Articles producció científica> Història i Història de l'Art

Los Villares locality (Ruidera, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain): a new Middle Pleistocene fossil assemblage from the Southern Iberian Plateau with possible evidence of human activity

  • Identification data

    Identifier: imarina:9280119
    Authors:
    Garcia-Martinez, D.Duval, M.Zhao, J-XFeng, Y.Wood, R.Huguet, R.Cifuentes-Alcobendas, G.Palancar, C. A.Moya-Maleno, P. R.
    Abstract:
    We present the discovery of a Middle Pleistocene fossil assemblage at Los Villares locality (Ruidera, Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha), which has possible evidence of associated human activity. The potential of the site has been evaluated through multidisciplinary research including taxonomy, anatomy, deep learning, and direct dating of fossil remains. A surface study carried out in 2017, over a very limited area (2 m(2)) on the slope of one of the Ruidera lakes led to the discovery of more than 50 fossil specimens, including cranial (mainly teeth) and postcranial remains. This rich assemblage is dominated by the remains of Caprinae, although the presence of some small or medium carnivore remains also stands out. The identification of a cut mark, tested with Convolutional Neural Networks, suggests the presence of human activity within the bone assemblage. Several fossils were directly dated using a multi-technique approach involving radiocarbon, U-Th, and ESR methods. The results constrain the fossil assemblage to between 300 ka and 400 ka, positioning Los Villares as one of the first Middle Pleistocene localities identified in the Upper Guadiana basin, on the Southern edge of the Southern Iberian Plateau. These promising initial results show the great potential of the site to contribute to filling a gap of knowledge in the Pleistocene archaeo-paleontological record of the Iberian Peninsula. Nevertheless, we also acknowledge the need for systematic excavations in the future, not only to obtain a better idea of the lateral and stratigraphic extension of the fossil assemblage and its complete taxonomic composition, but also to confirm the human presence at the site.
  • Others:

    Author, as appears in the article.: Garcia-Martinez, D.; Duval, M.; Zhao, J-X; Feng, Y.; Wood, R.; Huguet, R.; Cifuentes-Alcobendas, G.; Palancar, C. A.; Moya-Maleno, P. R.;
    Department: Història i Història de l'Art
    URV's Author/s: Huguet Pàmies, Rosa
    Keywords: Tooth Te cave site Taphonomy Southern iberian plateau Sima Paleontology Neanderthals Middle pleistocene Human phalanx Gran dolina atapuerca El-sidron Direct dating Cut mark Cueva-victoria cartagena Calatrava ciudad real Acheulean site
    Abstract: We present the discovery of a Middle Pleistocene fossil assemblage at Los Villares locality (Ruidera, Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha), which has possible evidence of associated human activity. The potential of the site has been evaluated through multidisciplinary research including taxonomy, anatomy, deep learning, and direct dating of fossil remains. A surface study carried out in 2017, over a very limited area (2 m(2)) on the slope of one of the Ruidera lakes led to the discovery of more than 50 fossil specimens, including cranial (mainly teeth) and postcranial remains. This rich assemblage is dominated by the remains of Caprinae, although the presence of some small or medium carnivore remains also stands out. The identification of a cut mark, tested with Convolutional Neural Networks, suggests the presence of human activity within the bone assemblage. Several fossils were directly dated using a multi-technique approach involving radiocarbon, U-Th, and ESR methods. The results constrain the fossil assemblage to between 300 ka and 400 ka, positioning Los Villares as one of the first Middle Pleistocene localities identified in the Upper Guadiana basin, on the Southern edge of the Southern Iberian Plateau. These promising initial results show the great potential of the site to contribute to filling a gap of knowledge in the Pleistocene archaeo-paleontological record of the Iberian Peninsula. Nevertheless, we also acknowledge the need for systematic excavations in the future, not only to obtain a better idea of the lateral and stratigraphic extension of the fossil assemblage and its complete taxonomic composition, but also to confirm the human presence at the site.
    Thematic Areas: Revistas de ciencias de la naturaleza Paleontology Historia Geology Geography, planning and development Geografía Earth-surface processes Ciencias sociales Arqueología y prehistoria
    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: 2024-07-27
    Papper version: info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
    Link to the original source: https://recyt.fecyt.es/index.php/CUGEO/article/view/90422
    Licence document URL: https://repositori.urv.cat/ca/proteccio-de-dades/
    Papper original source: Cuaternario Y Geomorfologia. 36 (1-2): 7-35
    APA: Garcia-Martinez, D.; Duval, M.; Zhao, J-X; Feng, Y.; Wood, R.; Huguet, R.; Cifuentes-Alcobendas, G.; Palancar, C. A.; Moya-Maleno, P. R.; (2022). Los Villares locality (Ruidera, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain): a new Middle Pleistocene fossil assemblage from the Southern Iberian Plateau with possible evidence of human activity. Cuaternario Y Geomorfologia, 36(1-2), 7-35. DOI: 10.17735/cyg.v36i1-2.90422
    Article's DOI: 10.17735/cyg.v36i1-2.90422
    Entity: Universitat Rovira i Virgili
    Journal publication year: 2022
    Publication Type: Journal Publications
  • Keywords:

    Earth-Surface Processes,Geography, Planning and Development,Geology,Paleontology
    Tooth
    Te cave site
    Taphonomy
    Southern iberian plateau
    Sima
    Paleontology
    Neanderthals
    Middle pleistocene
    Human phalanx
    Gran dolina atapuerca
    El-sidron
    Direct dating
    Cut mark
    Cueva-victoria cartagena
    Calatrava ciudad real
    Acheulean site
    Revistas de ciencias de la naturaleza
    Paleontology
    Historia
    Geology
    Geography, planning and development
    Geografía
    Earth-surface processes
    Ciencias sociales
    Arqueología y prehistoria
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