at SciVerse ScienceDirect

Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329

Contents lists available

Journal of Human Evolution

journal homepage: www.elsevier .com/locate/ jhevol

News and views

The Gravettian calvaria from Mollet III cave (Serinyà, NortheasternIberian Peninsula)

Joaquim Soler a,*, Narcís Soler a, Bibiana Agustí b, Michael Bolus c

a Institut de Recerca Històrica, Universitat de Girona, Facultat de Lletres, Plaça Ferrater i Mora, 1, 17071 Girona, Catalonia, Spainb c/Solivent, 13, 17170 Amer, Catalonia, SpaincHeidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Research Center ‘The Role of Culture in Early Expansions of Humans’, University of Tübingen,Rümelinstraße 23, D-72070 Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

a r t i c l e i n f o

Article history:Received 26 July 2010Accepted 30 March 2013Available online 10 May 2013

Keywords:Homo sapiensUpper PalaeolithicRadiocarbon datingAccelerator mass spectrometry

Introduction

The Mollet III cave is situated in the vicinity of Serinyà and isvery close to the important Palaeolithic caves of Reclau Viver,Mollet, Pau and Arbreda. All of these sites are concentrated alonga travertine cliff, only a few metres apart from each other (Fig. 1).Mollet III cave should not be confused with the adjacent site ofMollet (sometimes also referred to as Mollet I), in which anarchaic human molar dated to MIS 7 was found (Maroto et al.,2012).

The dimensions and exact geomorphology of Mollet III arepresently uncertain because the cave has never been totally exca-vated and its roof is partially collapsed. The first archaeologicalresearch began on September 30, 1972, and concluded shortly af-terwards on November 24, 1972. The excavation was carried outunder the leadership of J.M. Corominas, a medical doctor living inthe nearby city of Banyoles. Corominas was an experiencedamateur prehistorian who had previously examined all of theabove-mentioned sites.

* Corresponding author.E-mail addresses: joaquim.soler@udg.edu (J. Soler), narcis.soler@udg.edu

(N. Soler), bagusti@ya.com (B. Agustí), michael.bolus@uni-tuebingen.de (M. Bolus).

0047-2484/$ e see front matter � 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2013.03.005

In Mollet III, Corominas dug four pits near the wall of the mainshelter leaving a wide baulk between two of the pits. The exca-vation of each pit was arranged in horizontal spits of about 20 cmdeep, which he used to group the archaeological findings.He documented the stratigraphy and the finds from each spit inhis notebook, which has been useful for reconstructing hisexcavation.

Corominas was able to synthesize the archaeologicalsequence of Mollet III in three levels. The uppermost level wascharacterized by dark sediments, abundant pottery from BronzeAge and later periods and human remains related to the funeraryuses of the shelter at that time (Vives, 1985). Below that, asecond level contained yellowish sediments and Upper Palae-olithic materials of Gravettian age. At the bottom, there was afinal level of whitish sediments, black manganese concretionsand abundant Middle Palaeolithic tools, which closed thesequence (Maroto, 1976).

Unfortunately, either the site did not have absolute stratigraphicintegrity or perhaps Corominas’ excavation methods were notadequate to reveal it. The most compelling evidence to support thiswas the presence in the uppermost level of four perforated red deercanines, morphologically and technically identical to six other ca-nines found in the Upper Palaeolithic level.

Finding and dating of the calvaria

On November 11, 1972, while Corominas was working on theNorth Sector pit, a human calvaria appeared in the interface be-tween spits 4 and 5 (at about 0.80 m from ground level). Coro-minas reported this discovery in his notebook as follows: “Weexcavate Mollet III, North Sector, 4th spit. Red sediments. Humancalvaria, human femur, other bones. End-scraper of agate, arte-facts of quartzite, quartz and other materials. Without ceramics”.Several days later, he added some further notes suggesting thePalaeolithic age of the calvaria: “Dr. Alcobé gives a talk inBanyoles. I hand him the calvaria of a possible Cro-Magnon foundin Mollet III between spits 4 and 5 to be studied” (Corominas’Notebook, 1972: 26-XI).

Figure 1. Situation of Mollet III site. Plan and stratigraphic column showing relative positions of the calvaria and other relevant archaeological materials.

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329 323

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329324

Corominas presumed that the calvaria was from the Palaeolithicage because of the associated Upper Palaeolithic artefacts found inits vicinity. However, the calvaria appeared in an ambiguous posi-tion, due to the fact that in the North Sector pit, spits 4 and 5represent the interface between the first (Bronze Age) and thesecond (Upper Palaeolithic) levels. In order to solve this contro-versy, some weeks later a group of academic archaeologists led byA. Mir and R. Salas conducted a short excavation on the nearbybaulk and concluded that the calvaria should belong to the BronzeAge because the Upper Palaeolithic level was too poor in that areaof the site. Their conclusions Palaeolithic dimmed the interest inthe fossil for many years.

However, in our opinion, the unquestionably Upper Palaeolithicartefacts (Fig. 2) and ornaments (Fig. 3) found with the calvaria and

Figure 2. Gravettian stone and bone artefacts fromMollet III, all of them (except for 3) madeawl; 6, 12: Marginal sidescrapers; 8: Burin; 13: Small pebble tool.

in the Upper Palaeolithic level indicate an Upper Palaeolithic age,probably Gravettian (Soler 1986). Because a direct radiocarbondating of the fossil could provide a definitive answer to the ques-tion, we proceeded to remove an easily detachable fragment clearlybelonging to the calvaria (a temporal bone showing the mastoidprocess) and we sent it to Groningen to be dated by 14C AMS(accelerator mass spectrometry) (Fig. 4). The laboratory was alertedabout restorationwork carried out on the bones during the 1980s inorder to remove glue and preservatives before analysis. The sampleweight was 896 mg, which yielded 22.80 mg of collagen (D13Cof �19.59&). The resulting date of 22,330 � 90 BP (years beforepresent) (uncalibrated 1 sigma result) confirmed the Gravettian ageof the fossil (GrA-43783), although this result could indicate aminimum age only, given previous experience on dating specimens

on silex. 1, 5, 7, 9: Endscrapers; 4: Big backed blade; 2, 10, 11: Backed bladelets; 3: Bone

Figure 3. Ornaments found in Mollet III. 1e10: Perforated canines of Cervus elaphus; 11: Perforated Glycymeris sp.; 12: Fragments of Acathocardia; 13: Phallium sp. with rectangularorifice and wear; 14: Nucella lapillus; 15e26: Dentalium sp.

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329 325

that had been treated with glue and preservatives (Higham et al.,2006). After dating, the fragment was re-attached to the rest ofthe calvaria, which was then generally cleaned and restored at theMuseu d’Arqueologia de Catalunya in Girona to facilitate furtheranthropological study.

Aside from the calvaria, in the museum we found other humanremains that could also belong to the Upper Palaeolithic level,although none of them appeared in the same pit as the calvaria norwere they mentioned in Corominas’ notebook. A humerus wassampled in order to be directly dated by radiocarbon and yielded a

date of 4115 � 35 BP (uncalibrated 1 sigma result, GrA-47329),which excludes a Gravettian age. This result suggests that weshould restrict the Gravettian attribution to only the directly datedcalvaria documented by Corominas during excavation.

Description of the calvaria

The fossil consists of reconstructed calvaria comprising most ofthe frontal bone, both parietals, the occipital and a fragment ofthe posterior side of the temporal (Fig. 5). The cleaning of the

Figure 4. The temporal bone detached from the calvaria and directly dated beforeanalysis.

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329326

fossil enabled us to make a closer observation. Its external surfaceshows a certain amount of erosion, which does not reach thediploë. The lower edge of the orbital arches are very eroded. Onthe left parietal we noticed a lesion of 8.3 � 8.0 mm consisting ofa round depression with irregular edges. Another round, irregulardepression of similar origin measuring 7.0 � 6.0 mm was foundbelow the right parietal protuberance. In our opinion, this state ofthe fossil is the result of post-depositional events occurring on thesite before excavation, which are impossible to determine at thepresent.

Morphologically, the Mollet III calvaria is lightly built. In normaverticalis, the shape is neither too elongated nor too rounded. Innorma frontalis, it shows a moderately pronounced forehead andintermediate crests. In norma lateralis, the calvaria displays lowauricular height in relation to its width and its height is generallylow.

The external sagittal crest of the calvaria is visible, but onlylightly marked in both norma occipitalis and norma verticalis. Itshows a bilateral flattening on the top of the parietal, resulting inparietal fossae with very marked protuberances. In norma lateralis,the central height of both parietals extend out after a light post-coronal hollow and before another soft prelambdoid depression.Apart from the sagittal crest and the inion muscular insertions, thethickness of the cranial walls is thin. The fossil shows several lateralvascular marks on the frontal and on both parietals. All are sym-metrical and of a physiological nature.

The calvaria belonged to a mature adult. Its estimated age wascalculated by the suture obliteration method, which has a reli-ability of approximately 50% (Masset, 1989), as they were quitecomplete and because of the available remains, this was the onlyparameter possible. The method was applied to both endo- andexocranial sutures and resulted in an estimated age of between 40and 55 years (the regression equation on the external tabulayielded a result of 55.884). With only the calvaria to go by, ourmeasurements are limited and this estimation cannot be furtherbacked up.

Regarding the sex markers, the profile of the orbital archis small, clear and blunt, and we can guess from what remains

of the glabella that it was not highly defined. The mastoid processis small and shows no prominent crest (unfortunately, the vertexis deteriorated and we cannot measure the total length). Theforehead profile shows a vertical, more than oblique, trend. Theoccipital protuberance is sharply evident but the curves ofthe nape are difficult to discern. In general, the muscular in-sertions are not strong. Following Ferembach et al. (1980), all ofthese parameters suggest that the fossil represents a femaleindividual.

Although in that fragmentary and reconstructed state, Mollet IIIstill constitutes the most complete calvaria of Gravettian age of theIberian Peninsula. The next comparable Upper Palaeolithic Iberianfossils (Parpalló 1 and Beneito 1) date from later Solutrean andSolutreoeGravetian periods (Iturbe et al., 1993; Aura, 2010), whilethe Gravettian cranial material from Malladetes (Arsuaga et al.,2002) and Lagar Velho (Zilhão and Trinkaus, 2002) are unfortu-nately not so complete and belonged to individuals younger thanthe Mollet III fossil.

The metric comparison of Mollet III with the more recentfossils of Beneito 1 (Iturbe et al., 1993) and Parpalló (Arsuagaet al., 2001), which are both adult specimens with strong fe-male traits, and also with the rest of the similar Upper PalaeolithicIberian fossils, does not indicate any significant differences amongthem (Table 1).

Archaeological context

The Upper Palaeolithic lithic assemblage accompanying thecalvaria was not very abundant. In 1986, N. Soler attributed theassemblage to the Gravettian period on account of the abundanceof retouched tools with backed edges (Fig. 2), which now has beenconfirmed by the radiocarbon result. The artefacts are similar tothose found in Gravettian level E of the Arbreda cave(25,240 � 120 BP, GrA-47351), Gravettian level C from Reclau Vivercave (23,070 � 210 BP, KIA-33239) and the Gravettian level of Paucave (Fig. 1).

On the other hand, ornaments produced from land and marineanimals were very abundant. They include six perforated Cervuselaphus canines, 12 Dentalium sp., one perforated Glycymeris sp.,one perforated Nucella lapillus and one Phalium sp. with a rectan-gular incised orifice (Oller, 1979). This latter specimen also showsobvious signs of wear on the most voluminous part of its spiralbody, which is probably related to the way in which the ornamentwas used or suspended (Fig. 3).

Four additional perforated red deer canines were recovered inthe uppermost level of the Central Sector (Fig. 2). They aremorphologically and technically identical to those six found in theUpper Palaeolithic level. Although in the Iberian Peninsula thereare still examples of perforated red deer canines from MesolithicAge (Álvarez, 2008; Aura, 2010), this later period was not presentat Mollet III. In our point of view, they all should originate fromthe Upper Palaeolithic level. Their presence in the uppermostlevel at Mollet III is probably thus the result of some degree ofmixing that had occurred prior (or due) to Corominas’ excavation(Soler, 1986).

Another strong argument in favour of attributing these four reddeer perforated canines to the Palaeolithic is the fact that this typeof personal ornament is frequently found in Palaeolithic levels ofSerinyà caves and throughout the Iberian Peninsula Palaeolithic.Perforated red deer canines from the Archaic Aurignacian periodwere found in the neighbouring cave of Reclau Viver (Soler, 1986);other examples from early Aurignacian contexts were found at ElPendo, Morín and Covalejos, and pieces from the late Aurignacianperiod were found at Otero (Bernaldo de Quirós, 1982; Sanguinoand Montes, 2005). Gravettian specimens include those from the

Figure 5. Main views of fossil. The piece still bears the original identification, ‘Gerona Mollet III S.N. 4’ (Northern Sector, spit 4). The current museum identification number for thisfossil is MIII 379.

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329 327

Lagar Velho burial in Portugal (Zilhão and Trinkaus, 2002) and theupper level 5 and level 4 at Morín (González Echegaray et al., 1971).In Serinyà, we have late Gravettian specimens from Reclau Viver(Soler, 1986), which are of a similar age as the specimens fromMollet III. Examples from younger Palaeolithic periods includespecimens from the Solutrean industry at Caldeirão in Portugal(Trinkaus et al., 2001) and La Riera in Spain (Straus and Clark, 1986),and from the Magdalenian at La Riera and El Juyo (Barandiaránet al., 1985), among others.

Among the ten perforated canines found at Mollet III, six showred-coloured stains in their orifices. Corominas found iron oxides inthe Upper Palaeolithic level, and also noted the reddish colour ofthe sediments surrounding the calvaria.

Other faunal remains of this Upper Palaeolithic level includeEquus ferus, Equus hydruntinus, Cervus elaphus, Rupicapra rupicapra,Bos primigenius, Sus scrofa, Vulpes vulpes, Canis lupus, Lynx spelaea,Crocuta crocuta, Oryctolagus cuniculus and undetermined avifauna(Estévez, 1979).

Table 1Craniometry of the Mollet III dated calvaria and comparison with similar Upper Palaeolithic Iberian fossils.

Individuals Mollet III Malladetes(Arsuaga et al., 2002)

Parpalló 1(Arsuaga et al., 2001)

Beneito 1(Iturbe et al., 1993)

H. sapiens(Frayer, 1980)d

H. sapiens(Frayer, 1980)d

H. sapiens(mean)

Chronology Gravettian Gravettianb Protosolutrean e

SolutreanSolutreo-Gravettianc

Upper Palaeolithic Upper Palaeolithic

Estimated age 40e45 yrs. 5e7 yrs. ca. 15e18 years Young adult Adults Adults AdultsEstimated sex Female Indet. Female Female Males FemalesMaximum cranial length 188.0a 174.0 176.0 169.9 184.4Maximum cranial breadth 147.0 141.6 135.0 140.1 137.4Cephalic index 78.19 68.89Minimal frontal breadth 98.5 98.7 104.0Maximum frontal breadth 117.7 120.0 123.4 117.1Frontal index 83.68Frontoparietal index 67.01Auricular height 106.5Height/width 72.44Height/length 56.64Mastoid height 29.4a

Circumference 528Cranial capacity (cm3) 1521.04e

Parietal e Sagittal arc 126.0 120.0 134.6 130.3Occipital e Sagittal arc 130.0 99.0 130.0 126.0 119.6 115.2 126.4 (8 indiv.)Lambda e Inion arc 70 60 80 76 79.7 (6 indiv.)Parietal e Sagittal chord 109 112Occipital e Sagittal chord 97 85 97 102 101.5 (8 indiv.)Lambda e Inion chord 65 53 62.5 72 69.6 (7 indiv.)Biorbital breadth 99 107Thickness at bregma 3.8Thickness at asterion 7.0Thickness at lambda 4.8Thickness at inion 13.7Thickness at the

parietal protuberance7.2

Data from Iturbe et al. (1993) and Arsuaga et al. (2001, 2002).Measures in mm.

a Incomplete bone, approximated measures.b Charcoal found near the fossil yielded a radiocarbon age of 25,120 � 240 BP (Arsuaga et al., 2002).c The level has been dated by radiocarbon to 16,560 � 480 BP (Iturbe et al., 1993).d Statistical means.e Following Jorgensen method (Olivier et al., 1978). Following Olivier et al. (1978) the estimate of cranial capacity would be 1506.23 cm3 and following Dekaban-Liberman

(1964) yields a result of 1541.67 cm3.

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329328

Conclusions

The direct dating of the Mollet III calvaria has clearly assigned itto the Gravettian period and converted it into the oldest Homosapiens remain found up to date in Catalonia. Aside from intro-ducing this new anthropological and chronological data, we are notable to offer any explanation for the presence of this individual inMollet III. Because the reddish colouring of the sediments (noted byCorominas) and the abundant presence of ornaments (some ofthem still clearly stained) are habitual among the Upper Palae-olithic funerary traditions, it would be tempting to propose that thecalvaria and ornaments belong to a disturbed Palaeolithic grave ofGravettian age. But in fact no burial pits, structures or connectedhuman remains were identified during the excavation. We hopethat further research on the remaining baulk of Mollet III willenlighten this last issue.

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the Museu arqueològic comarcal de Banyolesstaff, and curator Josep Tarrús, for the support and facilities given tous during our study of the Mollet III assemblage. We also are verygrateful to the Museu Arqueològic de Catalunya e Girona, and inparticular to restorer Laura Lara for the cleaning of the fossil and tocurator Aurora Martín, who facilitated it.

Funding for this research came from the Spanish Ministry ofEducation and Science for both projects HUM 2007-63435 ‘Thenorth-eastern Iberian Peninsula from the Early Aurignacian to the

end of the Solutrean. The case of Reclau Viver in Serinyà’ and HUM2010-19120 ‘TheMiddle Palaeolithic of the Arbreda Cave’. A ‘Beatriude Pinós’ grant given by the Government of Catalonia fundedJ. Soler’s research.

References

Álvarez, E., 2008. Los Colgantes de los Grupos Cazadores Recolectores enEuropa: Las Materias Primas y Sus Fuentes de Aprovisionamiento. Acer-cándonos al Pasado. Prehistoria en 4 Actos. Museo Arqueológico Nacional,Madrid.

Arsuaga, J.L., Martínez, I., Villaverde, V., Lorenzo, C., Quam, R., Carretero, J., Gracia, A.,2001. Fòssils humans del País Valencià. In: Villaverde, V. (Ed.), De Neandertals aCromanyons. L’Inici del Poblament Humà a les Terres Valencianes. Universitatde València, València, pp. 265e322.

Arsuaga, J.L., Villaverde, V., Quam, R., Gracia, A., Lorenzo, C., Martínez, I.,Carretero, J.M., 2002. The Gravettian occipital bone from the site of Malladetes(Barx, Valencia, Spain). J. Hum. Evol. 43, 381e393.

Aura, J.E., 2010. Un dels nostres. Notes per una arqueologia de les pràctiques fu-neràries dels caçadors prehistòrics de la península Ibèrica. In: Fernández, A.P.,Soler Mayor, B. (Eds.), Restes de Vida, Restes de Mort. Museu de Prehistòria deValència, València, p. 244.

Barandiarán, I., Freeman, L.G., González Echegaray, J., Klein, R.G., 1985. Excavacionesen la Cueva del Juyo. Monograph 14. Altamira National Museum and ResearchCentre, Madrid.

Bernaldo de Quirós, F., 1982. Los Inicios del Paleolítico Superior Cantábrico.Monograph 8. Altamira National Museum and Research Centre, Madrid.

Corominas, J.M., 1972. Mollet III Excavation. Unpublished Notebook.Dekaban, A., Lieberman, J.E., 1964. Calculation of cranial capacity by linear

dimensions. Anat. Rec. 115, 215e219.Estévez, J., 1979. La fauna del Pleistoceno catalán. Ph.D. Dissertation. Universidad de

Barcelona.Ferembach, D., Schwidetzky, I., Stloukal, M., 1980. Recommendations for age and

sex diagnoses of skeletons. J. Hum. Evol. 9, 517e549.

J. Soler et al. / Journal of Human Evolution 65 (2013) 322e329 329

Frayer, D.W., 1980. Sexual dimorphism and cultural evolution in the late Pleistoceneand Holocene of Europe. J. Hum. Evol. 9, 399e415.

González Echegaray, J., Freeman, L.G., Butzer, K.W., Leroi-Gourhan, A., Altuna, J.,Madariaga, B., Apellániz, J.M., 1971. Cueva Morín. Excavaciones 1966e1968.Publicaciones del Patronato de las Cuevas Prehistóricas de la Província deSantander VI. Aldus Velarde, S.A., Santander.

Higham, T., Bronk Ramsey, C., Karavanic, I., Smith, F.H., Trinkaus, E., 2006. Reviseddirect radiocarbon dating of the Vindija G1 Upper Paleolithic Neanderthals.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 103, 553e557.

Iturbe, G., Fumanal, M.P., Carrión, J.S., Cortell, E., Martínez, R., Guillem, P.M.,Garralda, M.D., Vandermeersch, B., 1993. Cova Beneito (Muro, Alicante): unaperspectiva interdisciplinar. Recerques del Museu d’Alcoi 2, 23e88.

Maroto, J., 1976. L’estratigrafia de la cova de Mollet III (Serinyà). In: III Assemblead’Estudis del Seu Comptat. Amics de Besalú, Olot, pp. 272e274.

Maroto, J., Julià, R., López-García, J.M., Blain, H.-A., 2012. Chronological and envi-rontmental context of the Middle Pleistocene human tooth from Mollet Cave(Serinyà, NE Iberian Peninsula). J. Hum. Evol. 62, 655e663.

Masset, C., 1989. Age estimation on the basis of cranial sutures. In: Íscan, M.Y. (Ed.),Age Markers in the Human Skeleton. Charles Thomas Publisher, Springfield,pp. 71e103.

Olivier, G., Aaron, C., Fully, G., Tissier, G., 1978. New estimation of stature and cranialcapacity in modern man. J. Hum. Evol. 7, 513e518.

Oller, J., 1979. Els objectes d’adornament sobre mollusc del Reclau-Viver. Unpub-lished research, Girona.

Sanguino, J., Montes, R., 2005. Nuevos datos para el conocimiento del Paleo-lítico Medio en el centro de la Región Cantábrica: la Cueva de Covalejos.Monograph 20. In: Montes, R., Lasheras, J.A. (Eds.), Neandertales Cantáb-ricos, Estado de la Cuestión. Altamira National Museum, Santander,pp. 489e504.

Soler, N., 1986. Les indústries del Paleolític Superior en el Nord de Catalunya. Ph.D.Dissertation. Universitat de Barcelona.

Straus, L.G., Clark, G.A., 1986. La Riera Cave: Stone Age Hunter-gatherer Adaptationsin Northern Spain. Anthropological Research Papers, vol. 36. Arizona StateUniversity.

Trinkaus, E., Bailey, S.E., Zilhão, J., 2001. Upper Paleolithic human remains fromthe Gruta do Caldeirão, Tomar, Portugal. Revista Portuguesa de Arqueologia4, 5e17.

Vives, E., 1985. Les restes òssies humanes del Bronze de Mollet III (Serinyà). In:Corominas, J.M. (Ed.), Homenatge al Dr. Josep Maria Corominas. Quaderns delCentre d’Estudis Comarcals de Banyoles, vol. 2. Alzamora Artgrafica, Banyoles,pp. 157e161.

Zilhão, J., Trinkaus, E. (Eds.), 2002. Portrait of the Artist as a Child. The GravettianHuman Skeleton from the Abrigo Do Lagar Velho and Its ArchaeologicalContext. Instituto Portugués de Arqueología, Lisboa.