Alain Queffelec

A rock engraving made by Neanderthals in Gibraltar

Significance The production of purposely made painted or engraved designs on cave walls is recognized as a major cognitive step in human evolution, considered exclusive to modern humans. Here we present the first known example of an abstract pattern engraved by Neanderthals, from Gorham’s Cave in Gibraltar. It consists of a deeply impressed cross-hatching carved into the bedrock of the cave older than 39 cal kyr. The engraving was made before the accumulation of Mousterian layer IV. Most of the lines composing the design were made by repeatedly and carefully passing a pointed lithic tool into the grooves, excluding the possibility of an unintentional or utilitarian origin. This discovery demonstrates the Neanderthals’ capacity for abstract thought and expression. The production of purposely made painted or engraved designs on cave walls—a means of recording and transmitting symbolic codes in a durable manner—is recognized as a major cognitive step in human evolution. Considered exclusive to modern humans, this behavior has been used to argue in favor of significant cognitive differences between our direct ancestors and contemporary archaic hominins, including the Neanderthals. Here we present the first known example of an abstract pattern engraved by Neanderthals, from Gorham’s Cave in Gibraltar. It consists of a deeply impressed cross-hatching carved into the bedrock of the cave that has remained covered by an undisturbed archaeological level containing Mousterian artifacts made by Neanderthals and is older than 39 cal kyr BP. Geochemical analysis of the epigenetic coating over the engravings and experimental replication show that the engraving was made before accumulation of the archaeological layers, and that most of the lines composing the design were made by repeatedly and carefully passing a pointed lithic tool into the grooves, excluding the possibility of an unintentional or utilitarian origin (e.g., food or fur processing). This discovery demonstrates the capacity of the Neanderthals for abstract thought and expression through the use of geometric forms.

An Ochered Fossil Marine Shell From the Mousterian of Fumane Cave, Italy

A scanty but varied ensemble of finds challenges the idea that Neandertal material culture was essentially static and did not include symbolic items. In this study we report on a fragmentary Miocene-Pliocene fossil marine shell, Aspa marginata , discovered in a Discoid Mousterian layer of the Fumane Cave, northern Italy, dated to at least 47.6-45.0 Cal ky BP. The shell was collected by Neandertals at a fossil exposure probably located more than 100 kms from the site. Microscopic analysis of the shell surface identifies clusters of striations on the inner lip. A dark red substance, trapped inside micropits produced by bioeroders, is interpreted as pigment that was homogeneously smeared on the outer shell surface. Dispersive X-ray and Raman analysis identify the pigment as pure hematite. Of the four hypotheses we considered to explain the presence of this object at the site, two (tool, pigment container) are discarded because in contradiction with observations. Although the other two (“manuport”, personal ornament) are both possible, we favor the hypothesis that the object was modified and suspended by a ‘thread’ for visual display as a pendant. Together with contextual and chronometric data, our results support the hypothesis that deliberate transport and coloring of an exotic object, and perhaps its use as pendant, was a component of Neandertal symbolic culture, well before the earliest appearance of the anatomically modern humans in Europe.

Evaluating the Photoprotective Effects of Ochre on Human Skin by In Vivo SPF Assessment: Implications for Human Evolution, Adaptation and Dispersal

Archaeological indicators of cognitively modern behaviour become increasingly prevalent during the African Middle Stone Age (MSA). Although the exploitation of ochre is viewed as a key feature of the emergence of modern human behaviour, the uses to which ochre and ochre-based mixtures were put remain ambiguous. Here we present the results of an experimental study exploring the efficacy of ochre as a topical photoprotective compound. This is achieved through the in vivo calculation of the sun protection factor (SPF) values of ochre samples obtained from Ovahimba women (Kunene Region, Northern Namibia) and the Palaeozoic Bokkeveld Group deposits of the Cape Supergroup (Western Cape Province, South Africa). We employ visible spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and granulometric analyses to characterise ochre samples. The capacity of ochre to inhibit the susceptibility of humans to the harmful effects of exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is confirmed and the mechanisms implicated in the efficacy of ochre as a sunscreen identified. It is posited that the habitual application of ochre may have represented a crucial innovation for MSA humans by limiting the adverse effects of ultraviolet exposure. This may have facilitated the colonisation of geographic regions largely unfavourable to the constitutive skin colour of newly arriving populations.

The way we wear makes the difference: residue analysis applied to Mesolithic personal ornaments from Hohlenstein-Stadel (Germany)

Research conducted by Newell et al. (1990) has lead to propose that during the Mesolithic, the Upper Danube region was inhabited by a “Fish Teeth Band”, characterized by the use of carp fish teeth and exogenous fossil shells as ornaments. However, technological data on these personal ornaments drastically lacked and especially for the fish teeth associated to the Mesolithic burial of Hohlenstein-Stadel that remained completely undescribed until now. The aim of this paper is to establish how the carp teeth from Hohlenstein-Stadel were modified and worn before being deposited in the burial. High-resolution microscopic analysis identifies use-wear traces and a red compound adhering to the surface of the teeth. Structural and elemental analysis of the residue combining light and scanning electron microscopy, infrared spectroscopy, and Raman analysis identify a suspension technique that uses an adhesive composed of an organic binder mixed with charcoal and minerals including hematite, dolomite, and quartz. Ethnological inquiry reveals that this system of suspension, commonly used in traditional societies, is for the first time documented, at Hohlenstein-Stadel, in an archaeological context.

From number sense to number symbols. An archaeological perspective

How and when did hominins move from the numerical cognition that we share with the rest of the animal world to number symbols? Objects with sequential markings have been used to store and retrieve numerical information since the beginning of the European Upper Palaeolithic (42 ka). An increase in the number of markings and complexity of coding is observed towards the end of this period. The application of new analytical techniques to a 44–42 ka old notched baboon fibula from Border Cave, South Africa, shows that notches were added to this bone at different times, suggesting that devices to store numerical information were in use before the Upper Palaeolithic. Analysis of a set of incisions on a 72–60 ka old hyena femur from the Les Pradelles Mousterian site, France, indicates, by comparison with markings produced by modern subjects under similar constraints, that the incisions on the Les Pradelles bone may have been produced to record, in a single session, homologous units of numerical information. This finding supports the view that numerical notations were in use among archaic hominins. Based on these findings, a testable five-stage scenario is proposed to establish how prehistoric cultures have moved from number sense to the use of number symbols. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The origins of numerical abilities’.

Predation of Lesser Naked-backed Bats (Pteronotus davyi) by a Pair of American Kestrels (Falco sparverius) on the Island of Marie-Galante, French West Indies

DEPREDACIÓN DEL MURCIÉLAGO PTERONOTUS DAVYI POR UNA PAREJA DE FALCO SPARVERIUS EN LAS ISLAS DE MARIE-GALANTE, INDIAS FRANCESAS OCCIDENTALES Reportamos la depredación en una colonia de murciélagos de la especie Pteronotus davyi por parte de una pareja de Falco sparverius basados en observaciones en un periodo de 16 días. F. sparverius cazó murciélagos a medida que dejaban su dormidero en la tarde noche, habiendo dos factores que influenciaron la eficiencia de caza, a saber: (1) las condiciones meteorológicas y (2) el tiempo de la formación de la bandada de murciélagos. Aunque al menos un individuo de F. sparverius estuvo presente en 15 de las 16 tardes (93.8%), la tasa de éxito de caza fue de 16.4% (6 murciélagos capturados en 37 intentos). Esta es la primera depredación reportada de especies de murciélagos y la primera depredación regular documentada de una colonia de murciélagos por parte de F. sparverius. Este comportamiento se interpreta como un ejemplo de la adaptación trófica de F. sparverius en ambientes de isla típicos de las Antillas Menores.

Patterns of change and continuity in ochre use during the late Middle Stone Age of the Horn of Africa: The Porc-Epic Cave record

Ochre is found at numerous Middle Stone Age (MSA) sites and plays a key role in early modern human archaeology. Here we analyse the largest known East African MSA ochre assemblage, comprising 40 kg of ochre, found at Porc-Epic Cave, Ethiopia, spanning a period of at least 4,500 years. Visual characterisation of ochre types, microscopic identification of traces of modification, morphological and morphometric analysis of ochre pieces and modified areas, experimental reproduction of grinding processes, surface texture analysis of archaeological and experimentally ground ochre facets, laser granulometry of ochre powder produced experimentally on different grindstones and by Hamar and Ovahimba women from Ethiopia and Namibia respectively, were, for the first time, combined to explore diachronic shifts in ochre processing technology. Our results identify patterns of continuity in ochre acquisition, treatment and use reflecting both persistent use of the same geological resources and similar uses of iron-rich rocks by late MSA Porc-Epic inhabitants. Considering the large amount of ochre processed at the site, this continuity can be interpreted as the expression of a cohesive cultural adaptation, largely shared by all community members and consistently transmitted through time. A gradual shift in preferred processing techniques and motions is interpreted as reflecting cultural drift within this practice. Evidence for the grinding of ochre to produce small quantities of powder throughout the sequence is consistent with a use in symbolic activities for at least part of the ochre assemblage from Porc-Epic Cave.

Mineralogical and organic study of bat and chough guano: implications for guano identification in ancient context

The mineralogical and geochemical evolution of cave guano deposits in France has been investigated in detail. Two test pits were excavated in guano mounds from insectivorous bats and one in a guano mound from omnivorous choughs. Both bats and choughs are thought to be among the main accumulators of guano during the Pleistocene in southwest France. Thin section analysis, mineralogical identification and quantification, geochemical analysis, organic matter characterization through pyrolysis and thermochemolysis coupled to gas-chromatography, were conducted to better understand the evolution of guano in caves and to identify the underlying factors. Bat guano undergoes mineralization through loss of organic matter and precipitation of phosphate and sulfate minerals. The neoformed minerals include gypsum, ardealite, brushite, francoanellite, hydroxylapatite, monetite, newberyite, and taranakite, and vary according to the local availability of chemical elements released by the alteration of detrital minerals due to acidic solutions. Chough guano, located at higher altitude in a periglacial environment, does not show similar mineral formation. Organic geo-chemical analysis indicates strong differences between guano. Abundant hydrocarbons derived from insect cuticles were the dominant feature in bat guano, whereas a mostly vegetal origin typifies chough guano. Geochemical analysis points to an especially high content of copper and zinc in bat guanos, a few hundreds of µg/g and thousands of µg/g, respectively. Both organic matter analysis and geochemistry may help identification of bat guano in archeological contexts , where phosphate minerals can originate from multiple sources.

Les galets perforés de Praileaitz I (Deba, Gipuzkoa)

Twenty-eight exogenous pebbles were recovered from the Lower Magdalenian levels of Praileaitz I, a cave located in the Deba valley. Twenty-one bear human made perforations at one end to transform them in personal ornaments, five display natural perforations, and two show no perforations. Six of the pebbles were discovered in the cave’s first chamber, close to the East wall, and the remainder in the second chamber. Among the latter, fourteen were found aligned and close to each other along the East wall. Image and pXRF analyses of the archaeological objects, and natural pebbles collected at eight spots along the Deba, Urola and Bidasoa river valleys show that pebbles used as pendants were not collected in the Deba valley. Eighteen pendants were decorated with sets of notches on their edges or various patterns engraved on their flat faces. Microscopic analysis of the perforations indicates that four techniques (abrasion, single or multiple incisions, pecking, scraping) were used to prepare the pebble surface before perforation by hand rotation with flint borers and burins. Since experimental perforation by hand rotation of a pebble made of a similar raw material required five hours, and the use of nine constantly resharpened borers and burins, it is calculated that ca. 100 hours were necessary to produce the holes present on the Praileaitz I pendants. All the perforations bear use-wear traces demonstrating that the objects were used as pendants before being lost or disposed. Microscopic striations, absent on pebbles with no perforations, suggest a contact with a soft material during their use. Contextual information and differences in technology, morphology, and size between the fourteen pendants found together and the remainder of the collection suggest that the former were originally decorating a cloth, possibly a cape, lost or discarded during a single episode, while the latter correspond to objects lost or discarded by a number of people over a relatively long timespan. RESuMEn Veintiocho cantos rodados, de los cuales veintiuno están intencionadamente perforados fueron encontrados en el nivel del Magdaleniense inferior del yacimiento de Praileaitz I, situado en el valle del Deba. Entre ellos, se encontraron catorce alineados y muy cerca uno del (1) Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS-UMR 5199 PACEA, B18 Allée Geoffroy St Hilaire, F-33615 Pessac, France. (2) Institute for Archaeology, History, Cultural and Religious Studies, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norvège, francesco.derrico@u-bordeaux.fr