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The Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in Europe covers the last millennia of Neanderthal life together with the appearance and expansion of Modern Human populations. Culturally, it is defined by the Late Middle Paleolithic succession, and by Early Upper Paleolithic complexes like the Châtelperronian (southwestern Europe), the Protoaurignacian, and the Early Aurignacian. Up to now, the southern boundary for the transition has been established as being situated between France and Iberia, in the Cantabrian façade and Pyrenees. According to this, the central and southern territories of Iberia are claimed to have been the refuge of the last Neanderthals for some additional millennia after they were replaced by anatomically Modern Humans on the rest of the continent. In this paper, we present the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition sequence from Cova Foradada (Tarragona), a cave on the Catalan Mediterranean coastline. Archaeological research has documented a stratigraphic sequence containing a succession of very short-term occupations pertaining to the Châtelperronian, Early Aurignacian, and Gravettian. Cova Foradada therefore represents the southernmost Châtelperronian–Early Aurignacian sequence ever documented in Europe, significantly enlarging the territorial distribution of both cultures and providing an important geographical and chronological reference for understanding Neanderthal disappearance and the complete expansion of anatomically Modern Humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study represents the first integrated approach to the lithic raw materials exploited by the Neanderthals that occupied the Abric Romaní site (NE Iberia). Focusing on chert as the most abundant raw material (>80% of the assemblages), we determine the potential procurement areas and the mobility patterns. Geo-archaeological surveys within a radius of 30 km from the site documented 32 primary locations with silicifications. The chert abundance ratio, a quantitative approach to the raw material availability, together with macroscopic and petrographic analyses, confirm the underexploitation of the local raw materials (<10 km). The main procurement areas are located between 16 km (Sant Martí de Tous chert) and 24 km (Panadella chert), indicating different procurement strategies and mobility patterns. Stone tool assemblages from levels M and Oa fall within a foraging radius, whereas level P, in part, suggests a logistical radius, demonstrating a complex scenario of extensive knowledge and intensive exploitation of the landscape among Neanderthals. • Landscape exploitation and mobility among Neanderthals at Abric Romaní (NE Spain). • Petrologic analyses and statistics models determine the stone tools provenance. • Results suggest a regional range for procurement, denying the distance-decay model. • Different mobility strategies are detected independently of technological constraints. • Behavioral complexity based on group size, occupation duration and/or site function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Palynological record is affected by several factors, such as taphonomic processes, which could cause a bias of the pollen spectra. The study of these processes occurring on archaeological deposits could provide insight into formation and sedimentation conditions, but also into anthropogenic activities. Based on these hypotheses, we have analyzed the taphonomic features of the pollen record on sediments collected from the layer M of the Abric Romaní archaeological site (40–110 ka BP), which is characterized by a high temporal resolution. Four kinds of taphonomic alterations were identified in pollen and spores: thermal alteration, fracturing, compaction, and corrosion. Palynological concentrations and the presence of microcharcoal particles have been also registered. Regarding the different origins and spatial location of the samples, we intend to establish a connection between the pollen preservation degree and the diversity of processes occurring at the site. In light of the sedimentological history of the archaeological site and the fact that layer M has been considered a palimpsest of great complexity, palynological results seem to show the existence of different depositional events. Considering the relationship between the identified alterations, it seems that thermal alteration would be linked to biostratinomic processes, while fracturing, corrosion, and compaction damages could derive from the fossil-diagenetic phase. • Taphonomic alterations described in a set of palynological samples from an archaeological deposit. • Differential preservation degree and bias in the pollen assemblage. • Identification of taphonomic alterations with anthropogenic origin. • Use of the space in an archaeologic palimpsest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]