Author, as appears in the article.: Demuro M; Arnold LJ; Parés JM; Aranburu A; Huguet R; Vallverdú J; Arsuaga JL; Bermúdez de Castro JM; Carbonell E
Department: Història i Història de l'Art
URV's Author/s: Huguet Pàmies, Rosa
Keywords: Single-grain tt-osl Sima del elefante Post ir-ir Middle pleistocene Los-huesos Atapuerca suitability single-grain tt-osl single sima del elefante post ir-ir middle pleistocene insights hominin half-lives gran dolina galeria deposits age
Abstract: The Sima del Elefante site is located within the Sierra de Atapuerca karst system (Burgos, northern Spain), and forms part of a series of important Early, Middle and Late Pleistocene archaeological complexes that have been dated previously with luminescence techniques (Gran Dolina, Galería Complex, Sima de los Huesos, Galería de las Estatuas). This study focuses on the upper Middle Pleistocene units (TE18 and TE19) at Sima del Elefante, which contain Acheulean and transitional lithic assemblages (Mode 2/3), as well as large and small mammal fossils. Importantly, these uppermost units are associated with a sediment plug located in the cave's interior at Galería Baja, which marks the closure of a significant palaeoentrance to the Atapuerca karst system. Establishing the accumulation history of these related deposits is important for understanding both Lower Palaeolithic technological dynamics via comparisons with similar levels at other Atapuerca sites (i.e., Gran Dolina and Galería Complex), as well as past human occupation patterns and carnivore use of (and accessibility to) the caves. We present single-grain TT-OSL and multi-grain pIR-IR chronologies for the Sima del Elefante upper sequence and the Galería Baja sediment cone, as well as U-series dating results for a stalagmitic crust capping the combined clastic infill sequence. The paired luminescence ages for the upper occupation levels are in agreement with each other and reveal that the host deposits accumulated 576–481 ka for the TE18 stratified scree layers, 266–237 ka for TE19 and 206–250 ka for the Galería Baja upper cone section (weighted mean 2σ age ranges). A concordant U-series age of 202 ± 65 ka is obtained for the overlying stalagmitic crust at Galería Baja. The Sima del Elefante ages are consistent with those previously obtained using U-series and biochronology, confirming that there is an erosional unconformity and complex carbonate deposition phase associated with the upper layers of unit TE18 and that the original cave entrance likely closed by ∼200 ka. Chronological correlation with other Atapuerca sites reveals potential equivalence between TE18 and unit TD8 (at Gran Dolina), and between TE19 and units GIIb–GIIIb (at Galería Complex) and, possibly, TD10.1 and TD10.2 (at Gran Dolina), though more refined dating is required to confirm the latter.
Thematic Areas: Stratigraphy Geosciences, multidisciplinary Geology Geography, physical Geociências Geochemistry & geophysics Earth and planetary sciences (miscellaneous) Ciências ambientais Ciências agrárias i Biodiversidade Astronomia / física Antropologia / arqueologia
licence for use: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/es/
Author's mail: rosa.huguet@urv.cat
Author identifier: 0000-0002-1750-6249
Record's date: 2024-09-07
Papper version: info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
Licence document URL: https://repositori.urv.cat/ca/proteccio-de-dades/
Papper original source: Quaternary Geochronology. 71
APA: Demuro M; Arnold LJ; Parés JM; Aranburu A; Huguet R; Vallverdú J; Arsuaga JL; Bermúdez de Castro JM; Carbonell E (2022). Extended-range luminescence chronologies for the Middle Pleistocene units at the Sima del Elefante archaeological site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain). Quaternary Geochronology, 71(), -. DOI: 10.1016/j.quageo.2022.101318
Entity: Universitat Rovira i Virgili
Journal publication year: 2022
Publication Type: Journal Publications
Repositori URV