Paula García-Medrano
Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Unitat Tecnologia litica, Post-doctoral Researcher
Archaeologist specialized on Early Palaeolithic stone tools (raw materials, knapping processes) and specifically on the Acheulean contexts and Large Cutting Tools, its production patterns and its geographical and temporal variability. She obtained her PhD in 2011 at the University of Burgos (Spain), comparing the Middle Pleistocene industries of Atapuerca (Galeria and Gran Dolina - TD10.1, Spain) and Boxgrove (UK). Her current research focuses on the Middle Pleistocene industries of the Western side of Europe. She has particular interest on the human dispersals occurring from Iberia to the North West Europe between 0.7 - 0.3 Ma, and how we could track these population dynamics through the analysis of the lithic remains. The base of her research is the combination of traditional methods of analysis on lithic tools with geometrics morphometricanalysis, 3D models, and modelling. She has been member of the Atapuerca Research Team since 1999. She is currently sharing the coordination of the Galería site fieldwork in Atapuerca (Burgos, Spain). She is also member of the Method IFG Project (CENIEH, Burgos, Spain) and the Prehistoric Archaeology Research Group (University of Burgos, Spain).
Address: Edificio W3, Campus Sescelades URV, Zona Educacional, 4, 43007 Tarragona
Address: Edificio W3, Campus Sescelades URV, Zona Educacional, 4, 43007 Tarragona
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onward and are a key site for understanding the continuity and discontinuity of Western European
technological and settlement dynamics. The TD10 unit from Gran Dolina is located in the upper part
of the sequence and divided into four lithostratigraphic subunits (TD10.4 to TD10.1, from bottom to top)
dated between ca. 450 ka and ca. 250 ka (Marine Isotope Stage 11 to Marine Isotope Stage 8). The
technological analysis of the lithic assemblages belonging to the TD10.1 sequence aims to determine the
trends among its archeological levels and check its relation to late Middle Pleistocene technological
evolution and site functionality. Archeostratigraphic studies have identified several occupation events
within its approximately 1.5 m of thickness, whose artifact densities and occupational models differ.
However, no remarkable technical differences have been observed among them. Lithic assemblages from
those events show more evolved features than other Atapuerca Mode 2 assemblages. These changes are
reflected in the selective raw material management strategies; more hierarchized and predetermined
reduction methods; and the progressive decrease of large cutting tools in the lithic assemblages with
respect to flake tools, the latter defined by a greater typological diversification. These technological
changes did not lead to a clear break with respect to previous technological models and were accompanied
by other sporadic but significant changes in subsistence and behavioral strategies (bone tools and
retouchers; lithic recycling, and so on), which were consolidated during the Middle Paleolithic. Hence,
the archeological record from the TD10.1 subunit of Gran Dolina reflects a local stratigraphic transition from Mode 2 to Mode 3 technocomplexes, paralleling that observed in other sites in southwestern
Europe.
onward and are a key site for understanding the continuity and discontinuity of Western European
technological and settlement dynamics. The TD10 unit from Gran Dolina is located in the upper part
of the sequence and divided into four lithostratigraphic subunits (TD10.4 to TD10.1, from bottom to top)
dated between ca. 450 ka and ca. 250 ka (Marine Isotope Stage 11 to Marine Isotope Stage 8). The
technological analysis of the lithic assemblages belonging to the TD10.1 sequence aims to determine the
trends among its archeological levels and check its relation to late Middle Pleistocene technological
evolution and site functionality. Archeostratigraphic studies have identified several occupation events
within its approximately 1.5 m of thickness, whose artifact densities and occupational models differ.
However, no remarkable technical differences have been observed among them. Lithic assemblages from
those events show more evolved features than other Atapuerca Mode 2 assemblages. These changes are
reflected in the selective raw material management strategies; more hierarchized and predetermined
reduction methods; and the progressive decrease of large cutting tools in the lithic assemblages with
respect to flake tools, the latter defined by a greater typological diversification. These technological
changes did not lead to a clear break with respect to previous technological models and were accompanied
by other sporadic but significant changes in subsistence and behavioral strategies (bone tools and
retouchers; lithic recycling, and so on), which were consolidated during the Middle Paleolithic. Hence,
the archeological record from the TD10.1 subunit of Gran Dolina reflects a local stratigraphic transition from Mode 2 to Mode 3 technocomplexes, paralleling that observed in other sites in southwestern
Europe.
This work proposes a common method of analysis for the study of Large Cutting Tools from several sites in UK and France (La Noira, Brandon Fields, Cagny Le Garenne, Elveden, Swanscombe, La Celle, Saint Pierre les Elbeuf, Menez Dregan), based on a selection of technological attributes from the main traditions of lithic analysis (typological, technological, morphometrical and sequential) that are considered to be specially significant. The attributes will be those which give more information about the Large Cutting Tools and how they have been produced. Each tool will be analyzed as a unit and also divided in its three main morpho-potential sections: distal, medium and proximal parts. In addition, taking advantage of new technologies and combining the basic technological analysis with 3D models, will allow us to standardize the process of measurement and documentation of the pieces more objectively. The measurements obtained will be managed through an open-access data base in order the accumulative information of Western European sites.
This work proposes a common method of analysis of the Acheulean technology to go beyond the local perspective and gain a regional point of view in the Western side of Europe. This requires a deep understanding of the underlying technology to identify the differences or similarities in processes and traditions of manufacture. The new methodology, applied in several sites of UK and France, is based on the selection of those technological attributes which give more information about the LCT and how they have been produced. Each tool will be analyzed as a unit and also divided in its three main morpho-potential sections: distal, medium and proximal parts. And, taking advantage of new technologies and combining the basic technological analysis with 3D models, we willto standardize the process of measurement and documentation of the pieces. This methodological approach is the base of a Post-doctoral Marie Skłodowska Curie project, entitle The Western European Acheulean Project, (ID. 748316).
https://www.weap.es/project/