Methodological advances in dating the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition provide a better understanding of the replacement of local Neanderthal populations by Anatomically Modern Humans. Today we know that this replacement was not a... more
Methodological advances in dating the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition provide a better understanding of the replacement of local Neanderthal populations by Anatomically Modern Humans. Today we know that this replacement was not a single, pan-European event, but rather it took place at different times in different regions. Thus, local conditions could have played a role. Iberia represents a significant macro-region to study this process. Northern Atlantic Spain contains evidence of both Mousterian and Early Upper Paleolithic occupations , although most of them are not properly dated, thus hindering the chances of an adequate interpretation. Here we present 46 new radiocarbon dates conducted using ultra-filtration pre-treatment method of anthropogenically manipulated bones from 13 sites in the Cantabrian region containing Mousterian, Aurignacian and Gravettian levels, of which 30 are considered relevant. These dates, alongside previously reported ones, were integrated into a Bayesian age model to reconstruct an absolute timescale for the transitional period.
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Human behaviour can be reconstructed by analysing specific activities and campsite organization using spatial analysis. The dense occupation layers of the Lower Cantabrian Magdalenian in the Northern Spain reveal varied aspects of Upper... more
Human behaviour can be reconstructed by analysing specific activities and campsite organization using spatial analysis. The dense occupation layers of the Lower Cantabrian Magdalenian in the Northern Spain reveal varied aspects of Upper Palaeolithic lifeways, including evidence of specific localized activities. The outer vestibule of El Mirón cave has a particularly rich and intact Lower Magdalenian occupation horizon, Levels 15–17. The excavations in the outer vestibule " Cabin " area of the site revealed excellent bone preservation. Artefacts and faunal remains were individually recorded and sediments water-screened to yield a large sample of archaeological finds and spatial data. Zooarchaeological analysis provided the taxonomic, anatomic and taphonomic determination of the faunal individual finds. Smaller animal remains were categorized and counted; special attention was given to the identification of anthropogenic modifications such as burnt bones or bone flakes. These small refuse items are considered to be useful, in situ indicators of localized activities. The spatial distribution analysis of this dense and complex palimpsest of El Mirón Lower Cantabrian Magdalenian layers required GIS based methods including density analysis, heatmaps and cluster analysis. Based on the spatial distribution of Level 15 and 16 faunal remains, different activity areas were identified comprising hearth, working and dropping zones. These results imply the deliberately segregated use of space within the Lower Cantabrian Magdalenian site area, in which bone-processing activities played a central role.
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This paper describes aspects of human adaptations to late Last Glacial environments in Cantabrian Spain based on excavations in El Mirón Cave in the Cantabrian Cordillera, and on analyses of data from other sites in the Asón basin of... more
This paper describes aspects of human adaptations to late Last Glacial environments in Cantabrian Spain based on excavations
in El Mirón Cave in the Cantabrian Cordillera, and on analyses of data from other sites in the Asón basin of Cantabria, as
well as from several recent excavations of Magdalenian (20-13k cal. BP) sites throughout this narrow, high-relief, coastal region
in El Mirón Cave in the Cantabrian Cordillera, and on analyses of data from other sites in the Asón basin of Cantabria, as
well as from several recent excavations of Magdalenian (20-13k cal. BP) sites throughout this narrow, high-relief, coastal region
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The territorial use and occupation pattern was one of the main adaptive tools that the hunting-gatherers groups at the end of the Pleistocene developed in order to optimize the access to different resources and to allow an efficient... more
The territorial use and occupation pattern was one of the main adaptive tools that the hunting-gatherers groups at the end of the Pleistocene developed in order to optimize the access to different resources and to allow an efficient exploitation of the environment in which ...
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Cantabrian Late Pleistocene strategies of subsistence reveal different phases of cultural change. The first phase occurred during the transition from the Solutrean to the Early Magdalenian (around 20.000 cal BP) while the second one... more
Cantabrian Late Pleistocene strategies of subsistence reveal different phases of cultural change. The first phase occurred during the transition from the Solutrean to the Early Magdalenian (around 20.000 cal BP) while the second one occurred from the Lower to the Middle Magdalenian (around 18.000 cal BP). This study will focus on the second transition. Archeozoological data from the extraordinarily rich macro mammal assemblage of El Mirón Cave, located in the upper Ason valley of the eastern Cantabrian Cordillera, are used to shed new light on this transition. Taphonomic modifications found on the faunal assemblage were classified to identify the accumulating agents and the diagenetic processes at the site. These were divided into anthropogenic and non-anthropogenic processes based on different macroscopic and microscopic modifications. The recorded diagenetic processes were classified by natural alterations encompassing weathering stage, dissolution through water activity, manganes...
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Research Interests: Evolutionary Biology, Geology, Stable Isotope Analysis, Palaeoenvironment, Paleodiet, and 11 moreEcology, Iberian Prehistory (Archaeology), Archaeology of the Iberian Peninsula, Isotopic Analysis, Cantabrian Palaeolithic, Palaeoenvironmental Reconstruction, Cantabrian Region, Stable Isotopes and Palaeoenvironment, Stable Isotopes and Palaeodiet, Spanish Prehistory, and Museo De Arqueología Y Prehistoria De Cantabria
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This paper discusses the use of El Abrigo de la Casta~nera (Cantabria, Spain) as a stable during the Chalcolithic. Several lines of archaeological evidence support the use of the rock shelter as a corral. First, in the stratigraphy... more
This paper discusses the use of El Abrigo de la Casta~nera (Cantabria, Spain) as a stable during the
Chalcolithic. Several lines of archaeological evidence support the use of the rock shelter as a corral. First,
in the stratigraphy several fumiers were identified, which were composed of several lenses of gray and
black ashes, rich in charcoal and organic matter and accumulated between 3000 and 2200 cal BP. Second,
within those fumiers a rich macrofaunal assemblage was recovered. The results of the zooarchaeology
study indicate that cattle was the most common species exploited at that time, followed by pigs, while
Ovis/Capra are relatively scarce. This particular livestock composition is relatively uncommon within the
Iberian context. However, a comparative study with other contemporaneous European sites has shown
that the changes in animal exploitation depend on the particular climatic conditions on the Cantabrian
region, more similar to the Atlantic ones than the Mediterranean.
Chalcolithic. Several lines of archaeological evidence support the use of the rock shelter as a corral. First,
in the stratigraphy several fumiers were identified, which were composed of several lenses of gray and
black ashes, rich in charcoal and organic matter and accumulated between 3000 and 2200 cal BP. Second,
within those fumiers a rich macrofaunal assemblage was recovered. The results of the zooarchaeology
study indicate that cattle was the most common species exploited at that time, followed by pigs, while
Ovis/Capra are relatively scarce. This particular livestock composition is relatively uncommon within the
Iberian context. However, a comparative study with other contemporaneous European sites has shown
that the changes in animal exploitation depend on the particular climatic conditions on the Cantabrian
region, more similar to the Atlantic ones than the Mediterranean.
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The presence of abundant macromammal remains in the level in which the first Magdalenian human burial ever found in the Iberian Peninsula affords an outstanding opportunity to reconstruct aspects of the subsistence strategy of the... more
The presence of abundant macromammal remains in the level in which the first Magdalenian human
burial ever found in the Iberian Peninsula affords an outstanding opportunity to reconstruct aspects of
the subsistence strategy of the hunter-gatherer group to which the deceased woman may have
belonged. The analyses reported here, in addition to rejecting the hypothesis of deliberate faunal grave
goods or funerary offerings, give us a better understanding of how Lower Magdalenian societies
exploited available food resources, providing a first glimpse of how the El Miron site fitted within the
overall paleoeconomic framework of the Oldest Dryas phase of the Late Glacial in Cantabrian Spain.
Furthermore, the particular location of the site at the ecotone between the Cantabrian Mountains and the
valley of the Ason River, not far from the coastal lowlands, provides evidence of a highly efficient,
productive system for exploiting the available ungulate game of the region.
burial ever found in the Iberian Peninsula affords an outstanding opportunity to reconstruct aspects of
the subsistence strategy of the hunter-gatherer group to which the deceased woman may have
belonged. The analyses reported here, in addition to rejecting the hypothesis of deliberate faunal grave
goods or funerary offerings, give us a better understanding of how Lower Magdalenian societies
exploited available food resources, providing a first glimpse of how the El Miron site fitted within the
overall paleoeconomic framework of the Oldest Dryas phase of the Late Glacial in Cantabrian Spain.
Furthermore, the particular location of the site at the ecotone between the Cantabrian Mountains and the
valley of the Ason River, not far from the coastal lowlands, provides evidence of a highly efficient,
productive system for exploiting the available ungulate game of the region.
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This article presents the taphonomic history of the human remains recovered in El MirÓn Cave (Cantabria, Spain) and an interpretation of their burial. At the back of the vestibule and within the occupation area of the cave, an interment... more
This article presents the taphonomic history of the human remains recovered in El MirÓn Cave (Cantabria,
Spain) and an interpretation of their burial. At the back of the vestibule and within the occupation
area of the cave, an interment was made during the Lower Magdalenian, nearly 19 cal. kyr BP. Biostratinomic
and diagenetic modifications found on the bones of an individual woman have provided
essential information with which to understand the origin of the burial and related formation processes.
The skeletal representation, bone modifications, spatial distribution and signs of disturbance within the
burial area jointly suggest that the skeletal remains recovered in El Miron are possibly the result of a
primary burial deposition which, after soft tissue decomposition, was disturbed to extract the cranium
and most of the long bones. Those bones may have been deposited elsewhere, either inside or outside
the cave, perhaps in a partial secondary burial that remains undiscovered. The rest of the skeleton was
ritually covered over again with red ochre, sediment and stones. Other than the ochre, no unequivocal
grave goods were associated with the human remains.
Spain) and an interpretation of their burial. At the back of the vestibule and within the occupation
area of the cave, an interment was made during the Lower Magdalenian, nearly 19 cal. kyr BP. Biostratinomic
and diagenetic modifications found on the bones of an individual woman have provided
essential information with which to understand the origin of the burial and related formation processes.
The skeletal representation, bone modifications, spatial distribution and signs of disturbance within the
burial area jointly suggest that the skeletal remains recovered in El Miron are possibly the result of a
primary burial deposition which, after soft tissue decomposition, was disturbed to extract the cranium
and most of the long bones. Those bones may have been deposited elsewhere, either inside or outside
the cave, perhaps in a partial secondary burial that remains undiscovered. The rest of the skeleton was
ritually covered over again with red ochre, sediment and stones. Other than the ochre, no unequivocal
grave goods were associated with the human remains.
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By using Geographical Information System software this study presents the spatial distribution of the human remains and features within the burial found in a Lower Magdalenian level of El Mirón cave (Cantabria, Spain). The aim is to... more
By using Geographical Information System software this study presents the spatial distribution of the human remains and features within the burial found in a Lower Magdalenian level of El Mirón cave (Cantabria, Spain). The aim is to identify how the interment was created and discern its primary or secondary origin. Three-dimensional analyses have been applied to recognize the physical location of the burial and its structural elements in relation with the grave assemblage and the significance of the red ochre and specular hematite in the burial context. In addition, a comparison of the vertical and horizontal dispersal of human skeletal elements was carried out according to their representation and evidence of taphonomic modifications. The association of human bones with other archaeological finds was also taken into account. The results show that the human body was placed at the edge of the living area of the site, at the rear of the cave vestibule, but in a separate place behind an engraved block and covered with limestone rocks. The position of the anatomical elements and the spatial distribution of the taphonomic bone modifications prove that it was a primary burial, minimally disturbed by carnivores, after body decomposition. The absence of the cranium and most of the long bones seems to be the result of a deliberate anthropogenic extraction from the burial pit, possibly for redeposition at another, unknown location perhaps a secondary burial. This fact disturbed the initial primary body deposition. Therefore, the results show that the El Mirón Lower Magdalenian burial was a disturbed primary interment, rather than a secondary deposit.
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Preliminary zooarchaeological results of the macrofaunal assemblage from the Serbian site of Velika Balanica are presented here. The site contains lithic artefacts corresponding to Charentian and typical Mousterian, evidencing the first... more
Preliminary zooarchaeological results of the macrofaunal assemblage from the Serbian site of Velika Balanica are presented here. The site contains lithic artefacts corresponding to Charentian and typical Mousterian, evidencing the first human occupations during the Early Middle Pleistocene of the Central Balkans, likely during an interglacial stage (MIS7 or MIS9). This paper offers the first insights on the paleoecoconomy practiced in the region, leading to a better comprehension of the human subsistence and its relationship with the available resources and palaeoenvironmental conditions. Thus, the taphonomy of the deposit indicates a systematic consumption of medium-size mammals with an intensive exploitation of carcasses, as well as a residential use of the cave.
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During the taphonomic and archaeozoological reappraisal of Garrod’s material from Tabun Cave (Mount Carmel, Israel) a distinctive dark colouring of bones was observed in the Level C and D assemblages. Based on several geochemical tests,... more
During the taphonomic and archaeozoological reappraisal of Garrod’s material from Tabun Cave (Mount
Carmel, Israel) a distinctive dark colouring of bones was observed in the Level C and D assemblages.
Based on several geochemical tests, the presence of insoluble manganese oxides in those coatings was
confirmed. The origin of this mineral, given the geological context, could be attributed to the decomposition
of large quantities of organic matterdue to an intensive human occupation of the site in MIS 5.
This fact reinforces the hypothesis of the existence of a larger logistic mobility around more permanent
residential sites among anatomically modern humans in the Levantine Middle Palaeolithic, which
constitutes early evidence of a more complex economic behaviour
Carmel, Israel) a distinctive dark colouring of bones was observed in the Level C and D assemblages.
Based on several geochemical tests, the presence of insoluble manganese oxides in those coatings was
confirmed. The origin of this mineral, given the geological context, could be attributed to the decomposition
of large quantities of organic matterdue to an intensive human occupation of the site in MIS 5.
This fact reinforces the hypothesis of the existence of a larger logistic mobility around more permanent
residential sites among anatomically modern humans in the Levantine Middle Palaeolithic, which
constitutes early evidence of a more complex economic behaviour
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Although most Old World vulture species are declining or threatened in Asia and Africa, in Europe healthy vulture populations still exist. However, recent application of sanitary legislation that has greatly reduced the availability of... more
Although most Old World vulture species are declining or threatened in Asia and Africa, in Europe healthy vulture populations still exist. However, recent application of sanitary legislation that has greatly reduced the availability of animal carcasses is now a concern for conservationists. Until now, no studies have been undertaken to determine long-term dietary shifts in these species in Europe, but such studies are essential to optimising the resources invested in conservation and to anticipating the ecological needs of the target species. Here, we present a first attempt to examine the dietary variation in the Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus from the late Pleistocene to the present day. Medium-size wild ungulates such as southern chamois Rupicapra pyrenaica, Spanish ibex Capra pyrenaica, red deer Cervus elaphus and roe deer Capreolus capreolus dominate the diet during the Pleistocene supporting the hypothesis that Bearded Vulture distribution was largely determined by the presence of such species. On the contrary, domestic species, such as sheep Ovis aries and goat Capra hircus, are the most common taxa in the diet in modern and historic periods. The actual dependence of the species on livestock, along with a restrictive sanitary legislation, threaten the conservation of this and other endangered avian scavengers in Europe. This new paleobiological conservation perspective confirms that efforts to establish a self-sustaining Bearded Vulture population should be enhanced by the widespread availability of medium-sized wild ungulates and by the presence of extensive and traditional grazing practices.(Received July 02 2012)(Accepted August 08 2012)
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Detailed archaeozoological studies of Middle and Early Upper Palaeolithic (250–40 kya) faunal assemblages from Tabun, Skhul and el-Wad caves, located in Mount Carmel (Israel), are presented here, expanding on the previous palaeontological... more
Detailed archaeozoological studies of Middle and Early Upper Palaeolithic (250–40 kya) faunal assemblages from Tabun, Skhul and el-Wad caves, located in Mount Carmel (Israel), are presented here, expanding on the previous palaeontological analyses carried out by Garrod and Bate in the 1930´s and by Garrard five decades later. Despite the well-known excavation bias of the older excavations, this study makes greater use of modern taphonomic techniques and statistical procedures, providing new palaeoeconomic insights into the subsistence behaviour of modern humans, Neanderthals and their predecessors in the Levant. The results show that anatomically modern humans (AMH) were more efficient at hunting and foraging in terms of human mobility as well as an incipient prey specialisation. In addition, different uses of the Tabun cave through time have been identified. Tabun B, initially considered as a palaeontological accumulation, was also occasionally accessed by Neanderthals in order to exploit naturally trapped ungulates, and there were sporadic and logistic occupations in Tabun D, one of the oldest Middle Palaeolithic assemblages in the area. Contrastingly, Tabun C showed a comparatively more residential use, which coincided with the new mobility capabilities of AMH. Whereas the intensity of human occupation at el-Wad varied through time, levels G and F showed very brief occupations in comparison with levels D and E, which showed abundant evidence of human activity.
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In Europe, the bearded vulture Gypaetus barbatus is currently an endangered species limited now to high mountain areas, but had a broader geographical distribution in the past. It breeds on ledges in limestone cliffs, in habitats similar... more
In Europe, the bearded vulture Gypaetus barbatus is currently an endangered species limited now to high mountain areas, but had a broader geographical distribution in the past. It breeds on ledges in limestone cliffs, in habitats similar to those also selected by prehistoric human groups. This species feeds mainly on bones of medium-sized ungulates that are processed before ingestion at bone-breaking sites or ossuaries; bone remains subsequently accumulate at their nesting places leading to potential mixing with human-derived or carnivore-derived assemblages. This fact could lead to incorrect palaeoeconomic interpretations that can be avoided if the taphonomic contribution of this bird of prey is correctly identified. Here, we present some key features to distinguish its presence in archaeo/palaeontological contexts. Bone surface alterations, breakage patterns and skeletal profiles are recorded. Several prehistoric, historic and modern assemblages accumulated by bearded vultures are studied. In addition, a new utility index based on bearded vulture dietary preferences that can be compared with skeletal element abundance in terms of %MAU (Minimal Animal Units) has been defined.
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... organización del procesado y consumo dentro de los diferentes grupos humanos que ha-bitaron la Cueva de La Fragua e igualmente obser-var la dinámica espacial a lo largo de los sucesivos niveles. Por ello ha sido importante conocer las... more
... organización del procesado y consumo dentro de los diferentes grupos humanos que ha-bitaron la Cueva de La Fragua e igualmente obser-var la dinámica espacial a lo largo de los sucesivos niveles. Por ello ha sido importante conocer las posibles alteraciones antrópicas y ...
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