The Aurignacian sequence of Lapa do Picareiro (Portugal): Abrupt climate shifts and diachronic variability in land-use strategies

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Variability within the Aurignacian: New Research Outlooks" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Across Eurasia, abrupt climate shifts during the Late Pleistocene impacted human and natural systems. For the Iberian Peninsula, our knowledge of human adaptive responses during the Upper Paleolithic has improved in recent years with the development of new radiocarbon techniques and high-resolution paleoclimatic records. Integrated with the archaeological record, these data sets allow for a better understanding of the nature of human socio-ecological systems during the Upper Paleolithic. Lapa do Picareiro has become an important reference site for the Upper Paleolithic in Portugal. Here we present new data on the Aurignacian occupations dated 41.7-34.4 ka cal BP. The earliest Aurignacian presence dated 41.7-38.1 ka cal BP is based on a lithic assemblage from Levels GG-II with diagnostic carinated endscraper/core and bladelets. Level FF stands in stark contrast because the lithic assemblage is almost entirely comprised of simple flakes on quartzite and quartz. Subsequent Aurignacian occupations in Levels DD and BB dated between ~37-34 ka cal BP are based primarily on large flake production on chert with very few bladelets. Each occupation horizon is marked by distinct changes in raw material preference and technological organization reflecting different land use strategies in synchroneity with abrupt climate shifts.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• Variability within the Aurignacian: New Research Outlooks

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 51039