David Cuenca-Solana

Anatomically modern humans first settled in Europe at least 45,000 years ago, yet limited genomic data from 45 to 20 thousand years (ka) constrain reconstructions of Upper Palaeolithic population dynamics. Before the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; ∼26.5 to 19 ka), Gravettian groups (∼34 to 25 ka) were widespread across Europe and genetically diverse, including the Fournol and Věstonice lineages. Here, we present genome-wide data from three Gravettian individuals: two from the Franco-Cantabrian region (Chufín, Spain, and Isturitz, France) and one from Italy (Ostuni1b). Our analyses reveal previously undetected gene flow between eastern and western early Gravettian populations in southwestern Europe, challenging models of regional genetic continuity from the Aurignacian to the Solutrean (∼24 to 19 ka). To investigate population history during the LGM, a period for which human skeletal remains are extremely rare, we analyzed sedimentary ancient DNA from Solutrean Layer 122 at El Mirón Cave (Cantabria, Spain; ∼22,000 calibrated years before the present), recovering ∼14,000 human single-nucleotide polymorphisms. These data support persistence of Fournol-related ancestry in southwestern Europe throughout the LGM.

The use of personal ornaments is considered a milestone in human cognitive evolution and the development of complex behavior. The Cantabrian region in the north of the Iberian Peninsula served as a hub of occupation and intergroup contact throughout the Upper Paleolithic, and acted as a climatic refugium during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM – 25,000–19,000 years ago), constituting a key region for understanding the social and symbolic structures and interactions of hunter-gatherer groups. This study analyses personal ornaments recovered from the Upper Paleolithic stratigraphical sequence at Llonín Cave (Asturias, Spain), spanning from the Upper Solutrean to the Azilian (c. 21.8–11 kya cal BP), that comprises the regional largest and most diverse assemblage. The combination of taxonomic, biometric, taphonomic, and use-wear analyses reveals rarely documented patterns, such as diachronic shifts in the site’s role as an importer and producer of ornaments, the varying social significance of their use, and the strategies for raw material procurement. Furthermore, the study identifies evidence of coastal-inland interactions, allowing the reconstruction of the complete chaîne opératoire for ornament manufacture. These findings provide a framework for reinterpreting the use of personal ornaments among Paleolithic hunter-gatherer groups, facilitating critical discussions on key dimensions such as mobility and identity.

Modern humans first settled in Europe at least 45,000 years ago. However, limited genomic data from individuals dating between 45,000 and 20,000 years ago still restricts our understanding of population dynamics and admixture during the Upper Palaeolithic. Before the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 26.5–19 cal kya), Gravettian culture-associated populations were widespread and genetically diverse, comprising at least two distinct genetic groups, referred to as the Fournol and Věstonice clusters. We present genome-wide data from three Gravettian-associated individuals: two from cave sites in the Franco-Cantabrian region (Chufín and Isturitz) and one from Italy (Ostuni1b). These data reveal previously undetected gene flow linking the ancestry of 34,000-year-old individuals from Sungir (Russia) to Gravettian individuals from Western Europe, challenging the prevailing model of population continuity from the Aurignacian to the Solutrean. As osseous remains are scarce for this time period, DNA from sediments deposited by ancient humans opens a new possibility to obtain genomic data. We thus examine sedimentary DNA from Solutrean Layer 122 at El Mirón Cave (Cantabria, ∼22,000 cal BP), recovering approximately 16,000 human SNPs, among the highest yields reported from a Palaeolithic context. Generating these data required over 1.15 billion sequencing reads, illustrating both the potential of sediment DNA for autosomal analysis and the technical challenges of the approach.

Archaeological mollusk shells, such as those of Littorina obtusata/fabalis, hold valuable information about past human behavior and cultural practices. However, the original coloration of these shells, crucial for understanding their symbolic significance, is often lost due to taphonomic processes. Raman spectroscopy is a powerful technique for non-destructive analysis of archaeological samples, enabling the identification of pigments and mineralogical components. In this study, we present a methodology to predict, using Raman spectroscopy and k-means clustering, the original coloration of archaeological L. obtusata/fabalis shells which have lost their original coloration. Raman spectra were acquired from both modern shells, exhibiting a range of natural colors, and archaeological shell samples from La Chora cave (Cantabria, northern Spain). Spectral data were preprocessed to remove noise and baseline effects, and k-means clustering was applied to group the spectra based on their inherent spectral similarities. By comparing the spectral signatures of the archaeological samples with those of the modern shells within the generated clusters, we inferred the likely original coloration of the archaeological specimens. This approach provides a quantitative framework for predicting archaeological shell colors.

Traditional research approaches on pottery production based on typological and morphometric classifications have changed in favour of new lines of research. One of them is based on the study of the technological equipment used in ceramic manufacturing processes. For example, ethnographic evidence shows the use of shell tools as technological equipment in different phases of ceramic production. In this study, the methodology of use-wear analysis has been applied to the archaeomalacological material from the Neolithic site of Cabecicos Negros (Andalusia, Spain) to establish if the shells were used as work tools. This analysis has been completed with the development of an experimental program composed of two analytical and one prospective experiments, carried out to provide new data about the cardial decorative technique and to define the use-wear traces that appear on the active area of the shells after their technological use. The results obtained in this investigation show the use of shells in different stages of pottery production. On the one hand, during the modelling and regularization phase of the ceramic surface and, on the other hand, during the cardial decorative phase. In this way, through this work, it has been possible to establish that the archaeological site of Cabecicos Negros was a pottery production center where domestic pieces were made during its Neolithic occupation. In addition, these findings reaffirm the importance of shells in ceramic manufacture during the Neolithic period, mainly in terms of the technical process linked to the cardial-type of ceramic decoration.

El libro se adentra en el campo más actual de la Arqueología Prehistórica gracias a su multidisciplinar acercamiento metodológico. Con ese fin, la obra aparece estructurada en cinco grandes bloques. Por un lado, el primero de ellos se centra en el análisis del pensamiento simbólico, con especial atención al estudio del arte prehistórico de la península ibérica y el suroeste francés, mientras que el segundo bloque se detiene en el estudio de la diversidad de la cultura material adoptada por los grupos de cazadores-recolectores desde el norte de África hasta Irán. En el tercer bloque se profundiza en el territorio de las prácticas funerarias y el tratamiento de la muerte en el Mesolítico y Edad del Bronce, a la vez que el cuarto bloque analiza las prácticas económicas y los modelos de asentamiento en contextos kársticos y al aire libre, ambos bloques espacialmente centrados en la zona atlántica y, por último, el quinto bloque se detiene en la aplicación de la Etnoarqueología al estudio de las sociedades del pasado. La diversidad de áreas geográficas (América del Norte, América del Sur, Oriente Próximo y Europa) y el amplio marco cronológico que abarcan los diferentes casos de estudio, desde el Paleolítico hasta las poblaciones actuales, confieren dinamismo a este volumen, que se convierte en un referente para conocer los últimos métodos de estudio aplicados a nivel global en el ámbito de la Arqueología, con una especial atención a la Cornisa Cantábrica.

There are now 101 radiocarbon dates from the long Paleolithic and post-Paleolithic culture-stratigraphic sequence in El Mirón Cave, Cantabrian Spain. Here we report on two dates on bone from two different humans whose remains were found in disturbed surface sediments in the cave vestibule rear and that confirm the existence of burials in addition to previously reported residential occupations in the vestibule front pertaining to the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Age periods (ca. 5500–3500 cal BP). In another attempt to resolve problems of stratigraphic incoherence of dates from the early Magdalenian periods in the vestibule rear, six new assays on faunal remains from Levels 119, 117, 114, 108, and 106 were run at Queen’s University in Belfast. There continue to be date inversions in the Lower Magdalenian range of levels that may be explained by a combination of intensive anthropic and rodent activity, major rock fall, slope wash and gravity-caused object movements, as well as possible problems in following some thin levels during excavations over a large area and across many years of work in the cave vestibule interior, particularly in the absence of any layers that are culturally sterile or even poor. Nonetheless, the coherent age of the Initial Magdalenian is fully confirmed by a new date from Level 21 in the vestibule front at ca. 22,000–20,500 cal BP), as is the general age range of the Lower Magdalenian (ca. 20,500–18,000 cal BP).

Prehistoric and Archaeological research has pointed out the role of marine resources in modern humans’ cognitive and cultural developments. Maritime adaptations constitute a key component of the sociocultural evolution in Eastern Arabia. During the Neolithic (c. 6500–3300 BCE), it is expressed by the colonisation of offshore islands supported by advanced seafaring and the exploitation of marine resources not only for staple food but also for obtaining hard animal materials used for both symbolic and technological productions, respectively in the form of personal adornments and tooling. Although tools made of retouched large marine mollusc shells are reported on several sites, no detailed study has been conducted on their function and role within the socio-technological processes.The present study introduces a prospective approach for the functional analysis of archaeological shell tools from Eastern Arabia. A reference collection of use-wear traces made experimentally has been built: it compiles the results of 65 experiments (23 are documented and illustrated in the present study), including the processing of various animal, vegetal, and mineral materials. Use-wear traces have been observed and described using both low and high-power magnifications (conducted mainly at 100 ×). It provides helpful methodological support for future comparisons with archaeological specimens. The procurement conditions of the shell valves and the techniques of retouch have been discussed in detail, allowing further considerations on the degree of the socio-technological investment devoted to these peculiar artefacts.