The earliest basketry in southern Europe: Hunter-gatherer and farmer plant-based technology in Cueva de los Murciélagos (Albuñol)
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Publication Date
9-29-2023
Publication Title
Science Advances
Volume Number
9
Issue Number
39
Abstract
Plant material culture can offer unique insights into the ways of life of prehistoric societies; however, its perishable nature has prevented a thorough understanding of its diverse and complex uses. Sites with exceptional preservation of organic materials provide a unique opportunity for further research. The burial site of Cueva de los Murciélagos in southern Iberia, uncovered during 19th-century mining activities, contained the best-preserved hunter-gatherer basketry in southern Europe, together with other unique organic artifacts associated with the first farming communities, such as sandals and a wooden hammer. We present 14 14 C dates for the perishable artifacts ( N = 76), situating the assemblage between the Early and Middle Holocene (c. 7500 to 4200 cal BCE). Our integrated analysis includes raw material determination and technological and chrono-cultural contextualization of this unique and important set of materials.
Document Type
Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adi3055
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Martínez-Sevilla, Francisco; Herrero-Otal, Maria; Martín-Seijo, María; Santana, Jonathan; Lozano Rodríguez, José A.; Maicas Ramos, Ruth; Cubas, Miriam; Homs, Anna; Martínez Sánchez, Rafael M.; Bertin, Ingrid; Barroso Bermejo, Rosa; Bueno Ramírez, Primitiva; de Balbín Behrmann, Rodrigo; Palomo Pérez, Antoni; Álvarez-Valero, Antonio M.; Peña-Chocarro, Leonor; Murillo-Barroso, Mercedes; Fernández-Domínguez, Eva; Altamirano García, Manuel; Pardo Martínez, Rubén; Iriarte Cela, Mercedes; Carrasco Rus, Javier L.; Alfaro Giner, Carmen; and Piqué Huerta, Raquel, "The earliest basketry in southern Europe: Hunter-gatherer and farmer plant-based technology in Cueva de los Murciélagos (Albuñol)" (2023). KIP Articles. 10231.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/kip_articles/10231
