New research on the Late Pleistocene in the Lim Channel, Istria

Ivor Janković, Darko Komšo, James C.M. Ahern, Rory Becker, Katarina Gerometta, Jacobo Weinstock, Antonela Barbir, Nikola Vukosavljević, Barbara Cvitkušić, Krunoslav Zubčić, Sanjin Mihelić & Fred H. Smith

Abstract

Abstract image

As a part of the multidisciplinary project entitled Archaeological Investigations into the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene of the Lim Channel, Istria, archaeological research has been conducted at four sites: Romuald's Cave, Abri Kontija 002, Pećina at Rovinjsko Selo and Lim 001. There is much debate on issues related to biological and behavioural continuity, to patterns of changes and adaptations during this crucial period, and to external factors (e.g. changes in ecology and climate). For example, a clearer insight is needed into how climatic change affects the ecology of specific regions, including changing sea levels. Additionally, there continues to be debate centring on who produced the earliest (Initial) Upper Palaeolithic industries in Europe. To achieve a more precise insight into long-term diachronic changes and cultural relations around the Adriatic, and to document the presence of Middle and Upper Palaeolithic humans in Istria, we concentrated on a single microregion (the Lim Channel in Istria, Croatia). Here we report work on the two sites that to date have yielded Pleistocene material: Romuald's Cave and Abri Kontija 002.


Authors

  • Ivor Janković
    Institute for Anthropological Research, Ljudevita Gaja 32, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia; Department of Anthropology, University of Wyoming, 1000 E. University Avenue, Laramie WY 82071–3431, USA
  • Darko Komšo
    Archaeological Museum of Istria, Carrarina 3, 52100 Pula, Croatia
  • James C.M. Ahern
    Department of Anthropology, University of Wyoming, 1000 E. University Avenue, Laramie WY 82071–3431, USA
  • Rory Becker
    Anthropology/Sociology Department, Eastern Oregon University, 1 University Boulevard, La Grande, OR 97850, USA
  • Katarina Gerometta
    Juraj Dobrila University, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
  • Jacobo Weinstock
    Faculty of Humanities, University of Southampton, Avenue Campus Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BF, UK
  • Antonela Barbir
    Croatian Conservation Institute, Nike Grškovića 23, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
  • Nikola Vukosavljević
    Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, Ivana Lučića 3, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
  • Barbara Cvitkušić
    Institute for Anthropological Research, Ljudevita Gaja 32, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
  • Krunoslav Zubčić
    Croatian Conservation Institute, Nike Grškovića 23, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
  • Sanjin Mihelić
    Archaeological Museum in Zagreb, Trg N. Šubića Zrinskog 19, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
  • Fred H. Smith
    Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Illinois State University, 100 N. University Street, Normal, IL 61761, USA