Rethinking use-wear analysis and experimentation as applied to the study of past hominin tool use

In prehistoric human populations, technologies played a fundamental role in the acquisition of different resources and are represented in the main daily living activities, such as with bone, wooden, and stone-tipped spears for hunting, and chipped-stone tools for butchering. Considering that paleoanthropologists and archeologists are focused on the study of different processes involved in the evolution of human behavior, investigating how hominins acted in the past through the study of evidence on archeological artifacts is crucial. Thus, investigat ing tool use is of major importance for a comprehensive understanding of all processes that characterize human choices of raw materials, techniques, and tool types. Many functional assumptions of tool use have been based on tool design and morphology according to archeologists’ interpretations and ethnographic observations. Such assumptions are used as baselines when inferring human behavior and have driven an improvement in the methods and techniques employed in functional studies over the past few decades. Here, while arguing that use-wear analysis is a key discipline to assess past hominin tool use and to interpret the organization and variability of artifact types in the archeological record, we aim to review and discuss the current state-of-the-art methods, protocols, and their limitations. In doing so, our discussion focuses on three main topics: (1) the need for fundamental improvements by adopting established methods and techniques from similar research fields, (2) the need to implement and combine different levels of experimentation, and (3) the crucial need to establish standards and protocols in order to improve data quality, standard ization, repeatability, and reproducibility. By adopting this perspective, we believe that studies will increase the reliability and applicability of use-wear methods on tool function. The need for a holistic approach that combines not only use-wear traces but also tool technology, design, curation, durability, and efficiency is also debated and revised. Such a revision is a crucial step if archeologists want to build major inferences on human decision making behavior and biocultural evolution processes.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Chronometric investigations of the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition in the Zagros Mountains using AMS radiocarbon dating and Bayesian age modelling

The Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition is often linked with a bio-cultural shift involving the dispersal of modern humans outside of Africa, the concomitant replacement of Neanderthals across Eurasia, and the emergence of new technological traditions. The Zagros Mountains region assumes importance in discussions concerning this period as its geographic location is central to all pertinent hominin migration areas, pointing to both east and west. As such, establishing a reliable chronology in the Zagros Mountains is crucial to our understanding of these biological and cultural developments. Political circumstance, coupled with the poor preservation of organic material, has meant that a clear chronological definition of the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition for the Zagros Mountains region has not yet been achieved. To improve this situation, we have obtained new archaeological samples for AMS radiocarbon dating from three sites: Kobeh Cave, Kaldar Cave, and Ghār-e Boof (Iran). In addition, we have statistically modelled previously published radiocarbon determinations for Yafteh Cave (Iran) and Shanidar Cave (Iraqi Kurdistan), to improve their chronological resolution and enable us to compare the results with the new dataset. Bayesian modelling results suggest that the onset of the Upper Paleolithic in the Zagros Mountains dates to 45,000-40,250 cal BP (68.2% probability). Further chronometric data are required to improve the precision of this age range

Chronometric investigations of the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition in the Zagros Mountains using AMS radiocarbon dating and Bayesian age modelling

The Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition is often linked with a bio-cultural shift involving the dispersal of modern humans outside of Africa, the concomitant replacement of Neanderthals across Eurasia, and the emergence of new technological traditions. The Zagros Mountains region assumes importance in discussions concerning this period as its geographic location is central to all pertinent hominin migration areas, pointing to both east and west. As such, establishing a reliable chronology in the Zagros Mountains is crucial to our understanding of these biological and cultural developments. Political circumstance, coupled with the poor preservation of organic material, has meant that a clear chronological definition of the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition for the Zagros Mountains region has not yet been achieved. To improve this situation, we have obtained new archaeological samples for AMS radiocarbon dating from three sites: Kobeh Cave, Kaldar Cave, and Ghār-e Boof (Iran). In addition, we have statistically modelled previously published radiocarbon determinations for Yafteh Cave (Iran) and Shanidar Cave (Iraqi Kurdistan), to improve their chronological resolution and enable us to compare the results with the new dataset. Bayesian modelling results suggest that the onset of the Upper Paleolithic in the Zagros Mountains dates to 45,000-40,250 cal BP (68.2% probability). Further chronometric data are required to improve the precision of this age range

Test excavations and initial results at the middle and upper paleolithic sites of Gilvaran, Kaldar, Ghamari caves and Gar Arjene Rockshelter, Khorramabad Valley, western Iran

10.1016/j.crpv.2014.01.005This paper introduces the excavations in several Paleolithic sites in the Khorramabad Valley, Western Iran. Apart from the two well-known sites of Ghamari Cave and Gar Arjene rock shelter, first excavated by Frank Hole and Kent Flannery in the 1960s, the Gilvaran and Kaldar caves were excavated for the first time. Here we present the stratigraphy of these sites, general data from the lithic assemblages, and the identifications of a small part of the faunal remains. Preliminary results are showing that all of the sites were occupied from the Middle and Upper Paleolithic onward, and therefore provide great potential for the study of the transition between these cultural periods. Our preliminary techno-typological observations show that the lower levels of the Gilvaran and Ghamari sequences may represent an early phase of the Middle Paleolithic

Palaeontological data about the small vertebrate assemblage from the Late Pleistocene of Kaldar Cave (Khorramabad Valley, Iran)

International audienc

Test excavations and initial results at the middle and upper paleolithic sites of Gilvaran, Kaldar, Ghamari caves and Gar Arjene Rockshelter, Khorramabad Valley, western Iran

This paper introduces the excavations in several Paleolithic sites in the Khorramabad Valley, Western Iran. Apart from the two well-known sites of Ghamari Cave and Gar Arjene rock shelter, first excavated by Frank Hole and Kent Flannery in the 1960s, the Gilvaran and Kaldar caves were excavated for the first time. Here we present the stratigraphy of these sites, general data from the lithic assemblages, and the identifications of a small part of the faunal remains. Preliminary results are showing that all of the sites were occupied from the Middle and Upper Paleolithic onward, and therefore provide great potential for the study of the transition between these cultural periods. Our preliminary techno-typological observations show that the lower levels of the Gilvaran and Ghamari sequences may represent an early phase of the Middle Paleolithic. © 2014 Académie des sciences