This book undertakes a thorough study of Reindeer in the Upper Pleniglacial and Tardiglacial societies in France. It addresses two main topics – the economy of animal resources within the societies and the exploitation of Reindeer organized within the annual cycle, in terms of space and time, between 30,000 and 14,000 cal BP in France. The author proposes an analysis and hypothesis regarding the economy of animal resources and the nomadic cycle of the last Paleolithic hunter-gatherer societies, in order to identify a “Reindeer system.”The author discusses the relationship between Reindeer and human mobility and offers some conclusions regarding the annual cycles of nomadism. The volume scrutinizes the distinct eco systems in three regions and its effects on the movements of both human and animal. This book is of interest to zooarchaeologists and prehistorians.
Author(s): Laure Fontana
Publisher: Springer
Year: 2022
Language: English
Pages: 262
City: Cham
Foreword
Preface: From the Whole to the Parts, from the Parts to the Whole
Acknowledgements
Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction: Issues and Approach
1.1 Issues
1.2 Methodology
1.3 This Work
References
Chapter 2: Contexts and Subject Matter
2.1 From the Aurignacian to the Magdalenian: Palaeolithic “Cultures”?
2.2 The Environment in France During the Upper Pleniglacial and Tardiglacial
2.2.1 Chrono-environmental Framework (29,000-14,000 cal BP) (Fig. 2.1)
2.2.2 Cold Environments... but Which Ones?
2.3 Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)
2.3.1 An Animal Adapted to the Cold
2.3.2 Reindeer Before 33,000 cal BP in Europe and France
2.4 Composition of Research Collections and Study Zones (Figs. 2.20 and 2.21)
2.4.1 Sites Surveyed and Inventoried
2.4.2 Composition of the Regions (cf. Fig. 2.20)
Appendix 1: Studied Corpus
Appendix 2: Reindeer Proportion in All Surveyed Assemblages, by Period (idem App 1)
References
Chapter 3: The Role of Reindeer in the Economy of Animal Resources Between 30,000 and 14,000 cal BP
3.1 The Reindeer Proportion Among the Hunted Animals
3.1.1 Variation Through Time
3.1.2 Variation in Space
3.1.3 Initial Findings
3.2 Reindeer Hunting Strategies
3.2.1 Reindeer of All Ages: The Choice Not to Choose
3.2.2 Few Adult Males
3.2.3 More or Less Seasonal Hunting
3.3 Reindeer Antler: Procurement Strategies, Seasonal Availability, and Raw Material Management
3.3.1 Perspectives, Issues and Challenges
3.3.2 Results
3.3.3 Antler Exploitation at the Regional Scale
3.3.4 The Role of Antler Exploitation in the Annual Cycle: Hypotheses
3.4 Conclusion: The Economic Role of Reindeer
References
Chapter 4: Reindeer Mobility and Human Mobility in the Upper Pleniglacial and Tardiglacial
4.1 Current Knowledge and Objectives
4.2 Migratory and Sedentary Reindeer
4.2.1 Reindeer in the Dordogne... and Next Door?
4.2.2 Reindeer from Elsewhere
4.2.3 Reindeer with Reduced Mobility in France During the Last Cold Period
4.3 Annual Nomadic Cycles: Several Configurations or Several Visibilities?
4.3.1 Questions
4.3.2 Annual Nomadic Cycle in the Massif Central from the End of the Gravettian to the Magdalenian
4.3.3 The Dordogne, from the Gravettian to the Magdalenian
4.3.4 Conclusion: Distinct Cycles?
References
Chapter 5: Discussion and Conclusion
5.1 The Environment in France Between 30,000 and 15,000 Years Ago: Ecosystems to Be Defined
5.1.1 The Mammoth Steppe
5.1.2 The Mammoth Steppe in France: An Exception that Proves the Rule?
5.1.3 France, a Reindeer Steppe... but What Else?
5.1.4 Conclusions
5.2 For 15,000 Years, a Unique System Beyond the Regional Specificities
5.2.1 The Economy of Animal Resources: A Common Foundation
5.2.2 A Single Procurement Strategy
5.2.3 A Single Animal Resource Economy
5.2.4 Mobility of Human Groups: A Reality to Be Reconstructed, Far from the Models
5.3 Conclusion
References
