ReviewA palaeolithic map from 13,660 calBP: engraved stone blocks from the Late Magdalenian in Abauntz Cave (Navarra, Spain)
Section snippets
Introduction: European prehistoric “maps”
In Eastern Europe there are documented cases of topographic representations of the immediate surroundings of several sites (Marshack, 1979, Klíma, 1991; Züchner, 1996; Svoboda, 1997). Kozlowski (1992) lists possible maps from Kiev-Kirillovskaya and Mezhirichi in Ukraine, and, in Moravia, those of Pavlov, showing mountains and the meanders of a river, and Dolni Vestonice, with engravings of small arches suggesting the representation of huts. Recently, Svoboda (2007) has presented several complex
The cave of Abauntz
The cave of Abauntz is located in Navarra, Spain, on the southern side of the Pyrenees, not far from the numerous Magdalenian sites of the Cantabrian coast and those of the Northwestern Pyrenees, such as Isturitz (Esparza, 1995), Duruthy (Arambourou, 1978, Cleyet-Merle, 1996), or Dufaure (Straus, 1995), with which it is strongly linked in terms of its bone industry (Utrilla and Mazo, 1996a, Utrilla and Mazo, 1996b, Utrilla and Mazo, 1996c). The published excavations undertaken between 1976 and
Block 1(Figs. 1 and 2)
Weighing 947 g, Block 1 is reminiscent of a biface. We can distinguish two sides and five planes: side A (Fig. 1) is divided into two planes (I and II) by an edge and a flaked-border in its left part (a), both of them emphasized by an incision. The upper-left part of plane II has a small natural hole (b), with a group of parallel lines leading to it. Side B is divided into three planes. Plane I would correspond to the butt of the biface, and it has a natural concavity with an ellipsoidal spiral
Association of sides A and B of Block 1: order of execution of the engravings (Fig. 4)
On Block 1, the superimpositions seem to indicate the existence of two episodes of engraving. If we follow the groups of lines we can see that some of them occupy both side A and side B, so the correspondence between the sides is demonstrated. In Fig. 4, the sequence of the engravings is explained, based on the superimpositions of lines and the animal figures inserted among them.
The composition started at the “butt” (side B, plane I), where first were engraved the four bundles of vertical lines
The association of blocks 1 and 2
If we compare the themes represented on blocks 1 and 2, we can observe that several of them have been represented on both stones: the schematic Ibex in frontal position, the anthropomorphic figures, the meanders, and the half-circles. These figures seem to have a common topic (anthropomorphic figures linked to the game available in the area); an interest in landscape (representation of flowing water on both blocks) and, perhaps, a reference to the mating season: bellowing deer on Block 1 (Fig. 2
First phase: large animals. A mating scene?
We have contemplated the possibility that on Block 1 there were two main engraving episodes with several intermediate phases. The first one would correspond to the animals of large size, which occupy both sides of the main central area: the deer on side A and the two hinds grouped on side B. All of them have the same size and a naturalistic style; thus, they seem to participate in only one scene or composition. The scene could have been a represention of the fall rut season of the deer because
Second phase: landscape represented in the map: the strategic plan for a hunt?
The principal novelty yielded by Block 1 from Abauntz is that, for the very first time in Western Europe, the landscape surrounding an actual site seems to be represented (mountain, rivers, ponds), and that, on this landscape, some routes or access points were marked which may be linked to ellipsoidal spirals that are difficult to interpret. Thus, a multiple engraving seems to reproduce the meandering flow of the river (Fig. 2.1) crossing the upper part of side A and joined by two tributaries
Were the blocks engraved in situ?
The lithic assemblage found in the same level as the engraved blocks is composed of 48 items. We have not done a functional analysis to determine if some of the items (especially the 12 burins, of which 11 are dihedral) were used to engrave the blocks because a thick patina does not lend itself to obtaining good microwear results. Therefore, we cannot confirm that the burins that surrounded the decorated block were in fact the instruments employed to engrave it. But indeed, some of the
What was the function of Abauntz Cave during the Late Magdalenian?
It is difficult to explain the presence of these blocks in a cave of such a low occupation density. Due to its scant lithic artifact content Abauntz Cave was not a base camp for many people but may have been just a temporary shelter during a short expedition. The cave has a very favorable location for hunting, due to its strategic position in a transit zone for game. The record of a great density of artifacts (171 pieces × m3) in the Middle Magdalenian level, dated to 16,530 calBP, contrasts with
Acknowledgements
This paper forms part of the project Cicyt HUM- 2005-02882 “Hunters-Gatherers in the Ebro Basin” supported by the Spanish Inter-Ministry Commission of Science and Technology (CICYT). We thank our colleague Professor Lawrence G. Straus, who has corrected the English translation. We are also grateful to the JHE reviewers and Editor, Susan Anton, for the constructive criticisms of an earlier version of this paper. Their comments have contributed to improving the manuscript.
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