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First evidence of a Late Upper Palaeolithic human presence in Ireland
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... (Dowd and Carden 2016), but the island appears to have been abandoned during the Younger Dryas, before a new phase of settlement in the early Holocene. Ireland has been an island since prior to any human activity in the area, and the Mesolithic settlement of Ireland was established by sea-crossings.Because of its island status, Ireland's environment and ecology was different to other parts of Europe, and was impoverished in terms of the numbers and diversity of terrestrial species (plants and animals) present (see Warren 2022 for review). ...
... This marks the end of the Early Neolithic 1 as defined by Whitehouse et al. (2014), a period for which there is still some potential for ongoing Mesolithic activity (Smyth et al. 2020). Pre-Holocene dates on Methodology (audit) a cut-marked bear patella from the Alice and Gwendoline Cave (Dowd and Carden 2016) are excluded from this analysis. ...
... Dates falling in this period either have very large date ranges (for example Lough Boora UB-2268 8980±360 BP; Ryan 1980) or are only 'possibly Mesolithic', including the possible platform at Ballyoran (Tierney et al. 2013) and the cut-marked bear vertebrae from the Catacombs, Co. Clare (Dowd and Carden 2016). Apparent change over time is not meaningful. ...
... Peter Woodman is undoubtedly to thank for this, as he spent a career developing the Irish Mesolithic into a mature field of research (Woodman, 1977(Woodman, , 1985(Woodman, , 19861992, 2012Woodman et al., 1997). Recent research into the Mesolithic record of Ireland has focused on ritual activities and human remains (Blinkhorn and Little, 2018;Cobb and Gray Jones, 2018;Meiklejohn and Woodman, 2012), timing and chronologies (Dowd and Carden, 2016;Elliott and Griffiths, 2018;Warren, 2017;Woodman, 2012), lithic technologies (Driscoll, 2017;Driscoll et al., 2016;Preston and Kador, 2018), subsistence and human-environment relationships (Overton and Taylor, 2018;Warren, 2015Warren, , 2020Warren et al., 2014;Woodman, 2014), and the submerged/coastal archaeological record (Pollard, 2011;Westley, 2015;Westley and Woodman, 2020). However, one question that has received less attention is, "Why the delay in getting to Ireland?" (Woodman, 2015:191). ...
... Mesolithic sites predating 10,000 cal BP have been proposed, but generally do not hold up to scrutiny (Woodman, 2012). Evidence for a preceding Paleolithic population in Ireland is less clear and there are currently no known artifact assemblages indicating a human presence in Ireland during the Pleistocene; however, incised bear bones have been dated to 12,800 and 10,600 cal BP (Dowd and Carden, 2016). ...
... A brown bear patella and an axis vertebra dating to the Late Pleistocene were recovered in 1902e1903 with purported cutmarks from two caves~380 m apart in western Ireland (Dowd and Carden, 2016). The intriguing nature of the incised bones led Dowd and Carden (2016) to radiocarbon date them using two different laboratories (Chrono, Queen's University Belfast and ORAU, University of Oxford) and investigate the incised marks, which included conducting independent examinations by zooarchaeological specialists. ...
Human migration throughout northern Europe following the Last Glacial Maximum is an ideal situation to investigate human colonization and adaptation in new landscapes. This is particularly so in Ireland, which possesses a distinctly compressed archaeological record compared to the rest of Europe. While various periods of Paleolithic occupations are well-documented throughout Europe, including Britain, the initial colonization of Ireland appears to be delayed until the Early Holocene. An assessment of archaeological and paleoenvironmental data suggests that inhospitable environmental conditions, specifically the absence of mature woodland ecosystems, substantially delayed the human colonization of Ireland. Once Mesolithic peoples reached Ireland, the absence of familiar fauna led them to quickly modify existing technologies. These local adaptions are reflected in the discontinuation of composite microlith technologies that characterize the rest of the European Mesolithic record. Within 1000 years of colonization, Mesolithic hunter-gatherers developed a uniquely Irish macrolith-based technology.
... Barnosky, 1986;Stuart et al., 2004). Until recently, the earliest record of human presence in Ireland was the Early Mesolithic hunter-gatherer camp at Mount Sandel, Co. Derry, dated to 10,290-9790 cal BP (8990 ± 80 BP; UBA-2357) (Bayliss and Woodman, 2009;Dowd and Carden, 2016), post-dating the latest dates on Irish M. giganteus. ...
... The recent discovery of an unquestionably humanly-modified (cutmarked) brown bear (Ursus arctos) patella from Alice Cave in County Clare in the west of Ireland (Dowd and Carden, 2016) has altered this picture. Two radiocarbon determinations from the patella, undertaken in different laboratories, are in close agreement and place the find at ca. 12.8-12.6 ...
... This means that Late Upper Palaeolithic people were in Ireland at the time and potentially in a position to hunt the giant deer and, in theory, contribute to its extinction. However, no cut marks or breakage indicative of human activity have been found on any of the thousands of bones of deer from Ireland (Barnosky, 1986), and taking the archaeological record as a whole, Dowd and Carden (2016) caution that "human travellers 'visiting' Ireland at that time, presumably by boat … may reflect a brief small scale human incursion". In north-west continental Europe, on the other hand, modern humans are now recognised to have maintained their populations and hunting strategies through the stadial conditions of the Younger Dryas (Straus and Goebel, 2011 and papers cited therein). ...
The giant deer, Megaloceros giganteus, is one of the most celebrated of late Quaternary megafaunal species. Here we present new radiocarbon data on the pattern of its extinction, and compare this, on a region-by-region basis, with evidence of environmental change and human occupation. Following strict auditing criteria for the acceptance of radiocarbon dates, 51 dates are published here for the first time, bringing the total number of accepted dates for the species to 134. For western Europe, extirpation around the start of the Younger Dryas stadial is corroborated. Previous early-to mid-Holocene records for the Urals and Siberia are augmented by new dates that together provide an almost continuous radiocarbon record from the late-glacial to the mid-Holocene. Newly-rediscovered skeletal material of giant deer from the Maloarchangelsk region of European Russia has provided the latest date for the species known so far, and extends the mid-Holocene range substantially westward almost to Ukraine. The relatively narrow overall distribution of M. giganteus through its history, and direct palaeoecological evidence, demonstrate the species’ requirement for a mixed, partially open habitat providing both graze and browse. Its extirpation from western Europe remains strongly linked to deterioration of climate and productivity in the Younger Dryas, while its disappearance from more eastern areas correlates chronologically with the spread of closed forest. However, these intervals also coincide with the arrival of (probably sparse) human populations in the regions occupied by giant deer in Ireland and across Russia. The pattern of distributional changes leading to the Holocene restriction of giant deer populations strongly suggests environmental causation, but a contribution of human hunting to the extirpation of terminal populations cannot be ruled out.
... In the Pampas region, different archaeological sites have yielded evidence of megafauna exploitation, in what are currently the countries of Uruguay and Argentina (Steele & Politis 2009;Suárez & Santos 2010;Martínez et al. 2013;Fariña et al. 2014; among others). Research in different parts of the world has started to incorporate paleontological collections and collections from old excavations housed in various museums (Prous 1986;Saunders & Daeschler 1994;Labarca 2003;Perez et al. 2005;Martin 2008;Fisher 2009;Toledo 2009;Krasinski 2010;Redmond et al. 2012;Chichkoyan et al. 2015;Dowd & Carden 2016). The biological interventions (either carnivore or human) that may have affected bone surfaces can potentially provide information to help advance our understanding of paleoecological relationships between different species (Chichkoyan et al. 2015). ...
... These processes can cause marks or fractures, both at the time of excavation and in the reconstruction and restoration of the fossils in the lab (Shipman 1981;Labarca 2003). Two differences distinguish these fresh traces from the original marks on the piece: fresh cut marks are the color of the subcortical bone and they interrupt postdepositional factors, such as weathering fissures, manganese or trampling (Labarca 2003;Perez et al. 2005;Toledo 2009;Redmond et al. 2012;Dowd & Carden 2016). As these marks are made during and after excavation, they are not subject to postdepositional factors that affected the bone in the past. ...
... This is the first time that this type of human intervention has been documented on this element of this species. This research, like similar studies carried out on museum collections all over the world (Prous 1986;Saunders & Daeschler 1994;Labarca 2003;Perez et al. 2005;Martin 2008;Fisher 2009;Toledo 2009;Krasinski 2010;Redmond et al. 2012;Chichkoyan et al. 2015;Dowd & Carden 2016), con-stitutes a complementary, but very useful way to search for new information. The discovery of biological marks (left by both humans and carnivores) on material collected during the 19th century means that these collections potentially harbor important information to be investigated. ...
This paper discusses a Megatherium americanum atlas from the Pampas region of Argentina, which is currently housed at the Museo di Storia Naturale di Firenze, Italy. Traces of anthropic cut marks were found on the dorsal and ventral faces of the posterior part, in articulation with the axis. This is the first time that this type of evidence has been documented on this element of this species. The position of these marks suggests that they resulted from the act of separating the head from the postcranial skeleton. They were therefore most likely made in an effort to exploit the contents of the head. Current research focusing on museum collections employing modern methods can provide new and valuable information, despite the general lack of contextualization of these pieces. In the case studied here, these methods have allowed us to delve deeper into the first dispersal of Homo sapiens and their interaction with the native fauna in the South American Southern Cone.
... The collections of bones assembled over the last two centuries now form the principal resource for investigating Quaternary vertebrates in Ireland (Dowd 2015). The analysis of cave deposits and their interpretation by the excavators at the time showed limited understanding of the complexity of the processes operating during cave sediment deposition as they would be understood today (Sutcliffe 1970;Fig. ...
... The most significant is the arrival of people on the island and the impact they had on introductions and local extinctions. Recent evidence (Dowd and Carden 2016) indicates the possibility of Palaeolithic hunters at the end of the Pleistocene but significant human presence and impact appears to have happened only in the Holocene (Woodman 2015). They also influenced the lines of evidence that may be explored in learning about changes in faunas over the period of recorded history. ...
... Patella of brown bear (NMING:F23919) from Alice and Gwendoline cave, Edenvale, Co. Clare, with marks interpreted byDowd and Carden (2016) as contemporary butchery cuts. © Ruth Carden ...
The study of Irish Quaternary vertebrates has a long history, but with significant work in recent decades that allows for clear sequencing of faunas and notable advances in understanding for particular species. The primary resource for study is the museum collections of bones excavated from Irish caves in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Known faunas are much more limited in diversity and antiquity than those of Britain or continental Europe. The oldest vertebrate fossils were discovered in sediments from 109 to 74 ky BP in the form of woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) and musk ox (Ovibos moschatus) late in MIS 5, or early in MIS 4. The pre-Last Glacial Maximum fauna also included spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta), the giant deer (Megaloceros giganteus), horse (Equus ferus), brown bear (Ursus arctos), reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), red deer (Cervus elaphus), Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus), stoat (Mustela erminea), collared lemming (Dicrostonyx torquatus), Norwegian lemming (Lemmus lemmus) and mountain hare (Lepus timidus). Faunas of the Woodgrange Interstadial include remains from open sites as well as caves and are dominated by discoveries of giant deer, but red deer, reindeer, brown bear, wolf, stoat and hare are also present. By the Holocene, Ireland was an island with its first human settlements, and faunas show their impacts through introductions and extirpations, but there are also indications of some species surviving through the Younger Dryas into the Holocene.
... This marks the end of the Early Neolithic 1 as defined by Whitehouse et al. (2014), a period for which there is still some potential for ongoing Mesolithic activity (Smyth et al. 2020). Pre-Holocene dates on Methodology (audit) a cut-marked bear patella from the Alice and Gwendoline Cave (Dowd and Carden 2016) are excluded from this analysis. ...
... Dates falling in this period either have very large date ranges (for example Lough Boora UB-2268 8980±360 BP; Ryan 1980) or are only 'possibly Mesolithic', including the possible platform at Ballyoran (Tierney et al. 2013) and the cut-marked bear vertebrae from the Catacombs, Co. Clare (Dowd and Carden 2016). Apparent change over time is not meaningful. ...
This paper presents the first detailed audit and analysis of radiocarbon-dated Mesolithic activity in Ireland. This provides a data set of 119 definite or possible sites and nearly 450 dates. This data set is reviewed to understand how changes in the character of archaeological activity and other biasing factors influence the distribution of radiocarbon dates across space and time. We present very different outcomes than previously published reviews, especially regarding the claimed impact of the 8200 cal BP climatic downturn. This is an outcome of the more reliable data set presented here. Some of the patterns identified are a product of sampling strategies, such as a peak in Earlier Mesolithic activity attributable to multiple dates from Mount Sandel. Others relate to restructuring of activity by hunter-gatherers leading to significant changes to the archaeological visibility of that activity at the change from Earlier to Later Mesolithic. Increasing numbers of radiocarbon dates at the end of the period, alongside the changing character of the archaeological evidence, may indicate low levels of population growth.
... In the second scenario, Ireland's red foxes were founded directly from Britain naturally before it became an island (t2). In the third scenario, Ireland's foxes were transported by humans from Britain after the earliest evidence of human presence on the island at 12,700 yrs BP (Dowd & Carden, 2016) right up to the present day (t3; Figure S1). Effective populations sizes were allowed to range between 10 and 500,000 individuals for Irish and British populations and between 10 and 1,000,000 for Europe and the unsampled ancestral population. ...
... Given that models of glaciation/de-glaciation patterns are reliant on secure and accurate fossil data, the island may have hosted a larger mammalian community in the early post-glacial period and this may have included the red fox also. While humans were probaby still an important factor in determining later faunal assemblages on Ireland (Carden et al., 2012;Frantz et al., 2014), the early post-glacial period clearly warrants further investigation on the island based on the results presented here and newly available fossil data (Carden et al., 2020;Dowd & Carden, 2016). ...
Carnivores tend to exhibit a lack of (or less pronounced) genetic structure at continental scales in both a geographic and temporal sense and this can confound the identification of post‐glacial colonization patterns in this group. In this study we used genome‐wide data (using Genotyping‐by‐Sequencing (GBS)) to reconstruct the phylogeographic history of a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), by investigating broad‐scale patterns of genomic variation, differentiation and admixture amongst contemporary populations in Europe. Using 15,003 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 524 individuals allowed us to identify the importance of refugial regions for the red fox in terms of endemism (e.g. Iberia). In addition, we tested multiple post‐glacial re‐colonization scenarios of previously glaciated regions during the Last Glacial Maximum using an Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) approach that were unresolved from previous studies. This allowed us to identify the role of admixture from multiple source population post‐Younger Dryas in the case of Scandinavia and ancient land‐bridges in the colonization of the British Isles. A natural colonization of Ireland was deemed more likely than an ancient human‐mediated introduction as has previously been proposed and potentially points to an increased mammalian fauna on the island in the early post‐glacial period. Using genome‐wide data has allowed us to tease apart broad‐scale patterns of structure and diversity in a widespread carnivore in Europe that was not evident from using more limited marker sets and provides a foundation for next‐generation phylogeographic studies in other non‐model species.
... Most recently, a cut-marked bear patella from Alice and Gwendoline Cave (Co. Clare) was radiocarbon dated to 12,810-12,590 cal BP along with a second cut-marked bear vertebra dated to 11,080-10,400 cal BP (Dowd and Carden 2016). The former presents the strongest available evidence for, at the very least, a human incursion into Ireland during the final Palaeolithic. ...
... What was taking place in the Late Glacial, to enable brief exploratory journeys, as suggested by the Alice and Gwendoline Cave patella (Dowd and Carden 2016), is also uncertain. Stable isotope evidence for the presence of marine resource-using populations at Kendricks Cave, North Wales (Richards et al. 2005), hints at a marine adaptation in the Irish Sea region but how this translates to seafaring is not clear. ...
Evidence of Ireland’s drowned landscapes and settlements presently comprises 50 sites spread across the entire island. These comprise mainly intertidal find spots or small collections of flint artefacts. A handful of fully subtidal sites are known, generally from nearshore regions and consisting, with one exception, of isolated single finds. Evidence of organic remains is also sparse, with the exception of Mesolithic and Neolithic wooden fish traps buried in estuarine sediments under Dublin. The relatively small number of sites is probably due to lack of research as much as taphonomic issues, and thus the current evidence hints at the potential archaeological record which may be found underwater. Such evidence could contribute to knowledge of the coastal adaptations and seafaring abilities of Ireland’s earliest inhabitants. Nonetheless, taphonomic considerations, specifically relating to Ireland’s history of glaciation, sea-level change and also modern oceanographic conditions likely limit the preservation of submerged landscapes and their associated archaeology. Realistically, the Irish shelf is likely characterised by pockets of preservation, which makes detection and study of submerged landscapes difficult but not impossible. A range of potential routes of investigation are identifiable, including site-scale archaeological survey, landscape-scale seabed mapping, archival research and community engagement.
... It is made available under a The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not peer-reviewed) is the . https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.02.21.954966 doi: bioRxiv preprint Britain after the earliest evidence of human presence on the island at 12.7 kyrs BP (41) right up to the present day (Fig. S1). For the second ABC-based analysis, we investigated the colonization history of Scandinavia. ...
... mountain hare Lepus timidus and arctic lemming Dicrostonyx torquatus) were also present in the early post-glacial period. While humans were an important factor in determining later faunal assemblages on Ireland (10,48), the early post-glacial period clearly warrants further investigation on the island (41,48). ...
Carnivores tend to exhibit a lack of (or less pronounced) genetic structure at continental scales in both a geographic and temporal sense using various mitochondrial DNA markers on modern and/or ancient specimens. This tends to confound the identification of refugial areas and post-glacial colonization patterns in this group. In this study we used Genotyping-by-Sequencing (GBS) to reconstruct the phylogeographic history of a widespread carnivore, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), in Europe by investigating broad-scale patterns of genomic variation, differentiation and admixture amongst contemporary populations. Using 15,003 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 524 individuals allowed us to identify the importance of refugial regions for the red fox in terms of endemism (e.g. Iberia) and sources of post-glacial re-expansion (e.g. Carpathians and Balkans) across northern regions of the continent. In addition, we tested multiple post-glacial re-colonization scenarios of previously glaciated regions during the Last Glacial Maximum using an Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) approach. We identified the role of ancient and temporary land-bridges in the colonization of Scandinavia and the British Isles, with a natural colonization of Ireland deemed more likely than an ancient human-mediated introduction as has previously been proposed. Using genome-wide data has allowed us to tease apart broad-scale patterns of structure and diversity in a widespread carnivore in Europe that was not always evident from using more limited marker sets.
... Furthermore, the incorporation of this information into new studies can save money and time (Suarez and Tsutsui, 2004). Within this context, fossil collections can be very useful in the field of archaeology, and the revision of different paleontological and historical collections has yielded new data due to the discovery of human and carnivore biological intervention (Chichkoyan et al., 2015;Dowd and Carden, 2016;Labarca, 2003;Martín, 2008;Perez et al., 2005;Prous, 1986;Redmond et al., 2012;Saunders, 2007;Saunders and Daeschler, 1994). The revision of some of the collections mentioned in this paper has already revealed the presence of cut-marked bones (see details in Toledo, 2009). ...
... Ancient cut marks macroscopically will have the same appearance of the rest of the bone and may have postdepositional agents on top of them (Dowd and Carden, 2016;Labarca, 2003;Perez et al., 2005;Prous, 1986;Redmond et al., 2012;Saunders, 2007;Toledo, 2009). These characteristics differentiate them from fresh marks or fractures made during excavation or handling at the museums. ...
This paper describes human-modified bones originally from the Pampas region, and that form part of nineteenth-century fossil collections of native fauna. We describe the morphological and configurational features of the marks, relate them to the various stages in the butchering process, and discuss access type. An examination of various different American sites is used to interpret this evidence at a coarse-grained level. Although these collections are more biased than current archaeological materials with regard to their sedimentary origin and previous handling, the application of modern technology has allowed us to obtain new data. Therefore, despite their complex history, these artefacts can be incorporated into the broader body of modern archaeological research. This type of study adds new value to our historic heritage and underscores its usefulness in modern enquiries, in this case, related to the topic of how Homo sapiens interacted with the native fauna in the southern Cone of South America.
... Colonization took place by boat. Our understanding of the very earliest colonization of Ireland has been transformed by recent radiocarbon dating of brown bear (Ursus arctos) remains from caves in western Ireland (Dowd & Carden 2016). A butchered patella from the Alice and Gwendoline Cave, Co. Clare, dates to c. 10,800-10,500 cal bc (UBA-20194: 10,798 ± 71 bp; OxA-29358: 10,850 ± 50 bp) almost at the start of the Younger Dryas. ...
... A cut-marked brown bear vertebra from the Catacombs, Co. Clare, dates to 9080-8400 cal bc (UBA-20195: 9414 ± 57 bp) and demonstrates the earliest human activity in Ireland in the Holocene. Little is known about the human context of these finds, which may have been little more than pioneering or exploratory visits (Dowd & Carden 2016). ...
In Europe, cremation as a burial practice is often associated with the Bronze Age, but examples of cremated human remains are in fact known from the Palaeolithic onwards. Unlike conventional inhumation, cremation destroys most of the evidence we can use to reconstruct the biography of the buried individual. Remarkably, in Ireland, cremation is used for the earliest recorded human burial and grave assemblage (7530–7320 bc ) located on the banks of the River Shannon, at Hermitage, County Limerick. While we are unable to reconstruct in any great detail the biography of this individual, we have examined the biography of a polished stone adzehead interred with their remains. To our knowledge, this adze represents the earliest securely dated polished axe or adze in Europe. Microscopic analysis reveals that the adze was commissioned for burial, with a short duration of use indicating its employment in funerary rites. Before its deposition into the grave it was intentionally blunted, effectively ending its use-life: analogous to the death of the individual it accompanied. The microwear traces on this adze thus provide a rare insight into early Mesolithic hunter-gatherer belief systems surrounding death, whereby tools played an integral part in mortuary rites and were seen as fundamental pieces of equipment for a successful afterlife.
... Two pieces of evidence now indicate human activities slightly earlier than the generally cited start of the Irish Mesolithic: a humanly butchered brown bear vertebra dated to 9414 ± 57 BP (11, 060-10,440 cal. BP) from the Catacombs Cave (Dowd and Carden, 2016;Dowd, 2016) and, potentially, the human clavicle from Alice and Gwendoline Cave (8828 ± 34 BP, 10,146-9700 cal. BP). ...
The nature of the mechanisms that have shaped the animal communities of the island of Ireland remains a
pervasive question in the study of the Quaternary of north-western Europe. Archived Quaternary faunal bone
assemblages from antiquarian excavations of cave sites are a direct line of evidence with demonstrable potential
to shed light on this issue, but are currently constrained by limited publication, understanding of early excavation
protocols, and a lack of chronological reference. Alice and Gwendoline Cave in the west of Ireland was the
subject of extensive excavations in 1902, which yielded a substantial faunal assemblage and the first evidence of
an Upper Palaeolithic human presence on the island during the terminal Pleistocene. Here, we report further
results from this important site. Archaeological excavations and a radiocarbon dating programme in 2019-2020
have shed light on the environmental context of the faunal assemblage, the cave taphonomy and site chronology.
Nineteen radiocarbon dates are now available, including new direct dates for brown bear (Ursus arctos), giant
deer (Megaloceros giganteus) and reindeer (Rangifer tarandus). The archaeological excavations and the analysis of
sedimentary lipids – the first of its kind for an Irish cave site, both suggest that the sediments are primarily of
exogenous origin, likely carried into the cave through fissures and openings by runoff or colluvial movements.
Our analyses indicate that there were at least three main ‘pulses’ of bone-bearing sediment accumulation: at the
beginning of the Younger Dryas (c. 12,700 cal. BP), in the aftermath of the Younger Dryas (11,300 cal. BP) and in
the Early Holocene (c. 10,000 cal. BP), with a hiatus in sediment deposition after 9700 cal. BP.
... The documented human history of the island was shorter than elsewhere in Europe and entirely lacks a Lower and a Middle Palaeolithic. While an Upper Palaeolithic human presence predating the Mesolithic is confined to rare examples of worked faunal bone (Dowd and Carden 2016;Woodman 2015). Rising seas resulted in a notably lower number of mammalian recolonisation events than elsewhere in northwest Europe. ...
... For example, the low haplotypic diversity of Irish populations of the snail Cepaea nemoralis and the mitochondrial DNA lineage shared with Pyrenean populations support an ancient introduction by humans (Grindon & Davison, 2013). Divergence time could be as old as 8000 years for this snail, but this is consistent with dating of human colonization of Ireland after the LGM, at least 12 000 BP (Dowd & Carden, 2016). ...
Species of flora and fauna occurring in the west of Ireland and south-west Europe, known as Lusitanian elements, constitute a puzzling case of isolated populations of uncertain origin. Here we studied the population genetic structure of the heather Erica mackayana in Ireland and northern Spain and compared it with its widespread close relative Erica tetralix using single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We reconstructed phylogenetic relationships using maximum likelihood (ML), inferred population genetic structure using cluster assignment and principal component analysis, and estimated population genetic diversity. The cluster analysis and ML phylogenetic tree showed a geographical pattern for E. tetralix supporting a post-glacial migration from Iberia to Ireland. In contrast, Irish populations of E. mackayana were supported in independent clades in the phylogenetic tree and shared clusters with Iberian populations in the structure analysis, and FST values were lower among Irish and Spanish populations than among Irish ones. This suggests that Irish populations of E. mackayana are the result of recent multiple independent introductions from its native area in northern Spain, probably assisted by humans. However, the origin of the largest Irish population at Roundstone Bog is unclear and should be further investigated. Post-glacial, long-distance dispersal is the most plausible explanation for Lusitanian species distribution in Ireland.
... Het uitsterven van de Ierse reuzenhertpopulatie is onderwerp van veel discussie, maar met de afwezigheid van mensen op Ierland gedurende het Laat Glaciaal, is een rol voor menselijke jacht bijna volledig uitgesloten (Barnosky, 1986;Monaghan, 2017;Lister & Stuart, 2019; maar zie ook Dowd & Carden, 2016). De sterke klimaatverandering gelinkt aan het Jongere Dryas-stadiaal (GS-1) wordt gezien als de grote oorzaak van hun uitsterven, omdat de kruidenrijke graslanden waar ze van afhankelijk waren, werden vervangen door toendrasteppe-achtige vegetatie (Barnosky, 1986;Worman & Kimbrell, 2008;Monaghan, 2017;Lister & Stuart, 2019). ...
The fossils of giant deer Megaloceros giganteus (Blumenbach, 1799) are commonly found throughout Ireland in Late-glacial deposits, and less commonly in the Netherlands and the rest of Europe in both glacial and interglacial deposits predating the Last Glacial Maximum . The seasonal mobility behaviour of this species has been a topic of discussion in the literature as it may have implications for the plasticity of this species between warmer and colder periods over the last 400,000 years. Using new 87Sr/86Sr isotope data in conjunction with δ18O and δ13C data from a previous study, three giant deer from different locations in Ireland were analysed. One specimen from Ballybetagh, County Dublin may have been seasonally mobile, possibly due to the rapid change in climate which caused its preferred habitat to disappear around 12.8 ka ago. Perhaps the switch to increased mobility during colder periods was essential to the survival of giant deer over the climatic turbulence of the Mid-Late Pleistocene. However, given the uniqueness of the Late-glacial Irish giant deer population it is unclear how the results of this study can be applied to other populations.
... Het uitsterven van de Ierse reuzenhertpopulatie is onderwerp van veel discussie, maar met de afwezigheid van mensen op Ierland gedurende het Laat Glaciaal, is een rol voor menselijke jacht bijna volledig uitgesloten (Barnosky, 1986;Monaghan, 2017;Lister & Stuart, 2019; maar zie ook Dowd & Carden, 2016). De sterke klimaatverandering gelinkt aan het Jongere Dryas-stadiaal (GS-1) wordt gezien als de grote oorzaak van hun uitsterven, omdat de kruidenrijke graslanden waar ze van afhankelijk waren, werden vervangen door toendrasteppe-achtige vegetatie (Barnosky, 1986;Worman & Kimbrell, 2008;Monaghan, 2017;Lister & Stuart, 2019). ...
The fossils of giant deer Megaloceros giganteus (Blumenbach, 1799) are commonly found throughout Ireland in Late-glacial deposits, and less commonly in the Netherlands and the rest of
Europe in both glacial and interglacial deposits predating the Last Glacial Maximum . The seasonal mobility behaviour of this species has been a topic of discussion in the literature as it may have
implications for the plasticity of this species between warmer and colder periods over the last 400,000 years. Using new 87Sr/86Sr isotope data in conjunction with δ18O and δ13C data from a
previous study, three giant deer from different locations in Ireland were analysed. One specimen from Ballybetagh, County Dublin may have been seasonally mobile, possibly due to the rapid change in climate which caused its preferred habitat to disappear around 12.8 ka ago. Perhaps the switch to increased mobility during colder periods was essential to the survival of giant deer over the climatic turbulence of the Mid-Late Pleistocene. However, given the uniqueness of the Late-glacial Irish giant
deer population it is unclear how the results of this study can be applied to other populations.
... Rising temperatures and the gradual transformation of much of Ireland's post-glacial landscape from open tundra to temperate woodland provided suitable conditions for human settlement towards the end of the Ice Age (Mitchell 2006). Whilst there is some evidence of human presence in Ireland around 12,500 years ago (Dowd and Carden 2016) and possibly much earlier, the current evidence indicates that the first human settlers arrived at the beginning of the Irish Mesolithic period, c. 10,000 years ago (Woodman 2015). Living in small, mobile groups, Mesolithic people were well-adapted to their local environments and settled in riverine and coastal locations to facilitate the optimal exploitation of a wide range of resources and movement by boat via the sea and island's inland waterways (Tune 2020). ...
Fostering coexistence between people and wildlife is crucial to both the conservation and restoration of wildlife populations across the globe. Yet, so far research exploring human-wildlife conflict and coexistence has been largely ahistorical, with little focus on the historical trajectories through which human-wildlife interactions have shifted from coexistence to conflicts which have led to wildlife eradication in the past. This paper responds by examining the historical drivers of change which disrupted a long history of human-wolf coexistence in Ireland. Drawing on an extensive review of primary historical sources and secondary literature and applying analytical tools from environmental history, the paper first illustrates the diverse practices and attitudes which helped sustain a continuous period of coexistence up to the seventeenth century. The paper then illustrates how coexistence unravelled during the early modern period following the island's integration into an expanding global capitalist system under a colonial regime who redefined Ireland as a primitive 'Wolf-land'. By engaging with the historical dimensions of human-wildlife interactions and drawing attention to how wildlife has become enrolled in past social conflicts, the article highlights the importance of historical perspectives for informing current strategies aimed at positively transforming human-wildlife conflict towards inclusive and socially just forms of coexistence.
Abstract in Irish: https://bit.ly/33kuqHY
... Palaeolithic material was well known from elsewhere in northwestern Europe and, although activity in the latest part of the Palaeolithic has now been identified(Dowd and Carden 2016) the general absence of Palaeolithic archaeology remains a distinctive feature of archaeology on the island of Ireland. ...
... This came to an end, however, with the onset of the Younger Dryas climatic turndown, where arctic-alpine conditions began to spread and caused the deterioration of grasslands on the island, and the development of tundra conditions (Watts, 1977;Barnosky, 1986;Monaghan, 2017). It is thought that this climatic event led to their extinction, while hunting has generally been ruled out as it is thought that humans did not colonise Ireland until 10 290-9790 cal a BP, some 2000 years after the disappearance of the giant deer (Barnosky, 1986;Monaghan, 2017;Lister and Stuart, 2019; but see Dowd and Carden, 2016). The absence of palatable vegetation, coupled by competition with other cervids, and wolf (Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758) and brown bear (Ursus arctos Linnaeus, 1758) predation are believed to have driven the Irish population to extinction (Barnosky, 1986;Worman and Kimbrell, 2008;Monaghan, 2017;Lister and Stuart, 2019). ...
Giant deer Megaloceros giganteus (Blumenbach, 1799) fossils are commonly found in Lateglacial deposits throughout Ireland. While their migrational behaviour has been suggested, it has never been researched. We hypothesise that giant deer underwent seasonal migrations, specifically during Late Pleistocene cold periods as a behavioural adaptation. Giant deer required a high nutrient uptake and were maladapted to the cold‐dry steppe of the Pleistocene glacials. Migration allowed for optimal nutrient uptake during summer, while avoiding the harsh winter conditions of the glacials by moving to sheltered, low‐lying areas. In this study strontium isotope analysis (87Sr/86Sr) of sequentially sampled dental enamel is conducted for the first time on giant deer that were previously sampled in the same manner for δ13C and δ18O, allowing correlations between the isotope data sets. One specimen from Ballybetagh, Dublin generated results indicating seasonal mobility behaviour. This individual was perhaps pushed to migrate at the Younger Dryas stadial onset as the vegetation giant deer depended on disappeared in Ireland. Adaptive mobility behaviour in response to climate was perhaps imperative to their survival through previous glacial periods, but other Eurasian populations would need to be analysed to make such a general conclusion.
... Similarly, a well preserved large goose sternum fragment found in 2019 could have been from any period, including modern, yet returned a date at the end of the LUP. Furthermore, the LUP butchered bear patella was initially selected for dating because of the rarity of evidence for interactions between humans and bears in prehistoric Ireland (Dowd 2016). There was no prior indication that it would be so early in date, as bear was present in Ireland until at least the Middle Bronze Age (Monaghan 2017). ...
... Similarly, a well preserved large goose sternum fragment found in 2019 could have been from any period, including modern, yet returned a date at the end of the LUP. Furthermore, the LUP butchered bear patella was initially selected for dating because of the rarity of evidence for interactions between humans and bears in prehistoric Ireland (Dowd 2016). There was no prior indication that it would be so early in date, as bear was present in Ireland until at least the Middle Bronze Age (Monaghan 2017). ...
... Such a connection would have been with Britain which remained connected to Europe until sometime in the 7 th millennium BC. The evidence for a late Pleistocene occupation provided by brown bear (Ursus arctos) the matter of when humans first visited Ireland is not as open ended as it used to be (Dowd and Carden, 2016), although when substantial residency commenced is. Why is there little or no evidence for species of such economic importance elsewhere such as red deer, roe deer and aurochs (Woodman et al, 1997;Edwards and Bradley, 2009) remains unresolved. ...
This thesis considers the relationship between Hunter-gatherers and their environment during the Mesolithic of Atlantic Europe. It defines and implements a multiproxy approach, across multiple taxonomic classes, and combines these with the analysis of oxygen isotopes.
... The ability to interpret long-term impacts of human presence and past environmental interactions and define "natural baselines" of pristine ecosystems requires objective evaluation of all evidence. New techniques for studying human modification of bones have often provided evidence for much earlier regional human presence compared to evidence from sediment cores or physical artifacts (Dowd and Carden 2016;Holen et al. 2017;Pitulko et al. 2016). However, when new lines of evidence challenge previously accepted paradigms of regional human arrival, they must, correctly, be subjected to intense scrutiny. ...
... Evidence of these tool types also exist in NE England (Conneller, 2007) and western Scotland (Mithen et al., 2015) suggesting that Terminal Upper Palaeolithic populations were mobile and migrated significant distances into the British Isles. The first evidence of human activity in Ireland during the LGIToccurs during GS-1 via a radiocarbon dated butchered brown bear bone (UBA-20194: 10,798 AE 71BP; OxA-29358: 10,850 AE 50BP), from a cave site from County Clare, western Ireland (Dowd and Carden, 2016). These examples appear to represent outliers, with the vast majority of evidence coming from open air sites in East Anglia and SE England (Woodman, 2015). ...
Charcoal records are now widely used to reconstruct past burning activity as there is an increasing global interest in understanding the complex interactions between fire, climate, vegetation and human activity. However, this topic has been relatively overlooked in the British Isles, as the region is generally thought to not support natural burning regimes. Here, for the first time, we present a synthesis of previously published charcoal data for 238 sites and demonstrate the widespread occurrence of charcoal in sediments that span the Last Glacial-Interglacial Transition (LGIT; c. 17-8.3 ka cal. BP) in the British Isles. Analysis is based upon a semi-quantitative analysis of the assembled dataset; the common patterns are identified and are considered in relation to independent reconstructions of climate, vegetation and anthropogenic activity. No causal relationships with vegetation are identified, while charcoal is also prominent during periods when archaeological evidence for human occupation of the British Isles is absent or scarce. Climate is very likely to have controlled the fire regimes during the LGIT. We conclude with ten research priorities to further advance our understanding palaeofire drivers during the Lateglacial-Early Holocene.
... Late Glacial human populations were present in Ireland at the end of the Bølling/Allerød interstadial -based on a cut-marked bear patella from Alice and Gwendoline Cave (Co. Clare) dated to 12 810-12 590 cal BP (Dowd & Carden 2016)and the Early Holocene -based on a second cut-marked bear vertebra from the nearby Catacombs Cave (11 080-10 400 cal BP; Dowd & Carden 2016), but we understand little in detail of these groups. More substantial evidence, probably reflecting long-term settlement, only began shortly after 10 000 cal BP, and is represented by the Mount Sandel Mesolithic occupation site (10 290-9790 cal BP; Bayliss & Woodman 2009). ...
... 16,000 cal BP (Edwards and Brooks 2008), Palaeolithic archaeology is scant. A recent AMS radiocarbon ( 14 C) dating programme has, however, demonstrated that Ireland had been colonised, perhaps by boat, around the beginning of the Younger Dryas (Dowd and Carden 2016;Little et al. 2017). The Early Mesolithic has largely been characterised by the investigations undertaken at Mount Sandel, Co. Londonderry. ...
Annual growth patterns in marine mollusc shells are valuable indicators of the condition of marine ecology through time. In archaeological contexts, the mollusc's time of death (i.e. the last season of growth) is an indicator of human exploitation patterns throughout the year, enabling the reconstruction of when and how often gathering occurred as well as when sites were occupied. Both pieces of information, growth rate and season of death, are vital for understanding exploitation pressure(s) in the past, and building baselines for modern environmental policies that secure sustainable marine resources. Previously, these parameters have been determined by incremental growth-line or isotopic analyses, which are time consuming and often expensive techniques, thus restricting sample size and the overall robustness of palaeoecological interpretations. Here, we apply Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) to produce elemental maps (Mg/Ca) with the potential to trace and display growth patterns quickly, and at a reduced cost. We further compare the elemental maps with the results obtained from incremental growth-line analysis to provide a structural context for the geochemical data, and demonstrate the utility of an integrated methodological approach. Our pilot study was undertaken on 12 European oysters (Ostrea edulis, Linnaeus, 1758) from the Late Mesolithic shell midden at Conors Island, Co. Sligo in the Republic of Ireland. Our LIBS analysis enabled us to accurately and quickly determine repeating growth patterns, which were often in agreement with the annual growth increments visible through the microscopic analysis. Based on this comparative dataset, including structural and geochemical patterns, the Late Mesolithic site of Conors Island had been occupied throughout the year. Moreover, our analyses highlight the applicability of LIBS to determine prehistoric seasonality practices as well as biological age and growth at an improved rate and reduced cost than was previously achievable.
... Western coastal rock shelters provide support for regional human presence from ~3000 years B.P. onward, through evidence of protracted subsistence on endemic coastal and marine fauna (16). Butchery traces have been used to understand global human impacts on naïve faunas and to document the spread of prehistoric humans (17)(18)(19)(20). Bones of Madagascar's extinct megafaunal mammals with butchery cut marks but lacking any associated artifacts are also known to predate the widely accepted archaeological settlement period. ...
Previous research suggests that people first arrived on Madagascar by ~2500 years before present (years B.P.). This hypothesis is consistent with butchery marks on extinct lemur bones from ~2400 years B.P. and perhaps with archaeological evidence of human presence from ~4000 years B.P. We report >10,500-year-old human-modified bones for the extinct elephant birds Aepyornis and Mullerornis , which show perimortem chop marks, cut marks, and depression fractures consistent with immobilization and dismemberment. Our evidence for anthropogenic perimortem modification of directly dated bones represents the earliest indication of humans in Madagascar, predating all other archaeological and genetic evidence by >6000 years and changing our understanding of the history of human colonization of Madagascar. This revision of Madagascar’s prehistory suggests prolonged human-faunal coexistence with limited biodiversity loss.
... kya, which is close in age to the earliest Irish red fox subfossil at 3.8 kya (Montgomery et al., 2014). Unfortunately, both analyses produced overlapping splitting time estimates, which also encompassed the earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland (12.7 kya; Dowd and Carden, 2016). Thus, our data do not allow us to resolve whether red foxes colonized Ireland naturally or were aided by human intervention. ...
Temperate terrestrial species in Europe were hypothesized to have been restricted to southern peninsular refugia (Iberia, Italy, Balkans) during the height of the last glacial period. However, recent analyses of fossil evidence indicate that some temperate species existed outside these areas during the last glacial maximum (LGM). Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in particular, could have been distributed across the southern half of the continent, potentially forming one continuous population. To investigate these hypotheses, we used 21 nuclear microsatellite loci and two fragments (768 bp) of mitochondrial DNA to characterize the population structure among a continent-wide sample of 288 European red foxes. We tested whether European red foxes clustered into discrete populations corresponding to the hypothetical peninsular refugia. Additionally, we sought to determine if distinct northern populations were formed after post-glacial recolonization. Our results indicated that only the foxes of Iberia appeared to have remained distinct over a considerable period of time (32–104 kya). Spanish red foxes formed their own genotypic cluster; all mtDNA haplotypes were endemic and closely related, and together both the mitochondrial and nuclear datasets indicated this population contributed little to postglacial recolonization of Northern Europe. In contrast, red foxes from Italy and the Balkans contributed significantly to, or were part of, a wider, admixed population stretching across mid-latitude Europe. In Northern Europe, we identified a Scandinavian population that had an ancestral relationship with red foxes to the south, and a more recent relationship with those to the east, in Russia. We also resolved two distinct populations on the islands of Ireland and Britain that had been separated from one another, and from those on the continent, since the late Pleistocene/mid Holocene (∼4–24 kya).
... As with the 2006 publication, this special issue does not claim to be a definitive record of the current, dynamic and varied, Mesolithic research in Britain and Ireland. Beyond a wide variety of new discoveries, reviewed below, significant advances include recently identified evidence for Late Glacial settlement in Scotland and Ireland (Dowd and Carden 2016;Mithen et al. 2015). Also noteworthy are the continued emphasis on the relationship between hunter-gatherer activity and major episodes of environmental change , and the increasing emphasis on niche-construction theory in Mesolithic archaeology (Bishop et al. 2015;Warren et al. 2014). ...
This contribution will provide a critical overview of the other papers within this special issue of Journal of World Prehistory (Elliott and Little 2018), identifying key aspects of the discussion and assessing potentials and problems in the development of Mesolithic archaeology in Britain and Ireland as a whole since 2006 (Conneller and Warren in Mesolithic Britain and Ireland: New approaches, Stroud, Tempus, 2006a). Reflections will include how the contribution of very high-resolution analyses to Mesolithic archaeology has changed since 2006 and the scale of our interpretations. The review will also identify areas which appear to be falling from analytical focus, including the role of analogies in Mesolithic archaeology and the nature of power and social relationships in Mesolithic communities. © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
... Very little is known about Ireland's first human inhabitants before the end of the last Ice Age (ca. 11,500 to 12,000 cal BP); however, recent evidence suggests that Paleolithic human occupation had begun by at least 12,500 cal BP (13). More evidence for human activities is available from the Irish Mesolithic period (10,000 to 6000 cal BP) (14). ...
Humans have always affected their ecosystems, but finding evidence for significant and lasting changes to preindustrial landscapes is rare. We report on human-caused changes to the nitrogen cycle in Ireland in the Bronze Age, associated with intensification of agriculture and animal husbandry that resulted in long-term changes to the nitrogen isotope values of animals (wild and domesticates) during the Holocene. Major changes to inputs and cycling of soil nitrogen occurred through deforestation, land clearance and management, and more intensive animal husbandry and cereal crop cultivation in the later Bronze Age; after this time, the Irish landscape took on its current form. Within the debate concerning the onset of the Anthropocene, our data suggest that human activity in Ireland was significant enough in the Bronze Age to have long-term impact, thereby marking a profound shift in the relationship between humans and their environment.
... The use of expert knowledge in butchery mark studies has sought to achieve the confident identification of marks spanning an enormous range of time periods and geographic areas. This approach has been criticized or dismissed in cases where (a) the presence of butchery marks is unexpected due to the lack of associated artifacts (McPherron et al., 2010;Waters et al., 2011;Fariña, 2015;Dowd and Carden, 2016); (b) there are disputes over the association between faunal and cultural remains (Fillios et al., 2010); or (c) the dates fall outside the accepted range of human presence in the region (Morlan, 2003;Hockett and Jenkins, 2013;Bourgeon et al., 2017). In such cases, some researchers question the reliance on expert knowledge and the use of blind tests to identify the agents generating the bone marks. ...
Studies of bone surface modifications (BSMs) such as cut marks are crucial to our understanding of human and earlier hominin subsistence behavior. Over the last several decades, however, BSM identification has remained contentious, particularly in terms of identifying the earliest instances of hominin butchery; there has been a lack of consensus over how to identify or differentiate marks made by human and non-human actors and varying effectors. Most investigations have relied on morphology to identify butchery marks and their patterning. This includes cut marks, one of the most significant human marks. Attempts to discriminate cut marks from other types of marks have employed a variety of techniques, ranging from subjectively characterizing cut mark morphology using the naked eye, to using high-powered microscopy such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or micro-photogrammetry. More recent approaches use 3D datasets to obtain even more detailed information about mark attributes, and apply those to the fossil record. Although 3D datasets open promising new avenues for investigation, analyses of these datasets have not yet taken advantage of the full 3D surface morphology of BSM. Rather, selected cross-sectional slices of 3D scans have been used as proxies for overall shape. Here we demonstrate that 3D geometric morphometrics (GM), under the “Procrustes paradigm” and coupled with a Bayesian approach, probabilistically discriminates between marks caused by different butchery behaviors. At the same time, this approach provides a complete set of 3D morphological measurements and descriptions. Our results strengthen statistical confidence in cut mark identification and offer a novel approach that can be used to discriminate subtle differences between cut mark types in the fossil record. Furthermore, this study provides an incipient digital library with which to make future quantitative comparisons to archaeological examples, including contentious specimens that are key to understanding the earliest hominin butchery.
... The bone had been found originally in a cave in Co. Clare in 1903. When dated for the first time lately to c.10500 BC by radio-carbon, this small bone instantly extended (admittedly in a limited manner) the evidence for human presence in Ireland back by several thousand years (Dowd &Carden 2016). ...
Interdisciplinary study by 8 authors of the Geological, Geomorphological and Archaeological constraints on achieving a fuller understanding of the Mesolithic, Neolithic and Early Christian development of South-west Donegal, Ireland and adjacent offshore areas.
... Mitchell 2005;Montgomery et al. 2014). These distinctions are primarily expressed in an impoverished flora and, particularly, fauna, presenting a rather more limited range of ecological niches for the first human colonisers in the early Holocene (only limited evidence for a Palaeolithic human presence has been found in Ireland, see Dowd and Carden 2016), and impacting on the process of neolithisation. As well as presenting no large game animals other than wild boar (red deer, roe deer and aurochs all being absent), a reduced fauna is likely to have resulted in a very different Mesolithic landscape structure due to reduced browsing pressure (Warren et al. 2014). ...
This paper synthesizes and discusses the spatial and temporal patterns of archaeological sites in Ireland, spanning the Neolithic period and the Bronze Age transition (4300–1900 cal BC), in order to explore the timing and implications of the main changes that occurred in the archaeological record of that period. Large amounts of new data are sourced from unpublished developer-led excavations and combined with national archives, published excavations and online databases. Bayesian radiocarbon models and context- and sample-sensitive summed radiocarbon probabilities are used to examine the dataset. The study captures the scale and timing of the initial expansion of Early Neolithic settlement and the ensuing attenuation of all such activity—an apparent boom-and-bust cycle. The Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods are characterised by a resurgence and diversification of activity. Contextualisation and spatial analysis of radiocarbon data reveals finer-scale patterning than is usually possible with summed-probability approaches: the boom-and-bust models of prehistoric populations may, in fact, be a misinterpretation of more subtle demographic changes occurring at the same time as cultural change and attendant differences in the archaeological record.
Ancient animal bone assemblages are sources of primary data that can potentially inform on ecological restoration efforts; as a line of evidence, however, they should not be interpreted or applied uncritically. The paper considers the potential role that ancient bone assemblages can, and equally importantly cannot, play in the interests of biological conservation. While examples are drawn from the Irish Quaternary record with a focus on mammals, this contribution is not a comprehensive review of Irish vertebrates. Rather its aim is to provide an accessible summary of the conceptual underpinnings and practical aspects of the ‘long view’ for the non-specialist. The current state and status of the post-glacial mammalian record is also reviewed and a conceptual model to classify and consider different colonisation pathways is introduced. Finally, some practical aspects of the application of the long view and its bearing on current and potential conservation efforts are discussed.
This chapter examines the impact of and legacies from Nazi archaeology in Ireland as it arises from the activities of one leading archaeologist, Adolf Mahr (1887–1951). An Austrian with strong family connections to Sudetenland, he was appointed Director of the National Museum in Ireland in 1934. Mahr had a major influence on Irish archaeology and was the leading National Socialist figure in Ireland from 1934 to 1939. The chapter addresses the different views about the extent to which Mahr’s legacy can and should be seen within the context of Nazism. Mahr’s legacy in terms of Nazi archaeology is also set against a wider academic and cultural milieu stretching back to the early twentieth century, in which there were sustained links between individuals and institutions in Ireland and Germany in the field of Celtic Studies and wider political and cultural life.KeywordsAdolf MahrNazismRiverford CultureNational Museum of IrelandHarvard Archaeological Mission
The field of ergonomics studies how the human body interacts with its physical environment. Often there is a focus on hand-held tools. In the case of hominin artifacts, factors relating to ergonomics may influence their design and form, ultimately increasing effectiveness, safety, and ease of use. Although often alluded to in the literature, it is only recently that research has begun to investigate explicitly how ergonomic factors may have influenced the behavior of early humans and, in turn, the pattern of the Palaeolithic archaeological record. This chapter reviews the current understanding of how hominins (or more precisely, their anatomy) interacted with stone tools of different sizes, shapes, and types. Stone tool use and production are considered separately, because although both interact with the hominin upper limb, they invoke distinct durational and magnitudinal demands. It is demonstrated that different muscular and skeletal stresses likely influenced the design of stone tool artifacts throughout the Palaeolithic. Equally, the shape and size of stone tools can impact how the hand, and upper limb more widely, are recruited during use, and how this may have placed evolutionary demands on hominin anatomy. Accordingly, the final section of this chapter considers how over the long-term course of human evolution, lithic technology potentially interacted with both cultural evolutionary forces and biological evolutionary forces. Ultimately, the inception of stone tool technology may have played a particular role in the eventual pathway of human evolution through gene–culture co-evolution. Ergonomic issues are revealed to have likely influenced both hominin anatomy and patterns of stone tool technology through the Palaeolithic.
This is an overview of the geology and geoheritage of the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark. The geology is Carboniferous, dominated by fossiliferous Mississippian limestones and mostly coastal exposures of Pennsylvanian siliciclastics. Late Pleistocene ice sheets subsequently formed significant features in the landscape. The Cliffs of Moher is the most visited outdoor tourist attraction in Ireland and tourism is a significant income source in the Geopark area. Education and research form a key part of the Geopark programme. The Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark is managed by Clare County Council with support from Geological Survey Ireland.
Museums hold millions of objects from all over the globe, offering a unique, unparalleled resource for researchers. They provide historical snapshots of data both geographically and through time, giving researchers rare access to huge amounts of information. Recent advances in analytical techniques have allowed for even more information to be obtained from collections, from radiocarbon dating to genetic sequencing. This entry provides some background on museums and their collections, along with key examples of research that has been undertaken using both nondestructive and destructive sampling methods. It also outlines details on how collections can be used, limitations in sampling, and how to search for objects in museums across Britain. The potential for collections to assist with research is enormous, and this applies not only to national museums but also to smaller regional museums.
The aim of this paper is to interpret the occurrence of microscopic charcoal in pollen diagrams in the Lateglacial in South Norway. The methods used are palynology, radiocarbon dates and ethnographical analogy with charcoal as possible proxy data for anthropogenic activity. The possible origins of the charcoal are natural lightning-ignited fire, secondary deposition, long-distance transport and anthropogenic activities. The sixteen sites are discussed compared to their specific location. Based on the changes in nature and a discussion of the early peoples' northward migrations after the last ice age, my conclusion is that people most probably strategically used intentional fire not only at the settlement sites but also for other purposes to preserve their basis of existence. These may have included regular vegetation fire management for improving hunting and gathering, visibility and travel. Local and restricted burning of woody plants (dwarf shrubs, shrubs and trees) and herbs resulted in increased productivity and species diversity, an increase in the biomass and productivity of the animal populations. The northward-expanding trees and the more or less open forest became denser at the Continent and later in South Norway. This may have led the foragers to broaden its application to develop seasonal burning to manage the vegetation as a hunting and gathering strategy. Smoke signal fires for communication may also have been important for people living without neighbours.
Archaeology is the study of the human past from its material remains, most of which are made of or found within soils and sediments. Past human actions impact the soil record, as seen through relics of changes in soil characteristics and qualities, changes to sedimentation, and the presence of archaeological features and artefacts preserved within modern soils. Soil and sediment conditions control what survives in the burial environment, what decomposes, and consequently influence all archaeological sites, artefacts, and ecological remains. The study of these remains, through survey, excavation, and post-excavation analyses, informs our understanding of past cultures and environments, providing insight into how people have interacted with the soil, both directly, through settlement, land use, and monument construction, and indirectly, by altering local ecosystems over time. Soils can be considered repositories of traces of human action, and in turn the soils of Ireland have formed under the continuous influence of people, up to the present day, when most land in Ireland is actively managed for agriculture, forestry, extraction or construction. Consequently, all land managers are stewards of soil-bound heritage, and have the opportunity and responsibility to recognize the archaeological heritage value of land in their care, and to participate in conserving this value as a public good. This chapter reviews some of the soil evidence for Irish landscape history, the heritage content of soils, archaeological work that has helped discover that heritage, and issues surrounding the management of the cultural heritage in soils.
• The brown bear Ursus arctos was Holocene Britain's largest carnivoran and has appeared in recent rewilding discussions.
• Despite widespread interest, we know very little about the species in Holocene Britain, as few studies have been undertaken. This paper draws together information on the brown bear to examine its presence and extinction through evaluation of the archaeological and palaeontological evidence.
• Data were collected from published literature and museum catalogues. Information on the chronological date of archaeological sites, the number of bear specimens, and the body parts present were particularly sought.
• A total of 85 sites were identified, 57 are well‐dated, 25 are of uncertain date but are likely to be Holocene, and three have uncertain species identifications. Very few specimens from non‐anthropogenic sites (e.g. fens and caves) are well‐dated, skewing the data towards anthropogenic sites such as settlements and graves.
• Analysis of body part representation shows that the bear bones found in the Bronze Age, Iron Age, and most of the early medieval period are largely phalanges or metapodials, which are likely to be derived from skins. Other body parts are present during the Romano‐British, medieval, and post‐medieval period, indicating that live bears were present and were probably imported for entertainment.
• It seems that the brown bear was rare in Britain throughout the Holocene, and, based on current evidence, two extinction scenarios can be put forward: extinction in the late Neolithic/early Bronze Age, or extinction in the early medieval period.
The European brown bear (Ursus arctos) shows a particular phylogeography that has been used to illustrate the model for contraction-expansion dynamics related to glacial refugia in Southern European peninsulas. Recent studies, however, have nuanced the once generally accepted paradigm, indicating the existence of cryptic refugia for some species further north. In this paper we collected available data on chronology and mitochondrial haplotypes from Western European brown bears, adding new sequences from present day individuals from the Cantabrian (North Iberia) area, in order to reconstruct the dynamics of the species in the region. Both genetics and chronology show that the Iberian Pleistocene lineages were not the direct ancestors of the Holocene ones, the latter entering the Peninsula belatedly (around 10,000 years BP) with respect to other areas such as the British Isles. We therefore propose the existence of a cryptic refugium in continental Atlantic Europe, from where the bears would expand as the ice receded. The delay in the recolonization of the Iberian Peninsula could be due to the orographic characteristics of the Pyrenean-Cantabrian region and to the abundant presence of humans in the natural entrance to the Peninsula.
This chapter provides an overview of the Irish Sea and Atlantic Margin areas. It describes the modern physical environment (coastal geomorphology, bathymetry, seabed substrate) of the study area and outlines the past environmental changes it experienced since the Last Glacial Maximum around 20,000 years ago. The Irish Sea and Atlantic Margin represent a considerable area spanning a range of distinct coastal environments, from the indented and wave-dominated rocky coast of western Ireland to the intertidal mudflats of western Britain. The shelf too is highly variable and includes broad expanses in the Celtic Sea, bathymetric trenches in the Irish Sea and narrower fringes around the west and north coasts of Ireland. The Irish Sea and Atlantic Margin experienced repeated Pleistocene glaciations and complex associated patterns of sea-level change and continental shelf exposure driven by the interplay between global eustasy and regional isostasy.
This paper reviews the human colonisation of Ireland. Archaeological evidence suggests humans have been discontinuously present in Ireland from c. 12.8 to 12.5 ka cal BP. This date seems anomalously recent in comparison to other areas of northwest Europe, including Britain, where hominins were present from c. 0.78 to 0.99 mya. Explanations for this apparently delayed colonisation include taphonomic factors and research biases as well as human activity in the past. These factors are outlined in a comparative context. The paper examines pre-Late Glacial Maximum evidence and the (re) colonisation of the British-Irish Isles following the retreat of the Ice, synthesising archaeological and genetic data as appropriate. An important emphasis is placed on the need to consider the process of colonisation, how hunter-gatherers encounter new worlds and to examine why things happen at the times that they do.
© 2015 The Authors.The exact pattern, process and timing of the human re-colonization of northern Europe after the end of the last Ice Age remain controversial. Recent research has provided increasingly early dates for at least pioneer explorations of latitudes above 54°N in many regions, yet the far north-west of the European landmass, Scotland, has remained an unexplained exception to this pattern. Although the recently described Hamburgian artefacts from Howburn and an assemblage belonging to the arch-backed point complex from Kilmelfort Cave have established at least a sporadic human presence during earlier stages of the Lateglacial Interstadial, we currently lack evidence for Younger Dryas/Greenland Stadial 1 (GS-1) activity other than rare stray finds that have been claimed to be of Ahrensburgian affiliation but are difficult to interpret in isolation. We here report the discovery of chipped stone artefacts with technological and typological characteristics similar to those of the continental Ahrensburgian at a locality in western Scotland. A preliminary analysis of associated tephra, pollen and phytoliths, along with microstratigraphic analysis, suggest the artefacts represent one or more episodes of human activity that fall within the second half of GS-1 and the Preboreal period.
A complete reconstruction of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) is hindered by uncertainty surrounding its offshore extent and dynamic behaviour. This study addresses this problem by reconstructing the depositional history of four sediment cores taken from a series of sinuous glacigenic sediment ridges on the continental shelf west of Ireland. We present new geomorphic, sedimentary and micropaleontological data that record a maximum westward BIIS extent that was at least 80 km farther offshore from any previous estimates. The data suggests that a large ice shelf formed over parts of the shelf prior to retreat. This new data increases the areal extent of grounded BIIS ice by ~6700 km2 from previous estimates, which represents a ~3% increase in the Irish Sector of the ice sheet. Three new AMS radiocarbon dates demonstrate for the first time that the BIIS advanced to the shelf edge during last glaciation (Late Midlandian/Late Devensian), with ice advance onto the Porcupine Bank occurring after 24,720 ± 260 yr Cal. BP. Deglaciation was complete by 19,182 ± 155 yr Cal. BP, thus constraining BIIS occupation over the Porcupine Bank to less than 5500 years. Estimated retreat rates of marine-terminating ice across the shelf range from ~70 to 180 myr-1.
The exact pattern, process and timing of the human re-colonization of northern Europe after the end of the last Ice Age remain controversial. Recent research has provided increasingly early dates for at least pioneer explorations of latitudes above 54˚N in many regions, yet the far northwest of the European landmass, Scotland, has remained an unexplained exception to this pattern. Although the recently described Hamburgian artefacts from Howburn and an assemblage belonging to the arch-backed point complex from Kilmelfort Cave have established at least a sporadic human presence during earlier stages of the Lateglacial Interstadial, we currently lack evidence for Younger Dryas/Greenland Stadial 1 (GS-1) activity other than rare stray finds that have been claimed to be of Ahrensburgian affiliation but are difficult to interpret in isolation. We here report the discovery of chipped stone artefacts with technological and typological characteristics similar to those of the continental Ahrensburgian at a locality in western Scotland. A preliminary analysis of associated tephra, pollen and phytoliths, along with microstratigraphic analysis, suggest the artefacts represent one or more episodes of human activity that fall within the second half of GS-1 and the Preboreal period.
Humans respond in a variety of ways to climate and environmental change. They may adapt, migrate, evolve new technologies, or experience breakdowns in their socio-cultural and economic systems. Working group 4 of the INTIMATE COST action ES0907 aims to summarise and synthesise the effects of climate changes from 60 000–8000 years ago on ecosystems, including animals and humans. The study of ecosystem and human responses and their causes requires close collaboration between archaeologists, zoologists, palaeoecologists, and geomorphologists. An INTIMATE workshop in Ghent, Belgium (November 6–7, 2012) focused on stimulating the integration of archaeological and palaeoecological approaches and methodology to improve reconstructions of ecosystem and human responses to climate changes in the full- and late-glacial and early-Holocene periods in Europe. Six main topics were delimited. High quality chronological control and accurate correlation is crucial for precisely relating ecosystem responses to climate changes and the ensuing human responses. The palaeoecological tool-box should contain both biotic proxies and physical proxies that can be applied flexibly to data collection during this period. Geomorphological and palynological studies reveal direct or indirect climate impacts and environmental changes at regional-scales. The geographical scale of human response will depend on the questions being asked. Humans depend almost exclusively on their local environment, so the impacts of climate changes on both terrestrial and wetland habitats need to be reconstructed at local ecosystem scales in relation to habitation sites. An array of high quality local data-sets across Europe that integrate palaeoenvironmental and archaeological records can be synthesised and examined for causal relationships in time and space. Emerging geographical patterns of climate and environmental change will give an overview of patterns of resilience and vulnerability of human societies to these changes. Gaps in knowledge will become apparent. Humans are a top predator and thus changes affecting the food chain, particularly in keystone prey composition, will be important to their survival. Integrative studies carried out at a variety of spatial and temporal scales encourage a development towards a better understanding of the varying resilience and sensitivity of ecosystems and human societies to palaeoclimate changes.
The IntCal09 and Marine09 radiocarbon calibration curves have been revised utilizing newly available and updated data sets from 14C measurements on tree rings, plant macrofossils, speleothems, corals, and foraminifera. The calibration curves were derived from the data using the random walk model (RWM) used to generate IntCal09 and Marine09, which has been revised to account for additional uncertainties and error structures. The new curves were ratified at the 21st International Radiocarbon conference in July 2012 and are available as Supplemental Material at www.radiocarbon.org. The database can be accessed at http://intcal.qub.ac.uk/intcal13/. © 2013 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona.
This paper examines several fossil bear bones from Upper Paleolithic deposits recovered from Belgian caves. The bones exhibit traces of ochre. The paper examines the archaeological and archaeozoological data in detail, comparing the finds with other sites containing fossil bear remains and identifying patterns suggesting purposeful staining of bear bones. These patterns are compared with ethnographic examples of bear ceremonialism. On the basis of similarities found in these analyses, the authors argue that a proto bear-ceremonialism existed during the Upper Paleolithic.
Antlers and bones of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus L.) are the most frequently found vertebrate remains from the Late Glacial deposits of Southern Scandinavia. The Danish collection now consists of more than 350 specimens and of these 47 have been radiocarbon dated extending the range of occurrence in the area with ca. 1300 14C yr. Thus the first occurrence is pushed back to ca. 12 500 14C yr BP (late Bølling chronozone) while the youngest date lies at ca. 9200 14C yr BP (late Preboreal chronozone) establishing that the reindeer survives well into the Holocene. The seasonal dates of the reindeer indicate for the first human occupation (the Havelte group from the Bølling period) a summer, autumn and early winter occupation, with reindeer, as well as man, apparently being absent during the coldest winter months. Finally, it is shown that Southern Scandinavia acted as a calving area throughout the Late Glacial and Early Holocene thus discrediting the North–South model of reindeer groups moving from a wintering area in Southern Scandinavia to a calving area in the foothills of the North European plain.
The origins of flora and fauna that are only found in Ireland and Iberia, but which are absent from intervening countries, is one of the enduring questions of biogeography. As Southern French, Iberian and Irish populations of the land snail Cepaea nemoralis sometimes have a similar shell character, we used mitochondrial phylogenies to begin to understand if there is a shared "Lusitanian" history. Although much of Europe contains snails with A and D lineages, by far the majority of Irish individuals have a lineage, C, that in mainland Europe was only found in a restricted region of the Eastern Pyrenees. A past extinction of lineage C in the rest of Europe cannot be ruled out, but as there is a more than 8000 year continuous record of Cepaea fossils in Ireland, the species has long been a food source in the Pyrenees, and the Garonne river that flanks the Pyrenees is an ancient human route to the Atlantic, then we suggest that the unusual distribution of the C lineage is most easily explained by the movements of Mesolithic humans. If other Irish species have a similarly cryptic Lusitanian element, then this raises the possibility of a more widespread and significant pattern.
Mount Sandel has long been an iconic site for the Irish Mesolithic, having produced evidence for a sequence of occupation huts and pits and the earliest radiocarbon dates for the Mesolithic on the island. This paper presents details of a recent programme of redating whereby the application of Bayesian modelling has confirmed the early date for the site but also helped to refine its internal chronology. The major phase of hut building at Mount Sandel took place within a much shorter period of time than had previously been thought, perhaps only a generation or two. The dating of pits of differing sizes suggests that many of them were created during other slightly later visits to the area. The implications of the dating programme for the place of Mount Sandel in the Irish Mesolithic, and for the chronology of the period and its relations with that on the British mainland, are discussed.
The giant deer, Megaloceros giganteus, is best known from its fossil occurrences in Ireland around 11 000 years ago, but has a history across Europe and Western Asia spanning 300 000–400 000 years. This paper reports a biometric study of variation and evolution in the giant deer through its history. Most early populations were as large in body size as the Irish sample, but some were distincdy smaller and others had markedly shorter limbs. Thickened skull and mandibular bones, especially marked in males, are constant throughout die species' history. Some earlier populations had anders which were relatively smaller, more upright and differing in other details from the celebrated Irish specimens. Observed variation in body and antler form is discussed in terms of changing palaeoenvironments. Interpretation of the fighting or display roles of M. giganteus antlers needs to take account of their differing forms through time.
Much of Ireland's Pleistocene and Early Holocene mammalian faunas are derived from a series of late 19th/early 20th century cave excavations. In many instances it would appear that the deposits containing these faunal remains were disturbed. This project assessed the chronological range of the mammalian species present in the caves using 14C dating, in particular accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). The research has shown that (1) a wide range of mammals colonised Ireland in the period between at least 45 ka and 20 ka, with some elements surviving until close to the Last Glacial Maximum; (2) a more restricted range of species re-colonised Ireland during the Lateglacial period, with evidence for a slightly more temperature fauna being replaced by an Arctic fauna at about 11 ka; (3) certain elements of Ireland's Holocene fauna may have survived through from the Lateglacial into the Holocene; (4) there is a lack of evidence for red deer, Cervus elaphus, being present in the Early Holocene in Ireland; and (5) horse is only documented in the Irish Holocene from 4 ka. The paper also discusses the implications of the Quaternary Fauna Project for the Late Pleistocene of Ireland, the mechanism and period of colonisation of Ireland as well as the introduction of domesticates in the Mid Holocene.
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are among those species most susceptible to the rapidly changing arctic climate, and their survival is of global concern. Despite this, little is known about polar bear species history. Future conservation strategies would significantly benefit from an understanding of basic evolutionary information, such as the timing and conditions of their initial divergence from brown bears (U. arctos) or their response to previous environmental change.
We used a spatially explicit phylogeographic model to estimate the dynamics of 242 brown bear and polar bear matrilines sampled throughout the last 120,000 years and across their present and past geographic ranges. Our results show that the present distribution of these matrilines was shaped by a combination of regional stability and rapid, long-distance dispersal from ice-age refugia. In addition, hybridization between polar bears and brown bears may have occurred multiple times throughout the Late Pleistocene.
The reconstructed matrilineal history of brown and polar bears has two striking features. First, it is punctuated by dramatic and discrete climate-driven dispersal events. Second, opportunistic mating between these two species as their ranges overlapped has left a strong genetic imprint. In particular, a likely genetic exchange with extinct Irish brown bears forms the origin of the modern polar bear matriline. This suggests that interspecific hybridization not only may be more common than previously considered but may be a mechanism by which species deal with marginal habitats during periods of environmental deterioration.
OxCal is a widely used software package for the calibration of radiocarbon dates and the statistical analysis of ¹⁴ C and other chronological information. The program aims to make statistical methods easily available to researchers and students working in a range of different disciplines. This paper will look at the recent and planned developments of the package. The recent additions to the statistical methods are primarily aimed at providing more robust models, in particular through model averaging for deposition models and through different multiphase models. The paper will look at how these new models have been implemented and explore the implications for researchers who might benefit from their use. In addition, a new approach to the evaluation of marine reservoir offsets will be presented. As the quantity and complexity of chronological data increase, it is also important to have efficient methods for the visualization of such extensive data sets and methods for the presentation of spatial and geographical data embedded within planned future versions of OxCal will also be discussed.
Ireland's First Settlers tells the story of their Archaeology and the search for the first continuous phase of Ireland's human settlement. The story is embedded in how the island of Ireland, its position,distinct landscape and ecology impacted on how Ireland was colonised. it also explores how these first settlers evolved their technologies and lifeways to suit the narrow range of abundant resources that were available. It concludes with discussions on the landscape should be searched and sites excavated. it concludes by asking what we really know about the thoughts and life the people themselves as well as what happened when farming was introduced
The British Palaeolithic provides the first academic synthesis of the entire British Palaeolithic, from the earliest occupation (currently understood to be around 980,000 years ago) to the end of the Ice Age. Landscape and ecology form the canvas for an explicitly interpretative approach aimed at understanding the how different hominin societies addressed the issues of life at the edge of the Pleistocene world.
OxCal is a widely used software package for the calibration of radiocarbon dates and the statistical analysis of C-14 and other chronological information. The program aims to make statistical methods easily available to researchers and students working in a range of different disciplines. This paper will look at the recent and planned developments of the package. The recent additions to the statistical methods are primarily aimed at providing more robust models, in particular through model averaging for deposition models and through different multiphase models. The paper will look at how these new models have been implemented and explore the implications for researchers who might benefit from their use. In addition, a new approach to the evaluation of marine reservoir offsets will be presented. As the quantity and complexity of chronological data increase, it is also important to have efficient methods for the visualization of such extensive data sets and methods for the presentation of spatial and geographical data embedded within planned future versions of OxCal will also be discussed.
Aim
We used a combination of modelling and genetic approaches to investigate whether Pinguicula grandiflora and Saxifraga spathularis , two species that exhibit disjunct Lusitanian distributions, may have persisted through the Last Glacial Maximum ( LGM , c . 21 ka) in separate northern and southern refugia.
Location
Northern and eastern Spain and south‐western Ireland.
Methods
Palaeodistribution modelling using Maxent was used to identify putative refugial areas for both species at the LGM , as well as to estimate their distributions during the Last Interglacial ( LIG , c . 120 ka). Phylogeographical analysis of samples from across both species' ranges was carried out using one chloroplast and three nuclear loci for each species.
Results
The palaeodistribution models identified very limited suitable habitat for either species during the LIG , followed by expansion during the LGM . A single, large refugium across northern Spain and southern France was postulated for P. grandiflora . Two suitable regions were identified for S. spathularis : one in northern Spain, corresponding to the eastern part of the species' present‐day distribution in Iberia, and the other on the continental shelf off the west coast of Brittany, south of the limit of the British–Irish ice sheet. Phylogeographical analyses indicated extremely reduced levels of genetic diversity in Irish populations of P. grandiflora relative to those in mainland Europe, but comparable levels of diversity between Irish and mainland European populations of S. spathularis , including the occurrence of private hapotypes in both regions.
Main conclusions
Modelling and phylogeographical analyses indicate that P. grandiflora persisted through the LGM in a southern refugium, and achieved its current Irish distribution via northward dispersal after the retreat of the ice sheets. Although the results for S. spathularis are more equivocal, a similar recolonization scenario also seems the most likely explanation for the species' current distribution.
This paper is based on the 2009 Europa lecture which concentrated on the issues surrounding the Early Holocene colonisation of Ireland and placed it both in a broader European context as well as asking why the initial settlement of Ireland should take place so late. It also reconsidered the reasons why there was a significant change in technology within the Irish Mesolithic. This paper suggests that over-emphasis has been placed on the Irish ‘Early’–Later Mesolithic change which had been thought to take place at a very specific point in time. Instead it is suggested that changes began to take place soon after settlement began in Ireland and that many of the classic Mesolithic type fossils, most notably microliths, began to vanish, perhaps around or just after 9000 years cal bp. It seems preferable to redefine the chronology of the Irish Mesolithic into two main phases the EARLIER and LATER Mesolithic with an, as yet undefined, chronological boundary between 8800 and 8600 cal bp. At the same time it recognises that there are significant changes (facies) within each of the major phases, some of which could even be regional. It should also be noted that not all of the facies need necessarily be associated with a distinct range of obvious type fossils.
Following the Creswellian recolonization of England in the 13th millennium BP (uncalibrated), Scotland and Ireland were among the last regions of Europe to be occupied by humans — by at least 9000 BP. In both cases, there is considerable debate concerning (1) the precise nature of the environments and resources at the time of human entry; (2) the timing of the colonizations (and, in the case of Ireland, even its mode: across a terminal Last Glacial land bridge or by boat); (3) the nature of the Mesolithic human adaptations to these ‘new’ habitats; and (4) the nature of variability among artifact assemblages among regions (coastal vs interior, insular vs mainland, lowland vs upland) and through time in these two countries. This chapter provides a review of the latest research and thought on the peopling of these farthest northwestern ‘outposts’ of the European Mesolithic world.
This chapter considers the chronological evidence from the British Isles for Later Upper Palaeolithic recolonisation as revealed by new ultrafiltered radiocarbon age determinations on bone collagen. Using Bayesian modelling, subtle differences in age and duration of occupation are apparent between find-spots, and for the first time it is possible to demonstrate the occupation of two areas (Cheddar Gorge and the Wye Valley) as beginning before the sudden warming of the Lateglacial Interstadial. We associate a Final Magdalenian (‘Creswellian’) with this recolonisation and show that this technology had a longer time-span than has previously been allowed—lasting through most of Greenland Interstadial 1e (Bølling).
The exploitation of large mammals, particularly large herbivores, has dominated perceptions of Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic subsistence behaviour in north-western Europe. This paper critically reviews the evidence for the exploitation of a complementary resource which has received little attention within the archaeological literature — carnivores and other fur-bearing mammals. Evidence for exploitation of individual species is described and discussed. A model is then developed to explain the apparent expansion of the subsistence base to include a wide range of fur-bearing mammals during the Lateglacial and Mesolithic. This paper concludes by arguing that although the use of carnivore meat and pelts cannot be viewed as a dominant trend in European hunter-gatherer subsistence practices, their contribution to hunter-gatherer economies cannot be ignored.
During the last glacial the ice sheet that subsumed most of Britain, Ireland and the North Sea attained its maximum extent by 27 ka BP and with an ice volume sufficient to raise global sea level by ca. 2.5 m when it melted. We reconstruct the demise of this British-Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) and present palaeoglaciological maps of retreat stages between 27 – 15 ka BP. The whole land area was investigated using remote sensing data and we present maps of moraines, meltwater channels, eskers, and drumlins and a methodology of how to interpret and bring them together. For the continental shelf, numerous large moraines were discovered recording an extensive pattern of retreat stretching from SW Ireland to the Shetland Isles. From an integration of this new mapping of glacial geomorphology (> 26,000 landforms) with previously published evidence, compiled in the BRITICE database, we derive a pattern of retreat for the whole BIIS. We review and compile relevant dates (881 examples) that constrain the timing of retreat. All data are held within a Geographic Information System (GIS), and are deciphered to produce a best-estimate of the combined pattern and timing of retreat.
A 7.6-m core recovered from Lough Inchiquin, western Ireland provides evidence for rapid and long-term climate change from the Late Glacial period to the Mid-Holocene. We determined percentage of carbonate, total organic matter, mineralogy, and δ18Ocalcite values to provide the first high-resolution record of climate variability for this period in Ireland. Following deglaciation, rapid climate amelioration preceded large increases in GISP2 δ18Oice values by ∼2300 yr. The Oldest Dryas (15,100 to 14,500 cal yr B.P.) Late Glacial event is documented in this record as a decrease in δ18Ocalcite values. Brief warming at ∼12,700 cal yr B.P. was followed by characteristic Younger Dryas cold and dry climate conditions. A rapid increase in δ18Ocalcite values at ∼10,500 cal yr B.P. marked the onset of Boreal warming in western Ireland. The 8200 cal yr B.P. event is represented by a brief cooling in our record. Prior to general warming, a larger and previously undescribed climate anomaly between 7300 and 6700 cal yr B.P. is characterized by low δ18Ocalcite values with high-frequency variability.
Radiocarbon dating and understanding the human record during the EUP The Ancient Human Occupation of Britain
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Flint flake, probably of Palaeolithic age, from Mell townland, near Drogheda, Co. Louth, Ireland
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