Edge damage on Châtelperronian points from Quinçay(France)

The Châtelperronian is a technological industry dating to the crucial time period in which Neanderthal populations got replaced by early modern human populations during the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic transition. The industry has been subject to much debate due to the uncertainty regarding its makers. La-Grande-Roche-de-la-Plématrie, Quinçay, France, is an important site because of the rare preservation of the Châtelperronian throughout multiple layers. These deposits have been protected for ca. 25,000 years due to the collapse of large limestone slabs, which has stopped the layers from mixing with later occupations. The Châtelperronian points (CP points) yielding from these layers show significant edge damage, which questions whether they can be considered as in situ or whether the assemblage has been redistributed by site formation processes. This thesis aims at gaining a better insight into whether the Châtelperronian points have been deposited at separate occupational...Show moreThe Châtelperronian is a technological industry dating to the crucial time period in which Neanderthal populations got replaced by early modern human populations during the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic transition. The industry has been subject to much debate due to the uncertainty regarding its makers. La-Grande-Roche-de-la-Plématrie, Quinçay, France, is an important site because of the rare preservation of the Châtelperronian throughout multiple layers. These deposits have been protected for ca. 25,000 years due to the collapse of large limestone slabs, which has stopped the layers from mixing with later occupations. The Châtelperronian points (CP points) yielding from these layers show significant edge damage, which questions whether they can be considered as in situ or whether the assemblage has been redistributed by site formation processes. This thesis aims at gaining a better insight into whether the Châtelperronian points have been deposited at separate occupational periods, or whether they have been subjected to movement by site formation processes disturbing the original position of deposition. Quantitative analysis is conducted which describes and documents the degree of edge damage present on the artefacts from three layers in the front of the cave.Show less

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Edge damage on Châtelperronian points from Quinçay(France)