Grotta del Cavallo (Apulia-Southern Italy). The Uluzzian in the mirror

The Uluzzian techno-complex is commonly considered to be a \u201ctransitional industry\u201d mostly on the basis of some inferred characteristics such as a chiefly flake-based production, a small amount of Upper Palaeolithic-like tools and a combination of Middle and Upper Palaeolithic elements both in the toolkit and in the technical systems. Following its discovery, the Uluzzian was identified as the Italian counterpart of the French Ch\ue2telperronian and attributed to Neandertals. However, a study issued in 2011 has established the modern character of the two deciduous teeth found in 1964 in the Uluzzian deposit of Grotta del Cavallo, fostering renewed interests to the Uluzzian culture, which real nature is almost unknown to the international scientific community. Here we provide preliminary results of the study on the lithic assemblage from the earliest Uluzzian layer and on backed pieces from the whole Uluzzian sequence of Grotta del Cavallo (Apulia, Italy), the type site of the Uluzzian. Moreover, besides a thorough review on the stratigraphy of Grotta del Cavallo (Supplementary Materials), we provide updated information on the human remains by presenting two unpublished teeth from the reworked deposit of the same cave. We conclude that the early Uluzzians demonstrate original technological behavior and innovations devoid of any features deriving or directly linked with the late Mousterian of Southern Italy. Therefore, the novelty nature of the Uluzzian techno-complex (with respect to the preceding Mousterian) complies with the recent reassessment of the two deciduous teeth from Grotta del Cavallo in suggesting an earliest migration of modern humans in southern Europe around 45,000 years ago

Uluzzian and Aurignacian Cultures in Southern Italy at the beginning of Upper Palaeolithic: some reflections

Cette étude prends son départ depuis une brève analyse des taxa humaines protagonistes de l’Uluzzien et de l’Aurignacien, et des modalités de diffusion des populations dans le Sud de l’Italie, par rapport aux variations paléoclimatiques, pendant la période de transition entre les deux Cultures. Sur la base des sites ou la succession stratigraphique Uluzzien-Aurignacien est certaine, on se propose de mettre en évidence les changements, s’il y a n’a, des stratégies de subsistance et des modalités d’exploitation du territoire pendant cette période. Les gisements de référence sont les Grottes de Castelcivita et de La Cala en Campanie (Province de Salerno), mais la première située dans une aire intérieure, la deuxième directement sur la côte. On a pris en considération quelques caractères des industries lithiques (matière première, nucléi, typologie, typometrie, structures), la composition de la faune chassée par l’Homme, l’organisation du campement, les objets en os et les parures. Cette analyse montre que, industries lithiques à part, les attitudes comportementales des Uluzziens et des Aurignaciens de l’Italie du Sud étaient plus semblables de ce qu’on s’attendrait chez des populations dont la diversité biologique est très probable

The human presence in Southern Italy

The human presence in Southern Italy during the Last Glacial Maximum (22 ±2 ka cal BP) and the Holocene Climatic Optimum (8 ± 1ka cal BP

Gli ultimi Neandertaliani in Italia: aspetti culturali

Durante il MIS 3 è attestata in Italia del Sud, una generale successione Musteriano/Uluzziano/Aurignaziano. Sulla base dei principali siti stratificati sono sinteticamente esaminati i cambiamenti presenti all’interno di questa successione, in relazione alle strategie di sussistenza, di approvvigionamento, di sfruttamento del territorio e alle attività produttivei. Il comportamento degli Uluzziani mostra dinamiche in evoluzione rispetto al Musteriano e aspetti economici e comportamentali più affini all’Aurignaziano, con l’eccezione della produzione litica. Non sembra che l’espandersi degli Aurignaziani da Nord verso il Sud della nostra Penisola abbia tuttavia dato luogo a forme di acculturazione evidenti presso i gruppi Uluzziani

Il Riparo del Poggio a Marina di Camerota (Salerno): culture e ambiente

Poggio Shelter is located on the Italian coast of the Tyrrhenian sea, some 80 km South-east of Naples. The Shelter was part of a complex underground karst system, which was partially dismantled by sea erosion during the high-stand of MIS 7, originating a large niche with a thick deposit at the foot of a falaise, and small cave. Archaeological excavations were carried out in the deposit and in the cave during the 1970s, putting into light a 23 m-thick sequence, including 17 m of archaeological levels. The sequence is mainly made up of cave breakdown deposits mixed with colluvium originated by the reworking of red soils (Alfisols); soils or moderately reworked soils also occur, interfingered within the sequence. These sediments reflect environmental processes related respectively to the damping of the glacial effects by the mediterranean environment, and to warm interstadial phases. The bottom of the sequence is covered by the present-day sea-level; the basal deposit can probably be attributed to MIS 7 because of the characteristics of the lithics occurring in the overlying levels, which include a level dated to 111.8 ka BP. The overlying sequence can be divided into three main parts, most of which contains archaeological records of culturally different human presences, starting from ancient Middle Palaeolithic cultures to Upper Palaeolithic - Levels 20-18, made up of breakdown deposits with evidence of colluvium and some aeolian processes. The faunal assemblage can be divided into two stages, and includes mainly red deer, with roe deer, wild boar, ibex, chamois, bovines, and with Elephas and Stephanorhinus occurring only in the lower part. Since layer 18 appears evidence of human presence. Lower part of layer 18 contains an archaic and un-standardized lithic assemblage, characterised by denticulates and thick tools. The upper part contains a more specialised industry, basically focused on production of Quina-type side-scrapers with stepped retouch. This whole part of the sequence may correspond to the cold stage MIS 6, characterised by a patchy forested environment of fresh climate. - Levels 17-9, reddish soils and soil sediments, interfingered with tephra, and dated to 43800±3500 BP in level 9. Among the faunas, which are statistically relevant only in levels 10-9, the fallow deer is the dominant ungulate, corresponding to an interstadial with temperate and moderately wet mediterranean-like climate. From the bottom to the top, we highlighted at least four main cultural phases. In layer 17 appears the first assemblage with Levallois technology, containing mainly slightly-retouched flat tools. Layer 16 contains a typical Mousterian assemblage which shows further development of Levallois technique. A scarce amount of findings comes from layers 15-13 (tephra), while the top of Middle Palaeolithic series (layers 12-9) contains an abundant, technologically and typologically advanced mousterian industry. - Levels 8-1, colluvium of Alfisols and breakdown deposits with evidence of strong soil erosion, including very few faunal remains; these levels can be ascribed to a somewhat cold climate with continental traits of environmental instability. Following the erosion, from layer 7 to he top, findings showed out the presence of Epigravettian culture. For what concerns human behaviour, it is noteworthy that the most frequent ungulates (red and fallow deer) were killed mostly when adult. The identified skeletal parts are represented mostly by isolated teeth and limb bones. In levels 18a (bottom) and 10, most of the sediment skeleton is made up of strongly comminuted bone fragments, unsorted and with grain-size down to some tens of micrometres. Lithic raw materials procurement area (close-distance from site) appears more or less the same in all periods, however we highlight a lack of selection strategies in MIS 6 assemblages, while more recent industries shows evidence of growing accuracy in selecting quality for tools production

Grotta di Santa Croce: le nuove ricerche.

Gli scavi sistematici nel deposito interno ed esterno della Grotta, già oggetto di ricerche negli anni ’50, sono ripresi nel 1997 e sono tuttora in corso. I risultati ottenuti dalla ripresa delle ricerche a S. Croce sono più che incoraggianti e necessitano di ricerche sistematiche e prolungate nel tempo. Sarà infatti necessario approfondire la trincea esterna, al fine di ampliare la campionatura e investigare a fondo l’appartenenza cronologico-culturale dei livelli del Paleolitico superiore fin qui rinvenuti. Sarà inoltre interessante sondare i livelli del Paleolitico medio, che sembrano presentarsi più articolati di quanto lasciassero supporre i vecchi scavi. Sarebbe inoltre importante proseguire le indagini all’interno della cavità, nell’area dell’eccezionale rinvenimento di una stuoia in fibre vegetali risalente al neolitico antic

Una stuoia in fibre vegetali del neolitico antico nella Grotta di S. Croce

Si descrive una stuoia in fibre vegetali di età neolitica (14C> 6555 ± 50 BP n.cal.) rinvenuta alla grotta di Santa Croce in territorio di Bisceglie (Puglia) associata a fossette di stillicidio

Italie du Sud

Bilancio sulle attività di ricerca del Paleolitico superiore svolte in Italia del Sud nel quinquennio 2006-2011. Sono sintetizzate le nuove acquisizioni in campo scientifico legate alle attività svolte in siti Uluzziani (Grotta del Cavallo, Grotta di Castelcivita, Serino), in siti Aurignaziani a dorsi marginali (Grotta Paglicci), Gravettiani (Grotta Paglicci, Grotta della Cala, Grotta di Roccia San Sebastiano, Grotta della Serratura), Epigravettiani (Grotta Paglicci, Riparo C delle Cipolliane, Grotta di Curtomatino, Grotta delle Mura, Grotta Romanelli, Grotta del Cavallo, Grotta del Mezzogiorno, Grotta del Romito, Grotta di San Martino)

Il Riparo del Poggio a Marina di Camerota (Salerno): culture ed ambiente.

Poggio Shelter is located on the Italian coast of the Tyrrhenian sea, some 80 km South-east of Naples. The Shelter was part of a complex underground karst system, which was partially dismantled by sea erosion during the high-stand of MIS 7, originating a large niche with a thick deposit at the foot of a falaise, and small cave. Archaeological excavations were carried out in the deposit and in the cave during the 1970s, putting into light a 23 m-thick sequence, including 17 m of archaeological levels. The sequence is mainly made up of cave breakdown deposits mixed with colluvium originated by the reworking of red soils (Alfisols); soils or moderately reworked soils also occur, interfingered within the sequence. These sediments reflect environmental processes related respectively to the damping of the glacial effects by the mediterranean environment, and to warm interstadial phases. The bottom of the sequence is covered by the present-day sea-level; the basal deposit can probably be attributed to MIS7 because of the characteristics of the lithics occurring in the overlying levels, which include a level dated to 111.8 ky BP. The overlying sequence can be divided into three main parts, most of which contains archaeological records of culturally different human presences, starting from ancient Middle Palaeolithic cultures to Upper Palaeolithic. - Levels 20-18, made up of breakdown deposits with evidence of colluvium and some aeolian processes. The faunal assemblage can be divided into two stages, and includes mainly red deer, with roe deer, wild boar, ibex, chamois, bovines, and with Elephas and Stephanorhinus occurring only in the lower part. Since layer 18 appears evidence of human presence. Lower part of layer 18 contains an archaic and un-standardized lithic assemblage, characterised by denticulates and thick tools. The upper part contains a more specialised industry, basically focused on production of Quina-type side-scrapers with stepped retouch. This whole part of the sequence may correspond to the cold stage MIS 6, characterised by a patchy forested environment of fresh climate. - Levels 17-9, reddish soils and soil sediments, interfingered with tephra, and dated to 43800±3500 BP in level 9. Among the faunas, which are statistically relevant only in levels 10-9, the fallow deer is the dominant ungulate, corresponding to an interstadial with temperate and moderately wet mediterranean-like climate. From the bottom to the top, we highlighted at least four main cultural phases. In layer 17 appears the first assemblage with Levallois technology, containing mainly slightly-retouched flat tools. Layer 16 contains a typical Mousterian assemblage which shows further development of Levallois technique. A scarce amount of findings comes from layers 15-13 (tephra), while the top of Middle Palaeolithic series (layers 12-9) contains an abundant, technologically and typologically advanced mousterian industry. - Levels 8-1, colluvium of Alfisols and breakdown deposits with evidence of strong soil erosion, including very few faunal remains; these levels can be ascribed to a somewhat cold climate with continental traits of environmental instability. Following the erosion, from layer 7 to the top, findings showed out the presence of Epigravettian culture. For what concerns human behaviour, it is noteworthy that the most frequent ungulates (red and fallow deer) were killed mostly when adult. The identified skeletal parts are represented mostly by isolated teeth and limb bones. In levels 18a (bottom) and 10, most of the sediment skeleton is made up of strongly comminuted bone fragments, unsorted and with grain-size down to some tens of micrometres. Lithic raw materials procurement area (close-distance from site) appears more or less the same in all periods, however we highlight a lack of selection strategies in MIS 6 assemblages, while more recent industries show evidence of growing accuracy in selecting quality for tools production

La stuoia neolitica della Grotta di Santa Croce (Bisceglie-BA)

Viene descritto e contestualizzato un raro manufatto in fibre vegetali di età neolitica rinvenuto alla Grotta di Santa Croce di Bisceglie (Puglia)