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The earliest basketry in southern Europe: Hunter-gatherer and farmer plant-based technology in Cueva de los Murciélagos (Albuñol)

2023; American Association for the Advancement of Science; Volume: 9; Issue: 39 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1126/sciadv.adi3055

2375-2548

Francisco Martínez‐Sevilla, Maria Herrero-Otal, María Martín Seijo, Jonathan Santana, José Antonio Lozano Rodríguez, Ruth Maicas Ramos, Miriam Cubas, Anna Homs, Rafael María Martínez Sánchez, Ingrid Bertin, Rosa María Barroso Bermejo, Primitiva Bueno Ramírez, Rodrigo de Balbín Behrmann, Antoni Palomo, Antonio M. Álvarez‐Valero, Leonor Peña‐Chocarro, Mercedes Murillo‐Barroso, Eva Fernández‐Domínguez, Manuel Altamirano García, Rubén Pardo-Martínez, Mercedes Iriarte, Javier Luis Carrasco Rus, Carmen Alfaro Giner, Raquel Piqué,

Archaeological and Geological Studies

Plant material culture can offer unique insights into the ways of life of prehistoric societies; however, its perishable nature has prevented a thorough understanding of its diverse and complex uses. Sites with exceptional preservation of organic materials provide a unique opportunity for further research. The burial site of Cueva de los Murciélagos in southern Iberia, uncovered during 19th-century mining activities, contained the best-preserved hunter-gatherer basketry in southern Europe, together with other unique organic artifacts associated with the first farming communities, such as sandals and a wooden hammer. We present 14 14C dates for the perishable artifacts (N = 76), situating the assemblage between the Early and Middle Holocene (c. 7500 to 4200 cal BCE). Our integrated analysis includes raw material determination and technological and chrono-cultural contextualization of this unique and important set of materials.