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Gravettian cranial morphology and human group affinities during the European Upper Palaeolithic.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

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Authors

Mounier, Aurélien 
Heuzé, Yann 
Samsel, Mathilde 
Vasilyev, Sergey 
Klaric, Laurent 

Abstract

Archaeologically defined Upper Palaeolithic (UP, 45,000-10,000 years ago) "cultures" are often used as proxies to designate fossil populations. While recent genomic studies have partly clarified the complex relationship between European UP "cultures" and past population dynamics, they leave open numerous questions regarding the biological characterization of these human groups, especially regarding the Mid-UP period (MUP, 33,000-24,000 years ago), which encompasses a pan-European cultural mosaic (Gravettian) with several regional facies. Here, we analyse a large database of well-dated and well-preserved UP crania, including MUP specimens from South-West France (SWF) and Moravia, using 3D geometric morphometrics to test for human group affinities. Our results show that the Gravettian makers from these two regions form a remarkably phenetically homogeneous sample which is different from, and more homogeneous than, the Late UP sample. Those results are congruent with genomic studies indicating a genetic continuity within the Gravettian manufacturers and a discontinuity marked by the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Moreover, our study expands the geographical range of the MUP phenetic continuity to SWF, for which aDNA data are scarce, and clarifies the post-LGM European population structure in SWF, with a possible dual ancestry stemming from different LGM refugia.

Description

Keywords

Archaeology, Fossils, France, Humans, Skull

Journal Title

Sci Rep

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2045-2322
2045-2322

Volume Title

10

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Sponsorship
Agence Nationale de la Recherche (Gravett’Os Project, ANR-15-CE33-0004)