The Early Upper Palaeolithic in Cueva del Arco (Murcia, Spain) and Its Contextualisation in the Iberian Mediterranean

Cueva del Arco (Murcia, Spain) emerges as a pivotal site for understanding the early settlement of anatomically modern humans (AMH) in the Iberian Mediterranean during the Gravettian period. A multidisciplinary analysis of material culture, fauna, landscape, and dating reveals that this cave was occupied sporadically by small human groups at the dawn of AMH consolidation in the region. These findings, contextualized within broader Gravettian sites across Mediterranean Iberia, suggest Cueva del Arco played a key role in both the southern expansion and definitive settlement of AMH in this territory. Earlier Aurignacian occupations left minimal traces but highlight the site's layered significance.

Roman, D., Angelucci, D., Armellini, J., Carrión-Marco, Y., Carrión, J. S., López, A., Sánchez-Martínez, N., Martínez-Varea, C., Nadal, J., Ochando, J., Real, C., Sánchez-Hernández, A., & Martín-Lerma, I. (2024). The Early Upper Palaeolithic in Cueva del Arco (Murcia, Spain) and Its Contextualisation in the Iberian Mediterranean. Open Archaeology, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1515/opar-2024-0009