Early Upper Palaeolithic before the Aurignacian

Abstract

Between ~60 and ~25 ka BP two big changes are recognizable in the archaeological record of Europe: Modern humans replaced Neanderthals and the Middle Palaeolithic was replaced by the Upper Palaeolithic. The Early Upper Palaeolithic across Europe, especially before the Aurignacian, is characterized by a huge variability of different technocomplexes. The so-called transitional technocomplexes, thought to have been produced by Neanderthals, are considered to be either local innovations by Neanderthals or the product of cultural transmission of behaviours from incoming modern human populations. This study tests whether local innovation or diffusion of behaviours are supported by the Early Upper Palaeolithic record of the Middle Danube region in Central Europe. The results using eight assemblages from seven archaeological sites suggest that the transitional technocomplex of the region, the Szeletian, is best explained by diffusion of behaviour from incoming modern humans to local Neanderthal populations.