The Danube Corridor after 29,000 BP - New results on raw material procurement patterns in the Gravettian of southwestern Germany
Journal:
Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Urgeschichte
Number:
Volume:
13
Year:
2004
Pages:
61-77
Keywords:
Upper Paleolithic, Gravettian, Swabian Jura, Lithic technology, Raw material procurement, Danube Corridor
ISBN:
ISSN:
URL:
Abstract:
This contribution presents new results on lithic raw material distribution and procurement patterns in the Gravettian of southwestern Germany, with a special emphasis on the cave site of Hohle Fels situated in the Ach Valley near Schelklingen (Swabian Jura). The analysis of lithic raw material acquisition is based on a detailed study of the regional geological background and the natural distribution and characteristics of the different types of raw materials. In this context the important studies of W. Burkert, C. Pasda, J. Hahn, and others should be emphasized. The most important varieties of raw materials in southwestern Germany are different types of Jurassic chert including Bavarian tabular chert and 'Bohnerzhornstein' from the Upper Rhine Valley. Other important raw materials are radiolarite, tertiary chert from Randecker Maar and alpine quartzites. In comparison with the Aurignacian record of the region, Gravettian raw materials for the first time indicate a high degree of long distance raw material transport. The most important axis of long distance raw material transport is oriented along the Danube River from the Black Forest in the West to the Altmühl area in Bavaria in the East. In comparison, contacts to the North and to the South are rare. Besides the identification of raw material origins and the question of mobility and supra-regional contacts, our contribution aims to point out the specific relation between the composition of lithic assemblages and the distances to their raw material sources.
