Spatial distribution and site formation of the Schöningen Spear Horizon, Lower Saxony, Germany

Summary

The discovery of the Schöningen 13II-4 Spear Horizon represents a major milestone in the study human behavioural evolution. Once viewed as a single mass kill site of horses, aided by wooden spears, it is becoming increasingly clear that the site represents multiple hominin hunting episodes along the margin of a middle Pleistocene lakeshore. However, there are still questions to be addressed

regarding the spatial relationships between and within the spear, lithic, and faunal assemblages. Here we present the results of an ongoing spatial analysis of the complete faunal assemblage from the Spear Horizon to address hypotheses regarding the events that led to accumulation of the site. Detailed spatial data, combined with other multidisciplinary studies, provide important ecological and depositional contexts for the site, from which we can reconstruct hominin behaviour on a high-resolution scale. Preliminary results indicate a complex depositional history, but spatial patterns provide clues to interpret the frequency, timing, and nature of multiple hominin hunting episodes at the site.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage