Nuevas aportaciones al estudio del poblamiento durante el Neolítico I en el área oriental de las comarcas de L’Alcoià y El Comtat (Alicante)

Es presenten vuit assentaments nous d’hàbitat a l’aire lliure que pertanyen al període cronològic del neolític I, localitzats durant les prospeccions realitzades a les conques dels rius Seta i Penàguila (Alacant). L’important augment d’informació en una àrea ben delimitada i de reduïdes dimensions, fa possible tractar qüestions referides als aspectes funcionals dels assentaments i al model d’explotació i ocupació del territori per les primeres societats productores. Paraules clau: Hàbitat a l’aire lliure. Neolític I. Aspectes funcionals, model d’explotació i ocupació del territori. Conques dels rius Seta i Penàguila (comarques de l’Alcoià i el Comtat, Alacant).In this paper we present eight new open air settlements corresponding to the Neolithic I period, located in the survey carried out in the basins of the rivers Seta and Penàguila (Alicante). The important increment of information in that area, well delimited and of scarce dimensions, makes possible to undertake referring questions to the functional aspects of the settlements and the model of exploitation and occupation of the territory by the first producing communities. Key words: Open air settlement. Neolithic I period. Functional aspects of exploitation and occupation of the territory. Basins of the rivers Seta and Penàguila (L’Alcoià and El Comtat counties, Alicante, Spain).En el presente artículo se dan a conocer ocho nuevos asentamientos de hábitat al aire libre pertenecientes al período cronológico del Neolítico I, localizados en las labores de prospección llevadas a cabo en las cuencas de los ríos Seta y Penàguila (Alicante). El importante incremento de información en un área bien delimitada y de escasas dimensiones hace posible abordar cuestiones referentes a los aspectos funcionales de los asentamientos y al modelo de explotación y ocupación del territorio por las primeras sociedades productoras. Palabras Clave: Hábitat al aire libre. Neolítico I. Aspectos funcionales, modelo de explotación y ocupación del territorio. Cuencas de los ríos Seta y Penàguila (comarcas de L’Alcoià y El Comtat. Alicante)

Graffiti rupestres de época histórica en la Montaña de Alicante: una manifestación artística popular olvidada

Desde hace algunas décadas, se ha tratado de llamar la atención sobre un tipo de patrimonio apenas conocido. Son los denominados graffiti -entendidos como escritos o dibujos antiguos-, que han sido poco valorados como objeto de investigación, probablemente debido a que la mayoría de las representaciones son de cronología histórica. Este patrimonio ignorado sorprende, sin embargo, por la profusión con la que aparece no sólo en las paredes de edificaciones históricas, sino también en los abrigos y cuevas de nuestra geografía. Unas representaciones que, a nuestro juicio, cambian la manera que tenemos de entender las relaciones de la gente con su entorno.For several decades, researchers have tried to draw attention to a little-known type of heritage. This is the graffiti, understood as ancient writings or drawings, which have been undervalued as a research object, probably because most of representations have historical chronology. Surprisely, this ignored heritage profusely appears not only on the walls of historic buildings, but also in the shelters and caves of our geography. These representations, in our view, change the way we understand the relationships between people and their environment

Secondary flow in contour currents controls the formation of moat-drift contourite systems

Ocean currents control seafloor morphology and the transport of sediments, organic carbon, nutrients, and pollutants in deep-water environments. A better connection between sedimentary deposits formed by bottom currents (contourites) and hydrodynamics is necessary to improve reconstructions of paleocurrent and sediment transport pathways. Here we use physical modeling in a three-dimensional flume tank to analyse the morphology and hydrodynamics of a self-emerging contourite system. The sedimentary features that developed on a flat surface parallel to a slope are an elongated depression (moat) and an associated sediment accumulation (drift). The moat-drift system can only form in the presence of a secondary flow near the seafloor that transports sediment from the slope toward the drift. The secondary flow increases with higher speeds and steeper slopes, leading to steeper adjacent drifts. This study shows how bottom currents shape the morphology of the moat-drift system and highlights their potential to estimate paleo-ocean current strength.Projekt DEALBremenIDEA University of Breme

La Edad del Bronce en las comarcas meridionales valencianas: nuevos datos sobre la ocupación humana en la partida de La Canal (Alcoi-Xixona, Alicante)

En aquest article donem a conéixer tres nous jaciments arqueològics pertanyents a l’Edat del Bronze, localitzats després de la realització d’una prospecció arqueològica a la partida rural de la Canal (Alcoi-Xixona, Alacant). La documentació d’aquests jaciments, juntament amb els ja coneguts, permet realitzar algunes consideracions sobre l’ocupació i explotació del territori durant el II mil·lenni BC a la zona. Paraules clau: Edat del Bronze. Poblament. Alcoi. Xixona.In this paper we present three new Bronze Age sites found during an archaeological prospecting survey at La Canal rural area (Alcoi-Xixona, Alicante). The documentation of these sites, together with the ones already known, let us make some considerations on the occupation and exploitation of the territory during the II-I millennium B. C. in this area. Key words: Bronze Age. Settlement. Alcoi. Xixona.En el presente artículo damos a conocer tres nuevos yacimientos arqueológicos pertenecientes a la Edad del Bronce, localizados tras la realización de una prospección arqueológica en la partida rural de La Canal (Alcoi-Xixona, Alicante). La documentación de estos yacimientos, junto a los ya conocidos, permite realizar algunas consideraciones sobre la ocupación y explotación del territorio durante el II-I milenio BC en la zona. Palabras clave: Edad del Bronce. Poblamiento. Alcoi. Xixona

rte rupestre esquemático en Alcoi. Nuevas aportaciones

Es presenten dos nous jaciments amb manifestacions d'art rupestre prehisthric d'estil esquemitic: abric del barranc de I'Abellar i abric de Sant Antoni, localitzats en la capcalera del riu Alcoi o Serpis. S'ofereix la informació publicada anteriorment sobre els motius que d'aquest tipus d'art es coneixen al terme municipal d'Alcoi. Paraules clau: Art rupestre esquemàtic. Neolític. Abric del Barranc de L'Abellar. Abric de Sant Antoni. Alcoi (Alacant).We present two new sites with samples of Prehistoric Rock Art of Schematic style: Abric del Barranc de I'Abellar and Abric de Sant Antoni, located in the Upper Valley of the river of Alcoi or Serpis. We offer the previously published infonnation on the known motives of this type of art in the municipal term of Alcoi. Key words: Schematic Rock Art. Neolithic. Rocky Panels (Abric del Barranc de 1'Abellar. Abric de Sant Anton). Alcoi (Alicante, Spain).Se presentan dos nuevos yacimientos con manifestaciones de arte rupestre prehistórico de estilo esquemático: Abric del Barranc de L'Abellar y Abric de Sant Antoni, localizados en la cabecera del río Alcoi o Serpis. Se ofrece la información publicada con anterioridad sobre los motivos que de este tipo de arte se conocen en el término municipal de Alcoi. Palabras Clave: Arte rupestre esquemático. Neolítico. Abric del Barranc de I'Abellar. Abric de Sant Antoni. Alcoi (Alicante)

Eocene to middle Miocene contourite deposits in Cyprus: A record of Indian Gateway evolution

Acknowledgements This work was funded through the Joint Industry Project (JIP) supported by BP (United Kingdom), ENI (Italy), TOTAL (France), ExxonMobil (United States), Wintershall Dea (Germany) and TGS (United Kingdom) within the framework of “The Drifters” Research Group at Royal Holloway University of London (RHUL), and it is related to the projects CTM 2012-39599-C03, CGL2016-80445-R and CTM2016- 75129-C3-1-R. Financial support of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) is gratefully acknowledged (HU 804/11-1). We thank the Cyprus Geological Survey for scientific collaboration and support, in particular Costas Constantinou and Efthymios Tsiolakis. We thank A. Creaser, L. Hyslop (RHUL), D.A.W. Stow (Heriot-Watt University) and A. Viana (PETROBRAS) for valuable help and discussions during field campaigns. We are also grateful to S. Suklap and B. Docherty for their analysis on microfacies during their MSc. in 2016. Thanks to Dr. G. Blackbourn (Blackbourn Geoconsulting) for his petrographic analysis; F. Sierro (Univ. Salamanca, Spain), RPS Energy Ltd and PalaeoVision Ltd for their biostratigraphic analysis of the samples and A. Maestro (IGME, Spain) for the basemap in Fig. 1. A. de la Vara’s contribution is based on work done during her PhD at Utrecht University, supervised by Paul Meijer. We thank the editor, Gabriel Tagliaro and one anonymous reviewer for their positive comments which helped us to improve considerably our manuscript.Bottom current deposits (contourites) form in association with modern-day or ancient oceanic gateways. A paucity of examples in the ancient record and the lack of consensus on diagnostic criteria for differentiating them from other deepwater deposits limit our understanding of how they may record past global oceanic circulation, tectonic events and gateway evolution. This work describes an exceptional example of Eocene to middle Miocene deep-marine deposits located both onshore and offshore deepwater environments around the island of Cyprus. Multidisciplinary approaches were used to discriminate contourite facies associations, propose a sedimentary model, and interpret the relations with regional tectonics and the evolution of the nearby Indian Gateway. Contourite deposits appear in late Eocene to middle Miocene intervals interstratified with pelagic/hemipelagic sediments, turbidites and mass-transport deposits (MTDs). These deepwater deposits developed along a slope basin located on the upper plate of an active margin, evolving from a wide basin formed during a period of tectonic quiescent into a series of shallowing-upward, segmented sub-basins affected by compressional stress. The present study proposes a sedimentary model in which two contourite depositional systems developed: first in the Eocene (dominated by finer-grained contourites), and then during the latest Oligocene to middle Miocene (dominated by coarser-grained contourites). Both systems were buried by extensive marl deposits and record the respective influence of deep (circulating NW) and intermediate (circulating SE) water masses. The long-term evolution of the contourites reflects tectonic events that enhanced subduction processes south of Cyprus as well as exchange between the Neotethys Ocean and the Indian and Atlantic Oceans —until the final closure of the Indian Gateway by the end of the middle Miocene, when a new circulation pattern was established with the formation of the Mediterranean Sea. The contourites described here represent bi-gradational sequences that normally form in association with contouritic drifts, sometimes having the asymmetric top-cut sequence characteristics of plastered drifts and contourite terraces. The coarser (sandy) contourites, formed from the latest Oligocene to middle Miocene, consist of three packages associated with compressive and flexural phases. They pertain to I) Chattian (late Oligocene); II) Aquitanian/Burdigalian (early Miocene) and III) Langhian (middle Miocene). Evidence of enhanced bottom current episodes occurs toward the top of these packages before they are buried by later dominant marl deposits. The sandy contourites thus formed during the compressive phases, whereas the predominately finer-grained units formed during later flexural phases. The intermittent turbidites and MTDs (developed during compressional phases in combination with pelagic/hemipelagic sediments) represent the sediment supply for the contourite deposits after their winnowing and / or reworking. Our research found that the diagnostic criteria for discriminating ancient bottom current deposits from other deepwater deposits are related primarily to variations in sedimentary processes, current behaviour and its velocity, sedimentation rates and paleoenvironmental conditions. This highlights the importance of primary sedimentary structures, microfacies and ichnological features in making determinations at the sedimentary facies scale. Due to their common occurrence, sedimentary thickness (30-40 m), potential porosity and permeability, sandy contourites can form deepwater reservoirs for energy geosciences. In summary, this work demonstrates the role of plate tectonics and oceanic gateways in driving the paleo-oceanic circulation that, in turn, controls sedimentary processes and shapes the morphology of oceanic basins and continental margins. It also allows for comparison with other present-day and ancient continental margin deposits. Future high-resolution approaches and analyses of other geological settings could help resolve the sedimentary architectures of similar deepwater systems in terms of episodic tectonic processes —involving compressive-flexural stress variations. They control the Earth’s surface environment (sea-level, climate and oceanic circulation) over time by influencing sediment supply, packages of strata and types of contourite deposits.Joint Industry Project (JIP) supported by BP (United Kingdom), ENI (Italy), TOTAL (France), ExxonMobil (United States), Wintershall Dea (Germany) and TGS (United Kingdom) within the framework of “The Drifters” Research Group at Royal Holloway University of London (RHUL), and it is related to the projects CTM 2012-39599-C03, CGL2016-80445-R and CTM2016- 75129-C3-1-RDeutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) is gratefully acknowledged (HU 804/11-1

Neogene to Quaternary stratigraphic evolution of the Antarctic Peninsula, Pacific Margin offshore of Adelaide Island:Transitions from a non-glacial, through glacially-influenced to a fully glacial state

A detailed morphologic and seismic stratigraphic analysis of the continental margin offshore of Adelaide Island on the Pacific Margin of the Antarctic Peninsula (PMAP) is described based on the study of a regular network of reflection multichannel seismic profiles and swath bathymetry. We present an integrated study of the margin spanning the shelf to the continental rise and establish novel chronologic constraints and offer new interpretations on tectonic evolution and environmental changes affecting the PMAP. The stratigraphic stacking patterns record major shifts in the depositional style of the margin that outline three intervals in its evolution. The first non-glacial interval (Early Cretaceous to middle Miocene) encompasses a transition from an active to a passive margin (early Miocene). The second glacially-influenced interval (middle to late Miocene) is marked by pronounced aggradational sedimentary stacking and subsidence. Ice sheets advanced over the middle shelf of the margin at the end of this second interval, while the outer shelf experienced rare progradational events. The third, fully glaciated interval shows clear evidence of glacially dominated conditions on the margin. This interval divides into three minor stages. During the first stage (late Miocene to the beginning of the early Pliocene), frequent grounded ice advances to the shelf break began, depositing an initial progradational unit. A major truncation surface marked the end of this stage, which coincided with extensive mass transport deposits at the base of the slope. During the second progradational glacial margin stage (early Pliocene to middle Pleistocene), stacking patterns record clearly prograding glacial sequences. The beginning of the third aggradational glacial margin stage (middle Pleistocene to present) corresponded to an important shift in global climate during the Mid-Pleistocene Transition. Morphosedimentary characteristics observed along the margin today began to develop during the latest Miocene but did not become fully established until sometime during the interval between the end of the Pliocene and middle Pleistocene. Between these two time intervals, the northeast lateral migration of the Marguerite Trough also played a critical role in margin evolution, as it controlled ice sheet drainage pathways across the shelf, which in turn influenced development of slope and rise morphologies. Areas offshore from Adelaide Island differ from other areas of the PMAP due to changes in sedimentary processes that resulted from migration of the trough. This study confirms that the PMAP represents an exceptional locality for decoding, reconstructing and linking past tectonic and climatic changes. The study area specifically records not only the most relevant changes in depositional style, but also the relative importance of persistent along- and down-slope sedimentary processes. Our study approach can be extended to other areas and integrated with additional techniques to understand the evolution and the global linkages of the entire Antarctic continental margin and the ice sheets

Preface

Instituto Español de Oceanografí

Podomorfos y grafitis rupestres de la ermita de San Pascual (paraje del Canastell, Crevillent, Alicante)

Se presenta un conjunto de insculturas y grafitis sobre soporte rupestre entre los que destacan una serie de motivos podomorfos, localizados en el paraje rural del Canastell, en Crevilllent, Alicante. En las últimas décadas este tipo de manifestaciones han generado un interés creciente entre los investigadores, a pesar de lo cual aún resultan escasos los conjuntos bien conocidos y documentados en la región mediterránea