I. Turk’s research while affiliated with Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts and other places
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Zbirka 134 orinjasjenskih koščenih konic z masivno bazo iz Potočke zijalke je po 90 letih od odkritja še vedno največja takšna zbirka v Evropi. Konice, ki so bile večkrat predmet različnih raziskav, so bile najdene v dveh plasteh na dveh lokacijah z različnim bivalnim in sedimentacijskim mikrookoljem. Glede na vzdolžni presek konic sta z velikim številom primerkov v obeh plasteh in na obeh lokacijah zastopana dva različna tipa konic: ploščat in vretenast, ki se razlikujeta tudi po tehničnih lastnostih. S po enim primerkom je zastopanih nekaj monotipov, med katerimi je tudi t. i. tip mladečke konice. Sto sedemnajst konic obeh glavnih tipov je tokrat prvič sistematično analiziranih z uporabo standardnih parametričnih in neparametričnih statističnih postopkov na podlagi kombinacij 20 znakov: 9 metričnih in 11 opisnih. Glede na izsledke analiz je predlagana vrsta novosti o domnevnih razvojno-tehničnih izboljšavah konic, načinu nasaditve, popravilu poškodb, izdelavi nastavkov za večje konice in pomenu zarez na robovih nekaterih konic. Avtorja ugotavljata, da gre pri tipu vretenastih konic Potočke zijalke za tehnično izpopolnjeno obliko konice z masivno bazo, ki si upravičeno zasluži naziv konica Potočka zijalka ali olševska konica.
In 1995, an unusually perforated femur of a juvenile cave bear was found in the Divje babe I Palaeolithic cave site in Slovenia. The supposition that it could be a flute led to heated debates. According to its archaeological context and chronostratigraphic position, if made by humans, it could only be attributed to Neanderthals. The crucial question was related to the origin of the holes. These could only have been made either by a carnivore or by human intervention. Results of experimental testing of both hypotheses do not support a carnivore origin of the holes. Furthermore, the method of artificial creation of the holes, which left no conventional traces of manufacture, was defined. Computed tomography revealed traces, which could be the result of human agency and called into serious question the origin of some features previously declared to be solely of carnivore origin. Recent musical experiments performed on a replica of the reconstructed musical instrument revealed its great musical capability. Together with some other findings from Divje babe I, the Mousterian musical instrument offers a unique insight into the Neanderthals’ symbolic behaviour and their cognitive abilities. The multidisciplinary results of comprehensive analyses of this exceptional find are first presented here together with its chronostratigraphic, palaeo-environmental, and archaeological contexts.
The contribution is a reply to the article written by Cajus G. Diedrich and published online on the web site of the
Royal Society Open Science. Diedrich’s article is fraught with factual errors and underestimations of the archaeological and musicological findings. As such, it may cause great scientific damage and should thus not remain uncommented. Only the most prominent errors are addressed.
V članku je prikazan nov sedimentološki-klimatski model za razlago avtohtonih klastičnih sedimentov v mlajšepleistocenskem najdišču Divje babe I v Sloveniji. Analizirani sedimenti pripadajo kisikovi izotopski stopnji 1, 3 in 5 (OIS 1, OIS 3, OIS 5). Poudarek analize je na padavinah, ki smo jih razložili na podlagi količine avtigenih strukturnih agregatov v sedimentih. Ugotovitve smo podprli s kvantitativno analizo reliefno korodiranih klastov, ki pomenijo korozijo jamskega svoda, in izjedkanih kosti, ki pomenijo korozijo v jamskih tleh. Raziskali smo tudi odnos med klimo in jamskim medvedom ter neandertalcem in klimo, in sicer na podlagi množičnih fosilnih ostankov ter najdb artefaktov. Vse analize smo naredili na podlagi trodimenzionalnega vzorčenja, tj. v horizontalni in vertikalni smeri. Vzorčili smo 65 profilov na površini 65 m2. Vsak profil je imel 35 arbitrarnih stratigrafskih enot (režnjev) s podatki o agregatih, izjedkanih kosteh, fosilnih ostankih in artefaktih. Pri razlagi sedimentnih karakteristik, ki nakazujejo klimatske parametre, smo dosledno upoštevali holocenske standarde za najdišče. Ugotovili smo, da je bila klima v OIS 3 hladnejša in bolj vlažna kot v OIS 1 in OIS 5. Na klimatsko spremembo v OIS 3 so se z večjim obiskom jame odzvali ljudje in živali, vendar ne hkrati. Sprememba klime se je na mikrolokaciji jame domnevno pokazala predvsem v podaljšanem trajanju snežne odeje. The article presents a new sedimentary-climatic model for explaining autochthonous clastic sediment in the Upper Pleistocene site, Divje babe I, Slovenia. The sediment analysed here was deposited during Oxygen Isotope Stages 1, 3 and 5 (OIS, OIS 3, OIS 5). The stress is on precipitation, which we explained on the basis of the quantity of authigenic structural aggregates in the sediment. We supported the results with quantitative analysis of clasts with etched surface, which represent corrosion of the cave ceiling, and etched bones, which represent corrosion on the cave ground. We also analysed the relation between climate and cave bears, and Neanderthals and climate, on the basis of mass fossil remains and finds of artefacts. All analyses were made on the basis of three-dimensional sampling, i.e., in horizontal and vertical directions. We sampled 65 profiles over an area of 65 m2. Each profile had 35 arbitrary stratigraphic units (splits) with data on aggregates, etched bones, fossil remains and artefacts. In explaining the sediment characteristics that point to climatic parameters, we consistently took into account the Holocene standards for the site. We found that the climate in OIS 3 was colder and damper than in OIS 1 and OIS 5. People and animals responded to the climatic changes in OIS 3 with more visits to the cave, but not at the same time. The climatic change was presumably reflected in the microlocation of the cave mainly by the longer duration of snow cover.
The clastic sediments in the Divje babe I cave consist mainly of autochthonous terrigenous dolomite clasts, allochthonous terrigenous non-carbonate grains, and biogenic fragments, especially remains of the cave bear. These components are frequently cemented by apatite and subordinate calcite cement into aggregates (concretions) and into breccia. The formation and transformation of cave sediments were affected by climate and to some extent by the duration of sediment exposure to surface conditions on the cave floor. Congelifracts, a product of frost action, and cavernously corroded clasts, a result of corrosion by condensation and percolating water, were formed before being covered by younger sediments. Thus, the distributions of congelifracts and cavernously corroded clasts can be used to interpret climate changes in the period of 39.7 to 116.1 ka, with at least four hiatuses lasting from 9.0 to 39.7 ky. Based on the relative abundance of congelifracts, the palaeoclimate record can be correlated with global temperature changes established by oxygen isotopes δ18O from the Greenland ice. The succession C (cold)–H (humid), layers 2 to 11–12, is correlated with the lower part of OIS 3 and OIS 4, while the succession T (temperate)–D (dry), layers 12–13 to 23, is correlated with OIS 5.
Different grain size fractions of clastic sediments (40–65, 0.5–3, and < 0.5 mm) from the Divje babe I cave were chemically analysed. In the chemical composition of the medium and fine fractions, four groups of variables were revealed: 1) MgO, LOI, TOT/C — dolomite, autochthonous terrigenous component; 2) P2O5, TOT/S, Mo, Sr, Cu, CaO, and so on — bones/apatite cement, biochemical chemical components; 3) SiO2, Al2O3, REE, Rb, Zr, K2O, Th, TiO2, Fe2O3, and so on — non-carbonate, allochthonous terrigenous components; and 4) U (Cd, MnO) — more mobile chemical components. Vertical distributions of P2O5, SiO2, and U in the fine fraction suggest five geochemical boundaries. The origin of P2O5 is attributed mainly to the cave bear. A negative correlation between the content of SiO2 and cavernously corroded clasts (indicating a humidity), indicates a dominant aeolian transport of non-carbonate material into the cave. Vertical distribution of U indicates the migration of U and its enrichment in the deeper parts of the sedimentary sequence. The mobilization of U was influenced by the duration of exposure of the sediments on the cave floor. The chemical characteristics of non-carbonate material indicate that source rocks probably belong to the Triassic volcanic, volcanogenic and terrigenous sedimentary rocks.
Archaeological evidence for wind musical instruments made by modern humans has been well established from the Upper Palaeolithic in Europe. Musical instruments evidently made by Neanderthals have not been found so far. The most controversial object is a juvenile cave bear femur with two complete holes, found in 1995 in the Middle Palaeolithic layers of the Cave Divje babe I, Slovenia. The bone was interpreted as a possible Neanderthal ‘flute’, but some scholars have firmly rejected this hypothesis on the basis of taphonomic observations, suggesting a carnivore origin for the holes. Here, we show the results of X‐ray computed micro‐tomography (mCT) performed on the Divje babe I ‘flute’. Our analyses demonstrate that there were originally four holes, possibly made with pointed stones and bone tools. Most surface modifications near the holes, previously interpreted as effects of carnivore gnawing, are post‐depositional marks. Furthermore, a thin layer has been removed around one of the complete holes, producing a flat surface, possibly to facilitate perforation. The new data show that a Neanderthal manufacture of the object cannot be ruled out.
Citations (23)
... Within both parts, sediments reflect major or minor millennial climate changes defined by temperature and humidity (I. Turk et al. 2001;2005;J. Turk, M. Turk 2010;Skaberne et al. 2014;2015a;2015b;Blackwell et al. 2009). ...
... If so, the oldest known potential flute, at least 50 ka old (perhaps 58 ± 3.4 ka) from Divje Babe I Cave, Slovenia [135] could also be attributed to DNA-driven progression induced by an extreme cooling or warming. ...
... Among them, d'Errico was the only one who micro-scoped the find and explained the findings of the microscopy in accordance with his previous estimate [12], published in Antiquity in 1998 [17][18][19]. I. Turk with colleagues [10,[20][21][22][23][24][25] (see also [26]) continuously argumentatively claimed that some of their statements, regarding their explanations about the origin of the holes and damages on the perforated bone, are incorrect [13,14,16,[27][28][29]. To obtain more accurate explanation of the find, I. Turk and colleagues performed and published a series of experiments on perforating fresh brown bear femur diaphyses, using models of wolf, hyena, and bear dentitions (Figure 2), as well as replicas of Palaeolithic tools that were present in various Mousterian levels in DB [20,21,30,31]. ...
... Unlike Divje babe I, Poto cka zijalka and Mokri ska jama contain only Upper Palaeolithic stratigraphic units. The Upper Palaeolithic bone tools and lithic formal tools from these sites have been described previously (Brodar, 1960(Brodar, , 1985Brodar and Brodar, 1983;Turk and Kavur, 1997;Odar, 2008a,b;Turk, 2014). ...
... It was interpreted as a bone bitten by a carnivore (D' Errico et al., 1998). However, experimental testing has demonstrated that none of the cave bear, wolf or hyena dentition could punch two holes without cracking and splitting the bone (Turk et al., 2001). Nevertheless this argument was not accepted by the supporters of non-human origin of the Divje Babe artifact (Morley, 2006). ...
... Two additional points derive from the recent excavations at the end of the 1990s (Pohar, 2004), while one point has been re-discovered in recent years in the Groß collection from 1928, housed at the Landesmuseum für K€ arnten in Klagenfurt, Austria (Brodar, 2000). Two main morphological types of point have been recognized (Turk, 2002(Turk, , 2005Odar, 2008a): 1) lanceolate points with straight, or nearly-straight, convergent lateral margins, without any marked discontinuity between the base and the mid-shaft, and 2) spindle-shaped points with a marked discontinuity between the base and the mid-shaft. Cross-sections vary from flat or flat-oval to oval. ...
... years B.C.), which are mostly difficult to set apart macroscopically. Turk (2003) therefore substituted the ad hoc delineated geological layers with new basic stratigraphic units, the so-called facies A to C. The substitution is based on the analysis of the vertical distribution of structural aggregates (0.5 -3 mm) and bone remains (> 3 mm) along several profiles and in two blocks of sediments. More than 90 (Nelson & Ku, 1997;Lau et al., 1997;Turk et al., 2001;2006;Blackwell et al., in press) available ESR and 14 C (AMS) dates have shown that facies A and B correspond to the Oxygen Isotopic Stage 3 (= OIS 3; i.e. ...
... Previous attempts have failed to identify patterned variation amongst split-and massive-based points (Albrecht et al., 1972;Clément and Leroy-Prost, 1977;Knecht, 1991;Turk, 2002Turk, , 2003Turk, , 2005. The methodology and the analytical tools selected to study the armatures' shape are two factors at the root of this inconclusive outcome. ...
... The oldest bone flute might be from a Neanderthal site of Divje Babe in western Slovenia (Turk et al. 1997;Atema 2004;Turk et al. 2018). This is widely known as the 'Neanderthal flute' and has attracted much publicity and controversy (Morley 2006;Atema 2014). ...
... In Layer 8 and deeper layers, numerous borers or becs were discovered that had lost their tip of the bec. Unambiguous evidence for human worship of cave bear skulls also occurs during deposition of Layer 8, analogous to the much younger example from Chauvet (Brodar, 1999;Bastiani and Turk, 1997;Bastiani et al., 2000;Turk and Bastiani, 2000;Blackwell et al., 2008a). ...