Luis Luque

• Doctor of Geology
• Senior Researcher at Boscalia Technologies

Two new sites, identified during a survey of the Tajuña River Valley, central Iberia, show evidence of both flint extraction and working, specifically for the production of long blades. These are an important addition to the limited number of such sites known in Eurasia.

The extended period of coexistence between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens in Europe coincided with the emergence of regionally distinctive lithic industries, signalling the onset of the Upper Palaeolithic. The Iberian Peninsula was on the periphery of pioneering Upper Palaeolithic developments, with archaeological remains primarily found in northern...

The Iberian Peninsula is a key region for unraveling human settlement histories of Eurasia during the period spanning the decline of Neandertals and the emergence of anatomically modern humans (AMH). There is no evidence of human occupation in central Iberia after the disappearance of Neandertals ~42,000 years ago until approximately 26,000 years a...

El interior peninsular ha sido considerado hasta hace pocos años como un lugar poco frecuentado por sociedades de neandertales y humanos anatómicamente modernos, especialmente durante los momentos más fríos de la última glaciación. El motivo aducido tradicionalmente para explicar esta circunstancia ha sido la continentalidad climática y altitud rel...

The settlement of cold and arid environments by Pleistocene hunter-gatherers has been a heated topic in Paleolithic Archaeology and the Quaternary Sciences for years. In the Iberian Peninsula, a key area for studying human adaptations to such environments is composed by the large interior and upland regions of the northern and southern plateaus (Me...

In this paper, we present the first results obtained after new fieldwork and laboratory studies of chert catchment sources during the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic in inland Iberia, a region that has been traditionally depicted as marginal and sparsely populated during the last glacial due to its harsh ecological conditions compared to the coastal...

We report a new site with Schematic rock art in the Sorbe River Valley, next to the town of Muriel (Tamajón, Guadalajara, Spain). It is located inside a vaulted cave next to a larger cavity and contains a single panel bearing 6 graphic units: four anthropomorphic figures and a sign in red paint around two partially superimposed cup-marks. In the ce...

As the south-westernmost region of Europe, the Iberian Peninsula stands as a key area for understanding the process of modern human dispersal into Eurasia. However, the precise timing, ecological setting and cultural context of this process remains controversial concerning its spatiotemporal distribution within the different regions of the peninsul...

Although anatomically modern humans emerged during the MSA, debates have focused on the timing for the development of cognitive thoughts, planning depth, and profound cultural innovations. While some scholars have attributed these qualities to the LSA population, others have proposed that the evolutionary modern human behaviors developed during the...

The Pleistocene record of Peninj, dated to 1.5–1.4 Ma and located on the Western shore of Lake Natron (Tanzania), is one of the classic archaeo-paleontological sources for the study of the early Acheulean in Africa. Beginning with the seminal project led by Glynn Isaac in the decades of 1960s and 1980s, other research programs have been carried out...

The localities of La Bullana 3 and La Bullana 2B (Valencia, E Spain) have yielded remains of Apodemus gorafensis, Paraethomys aff. abaigari, Stephanomys dubari, Apocricetus barrierei, Sciuridae indet. and Asoriculus cf. gibberodon the former, and Apodemus gorafensis, Paraethomys aff. abaigari, Stephanomys dubari, Apocricetus barrierei, Sciuridae in...

This article describes the sedimentological characteristics of dinosaur ichnites at three sites within the municipal area of El Castellar (in the Province of Teruel, Aragón, Spain): El Castellar (CT-1), El Pozo (CT-2), and Camino El Berzal (CT-3). These sites possess large concentrations of footprints made by quadrupedal (sauropod, stegosaurid and...

The aim of this paper is to undertake the technological description of ES2-Lepolosi, one of the Acheulean sites located on the Sambu Escarpment in the Lake Natron Basin (Tanzania) and dated to 1.5–1.4 Ma. Through the combination of three different lithic collections (Glynn Isaac's 1961–81, Domínguez-Rodrigo's 1999–2002 and the sample retrieved duri...

Recent fieldwork carried out in EN1-Noolchalai between 2009 and 2011, one of the most significant Acheulean sites located on the Sambu Escarpment of Peninj (Tanzania) and dated to 1.5–1.4 Ma, has allowed us to undertake more complete geomorphologic and sedimentological research at this site. This contextual research has allowed us to clarify the ge...

The accurate timing of biogeographic dispersal can be determined by examining the age of fossiliferous strata on either side of a physical barrier. Here we show that African mammals migrated to Iberia and European mammals migrated to North Africa at the same time before isolation of the Mediterranean Sea during the Messinian. The fossil site of Ven...

The Pleistocene Humbu and Moinik formations of the Peninj Group in northern Tanzania preserve an important archaeological and paleontological record, in addition to a record of local volcanism in the form of tephra and lavas. Samples of the major Humbu and Moinik formations' basaltic and trachytic tephra were collected and characterized using pheno...

Since 2002 a number of sites containing stegosaurian remains (bones and tracks) have been discovered in the Villar del Arzobispo Formation (Tithonian–Berriasian) in the Province of Teruel, Spain, mostly in the areas of El Castellar and Riodeva. The material from the latter consists of the postcranial remains of the axial, pelvic and appendicular sk...

The Gulf of Cadiz region of Spain has undergone many studies examining Holocene tsunami and storm deposits. Some of the studies aimed at determining recurrence intervals of events interpreted of tsunamigenic origin.A review of geomorphologic, sedimentary and paleontological features of these deposits suggests that only a few of them can be accurate...

The Teruel Province (Spain) is known for its rich palaeontological heritage, including outstanding dinosaur sites from the Jurassic–Cretaceous transition interval. A GIS-based management project was designed and utilised to represent and manage the detailed spatial data and associated databases of such sites. Systematic evaluation of the heritage v...

Recent re-excavation of Mumba Rockshelter unearthed an unbiased lithic sample from Bed V. Technological analysis has permitted a reinterpretation of the so-called Mumba Industry, a transitional industry between Middle and Later Stone Ages originally defined by Mehlman (1989). Our data confirm Mehlman’s observation that the “evolutionary” markers in...

  Up to now, more than 40 dinosaur sites have been found in the latest Jurassic – earliest Cretaceous sedimentary outcrops (Villar del Arzobispo Formation) of Riodeva (Iberian Range, Spain). Those already excavated, as well as other findings, provide a large and diverse number of sauropod remains, suggesting a great diversity for this group in the...

A detailed study has been carried out on 25 samples of dinosaur bone fragments which come from 8 sites belonging to six stratigraphic units that span from the Tithonian (Upper Jurassic) to Albian (Lower Cretaceous) in the province of Teruel, Spain. The aim of the study is to further understand the mineralogical, elemental and chemical composition o...

Coastal response to tectonic activity and eustatic-climate interactions during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene has been analyzed along the Barbate–Trafalgar shoreline. The study area consists of an uplifted platform (La Breña, ∼ 140 m) bounded by two major NW–SE faults that have created two subsiding areas: Meca in the west and Barbate in the eas...

Mumba Rockshelter in northern Tanzania presents one of the richest and most complete archaeological sequences in East Africa for the Middle Stone Age through the Iron Age. Past excavations of the shelter revealed an extremely rich lithic and faunal assemblage, but were problematic, either because of poor excavation and recording methods (in the 193...

Registration of Holocene climatic changes from geochemical analysis: Palmones River, Algeciras Bay: The PAM99-2 core has an extension of 6.45 meters and includes the Holocene (last 7000 BP). We study how a development of geochemical index can be used to identify climatic variations occurred in this area. The Al, Fe, Ti, K and Mg are proxies of the...

Ongoing archaeological research at North Lake Eyasi has produced a wealth of information, including a new hominid fossil and several archaeological sites dating to the end of the Middle Pleistocene. One of the sites (WB9) has been excavated and has produced evidence of multiple processes in its formation, including evidence of functional associatio...

In this paper, the results of the test excavations in two rock shelters in the Central Ethiopian escarpment near the Sudanese border are presented. A continuous sequence of quartz lithic industry, from the lowest levels of K'aaba (with an archaic MSA-like industry of side-scrapers, Levallois-discoidcores and unifacial points) to the upper levels of...

Los microorganismos, en particular las bacterias, habitan en todos los ambientes posibles de la biosfera incluidos los ambientes subterráneos. Desempeñan un papel importante en procesos geológicos tales como la precipitación y disolución mineral, e influyen notablemente sobre los ciclos biogeoquímicos de diferentes elementos. Hasta este momento, so...

40Ar/39Ar incremental-heating experiments on basaltic lavas and single-crystal total-fusion analyses of trachytic tuffs provide for the first time accurate resolution of the chronostratigraphy of the Pleistocene Peninj Group west of Lake Natron, northern Tanzania. These new data force a major revision of the chronology of the entire sequence: the b...

A Map of Fault Activity has been developed for preliminary engineering planning related to the construction of an underwater fixed link-route between Africa and Europe at the Gibraltar Strait Sector, in South Spain (the Gibraltar Tunnel). Main criteria used in fault activity evaluation have been seismicity, surface faulting, geomorphology of fault...

Microorganisms, particularly bacteria, inhabit all possible environments in the biosphere including subterranean ones. They play an important role in geological processes such as mineral precipitation and dissolution, and significantly influence biogeochemical cycles. At present, relatively few studies have focused on the active role of microorgani...

In the last decades, damages on building materials and mural paintings were observed in Roman catacombs. The damages were due to extensive formation of biofilms induced by artificial illumination and humidity. Microenvironmental data (temperature, CO(2) concentration, humidity, and atmospheric pressure) clearly showed the negative influence of visi...

This study represents the first paleoseismic approach in Spain in which archaeological remains are considered. The ancient Roman city of Baelo Claudia (1st–4th centuries AD), located at the axial zone of the Gibraltar Strait (Cadiz, south Spain), contains abundant disrupted architectural relics and ground collapses (i.e. landsliding, liquefacion) p...

Analyses of microsamples collected from Roman catacombs and samples of lime–pozzolana mortars hardened in the laboratory display higher contents in carbonated binder than other subaerial Roman monuments. The measured environmental data inside the Saint Callistus and Domitilla catacombs show a constant temperature of 15–17 °C, a high CO2 content (17...

The coastal evolution of the El Abalario area (Huelva, southern Spain) during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene is reinterpreted after a refinement of the available geochronology by means of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. New data come from the analysis of soft sediment deformation, palaeosols, geomorphological mapping, and publish...

El estudio morfosedimentario y paleontológico de las terrazas marinas del Ultimo lnterglacial en regiones situadas en el Atlántico tropical y subtropical, y su comparación con el registro contemplado en la región Mediterránea, permite deducir fuertes variaciones climáticas y del nivel del mar relacionados con cambios en las condiciones oceanográfic...

The number of upper Vallesian (continental Upper Miocene) localities in the Teruel-Alfambra area has been increased by the sampling of a new road cut at Masia de La Roma. Two new levels have been sampled (MR-604-A and MR-604-B), which both belong to local Zone J3 (9.4-9.0 Ma) and correspond to Neogene mammal unit MN10. The levels have yielded the y...

Recent discoveries of dinosaur fossils in Riodeva led us to carry out a systematic study of the geology of the area. The calcareous-siliciclastic facies rich in fossil bones are attributed to the Villar del Arzobispo Formation (Tithonian-Berriasian). These transitional facies have been divided into three different units; A) Marine-influenced silice...

The kinetic parameterisation of lime mortar carbonation is a useful technique for understanding ancient building methods and the long-lived physical-chemical stability of roman monuments. Portlandite (Ca(OH) 2 ) binders harden in the air on contact with atmospheric CO 2 , producing CaCO 3 . Water evaporation and the presence of silicate aggregates...

The kinetic parameterisation of lime mortar carbonation is a useful technique for understanding ancient building methods and the long-lived physical-chemical stability of roman monuments. Portlandite (Ca(OH)₂) binders harden in the air on contact with atmospheric CO₂, producing CaCO₃. Water evaporation and the prese...

Biofilms are widely distributed in different areas of the Roman catacombs of St. Callixtus and Domitilla due to the abundance of mineral elements in the volcanic rock, high humidity and artificial lighting. Cyanobacteria are responsible for biofilm formation to which heterotrophic bacteria and fungi are associated. Barite (barium sulphate) was dete...

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The 1755 Lisbon earthquake generated a tsunami that flooded Southwest Iberian Peninsula and Morocco coasts. The coast of Conil de la Frontera (Cádiz) was one of the most affected by these waves in the Spanish littoral. There are abundant information about historical record, damages, and landscape transformation related with this catastrophic event....

Natural precipitates of metastable polymorphs of CaCO 3 , such as vaterite, are rarely found in nature however, they have been widely synthesized in laboratory under particular conditions (ie, supersaturated solutions, relative high temperatures, etc.). By SEM and XRD we recognize vaterite spherulites from culturable microbial colonies isolated fro...

Los espeleotemas subaéreos de tipo moonmilk de la Cueva de Altamira están constituidos fundamentalmente por un entramado de cristales aciculares calcíticos (needlefiber calcite, NFC) y filamentos microbianos activos. El carácter actual de los depósitos estudiados nos ha permitido observar los estadios iniciales de formación, así como las primeras f...

The Oldowan technology has traditionally been assumed to reflect technical simplicity and limited planning by Plio-Pleistocene hominids. The analysis of the Oldowan technology from a set of 1.6-1.4 Ma sites (ST Site Complex) in Peninj adds new information regarding the curated behavior of early hominids. The present work introduces new data to the...

This paper presents the existing differences between the evolution of the Holocene landscape of the Southeastern and Southwestern areas of the Iberian Peninsula. Moreover, some palaeoenvironmental characteristics of OIS 4 and OIS 3 of the western Andalusia appear. The five presented sequences have been analyzed from palynological and geomorphologic...

Natural precipitates of metastable polymorphs of CaCO 3 , such as vaterite, are rarely found in nature. However, spherical bodies (∼10 µ in diameter) composed of vaterite have been recognized in submilimetric-thick microbial mats and biofilms on volcanic substrates (St. Callixtus Catacombs, Rome, Italy). Vaterite is formed beneath dense biofilms, w...

Moonmilk subaerial speleothems of Altamira Cave are constituted by a network of needle-fiber calcite crystals (NFC) and active microbial filaments. These recent deposits allow us the observation of the first evolution stages, as well as defining microclimalic and hydrochemical conditions of mineral precipitation. In previous works, the origin of th...

Historical data show that the Gulf of Cadiz has been exposed to destructive tsunamis during at least the past 2000 yr. The last tsunami was generated by the AD 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which affected the Atlantic coasts of Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Today, these littoral areas are intensely populated and the expected damage could be much greater....

An assemblage of 1·5 Ma Oldowan sites situated on a paleosol of Maritanane, Peninj (Tanzania) presents a new type of archaeological record characterized by abundant faunal remains associated to a small amount of stone tools over an extensive area. The widespread nature of the archaeological materials, together with different weathering stages of th...

The emergence of the Acheulian stone tool industry, between 1.7 and 1.5 m.y.a., constitutes one of the earliest evidences of complex behavior in the process of human evolution. The major technological breakthrough with the Acheulian industry was the beginning of the manufacture of bifacially shaped heavy-duty tools. Handaxes made with a predetermin...

Cet article traite de l'adaptation des hominides, vivant a l'ouest du lac Natron, a l'environnement sec et expose de la savane au cours du Pliocene et du Pleistocene. Des etudes ont ete effectuees sur des pollens de fossiles decouverts a Peninj (Tanzanie). Il semblerait que les habitats aient ete tres proches de la vegetation environnante.

High resolution particle size and environmental magnetie analyses were earried out on two eores from marsh sediments in the Doñana National Park (SW Spain), in an investigation of gradual and abrupt coastal change. Complementary palaeontological analyses were also undertaken. Whilst the balance between sea leve! change and fluvial sediment input is...

[EN] Tsunamis are usually associated with submarine tectonic activity. Tsunamis transform the shore owing to their erosive and sedimentary capacity. Evidence of tsunamis can be preserved in the geological record for millions of years. The tsunami sedimentary record is a useful tool for obtaining paleoseismic information since it is the only record...

La Janda lake is located into a tectonic graben filled by Pleistocene and Holocene f1uvio-marine sediments. Geophysical survey consisting on Electric-Iogs and seismic refraction profiles aimed to determining the thickness of Quaternary sediments infilling the graben. Nevertheless, the results are significantly distorted by a saline aquifer that occ...

Resumen. El estudio de un sondeo (JAN99-1) realizado sobre los depósitos que rellenan la Depresión de la Janda (Cádiz) ha aportado más información acerca de la evolución de esta depresión a lo largo del Holoceno. Tras el último máximo transgresivo flandriense (6500 a BP) la depresión fue inundada por el mar a través del surco de Vejer-Barbate. A pa...

El estudio de un sondeo de 65 m en las marismas del Guadalquivir permite reconocer siete intervalos que reflejan cambios climáticos y eustáticos e intensa neotectónica durante tres periodos interglaciares (IS 7?, 5 Y 1) y dos glaciares (IS 6-Riss-, IS4, 3 Y 2-Würm). Se discute el valor de las 'vetas' como indicadores paleogeográficos.

El hallazgo de restos de mamíferos en Tariego de Cerrato (Palencia) dentro de la U. T .S. 4 de Mediavilla & Dabrio (1988) permite datar esta unidad como Turoliense, pudiendo sugerirse un Turoliense superior. El hecho de que esta unidad se encuentre encajada en la precedente y que los sedimentos más modernos formen el sistema de terrazas de los ríos...