El Pleistoceno medio y superior inicial del Noreste de la Península ibérica

En este trabajo se presenta una síntesis del Pleistoceno medio y superior inicial del Noreste de la Península Ibérica. La escasez de yacimientos en estratigrafía, con fauna asociada a industria lítica, dificulta el estudio de este periodo. El análisis de la industria lítica es en la mayoría de los casos la fuente principal de información. El estudio de una veintena de yacimientos (la mayoría de superficie), con más de 12.000 artefactos, permite apreciar el destacado papel desempeñado por el tipo de materia prima. Por último, se establece una secuencia diacrónica, diferenciando los yacimientos más antiguos (Modo 1) de los que presentan una tecnología Achelense (Modo 2).In this paper we present a synthesis of the Middle and early Upper Pleistocene of the North-east of the Iberian Peninsula. The scarce sites in stratigraphy, with faunal remains associated to lithic industry, make difficult the study of this period. Therefore, the analysis of the lithic industry is the main information source. The study oftwenty sites (the greater part in surface), with 12000 objects aproximately, allow us to appreciate the important paper that the raw material s have in this analysis. Finally, we have established a diachronic sequence, in order to show the oldest sites (Mode 1) and the Acheulean sites (Mode 2)

Forest resource management during Roman and Medieval cave occupations in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula: Cova do Xato and Cova Eirós (Galicia, Spain)

References to the existence of historic remains in NW Iberian caves are frequent. However, archaeological research tends to focus on the search for evidence of older occupations, with little attention given to these historic levels. The aim of this article is to present the results of archaeobotanical analysis (charcoal analysis and carpology) from two caves in the eastern mountains of the province of Lugo – Cova do Xato and Cova Eirós – to determine the management of forest resources by the different communities living in themThis work was funded by the projects Human settlements during the Pleistocene period in the middle basin of the river Miño (HUM/2007-63662), Settlements during the Middle Pleistocene/Holocene in the eastern regions of Galicia (HAR2010-21786) and Design and development of a data model for an archaeological SPI during the Galician Iron Age (09SEC002CT). ALH has been supported by a pre-doctoral grant from the Atapuerca FoundationS

Cova Eirós (Galicia, Spain): The 'Finisterre' of Paleolithic cave art

Our knowledge about Paleolithic art has been changing substantially and new discoveries and dates are modifying some traditionally accepted considerations. In this context, the geographic spread and the end of this graphic-artistic cycle are two of the main topics of the current scientific debate. The discovery and study of rock art in Cova Eirós, located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, whose walls display geometric / stylized animals with linear interior fills, widens the territory of Paleolithic rock art in North Iberia beyond the traditional Franco-Cantabrian core. This find is framed in the successive discoveries made in the last 20 years that break with the perception of the Franco-Cantabrian region as being the core of the Paleolithic art. Moreover, the formal and stylistic features of some motifs from Cova Eirós allow to ascribe them to the final stages of the Paleolithic-style portable and rock art, classified as Style V or fini-Paleolithic; a pan-European tradition that began ~ 12,000–11,500 BP and lasted up to ~9,500–9,000 BP, in correspondence with the last hunter-gatherer groups.Fieldwork and research at Cova Eirós were funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia (PID2019-107480 GB-I00) and the Consellería de Cultura e Turismo da Xunta de Galicia. The Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES) has received financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through the “María de Maeztu” program for Units of Excellence (CEX2019-000945-M)S

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

A cardial decorated vessel from Cova Eirós (Triacastela, Lugo)

El hallazgo de un vaso cerámico parcialmente conservado en el curso de las excavaciones llevadas a cabo en Cova Eirós permite aportar nuevos datos sobre la cultura material del Neolítico regional. El recipiente, tanto por su forma de botella como por su decoración (impresión de concha), recuerda claramente a la cerámica cardial, tan característica del registro arqueológico entre los primeros grupos neolíticos del sur de la península ibérica. Se abordan las circunstancias del hallazgo y los paralelos más cercanos, que se encuentran entre las colecciones cerámicas del sur de Portugal. A modo de conclusión, sugerimos que la pieza analizada se remonta probablemente al final del VI milenio a. C.The discovery of a partially preserved vessel in the course of the excavations carried out in Cova Eirós brings forth new data on the material culture of the regional Neolithic. The pot, both in its bottle-like shape and decoration (shell impressed), recalls strongly the cardial ware, so characteristic of the archaeological record in the Early Neolithic groups of South Iberia. We discuss the circumstances of the finding and the closest parallels to be found among the pottery collections from South Portugal. As a result, we suggest that the vessel found at Cova Eirós would date back to the end of the 6th Millennium BC.Las intervenciones en Cova Eirós fueron financiadas por el Ministerio de Economía (HAR2010-21786) y la Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria de la Xunta de GaliciaS