Virtual Trip to the Abric Romaní site and its lithic procurement areas

This paper introduces the virtual field trip organised on the occasion of the 13th International Symposium on Knappable Materials in Tarragona from 4th to 6th October 2021, showing the Abric Romaní site (NE Iberian Peninsula) and the chert procurement areas located within a 30 km radius. The Abric Romaní section consists of a general presentation of the Middle Palaeolithic site, including a brief description of its 50 m stratigraphic sequence, where more than 20 archaeological levels have been identified dating from 110 to 39 ka BP, and some of the main traits of the archaeological assemblages have been recovered. This was followed by an introduction of the siliceous outcrops of the Panadella cherts approximately 24 km from the Abric Romaní; the Sant Martí de Tous chert outcrops 16 km away and the Valldeperes and Ca l’Alemany chert outcrops at distances of 24 and 25 km, respectively. In all cases, the geological formations, as well as the main chert macroscopic and microscopic characteristics, are described. This paper yields the most relevant aspects of a field trip that had to be recorded due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but which brought us back together and facilitated the presentation of the main source areas frequented by the Neanderthals groups of this referential site.En este trabajo se presenta la salida de campo virtual organizada con motivo del 13th International Symposium on Knappable Materials organizado en Tarragona del 4 al 6 de octubre de 2021, en el que se muestra el yacimiento de Abric Romaní (NE de la Península Ibérica) y las zonas de captación de sílex situadas en un radio de 30 km. La sección del Abric Romaní consiste en una presentación general del yacimiento del Paleolítico Medio, incluyendo una breve descripción de su secuencia estratigráfica de 50 m, donde se han identificado más de 20 niveles arqueológicos datados entre 110 y 39 ka BP, y se presentan de manera general los principales rasgos de los conjuntos arqueológicos. A continuación, se han introducido los afloramientos silíceos de los sílex de la Panadella a unos 24 km del Abric Romaní; los afloramientos de sílex de Sant Martí de Tous a 16 km y los afloramientos de sílex de Valldeperes y Ca l'Alemany a distancias de 24 y 25 km, respectivamente. En todos los casos se describen las formaciones geológicas, así como las principales características macroscópicas y microscópicas del sílex. En este trabajo se recogen los aspectos más relevantes de la salida de campo que tuvo que ser grabada debido a la pandemia del COVID-19, pero que nos volvió a reunir y facilitó la presentación de las principales zonas de captación silícea frecuentadas por los grupos neandertales de este yacimiento en cuestión

A multi-technique approach to characterization: the Sant Martí de Tous chert as a prehistoric resource for the NE of the Iberian Peninsula

The Sant Genis Formation is located in the NE of the Iberian Peninsula (Catalonia, Spain) and is dated to the Priabonian (upper Eocene), being part of the evaporitic formations of the margin of the Ebro Basin. It is formed by a succession of sandy lutites, occasional limestone layers, marls, and local stratified gypsum and cherts, including the Sant Marti de Tous chert. The Sant Marti de Tous chert type is confirmed by its abundance at specific locations within the territory (NE Iberian Peninsula). This is an important raw material procurement area, as evidenced by the presence of this chert in the main prehistoric sites of the region (e.g., Abric Romani) and the constant discovery of new sites in the area around the Sant Genis Formation, especially from the Neolithic period onwards (e.g., Cal Sitjo, La Guinardera Nord workshop). All these features, together with the great heterogeneity of the Cenozoic evaporitic cherts, prompted us to carry out a multi-proxy characterization for obtaining a valid criterion by which to identify this chert in the archaeological record. This very heterogeneity hampers the macroscopic characterization of archaeological cherts (e.g., at Abric Romani), but through petrographic analysis we have been able to identify their origins and, albeit to a lesser extent, their lithostratigraphic unit of provenance within the formation. The complementary mineralogical and geochemical techniques applied in this study show that, although it is difficult to establish an exact origin, through intensive sampling and criteria such as the differential presence of Fe and Ca, some differences among the siliceous varieties within a formation can be detected.CLT009/22/000044; PID2019-103987 GB-C3; PID2021-123092NB-C21; PID2019-105796 GB-I00; GV/2021/054; CEX2019-000945-Minfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The archaeological site of Valverde (Monforte de Lemos, Lugo, Spain) and the first evidences of human settlement in NW Iberia during the LGM

El yacimiento de Valverde se emplaza en una ladera del Monte de Valverde, en las proximidades de una de las entradas naturales a la Depresión de Monforte de Lemos (Lugo, Galicia, España).Tras el hallazgo de industria lítica en superficie, se realizaron varios sondeos y prospecciones durante las campañas 2007-2009, recuperando más de 2400 artefactos. El conjunto lítico se caracteriza por la presencia de cadenas operativas expeditivas sobre cuarzos y cuarcitas de mediana calidad. Por otro lado, la producción de láminas y laminillas se centra en el cristal de roca y la cuarcita de grano fino, esta última procedente de afloramientos localizados a 8 km al SW. Aunque escasos, el uso de sílex foráneo también está documentado. En base a las cadenas operativas identificadas en el yacimiento y, principalmente, la presencia de foliáceos, se propone una adscripción Solutrense para el conjunto. De este modo, Valverde se convierte en la primera evidencia de poblamiento de grupos de cazadores recolectores durante el Último Máximo Glacial (LGM) en el interior del NO de la Península IbéricaThe archaeological site of Valverde is placed on a slope of the Valverde Mount, near one of the entrances into the basin of Monforte de Lemos (Lugo, Galicia, Spain). After the finding of a lithic scatter a survey was carried out in 2007-2009, yielding more than 2400 implements. The lithic assemblage is characterized by the presence of expedient “chaines operatoires” made on quartz and medium-quality quartzite. On the other hand, blade and microblade blanks are produced on rock crystal and fine-grained quartzite, the latter from outcrops located 8 km to the SW. Although scarce, the use of allochthonous flint is also attested. Based on the reduction sequences identified at the site, and namely, on the presence of broken leaf points, a Solutrean adscription for this assemblage is proposed, therefore becoming the first evidence of LGM settlement in the inner part of NW IberiaS

Cal Sitjo: A new Mesolithic to Neolithic sequence in a chert-rich region (Sant Martí de Tous, NE Iberia)

Cal Sitjo is a new archaeological sequence located in a chert-rich region of the NE Iberian Peninsula, in the town of Sant Martí de Tous (Anoia, Barcelona). The area has undergone significant anthropisation and several archaeological sites (e.g., Vilars de Tous), quarries and workshops for the exploitation of chert (e.g., La Guinardera) have been documented, corresponding to different periods. The abundance of chert made this region an almost obligatory passageway for hunter-gatherer communities such as those occupying the nearby cliffs of Cinglera del Capelló (Capellades), located at a direct distance of 15 km, as well as an ideal settlement for later farming communities. Discovered in 2019, the first excavation campaign was carried out in the fall of 2020. Dates have been obtained from a known sequence of around 8 m, providing a chronological framework that ranges from the Mesolithic to the Middle Neolithic. The preliminary results of this excavation have brought to light lithics, ceramics and charcoals from the Neolithic levels (Levels 3 and 4), and faunal, lithic and charcoal remains from the Mesolithic levels (cleaning section). Our preliminary results confirm that this sequence is an ideal location for a diachronic study of the evolution from the last hunter-gatherers to the first farmers, from a paleoenvironmental and technological perspective, as well as in terms of chert management and distribution in a territory with a great abundance of this raw material

EL YACIMIENTO DE VALVERDE (MONFORTE DE LEMOS, LUGO, GALICIA, ESPAÑA) Y LAS PRIMERAS EVIDENCIAS DE POBLAMIENTO EN EL PLENIGLACIAR DEL NO DE LA PENÍNSULA IBÉRICA

El yacimiento de Valverde se emplaza en una ladera del Monte de Valverde, en las proximidades de una de las entradas naturales a la Depresión de Monforte de Lemos (Lugo, Galicia, España).Tras el hallazgo de industria lítica en superficie, se realizaron varios sondeos y prospecciones durante las campañas 2007-2009, recuperando más de 2400 artefactos. El conjunto lítico se caracteriza por la presencia de cadenas operativas expeditivas sobre cuarzos y cuarcitas de mediana calidad. Por otro lado, la producción de láminas y laminillas se centra en el cristal de roca y la cuarcita de grano fino, esta última procedente de afloramientos localizados a 8 km al SW. Aunque escasos, el uso de sílex foráneo también está documentado. En base a las cadenas operativas identificadas en el yacimiento y, principalmente, la presencia de foliáceos, se propone una adscripción Solutrense para el conjunto. De este modo, Valverde se convierte en la primera evidencia de poblamiento de grupos de cazadores recolectores durante el Último Máximo Glacial (LGM) en el interior del NO de la Península Ibérica.The archaeological site of Valverde is placed on a slope of the Valverde Mount, near one of the entrances into the basin of Monforte de Lemos (Lugo, Galicia, Spain). After the finding of a lithic scatter a survey was carried out in 2007-2009, yielding more than 2400 implements. The lithic assemblage is characterized by the presence of expedient “chaines operatoires” made on quartz and medium-quality quartzite. On the other hand, blade and microblade blanks are produced on rock crystal and fine-grained quartzite, the latter from outcrops located 8 km to the SW. Although scarce, the use of allochthonous flint is also attested. Based on the reduction sequences identified at the site, and namely, on the presence of broken leaf points, a Solutrean adscription for this assemblage is proposed, therefore becoming the first evidence of LGM settlement in the inner part of NW Iberia.</p

The Guinardera quarry (Sant Martí de Tous, Barcelona): A new chert exploitation location during historical times

In 2014, an anthropic accumulation of chert material was discovered in La Guinardera area, at the southwest of the Sant Martí de Tous town (Barcelona, NE Iberian Peninsula). In 2018 a first archaeological intervention was carried out in two locations: La Guinardera and La Guinardera Nord. After the fieldworks, these two accumulations were interpreted as chert workshops. These workshops are in the St. Genís Formation, included within La Noguera lacustrine system and dated to the Priabonian age (upper Eocene). The St. Martí de Tous area presents shallow lacustrine conditions typical of sabkha environments, in which layers of gypsums and sandy lutites are interspersed with tabular red sandstone levels, yielding different varieties of chert. The Guinardera chert is characterized by a fairly homogeneous matrix, presenting a fine texture, with a microcrystalline and spherulitic length-slow chalcedony matrix, and a combination of grey colours, in general of dark hues, with an opaque diaphaneity but translucent at the edges. The archaeological assemblage from La Guinardera Nord site allows us to identify a chert workshop for the production of gunflints. The heterogeneity of the assemblage at La Guinardera site precludes assigning it to any single chrono-cultural period or function. The technological characterization of La Guinardera Nord site reveals distinctive attributes of a gunflint workshop that can be differentiated from prehistoric workshops. The presence of square and thick preforms, oxide traces on butts and ventral faces, marked bulbs and thick platforms, together with fresh edges on flakes and blades and the near-absence of patinated materials, corroborate it. The presence of these two deposits within the above-mentioned formation shows us a repeated landscape exploitation pattern for raw material extraction, since references chert use range from the Middle Palaeolithic (e.g., Abric Romaní) to historical times (e.g., La Guinardera Nord)

Cantacorbs: Recuperant un jaciment neolític oblidat a les muntanyes de Prades (Rojals-Montblanc, Tarragona)

El jaciment a l’aire lliure de Cantacorbs és un taller neolític de sílex localitzat a un altiplà calcari a 1022 m.s.n.m., d’es d’on es pot controlar una de les principals rutes que creuen les muntanyes de Prades. La característica principal del jaciment és l’abundància de material lític tallat en superfície, corresponent a tots els estadis de la cadena de producció de làmines. L’origen de la matèria primera indica un aprovisionament local, amb material provinent de dues àrees properes d’aprovisionament. El jaciment de Cantacorbs va ser descobert voltant l’any 1930 i, malgrat haver aparegut a diverses publicacions, mai havia estat excavant amb metodologia moderna. Una conseqüència de l’època en les que es van dur a terme les primeres intervencions arqueològiques és la dispersió dels materials en diferents col·leccions. Aquest article presenta les primeres datacions del jaciment, així com una anàlisi comparatiu entre els materials de la col·lecció privada d’en Ramon Capdevila i el material arqueològic recuperat en les dues intervencions modernes que hem dut a terme des de l’Institut català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES) de Tarragona