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- Use-wear analysis shows changing handaxe grip and use across time at la noira (France)Publication . Rodriguez, Alice; Coco, Emily; Moncel, Marie-Hélène; Despriée, Jackie; Hardy, Bruce; Iovita, RaduHandaxes — sub-oval bifacially flaked stone tools — were produced for over a million years across Africa, Europe, and Asia during the Lower Palaeolithic. Their relatively uniform shape across varied environments and over a million years raises the question of whether or not their function and purposes were also uniform. Previous studies suggested that handaxe shape might be related to patterns in use and maintenance, but the level of analysis may have been too coarse to tease out specific uses. This study investigates the function of handaxes from two successive Acheulean occupations at the la Noira site (France), separated by ca. 200 ka. This research aimed to find out how hominins generally used handaxes through microscopic use wear analysis. Specifically, we documented macro-wear characteristics such as type (micro-scars, edge crushing, striations, edge rounding, polish), and their relative position and distribution. We used a Geographic Information System (GIS) to translate these observations into wear location heatmaps — visual representations highlighting areas of intense or repeated use — and compared these across different occupation periods. The analysis revealed that similar handaxes were likely held in different ways and used for different tasks during the two phases of occupation at la Noira, at 700 ka and respectively 450 ka. These findings suggest a more complex scenario of handaxe use than previously understood, including changes in tool use modalities over time that reflect changes in handaxe function and hominin technical behaviors.
- Agent-based simulations reveal the possibility of multiple rapid northern routes for the second Neanderthal dispersal from Western to Eastern EurasiaPublication . Coco, Emily; Iovita, Radu; Marco PeresaniGenetic and archaeological evidence imply a second major movement of Neanderthals from Western to Central and Eastern Eurasia sometime in the Late Pleistocene. The genetic data suggest a date of 120−80 ka for the dispersal and the archaeological record provides an earliest date of arrival in the Altai by ca. 60 ka. Because the number of archaeological sites linking the two regions is very small, the exact route taken and its timing have been the matter of considerable debate. In particular, climate change in this period modified landscapes considerably, changing the cost of moving in different directions. Here, we apply agent-based least-cost path simulations for the first time to Neanderthals, showing that they most likely took a northern route through the Urals and southern Siberia under all climate scenarios. Agents leaving either the southern or the northern Caucasus Mountains reach the Altai in less than 2000 years during two time windows when the climate was mild, in MIS 5e (the Last Interglacial) and in MIS 3. The latter coincides with the dated presence of Neanderthals at Chagyrskaya and Okladnikov Caves in the Altai. The results of this modeling approach demonstrate a remarkable east-west geographic connectivity of northern Eurasia via river corridors despite the presumed barriers of the Ural Mountains and major north-south flowing rivers. Our results highlight the unique strengths of agentbased simulations to reconstruct pathways for ancient migrations.
- The Omo-Turkana Basin fossil record as a milestone toward a comprehensive database of the hominin fossil record onlinePublication . Reed, Denné; Marchal, François; Coco, Emily; Prat, SandrineA comprehensive and accurate database of the human fossil record is a necessity for synthetic understanding of hominin biological and behavioral evolution, yet it has remained an elusive goal for decades. This paper presents a conceptual framework for an online database of the human fossil record, called Origins, and an implementation of that framework for the 1200+ hominin fossils of the Omo-Turkana Basin of northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. The Omo-Turkana Basin is one of the largest and most significant hominin fossil assemblages in Africa and marks the first major milestone in developing a comprehensive database for the entire hominin fossil record globally. We discuss the theoretical foundation underlying the conceptual model used for Origins, the technical details for the establishment and utilization of Origins, and the roadmap for future and ongoing development of this resource.