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- No direct evidence for the presence of Nubian Levallois technology and its association with Neanderthals at Shukbah CavePublication . Hallinan, Emily; Barzilai, Omry; Bicho, Nuno; Cascalheira, João; Demidenko, Yuri; Goder-Goldberger, Mae; Hovers, Erella; Marks, Anthony; Oron, Maya; Rose, JeffreyBlinkhorn et al.present a reanalysis of fossil and lithic material from Garrod’s 1928 excavation at Shukbah Cave, identifying the presence of Nubian Levallois cores and points in direct association with a Neanderthal molar. Te authors argue that this demonstrates the Nubian reduction strategy forms a part of the wider Middle Palaeolithic lithic repertoire, therefore its role as a cultural marker for Homo sapiens population movements is invalid. We raise the following four major concerns: (1) we question the assumptions made by the authors about the integrity and homogeneity of the Layer D assemblage and (2) the implications of this for the association of the Neanderthal tooth with any specifc component of the assemblage, (3) we challenge the authors’ attribution of lithic material to Nubian Levallois technology according to its strict defnition, and (4) we argue that the comparative data presented derive from a biased sample of sites. Tese points critically undermine the article’s conclusion that Shukbah’s Neanderthals made Nubian cores and thus the argument that Neanderthals might have made Nubian technology elsewhere is unsubstantiated.
- Neanderthal palaeoecology in the late Middle Palaeolithic of western Iberia: a stable isotope analysis of ungulate teeth from Lapa do Picareiro (Portugal)Publication . Carvalho, Milena; Jones, Emily Lena; Ellis, M. Grace; Cascalheira, João; Bicho, Nuno; Meiggs, David; Benedetti, Michael; Friedl, Lukas; Haws, JonathanAdaptation to Late Pleistocene climate change is an oft‐cited potential contributor to Neanderthal disappearance in Eurasia. Accordingly, research on Neanderthal behaviour – including subsistence strategies, mobility, lithic technology, raw material procurement and demography – often focuses on linking changes observable in the archaeological record to specific phases of climate and environmental change. However, these correspondences are often tenuous because palaeoclimatic and archaeological records are rarely available on the same scale. In Iberia, a critical location for understanding the demise of Neanderthals, some research indicates that Neanderthal populations were unable to recover from environmental degradations known as Heinrich Events, while other studies suggest that enclaves of Neanderthal populations survived for several millennia longer in refugial zones. Here, we present a palaeoenvironmental reconstruction study using analysis of δ13C and δ18O of herbivore tooth enamel recovered from two Mousterian deposits at Lapa do Picareiro, a site located in Portuguese Estremadura. We then use these data, combined with other site‐based palaeoenvironmental indicators, to assess whether central Portugal acted as a refugium during periods of unfavourable climate, and to test whether Neanderthals in Portuguese Estremadura reorganised their mobility strategies after severe climate episodes.
- 40,000 years later: what we know about the presence of Neanderthals in Portuguese territory and their extinctionPublication . Cardoso, João Luis; Cascalheira, JoãoBrief presentation of the theme addressing the history of investigations carried out in Portugal about the presence of Neanderthals, the sites with anhtropological and archaeological record and their antiquity. Considering their close resemblance with our own species and long‑term success across Eurasia, Neanderthals ought to have had all it takes to persist. However, sometime between c. 45,000 and 30,000 years ago, Neanderthals ultimately disappear from the archaeological record, being replaced by modern humans. This cultural and biological replacement process is considered one of the most significant turning points in human evolutionary history. In recent years, knowledge of the processes involved in the disappearance of the Neanderthals and the successful expansion of our species across Eurasia has substantially increased. Still, the spatiotemporal variability of the presumed mechanisms behind Neanderthals’ demise – climate change, fragile demography, inter‑species competition – makes evaluating the replacement at a continental scale very challenging. The Iberian Peninsula, due to its cul‑de‑sac position and the role of its southern regions as one of the last refugia for the Neanderthals, represents an ideal natural setting for testing models of cultural and demographic trajectories leading to the final disappearance of those populations. Focusing on the Iberian archaeological record, in this paper we address the current state of the art and future directions regarding the study of the latest Neanderthals on earth.
- Os Neandertais e a emergência dos humanos anatomicamente modernos no território portuguêsPublication . Cascalheira, João; Cardoso, João LuisThe Neanderthal presence in Portugal is well documented, with anthropological remains in several karst caves. Their presence extends from around 200,000 to around 40,000 years ago. For a long time, it was considered that anatomically modern humans would only have reached the center and south of the Peninsula around 34,000 years ago. This absence was explained by the difficulty of adapting to local conditions and by the still active presence of Neanderthals. Thus, the less accessible territories would have functioned as the last strongholds of these populations. Portugal, Mediterranean Spain, Greece and Italy frequently appear as examples of this trend. In the specific case of the Iberian Peninsula, the model called the “Ebro frontier” has been proposed by some researchers as a biogeographic line located in the Ebro valley that would have separated the two human populations for millennia. However, this model has been the target of increasing opposition. Problems with radiocarbon dating and divergences in the results obtained for the various sites that supported the model have recently raised doubts about the validity of this division. However, this vision of stable territories exclusively inhabited by Neanderthals until the late arrival of modern humans has recently been challenged. One of the most significant pieces of evidence comes from Lapa do Picareiro, in central Portugal. Excavations at this site have revealed lithic assemblages attributed to the Early Aurignacian, associated with anatomically modern humans, directly dated to between approximately 41,100 and 38,100 calibrated years before present (cal BP). These results, obtained through high-resolution dating techniques, represent some of the strongest evidence for the early presence of modern humans in central Portugal. What makes Picareiro especially important is not only its chronology but also its geographic and cultural context. Located south of the proposed “Ebro Frontier,” the site challenges the idea of a long-standing geographic separation between Neanderthals and modern humans on the Iberian Peninsula. Additionally, Aurignacian occupations at Bajondillo (Andalusia), with even earlier dates, reinforce this scenario of a rapid and early dispersal of our species across southwestern Europe. Although these interpretations have faced criticism, particularly regarding the stratigraphic associations between materials and dates, the growing body of recent data points to a more complex mosaic of transitions. This suggests that the replacement of Neanderthals by modern humans was not a sudden or geographically linear process, but rather one marked by chronological overlaps, intermittent occupations, and different ecological adaptation strategies. Thus, the archaeological record from Lapa do Picareiro is currently a key piece in the debate on the emergence of anatomically modern humans in Portugal. It not only provides one of the earliest chronologies for their presence south of the Ebro but also integrates Portugal into a broader narrative of mobility, cultural diversity, and demographic complexity during the initial phases of the Upper Paleolithic in Europe.