This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Usually, people associate archaeological studies with bones, pottery and primitive tools, but archaeologists often find other clues about how ancient people lived hidden throughout a site. A new study, published in the Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology, focuses on bits of charcoal and their spatial organization to get a glimpse of Neanderthal life in Abric Romaní, an ancient rock shelter near Barcelona.
Abric Romaní preserves unusually detailed traces of Neanderthal life. The authors of the new study say the site features clearly delineated levels used between 110,000 and 40,000 years before present. The level they focused on is split up into areas associated with different activities, including hearth-related tasks in an inner region and toolmaking in the outer areas.
Studies done at other levels of Abric Romaní have suggested separate activity areas, sleeping spaces and waste disposal. In Neanderthal living spaces, hearths were centers for warmth, cooking and social activity. Their remains, mostly in the form of charcoal, can reveal how early people organized these living spaces.
Sweeping, dumping and trampling can move fire residues, but these actions can leave archaeological traces as well. Previous charcoal studies found that Neanderthals mainly used mountain pine as fuel, which was readily available in the region and likely gathered near the shelter. While earlier work at Abric Romaní emphasized analysis of bones and stone tools, the new study adds spatial analysis of charcoal and evaluates the patterns in the context of human activities related to firewood selection and use.
To do this, the researchers hand-collected charcoal pieces from one archaeological layer, called Ra, excavated between 2019 and 2022. Microscopy was used to identify the types of wood and traces of growth, decay, burning and mineral deposition. Digital maps and statistical tests were used to compare charcoal concentrations in different areas and their preservation patterns.
The results showed two contrasting patterns formed by the charcoal remains: a broad concentration closely associated with hearths in the northern section of the camp and smaller, isolated southern clusters, often outside hearths. The researchers say that the northern section appears to be a primary refuse area, while the southern section may have served as a secondary refuse deposit with material moved during hearth cleaning. The authors interpret the overall distribution as mainly human-made, with localized, low-to-moderate later disturbance.
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