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Palaeolithic Micro-botanical remains as a proxy for Human Occupation Intensities

Objective

The present project aims to use the microbotanical remains content in the sedimentary record to study site occupation intensity as a proxy for demographic changes during the Middle to Upper Paleolithic (MP-UP) transition. PalaeoMicroBot will develop new methods to obtain high-resolution data by incorporating the last developments in geoarchaeology, palaeobotany and archaeology. The objective is to study the phytolith, micro-charcoal, starch grain, and mineral composition in well-studied archaeological sites where the late MP and early UP layers are found in stratigraphic succession: La Ferrassie and Les Cottés. In addition, complementary sites with similar characteristics will be tested to provide a larger-scale perspective to the MP-UP transition. The sedimentation rate, sediment diagenesis, paleo-climatic changes, and the taphonomy and distribution of the microbotanical remains will be analyzed in order to evaluate the extent of the anthropogenic impact in the exposed profiles. The microbotanical results will be integrated with the macro-archaeological record and on-going analyses at the sites using state-of-the-art GIS methods. The results obtained will be tested against the additional sites in order to define chronological and geographical variations. Finally, several models to explain the MP-UP transition will be developed using the data obtained in this project and in the literature. These models will be tested using advanced multivariate statistics in order to detect first, the existence of effective changes in the site occupation intensities, and second the importance of the demographic variable in the MP-UP transition. The PaleoMicroBot project aims to contribute to the debate of the demise of the Neanderthals and the arrival of the first Anatomically Modern Humans by using a groundbreaking methodological approach, and doing so, to add a new line of evidence to the study of demographic changes in European Prehistory.

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Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2015

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Coordinator

MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTEN EV
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 171 460,80
Address
HOFGARTENSTRASSE 8
80539 MUNCHEN
Germany

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Region
Bayern Oberbayern München, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 171 460,80
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