Francesco Boschin

Earliest evidence of dental caries manipulation in the Late Upper Palaeolithic

Prehistoric dental treatments were extremely rare, and the few documented cases are known from the Neolithic, when the adoption of early farming culture caused an increase of carious lesions. Here we report the earliest evidence of dental caries intervention on a Late Upper Palaeolithic modern human specimen (Villabruna) from a burial in Northern Italy. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy we show the presence of striations deriving from the manipulation of a large occlusal carious cavity of the lower right third molar. The striations have a “V”-shaped transverse section and several parallel micro-scratches at their base, as typically displayed by cutmarks on teeth. Based on in vitro experimental replication and a complete functional reconstruction of the Villabruna dental arches, we confirm that the identified striations and the associated extensive enamel chipping on the mesial wall of the cavity were produced ante-mortem by pointed flint tools during scratching and levering activities. The Villabruna specimen is therefore the oldest known evidence of dental caries intervention, suggesting at least some knowledge of disease treatment well before the Neolithic. This study suggests that primitive forms of carious treatment in human evolution entail an adaptation of the well-known toothpicking for levering and scratching rather than drilling practices.

The dawn of dentistry in the late upper Paleolithic: An early case of pathological intervention at Riparo Fredian

OBJECTIVES Early evidence for the treatment of dental pathology is found primarily among food-producing societies associated with high levels of oral pathology. However, some Late Pleistocene hunter-gatherers show extensive oral pathology, suggesting that experimentation with therapeutic dental interventions may have greater antiquity. Here, we report the second earliest probable evidence for dentistry in a Late Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherer recovered from Riparo Fredian (Tuscany, Italy). MATERIALS AND METHODS The Fredian 5 human consists of an associated maxillary anterior dentition with antemortem exposure of both upper first incisor (I1 ) pulp chambers. The pulp chambers present probable antemortem modifications that warrant in-depth analyses and direct dating. Scanning electron microscopy, microCT and residue analyses were used to investigate the purported modifications of external and internal surfaces of each I1 . RESULTS The direct date places Fredian 5 between 13,000 and 12,740 calendar years ago. Both pulp chambers were circumferentially enlarged prior to the death of this individual. Occlusal dentine flaking on the margin of the cavities and striations on their internal aspects suggest anthropic manipulation. Residue analyses revealed a conglomerate of bitumen, vegetal fibers, and probable hairs adherent to the internal walls of the cavities. DISCUSSION The results are consistent with tool-assisted manipulation to remove necrotic or infected pulp in vivo and the subsequent use of a composite, organic filling. Fredian 5 confirms the practice of dentistry-specifically, a pathology-induced intervention-among Late Pleistocene hunter-gatherers. As such, it appears that fundamental perceptions of biomedical knowledge and practice were in place long before the socioeconomic changes associated with the transition to food production in the Neolithic.

A spotted hyaena den in the Middle Palaeolithic of Grotta Paglicci (Gargano promontory, Apulia, Southern Italy)

The Palaeolithic sequence of Grotta Paglicci (Gargano promontory, Apulia, Southern Italy) is one of the most important in the Mediterranean area: It comprises the whole Upper Palaeolithic cultural sequence known for the region, as well as Early Middle Palaeolithic and Lower Palaeolithic levels. These earlier phases are best represented in a collapsed room located outside the present-day cave (the so called “external rock shelter”). In this area, a new excavation, started in 2004, brought to light Middle Palaeolithic animal remains associated with evidence of spotted hyaena (SU 64 and 53). The spatial distribution analysis of remains from SU 53 revealed the presence of a bone accumulation area and a wider dispersal of hyaena coprolites. Three main ungulate species (aurochs, fallow deer and red deer) as well as carnivores (spotted hyaena, wolf, fox, wild cat and lynx) and lagomorphs have been identified. The majority of aurochs remains are located in the main accumulation; among these specimens, a complete metatarsal connected with three tarsal bones has been found; a talus and a complete tibia, probably belonging to the same limb, have also been identified. The multidisciplinary study carried out in this paper highlights a specific bone accumulation and scattering pattern in a spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) den. In addition, taphonomy of lagomorph remains indicates the presence of other depositional agents.

Measuring weathering and nanoparticle coating impact on surface roughness of natural stones

ABSTRACT The surface texture of a stone represents a sensitive parameter in evaluating its conservation state. In monuments and sculptures, in fact, external agents continuously alter the appearance of stones, determining peculiar weathering patterns and modifying properties such as retention of water and particles, interaction with light, color, and finishing. The application of protective coatings also determines changes in surface appearance of a stone, usually evaluated and monitored by color change tests. Surface metrology methods offer the possibility to quantify these changes, evaluating the impact of external agents (natural, i.e. weathering, and artificially, i.e. protective coatings) on natural stones. In this research, we demonstrate the potential of surface areal measurements in describing the evolution of weathering processes and the effects of protective treatments on porous stone materials. The obtained results suggest that the extent of the modifications is related to the scale of observation (small- vs. large-scale undulations, i.e. roughness and waviness, respectively), with an overall increase of surface roughness as the weathering proceeds. Unexpectedly, coatings based on nanoparticle dispersions increase the topographic height parameters, due to the absence of a homogeneous film.

Between the Forest and the Lake. The Open-Air Late Epigravettian Site of Arco Via Serafini (Trento, Northern Italy)

The open-air multi-layered site of Arco Via Serafini (Trento, Northern Italy), is situated in the flood plain of the River Sarca (80 m a.s.l.).The stratigraphic sequence allowed documentation of two phases of Late Epigravettian occupation with 14 structured areas in the context of the Younger Dryas.

La caccia alle marmotte sulle Prealpi italiane durante il Tardoglaciale: dati sperimentali e analisi morfometrica 3D di impatti di proiettile su resti faunistici.

Nonostante la sempre piu vasta applicazione di metodi quantitativi ad alta risoluzione in campo tafonomico, sono pochi gli studi incentrati sul riconoscimento di impatti di proiettile su resti faunistici. Per questo motivo, in un precedente lavoro abbiamo esplorato la potenzialita della microscopia 3D nella distinzione di lesioni ossee dovute ad impatti balistici da altre tracce tafonomiche, sviluppando un metodo diagnostico di ampio utilizzo basato su dati sperimentali e incentrato su proiettili tardo epigravettiani (Duches et alii 2016). Nonostante sia stato possibile confermare la validita di questo metodo su resti archeozoologici appartenenti a mammiferi di media taglia (Nannini et alii submitted), l’affidabilita del campione sperimentale in rapporto ad animali di piccola taglia necessitava ulteriori verifiche: la dimensione e lo spessore delle ossa, infatti, potevano condizionare la resistenza delle ossa all’impatto, influenzando la morfometria degli impatti e la rappresentativita delle diverse categorie di tracce da impatto. Per indagare queste problematiche, un ottimo contesto di indagine e costituito dai siti tardoglaciali dell’Italia nord-orientale interpretati quali accampamenti specializzati nella caccia alla marmotta (Romandini et alii 2012). Migliaia di ossa di marmotta dalle Grotte Verdi di Pradis (Prealpi Carniche, regione Friuli Venezia Giulia) testimoniano ad esempio lo sfruttamento di un numero minimo di 571 individui, che a loro volta rappresentano circa il 98,8% dell’intero insieme faunistico. Allo scopo di essere il piu coerenti possibile con i dati archeologici, la sperimentazione balistica ha coinvolto 8 carcasse fresche di nutria ( Myocastor coypus ), usate come bersaglio di 130 frecce armate con punte a dorso e lamelle a dorso e troncatura. Dal momento che la sperimentazione ha portato alla formazione di un’unica puncture e, al contrario, di numerose drags e fratture, si e potuto desumere che lo spessore e le dimensioni delle ossa incidano realmente sulla rappresentativita delle diverse categorie di tracce da impatto. Se l’applicazione della microanalisi 3D nell’analisi di differenti tracce tafonomiche ha precedentemente dimostrato come solo drags e punctures siano diagnostiche d’impatto (Duches et alii 2016), questa nuova sperimentazione ha stabilito che solo i drags sono effettivamente rilevanti per l’identificazione di impatti di proiettile su resti archeozoologici di piccoli mammiferi. La generale coerenza dei dati morfometrici dei drags ottenuti in entrambe le sperimentazioni, prova inoltre come le caratteristiche degli impatti non siano influenzate dalla dimensione e dallo spessore delle ossa colpite. I dati 3D, processati statisticamente, provano infatti che svariati parametri morfometrici dei drags - come la profondita del taglio, l’ampiezza dell’apertura del taglio, l’ampiezza della base del taglio, l’angolo di ingresso e l’indice RTF (rapporto tra l’ampiezza dell’apertura del taglio e l’ampiezza della base del taglio) – siano coerenti in entrambe le sperimentazioni e significativamente differenti a livello statistico da quelli dei cut-marks . Basandoci dunque sui dati sperimentali per l’interpretazione delle tracce archeologiche rinvenute sui resti di Pradis, si sono potuti identificare con certezza almeno 9 drags su ossa di marmotta. Questo risultato conferma la predazione della marmotta alpina da parte dei gruppi epigravettiani attraverso l’uso di arco e frecce e arricchisce l’attuale dibattito sulla caccia ai piccoli mammiferi durante il Tardoglaciale

Le potenzialità del GIS nella ricostruzione delle strutture sociali e delle strategie economiche ed insediative degli accampamenti musteriani in Italia centro-meridionale

Lo studio mediante sistemi GIS del comportamento neandertaliano in Italia centro-meridionale e una delle linee di ricerca dell’U.R. di Preistoria e Antropologia (DSFTA) dell’Universita di Siena. Protocolli analitici multidisciplinari integrati sono attualmente adottati sui contesti stratigrafici di Grotta Grande e Riparo il Molare (San Giovanni a Piro, SA; Ronchitelli et al. 2011, Boscato et al. 2002), Riparo l’Oscurusciuto (Ginosa, TA; Marciani et al. 2016, Spagnolo et al. 2016) e Grotta dei Santi (Monte Argentario, GR; Spagnolo 2017). Le caratteristiche di tali siti offrono la possibilita di osservare i fenomeni insediativi in una prospettiva multi-scalare: dall’alta risoluzione temporale alla lettura diacronica dei processi storici, dall’intra-site alla scala geografica territoriale. Le strategie insediative dei cacciatori-raccoglitori neandertaliani sono argomento di un intenso dibattito scientifico che vede attivi, su vari livelli, studiosi afferenti a diverse discipline. Questo, oltre ad evidenziare la vastita della problematica, mostra altresi la necessita di adottare metodi di studio sempre piu integrati. La dimensione contestuale e multi-scalare della Spatial Archaeology diviene pertanto un ambiente ideale in cui realizzare l’integrazione dei risultati della Ricerca preistorica. A scala intra-site nel campione finora indagato e stato possibile cogliere diversi modi di gestione degli accampamenti. Questo, se da un lato potrebbe essere espressione di variabili genuinamente spaziali (es. superficie indagata rispetto all’accampamento), in taluni casi sembrerebbe piuttosto riflettere strategie insediative differenti (es. occupazioni brevi vs occupazioni protratte nel tempo). Il grado di “visibilita archeologica” delle aree di attivita e direttamente proporzionale alla risoluzione temporale dei contesti, per cui living floors e short palimpsests offrono letture molto piu chiare rispetto ai palinsesti lunghi. D’altro canto, la disponibilita di serie stratigrafiche articolate in diversi livelli di occupazione, spesso con un eccellente stato di conservazione, e un fattore-chiave per cogliere continuita e discontinuita dei modelli insediativi. Le fluttuazioni di tali cambiamenti, oltre ad esprimere forme di adattamento ai contesti ambientali locali, costituiscono una sorta di proxy delle strutture sociali e di uno dei silenziosi motori della Storia: il rapporto dialettico tra “memoria del gruppo” e “Longue duree”. A scala geografica territoriale, infine, le analisi spaziali, integrate con i parametri paleoambientali, i dati tecno-economici dei complessi litici e le composizioni tassonomiche degli insiemi faunistici, offrono un contributo alla definizione delle strategie di mobilita e alla ricostruzione dei “play ranges” dei gruppi di cacciatori-raccoglitori. GIS potentialities in reconstructing social structures and economic and settling strategies in Mousterian sites of Central-Southern Italy The study of Neandertal behaviour in Central-Southern Italy using GIS systems is one the research topics explored by the R.U. of Prehistory and Anthropology (DSFTA) of the University of Siena. Multidisciplinary and integrated analytic protocols have been applied in a number of stratigraphic contexts of Central-Southern Italy: Grotta Grande and Riparo del Molare (MIS 5; San Giovanni a Piro, SA; Ronchitelli et al. 2011, Boscato et al. 2002), Riparo l’Oscurusciuto (MIS 3; Ginosa, TA; Marciani et al. 2016, Spagnolo et al. 2016) and Grotta dei Santi (MIS 3; Monte Argentario, GR; Spagnolo 2017). These sites are particularly suitable for being observed under a multi-scale perspective: from the high-resolution diachronic reading of historical processes to the intra-site investigation at a territorial scale. Settling strategies of Neandertal hunter-gatherers are the pivot around which a lively scientific debate has developed among scholars of different disciplines, highlighting the magnitude of the problem in terms of involved research fields. As a consequence increasingly integrated methodologies of study are needed. Thus, the contextual multi-scale dimension of Spatial Archaeology is becoming the ideal “scenario” where the integration among single results of prehistoric research can occur. According to investigations carried out at an intra-site scale, the different organization of space in Neandertal camps of the examined sample is probably the expression of merely spatial variables (e.g. size of the investigated area), even if, sometimes, it seems to actually mirror real differences in settling strategies (e.g. brief vs. long occupations). As expected, the degree of “archaeological visibility” of the activity areas is directly proportional to how much the contexts under study lasted in time. Consequently, living floors and short-lived palimpsests can be obviously read more clearly than long-lasting palimpsests. Moreover, the availability of stratigraphic sequences with several occupational layers, often very well preserved, is a key-factor for detecting continuity and discontinuity of settlement patterns. Settlement fluctuations and changes, besides representing adaptations to local environmental contexts, work as proxies for social structures and for one of the “quiet motors” of history: dialectic relation between “group memory” and “ Longue duree ”. On a territorial geographical scale, spatial analyses, integrated by palaeo-environmental evidence and by techno-economic data from lithic assemblages and faunal associations contribute to the reconstruction of mobility strategies and of “ play ranges ” of hunter-gatherer groups.

Late Quaternary horses in Eurasia in the face of climate and vegetation change

Ecological modeling based on radiocarbon dates sheds light on key questions on the biogeography of horses. Wild horses thrived across Eurasia until the Last Glacial Maximum to collapse after the beginning of the Holocene. The interplay of climate change, species adaptability to different environments, and human domestication in horse history is still lacking coherent continental-scale analysis integrating different lines of evidence. We assembled temporal and geographical information on 3070 horse occurrences across Eurasia, frequency data for 1120 archeological layers in Europe, and matched them to paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental simulations for the Late Quaternary. Climate controlled the distribution of horses, and they inhabited regions in Europe and Asia with different climates and ecosystem productivity, suggesting plasticity to populate different environments. Their decline in Europe during the Holocene appears associated with an increasing loss and fragmentation of open habitats. Europe was the most likely source for the spread of horses toward more temperate regions, and we propose both Iberia and central Asia as potential centers of domestication.

Archeological bone injuries by lithic backed projectiles: new evidence on bear hunting from the Late Epigravettian site of Cornafessa rock shelter (Italy)

Despite the widespread application of high-resolution quantitative methods in bone taphonomy, very few studies have focused on projectile impact marks. Therefore, in a previous work, we explored the potential of 3D microscopy in distinguishing bone hunting injuries from other taphonomic marks, developing a widely applicable diagnostic framework based on experimental data and focused on Late Epigravettian projectiles. This paper aims to continue that research by applying 3D morphometrical analysis to zooarcheological bone surfaces, in order to verify the validity and feasibility of this method and evaluate the reliability of the experimental record. Here, we present the detailed analysis of a projectile impact mark, found on a rib of Ursus arctos from the Late Epigravettian site of Cornafessa rock shelter. The injury, located on the rib’s external surface, consists of a drag with several flint fragments embedded. X-ray μCT volume rendering and SEM imaging allowed us to analyze bone microstructure and drag’s qualitative features, while 3D measurements, processed through statistic, confirmed the interpretation of this mark as a hunting injury. The drag’s morphometric features are consistent with the experimental ones, connecting this mark to Late Epigravettian composite projectiles and declaring this evidence as the first direct proof of a bear hunted by using bow and arrow.