An exclusively hyena-collected bone assemblage in the Late Pleistocene of Sicily: taphonomy and stratigraphic context of the large mammal remains from San Teodoro Cave (North-Eastern Sicily,Italy)

A detailed taphonomic analysis of the large mammal assemblage from 1998 to 2006 excavations at San Teodoro Cave is presented, taking into account the stratigraphic context of the deposits. Three not strictly contemporary fossiliferous levels having different lithological features have been detected, here named B-I, B-II, and B-III. Fossil remains are prevalently accumulated in B-I and B-II. The three levels are characterized by evidence of Crocuta crocuta spelaea occupation, represented by their skeletal remains, coprolites, and distinctive damages on the bones, similar to fossil and modern spotted hyena dens from Europe and Africa. A differential distribution of coprolites and small digested bones, probably due to different humidity conditions, has been recognized in B-I and B-II, and can be related to different topographic locations within the cave or to different climate conditions during the sedimentation phases. The very low density of fossil remains in B-III, which is the oldest level, could indicate an area that was less inhabited by hyenas, probably due to geomorphological conditions. Taphonomic comparison of the three fossiliferous levels of the San Teodoro Cave deposits points to a long-term, perhaps cyclic, occupation of the cave by hyenas and confirms the cave as one of the most important Pleistocene hyena dens in Europe.     

Cranial pathology of Ursus spelaeus ROSENMÜLLER & HEINROTH from Chateau Pignon,Basque Territories (Spain)

A complex lesion, on a skull of a female cave bear (Ursus spelaeus) associated with perforations of the frontal sinus is described. Paleopathological analysis suggests that the lesion is attributable to complex cranial trauma, probably complicated by an infection which appears to have occurred following a fight, most likely with another bear or, possibly, a cave lion (Panthera leo spelaea); at least one of the perforations observed on the skull may have been produced by the canine of a large carnivore. This hypothesis is supported by the frequent intraspecific aggressiveness documented in modern bears, and by evidence suggesting interspecific fights between cave bears and cave lions. The case is discussed in the light of other evidence reported in the literature. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Probable human hair found in a fossil hyaena coprolite from Gladysvale cave,South Africa

Until now, the oldest known human hair was from a 9000-year-old South American mummy. Here we report fossil hairs of probable human origin that exceed that age by about 200,000 years. The hairs have been discovered in a brown hyaena (Parahyaena brunnea) coprolite from Gladysvale cave in South Africa. The coprolite is part of a hyaena latrine preserved in calcified cave sediment dated between 195,000 and 257,000 years ago. This find supports the hypothesis that hyaenas accumulated some of the early hominin remains found in cave sites, and provides a new source of information on Pleistocene mammals in the Sterkfontein Valley.     

The Middle Paleolithic from Mujina Pećina,Dalmatia, Croatia

Abstract

Mujina Pe?ina in Dalmatia, Croatia is the only systematically excavated and well-dated Middle Paleolithic cave site in the eastern Adriatic. Its stratigraphic sequence covers the period between 45 and 39 uncalibrated years ka. Results of sedimentological, lithic, faunal, and paleobotanical analyses of the upper levels (Levels B, C, D1, and D2) show that this was a hunting site only sporadically visited by humans. During these occupation episodes humans processed animal remains (mostly large bovids, cervids, and caprids) and produced tools from locally available raw material. Carnivore use of the cave is also indicated. This work contributes to our understanding of lifestyles and mobility patterns of the Middle Paleolithic inhabitants of this region.     

Permian brachiopods from the Tupe Formation,San Juan Province,Precordillera, Argentina

The brachiopod fauna from the Tupe Formation at La Herradura Creek, located on the west flank of Perico Hill, San Juan Province, Argentina, palaeogeographically belongs to the western sector of the Paganzo basin (‘Guandacol embayment’). The stratigraphical section of the Tupe Formation at La Herradura Creek is the stratotype of the Tivertonia jachalensis-Streptorhynchus inaequiornatus biozone, was previously regarded as being of Late Carboniferous age but here is assigned to the earliest Permian (Asselian). We describe and review the biozone assemblage, which consists of Streptorhynchus inaequiornatus, Tivertonia jachalensis, Kochiproductus sp., Costatumulus sp., Coronalosia argentinensis, Tupelosia paganzoensis, Trigonotreta pericoensis, Septosyringothyris sp. aff. Septosyringothyris jaguelensis and Crurithyris? sp. This brachiopod assemblage is related to Indian and Australian Early Permian faunas and its presence in the La Herradura Creek section provides new evidence in support of an Asselian (Early Permian) age for the Tivertonia jachalensis-Streptorhynchus inaequiornatus biozone. This assemblage is also important for intra- and inter-basinal correlation because several of its characteristic species have been identified from other sections of the Paganzo basin and the Río Blanco basin. The proposed age for this biozone is consistent with the age of palynological data from slightly above the marine faunas from the stratotype locality.     

The southernmost records of Anhingidae and a new basal species of Anatidae (Aves) from the lower–middle Miocene of Patagonia,Argentina

New bird fossils from the Santa Cruz Formation (lower–middle Miocene), Santa Cruz Province, Patagonia, Argentina, are described. They represent an indeterminate species of the extinct anhingid Macranhinga and a new genus and species of basal Anatidae Ankonetta larriestrai. The record of the giant darter Macranhinga constitutes the southernmost record for the family, and expands the known stratigraphic range of the genus, previously restricted to the upper Miocene. Based on an analysis of the fossil anhingid record from South America, we hypothesize that giant darters disappeared from South America in the early Pliocene due to climatic deterioration, regression of marine and freshwater environments, the arrival of placental carnivorous mammals, and also probably by competition with phalacrocoracid cormorants. The new anatid Ankonetta is based on an incomplete but informative tarsometatarsus, with superficial similarities to extant Dendrocygna. A brief overview of several fossil ducks from the Patagonian Cenozoic concludes that most pre-Pliocene examples belong to non-anatine taxa, indicating that plesiomorphic ducks were the dominant anseriforms in those times, a pattern also evident on other continents.     

THE EMERGENCE OF STRATIGRAPHIC ARCHAEOLOGY IN MEDITERRANEAN EUROPE

In Italian classical archaeology, the definitive adoption of the stratigraphic excavation method occurred later than in other European countries. This methodological shift took place in Italy in the 1970s. We aim to scrutinize some points of the established historiographical reconstruction. We focus on three scholars regarded as “key figures” in the birth of Italian stratigraphic archaeology, yet all of the first half of the twentieth century, Giacomo Boni, Nino Lamboglia, and Luigi Bernabò Brea. We examine the origin of their stratigraphic approach and thus their relationship with prehistoric research. This is also an opportunity to reflect upon the conceptual and methodological transfer from one type of archaeology to another. In general, through comparison of these scholars, we aim to highlight some key factors in the establishment of a stratigraphic method in the history of archaeology.     

Identification of fossil hairs in Parahyaena brunnea coprolites from Middle Pleistocene deposits at Gladysvale cave,South Africa

This research focuses on scale pattern and cross sectional morphology of hair to identify an expanded sample of fossil hairs from Parahyaena brunnea coprolites from Gladysvale cave in the Sterkfontein Valley, South Africa. The coprolites are part of a brown hyaena latrine preserved in calcified cave sediment dated to the Middle Pleistocene (257–195 ka). Forty-eight fossil hairs were extracted from 12 coprolites using fine tweezers and a binocular microscope, and examined using a scanning electron microscope. Hair identification was based on consultation of standard guides to hair identification and comparison with our own collection of samples of guard hairs from 15 previously undocumented taxa of indigenous southern African mammals. Samples were taken from the back of pelts curated at the Johannesburg Zoo and Ditsong National Museum of Natural History (formerly Transvaal Museum, Pretoria). Based on the fossil hairs identified here, this research has established that brown hyaenas shared the Sterkfontein Valley with hominins, warthog, impala, zebra and kudu. Apart from humans, these animals are associated with savanna grasslands, much like the Highveld environment of today. These findings support the previous tentative identification of fossil human hair in the coprolites, provide a new source of information on the local Middle Pleistocene fossil mammal community, and insight into the environment in which archaic and emerging modern humans in the interior of the African subcontinent lived.     

Examples of Mediæval Seals. Seals preserved at Wisby in Gottland

Limited excavations were undertaken between 1975 and 1982 in two areas: south of the upper ward gatehouse and in the area of the lower ward eastern entrance. The excavations revealed traces of four bridges, one of which had left clear evidence of the design of its timber piers. Archaeological evidence suggests that all four bridges date from no later than the middle years of the twelfth century. The eastern gatehouse was shown to be a comparatively insubstantial structure, in spite of a major rebuild, suggesting that the main defence in this area was concentrated forward on the great barbican. The latter awaits future investigation. Limited re-examination of the structure of the lower ward Westgate and finds from this area enabled a sequence of gatehouse development and use to be suggested. South of the upper ward gatehouse excavations uncovered two substantial pits; the southern one was a lime kiln, sealed by construction of the successive bridges to the upper ward, and probably associated with the building of the ‘country house’ in the 1070S. The second pit, on the northern side of the upper ward ditch to the south-west of the upper ward gatehouse, could not be fully excavated and its purpose is rather more enigmatic; it was most likely another lime kiln. Investigation of the original topsoil on the northern lip of the upper ward ditch has identified early occupation levels apparently preceeding construction of the country house.     

Fauna and biostratigraphy of the Cambrian (Series 2, Stage 4; Ordian) Tempe Formation (Pertaoorrta Group), Amadeus Basin,Northern Territory

A new faunal assemblage is reported from the Tempe Formation (Cambrian Series 2, Stage 4; Ordian) retrieved from the Hermannsburg 41 drillcore, Amadeus Basin, central Australia. Two trilobite taxa, including one new species Gunnia fava sp. nov., four brachiopod taxa, including the age-diagnostic Karathele napuru (Kruse), Kostjubella djagoran (Kruse) and Micromitra nerranubawu Kruse, together with a bradoriid, helcionellids, hyoliths, echinoderms, chancelloriids, sponges and problematic tubes are described. The fauna has close links to those of the neighbouring Daly, Georgina and Wiso basins and suggests that the Tempe Formation correlates with the Australian Ordian stage (either the Redlichia forresti or Xystridura negrina assemblage zones). The Giles Creek Dolostone in the eastern Amadeus Basin, previously regarded as coeval with the Tempe Formation, has recently been reported to be of early Templetonian age in its type section. The described taxa from the Tempe Formation confirm that these two sedimentary units are not contemporaneous and that regional stratigraphic schemes should be amended.     

Palynology of glacial sediments from the Guandacol Formation (Middle Carboniferous) in the Cerro Bola area,Paganzo Basin,Argentina

The palynoflora of surface samples of glacial deposits from the Guandacol Formation in the Cerro Bola area of the Argentinian Paganzo Basin is documented. The existence of glacial related diamictites in this area has been previously ignored. The fossiliferous levels are located in section B of the formation, which corresponds to the earlier stages of deglaciation. The assemblage contains abundant monosaccate pollen grains whose global incoming is not older than early Namurian (Middle Carboniferous). Many species of this palynoflora are present in equivalent stratigraphic sequences of Argentina and can be referred to Sub-biozone A of the Raistrickia densa-Convolutispora muriornata Biozone (Namurian-Stephanian). New species described here are Cyclogranisporites rinconadensis and Tricidarisporites gutii.     

Three-dimensional Distribution of Minerals in the Sediments of Hayonim Cave,Israel: Diagenetic Processes and Archaeological Implications

The mineral components of the sediments that accumulate in an archaeological site constitute a potentially rich source of information on the diagenesis, and in turn the archaeology of the site. This detailed three-dimensional study of the mineral assemblages in mainly the Mousterian sediments of Hayonim Cave incorporates more than 2100 infrared analyses performed on-site during the excavation, as well as diverse analyses in the laboratory. Three major mineral assemblages are identified: the calcite-dahllite (CD) assemblage, the assemblage comprising mainly montgomeryite, leucophosphite and siliceous aggregates (LMVS), and a highly altered sediment in which the clays have broken down and silica was released. The boundaries between these assemblages were mapped in detail. The overall picture is one of extreme heterogeneity with sharp variations occurring over distances of a few centimetres. The relation between the CD and LMVS assemblages shows that it is a product of post-depositional diagenesis, whereas the altered clay assemblage formed beneath an erosional unconformity. The CD and LMVS assemblages were derived primarily from an accumulation several metres thick of ash deposits produced by humans. Ash is thus shown to be a major component of the sediments of this cave. The distribution of the CD assemblage reflects to a large extent the locations of two active springs/seepages in the cave. The distribution of the CD assemblage also faithfully maps the distribution of bones in the cave, showing that their distribution is a function of preservational conditions and not human activities (Stineret al ., 2001). The conditions that produced the erosional unconformity, also resulted in severe alteration of the clays and other mineral components of these sediments. The erosion process and the fact that the thickness of this altered zone decreases towards the centre of the cave, indicates that the diagenetic driving force was probably climatic. The three-dimensional distributions of the mineral assemblages have a direct bearing on the dating of the cave by thermoluminescence and electron spin resonance.     

莫高窟108窟内空气温湿度的变化过程及其对窟内水汽和热量来源的启示

为了对108窟内不同位置的温度、湿度和空气压力进行监测,设置了12个点的传感器。监测结果表明,窟内温度存在着显著的昼夜和长期的变化,其中上层空气的温度变化尤其明显,而下层空气的温度变化则相对较小。在夏天,窟内的上层空气温度高于下层空气的温度。窟内空气的绝对湿度受外部环境严重影响,存在近似昼夜的变化。在分布上,窟内空气湿度在上层和前部高,而在下层和后部则较小。窟内存在着净的水汽输入过程,但水汽不是从洞窟的入口进入的。同样,窟内的空气压力也存在着明显的昼夜变化过程,并受外部环境的影响而升高或下降,窟内东侧的空气压力大于西侧的空气压力。这些结果一致说明,在108窟的东侧上层存在着水汽和热量的来源。研究结果为下一步的盐害防治工作提供了思路,具有重要的科学意义和应用价值。     

Stromatolites from Adelaidean (Late Proterozoic) sequences in central and South Australia

New forms of late Precambrian stromatolites are described from the Amadeus and Georgian Basins and additional information is given on Minjaria pontifera Walter from the Bitter Springs Formation. Tesca stewartii gr. et f. nov. is described from the Boord Formation, Elleria minuta gr. et f. nov. from the Pioneer Sandstone, and Tungussia julia f. nov. from the Julie Formation. The latter is compared with Tungussia cf. T. julia from the Wonoka Formation, South Australia. Acaciella australica Walter has been recognised in the Yackah Beds of the Georgina Basin, supporting a correlation with the Bitter Springs Formation. The stromatolites described were selected because of their potential regional and global stratigraphic significance.     

Ammonite dating of latest Cretaceous mosasaurid reptiles (Squamata,Mosasauroidea) from Jordan—preliminary observations

Jagt, J.W.M., Jagt-Yazykova, E.A., Kaddumi, H.F. & Lindgren, J., April 2017. Ammonite dating of latest Cretaceous mosasaurid reptiles (Squamata, Mosasauroidea) from Jordan—preliminary observations. Alcheringa 42, 587-596. ISSN 0311-5518

Newly collected ammonoid material from the uppermost Cretaceous portion of the Muwaqqar Chalk Marl Formation exposed some 30 km southeast of the Qasr Al’Harrana area (east-central Jordan) includes medium-sized baculitids (Baculites ovatus auctorum, non Say), the sphenodiscid Libycoceras acutodorsatus (Noetling) and the pachydiscids Menuites fresvillensis (Seunes) and Pachydiscus (Pachydiscus) dossantosi (Maury). Of the two last named taxa, the former is a good marker species for the upper Maastrichtian, with records from Europe, central Chile, South India, Baluchistan (Pakistan), Australia, Madagascar and South Africa. The latter is known from the United Arab Emirates/Oman border area, from strata of (late) early to early late Maastrichtian age, as well as from more poorly constrained Maastrichtian levels in Brazil and Nigeria. A comparison with ammonoid assemblages from the Maastrichtian type area (southeast Netherlands/northeast Belgium) suggests correlation of the Muwaqqar Chalk Marl Formation with the middle/upper Maastricht Formation (Emael and Nekum members, ca 66.5–66.1 Ma) and the upper part of the coeval Kunrade Formation. However, associated ‘tegulated’ inoceramids of the Tenuipteria argentea group from the Muwaqqar Chalk Marl Formation favour equivalence with a higher level of the Maastrichtian type area, i.e., the Meerssen Member. From the upper Maastricht Formation and the equivalent upper part of the Kunrade Formation, the following mosasaur genera are currently known: Mosasaurus, Prognathodon, Plioplatecarpus and Carinodens. Interestingly, coeval strata of the Muwaqqar Chalk Marl Formation in east-central Jordan have yielded remains of a largely comparable suite comprising Prognathodon, Mosasaurus, Carinodens and an unnamed, highly derived plioplatecarpine.

John W.M. Jagt* [john.jagt@maastricht.nl], Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht, de Bosquetplein 6–7, 6211 kJ Maastricht, the Netherlands; Elena A. Jagt-Yazykova [eyazykova@uni.opole.pl], Opole University, Department of Biosystematics, Oleska 22, 45-052 Opole, Poland; Hani F. Kaddumi [blossom_trail@yahoo.com], Eternal River Museum of Natural History, Maroof Al’Rusafi Street, PO Box 11395, Amman 11123, Jordan; Johan Lindgren [johan.lindgren@geol.lu.se], Lund University, Department of Geology, Sölvegatan 12, 223 62 Lund, Sweden.     

CHARACTERIZATION AND THERMOLUMINESCENCE DATING OF PREHISTORIC POTTERY SHERDS FROM MILENA

This paper reports the results obtained applying absolute dating methodologies and mineralogical, petrographical and micropalaeontological characterization techniques to prehistoric pottery sherds varying in age from the Sicilian Middle Neolithic to Bronze Age. All samples came from the archaeological area of Milena (Caltanissetta, Sicily); those of the Bronze Age were found on a site with a precise stratigraphic succession. The investigation has contributed to the determination of an absolute chronology for the Milena prehistoric period. The data provide, for the first time in Sicily, absolute dates covering a wide spectrum of cultures following one another in the same area and, for the Bronze Age site, correlated to the precise stratigraphic succession. The petrographical and mineralogical analyses allowed not only the identification of the principal constituents of the pottery, but also the formulation of some hypotheses regarding the specific manufacturing techniques of different epochs. The microfacies, obtained from the presence of fossils in the groundmass of the pottery, were also analysed and compared with the microfauna present in the Miocene clays outcropping in the area. The data identified local Messinian clay as the raw material probably used in the manufacture of the pottery and also support the presence, already assumed by archaeologists, of imported Mycenaean pottery, thus supporting the dates obtained on pottery taken from the same stratum.     

Early Carboniferous age for Arynshand Formation,Mongolian South Gobi,based on conodonts

Conodonts from the lowermost part of the Arynshand Formation at the Bayan-Khoshuu Ruins section in the Mushgai area, south Gobi, including Siphonodella cooperi, S. cf. crenulata and S. cf. isosticha, clearly indicate that the Arynshand Formation is Early Carboniferous rather than Devonian-Carboniferous. The formation rests unconformably on the volcanogenic Minjin Member of the Botuulkhudag Formation from which we have not recovered conodonts. The Arynshand Formation contains some presumably reworked Devonian conodonts which cannot be used to provide a reliable age.     

Silicified wood of Early Miocene Nothofagus,Acacia and Myrtaceae (aff. Eucalyptus B) from the upper Lachlan valley,New South Wales

Three specimens of silicified wood, two transported and one probably in situ, have been found in association with Early Miocene basaltic lavas in the upper Lachlan valley, N.S.W. On the basis of their preserved structure, the three specimens have been identified as belonging to Nothofagus, Acacia, and the family Myrtaceae, respectively. The specimen of Nothofagus (one of the transported specimens) constitutes the first identification of a macrofossil of this genus from this interval in southeastern mainland Australia, while its conjunction with the myrtaceous specimens (one probably in situ) may indicate vegetation zonation according to elevation, as proposed on pollen evidence from Kiandra. Such zonation is not demanded by the upper Lachlan evidence, however, but if it is favoured, reconstruction of the Early Miocene geography of the upper Lachlan constrains the maximum elevation above the locality of the myrtaceous fossils to be 350 m.     

陕西窑洞传统乡村聚落景观基因组图谱构建及特征分析

窑洞聚落是黄土高原最典型的聚落形态，它具有悠久的历史、深厚的精神文化内涵以及独特的文化景观特征，在陕西渭北地区和陕北黄土高原丘陵沟壑区分布广泛。本研究基于传统聚落景观基因组图谱的相关研究，以陕西31个窑洞传统乡村聚落为研究对象，按照“单个窑洞聚落、多个窑洞聚落、特定研究区”三个层次，构建了窑洞聚落的典型院落图谱、空间序列图谱、院落模式图谱、排列模式图谱和空间格局图谱五大类型图谱体系。通过分析窑洞聚落景观基因组图谱的基本特征，进一步验证了构建窑洞聚落景观基因组图谱的必要性和迫切性。本研究旨在丰富景观基因组图谱层次，推动景观基因研究向区域层面发展，并为窑洞聚落景观基因信息链修复及景观基因区域识别系统构建等相关研究奠定基础，为保护与发展窑洞聚落提供科学依据。     

Contribution of numerical modelling of environmental parameters to the conservation of prehistoric cave paintings: the example of Lascaux Cave

Abstract

This study of Lascaux Cave consisted of simulating the evolution of changes in the levels of temperature and humidity both in the air and in the rock. By choosing different models (one-dimensional, three-dimensional, etc.), it was possible to calculate the required variables (temperature, moisture levels, speeds, etc.) at all points inside the cave, to locate zones of high water vapour concentration and to understand the nature of the airflow. The simulations described here provide the first general data on the airflow within the cave and its hygrothermic behaviour. The temperature fields result from natural convection phenomena, which are influenced by the climate outside the cave. From the point of view of air dynamics, we can observe the presence of an overall airflow that starts in the Machine Room (containing the air conditioning system installed in 1958), runs along the ground to the end of each of the branches of the cave, and returns along the cave vault to its starting point. This slow-moving phenomenon suggests the possibility of passive control of the ambient air from the Machine Room. There are localized risk areas where condensation of water vapour can occur, resulting in rapid deterioration of the limestone. Several of these areas are therefore monitored using condensation indicators placed on the cave walls or by visual observation of painted areas. The higher air speeds detected in some areas of the cave result in decay of the prehistoric paintings. The numerical modelling results, confirmed by observations and measurements in situ, should be taken into consideration when managing the conditions within the cave.