo XX, la llegada de investigadores norteamericanos permitió la introducción del procesualismo en la región, lo que produjo un cambio significativo en la forma de plantear las investigaciones. En los últimos 30 años los datos del registro arqueológico han aumentado considerablemente en cantidad y calidad, mientras los enfoques teóricos se han mantenido estables, si bien la introducción del materialismo histórico ha supuesto la apertura de nuevas perspectivas de análisis e interpretación, aunque han sido escasamente desarrolladas hasta el momento

The shell midden of Pico Ramos and the exploitation of molluscs in the Cantabrian region (northern Spain)

ABSTRACT: Human groups exploited molluscs during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition (MNT) at Pico Ramos. Results show that the most exploited species were limpets and topshells collected in rocky open shores, while other species were collected in estuaries. Therefore, different environments were exploited by human groups. This pattern is related to the location of the cave in the mouth of the estuary. The exploitation pattern suggests that collection was carried out in several short visits to the cave. The characteristics of the accumulation also fit the pattern of intensification identified in the region, which show that molluscs were important for human groups during the Mesolithic and the early Neolithic. However, it is difficult to establish if Pico Ramos was used by hunter-gatherers resisting the introduction of agriculture and domestication, or if on the contrary it was a specialized site used by food producers for hunting-fishing-gathering activities.This paper was written as part of the project HAR2010-22115-C02-01, funded by the Spanish Minister of Science and Innovation

Ornaments from the Magdalenian burial area in El Mirón Cave (Cantabria, northern Spain). Were they grave goods?

International audienceEl Mirón Cave, located in northern Atlantic Iberia, has produced important evidence of human occupation during the Lower Magdalenian (19-17.5 cal kya). Among the finds dating to this period is that of a disturbed primary burial of an adult woman. The excavation of the small area around the burial yielded a considerable number of ornamental items (mainly shell beads), but the actual association of any of them with the interment is problematic. The results of our study of the perforated marine shells and mammal teeth suggest that the ornamental objects were not grave goods, but rather were simply artifacts present in the occupation layers in this part of the cave. The materials used to make ornaments were gathered by collecting shells along the Late Glacial shore and by hunting ungulates. The perforation techniques used were similar to those found at contemporary sites in the Franco-Cantabrian region and the appearance of various elements from the manufacturing operatory chain indicates that some of the ornaments were made at the site. It was also possible to determine that some of the shells were used—probably suspended or attached to other objects. From a functional standpoint, the ornaments probably played not only an aesthetic role, but also a symbolic one, facilitating communication and exchanges among human groups

La explotación de moluscos en la prehistoria cantábrica: historia de las investigaciones y enfoques teóricos

En este artículo se realiza una revisión crítica de la Historia de las investigaciones sobre la explotación del litoral, y especialmente sobre la explotación de moluscos, durante el Paleolítico superior, el Mesolítico y el Neolítico en la región cantábrica, así como de los marcos teóricos que han influenciado dicha investigación. Desde finales del siglo XIX, el estudio de concheros prehistóricos se llevó a cabo bajo el marco del paradigma histórico-cultural y lainfluencia de los prehistoriadores franceses. A partir de los años 60 y 70 del siglo XX, la llegada de investigadores norteamericanos permitió la introducción del procesualismo en la región, lo que produjo un cambio significativo en la forma de plantear las investigaciones. En los últimos 30 años los datos del registro arqueológico han aumentado considerablemente en cantidad y calidad, mientras los enfoques teóricos se han mantenido estables, si bien la introducción del materialismo histórico ha supuesto la apertura de nuevas perspectivas de análisis e interpretación, aunque han sido escasamente desarrolladas hasta el momento

The use of mollusc shells as tools by coastal human groups: The contribution of ethnographical studies to research on mesolithic and early neolithic technologies in Northern Spain

In European archaeology, the malacological remains recovered in archaeological contexts have traditionally been considered almost exclusively as food waste. In other cases, this view has been broadened in order to study these remains as an expression of aspects of the social organization of the human groups, based on the use of perforated shells as objects of personal ornamentation. However, the study of these natural resources as raw materials for the manufacture of tools aimed at satisfying the production needs of the human groups has been very limited. This little-developed aspect of research is at variance with the abundant ethnographic information from many different periods and geographical settings showing that malacological resources were used in many complex and varied ways. This paper is an attempt at compiling a small part of this ethnographic information - a contribution which, through its critical application to the archaeological record, is of interest in establishing a methodology for studying this type of evidence. In the specific case of northern Spain, information from ethnographic studies has been used to develop an appropriate methodology with which to approach the analysis of this kind of archaeological evidence, as recently documented for the first time at the classic site of Santimamihe (Basque Country). At the same time, the documentation of shell tools could provide an explanation for the scarcity of " traditional technologies " that characterizes many Mesolithic and early Neolithic sites in northern Spain.The authors would like to thank the University of Cantabria for financial support, J. C. Lopez Quintana, M. R. Gonzalez Morales, and A. Garcia Moreno for their help; and L. G. Straus, C. Claassen, D. Lubell, and two anonymous referees for their comments

Temporal and spatial variability of prehistoric aquatic resource procurement: a case study from Mesolithic Northern Iberia

Prehistoric shell middens hold valuable evidence of past human–environment interactions. In this study, we used carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) stable isotopes of Mytilus galloprovincialis shells excavated from El Perro, La Fragua and La Chora, three Mesolithic middens in Cantabria, Northern Spain, to examine hunter-gatherer subsistence strategies in terms of seasonality and collection areas. Furthermore, we used shell δ18O to reconstruct water temperature during the early Holocene. Stable isotopes reveal a shellfish harvesting diversification trend represented by the gradual establishment of the upper estuaries as new procurement areas and an increase of harvesting mobility in both coastal and in-land sites. These innovations in subsistence strategies during the Mesolithic coincided with major changes in the surrounding environment as attested by the water temperature reconstructions based on δ18O and backed by several global and regional records. Overall, our results show that shell δ13C and δ18O stable isotopes have an underexplored potential as provenance proxies which stimulates their application to the archaeological record to further understand prehistoric human resource procurement and diet.This research was performed as part of the projects HAR2016-75605-R and HAR2017-86262-P, funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, MINECO

Collection and consumption of echinoderms and crustaceans at the Mesolithic shell midden site of El Mazo (northern Iberia) : Opportunistic behaviour or social strategy?

Recent studies in Atlantic Europe on crab remains, goose barnacles and sea urchins have revealed that these species can be of great help in determining patterns of shellfish collection and providing new information on subsistence strategies of hunter-fisher-gatherers. Current excavations at the Mesolithic shell midden site of El Mazo cave (Asturias, northern Iberia) have produced a sizeable amount of crustacean and echinoderm remains from a long stratigraphic sequence that covers an important part of the Mesolithic chronological range, providing the opportunity to investigate long-term exploitation patterns. Results show that echinoderms (sea urchins) and crustaceans (goose barnacles and crabs) were present throughout all of the stratigraphic units (from 8.9 to 7.6 cal kyr), suggesting that they were a persistently exploited food source. However, these resources were not intensively exploited, save perhaps sea urchins at the base of the sequence. From a quantitative perspective, these resources have been traditionally interpreted as minor resources exploited opportunistically to help group survival. However, given the pattern of continuous exploitation exhibited by these resources in northern Iberia and other areas of Atlantic Europe, we suggest that they can be interpreted from a qualitative perspective as stable resources with a significant social valu

Evidencia adicional del Solutrense en la Cueva del Mirón (Ramales de la Victoria, Cantabria)

Resumen: En 2010 y 2011, el área del sondeo en el cual niveles solutrenses habían sido expuestos en la Cueva del Mirón fué duplicada. Estos depósitos, en contraste marcado con los niveles del Magdaleniense Inicial e Inferior superyacentes (que yacen casi horizontalmente y que son extraordinariamente ricos en materia orgánica y toda clase de residuos culturales–artefactos de todo tipo, estructuras y restos de fauna—indicativos de importantes ocupaciones residenciales repetidas y multifuncionales de la cueva), siguen la pendiente de 15 grados de la cara erosiva del relleno aluvial del interior de la cueva y son culturalmente bastante pobres. Los niveles solutrenses están datados por el radiocarbono entre 19,230 y 18,390 BP (sin calibrar), aunque el nivel más alto (121) es ambíguo debido a la ausencia de puntas solutrenses al menos en la pequeña área (ahora 4 m2) que ha sido excavada. Los otros niveles solutrenses (122-127) son particularmente ricos en fragmentos de puntas foliadas y de muesca de diversos tipos (incluyendo a las de base cóncava) y deshecho lítico, pero con relativamente pocos otros utensilios retocados, lo cual sugiere unas expediciones de caza en el interior montañoso del Este de Cantabria en parte en momentos de amelioración climática durante el Ultimo Máximo Glacial (sensu lato– justo después del Evento Heinrich 2, durante o poco después del Interestadio Greenland 2), cuando, sin embargo, los glaciares todavía recubrían las laderas superiores de la vecina Cordillera. Otros indicios de la caza incluyen a unas azagayas de asta, algunas de las cuales tienen formas y decoraciones grabadas típicas del Solutrense cantábrico. Por otro lado estos niveles son extraordinariamente ricos en conchas marinas (de diversas especies), muchas de las cuales están perforadas. Estas están acompañadas por otros objetos perforados (caninos de ciervo, huesos y piedras tallados en forma de caninos), asi confimando el patrón revelado en el sondeo excavado en 1998 y 2000. Los restos de fauna están presentes, pero no son abundantes, lo cual podria sugerir o que los reses fueron descuartizados y depositados en otra(s) parte(s) de la cueva o llevados a otros sitios para su consumo, tal vez en la parte baja y así más habitable del valle del Río Asón

Protein diagenesis in archaeological gastropod shells and the suitability of this material for amino acid racemisation dating: Phorcus lineatus (da Costa, 1778)

Abstract: The inter-and intra-crystalline fractions of the topshell Phorcus lineatus recovered from modern specimens and shells from archaeological sites in Northern Spain covering Neolithic, Mesolithic, and Upper Magdalenian periods were examined for amino acidcomposition and racemisation over time. The main loss of proteins from the inter-crystalline fraction occurred within the first 6000 years after the death of the organism. In contrast, the intra-crystalline fraction isolated by bleaching?with a different protein composition to that of the inter-crystalline fraction?appeared to behave like a closed system for at least 12.6 ka, as reflected by the lack of a significant decrease in amino acid content. However, changes in the relative composition of the amino acids present in these shells occurred during this period. The concentration of aspartic acid remained almost constant with age within the intra-crystalline fraction and its contribution to the total amino acid content also remained the same. Good correspondence was obtained between Asx D/L values in unbleached and bleached samples and age, thereby allowing the dating of archaeological sites and the determination of chronometric age.This research was part of the projects HAR2010-22115-C02-01, HAR2010-22115-C02-02, and HAR2013-46802-P, all of them funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness. IGZ was supported by the Newton International Fellowships scheme (grant number NF100413) and the Juan de la Cierva Research Programme (grant number This research was part of the projects HAR2010-22115-C02-01, HAR2010-22115-C02-02, and HAR2013-46802-P, all of them funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness. IGZ was supported by the Newton International Fellowships scheme (grant number NF100413) and the Juan de la Cierva Research Programme (grant number JCI-2012-12094)

Reprint of "Shell oxygen isotope values and sclerochronology of the limpet "Patella vulgata" Linnaeus 1758 from northern Iberia: Implications for the reconstruction of past seawater temperatures"

Abstract: Understanding environmental conditions faced by hunter-fisher-gatherers during the Pleistocene and Holocene, and interpretation of subsistence strategies, social organisation and settlement patterns, are key topics for the study of past human societies. In this respect, oxygen isotope values (?18O) of mollusc shell calcium carbonate can provide important information on palaeoclimate and the seasonality of shell collection at archaeological sites. In this paper, we tested P. vulgata shells from northern Iberia as a paleoclimate archive through the study of shell oxygen isotope values and sclerochronology of modern samples. Results showed that limpets formed their shells close to isotopic equilibrium, with an average offset between measured and predicted values of 0.36?. This offset is significantly reduced with respect to those reported in previous studies, probably due to the use of highly resolved data on the isotopic composition of the water when calculating predicted values. Despite large intra-specific variability, shell growth patterns of P. vulgata revealed a common pattern of higher growth in spring and a growth cessation/slowdown in summer and winter. The seasonal growth cessation/slowdown did not exceed three months. Therefore, a correct interpretation of the season of shell collection is still possible. Reconstructed seawater temperature exhibited a high correlation with instrumental temperature (R2 =0.68 to 0.93; p b 0.0001). Despite periods of growth cessation/slowdown, mean seawater temperatures and annual ranges were reconstructed accurately. As demonstrated here, seawater temperature can be reconstructed with a maximum uncertainty of ±2.7 °C. Therefore, our study shows that oxygen isotope values from P. vulgate can be used for the reconstruction of paleoclimate and the season of shell collectionThis research was part of the projects NF100413 (Newton International Fellowship granted to IGZ) and HAR2013-46802-P (funded bythe Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, MINECO)