Stratigraphic reassessment of Grotta Romanelli sheds light on Middle-Late Pleistocene palaeoenvironments and human settling in the Mediterranean

During the last century, Grotta Romanelli (Southern Italy) has been a reference site for the European Late Pleistocene stratigraphy, due to its geomorphological setting and archaeological and palaeontological content. The beginning of the sedimentation inside the cave was attributed to the Last Interglacial (MISs 5e) and the oldest unearthed evidence of human occupation, including remains of hearths, was therefore referred to the Middle Palaeolithic. Recent surveys and excavations produced new U/Th dates, palaeoenvironmental interpretation and a litho-, morpho- and chrono-stratigraphical reassessment, placing the oldest human frequentation of the cave between MIS 9 and MIS 7, therefore embracing Glacial and Interglacial cycles. These new data provide evidence that the sea reached the cave during the Middle Pleistocene and human occupation occurred long before MISs 5e and persisted beyond the Pleistocene- Holocene boundary

New human fossil from the latest Pleistocene levels of Grotta Romanelli (Apulia, southern Italy)

Grotta Romanelli can be counted among the most interesting sites for the late Upper Palaeolithic of the Mediterranean area, since returned a consistent record of lithic artefacts, faunal remains, mobiliary and parietal art, and human fossils which represent the least-known materials from the context. The resumption of the investigations in 2015, after 40 years of inactivity in the cave, provided relevant results. During the 2019 campaign, a distal phalanx of the hand was recovered in the so-called terre brune levels, providing for the first time a clear stratigraphic and chronological reference for the human fossils record of Grotta Romanelli. In addition to morphological description and age estimation, the new finding is here analyzed using 3D Micro-CT scans. The new human fossil confirms the exceptional richness of the paleoanthropological record of Grotta Romanelli, opening new avenues of investigation and posing crucial questions on the use of the cave and cultural practices at the Late Pleistocene-Holocene boundary

New human fossil from the latest Pleistocene levels of Grotta Romanelli (Apulia, southern Italy)

Grotta Romanelli can be counted among the most interesting sites for the late Upper Palaeolithic of the Mediterranean area, since returned a consistent record of lithic artefacts, faunal remains, mobiliary and parietal art, and human fossils which represent the least-known materials from the context. The resumption of the investigations in 2015, after 40 years of inactivity in the cave, provided relevant results. During the 2019 campaign, a distal phalanx of the hand was recovered in the so-called terre brune levels, providing for the first time a clear stratigraphic and chronological reference for the human fossils record of Grotta Romanelli. In addition to morphological description and age estimation, the new finding is here analyzed using 3D Micro-CT scans. The new human fossil confirms the exceptional richness of the paleoanthropological record of Grotta Romanelli, opening new avenues of investigation and posing crucial questions on the use of the cave and cultural practices at the Late Pleistocene-Holocene boundary