The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance

Tom Higham; Katerina Douka; Rachel Wood; Christopher Bronk Ramsey; Fiona Brock; Laura Basell; Marta Camps; Alvaro Arrizabalaga; Javier Baena; Cecillio Barroso-Ruiz; Christopher Bergman; Coralie Boitard; Paolo Boscato; Miguel Caparros; Nicholas J. Conard; Christelle Draily; Alain Froment; Bertila Galvan; Paolo Gambassini; Alejandro Garcia-Moreno; Stefano Grimaldi; Paul Haesaerts; Brigitte Holt; Maria-Jose Iriarte-Chiapusso; Arthur Jelinek; Pardo, Jesus F. Jorda Pardo; Jose-Manuel Maillo-Fernandez; Anat Marom; Julia Maroto; Mario Menendez; Laure Metz; Eugene Morin; Adriana Moroni; Fabio Negrino; Eleni Panagopoulou; Marco Peresani; Stephane Pirson; la Rasilla, Marco de la Rasilla; Julien Riel-Salvatore; Annamaria Ronchitelli; David Santamaria; Patrick Semal; Ludovic Slimak; Joaquim Soler; Narcis Soler; Aritza Villaluenga; Ron Pinhasi; Roger Jacobi

doi:10.1038/nature13621

The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance

Tom Higham, Katerina Douka, Rachel Wood, Christopher Bronk Ramsey, Fiona Brock, Laura Basell, Marta Camps, Alvaro Arrizabalaga, Javier Baena, Cecillio Barroso-Ruiz, Christopher Bergman, Coralie Boitard, Paolo Boscato, Miguel Caparros, Nicholas J. Conard, Christelle Draily, Alain Froment, Bertila Galvan, Paolo Gambassini, Alejandro Garcia-MorenoStefano Grimaldi, Paul Haesaerts, Brigitte Holt, Maria-Jose Iriarte-Chiapusso, Arthur Jelinek, Pardo, Jesus F. Jorda Pardo, Jose-Manuel Maillo-Fernandez, Anat Marom, Julia Maroto, Mario Menendez, Laure Metz, Eugene Morin, Adriana Moroni, Fabio Negrino, Eleni Panagopoulou, Marco Peresani, Stephane Pirson, la Rasilla, Marco de la Rasilla, Julien Riel-Salvatore, Annamaria Ronchitelli, David Santamaria, Patrick Semal, Ludovic Slimak, Joaquim Soler, Narcis Soler, Aritza Villaluenga, Ron Pinhasi, Roger Jacobi

Scientific Archeology Unit

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

616 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The timing of Neanderthal disappearance and the extent to which they overlapped with the earliest incoming anatomically modern humans (AMHs) in Eurasia are key questions in palaeoanthropology(1,2). Determining the spatiotemporal relationship between the two populations is crucial if we are to understand the processes, timing and reasons leading to the disappearance of Neanderthals and the likelihood of cultural and genetic exchange. Serious technical challenges, however, have hindered reliable dating of the period, as the radiocarbon method reaches its limit at 50,000 years ago(3). Here we apply improved accelerator mass spectrometry C-14 techniques to construct robust chronologies from 40 key Mousterian and Neanderthal archaeological sites, ranging from Russia to Spain. Bayesian age modelling was used to generate probability distribution functions to determine the latest appearance date. We show that the Mousterian ended by 41,030-39,260 calibrated years BP (at 95.4% probability) across Europe. Wealso demonstrate that succeeding 'transitional' archaeological industries, one of which has been linked with Neanderthals (Chatelperronian)(4), end at a similar time. Our data indicate that the disappearance of Neanderthals occurred at different times in different regions. Comparing the data with results obtained from the earliest dated AMH sites in Europe, associated with the Uluzzian technocomplex(5), allows us to quantify the temporal overlap between the two human groups. The results reveal a significant overlap of 2,600-5,400 years (at 95.4% probability). This has important implications for models seeking to explain the cultural, technological and biological elements involved in the replacement of Neanderthals by AMHs. A mosaic of populations in Europe during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition suggests that there was ample time for the transmission of cultural and symbolic behaviours, as well as possible genetic exchanges, between the two groups.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	306-309
Number of pages	4
Journal	Nature
Volume	512
Issue number	7514
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13621
Publication status	Published - Aug 2014

Funding

Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) [NE/D014077/1]; Leverhulme Trust through the Ancient Human Occupation of Britain (AHOB) project; NRCF (NERC Radiocarbon Facility) programme, Keble College (Oxford); European Research CouncilThe Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) funded this work (NE/D014077/1). Additional funding was received from the Leverhulme Trust, through the Ancient Human Occupation of Britain (AHOB) project, the NRCF (NERC Radiocarbon Facility) programme, Keble College (Oxford) and the European Research Council. We thank our many collaborators and their excavation teams, and all staff at the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit for their contribution to this work. Maps at -80 m below current sea level were produced by M. Deves and A. Scheder Black.

Access to Document

10.1038/nature13621

Cite this

Higham, T., Douka, K., Wood, R., Ramsey, C. B., Brock, F., Basell, L., Camps, M., Arrizabalaga, A., Baena, J., Barroso-Ruiz, C., Bergman, C., Boitard, C., Boscato, P., Caparros, M., Conard, N. J., Draily, C., Froment, A., Galvan, B., Gambassini, P., ... Jacobi, R. (2014). The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance. Nature, 512(7514), 306-309. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13621

@article{4399c86cecf34cfbb540e271e4e735a3,

title = "The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance",

abstract = "The timing of Neanderthal disappearance and the extent to which they overlapped with the earliest incoming anatomically modern humans (AMHs) in Eurasia are key questions in palaeoanthropology(1,2). Determining the spatiotemporal relationship between the two populations is crucial if we are to understand the processes, timing and reasons leading to the disappearance of Neanderthals and the likelihood of cultural and genetic exchange. Serious technical challenges, however, have hindered reliable dating of the period, as the radiocarbon method reaches its limit at 50,000 years ago(3). Here we apply improved accelerator mass spectrometry C-14 techniques to construct robust chronologies from 40 key Mousterian and Neanderthal archaeological sites, ranging from Russia to Spain. Bayesian age modelling was used to generate probability distribution functions to determine the latest appearance date. We show that the Mousterian ended by 41,030-39,260 calibrated years BP (at 95.4% probability) across Europe. Wealso demonstrate that succeeding 'transitional' archaeological industries, one of which has been linked with Neanderthals (Chatelperronian)(4), end at a similar time. Our data indicate that the disappearance of Neanderthals occurred at different times in different regions. Comparing the data with results obtained from the earliest dated AMH sites in Europe, associated with the Uluzzian technocomplex(5), allows us to quantify the temporal overlap between the two human groups. The results reveal a significant overlap of 2,600-5,400 years (at 95.4% probability). This has important implications for models seeking to explain the cultural, technological and biological elements involved in the replacement of Neanderthals by AMHs. A mosaic of populations in Europe during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition suggests that there was ample time for the transmission of cultural and symbolic behaviours, as well as possible genetic exchanges, between the two groups.",

author = "Tom Higham and Katerina Douka and Rachel Wood and Ramsey, {Christopher Bronk} and Fiona Brock and Laura Basell and Marta Camps and Alvaro Arrizabalaga and Javier Baena and Cecillio Barroso-Ruiz and Christopher Bergman and Coralie Boitard and Paolo Boscato and Miguel Caparros and Conard, {Nicholas J.} and Christelle Draily and Alain Froment and Bertila Galvan and Paolo Gambassini and Alejandro Garcia-Moreno and Stefano Grimaldi and Paul Haesaerts and Brigitte Holt and Maria-Jose Iriarte-Chiapusso and Arthur Jelinek and {Jorda Pardo}, {Pardo, Jesus F.} and Jose-Manuel Maillo-Fernandez and Anat Marom and Julia Maroto and Mario Menendez and Laure Metz and Eugene Morin and Adriana Moroni and Fabio Negrino and Eleni Panagopoulou and Marco Peresani and Stephane Pirson and {de la Rasilla}, {la Rasilla, Marco} and Julien Riel-Salvatore and Annamaria Ronchitelli and David Santamaria and Patrick Semal and Ludovic Slimak and Joaquim Soler and Narcis Soler and Aritza Villaluenga and Ron Pinhasi and Roger Jacobi",

year = "2014",

month = aug,

doi = "10.1038/nature13621",

language = "English",

volume = "512",

pages = "306--309",

journal = "Nature",

issn = "0028-0836",

publisher = "Nature Research",

number = "7514",

}

Higham, T, Douka, K, Wood, R, Ramsey, CB, Brock, F, Basell, L, Camps, M, Arrizabalaga, A, Baena, J, Barroso-Ruiz, C, Bergman, C, Boitard, C, Boscato, P, Caparros, M, Conard, NJ, Draily, C, Froment, A, Galvan, B, Gambassini, P, Garcia-Moreno, A, Grimaldi, S, Haesaerts, P, Holt, B, Iriarte-Chiapusso, M-J, Jelinek, A, Jorda Pardo, PJF, Maillo-Fernandez, J-M, Marom, A, Maroto, J, Menendez, M, Metz, L, Morin, E, Moroni, A, Negrino, F, Panagopoulou, E, Peresani, M, Pirson, S, de la Rasilla, LRM, Riel-Salvatore, J, Ronchitelli, A, Santamaria, D, Semal, P, Slimak, L, Soler, J, Soler, N, Villaluenga, A, Pinhasi, R & Jacobi, R 2014, 'The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance', Nature, vol. 512, no. 7514, pp. 306-309. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13621

TY - JOUR

T1 - The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance

AU - Higham, Tom

AU - Douka, Katerina

AU - Wood, Rachel

AU - Ramsey, Christopher Bronk

AU - Brock, Fiona

AU - Basell, Laura

AU - Camps, Marta

AU - Arrizabalaga, Alvaro

AU - Baena, Javier

AU - Barroso-Ruiz, Cecillio

AU - Bergman, Christopher

AU - Boitard, Coralie

AU - Boscato, Paolo

AU - Caparros, Miguel

AU - Conard, Nicholas J.

AU - Draily, Christelle

AU - Froment, Alain

AU - Galvan, Bertila

AU - Gambassini, Paolo

AU - Garcia-Moreno, Alejandro

AU - Grimaldi, Stefano

AU - Haesaerts, Paul

AU - Holt, Brigitte

AU - Iriarte-Chiapusso, Maria-Jose

AU - Jelinek, Arthur

AU - Jorda Pardo, Pardo, Jesus F.

AU - Maillo-Fernandez, Jose-Manuel

AU - Marom, Anat

AU - Maroto, Julia

AU - Menendez, Mario

AU - Metz, Laure

AU - Morin, Eugene

AU - Moroni, Adriana

AU - Negrino, Fabio

AU - Panagopoulou, Eleni

AU - Peresani, Marco

AU - Pirson, Stephane

AU - de la Rasilla, la Rasilla, Marco

AU - Riel-Salvatore, Julien

AU - Ronchitelli, Annamaria

AU - Santamaria, David

AU - Semal, Patrick

AU - Slimak, Ludovic

AU - Soler, Joaquim

AU - Soler, Narcis

AU - Villaluenga, Aritza

AU - Pinhasi, Ron

AU - Jacobi, Roger

PY - 2014/8

Y1 - 2014/8

N2 - The timing of Neanderthal disappearance and the extent to which they overlapped with the earliest incoming anatomically modern humans (AMHs) in Eurasia are key questions in palaeoanthropology(1,2). Determining the spatiotemporal relationship between the two populations is crucial if we are to understand the processes, timing and reasons leading to the disappearance of Neanderthals and the likelihood of cultural and genetic exchange. Serious technical challenges, however, have hindered reliable dating of the period, as the radiocarbon method reaches its limit at 50,000 years ago(3). Here we apply improved accelerator mass spectrometry C-14 techniques to construct robust chronologies from 40 key Mousterian and Neanderthal archaeological sites, ranging from Russia to Spain. Bayesian age modelling was used to generate probability distribution functions to determine the latest appearance date. We show that the Mousterian ended by 41,030-39,260 calibrated years BP (at 95.4% probability) across Europe. Wealso demonstrate that succeeding 'transitional' archaeological industries, one of which has been linked with Neanderthals (Chatelperronian)(4), end at a similar time. Our data indicate that the disappearance of Neanderthals occurred at different times in different regions. Comparing the data with results obtained from the earliest dated AMH sites in Europe, associated with the Uluzzian technocomplex(5), allows us to quantify the temporal overlap between the two human groups. The results reveal a significant overlap of 2,600-5,400 years (at 95.4% probability). This has important implications for models seeking to explain the cultural, technological and biological elements involved in the replacement of Neanderthals by AMHs. A mosaic of populations in Europe during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition suggests that there was ample time for the transmission of cultural and symbolic behaviours, as well as possible genetic exchanges, between the two groups.

AB - The timing of Neanderthal disappearance and the extent to which they overlapped with the earliest incoming anatomically modern humans (AMHs) in Eurasia are key questions in palaeoanthropology(1,2). Determining the spatiotemporal relationship between the two populations is crucial if we are to understand the processes, timing and reasons leading to the disappearance of Neanderthals and the likelihood of cultural and genetic exchange. Serious technical challenges, however, have hindered reliable dating of the period, as the radiocarbon method reaches its limit at 50,000 years ago(3). Here we apply improved accelerator mass spectrometry C-14 techniques to construct robust chronologies from 40 key Mousterian and Neanderthal archaeological sites, ranging from Russia to Spain. Bayesian age modelling was used to generate probability distribution functions to determine the latest appearance date. We show that the Mousterian ended by 41,030-39,260 calibrated years BP (at 95.4% probability) across Europe. Wealso demonstrate that succeeding 'transitional' archaeological industries, one of which has been linked with Neanderthals (Chatelperronian)(4), end at a similar time. Our data indicate that the disappearance of Neanderthals occurred at different times in different regions. Comparing the data with results obtained from the earliest dated AMH sites in Europe, associated with the Uluzzian technocomplex(5), allows us to quantify the temporal overlap between the two human groups. The results reveal a significant overlap of 2,600-5,400 years (at 95.4% probability). This has important implications for models seeking to explain the cultural, technological and biological elements involved in the replacement of Neanderthals by AMHs. A mosaic of populations in Europe during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition suggests that there was ample time for the transmission of cultural and symbolic behaviours, as well as possible genetic exchanges, between the two groups.

U2 - 10.1038/nature13621

DO - 10.1038/nature13621

M3 - Article

SN - 0028-0836

VL - 512

SP - 306

EP - 309

JO - Nature

JF - Nature

IS - 7514

ER -

The timing and spatiotemporal patterning of Neanderthal disappearance

Abstract

Funding

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Cite this