Regional extinction(s) but continental persistence in European Acheulean culture.

ABSTRACT: Traces of early hominin cultural dynamics are revealed through the spatial and temporal character of the archaeological record. In the European Lower Palaeolithic, biface occurrences provide insights into episodes of cultural loss, persistence and convergence during the Acheulean, the longest known prehistoric cultural phenomenon. Here, the cohesiveness of Europe's Acheulean record is statistically assessed under multiple spatial scenarios. Repeated cycles of cultural loss are identified in northern Europe, while southern Europe is demonstrated to have a continuous record of Acheulean presence. These data support longstanding hypotheses concerning an absence of Acheulean populations in northern Europe during glacial periods - a result that should increasingly be applied with caution. In so

SUBMITTER: Key A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11895719 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature