Macrolithic use- wear analysis by Alba Masclans
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 2021
This paper aims to explore gender diversity and sexual division of labour at the beginning of far... more This paper aims to explore gender diversity and sexual division of labour at the beginning of farming through the study of one of the earliest Linearbandkeramik cemeteries in Central Europe: Nitra (Slovakia). This topic is addressed by bringing out the nuance of the buried individuals' lifeways and taskways. Use-wear studies have been undertaken on both ground and flaked stone instruments deposited as grave goods, thus generating new data about the activities performed using these tools. The relationships between the artefact function and the buried individuals' sex, age, and health condition have been addressed together with the isotopic and physical activity information related to the inhumated diet and mobility. Our results suggest a schema in which biological sex played a key role in task, lifeways, and grave goods differentiation. These differences, however, presented significant overlaps, suggesting that biological sex was not all encompassing and that internal variations within sexes were indeed present, reflecting a complex tapestry of gender, and, possibly, status relationships.
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PLOS ONE, 2021
This work demonstrates the importance of integrating sexual division of labour into the research ... more This work demonstrates the importance of integrating sexual division of labour into the research of the transition to the Neolithic and its social implications. During the spread of the Neolithic in Europe, when migration led to the dispersal of domesticated plants and animals, novel tasks and tools, appear in the archaeological record. By examining the use-wear traces from over 400 stone tools from funerary contexts of the earliest Neolithic in central Europe we provide insights into what tasks could have been carried out by women and men. The results of this analysis are then examined for statistically significant correlations with the osteological, isotopic and other grave good data, informing on sexed-based differences in diet, mobility and symbolism. Our data demonstrate males were buried with stone tools used for woodwork, and butchery, hunting or interpersonal violence, while women with those for the working of animal skins, expanding the range of tasks known to have been carried out. The results also show variation along an east-west cline from Slovakia to eastern France, suggesting that the sexual division of labour (or at least its representation in death) changed as farming spread westwards.
Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory, 2020
This paper aims to address relations between sexes at the start of farming in Europe, particularl... more This paper aims to address relations between sexes at the start of farming in Europe, particularly through studying the funerary practices of one of the most important North Carpathian Basin Neolithic cemeteries: the site of Vedrovice (Moravia, Czech Republic), considered to be the first Linearbandkeramik (LBK) cemetery documented to date. In order to approach the relationships between women, children and men at the dawn of agriculture, use-wear studies have been undertaken on both ground and flaked stone instruments deposited as grave goods, thus generating new data about the activities performed using these tools. Furthermore, the relationship between sex, age, health condition and spatial distribution has also been addressed together with the isotopic information related to diet and mobility. The results suggest that sexes were valued differently in death. Unequal farming and/or hunting product distribution between the sexes and between women of different origin has been observed as well as higher tool and ornaments accumulation in male burials and a marked sexual differentiation of the male and female spheres of production represented through the stone funerary tools. A discussion is made around the possible interpretation of this result in terms of presence/absence of sexual inequalities.
BAR Publishing, 2020
This work broadens the current interpretative framework about communities living in the North- Ea... more This work broadens the current interpretative framework about communities living in the North- East of the Iberian Peninsula around the turn of the fifth and fourth millennia BC. The empirical foundation of this research is the analysis of polished and bevelled stone artefacts, found both in funerary and domestic contexts. The new data provides fresh insight into the technical choices and the productive processes in which the tools were employed by the Neolithic groups. The results of this enquiry, together with the data concerning the age and sexual determination of the buried individuals as well as the artefact distribution across the graves, constitutes an unprecedented opportunity to understand and explain the archaeological record variability in terms of gender and other social hierarchies.
Trabajos de Prehistoria, 2019
El presente trabajo tiene como fundamento empírico el análisis funcional, petrológico y tecnológi... more El presente trabajo tiene como fundamento empírico el análisis funcional, petrológico y tecnológico de los instrumentos de piedra pulida y biselada encontrados en los principales contextos funerarios y domésticos de las comunidades que vivieron en el nordeste de la península ibérica entre el final del V y principios del IV milenio cal ANE. Los nuevos datos han permitido conocer en profundidad la gestión de las materias primas y el valor objetivo de los ítems estudiados, así como los procesos productivos en los que fueron utilizados. Gracias a estos resultados hemos podido entender y explicar la variabilidad documentada en el registro desde un punto de vista sociológico. ABSTRACT The present work's empirical foundation is the use-wear, petrological and technological analysis of polished and bev-elled stone artefacts, found both in funerary and domestic contexts of the communities living in the NorthEast of the Iberian Peninsula around the turn of the fifth and fourth millennia Before Christ. The new data provides fresh insight into the raw material management, the technical choices and the productive processes in which the tools were employed. The results of our research help us to understand and explain the documented variability from a sociological point of view. Palabras clave: Neolítico; Hachas; Azuelas; Trazas de uso; Determinación petrológica; Tecnología.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2019
This paper aims to explore the existence of a sexual division of labour and possible gender inequ... more This paper aims to explore the existence of a sexual division of labour and possible gender inequalities. In the framework of the research project entitled “Approach to the first North-Eastern Iberian Neolithic communities through their funerary practices”, a series of analyses have been performed, as well as a review of the characteristics that define the social relationships of the so-called “Pit Burials” sepulchres, comprising the structures, the buried individuals and their grave goods. In the present paper, our aim is to cross-reference the results of the lithic use-wear and raw material determination analyses with those performed by other researchers such as isotopic determinations, radiocarbon dating, taphonomical studies, bone industry, use-wear analysis and osteoarchaeological analysis of skeletal remains. Through statistical analysis, a contribution will be made to our understanding of Neolithic people's methods of producing, distributing and consuming goods, as well as their traditions regarding the symbolic ritualisation of those patterns.
CUADERNOS DE PREHISTORIA Y ARQUEOLOGÍA DE LA UNIVERSIDAD DE GRANAD, 2017
This paper reports the results of a series of recent experiments in which stone adzes and axes we... more This paper reports the results of a series of recent experiments in which stone adzes and axes were used in woodworking, butchering, hide processing and hoeing activities. The aim of this work is to describe progress in the differentiation between the various kinds of use-wear on polished stone surfaces. The ultimate objective is to create a reference collection suitable for performing the use-wear analysis on polished adzes and axes discovered in archaeological contexts. Particularly, we wish to contribute to the understanding of the role that these tools played in the different economic and ritual activities of the Neolithic communities living in the North East of the Iberian Peninsula around the middle of the 5th and 4th millennium cal. BC.
Monografies del MAC 2, 2018
This paper reports the results of the functional study of the polished adzes and axes found at th... more This paper reports the results of the functional study of the polished adzes and axes found at the Neolithic site of “Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús-1-2” (Catalonia, Northeast of the Iberian Peninsula). Use-wear methodology was adapted to achieve this objective through an Experimental Programme and the identification of wear patterns corresponding to different possible economic activities hypothesized after reviewing the ethnographic data. The main aim of this research is to provide a better understanding of the productive processes carried out using stone axes and adzes, the differential raw material management, and the social distribution of those tasks and goods among the site population. Given that the site includes an extensive funerary record, the regularities and singularities of the tools as a part of the grave goods associations will also be investigated and explained.
PhD dissertation by Alba Masclans
Estudi de les comunitats neolítiques de l’Horitzó dels Sepulcres de Fossa (nord-est de la península Ibèrica, c. 4.000-3.400 cal ANE) a partir de les anàlisis tecno-funcionals dels artefactes polits i bisellats, 2017
Download here: https://www.tdx.cat/handle/10803/458141
Quote here: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/... more Download here: https://www.tdx.cat/handle/10803/458141
Quote here: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/458141
The present dissertation generates a new data corpus which makes it possible to resize and widen the current interpretative framework about the communities living in the North-East of the Iberian Peninsula around the turn of the fifth and fourth millennia Before Christ. The empirical foundation of this research is the analysis of polished and bevelled stone artefacts, found both in funerary and domestic contexts. In order to accomplish the goals of this research, it has been necessary to expand the use-wear analysis methodology and adapt it to the study of the kind of stones that are examined here through the development of extensive an experimental programme. The new data provides fresh insight into the raw material management, the technical choices and the productive processes in which the tools were employed by the studied Neolithic communities. The results of our research help us to understand and explain the documented variability from a sociological point of view
Neolithic papers by Alba Masclans
Interchange in Pre- and Protohistory, 2018
One of the elements that defines the so-called "Pit Burial Horizon" is the presence within certai... more One of the elements that defines the so-called "Pit Burial Horizon" is the presence within certain burials of a set of tools and ornaments which were made of exogenous materials or which their acquisition and processing required an enormous investment effort Chronologically, we stand at end of the 5th and beginning of the 4th millennium cat. BC, a period that stands out due to the relevance of its funerary structures, usually burial chambers containing a single individual.
Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is the most emblematic Neolithic cemetery in the northeastern Iberian ... more Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is the most emblematic Neolithic cemetery in the northeastern Iberian peninsula, with a total of 179 documented pit burials. Artifacts made of exogenous raw materials, such as honey flint (southeastern France), jadeite, amphibolite, eclogite and nephrite (Alps and the Pyrenees), variscite (coast of northeastern Iberia), and even obsidian (Sardinia), have been found in the burials. The presence of these raw materials is not exclusive to this necropolis, but they have also been documented in many of the graves of this region during this period. The literature has singled out this funerary practice as the Pit Burials cultural horizon. However, until now the chronology of this funerary practice has not been fully defined, so it was difficult to explain the development of the chronology and the networks through which the materials reached northeast Iberia. New, unpublished radiocarbon (14C) dates of Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús are presented, as well as the results of different statistical analyses and Bayesian modeling that specify its chronology. Through the contribution of new data on the chronology of Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús new clues regarding the temporal dynamics of pit burials and the raw materials exchange networks associated with them are presented
Palevol, 2018
Camí de Can Grau is one of the most important Neolithic necropolises of the “Pit Burials” horizon... more Camí de Can Grau is one of the most important Neolithic necropolises of the “Pit Burials” horizon (North-East of the Iberian Peninsula. Late fifth–early fourth millennia cal BC), because of its large number of graves. However, the number of buried individuals and the type of grave goods of the site have some peculiarities suggesting that could be one of the last manifestations of this horizon. For proving that, a radiocarbon dating programme and some statistical analysis were carried out so as to determine its chronology. The results are discussed regarding the duration of the necropolis, the degree of contemporaneity between graves and grave goods and the number of buried individuals. Moreover, chronological relationships with other similar contexts of the same horizon and located in other regions are presented. This study goes beyond a purely local research, as it proposes a method for addressing the chronology of funerary contexts.
L'Anthropologie, 2015
ABSTRACT The complex of La Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is one of the most remarkable site of the I... more ABSTRACT The complex of La Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is one of the most remarkable site of the Iberian Peninsula. Various excavations carried out since the early 20th century led to the discovery of numerous remains from the Neolithic to the medieval and modern eras. In this regard, the Neolithic structures constitute one of the largest cemeteries of Western Mediterranean for this period. In this paper, we present a small group of graves, yet unpublished, located in the northern part of the necropolis, apart from the other concentrations of burials.
The data presented in this paper resume all the available information on the Feixa del Moro site,... more The data presented in this paper resume all the available information on the Feixa del Moro site, correcting old mistakes and bias, updating the 1980s archaeological registers and presenting new analyses as well. Our aim is to ensure that Feixa del Moro remains a reference site for the Pyrenean and Western Mediterranean Neolithic. At the same time, we wish to encourage other researchers to undertake new analyses and to embrace new perspectives in order to improve our understanding of Neolithic societies
by Juan Francisco Gibaja, Millán Mozota, F. Xavier Oms Arias, Patricia Martín, MONICA OLIVA POVEDA, jordi roig, Antoni Palomo, Gerard Remolins Zamora, Xavier Terradas, Alba Masclans, Stéphanie Duboscq, and josep mestres Le Chasséen, des Chasséens… Retour sur une culture nationale et ses parallèles, Sepulcres de fossa, Cortaillod, Lagozza, 2016
The authors of this paper has been investigating for years the Neolithic funerary contexts of the... more The authors of this paper has been investigating for years the Neolithic funerary contexts of the culture known as “Sepulcros de Fosa”, in the Northeast of the Iberian Peninsula. Here we present the results obtained from the study of the grave goods usually found in the burials of this cultural group. Ceramic vessels were generally placed in the graves long with the deceased, as well as lithic and bone tools, ornamental elements, and to a lesser extent, faunal remains. We discuss their morphological characteristics, the origin of the raw materials and the technical processes involved in their production. We also try to improve our knowledge of the function of some of these artefacts and their possible social or symbolic signification. This research falls within the I+D project started in 2011 and entitled “Aproximación a las primeras comunidades neolíticas del NE peninsular a través de sus prácticas funerarias” HAR2011-23149). All in all, each day we learn a little more about these communities.
The excavations carried out from 1983 to 1985 on an Andorran hillside by the formerAndorra Nation... more The excavations carried out from 1983 to 1985 on an Andorran hillside by the formerAndorra National Artistic Heritage Archaeological Research Service revealed one of the mostimportant Neolithic sites in the Pyrenees. Directed by Xavier Llovera and Pere Canturri, theexcavations uncovered a settlement with two interesting features: 1) it was located in ahigh mountain area, and 2) the same place possessed numerous domestic and funerarystructures. Both factors have made La Feixa del Moro a key site in the prehistory of both Paleodietthe Pyrenees and the western Mediterranean in general. Three decades later, a pluridisci-plinary team has begun a careful review of the documentation, studied the human remainsand artefacts in the graves, carried out several forms of biochemical analysis and obtainednew radiocarbon determinations for the individuals exhumed in two of the three buri-als in stone boxes (or cists). The objective is a better understanding of the first farmingcommunities that settled in the Pyrenees
“De la tombe au territoire” & Actualite de la recherche. Actes des lle Rencontres Meridionales de Prehistoire Recente Montpellier (Herault) 25 au 27 septembre 2014, 2016
In this paper, we present the latest results and current on-going analysis of the Neolithic grave... more In this paper, we present the latest results and current on-going analysis of the Neolithic grave godos associated with the communities that lived in the north-eastern Iberian Peninsula between the 5th and 4th millennia cal BC. Aspects such as raw materials, tool morphologies, artefact distributions, production techniques and the degree of tool degree are addressed from a multidisciplinary point of view.
The complex of La Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is one of the most remarkable site of the Iberian Pe... more The complex of La Bòbila Madurell-Can Gambús is one of the most remarkable site of the Iberian Peninsula. Various excavations carried out since the early 20th century led to the discovery of numerous remains from the Neolithic to the medieval and modern eras. In this regard, the Neolithic structures constitute one of the largest cemeteries of Western Mediterranean for this period. In this paper, we present a small group of graves, yet unpublished, located in the northern part of the necropolis, apart from the other concentrations of burials.
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Macrolithic use- wear analysis by Alba Masclans
Check here for a full view of the paper: https://rdcu.be/cl7EG
PhD dissertation by Alba Masclans
Quote here: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/458141
The present dissertation generates a new data corpus which makes it possible to resize and widen the current interpretative framework about the communities living in the North-East of the Iberian Peninsula around the turn of the fifth and fourth millennia Before Christ. The empirical foundation of this research is the analysis of polished and bevelled stone artefacts, found both in funerary and domestic contexts. In order to accomplish the goals of this research, it has been necessary to expand the use-wear analysis methodology and adapt it to the study of the kind of stones that are examined here through the development of extensive an experimental programme. The new data provides fresh insight into the raw material management, the technical choices and the productive processes in which the tools were employed by the studied Neolithic communities. The results of our research help us to understand and explain the documented variability from a sociological point of view
Neolithic papers by Alba Masclans
Check here for a full view of the paper: https://rdcu.be/cl7EG
Quote here: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/458141
The present dissertation generates a new data corpus which makes it possible to resize and widen the current interpretative framework about the communities living in the North-East of the Iberian Peninsula around the turn of the fifth and fourth millennia Before Christ. The empirical foundation of this research is the analysis of polished and bevelled stone artefacts, found both in funerary and domestic contexts. In order to accomplish the goals of this research, it has been necessary to expand the use-wear analysis methodology and adapt it to the study of the kind of stones that are examined here through the development of extensive an experimental programme. The new data provides fresh insight into the raw material management, the technical choices and the productive processes in which the tools were employed by the studied Neolithic communities. The results of our research help us to understand and explain the documented variability from a sociological point of view
Nodular brown flint has been attested inside the lacustrine Oligocene limestones in the area of Montvell. This particular raw material can be considered as one of the best fitted for knapping activities in the North East of the Iberian Peninsula. Evidences of extraction activities were located stepped along the hill slopes and were carried out removing the
layers containing the bigger flint nodules. The flint exploitation was easy thanks to the fact that the pursued layers outcrop vertically and are quite accessible. This situation allowed the opening of successive extraction fronts without being necessary to withdraw huge quantities of residues.
In 2004 the late Neolithic-Chalcolithic site of les Auvelles was excavated. Given that it is located near the Montvell quarries, it was then suggested that it could be related to the local flint management. It was also proposed that the processing techniques may have included heat treatment of flint nodules, although for the time being it has not been
proved. The on-going investigation will lead us to establish not only the chronological duration and the scope of the extraction activities, but also the possible contemporaneity between the two sites.