paleontology spain, 13.-15. humans in spain

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Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of Spain – an Introduction

Dr. Andreas May

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Do You Know…

…the oldest human fossils from Spain?

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Age of Localities with Early to Middle Pleistocene Human Remains

Source: Gibbons, W., & Moreno, T. [Eds.] (2002): The Geology of Spain; London (Geological Society): p. 360.

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Orce in Andalusia (I)

Excavations at the Venta Micena site near Orce.

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Orce in Andalusia (I)Following is based mainly on British Archaeology, no 7, September 1995: News: 1.8 million-year-old human presence claimed in Spain. (http://www.britarch.ac.uk/ba/ba7/ba7news.html)

At Orce in Andalusia, excavations at several sites near the margins of a former lake have revealed possible human activity at two stratigraphic levels, both reasonably well dated by palaeomagnetic dating and faunal correlations. The more recent, upper level is 1.2-1.4 million years old; the earlier, lower level is c 1.8 million years old.

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Orce in Andalusia (II)The possible human activity are a number of fractured stones in both upper and lower levels. In at least one case, the stones were artefacts, indicating that Early Pleistocene humans - probably Homo ergaster - had indeed been present in the area.

Most of the stones had probably not been fractured by humans. However, it seemed possible that many had been brought to the site by hand, as they were found in situ and several kilometres from the nearest contemporary source of that type of rock, having had no obvious natural means of transport.

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Orce in Andalusia (III)Potentially even more exciting finds have been made in the upper levels at Orce, consisting of three bone fragments that are believed to be hominid - one fragment from a skull, and two from a humerous (=upper arm).

These finds have not been researched by the British archaeologists, but are accepted as hominid bone fragments by the head of the Spanish team, Prof Michael Walker of Murcia University.

In addition, some animal bones from the upper level appear to show artificial breakage and stone-tool cutmarks.

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Fossils of “Orce Man” (I)

The most important fossil: a cranial fragment from an infant (VM-0), 1.2-1.4 million years old.

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Fossils of “Orce Man” (II)

The location of the Orce fragment VM-0 on a child's skull - assuming, that is, that the fossil does actually come from a human.

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Fossils of “Orce Man” (III)The fossils are consisting of three bone fragments, coming from the Venta Micena site near the Spanish town of Orce. They are believed to be hominid - one fragment from a skull (VM-0), and two fragments of a humerous from one adult and one child. Most important is VM-0. It was discovered in 1982 and is claimed to be a human cranial fragment. VM-0 is interpreted as a part of the back of the head of a child, belonging to the genus Homo.However, there was some doubt as to the bone's identity.

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Fossils of “Orce Man” (IV)For example, 1984 two French scientists had suggested the fragment "may have come" from a donkey. However, a fractal analysis of the skull sutures by Gibert and Palmqvist (1995) strongly indicated that the fragment was not from an equine. Also in 1995, an international symposium was eventually held at Orce to discuss this and other material, and a number of workers there also suggested that VM-0 was a hominid fossil (Zihlman and Lowenstein 1996).Borja et al. (1997) have argued in favor of VM-0 being a hominid, based on immunological studies of fossil proteins performed at two independent laboratories.

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Sites with Human Fossils in Spain


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Human Fossils from Cueva VictoriaIn Cueva Victoria, which is also in Andalusia, in beds of the same age as in Orce few human bones were found:

a bone of a finger, two fragments from a humerous (=upper arm), and a tooth.

The researchers compare the humerous from Cueva Victoria with the humerous from Orce, because the central channel of the bone is remarkably small.

The researchers compare the material with Homo ergaster or H. erectus, but the dimensions of the Spanish specimens seem to be smaller.

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Reconstructions of “Orce Man” (I)

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Reconstructions of “Orce Man” (II)

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Lithic Artefacts from Orce

Fractured stones, c. 1.8 million years old artefacts from Orce.

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Tool Assemblages of Localities near Orce (I)

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Tool Assemblages of Localities near Orce (II)

The localities Fuentenueva-3 and Barranco León-5 near Orce contain an important assemblage of lithic artefacts of Developed Oldowan type of an age of 1.3-1.4 million years. It contributes new evidence of human presence in this area during the mid third of the lower Pleistocene. The tool assemblage of Fuentenueva-3 (more than one hundred pieces) is composed of limestone cobbles and knapped flint, which are associated in the deposits with several species of large mammals originating in Africa.

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The Environment of the “Orce Man”

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Large Carnivores from OrceLarge carnivores, which have been found in the area of Orce in beds of more than 1 million years age. Especially important are the sabre-tooth Megantereon (above) and the giant hyaena Pachycrocuta (below).

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Sabre-tooth Cats and HumansThe arrival of Homo in Europa (Orce) and Asia, during the lower Pleistocene, may be explained by the immigration of two carnivore species from Africa: the giant hyaena Pachycrocuta brevirostris and the sabre-tooth Megantereon whitei. Sabre-tooth cats were extinct in East Africa by 1.5 Ma, but inhabited Eurasia until 0.5 Ma. Given that M. whitei was a hypercarnivorous predator that presumably left, on the carcasses of the ungulates hunted, large amounts of flesh and bone nutrients within, its arrival in Eurasia opened broad opportunities for scavenging by hominids.Source: Arribas, A. & Palmqvist, P. 1999. On ecological Connection Between Sabre-tooths and Hominids: Faunal Dispersal Events in the Lower Pleistocene and a Review of the Evidence for the First Human Arrival in Europe. Journal of Archaeological Science, 26 (5), 571-585.

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Dr. Andreas May

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ContentsIntroduction – AtapuercaGran DolinaHomo antecessor from Gran DolinaSima de los HuesosHomo heidelbergensis from Sima de los HuesosStone Tools from AtapuercaTrinchera GaleríaAtapuerca and Human Evolution

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Homo Migrates Out Of Africa (I)

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Homo Migrates Out Of Africa (II)

About two million years ago, early members of Homo began a journey out of northeast Africa. The only land route out of the continent was in northeastern Africa, through what is now Egypt.

(Crossing from Africa to Spain by water would have been impossible for them, as they did not know how to make boats.). According to available fossil evidence, the first African emigrants initially seem to have moved further eastward, toward Asia, probably because the routes north and west were blocked by rugged terrain and cold climates.

This slow migration occurred in waves, with different species leaving at different times.

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Age of Localities with Early to Middle Pleistocene Human Remains


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What…

…is Atapuerca?

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Geographical Position of Atapuerca (I)

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Geographical Position of Atapuerca (II)

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Geographical Position of Atapuerca (III)

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Landscape of Atapuerca

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The Sierra de Atapuerca is located in a strategic corridor (the Bureba corridor) which connects the Duero and Ebro river basins

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What is Atapuerca?The hills known as the Sierra de Atapuerca in the Province of Burgos (northern Spain) hide a complex system of large limestone caverns. Openings into the caves dot the hillsides, and for nearly one million years, these cave entrances have provided shelter for humans as well as animals. Over the millennia, the inhabitants of Atapuerca left behind an extraordinary fossil record that scientists are just beginning to unearth.

The word Atapuerca comes from adtaporka ('stone passage').

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History of Atapuerca (I)

In the 1890s the Sierra Company, a British firm, began to build a railroad through the region. During construction, workers removed a portion of one hillside—and exposed the sediment-filled cave now known as Gran Dolina. Nearby is a second major site, Sima de los Huesos. Together, they have revolutionized our understanding of the early inhabitants of western Europe.

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History of Atapuerca (II)With the discovery of cave paintings in the early 1970s Atapuerca got archaeological interest.In 1976, a paleontology student discovered the lower jaw above figured while searching for cave bear fossils in one of the caves of Atapuerca. Quickly realizing it was not from a bear, he took it to his advisor, the paleontologist Emiliano Aguirre, and together they identified it as a 400,000 years old human jawbone—the first human fossil found at Atapuerca. Atapuerca suddenly became one of the most important archaeological regions in Europe.

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Galeria

Localities at Atapuerca

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Galería and in the background Gran Dolina.

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Map of the Caves of Ata-puerca

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Caves of Atapuerca

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Side View of Gran Dolina Excavation

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Excavations in Gran Dolina

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Gran Dolina: A Slice of Prehistory (I)When the Railroad carved into the landscape of Atapuerca, it cut open the Gran Dolina. Human fossils have been discovered here. These remains are among the most significant ever found in Europe, as they provide evidence of the first western Europeans [after the man of Orce] —

and the earliest evidence of cannibalism in the human fossil record. The hominids who lived at Atapuerca 800,000 years ago were part of the first or second wave of early humans to penetrate the rugged terrain and harsh climates of western Europe during the Ice Age.

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Strati-graphy of the Gran Dolina (I)

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Strati-graphy of the Gran Dolina (II)

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Gran Dolina: A Slice of Prehistory (II)All of the fossils from Gran Dolina date back to the Pleistocene epoch. The Pleistocene began around 1.8 million years ago and lasted until around 10,000 years ago.Throughout the Pleistocene, the Iberian Peninsula was a refuge in southern Europe, providing a more temperate habitat even as glaciers covered northern Europe.

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Gran Dolina: A Slice of Prehistory (III)The Pleistocene is sometimes called the Great Ice Age—although this term is rather misleading. The Earth’s climate actually cycled between periods of bitter cold and more moderate temperatures during this time. Together with the climate also changed fauna and flora of the region.These cycles of climate, fauna and flora of the region are well documented in the sedimentary layers of the Gran Dolina.

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Gran Dolina: A Slice of Prehistory (IV)The Spanish team working at Gran Dolina refers to the layers of the cliff as TD layers. TD stands for Trinchera Dolina, or the Dolina trench, in reference to the railway trench where the site is located.TD 1 is the oldest, TD 11 the youngest layer. Based on the investigation of these layers, it is possible to reconstruct the history of the Gran Dolina.

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History of the Gran Dolina (I)History of the

Gran Dolina (I)

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History of the Gran Dolina (II) History of

the Gran Dolina (II)

TD9, the cave closes.

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Lower Pleistocene Fauna from the Gran Dolina

The “hoof” of a horse. Milk tooth of an elephant (Mammuthus) from the lower levels of Dolina. Deer antler (Cervus elaphus) from level TD-10. Cranium of the spotted hyena Crocuta crocuta from the oldest levels of Trinchera Dolina

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Gran Dolina: Layer 4 (TD 4) (I)

Reconstruction of the ecosystem during Layer 4 (TD 4), about 900,000 years ago.

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Gran Dolina: Layer 4 (TD 4) (II)During the Early Pleistocene, the climate at Atapuerca was dry and cold. A large ice cap lay over the Pyrenees mountain range to the north of Atapuerca. Runoff from the glaciers created numerous streams in the Atapuerca region. The sediments in Layer 4 (also known as TD4) are approximately 900.000 years old and contain the oldest animal remains found at Gran Dolina. Researchers have discovered the fossilized remains of rhinoceros, deer and jaguars from this period, as well as some stone tools.

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Reconstruction of the ecosystem during Layer 6 (TD 6), about 800,000 years ago.

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Gran Dolina: Layer 6 (TD 6) (II)The 800,000-year-old sediments from Layer 6 (also known as TD6) have yielded a richer assortment of fossils than any other layer at Gran Dolina. So far, 25 different types of animals—as well as Homo antecessor — have been identified.Early humans shared the landscape with a variety of creatures, including bison, mammoths and rhinoceroses. Scientists have uncovered the bones of a variety of animals from this period that show signs of having been butchered by hominids, who hunted and scavenged animal carcasses for food.

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Gran Dolina: Layer 6 (TD 6) (III)The environment of the Atapuerca region 800,000 years ago supported a rich diversity of life. The climate at this time was mild, and a river flowed through the area, as shown in the first slide.Because this layer supports all the others above it, researchers could remove only a small portion for study. The sediments in Layer 6 consist primarily of sandy mudstones.How do we know the age of Layer 6? The Earth’s magnetic field periodically reverses: north becomes south and south becomes north. Analysis of the magnetic compounds in Layer 6 indicates that the sediments are magnetically reversed compared to today’s soils and thus date back to before the most recent reversal almost 800,000 years ago.

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Reconstruction of the landscape with carnivores during Layer 10 (TD 10), about 375,000 years ago.

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Gran Dolina: Layer 10 (TD 10) (II)

Researchers excavating Layer 10 of Gran Dolina (also known as TD10) have found numerous fossils dating back to 375,000 years ago from large and medium-size animals such as bison, lion and deer, as well as smaller mammals like rodents, cats and other carnivores. Stone tools have been uncovered from Layer 10, but no human fossils or other evidence of human activity such as fire use have been discovered here.

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Gran Dolina: Layer 10 (TD 10) (III)

Around 375,000 years ago, the Atapuerca region had entered an interglacial period of relatively mild conditions. Fossil remains of animals and pollen indicate a fairly wet environment for much of the time. But there were colder and drier seasons over the years.This layer is one of the most recent ones and sits close to the top of the Gran Dolina cliff. The sediment in Layer 10 consists primarily of yellow-red mud containing pebbles and cobbles.

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What Do You Know…

…about Homo antecessor?

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (I)

“Gran Dolina Boy” skull. Homo antecessor 800,000 years old.

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (II)

More than eighty human fossils from all parts of the skeleton have appeared and belong to at least six different individuals.

Left: the first three teeth recovered from TD-6.Middle: maxilla belongs to a child between three and four years old.

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (III)

Comparison between Homo antecessor, 800,000 years old (left), and Homo heidelbergensis, 320,000 years old (right), both from Atapuerca.

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (IV) - Reconstructions

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (V) – Recon-struction

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (VI)Around 800,000 years ago – during sedimentation of the layer TD 6, a group of early humans took shelter in a cave at the site now called Gran Dolina. Researchers have unearthed an intriguing collection of hominid fossils buried inside the filled-in cave. These hominids have been classified as a new species, Homo antecessor, from the Latin word for explorer. Homo antecessor may have been the first hominid to populate western Europe (after the “Orce Man”).

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (VII)Only about 90 fragmentary fossils have been found to date at Gran Dolina. These are fossil remains of at least six hominids.The before figured partial skull, from the individual nicknamed “Gran Dolina Boy”, was recovered in 1995 and is the most complete fossil found to date at the site. Researchers have located fragments of the skull, jaw and part of the spinal column.

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Homo antecessor from TD 6 (VIII)Judging by his bone development and teeth eruption, Gran Dolina boy died around the age of 11.Gran Dolina boy had a low forehead and, above the eyes, a prominent browridge. His face was gracile and flat, his teeth robust and strong.Marks in the enamel reveal that he suffered through a period of malnutrition or sickness when he was little.

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Life of Homo antecessor (I)

H. antecessor breaking bones with simple stone tools.

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Life of Homo antecessor (II)A variety of stone tools found mixed among the fossil remains at Gran Dolina have provided important clues about the early humans of Atapuerca. These simple stone tools are of the Oldowan technology, or Mode 1.Homo antecessor made Mode 1 tools.But the tools left visible cut marks on many of the animal bones found at the site, indicating that even with these simple flakes and choppers, the hominids of Gran Dolina butchered animals in the shelter of their cave.

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Life of Homo antecessor (III)The Gran Dolina humans relied on animals as a source of food and probably skins. These ancient hominids almost certainly must have worn simple clothing made from animal skins to protect them from the Ice Age climate—although scientists have not demonstrated this conclusively. There is as yet no evidence that Homo antecessor controlled fire for warmth or cooking.

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Life of Homo antecessor (IV)

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Life of Homo antecessor (V)

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Life of Homo antecessor (VI)

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Life of Homo antecessor (VII)We can the lifestyle of the people who lived in the Dolina 800,000 years ago (level TD-6) reconstruct in this way: They hunted and scavenged in the Sierra, sometimes taking whole limbs of their quarry to the cave to be consumed there. Other times they took advantage of the cadavers of animals they found dead. They preferred young horses and deer, which they enjoyed frequently.

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Life of Homo antecessor (VIII)For both hunting as well as removing the meat from their prey, they used stone tools made from local raw materials, especially the large pebblestones from the Arlanzón river, which were used as hammerstones for flintknapping as well as for breaking long bones. These people lived in Europe for a long time, probably roaming vast expanses of the terrain throughout the year following the migrations of animals and moving from one season to the next when different fruit was ripe.

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Cannibalism among Homo antecessor (I)

Cannibalism among Homo antecessor

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Cannibalism among Homo antecessor (II)

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Cannibalism among Homo antecessor (III)The hominid remains at Gran Dolina were jumbled together with several thousand bone fragments from other mammals. Many of the bones—human and nonhuman alike—have marks that could only have resulted from being chopped and scraped with stone tools. Scientists working at the site suggest that the way in which the bones were cut, twisted and broken indicates that both the meat and bone marrow were eaten.Using this evidence, the researchers who discovered these fossils argue that these hominids not only ate other mammals but also other humans.

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Cannibalism among Homo antecessor (IV)

They were the first known cannibals.Modern humans have practiced cannibalism—but only very rarely. Researchers have no way of knowing why the early humans at Gran Dolina ate others of their kind. A rich diversity of animals lived at Atapuerca during this period, so the hominids probably did not lack food and turn to cannibalism to meet their nutritional needs. Instead, the cannibalism seems to have taken place over a long period during which the hominids of Gran Dolina made human flesh a regular part of their diet.

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Sima de los Huesos (I)

Left: the shape of the Sima. Right: The Cueva Mayor, the starting point of the way to the Sima.

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Sima de los Huesos (II)

Worker on the way to the Sima. This way through different caves is about 500 m long and difficult.

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Sima de los Huesos (III)

Worker descending 13 m deep into the Sima (pit).

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Sima de los Huesos (IV)

Human remains down in the Sima. Here two human crania, tibiae, femora, hand and foot bones, mandibles..., hundreds of bones within an area which measures 50cm x 50cm.

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Sima de los Huesos (V)

Excavation in the “Sima de los Huesos”.

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Sima de los Huesos (VI)In a cave beneath the Atapuerca hillside, and not far from Gran Dolina, lies the Sima de los Huesos, or the “Pit of the Bones”. Thousands of hominid fossils have been found here, making the Sima de los Huesos the largest collection of ancient hominid fossils in the world. The bottom of the pit is crammed with bones from such animals as cave bears, lions, foxes and wolves.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (I)

Mandibles of the cave bear Ursus deningeri from the Sima.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (II)

Left:Complete skull of the cave bear Ursus deningeri from the Sima. Right: cave bear from Mokrau, Czech Republic.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (III)

Reconstruction of the cave bear Ursus deningeri from the Sima.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (IV)

Reconstruction of the cave bear Ursus deningeri from the Sima.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (V)

Lynx pardina spelaea. Iberian lynx from the Sima de los Huesos, ancestor of the extant Iberian lynx.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (VI)

Panthera leo

The carnassial complex of the lion (upper fourth premolar and lower first molar).

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (VII)

In the Sima de los Huesos and in its neighborhood many bones of cave bears have been found. The bear is Ursus deningeri, the ancestor of the formidable Cave Bear typical of the Upper Pleistocene. It was larger than a large European brown bear and it was specialized towards a much wider diet, with less reliance on meat than living bears.The Sala de las Oseras has his name due to the presence of hibernation beds in the clay which these animals prepare to pass the winter. It is a cavern close to the Sima de los Huesos.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (VIII)

Cave bears did not live exclusively in caves. They typically only slept or hibernated underground. Although ferocious in appearance, cave bears were probably not exclusively carnivorous. Analysis of their teeth suggests that they only ate meat occasionally and relied heavily on plants for food. The accumulation of fossils in the sediments in the upper levels of the Sima de los Huesos, was composed exclusively of bears, more than 150, and carnivores: three lions, 24 foxes, a wolf, lynxes, a weasel and little else.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (IX)

In contrast to the Sala de las Oseras , the bears whose remains are found in the Sima de los Huesos did not hibernate there. This part of the cave has been a natural trap for a long time. Its mouth is narrow and difficult to reach, and the 13 meter shaft opens with little warning in a corner of the cave which would appear to represent an ideal hibernation area. If a bear looking for a place for its winter nap was not careful, it could end up falling down the shaft, and this is what happened to 160 of them throughout the millenia.

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Animals from the Sima de los Huesos (X)

Sometimes these decomposing cadavers attracted other carnivores, as well as other bears, to a certain death. At least three lions, almost certainly a male, a female and a young cub must have followed the smell to satisfy their hunger and ended up dead after falling down the shaft. At least 24 foxes met the same fate, together with a pair of lynxes, a mountain cat, three weasels, two sables and a wolf, that we know of. The Sima had become a sophisticated baited trap.

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What Do You Know…

…about Homo heidelbergensis?

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (I)

Skull 5, 320,000 years old.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (II) - Skull 5, 320,000 years old.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (III)

Skull 5, 320,000 years old. Skull 5 is one the most exquisitely preserved fossil hominid skulls ever found anywhere in the world Numerous scars on Skull 5 indicate that during life, this individual, presumed to be male, survived several blows to the head. There is also evidence that one tooth broke off, leading to an infection that eventually proved fatal.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (IV)

Upon discovering the mandible from Cranium 5, only a few centimeters from where the cranium had been found, it was possible to reconstruct the physical appearance of this individual.It was the first time that the entire bony structure of the head of a single individual was preserved, the most reliable image we have of a prehistoric human.

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Homo heidel-bergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (V)Reconstruction based on Skull 5, 320,000 years old.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (VI)

Recon-struction based on Skull 5, 320,000 years old.

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Homo heidel-bergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (VII)Reconstruction based on Skull 5, 320,000 years old.

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Homo heidel-bergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (VIII)Reconstruction based on Skull 5, 320,000 years old.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (IX)

From left to right: Crania 5, 4, 6, 1 and the face of a child

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (X)

Mandible, Cranium 5, pelvis and long bones

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XI)

a foot

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XII)

A leg, a hand, small bones of the middle ear, skull 4 from above and below

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Homo heidel-bergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XIII)

Comparison between Homo antecessor, 800,000 years old (left), and Homo heidelbergensis, 320,000 years old (right), both from Atapuerca.

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Homo heidel-bergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XIV)

Reconstruction of Homo heidelbergensis, 320,000 years old, from Atapuerca.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XV)

Although this pelvis is essentially fully modern (it is configured for upright walking in the modern style, for example), it has some archaic characteristics. Wider and more robust than a modern human pelvis, this fossil reveals that females of this species had a larger birth canal than modern females (Homo sapiens). A modern human newborn could easily fit through the central opening of this pelvis, which is thought to be from a male. The opening in a female pelvis would have been even larger.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XVI)The thousands of bones recovered from the cave floor at Sima de los Huesos have enabled scientists to create a remarkably complete portrait of the hominids who lived in the hills of Atapuerca around 320,000 years ago.

Several Spanish researchers estimate the age of the bones recovered from the cave floor at Sima de los Huesos around 400,000 years ago. However, different authors and different analyses converge on c. 320,000 years as the most probable age for these deposits.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XVII)

Most of the bones from Sima de los Huesos are extensively broken and fractured. The individual fragments, however, survived the rigors of the burial process and researchers were able to reassemble them.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XVIII)The humans who lived in the region of Atapuerca were members of the species Homo heidelbergensis.The ongoing excavation has already yielded fossil remains from at least 32 individuals. This is the best known sample of a population from this time period.

This wealth of information about an entire group of closely related hominids is unprecedented.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XIX)Of these 32 individuals, nine are males, nine are females and 14 are of unknown sex. There are four children younger than 13 years of age and 11 adolescents between 13 and 17 years of age, the best represented age range within the sample. There are no children younger than three years and only three people (one woman and two of undetermined sex) were older than thirty when they died. Nearly half (15 individuals) were younger than 18.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XX)

Reconstruction of the Homo heidelbergensis family from Sima de Huesos.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XXI)One of the most remarkable characteristics of the postcranial bones from the Sima is the thickness of the cross-sections. The long bones are composed of layers, an outer compact layer called the cortical layer, and an inner layer referred to as trabecula with the medullary canal in the middle of the shaft. The trabecula is a three dimensional network of very fine bony bars connected to one another. Our own bones have a very thin cortical layer, only a few millimeters thick in even the strongest examples. In the Atapuerca individuals, nearly the entire cross-section of the bone is occupied by the cortical layer. They were very thick and strong beams, in tune with their very powerful musculature.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XXII)

The postcranial bones reveal the complexion of these Pleistocene humans: they were very strong, judging from the muscular insertions on the bones, which also give an idea of their body size. They were robustly built like their close relatives, the Neanderthals. The mean stature of the males was above 1.75 meters, while females averaged around 1.7 meters, similar to living populations, although some individuals were as tall as 1.8 meters and weighed more than 90 kg.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XXIII)

In terms of the form of the bones, they have a mixture of ancient and modern characteristics. In some of these, they are similar to their Neandertal descendants, which has allowed us to understand this population better. The shape of the arm bones is similar, for example, and the pelvis has also revealed the origin of some Neandertal peculiarities in this anatomical region. Their manner of walking was identical to our own.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XXIV)Evidence from other sites of similar age suggests that Homo heidelbergensis probably used throwing spears and built fires—two things for which there is so far no evidence at the Gran Dolina site. The population of Homo heidelbergensis of Sima de los Huesos resembled Homo neanderthalensis.Especially the crania show some features of Homo neanderthalensis. These features are well seen in skull 5:

Rounded browridges, a large pushed-out face, a skull with a rounded back, and a large brain.

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Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XXV)Not all the Sima de los Huesos crania express all the features to the same degree. Indeed, some scholars have suggested that the species at Sima de los Huesos was a direct ancestor of the Neanderthals. This shows, that Homo neanderthalensis developed from H. heidelbergensis in Europe.

128

Homo heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (XXVI)

Aguirre, E. (in: Gibbons, W., & Moreno, T. [Eds.] (2002): The Geology of Spain; London (Geological Society): p. 358) writes: “The origin of this population [H. heidelbergensis from Sima de los Huesos] is to be found most probably in Africa: the resemblances between Sima de los Huesos (SH) mandibles and some African fossils are reinforced by the strong similarities in facial skulls of Bodo, Petralona and SH specimens.”

129

What the Teeth Tell... (I)By studying the teeth of the Sima hominids, the Atapuerca team has estimated that roughly half of the Sima humans died between the ages of 10 and 18 and none lived to more than 40. The teeth tend to show extensive wear, suggesting these humans probably held meat, hides or other materials in their mouths to scrape or process them. Judging by the orientation of scratch marks on the teeth, researchers have determined that the Sima humans always held objects so that they could cut with their right hands. In other words, all of the Sima humans appear to have been right handed.

130

What the Teeth Tell... (II)The teeth can also tell us about times of resource scarcity or sickness. Nearly a third of the individuals from the Sima lived through moments of physiological stress due to malnutrition or sickness. In many cases this occurred around three or four years of age, which corresponds with weaning. They also used toothpicks to clean their teeth after eating, toothpicks which left grooves between their molars.

In contrast, there is not a single cavity in any of the teeth from the Sima.

131

Sickness in H. heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (I)

Several of the individuals suffered from disease or injury.They most likely used their jaws to hold objects, as well as eating raw vegetables. This implies a heavy load on the mandibular joint, which could explain why nearly all the individuals from the Sima suffered from arthritis of the temporomandibular joint, a disease associated with heavy tooth wear.

132

Sickness in H. heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (II)

But there are more severe things: Cranium 5 provides one of the most ancient cases of death by septicemia, or generalized infection, which began in the teeth and extended almost all the way to the eye orbit. Further, this same individual shows 13 impact scars on the skull received throughout their lifetime. The number is remarkable, although impact scars are widespread. Cranium 4 (male) shows three, while other crania show three or four as well.

133

Sickness in H. heidelbergensis from “Sima de los Huesos” (III)

Cranium 4 is also the oldest known case of deafness. The ear canals of Agamemnon are almost completely closed by an anomolous bony growth. This unusual condition is common in cases of severe ear infection, and it is likely that a pesistent form of otitis left this individual deaf.In general, these Pleistocene people enjoyed a high level of health. Apart from the impact scars and infections, there is no evidence of either fractures or evidence of severe trauma to the arms or legs nor severe diseases.

134

Homo heidelbergensis - Disposing of the Dead? (I)Researchers have puzzled over one question: Why are there so many hominid bones embedded in the cave floor of Sima de los Huesos? There are no indications that the hominids ever lived in the cave—for example, there is no evidence that they used fire or made tools there.Remains from around 30 individuals have been found, many of them teenagers and young adults. If the Sima hominids had fallen in accidentally, we would expect to see a wider range of ages represented.

135

Homo heidelbergensis - Disposing of the Dead? (II)

The artists imagi-nation of a funeral.

136

Homo heidelbergensis - Disposing of the Dead? (III)

The scientists who discovered the Sima fossils have speculated instead that the hominids disposed of these bodies by carrying them over to the cave—perhaps as shown in the imaginative illustration above—and then throwing them in. There is no evidence, however, that this practice was part of a tradition of planned burial. The Neanderthals were the first hominids known to engage in such behavior, beginning under 100,000 years ago.

137

Hand axe from “Sima de los Huesos” (I)

In contrast to the simple stone tools made by Homo antecessor, this large hand axe from Sima de los Huesos is quite sophisticated. It was made from red quartzite.It was carefully shaped on both sides, probably from a large core. Whoever made this symmetrical hand axe had a predetermined shape in mind when removing flakes to form the tool. These characteristics indicate that this is a Mode 2 artifact.

138

Hand axe from “Sima de los Huesos” (II)

The only artefact found in Sima de los Huesos is the stone hand axe from the last slide, mixed in the mud with the bones of the Sima humans.

Similar tools dating back to the time of the Sima humans have been recovered from nearby locations, such as the Galeria site, also in the railway trench, just 50 meters (160 feet) from Gran Dolina.

This new tool from Sima, however, may have important behavioral implications: these hominids made the hand axe from a very unusual raw material source.

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Hand axe from “Sima de los Huesos” (III)

The hand axe is red quartzite. Normally, the H. heidelbergensis from Atapuerca made all tools from flint, which is much harder. Only five tools from quartzite have been found, and this is the only one red. Based on this circumstances, the scientists who discovered the tool have suggested that the Sima hand axe may have been intentionally deposited with the humans in the Sima de los Huesos.

140

Hand axe from “Sima de los Huesos” (IV)The red hand axe may be compared with the grave goods, which Homo sapiens oftenly put in graves. Consequently, the hand axe together with all the human bones makes it possible, that the “Sima de los Huesos” was a kind of cemetery. Maybe H. heidelbergensis believed in a kind of life after death?

141


142

Stone Tools from Atapuerca (I)Stone tools of various shapes and sizes have been found at several different sites in the Atapuerca region.The stone tools found at the Atapuerca sites can be grouped into three modes.

The earliest style, called Mode 1, can be traced back 2.5 million years, to the first stone implements made by hominids in Africa. Mode 2 emerged around 1.5 million years ago in Africa.Mode 3 developed in Europe and Africa about 300,000 years ago.

143

Stone Tools from Atapuerca (II)Mode 1 tools (Oldowan) (left top) are often just stone cobbles that were hit one or two times with another rock to knock off flakes of stone and produce sharp edges on both the cobble and the flake. Mode 2 (Acheulean) (left center), however, were typically struck repeatedly on both sides with stone, bone or antler and often have a symmetrical teardrop shape. The humans who made Mode 3 tools (left lower) carefully shaped a stone core, usually with a soft material like bone or antler, so that a single blow could detach a partly or fully finished cutting tool. Such tools tended to be sharpened repeatedly, gradually changing their shapes.

144

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (I)The stone tools from Gran Dolina (as well as from Galería) are made from various kinds of rock. Many are types of quartzite, a rock which is found in abundance along the banks of the Arlanzón river in the form of rounded pebblestones. Fragments of quartz and sandstone also appear, albeit in much lower frequencies. All of these raw materials derive from the Sierra de la Demanda, and have been transported here by the river. The rock used most frequently is flint.

145

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (II)

The discovery of four stone tools in TD-4 was proof that at the time this layer was forming, humans were already inhabiting the Sierra. This implied a human presence in Burgos at around 900,000 years ago, the age of this level.Within TD-6 stone tools appeared in abundance. In all, more than 100 pieces, some of them tiny fragments of stone, demonstrated that the stone tools had been knapped in TD-6.

146

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (III) – Mode 1 from level TD 6

Left: chopper, an exceptional piece for its primitive morphology, from TD-6. Middle: flake, stone tool from level TD-6. Right: flint nucleus from level TD-6

147

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (IV) – Mode 1 from level TD 6

148

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina and Galería (V) – Mode 2

Left: quartzite point from TG-10 (=Trinchera Galería, Level 10) . Middle: large flint flake from Trinchera Galería. Right: a flint tool in the laboratory.

149

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (VI) – Mode 3 from Level TD 10

Left: Quartzite point from TD-10. Middle left: small flake from level TD-10. Middle right:medium-sized sharp-edged cutting tool knapped on quartzite. From level TD-10 in Gran Dolina. Right: a hand axe from sandstone.

150

Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (VII)

In the oldest sites, the stone tools are of the Oldowan technology, or Mode 1, and are characterized by simple tools: unretouched flakes and worked pebblestones called “choppers”. Homo antecessor made Mode 1.The most typical piece, characteristic of the Acheulean or Mode 2, is the biface: teardrop-shaped tools which are worked on both sides.Homo heidelbergensis made Mode 2.

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Stone Tools from Gran Dolina (VIII)

Mode 3 is represented in the upper levels (TD10 and TD11) of the Gran Dolina. Mode 3 in Atapuerca is characterized by a production technique targeted at the systematic production of Positive Bases (unretouched flakes) with standardized morphology as well as retouched tools of small and medium size.

In TD11 denticulates and points are very frequent, while in TD10 the denticulates are found more often with scrapers. In level TD11, the occupations were short-term, while in TD10 it is possible they were of a longer duration.

152

ContentsIntroduction – AtapuercaGran DolinaHomo antecessor from Gran DolinaSima de los HuesosHomo heidelbergensis from Sima de los HuesosStone Tools from Atapuerca

Trinchera GaleríaAtapuerca and Human Evolution

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Trinchera Galería (I)

Left: Galería, just prior to the start of the excavation campaign in june of 1988. Right: The excavation in Galería in progress. In the background the entrance to the Cueva de los Zarpazos, which connects with Galería, can be seen.

154

Trinchera Galería (II)Trinchera Galería is one of the sites (together with Dolina and Elefante) which was exposed when the limestone bedrock of the Sierra de Atapuerca was cut for the construction of a mining railway. The site is a cave gallery connected on one end with another gallery (Cueva de Zarpazos) and a 16 meter vertical chimney-like shaft on the other, which was completely filled in with sediments rich in animal and plant fossils, as well as stone tools some 200,000 years old.

155

Trinchera Galería (III)During the first years of excavation at the site of Galería, 12 stratigraphic levels were identified, numbered from bottom to top.The age of Galería is older than 200,000 years. A speleothem located in the roof of the cave and sealing the site (corresponding to the final stage of sedimentation) has been dated to between 180,000-200,000 years ago. Therefore, the levels which are located below this point are older, and, although we don´t know how much older, faunal studies suggest a maximum age of around 400,000 years.

156

Trinchera Galería (IV)More detailed further studies have subdivided the stratigraphic column of Galería into six levels (from lower level I to upper level VI). The lower levels (GII and GIII) indicate an intense human occupation during these times, with quartzite pebbles and flint tools together with herbivore bones.

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Early Humans in Trinchera Galería (I)

Left: Occupation floor in the Trinchera Galería. Right: An archaeologist excavating the remains of a horse from an occupation floor, fruit of the hunt of these humans.

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Early Humans in Trinchera Galería (II)

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Early Humans in Trinchera Galería (III)

In Galería so-called occupation floors were discovered: layers of earth which at one time constituted the cave floor, where human beings carried out their activities. Each of these floors contained a snapshot of the state in which these ancient humans had left the site after using it, probably over short periods of time. When the left after, for example, consuming the meat of a dead animal, they left the skinned bones and the stone tools used to quarter it behind.

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Early Humans in Trinchera Galería (IV)

The remains from Galería suggested that humans entered the cave to scavenge from time to time and perhaps to consume game hunted nearby. They didn´t stay long, because there aren´t many bones with either cutmarks or intentional fractures. Galería functioned as a natural trap. That is to say, this cave was visited from time to time by groups of hunters when they saw meat inside, and, after feasting, they didn´t return for quite a while.

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Animals in Trinchera Galería (I)

Left above: mandible of deer Cervus elaphus in situ. Right above: phalanx of a horse in situ. Left below: mandible of Cuon alpinus, these canids inhabited Europe together with wolves until as recently as a few thousand years ago. Right below: mandible of a lion Panthera leo from level TG-11 in Galería.

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Animals in Trinchera Galería (II)Some of the fossils from Galería show parallel cutmarks on their surface characteristic of defleshing. These cutmarks always appear on regions of the bone where muscles insert, and the ancient humans made them when they were removing meat from the bones with their stone tools. The ancient inhabitants of the Sierra, who knew the anatomy of the animals very well, removed the meat with the skill of a butcher. The stone tools they used also appeared together with the bone bearing cutmarks. The humans used stone tools of Mode 2.

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Animals in Trinchera Galería (III)

Among the herbivores which grazed the plains there were relatives of the rhinoceros, bison, deer, horses and elk. Smaller animals, such as rabbits, various species of field mice, moles and voles, hamsters and dormice, shrews and hedgehogs. There were also large rodents such as marmots and, during warmer times, porcupines.There were also carnivores from liones to lynxes and enormous bears, two different types of wolf (smaller ancestors of the modern wolf), cuons, mountain cats, weasels, sables and badgers.

164

ContentsIntroduction – AtapuercaGran DolinaHomo antecessor from Gran DolinaSima de los HuesosHomo heidelbergensis from Sima de los HuesosStone Tools from AtapuercaTrinchera Galería

Atapuerca and Human Evolution

165

What Do You Know…

…about the importance of Homo antecessor

for human evolution?

166

Homo antecessorHomo antecessor was named in 1977 from fossils found at Atapuerca. The mid-facial area of antecessor seems very modern, but other parts of the skull such as the teeth, forehead and browridges are much more primitive. Many scientists are doubtful about the validity of antecessor, partly because its definition is based on a juvenile specimen, and feel it may belong to another species. Probably, it is one of the earliest H. heidelbergensis.

167

Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalensis (I)

Molecular biological data and the fossil record show, that H. sapiens originated from heidelbergensis-like humans in Africa. The fossil record shows, that Homo neanderthalensis originated from Homo heidelbergensis in Europe.800.000 years ago existed “Homo antecessor”, this means a very early H. heidelbergensis, in Europe.

168

Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalensis (II)These facts could be explained by two scenarios:

Scenario 1: There was one immigration of Homo ergaster or a very early H. heidelbergensis to Europe. Later African and European humans developed independently. This implies, that the true H. heidelbergensis would be a European species, and the heidelbergensis-like humans in Africa would be a result of a parallel evolution.Scenario 2: H. heidelbergensis evolved in Africa. From Africa it migrated at least two times to Europe. After the last migration wave happened an independent evolution which led to sapiens in Africa and to neanderthalensis in Europe.

169

Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalensis (III)

A human phylogeny based on scenario 1. This phylogeny is favored by the Spanish researchers which investigate Atapuerca.

170

Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalen-sis (IV)A human phylogeny based on scenario 1. This phylogeny is favored by the Spanish researchers which investigate Atapuerca.

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Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalensis (IV)

A human phylogeny based on scenario 2.

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Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalensis (V)

Some aspects of the human fossil record in Europe support scenario 1.

800.000 years ago existed “Homo antecessor” in Spain.1.2-1.4 million years old is the Homo from Orce (Granada).

Another aspect of the human fossil record in Europe supports scenario 2.

Similarities to African fossils suggest, that the origin of the H. heidelbergensis from Sima de los Huesos is to be found most probably in Africa.

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Comparison of the Origins of sapiens and neanderthalensis (VI)

The molecular biological data support scenario 2.

Investigation of mitochondrial DNA of Neanderthals shows, that the last common ancestor of modern humans and Neanderthals lived between 357,000 and 690,000 years ago. This would be clearly after “Homo antecessor”.

Taking all arguments together, scenario 2 is more probable than scenario 1.

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Dr. Andreas May

175

ContentsHomo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens in Spain and PortugalThe NeolithicAfter the Neolithic

176

What Do You know…

…about the relations between Homo

neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens?

177

Human fossil sites (Australopithecus to Homo sapiens) and vegetation 18.000 years ago (maximum of last ice age)

Source http://www.neanderthal.de/

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Sites with Human Fossils in Spain


179

Age of Spanish Localities with Late Pleistocene Human Remains


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Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens in Europe (I)

The Homo neanderthalensis was a remarkable group. They were as large-brained as we are and had remarkably advanced tools. They did not, however, create art or think symbolically, as modern humans do. Beginning about 200,000 years ago, Neanderthals dominated most of Europe and parts of western Asia until their lineage died out around 30,000 years ago.Beginning around 40,000 years ago, modern Homo sapiens— the Cro-Magnon —gradually began to filter into Europe.

181

Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens in Europe (II)Our species probably originated in Africa, and scientists believe that the populations arriving in Europe moved in from the east. In terms of behavior, these new humans — the Cro-Magnon — were creatures of a different order. With their elaborate rituals, artwork and highly advanced tools, these hominids possessed virtually the entire array of behaviors that characterize modern humans today. Many scientists believe that these attributes helped Homo sapiens gain an advantage over the Homo neanderthalensis and eventually drive them out of existence.

182

Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens in Europe (III)

One advance made Cro-Magnon people truly extraordinary: they began to show what anthropologists call symbolic behaviors. These people painted the walls of caves and rock shelters with representations of animals and geometrical designs, made notations on stone and bone plaques and decorated their tools. They made music and began practicing elaborate rituals such as burying their dead with grave goods, suggesting a belief in the afterlife.For these first behaviorally modern humans, the urge to express themselves in symbolic ways probably dates back 50,000 years and was as strong as the urge to survive.

183

Findings of Homo neanderthalensis in Spain (I)

The first Neanderthaler was found in 1848 in Gibraltar.

One day in 1848, when workers were blasting in a quarry on the Rock of Gibraltar, out of the dust and rubble tumbled a strange-looking human skull. It had a jutting, prognathous face, thick brow ridges, and an elongated brain case. The skull was presented to the Gibraltar Scientific Society, which had no idea what to make of it and put it in storage. Eight years later, miners working in a limestone cave in Germany’s Neander Valley came across a similar skull.

184

Findings of Homo neanderthalensis in Spain (II)

Homo neanderthalensis “is represented at various sites in the Iberian peninsula although, with rare exceptions, the remains are poorly preserved. All sites record relatively young ages, with that of Boquete de Zafarraya in Málaga province in particular preserving some of the last representatives of the Neanderthals before its extinction.” Gibbons, W., & Moreno, T. [Eds.] (2002): The Geology of Spain; London (Geological Society): p. 363.

185

Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens in Spain

Anatomically modern humans appeared in Spain probably around 35,000 years ago.It were the Cro-Magnon with their elaborate toolkit called the “Aurignacian” (the period is called the Upper Palaeolithic) and the sustained appearance of symbolism (e.g., cave art, Venus figurines, etc.). They overlap with Neanderthals who persisted in Portugal and Spain until 28,000 years ago.

186

Earliest Findings of Homo sapiens in Spain

The earliest findings of Homo sapiens in Spain are around 40.000 to 38.500 years old. They were found in the El Castillo cave, Santander province.Gibbons, W., & Moreno, T. [Eds.] (2002): The Geology of Spain; London (Geological Society): p. 365.

187

Sequences withan Aurignacian I

Long MP/UP sequenceslacking an Aurignacian I

Late Mousterian sequences with Neandertal remains

Caldeirão

Bajondillo

AlmondaBeneito

Gorham's

ZafarrayaCariguela

PendoCastillo

Morín

l'Arbreda

The Ebro frontier(36-28 Kyr BP)

Cabezo Gordo

la Viña

Frontier Between neanderthalensis and sapiens (I)

188

Frontier Between neanderthalensis and sapiens (II)

There are hints, that between 36.000 and 28.000 years ago was a kind of “frontier” between the areas of H. neanderthalensis and H. sapiens in Spain – the “Ebro Frontier”.The areas of H. sapiens are characterized by the occurrence of tools of “Aurignacian I” style.

189

Evidence for admixture between Neanderthals and Modern Humans?The child from Lagar Velho shows mixed features: modern-looking jaw and teeth, with a cold adapted Neanderthal body shape.A robust modern human mandible from Romania, dated ~35,000 Yrs, presents a mosaic of features, some Neanderthal.

The child from Lagar Velho, Portugal, dated to 25,000 Yrs. (Duarte et al. 1999, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96:7604-7609)

Trinkaus et al. 2003 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 100: 11231-11236

190

The Child from Lagar Velho (I) – the Fossil

191

Age and sexdental age at death = 4.5-5.0 years (calcification of the permanent tooth germs, in agreement with the ossification of the appendicular epiphyses)prominence of chin suggests male rather than female

Major modern human featuresclear presence of a mentum osseumanterior versus posterior dental proportionsproportions of the pubic ramus

Major Neandertal featureslow crural indexretreating symphyseal profileproximal humeral morphology, implying hypertrophy of the thoracohumeral musculature

The Lagar Velho child skeleton

192

The Child from Lagar Velho (II)In April 1999, the discovery of a human skeleton from Lagar Velho in Portugal was announced in the media, followed by a scientific paper a couple of months later (Duarte et al. 1999). The skeleton is of a young boy, about 4 years in age, who was deliberately buried about 24,500 years ago.

193

The Child from Lagar Velho (III)According to the paper's authors, which included Neandertal expert Erik Trinkaus, the skeleton contains a mixture of features from both modern humans and Neanderthals, and is best explained as being a hybrid. And because it is dated to be at least 4,000 years more recent than the last known Neandertals, they consider it to be not the result of a direct interbreeding, but the descendant of a hybrid population which persisted for thousands of years.

194

The Child from Lagar Velho (IV)If true, this would strongly support the claim that Neanderthals should be considered a subspecies of modern humans (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis), rather than a separate species, H. neanderthalensis. The issue of Proc.Natl.Acad.Sci.USA in which the paper was published also contained a commentary on it by Ian Tattersall and Jeffrey Schwartz (1999). These authors, who consider Neanderthals to be a separate species, disputed the original interpretation and claimed the skeleton merely belonged to a "chunky" modern human child. This disagreement turned into a heated debate.

195


196

What Do You know…

…about the Neolithic?

197

The Neolithic (I)The Neolithic starts around 10,000 to 8,000 years ago. Characteristic for the Neolithic is the appearance of agriculture and livestock farming. This is the so-called “Neolithic Revolution”. It had two important consequences:

The humans became settled. Agriculture and livestock farming allowed a much higher population density.

198

The Neolithic (II)Characteristic for the Neolithic are polished stone tools.In the Neolithic ceramics appear.Cave paintings are widespread – especially in southwestern France and Spain.Megalithic monuments are widespread.

199

Megalithic Monument in Atapuerca

This dolmen close to Atapuerca (village) is a document of neolithic occupation.

200

Neolithic Cave Art in Atapuerca (I)

Cave art of Neolithic age which presides over the Portalón of Cueva Mayor. Left: original colours. Right: Picture analyzed by a computer

201

Neolithic Cave Art in Atapuerca (II) - Galería del Silex (I)

Large panel of paintings and engravings in the Galería del Silex, drawn more than 4,000 years ago

202

Neolithic Cave Art in Atapuerca (III) - Galería del Silex (II)

Large panel of paintings and engravings in the Galería del Silex, drawn more than 4,000 years ago

203

Cave paintings of Altamira (I)A remarkable series of paintings of bison, deer, and other animals, some dated at approximately 14,000 years old, adorn the deep cave at Altamira, in northern Spain. These graceful depictions provide evidence of a sophisticated Paleolithic hunting culture.

204

Cave paintings of Altamira (II)

Discovered in 1879.Painting is approximately 18 m (60 feet) long with each bison measuring approx. 2,5 m (8 feet).Every bison is in profile, whether standing, alive, or curled up on the ground.Many do not stand on a common ground line but instead appear to be “floating” like clouds in the sky.Images do not relate to each other, almost as if each is its own separate image.

205

Cave paintings of Altamira (III)

206

Cave paintings of Altamira (IV)

207

Cave paintings of Altamira (V)

208

Valle de Ambrona (Prov. Soria) – a Neolithic Village (I)

209

Valle de Ambrona (Prov. Soria) – a Neolithic Village (II)

210


211

What Do You know…

…about the time after the Neolithic?

212

After the NeolithicAfter the Neolithic follows the Bronze Age. The Bronze Age is characterized by the use of bronze for tools. It starts around 2000 B.C. and ends around 900 B.C. After the Bronze Age follows the Iron Age. The Iron Age is characterized by the use of iron for tools. It ends in the first century B.C.

213

Bronze Age in Atapuerca - Galería del Silex

Bronze Age sanctuary discovered in 1972 in the Galería del Silex in Atapuerca.

214

Bronze age in Atapuerca - Cueva del Mirador

In the Cueva del Mirador in Atapuerca a series of Bronze Age levels were discovered. The cave was mainly used as an occupation site, with a second more punctual usage as a burial ground.

Bronze Age axe

215

Bronze Age in Atapuerca - Cueva Mayor

Trowel (spatula) from bone.Early Bronze age, around 3,800 years ago

216

Atapuerca – Bronze Age Ceramic

217

Iron Age - Carratiermes

Carratiermes is a big celtiberic iron age cemetery (VI b.C. – I a.C.) close to Tiermes (Prov. Soria).

218

Iron Age - Contrebia-Leukade

Contrebia-Leukade was a celtiberic iron age city in La Rioja.

219

Meeting `Prehistoric Iberia‘ (I)In the year 2000 geneticists, anthropologists, and linguists reached at the meeting `Prehistoric Iberia' following conclusions: There is no evidence of the demic diffusion model of people substitution in Iberia during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. New technologies were probably reached by circum-Mediterranean navigation. Present day Iberians are genetically very similar to North African populations and also to other more distant Eastern Mediterraneans, including Turks.

220

Meeting `Prehistoric Iberia‘ (II)Arab invasions in North Africa and Spain in 711 AD did not result in a massive gene flow. North African Berbers and Spaniards have maintained their old genetic identity; this invasion was mostly religious and cultural. Celts in Iberia are difficult to find. Basque and Berber languages are similar to many other extinct `Usko-Mediterranean' languages (Etruscan, Minoan). These `older languages' were later substituted by the Euro Asiatic languages (Latin, Greek, German).

221

Meeting `Prehistoric Iberia‘ (III)Finally, the Saharan area is considered as a radiation focus of peoples, (and languages) who were forced to emigrate from a fertile area where hyper-arid conditions began to develop after 7000 BC. Reference: Antonio Arnaiz-Villena, Jorge Martinez Laso, Edurdo Gomez Casado (Editors) (2000): Prehistoric Iberia - Genetics, Anthropology, and Linguistics. 264 p. (Kluwer Academic Publishers)More informations at http://www.chopo.pntic.mec.es/biolmol

222

Spanish History (I)About 1500 BC a North African people called Iberians began to move northward, across the Strait of Gibraltar. By 1000 BC the Iberians were well established on the peninsula. The Iberians developed a system of writing and built many towns. Another ancient people, the Basques, inhabited the western Pyrenees and probably predated the arrival of the Iberians.

223

Spanish History (II)About 700 BC a people known as Celts migrated from France into northern Spain and imposed their Indo-European language and culture on indigenous peoples. Iberians and Celts met in central Spain and gradually merged into a people called the Celtiberians. These Celtiberians first dominated the central plateau and the west, and then occupied the peninsula’s eastern coast.

224

Spanish History (III)The Iberians and Celtiberians were expert metalworkers. Many southern towns were mining centers that produced finely crafted metal weapons and tools. Over time the metalworkers shifted from copper to bronze and then to iron, all of which were mined in southern Spain.Spain’s mineral riches drew Mediterranean trade from the earliest times, and many Mediterranean peoples established colonies in the southern and eastern parts of the Iberian Peninsula.

225

Spanish History (IV)Archaeological evidence suggests that Cádiz (ancient Gadir; later Gades), Spain’s oldest Phoenician city, was founded in the 8th century BC. Seafaring Greeks established several colonies on the east coast by the 600s BCIn the 500s BC inhabitants of the powerful North African city of Carthage, originally a Phoenician colony in modern Tunisia, entered southern Spain.

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Spanish History (V)In 228 BC Cartagena (ancient Carthago Novo) was founded in southeastern Spain to serve as the capital of Carthage’s Iberian domains.As Carthage’s influence in Mediterranean trade grew, a rivalry developed between Carthage and Rome, another rising Mediterranean power. In the First Punic War (264-241 BC) Rome defeated Carthage and forced it to surrender Carthaginian possessions in Sicily and to pay a large indemnity (see Punic Wars). By 206 BC the Romans had forced Carthage out of Spain.

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Spanish History (VI)As a part of the Roman Empire, most of Spain’s population became Christian and began to speak languages based on Latin. Romans were followed by Germanic peoples who came overland from Europe and entered Spain in the 5th century AD. These ancient tribes included Vandals, who passed through and settled in Africa, and Visigoths, who settled in Spain to build a kingdom.

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Spanish History (VII)In 711 Spain was invaded by Muslims from Africa. For centuries the Muslim conquerors would control much of the Iberian Peninsula. The high point of Islamic culture in Spain occurred in the 10th century. Muslim power declined after 1000 as Christian kingdoms in northern Spain, supplemented by migrants from Europe, gradually moved southward to take control of the peninsula. That process was completed in 1492 with the Christian conquest of Granada, the last Muslim kingdom in Spain.

paleontology spain, 13.-15. humans in spain

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