Content uploaded by Randall White
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Randall White on Sep 17, 2014
Content may be subject to copyright.
A preview of the PDF is not available
Imagerie féminine du Paléolithique. L'apport des nouvelles statuettes de Grimaldi.
... The above characteristics are shared to varying degrees by known Palaeolithic figurines. Three stone figures retained our attention (Fig. 12): the femme au cou perfore´(in talc) from Grimaldi (White and Bisson, 1998), the Venus of Willendorf (oolitic limestone) (Weber et al., 2022) and the woman with the horn from Laussel. The Grimaldi and Laussel examples because they are on relatively flat supports or surfaces that restricted full three-dimensional development of more protruding parts of the anatomy. ...
... Although Leroi-Gourhan's (Leroi-Gourhan, 1968) old hypothesis that Gravettian figurines conformed to a geometric structure (Fig. 14b) characterized by a diamond (Roussot, 2000); b. The Venus of Willendorf (Willendorf 1) (Weber et al., 2022); c, d, e. La femme au cou perfore´from Grimaldi (White and Bisson, 1998); f, g. The losenge from Grimaldi (Italy); h, i. ...
... Comparaisons possibles : a. Femme à la corne, Laussel (France) (Roussot, 2000) ; b. Ve´nus de Willendorf (Willendorf 1) (Weber et al., 2022) ; c, d, e. La femme au cou perforé de Grimaldi (White et Bisson, 1998) ; f, g. Losange de Grimaldi (Italie) ; h. ...
A B S T R A C T
We report here on the 2019 discovery of an Upper Palaeolithic female figurine at the open-air site of Piatra Neamt; in the Bistrit;a valley, Romania. This figurine, the first ever to be discovered in Romania, was found in an area in which Palaeolithic figurative art is extremely poorly represented and such figurines are absent. We shall present the first observations regarding the context of find and materials on the site, the results of the dating of occupations excavated so far and a detailed description of the figurine, for which low- and high-resolution microscopy was used. Its analysis involved several stages of research and the use of non-destructive methods: Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE), FT–Raman vibrational spectroscopy, Computed tomography (CT) scan. In this way, ever since its first publication, the Palaeolithic figurine found at Piatra Neamt; has been the subject of several interdisci- plinary studies, which have allowed for better description and characterisation of the traces preserved on it.
Keywords: Upper Palaeolithic, Female figurine, Figurative art,
Microscopy, Non-destructive methods
C 2022 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.
Neanderthals collected unusual, sometimes colorful mineral materials from different sources. Several green serpentinite smooth pebbles with a flat shape and use modifications were unearthed at Fumane Cave in northern Italy. This study explores cognitive and functional criteria that influenced the selection and use of unique pebbles based on their regional geology, morphology, petrology, use wear, and residues. Besides the attraction for green materials, there is no evidence for the use of soft green and flat pebbles, like those from Fumane Cave, during the Middle Palaeolithic. Moreover, these materials were collected by Neanderthals only from ca. 44 ka cal BP, despite the large availability of green serpentine pebbles in the alluvial beds near the cave. Ultimately, we provide new data to understand the role of aesthetic and technological factors in shaping the human behavioral range in the Middle Paleolithic.
The Preboreal is a period that is still relatively poorly known as regards its archeological cultures. At the transition between the Pleistocene and the Holocene there are finds from Northern Germany indicating the presence of the Late Paleolithic Ahrensburg culture with a clear focus on reindeer hunting, but at the same time there are Danish finds reflecting an orientation to elk hunting, with an unclear cultural affiliation. Clear evidence of a material culture characteristic of the Maglemose culture does not appear until the middle part of the Preboreal. Dated finds suggest that reindeer existed throughout the chronozone, contemporary with other game such as horse and elk. Elk is observed through finds of deposits of parts of elk bodies which differ from later ways of treating game animals. These have been interpreted as being linked to ritual activities. A couple of finds of metapodials from Skåne may be a consequence of the same patterns of deposition. Finds of elk antler mattock heads and leister points have also been observed. The former in particular have a special position as characteristic of an early Maglemose culture. The leister points can be followed back to the Late Paleolithic, and it is still uncertain when elk antler mattock heads began to appear.
Since 1988, a Spanish-Argentinian team has been developing ethnoarcheological projects in Tierra del Fuego (Argentina). Our objective was to develop a methodology and conceptual instruments in order to go further in the study of prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies. In the frame of these projects, we excavated some archeological sites corresponding to the period of the European contact with native societies (nineteenth century). Lanashuaia was one of the excavated archeological sites. Prof. Jiri Svoboda participated in the fieldwork carried out during 1996. In this paper we present some of the results obtained of the study of Lanashuaia.
The purpose of this paper is to present the evolution of the history of childbirth in the Western world from the earliest known sources to the contemporary age. We begin with an interdisciplinary literature review completed between January and August 2017 by using French and English languages in 12 databases (Public Health Database, Cairn, Persée, Psycinfo, Psycarticles, PubMed, Sage-Science Direct, Springer, Taylor and Francis, Wiley and Web of Science) and gray literature. Exclusion criteria were the scope, the reliability of the study and the relevance of the writings. A total of 39 sources were analyzed and then organized into 5 distinct historical periods (prehistory, antiquity, mediaeval, modern, contemporary). Each period presents its own socio-historical and ideological characteristics in order to contextualize the evolution of knowledge, beliefs, techniques, rituals and professional practices surrounding childbirth. Finally, a brief discussion focuses on the symbolic dualities inherent in childbirth.
This paper presents the first results from a new research project that focuses on the emergence of ceramic technologies across Paleolithic Europe. Pavlovian ceramics from Moravia provide the earliest known evidence of these technologies, with one of the largest assemblages from the site of Pavlov I. This paper presents new analyses of both the figurative art and the broader assemblage of worked “pellets,” shedding new light on the range of technologies employed when working with this innovative material. Using both macro‐ and microscopic analyses, we identified four distinct chaînes opératoires across
the figurative and non‐figurative ceramics that were excavated from Pavlov I in the 1950s—1960s, demonstrating a more diverse range of manufacturing sequences than scholars previously purported. In particular, analyzing the “pellets” demonstrates that studying the figurative sculptures in isolation may lead to biased interpretations of the importance of some techniques, such as engraving.
In this paper, we present the most recent results of dating and anthropological findings related to the cranium from the site of Siemonia, near Będzin in Silesia (Poland). The Siemonia human skull was found accidentally by workers in 1955 in quarried sand. Until recently, the Siemonia skull was considered the oldest find of an anatomically modern human from Poland. Unfortunately, the results of the dating of the cranial bone using the AMS method indicated that the individual to whom the skull belonged derived from the Holocene epoch and not, as was previously assumed, from the Upper Paleolithic period. The calibration, showing the calendar age indicates that the skull belonged to a man from the twelfth or thirteenth century. The morphology of the Siemonia skull is typical for the Homo sapiens crania. However, this skull exhibits high grades of robusticity characters expression and thick bones of the cranial vaults, thus overall the skull is massive.
Since 1988, a Spanish‐Argentinian team has been developing ethnoarcheological projectsin Tierra del Fuego (Argentina). Our objective was to develop a methodology andconceptual instruments in order to go further in the study of prehistoric hunter‐gatherersocieties. In the frame of these projects, we excavated some archeological sitescorresponding to the period of the European contact with native societies (nineteenthcentury). Lanashuaia was one of the excavated archeological sites. Prof. Jiri Svobodaparticipated in the fieldwork carried out during 1996. In this paper we present some ofthe results obtained of the study of Lanashuaia.