The Technological Behaviours of Homo antecessor: Core Management and Reduction Intensity at Gran Dolina-TD6.2 (Atapuerca, Spain)

Research at the Gran Dolina-TD6.2 site (Atapuerca, Spain) reveals that Homo antecessor exhibited adaptive and situational knapping behaviors, demonstrating a nuanced understanding of raw material qualities and planning in Early Pleistocene Europe. Unlike previous assumptions, toolmakers did not follow rigid mental schemes but adapted continuously to material constraints and knapping conditions. The study, the first reduction approach for European Early Pleistocene assemblages, used the Volumetric Reconstruction Method (VRM) to quantify core reduction intensity and analyze patterns through Weibull probability distribution functions. Findings indicate differential raw material management based on lithological characteristics, suggesting a high degree of technical adaptability in Homo antecessor's technological behavior.

Lombao, D., Rabuñal, J. R., Morales, J. I., Ollé, A., Carbonell, E., & Mosquera, M. (2022). The Technological Behaviours of Homo antecessor: Core Management and Reduction Intensity at Gran Dolina-TD6.2 (Atapuerca, Spain). Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory, 30(3), 964–1001. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-022-09579-1