Aurignacian only? New evidence for a Gravettian component in the lithic and bone industry from Didon´s excavations at Abri Blanchard

Uthmeier T, Pasda K, Wiesner CM, Lechner C (2020)


Publication Type: Book chapter / Article in edited volumes

Publication year: 2020

Journal

Publisher: Hugo Obermaier-Society for Quaternary Research and Archaeology of the Stone Age

Edited Volumes: Quartär. International Yearbook for Ice Age and Stone Age Research

Book Volume: 67

Pages Range: 23-43

DOI: 10.7485/qu.2020.67.88914

Abstract

The article presents for the first time the collection from Didon's excavations at Abri Blanchard hosted in the Naturhistorische Gesellschaft Nürnberg. Bought by the Gesellschaft in 1912 through the agency of Hugo Obermaier, the material consists of lithic artifacts, artifacts from bone, antler and ivory, personal ornament, faunal remains and pieces of the brecciated archaeological layer(s). The analysis shows that most of the lithic and osseous artifacts fit well into the variability of the Aurignacian. The bone points can formally be attributed to an early Aurignacian, characterized by split-based points, and a later Aurignacian, indicated by the presence of massive-based points. Although Gravettian artifacts have already been identified in one of the collections hosted in other museums, these were restricted to isolated pieces among the osseous industry. The present study for the first time identified not only additional Gravettian pieces among the osseous industry, but at the same time also a small series of Noailles-type burins, several Gravette points, and a bidirectional core alongside a Pavlovian smoother (“Geweihstecher”). The article discusses how these new findings compare to existing hypothesis about the origin of a non-Aurignacian component at the site.

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How to cite

APA:

Uthmeier, T., Pasda, K., Wiesner, C.-M., & Lechner, C. (2020). Aurignacian only? New evidence for a Gravettian component in the lithic and bone industry from Didon´s excavations at Abri Blanchard. In Quartär. International Yearbook for Ice Age and Stone Age Research. (pp. 23-43). Hugo Obermaier-Society for Quaternary Research and Archaeology of the Stone Age.

MLA:

Uthmeier, Thorsten, et al. "Aurignacian only? New evidence for a Gravettian component in the lithic and bone industry from Didon´s excavations at Abri Blanchard." Quartär. International Yearbook for Ice Age and Stone Age Research. Hugo Obermaier-Society for Quaternary Research and Archaeology of the Stone Age, 2020. 23-43.

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