prehistoria 123

7/30/2019 prehistoria 123

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Traps siberianos

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Trapps o escaleras siberianas.

Los traps siberianos (en ruso: , Sibirskie trappi) son una de lasmayores y ms enigmticas emisiones de basalto del mundo; abarcan ms de 3.000.000km2 de desiertos rticos. En un milln de aos han emitido a travs de la corteza unos1,5 millones de km3 de lava. Estas emisiones, tras ser estudiadas durante aos, no serelacionan con unrifting, aunque pueden ser el resultado de unapluma del manto quealcanz la corteza originando unpunto caliente que se mantuvo activo durante millonesde aos.

La etapa de formacin de las escaleras siberianas coincide con la extincin masiva delPrmico-Trisico, la mayor de la historia. Se afirma que los gases relacionados con esa

enorme erupcin pudieron haber afectado el clima global, de modo que alteraranseveramente lascadenas trficasterrestres al perjudicar el crecimiento de lasplantas enel planeta.

This article is about the geological feature. For the chess opening, see Siberian Trap.

The world around 260 million years ago, not long before the eruptions forming theSiberian Traps occurred on the eastern shore of the shallow sea (paler blue) at the northof the map.
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The extent of the Siberian Traps. (Map in German)

The Siberian Traps (Russian: Sibirskije trappy) form a largeregion of volcanic rock, known as a large igneous province, in the Russian region ofSiberia. The massive eruptive event which formed the traps, one of the largest knownvolcanic events of the last 500 million years ofEarth's geological history, continued fora million years and spanned the PermianTriassic boundary, about 251 to 250 millionyears ago.

The term "traps" is derived from the Swedish word for stairs (trappa, or sometimestrapp), referring to the step-like hills forming the landscape of the region, which istypical offlood basalts.

Contents

1 Geographical extent 2 Origin 3 Impact on prehistoric life 4 Siberian Traps and nickel 5 See also 6 Notes

7 External links

Geographical extent

Vast volumes ofbasalticlava paved over a large expanse of primeval Siberia in afloodbasalt event. Today the area covered is about 2 million km roughly equal to westernEurope in land area and estimates of the original coverage are as high as 7 millionkm. The original volume of lava is estimated to range from 1 to 4 million km.

The area covered lies between 50 and75 north latitude and 60 to 120 east longitude.

Origin

The source of the Siberian Traps basalt has variously been attributed to a mantle plumewhich impacted the base of the earth's crust and erupted through theSiberian Craton, or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_igneous_provincehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volcanohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth's_geological_historyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permianhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triassichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Geographical_extenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Originhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Impact_on_prehistoric_lifehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Siberian_Traps_and_nickelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#See_alsohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Noteshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#External_linkshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/50th_parallel_northhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/75th_parallel_northhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/75th_parallel_northhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/60th_meridian_easthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/120th_meridian_easthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantle_plumehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Cratonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Cratonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Extent_of_Siberian_traps_german.pnghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Extent_of_Siberian_traps_german.pnghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_igneous_provincehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volcanohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth's_geological_historyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permianhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triassichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedish_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Geographical_extenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Originhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Impact_on_prehistoric_lifehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Siberian_Traps_and_nickelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#See_alsohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#Noteshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#External_linkshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/50th_parallel_northhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/75th_parallel_northhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/60th_meridian_easthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/120th_meridian_easthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantle_plumehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Craton


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to processes related to plate tectonics.[1] Another possible cause may be theimpact thatformed the Wilkes Land crater, which may have been contemporaneous and would have

been antipodal to the Traps.[2] This controversial scientific debate is ongoing.[3]

Impact on prehistoric life

One of the World Heritage Sites, the Putorana Plateau, is composed of Siberian Traps

This massive eruptive event spanned the Permian-Triassic boundary, about 250 millionyears ago, and is cited as a possible cause of the Permian-Triassic extinction event.[4][5]

This extinction event, also called the Great Dying, affected all life on Earth, and isestimated to have killed 90% of species living at the time.[6] Life on land took at least 30million years to fully recover from the environmental disruptions which may have beencaused by the eruption of the Siberian Traps.[7]

Siberian Traps and nickel

The Siberian Traps are considered to have erupted via numerous vents over a period ofroughly a million years or more, probably east and south ofNorilskin Siberia.Individual eruptions of basalt lavas could have exceeded 2,000 km3.

The giantNorilsk-Talnakhnickelcopperpalladium deposit formed within the magmaconduits in the main part of the Siberian Traps.

The presence of extensive tuffand pyroclastic deposits suggests that a number of largeexplosive eruptions occurred during or before the eruptions of basaltic lavas. The

presence ofsilicic volcanic rocks such as rhyolite is also indicative of explosive

eruptions.

See also

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Un Atapuerca en Crdoba?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-Foulger-0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impact_eventhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impact_eventhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilkes_Land_craterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilkes_Land_craterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antipodeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Heritage_Sitehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Putorana_Plateauhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permian-Triassic_extinction_eventhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permian-Triassic_extinction_eventhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-4http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-Benton-5http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-Benton-5http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-SahneyBenton2008RecoveryFromProfoundExtinction-6http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norilskhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norilskhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copperhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palladiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuffhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhyolitehttp://antiguaymedieval.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/un-atapuerca-en-la-cueva-del-angel.htmlhttp://www.tuenti.com/share?url=http://antiguaymedieval.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/un-atapuerca-en-la-cueva-del-angel.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Plato_Putorana_03.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Plato_Putorana_03.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-Foulger-0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impact_eventhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilkes_Land_craterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antipodeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Heritage_Sitehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Putorana_Plateauhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permian-Triassic_extinction_eventhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-4http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-Benton-5http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps#cite_note-SahneyBenton2008RecoveryFromProfoundExtinction-6http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norilskhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norilskhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copperhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palladiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuffhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhyolitehttp://antiguaymedieval.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/un-atapuerca-en-la-cueva-del-angel.html


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Cueva del ngel ::Los expertos sospechan que la Cueva del Angel alberga restos de homnidosSe ha encontrado un fmur fosilizado que hace pensar que hay msLa investigacin se encuentra paralizada desde hace cuatro aosLa financiacin de los trabajos est resuelta; es cuestin de permisosSe ha constituido la fundacin privada Cueva y Sima del ngel

La Cueva del ngel, a la que algunos consideran ya la Catedral de la Prehistoria, podraconvertirse en el yacimiento arqueolgico ms importante del mundo si finalmente seencontraran durante sus excavaciones restos de homnidos. Hasta la fecha la Sima de los

Huesos de Atapuerca (Burgos) es el nico yacimiento en el que se han hallado restosseos de Neandertal pertenecientes a una treintena de cuerpos.Lo que hace diferente a este yacimiento, situado en la sierra de Ara (Lucena), es sucapacidad para explicar el comportamiento humano de hace 350.000 aos. Segn losestudios realizados desde 1995, fecha en la que comenzaron las excavaciones, losasentamientos que se produjeron en el entorno se mantuvieron durante miles de aos.Las primeras excavaciones sacaron a la luz una cueva a la que los primeros hombres

posiblemente trasladaran a los animales cazados. All los despellejaran, losdespedazaran, cortaran la carne y la prepararan para comerla, probablementeasndola.En esta primera fase se encontr un pozo con relleno del Cuaternario, en el que se

observaba gran cantidad de huesos de animales y de herramientas de piedra. Laestratigrafa realizada en una profundidad de 6 metros arroj un dato revelador: laexistencia de un fuego continuohace ms de 200.000 aos.Segn el arquelogo y jefe de la excavacin, Cecilio Barroso, se han encontrado ms de100.000 huesos de animales, todos estn fracturados, lo que lleva a pensar que los

primeros moradores del planeta coman tambin la mdula para alimentarse. Barrososeala que a diferencia de Atapuerca en la que slo se han encontrado huesos humanos,en la Cueva del ngel hay comportamientos. Gracias a los restos hallados es posibleconocer el tipo de clima en el que vivieron, la vegetacin y los animales que existan enaquel momento.Diferenciacin de estancias

En 2008, ao de las ltimas excavaciones, se hall una nueva cueva en la que segn losinstrumentos encontrados llev a los investigadores a pensar que se trataba del lugar en
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el que los homnidos vivan y dorman. Es decir, aparece por primera vez unadiferenciacin de las estancias de un hogar, un sitio para cocinar y otro para hacer viday dormir.Pero realmente el gran descubrimiento en la Cueva del ngel fue el de un fmur fosilizado. Lapieza fue encontrada por un espelelogo en una gran grieta situada debajo de la segunda cueva,

ambas conectadas por un agujero. Los arquelogos sospechan que este agujero haca las veces devertedero y que a travs de l se arrojaban los huesos y restos de los humanos que all vivieron.Respecto al fmur encontrado, los expertos dicen que no hay una datacin absoluta pero si se basanen el grado de fosilizacin y en la industria encontrada, la achelense, podramos estar hablando de unpre-neandertal.Cecilio Barroso afirma que si se llegasen a encontrar ms restos humanos, el yacimiento de la Cuevadel ngel sera uno de los ms importantes del mundo. Segn sus estudios, calculan que a lo largode 200.000 aos, unos 8.000 homnidos pudieron vivir en la sierra de Ara, por lo que les extraa nohaber encontrado ningn resto todava.La investigacin est paralizada desde hace cuatro aos debido a un problema administrativo de laJunta de Andaluca, explica Barroso. "Llevamos cuatro aos pidiendo permisos sin recibir respuesta,nos ignoran". No es un problema de financiacin. Para ello se ha creado este mismo ao laFundacin Privada Cueva del ngel, con un presupuesto de 30.000 euros: "Tenemos el dinero, pero

nos falta el permiso para seguir excavando", comenta Barroso.En la Cueva del ngel se han encontrado ms de 80 bifaces de slex mientras que en Atapuerca slose ha hallado uno, el mundialmente conocido como Excalibur, explica el jefe de la excavacin. Estodemuestra, afirma, que el potencial de este yacimiento es inabarcable.

El MundoSkilled hunters 300,000 years ago September 17, 2012 Skilled hunters 300,000 yearsago Enlarge Credit: University of Tbingen Finds from early stone age site in north-central Germany show that human ingenuity is nothing new and was probably shared

by now-extinct species of humans. Ads by Google The DNA Ancestry Project -Discover Your Ancestry with DNA. Find Ethnic and Geographic Origins. -www.DNAAncestryProject.com Archeologists from the University of Tbingen have

found eight extremely well-preserved spears an astonishing 300,000 years old, makingthem the oldest known weapons anywhere. The spears and other artifacts as well asanimal remains found at the site demonstrate that their users were highly skilledcraftsmen and hunters, well adapted to their environment with a capacity for abstractthought and complex planning comparable to our own. It is likely that they weremembers of the species homo heidelbergensis, although no human remains have yet

been found at the site. The project is headed by Prof. Nicholas Conard and theexcavations are supervised by Dr. Jordi Serangeli, both from the University ofTbingen's Institute of Prehistory, which has been supporting the local authority'sexcavation in an open-cast brown coal mine in Schningen since 2008. They areapplying skills from several disciplines at this uniquely well-preserved site find out

more about how humans lived in the environment of 300,000 years ago. The bones oflarge mammals elephants, rhinoceroses, horses and lions as well as the remains ofamphibians, reptiles, shells and even beetles have been preserved in the brown coal.Pines, firs, and black alder trees are preserved complete with pine cones, as have theleaves, pollen and seeds of surrounding flora. Until the mining started 30 years ago,these finds were below the water table. The archeologists say they are now carrying out"underwater archaeology without the water." Work continues almost all year round, andevery day there is something new to document and recover. Some of the most importantfinds of the past three years have been remains of a water buffalo in the context ofhuman habitation, an almost completely preserved aurochs (one of the oldest in centralEurope), and several concentrations of stone artifacts, bones and wood. They allow thescientists to examine an entire landscape instead of just one site. That makesSchningen an exciting location and global reference point not just for archaeology, but


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also for quaternary ecology and climate research. A research center and museum, the"Palon," is to be opened in 2013 to to provide information to the public about the workgoing on in Schningen. Provided by University of Tbingen search and more infowebsite

Read more at:http://phys.org/news/2012-09-skilled-hunters-years.html#jCp

septiembre 18, 2012

Lanzas de hace 300 mil aos

En una mina de carbn de Alemania central, en Schningen, se descubrieron ocholanzas de 300 mil aos de antigedad. No se haban descubierto hasta la fecha lanzas tanantiguas, que las ubicaran en la poca de la especieHomo heidelbergensis, de nuestrognero humano. Este descubrimiento llevara la capacidad de tener pensamientosabstractos y planeamiento complejo comparable al nuestro mucho ms atrs en eltiempo de lo que se crea hasta ahora.

ElHomo heidelbergensis fue una especie que se cree que podra ser ancestral directatanto de losneandertalesen Europa, como de nuestra especieHomo sapiens en frica.Resulta muy interesante descubrir que estos humanos antiguos ya tenan la capacidad

para fabricas artefactos complejos como una lanza.

En el yacimiento, excavado por cientficos de la Universidad de Tbingen, al mando deNicholas Conard, se descubrieron gran cantidad de artefactos lticos junto con las ocholanzas, as como muchos restosfsiles de animales comoelefantes, rinocerontes,caballos y leones, pero ningn resto humano. Se trata de un yacimiento muy rico en

fsiles vegetales y animales, preservados en muy buenas condiciones, lo que hapermitido que se pueda reconstruir casi por completo el paisaje que rodeaba a ese sitio.

Por ahora no se ha dado a conocer mucha ms informacin sobre las Lanzas, pero yavendr cuando se analicen y estudien, y se publiquen en alguna revista cientfica.

Fuente: ScienceDaily

EDITADO:

Nos cuenta Maju, que esto de nuevo no tiene nada, ya que se trata de las mismas lanzas

que se descubrieron en 1998, en realidad, y no se ha aportado nada nuevo sobre el

tema, sino que se construir un nuevo museo donde sern exhibidas. Enlace a la infoen ingls sobre lasLanzas de Schningen.
http://phys.org/news/2012-09-skilled-hunters-years.html#jCphttp://phys.org/news/2012-09-skilled-hunters-years.html#jCphttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/lanzas-de-hace-300-mil-anos.htmlhttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com/2006/03/cmo-eran-los-neandertales.htmlhttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com/2006/03/cmo-eran-los-neandertales.htmlhttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com/2006/03/cmo-eran-los-neandertales.htmlhttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com/search/label/H.%20sapienshttp://fanaticussaurus.blogspot.com/2009/06/que-es-un-fosil.htmlhttp://fanaticussaurus.blogspot.com/2009/06/que-es-un-fosil.htmlhttp://naturacuriosa.blogspot.com/2009/01/curiosidades-sobre-los-elefantes.htmlhttp://naturacuriosa.blogspot.com/2009/01/curiosidades-sobre-los-elefantes.htmlhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120917085535.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sch%C3%B6ningen_Spearshttp://lh5.ggpht.com/-VlNkbnDfeE8/UFhokZKDqEI/AAAAAAAASoA/Jwtb1tWRe6s/s1600-h/image%25255B6%25255D.pnghttp://phys.org/news/2012-09-skilled-hunters-years.html#jCphttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/lanzas-de-hace-300-mil-anos.htmlhttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com/2006/03/cmo-eran-los-neandertales.htmlhttp://neanderthalis.blogspot.com/search/label/H.%20sapienshttp://fanaticussaurus.blogspot.com/2009/06/que-es-un-fosil.htmlhttp://naturacuriosa.blogspot.com/2009/01/curiosidades-sobre-los-elefantes.htmlhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120917085535.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sch%C3%B6ningen_Spears


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Olduvai stone chopping tool

From Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, 1.8-2 million years old

Made nearly two million years ago, stone tools such as this are the first knowntechnological invention. This one is the oldest object in the British Museum.

It comes from an early human campsite in the bottom layer of deposits in OlduvaiGorge, Tanzania. Potassium-argon dating indicates that this bed is between 1.6 and 2.2million years old from top to bottom. This and other tools are scientifically dated toabout 1.8 million years.

Using another hard stone as a hammer, the maker has knocked flakes off both sides of abasalt (volcanic lava) pebble so that they intersect to form a sharp edge. This could beused to chop branches from trees, cut meat from large animals or smash bones for

marrow fat - an essential part of the early human diet. The flakes could also have beenused as small knives for light duty tasks.

To some people this artefact might appear crude; how can we even be certain that it ishumanly made and not just bashed in rock falls or by trampling animals?

A close look reveals that the edge is formed by a deliberate sequence of skilfully placedblows of more or less uniform force. Many objects of the same type, made in the sameway, occur in groups called assemblages which are occasionally associated with earlyhuman remains. By contrast, natural forces strike randomly and with variable force; no

pattern, purpose or uniformity can be seen in the modifications they cause.

Chopping tools and flakes from the earliest African sites were referred to as Oldowanby the archaeologist Louis Leakey. He found this example on his first expedition toOlduvai in 1931, when he was sponsored by the British Museum.


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Archaeological News: Oldest Art Even Older: New Dates fromGeienklsterle Cave Show Early Arrival of ModernHumans, Art and Music

archaeologicalnews:

ScienceDaily (May 24, 2012) New dates from Geienklsterle Cave in SouthwestGermany document the early arrival of modern humans and early appearance of art andmusic.

Researchers from Oxford and Tbingen have published new radiocarbon dates from thefrom Geienklsterle Cave in Swabian

ScienceDaily (May 24, 2012) New dates from Geienklsterle Cave in Southwest

Germany document the early arrival of modern humans and early appearance of art andmusic.

Researchers from Oxford and Tbingen have published new radiocarbon dates from thefrom Geienklsterle Cave in Swabian Jura of Southwestern Germany in theJournal of

Human Evolution. The new dates use improved methods to remove contamination andproduced ages between began between 42,000 43,000 years ago for start of theAurignacian, the first culture to produce a wide range of figurative art, music and otherkey innovations as postulated in the Kulturpumpe Hypothesis. The full spectrum ofthese innovations were established in the region no later than 40 000 years ago.

These are the earliest radiocarbon dates of Aurignacian deposits, and they predateAurignacian dates from Italy, France, England and other regions
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Researchers from Oxford and Tbingen have published new radiocarbon dates from thefrom Geienklsterle Cave in Swabian Jura of Southwestern Germany in theJournal of

Human Evolution. The new dates use improved methods to remove contamination andproduced ages between began between 42,000 43,000 years ago for start of theAurignacian, the first culture to produce a wide range of figurative art, music and other

key innovations as postulated in the Kulturpumpe Hypothesis. The full spectrum ofthese innovations were established in the region no later than 40,000 years ago.

These are the earliest radiocarbon dates of Aurignacian deposits, and they predateAurignacian dates from Italy, France, England and other regions. These results areconsistent with the Danube Corridor hypothesis postulating that modern humansmigrated to Europe and rapidly moved up the Danube drainage. Geienklsterle Cave isone of several caves in the Swabian Jura that have produced important examples of

personal ornaments, figurative art, mythical imagery and musical instruments. The newdates from Geienklsterle together with existing dates using thermoluminescenceconfirm the great antiquity of the Swabian Aurignacian.

The new dates indicate that modern humans entered the Upper Danube region prior toan extremely cold climatic phase referred to as the H4 event dating to ca. 40,000 yearsago. Previously, researchers had argued that modern humans initially migrated up theDanube immediately following the H4 event. As it now looks modern humans enteredsouthwestern Germany during a mild phase of the last Ice Age, under climacticconditions, which should have been inhabitable by indigenous populations of

Neanderthals. Despite a major effort to identify archaeological signatures of interactionbetween Neanderthals and modern humans, researchers have yet to identify indicationsof cultural contact between these groups in Upper Danube region.

These results point to the Upper Danube Valley as a plausible homeland for theAurignacian, with the Swabian caves producing the earliest record of technological andartistic innovations that are characteristic of the this period. Whether the manyinnovations best documented in Swabia were stimulated by climatic stress, competition

between modern humans and Neanderthals or by other social-cultural dynamics remainsa central focus of research by the archaeologists from Tbingen and Oxford. High-resolution dating of the kind reported here is essential for establishing a reliable thechronology for testing hypothesis to explain the expansion of modern humans intoEurope, the processes that led to a wide range of cultural innovations including theadvent of figurative art and music, and the extinction of Neanderthals.

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