Indeed, in the same way as other innovations attributed to the Aurignacian, osseous technology seems to have appeared very suddenly in Europe, which buttressed the idea of a clear technological and conceptual rupture with the Middle Paleolithic. This provided a strong argument in favor of the migrationist model, whereby the Aurignacian culture would have been spread very quickly and in a very uniform way across Europe by Modern Humans, leading to the demise of Neanderthal populations and their industries (Mellars, 1989 Demars, Hublin, 1989 Kozlowski, 1993 Davies, 2001 Harrold, Otte, 2001). Thanks to Randall White, Le CNRA-MNHA Luxembourg and the musée des beaux-arts de Dole for lending photographs.ġ The generalized working of osseous materials (cervid antler, ivory and bone) in Europe is one of the major innovations at the start of the Upper Paleolithic, and following the definition of the Aurignacian by Abbé Breuil at the beginning of the 20th century, was soon associated with this concept. I thank the curators and museum staff for their hospitality and help with access to the earliest collections: Catherine Schwab and Marie-Sylvie Larguèze at the musée d’Archéologi e nat ionale de Saint-Germain-en-Laye Jean-Jacques Cleyet-Merle, André Morala, Peggy Jacquement and Bernard Nicolas at the musée national de Préhistoire des Eyzies Samuel Monier at the musée des beaux-arts de Dole. Leakey Foundation, Reed Foundation, Rock Foundation, Fine Foundation, UMI 3199-CNRS-NYU, Institute for Ice Age Studies, Theodore Dubin Foundation, Service archéologique départemental de la Dordogne). I also extend thanks to Dominique Henry-Gambier, Jacques Pelegrin and Randall White for giving me the possibility to study material from their excavations in the Grotte des Hyènes (financed by SRA Aquitaine, Ministère de la Culture and Conseil général des Landes) and Abri Castanet (funded by the National Science Foundation, DRAC-Aquitaine, L. I wish to thank Randall White, Raphaëlle Bourrillon and François Bon for inviting me to participate in this symposium. The evolution of osseous production during the course of the first phases of the Auri gnacian provides evidence of profound techno-economic changes, which, backed up by data from lithic stu dies, reveals powerful sociological changes during the transition between the Middle and Upper Paleolithic. The emergence of this new technical domain seems to result from the transfer of wood working tech niques to osseous materials, undoubtedly partly linked to a sudden shift in environmental conditions in Europe around 40000 BP.
It developed gradually in Europe and based on currently available knowledge, appears to have emerged in the Protoaurignacian societies of Western Europe. The production of the different materials was already well structured and centered around three main spheres: reindeer antlers were mainly used for weapons, bone for the fabrication of domestic equipment and ivory was mostly reserved for ornaments.Ī lthough osseous technology was identified in some "transitional" groups, it spread and was durably integrated into techno-economical systems during the Aurignacian.
Renewed studies of Aurignacian osseous technology in Western Europe contribute to the ongoing redefinition of the mechanisms behind the construction of the Upper Paleolithic in Europe.Įarly Aurignacian osseous production was by no means limited to split-based points, and involved a wide variety of activities. Since then, several factors have contributed to undermining this model. The concept of the Aurignacian, as defined by Abbé Breuil, was used for a long time as a strong argument in favor of a cognitive revolution: its "sudden" appearance was linked to the rapid and systematic diffusion of the Aurignacian culture and the widespread distribution of split-based points in Eu rope, and upheld the idea of a clear biological and conceptual rupture with the Middle Paleolithic. The exploitation of osseous materials is one of the main innovations associated with the advent of the Upper Paleolithic in Europe.
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