TY - JOUR
T1 - A 14C chronology for the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition at Bacho Kiro Cave, Bulgaria
AU - Fewlass, Helen
AU - Talamo, Sahra
AU - Wacker, Lukas
AU - Kromer, Bernd
AU - Tuna, Thibaut
AU - Fagault, Yoann
AU - Bard, Edouard
AU - McPherron, Shannon P.
AU - Aldeias, Vera
AU - Maria, Raquel
AU - Martisius, Naomi L.
AU - Paskulin, Lindsay
AU - Rezek, Zeljko
AU - Sinet-Mathiot, Virginie
AU - Sirakova, Svoboda
AU - Smith, Geoffrey M.
AU - Spasov, Rosen
AU - Welker, Frido
AU - Sirakov, Nikolay
AU - Tsanova, Tsenka
AU - Hublin, Jean-Jacques
PY - 2020/6/1
Y1 - 2020/6/1
N2 - The stratigraphy at Bacho Kiro Cave, Bulgaria, spans the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition, including an Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) assemblage argued to represent the earliest arrival of Upper Palaeolithic Homo sapiens in Europe. We applied the latest techniques in 14C dating to an extensive dataset of newly excavated animal and human bones to produce a robust, high-precision radiocarbon chronology for the site. At the base of the stratigraphy, the Middle Palaeolithic (MP) occupation dates to >51,000 yr BP. A chronological gap of over 3,000 years separates the MP occupation from the occupation of the cave by H. sapiens, which extends to 34,000 cal BP. The extensive IUP assemblage, now associated with directly dated H. sapiens fossils at this site, securely dates to 45,820–43,650 cal BP (95.4% probability), probably beginning from 46,940 cal BP (95.4% probability). The results provide chronological context for the early occupation of Europe by Upper Palaeolithic H. sapiens.
AB - The stratigraphy at Bacho Kiro Cave, Bulgaria, spans the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition, including an Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) assemblage argued to represent the earliest arrival of Upper Palaeolithic Homo sapiens in Europe. We applied the latest techniques in 14C dating to an extensive dataset of newly excavated animal and human bones to produce a robust, high-precision radiocarbon chronology for the site. At the base of the stratigraphy, the Middle Palaeolithic (MP) occupation dates to >51,000 yr BP. A chronological gap of over 3,000 years separates the MP occupation from the occupation of the cave by H. sapiens, which extends to 34,000 cal BP. The extensive IUP assemblage, now associated with directly dated H. sapiens fossils at this site, securely dates to 45,820–43,650 cal BP (95.4% probability), probably beginning from 46,940 cal BP (95.4% probability). The results provide chronological context for the early occupation of Europe by Upper Palaeolithic H. sapiens.
U2 - 10.1038/s41559-020-1136-3
DO - 10.1038/s41559-020-1136-3
M3 - Article (Academic Journal)
C2 - 32393865
VL - 4
SP - 794
EP - 801
JO - Nature Ecology & Evolution
JF - Nature Ecology & Evolution
ER -