The pottery of La Cova de l’Or (Beniarrés, Alicante, Spain). Typology and decoration of the collections at the Alcoi Municipal Archaeological Museum.

Es presenten els resultats de l’estudi tipològic i de les tècniques decoratives de les ceràmiques de la Cova de l’Or dels fons del Museu d’Alcoi. Aquests ratifiquen la importància de la ceràmica impresa cardial des del primer horitzó d’ocupació de la cova. El context local i regional on queda integrada ens ha portat a plantejar l’existència de diferents comunitats cardials que ocupen territoris concrets. Paraules clau: Cova de l’Or. Neolític. Decoració ceràmica. Tipologia. Comunitat.Se presentan los resultados del estudio tipológico y de las técnicas decorativas de las cerámicas de la Cova de l’Or de los fondos del Museu d’Alcoi. Éstos ratifican la importancia de la cerámica impresa cardial desde el primer horizonte de ocupación de la cueva. El contexto local y regional en el que queda integrada nos ha llevado a plantear la existencia de diferentes comunidades cardiales que ocupan territorios concretos. Palabras clave: Cova de l’Or. Neolítico. Decoración cerámica. Tipología. Comunidad.Herein we present the results of the typological study as well as ornamental techniques of the pottery from La Cova de l’Or included in the holdings of the Alcoi Archaeological Museum. The said results highlight the importance of the impressed Cardium pottery or Cardial ware from the first occupation horizon of the cave. The local and regional context where it is integrated has led us to pose the existence of different Cardial communities occupying concrete or specific territories. Key words: Cova de l’Or. Neolithic. Pottery decoration. Typology. Community

Cordage, basketry and containers at the Pleistocene-Holocene boundary in southwest Europe. Evidence from Coves de Santa Maira (Valencian region, Spain)

In this study we present evidence of braided plant fibres and basketry imprints on clay recovered from Coves de Santa Maira, a Palaeolithic-Mesolithic cave site located in the Mediterranean region of Spain. The anatomical features of these organic fibre remains were identified in the archaeological material and compared with modern Stipa tenacissima (esparto grass). Based on direct dating, the fragments of esparto cord from our site are the oldest worked plant fibres in Europe. Sixty fragments of fired clay are described. The clay impressions have allowed us to discuss the making of baskets and containers. According to their attributes and their functional interpretation, we have grouped them into five types within two broad categories, hearth plates and baskets or containers. The clay pieces identified as fragments of containers with basketry impressions are less common than those of hearth plate remains and they are concentrated in the Epipalaeolithic occupation material (13.2-10.2 ka cal bp). The clay impressions from Santa Maira indicate that some fibres were treated or flattened, a preparation process that is known from historical and ethnological sources

Occurrence of whale barnacles in Nerja Cave (Málaga, southern Spain): Indirect evidence of whale consumption by humans in the Upper Magdalenian

A total of 167 plates of two whale barnacle species (Tubicinella majorLamarck, 1802 and Cetopirus complanatusMörch, 1853) have been found in the Upper Magdalenian layers of Nerja Cave, Mina Chamber (Maro, Málaga, southern Spain). This is the first occurrence of these species in a prehistoric site. Both species are specific to the southern right whale Eubalena australis, today endemic in the Southern Hemisphere. Because of Antarctic sea-ice expansion during the Last Glacial Period, these whales could have migrated to the Northern Hemisphere, and reached southern Spain. Whale barnacles indicate that maritime-oriented forager human groups found stranded whales on the coast and, because of the size and weight of the large bones, transported only certain pieces (skin, blubber and meat) to the caves where they were consumed

Cueva de La Cocina (Dos Aguas, Valencia) en el marco del Proyecto de Investigación Har2012-33111 “Meso Cocina: Los Últimos Caza-Recolectores y el Paradigma de la Neolitización en el Mediterráneo Peninsular”

Comunicación oral en el VI Congreso del Neolítico en la Península Ibérica: “Los cambios económicos y sus implicaciones sociales durante el Neolítico de la Península Ibérica”, 22-26 junio 2016 GranadaEl objetivo de esta comunicación es dar a conocer los resultados preliminares del proyecto HAR12-33111 “MesoCocina: los últimos caza-recolectores y el paradigma de la neolitización en el Mediterráneo peninsular” que ha tenido como eje de actuación el análisis pormenorizado del excepcional registro prehistórico recuperado en Cueva de la Cocina (Dos Aguas, Valencia). En el transcurso de los tres últimos años se ha procedido al análisis de las colecciones correspondientes a las excavaciones efectuadas por Ll. Pericot en los años 40 del pasado siglo así como aquellos resultados de las campañas dirigidas posteriormente por J. Fortea en los años 70. Al mismo tiempo se han llevado a cabo dos intervenciones de campo en la cavidad con el fin de obtener información precisa sobre las características de una secuencia clave a propósito de las ocupaciones del Mesolítico final en el Mediterráneo occidental, y que además contiene evidencias de frecuentaciones posteriores, desde el Neolítico Antiguo hasta la edad del Bronce. El establecimiento de un marco radiométrico preciso ha sido una de las prioridades junto a la reconstrucción tridimensional de todas las actuaciones realizadas hasta la fecha en el sitio. Bajo esta óptica procederemos a reevaluar la variabilidad de la cultura material, de las actividades de subsistencia, del mundo simbólico y las conexiones sociales en el entorno medioambiental donde se llevaron a cabo desde una amplia perspectiva diacrónica, entre el inicio del IX y el III milenio cal BP. Ciñéndonos al marco de este congreso nos centraremos especialmente en los nuevos datos relativos a la secuencia de los últimos caza-recolectores y el primer Neolítico en la cavidad.Peer Reviewe

Variabilité des techniques de récolte et traitements des céréales dans l'occident Méditerranéen au Néolithique Ancien et Moyen: facteurs environnementaux, économiques et sociaux

La reconstitution des techniques agricoles préhistoriques constitue un élément fondamental pour la compréhension du processus d’expansion de l’agriculture en Méditerranée occidentale. Dans le cadre d’un projet européen rassemblant des tracéologues et des carpologues espagnols et français, nous avons, dans une première phase, étudié les méthodes de récolte des céréales pratiquées durant le Néolithique en Espagne et dans le Sud de la France, du Néolithique ancien au Néolithique moyen. L’étude des outils de récolte a permis de distinguer trois aires distinctes. Le Sud-Est de l’Espagne est caractérisé par des faucilles courbes avec des éléments insérés obliquement dans le manche. En Catalogne, Languedoc et Provence, la majorité des faucilles sont constituées de longues lames emmanchées parallèlement au manche, mais d’autres modèles existent. En Espagne cantabrique, les céréales étaient récoltées sans faucille. Nos travaux en cours explorent différents facteurs pouvant expliquer cette variabilité : conditions environnementales, types de céréales cultivées, finalités techniques et alimentaires de la culture des céréales, techniques de conservation des céréales, rôle de l’agriculture céréalière dans l’économie, dynamiques historiques de l’expansion et de l’adoption des innovations néolithiques.Peer Reviewe

Towards the identification of a new taphonomic agent: An analysis of bone accumulations obtained from modern Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus) nests

This paper presents the results of a study of bones recovered in various current Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus) nests in a Mediterranean region of the Iberian Peninsula. The Egyptian vulture, a diurnal, scavenging, rupicolous bird of prey, is one of four vulture species that currently inhabit the Iberian Peninsula. An analysis of the remains found in the nests confirms that it has a heterogeneous diet that includes remains from human activities (butchery and food production) and the carcasses of dead animals, although it is possible that they also prey on small-sized taxa. The taphonomic study determines these birds" capability of transporting, accumulating and altering bone remains. Some of the elements show marks caused by beak and/or claw impacts brought about primarily during feeding, which have characteristic typologies. Despite the fact that this is not a bone-eating vulture, it can also be seen that some bones are swallowed. The characteristics of the bone set studied here are important for establishing the origin of bone accumulations on archaeological sites

8.2 ka BP paleoclimatic event and the Ebro Valley Mesolithic groups: Preliminary data from Artusia rock shelter (Unzué, Navarra, Spain)

This paper presents the results of the first excavation campaign of the Artusia rock shelter in Unzué, Navarre, Spain. Chronocultural and archaeobiological analyses revealed five different occupation phases (Artusia I–V) within the regional Mesolithic timeline, specifically in the Mesolithic of Notches and Denticulates (Artusia I and II) and the Geometric Mesolithic (Artusia III, IV, and V). In addition, the study of the sedimentological and palaeoenvironmental evolution in the entire record helped to clearly define several climatic events which developed around 6550 cal BC–8500 cal BP and 6250 cal BC–8200 cal BP. Here, we present a description of these events and their (pre)historical interpretation with the aim of recognizing how they influenced the Mesolithic hunter–gatherer groups living in the Ebro Basin of the Iberian Peninsula.projects “Los Caminos del Neolítico” -HAR2009- 09027- and “Los Caminos del Neolítico II” -(HAR2013-46800-P)- under directed by Dr. Manuel Rojo Guerra, granted by the Subdirectorate General for Research Projects/General Directorate of Research and Management of the National Plan for R and D and Innovation/Secretary of State for Research of the Ministry of Science and Innovation of Spain, and co-financed by the Government of Navarre. All analytical work and radiocarbon dating were carried out within the project “Origins and spread of agriculture in the western Mediterranean region” -ERC-2008-AdG 230561-, coordinated by Dr. Leonor Pe~na Chocarro and financed by the European Research Council

Los primeros pastores trashumantes de la Alta Ribagorza

Los autores utilizan argumentos arqueológicos y arqueobiológicos para plantear la hipótesis de que quienes ocuparon la Cova de Els Trocs desde el último cuarto del VI mileno calANE hasta finales del IV (ibídem, Tab. I). Eran grupos humanos poco numerosos que practicaban una economía primordialmente pastoril. Las ocupaciones de la cueva fueron recurrentes y estacionales, llegando a estos parajes a finales de primavera o principios de verano y abandonándolos a finales de septiembre, cuando los días reducen drásticamente las horas de luz. Plantean posibles procedencias y caminos de acceso a estos pastos de verano entre las cabeceras de los ríos Ésera e Isábena y defienden un tipo de actividad trashumante o trasterminante ya desde el VI milenio calANE.La línea de investigación principal de este trabajo se desarrolla en el marco del proyecto “Los Caminos del Neolítico” (HAR200909027), bajo la dirección del Dr. Manuel Rojo Guerra, concedido por la Subdirección General de Proyectos de Investigación/Dirección General de investigación y gestión del Plan Nacional de I+D+I/Secretaría de Estado de Investigación, del Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, y co-financiado por el Gobierno de Aragón. Del mismo modo, la parte analítica se enmarca dentro del proyecto “Origins and spread of agriculture in the western Mediterranean region” (ERC-2008-AdG 230561), coordinado por la Dra. Leonor Peña Chocarro y financiado por el European Research Council. También, buena parte de la investigación relativa al estudio antropológico y su datación, ha sido sufragada por la German Research Foundation (Al 287/14-1).Peer reviewe

Orphan crops of archaeology-based crop history research

Agrobiodiversity is central to sustainable farming worldwide. Cultivation, conservation and reintroduction of diverse plant species, including ‘forgotten’ and ‘underutilized’ crops, contribute to global agrobiodiversity, living ecosystems and sustainable food production. Such efforts benefit from traditional and historical knowledge of crop plants' evolutionary and cultural trajectories. This review is a first attempt at systematically gauging species representativeness in studies of archaeological plant remains. Results indicate that, in addition to discipline-specific methodological sources of bias, modern agricultural biases may replicate themselves in crop history research and influence understandings of ‘forgotten crops’. Recognizing these biases is an initial stride towards rectifying them and promoting agrobiodiversity in both research and practical applications. Summary: So-called ‘forgotten’ or ‘orphan’ crops are an important component of strategies aimed at preserving and promoting biodiversity. Knowledge of historical cultivation, usage, and geographic and evolutionary trajectories of plants, that is, crop history research, is important for the long-term success of such efforts. However, research biases in the crops chosen for study may present hurdles. This review attempts to systematically identify patterns in crop species representativeness within archaeology-based crop history research. A meta-analysis and synthesis of archaeobotanical evidence (and lack thereof) is presented for 268 species known to have been cultivated for food prior to 1492 CE from the Mediterranean region to South Asia. We identified 39 genera with known crop plants in this geographical and historical context that are currently absent from its archaeobotanical record, constituting ‘orphan’ crops of archaeobotany. In addition, a worldwide synthesis of crop species studied using geometric morphometric, archaeogenetic and stable isotope analyses of archaeological plant remains is presented, and biases in the species represented in these disciplines are discussed. Both disciplinary methodological biases and economic agenda-based biases affecting species representativeness in crop history research are apparent. This study also highlights the limited geographic diffusion of most crops and the potential for deeper historical perspectives on how crops become marginalized and ‘forgotten’