MobiliTy · Raw material provisioning and mobility patterns throughout the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic Transition in NW Tuscany

Raw material provisioning and mobility patterns throughout the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic Transition in NW Tuscany

The MobiliTy project explores key questions about the transition from Neanderthals to early Homo sapiens, focusing on human mobility and resource utilisation patterns in north-western Tuscany during the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic. Globally, this period, spanning approximately 60,000–40,000 years ago, represents a major cultural and biological shift, as Homo sapiens progressively replaced Neanderthals across Europe. Examining the contrasting behaviours and adaptive strategies of these two species sheds light on human evolution, including technological, social, and cognitive developments that may have contributed to the success of Homo sapiens. The primary aim of MobiliTy is to analyse stone tools and raw materials to map patterns of mobility and resource procurement, revealing how the landscape influenced ancient human movements. Lithic artefacts, due to their durability, provide valuable indicators of past human behaviour. By identifying and studying the materials used for tool-making, researchers can trace the distances travelled by Neanderthal and early Homo sapiens groups in search of resources, offering insights into their social structures and adaptability. The project also employs raw material microscopic characterisation analyses to better understand the origins of raw materials. By coupling raw material characterisation with technological analyses of archaeological artefacts, it becomes possible to understand which raw materials were used for specific production purposes and how human groups employed these resources during their movements across the landscape. Through resource characterisation and the examination of potential prehistoric routes, MobiliTy provides a detailed picture of past landscapes and how humans interacted with them in north-western Tuscany. This area is particularly significant as it bridges a geographical gap between the northern and southern sections of the western Italian Peninsula. Through its interdisciplinary approach, combining archaeological, geological, and technological analyses, MobiliTy has the potential to significantly impact heritage conservation strategies, providing a model for future research into ancient human adaptations across Europe. By building a detailed understanding of early human adaptability, MobiliTy also has potential implications for modern studies on resilience and adaptation, informing both cultural heritage management and broader discussions on human-environment interactions.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union