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| Geographical range | Western Europe |
|---|---|
| Period | Upper Paleolithic |
| Dates | c. 22,000 – c. 17,000 BP |
| Type site | Parc archéologique et botanique de Solutré |
| Preceded by | Gravettian |
| Followed by | Magdalenian in France, and Iberia; in the latter after a transition through theBadegoulien [fr] |
| ThePaleolithic |
|---|
| ↑Pliocene (beforeHomo) |
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| ↓Mesolithic |
TheSolutrean/səˈljuːtriən/industry is a relatively advancedflint tool-making style of theUpper Paleolithic of the FinalGravettian, from around 22,000 to 17,000BP. Solutrean sites have been found in modern-day France, Spain and Portugal.
The termSolutrean comes from thetype-site of "Cros du Charnier", dating to around 21,000 years ago and located atSolutré, in east-central France nearMâcon. The Rock of Solutré site was discovered in 1866 by the French geologist andpaleontologistHenry Testot-Ferry. It is now preserved as theParc archéologique et botanique de Solutré.
The industry was named byGabriel de Mortillet to describe the second stage of his system of cave chronology, following theMousterian, and he considered it synchronous with the third division of theQuaternary period.[1] The era's finds include tools, ornamental beads, and bone pins as well asprehistoric art.
Solutrean tool-making employed techniques not seen before and not rediscovered for millennia. The Solutrean has relatively finely worked, bifacial points made withlithic reduction percussion and pressure flaking rather thanflintknapping. Knapping was done using antlerbatons, hardwood batons and soft stone hammers. This method permitted the working of delicate slivers offlint to make light projectiles and even elaborate barbed and tanged arrowheads. Large thin spearheads; scrapers with edge not on the side but on the end; flint knives and saws, but all still chipped, not ground or polished; long spear-points, with tang and shoulder on one side only, are also characteristic implements of this industry. Bone and antler were used as well.[1]
The Solutrean may be seen as a transitional stage between the flint implements of the Mousterian and the bone implements of theMagdalenian epochs. Faunal finds include horses,reindeer,ibex,mammoths,cave lions,rhinoceroses, bears andaurochs.[2] Solutrean finds have also been made in the caves ofLes Eyzies andLaugerie-Haute [fr], and in the Lower Beds ofCreswell Crags inDerbyshire, England[1] (Proto-Solutrean). The industry first appeared in what is now Spain[citation needed], and disappears from the archaeological record around 17,000 BP.
Examination of physical remains from the Solutrean period has determined that they were of a slightly moregracile type than the preceding Gravettian culture. Males were rather tall, with some skeletons being up to 179 cm tall.[3][4][5] Volume 4 of thePortuguese Magazine of Archaeology from 2001 examined a Solutrean female individual whose physical remains are described as "having postcranial elements that derive from a relatively small and gracile individual".[6] The teeth of Solutrean individuals are described as being similar in appearance to those belonging to the people of the Gravettian.[7]
Analysis of genomics of Solutrean-related individuals has found that they are unrelated to ancient or modern Native Americans and are instead related to earlier Western EuropeanCro-Magnons, particularly earlierGravettian-producing individuals from France and Spain, as well to the producers of the subsequentMagdalenian culture.[8][9] It has been found that Solutreans are also closely related toAurignacians.[8]
The Solutrean hypothesis argues that people from Europe may have been among the earliest settlers of the Americas.[10][11] Its notable recent proponents includeDennis Stanford of theSmithsonian Institution and Bruce Bradley of theUniversity of Exeter.[12] Thishypothesis contrasts with the mainstream archaeological consensus that the North American continent was first populated by people from Asia, either by theBering land bridge (i.e.Beringia) at least 13,500 years ago,[13] or by maritime travel along the Pacific coast, or by both. The idea of a Clovis-Solutrean link remains controversial and does not enjoy wide acceptance. The hypothesis is challenged by large gaps in time between theClovis culture and Solutrean eras, a lack of evidence of Solutrean seafaring, lack of specific Solutrean features and tools in Clovis technology, the difficulties of the route, and other issues.[14][15]
In 2014, theautosomal DNA of a male infant (Anzick-1) from a 12,500-year-old deposit in Montana was sequenced.[16] The skeleton was found in close association with several Clovis artifacts. Comparisons showed strong affinities with DNA from Siberian sites, and virtually ruled out any close affinity of Anzick-1 with European sources. The DNA of the Anzick-1 sample showed strong affinities with sampled Native American populations, which indicated that the samples derive from an ancient population that lived in or near Siberia, the Upper PaleolithicMal'ta population.[17]
| Preceded by | Solutrean 22,000–17,000 BP | Succeeded by |
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Solutrian Epoch".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 25 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 377.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)