Archaeology of the eastern Châtelperronian. Technology, chronology and implications concerning the acculturation hypothesis at the transition from Middle to Upper Palaeolithic

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Harald Floss
• Subject Area: Prehistory and World Archaeology
• Term: from 2019 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 418786763

This research project focuses on the lithic technology of the eastern Châtelperronian, a spatiotemporal unit at the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition. Though its the main distribution lies in Western France, the most distinct indications for the existence of so-called “culturally modern” artefacts in the Châtelperronian were found in sites of Eastern France, mainly in Grotte du Renne (Arcy-sur-Cure). Among those artefacts are ornaments, osseous tools and pigments. At Grotte du Renne, these artefacts were associated with human remains, which are attributed to Neanderthals. However, the integrity of the stratigraphy of this old-excavated site is often criticized and there exists no comparable association of Neanderthal remains with culturally modern artefacts at any other site.This is why, for many years, my research team has been focusing on Eastern France, to test the formation of the Châtelperronian at a site close to Arcy. Due to its relative proximity to the Swabian Jura and its old Aurignacian, this region also offers the opportunity to test existing acculturation hypotheses for the Châtelperronian and the Aurignacian and hence the question of a possible contact between Neanderthals and Anatomically Modern Humans. Central to this question is the site Germolles, which has been studied by my team for many years. It is the easternmost known site of the Châtelperronian. However, the existence of Châtelperronian points made of tertiary flint of the Mont-lès-Étrelles region hints to an extension of the Châtelperronian even further to the East. In this region, the two sites Trou de la Mère Clochette and Frettes (both Haute-Saône) exhibit artefacts with a Châtelperronian affinity.My team has also been working at the eponym site of the Châtelperronian, Châtelperron (Allier), where there exists an ongoing debate about the possibility of an interstratification of Châtelperronian and Aurignacian layers. However, because of the old age of the excavation, this question has not yet been settled.In the course of our project, we plan to map out a broad picture of the eastern Châtelperronian. This includes an overview of the lithic and osseous technology and typology, the similarities of the sites inside the research area, and a comparison between these sites and those of the western Châtelperronian. For this purpose, we plan to record and analyse the artefacts of the eastern sites Grotte du Renne, St Vallérin, St Désert und St Aubin (Bourgogne), as well as the sites of the Haute-Saône (Frettes, Trou de la Mère Clochette, artefacts from private collectors). By conducting a small-area sondage at Châtelperron we try to contribute to answering the question of a possible interstratification of Aurignacian and Châtelperronian at this site. Through a technological comparison with the oldest Aurignacian of the Swabian Jura we try to estimate, if a contact between the Châtelperronian and Aurignacian populations seems possible or can be ruled out.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants