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Volcanic ash layers illuminate the resilience of Neanderthals and early modern humans to natural hazards

John Lowe, Nick Barton, Simon Blockley, Christopher Bronk Ramsey, Victoria L. Cullen, William Davies, Clive Gamble, Katharine Grant, Mark Hardiman, Rupert Housley, Christine S. Lane, Sharen Lee, Mark Lewis, Alison MacLeod, Martin Menzies, Wolfgang Müller, Mark Pollard, Catherine Price, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling, Chris Satow, Victoria C. Smith, Chris B. Stringer, Emma L. Tomlinson, Dustin White, Paul Albert, Ilenia Arienzo, Graeme Barker, Dušan Borić, Antonio Carandente, Lucia Civetta, Catherine Ferrier, Jean-Luc Guadelli, Panagiotis Karkanas, Margarita Koumouzelis, Ulrich C. Müller, Giovanni Orsi, Jörg Pross, Mauro Rosi, Ljiljiana Shalamanov-Korobar, Nikolay Sirakov and Polychronis C. Tzedakis
PNAS July 23, 2012. 201204579; published ahead of print July 23, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1204579109
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  1. Edited by Richard G. Klein, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, and approved June 18, 2012 (received for review March 17, 2012)

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Abstract

Marked changes in human dispersal and development during the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition have been attributed to massive volcanic eruption and/or severe climatic deterioration. We test this concept using records of volcanic ash layers of the Campanian Ignimbrite eruption dated to ca. 40,000 y ago (40 ka B.P.). The distribution of the Campanian Ignimbrite has been enhanced by the discovery of cryptotephra deposits (volcanic ash layers that are not visible to the naked eye) in archaeological cave sequences. They enable us to synchronize archaeological and paleoclimatic records through the period of transition from Neanderthal to the earliest anatomically modern human populations in Europe. Our results confirm that the combined effects of a major volcanic eruption and severe climatic cooling failed to have lasting impacts on Neanderthals or early modern humans in Europe. We infer that modern humans proved a greater competitive threat to indigenous populations than natural disasters.

Footnotes

  • ↵1To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: j.lowe{at}rhul.ac.uk.
  • Author contributions: J.L., N.B., S.B., C.B.R., W.D., C.G., M.M., M.P., A.P.R., E.J.R., C.B.S., and D.W. designed research; S.B., V.L.C., K.G., M.H., R.H., C.S.L., S.L., M.L., A.M., E.J.R., C.S., V.C.S., E.L.T., D.W., P.A., G.B., M.K., and P.C.T. performed research; N.B., C.B.R., V.L.C., C.G., K.G., M.H., R.H., C.S.L., S.L., M.L., A.M., M.M., W.M., M.P., C.P., A.P.R., E.J.R., C.S., V.C.S., C.B.S., E.L.T., D.W., P.A., I.A., G.B., D.B., A.C., L.C., C.F., J.-L.G., P.K., U.C.M., G.O., J.P., M.R., L.S.-K., N.S., and P.C.T. analyzed data; M.H., C.S.L., and D.W. created figures; R.H. updated the program database; C.S.L. and E.L.T. compiled Tables S2–S5; and D.W. gained access to protected archaeological sites in southeast and east Europe; and J.L., C.B.R., W.D., C.G., M.M., A.P.R., E.J.R., C.B.S., and D.W. wrote the paper.

  • The authors declare no conflict of interest.

  • This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.

  • This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.1204579109/-/DCSupplemental.

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Paleolithic hominins resilient to natural hazards
John Lowe, Nick Barton, Simon Blockley, Christopher Bronk Ramsey, Victoria L. Cullen, William Davies, Clive Gamble, Katharine Grant, Mark Hardiman, Rupert Housley, Christine S. Lane, Sharen Lee, Mark Lewis, Alison MacLeod, Martin Menzies, Wolfgang Müller, Mark Pollard, Catherine Price, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling, Chris Satow, Victoria C. Smith, Chris B. Stringer, Emma L. Tomlinson, Dustin White, Paul Albert, Ilenia Arienzo, Graeme Barker, Dušan Borić, Antonio Carandente, Lucia Civetta, Catherine Ferrier, Jean-Luc Guadelli, Panagiotis Karkanas, Margarita Koumouzelis, Ulrich C. Müller, Giovanni Orsi, Jörg Pross, Mauro Rosi, Ljiljiana Shalamanov-Korobar, Nikolay Sirakov, Polychronis C. Tzedakis
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Jul 2012, 201204579; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1204579109

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Paleolithic hominins resilient to natural hazards
John Lowe, Nick Barton, Simon Blockley, Christopher Bronk Ramsey, Victoria L. Cullen, William Davies, Clive Gamble, Katharine Grant, Mark Hardiman, Rupert Housley, Christine S. Lane, Sharen Lee, Mark Lewis, Alison MacLeod, Martin Menzies, Wolfgang Müller, Mark Pollard, Catherine Price, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling, Chris Satow, Victoria C. Smith, Chris B. Stringer, Emma L. Tomlinson, Dustin White, Paul Albert, Ilenia Arienzo, Graeme Barker, Dušan Borić, Antonio Carandente, Lucia Civetta, Catherine Ferrier, Jean-Luc Guadelli, Panagiotis Karkanas, Margarita Koumouzelis, Ulrich C. Müller, Giovanni Orsi, Jörg Pross, Mauro Rosi, Ljiljiana Shalamanov-Korobar, Nikolay Sirakov, Polychronis C. Tzedakis
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Jul 2012, 201204579; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1204579109
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