Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present.
The Middle Pleistocene site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain) is a major reference for European Acheulean studies. The origin of the lithic and fauna accumulations at this site was first thought to be anthropogenic, but later studies showed that it was mainly natural. The first person to conduct excavations...
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doaj-f707eb91df684e5c8ce076a28d1887ea2020-11-25T02:33:38ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032016-01-011112e016759510.1371/journal.pone.0167595Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present.Laura Sánchez-RomeroAlfonso Benito-CalvoAlfredo Pérez-GonzálezManuel SantonjaThe Middle Pleistocene site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain) is a major reference for European Acheulean studies. The origin of the lithic and fauna accumulations at this site was first thought to be anthropogenic, but later studies showed that it was mainly natural. The first person to conduct excavations at the Ambrona site was the Marquis of Cerralbo, in 1914; other research groups followed in more recent times (the Howell & Freeman team and the Santonja & Pérez-González team). The digs yielded a great amount of information, but until now it had never been unified. In this paper, we compile all the available published and unpublished excavation documentation from the 1960s to the present. We use these maps and sections to present our spatial study of the LSM (Lower Stratigraphic Member) at the Ambrona site, combining stratigraphic criteria with GIS density and orientation analysis. This study enabled us to define the main concentrations of the LSM, providing an initial contribution to an assessment of their accumulation processes. Most of the concentrations preserved in the ancient shore area of the site display marked orientation patterns which coincide with the direction of the main water flows into the Ambrona wetland. However, random orientation patterns were observed in the central part of the site (Alpha concentration); they may be mostly preserved without undergoing transport processes, as previous taphonomic studies also confirm.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5176277?pdf=render |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Laura Sánchez-Romero Alfonso Benito-Calvo Alfredo Pérez-González Manuel Santonja |
spellingShingle |
Laura Sánchez-Romero Alfonso Benito-Calvo Alfredo Pérez-González Manuel Santonja Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present. PLoS ONE |
author_facet |
Laura Sánchez-Romero Alfonso Benito-Calvo Alfredo Pérez-González Manuel Santonja |
author_sort |
Laura Sánchez-Romero |
title |
Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present. |
title_short |
Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present. |
title_full |
Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present. |
title_fullStr |
Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present. |
title_full_unstemmed |
Assessment of Accumulation Processes at the Middle Pleistocene Site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). Density and Orientation Patterns in Spatial Datasets Derived from Excavations Conducted from the 1960s to the Present. |
title_sort |
assessment of accumulation processes at the middle pleistocene site of ambrona (soria, spain). density and orientation patterns in spatial datasets derived from excavations conducted from the 1960s to the present. |
publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
series |
PLoS ONE |
issn |
1932-6203 |
publishDate |
2016-01-01 |
description |
The Middle Pleistocene site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain) is a major reference for European Acheulean studies. The origin of the lithic and fauna accumulations at this site was first thought to be anthropogenic, but later studies showed that it was mainly natural. The first person to conduct excavations at the Ambrona site was the Marquis of Cerralbo, in 1914; other research groups followed in more recent times (the Howell & Freeman team and the Santonja & Pérez-González team). The digs yielded a great amount of information, but until now it had never been unified. In this paper, we compile all the available published and unpublished excavation documentation from the 1960s to the present. We use these maps and sections to present our spatial study of the LSM (Lower Stratigraphic Member) at the Ambrona site, combining stratigraphic criteria with GIS density and orientation analysis. This study enabled us to define the main concentrations of the LSM, providing an initial contribution to an assessment of their accumulation processes. Most of the concentrations preserved in the ancient shore area of the site display marked orientation patterns which coincide with the direction of the main water flows into the Ambrona wetland. However, random orientation patterns were observed in the central part of the site (Alpha concentration); they may be mostly preserved without undergoing transport processes, as previous taphonomic studies also confirm. |
url |
http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5176277?pdf=render |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT laurasanchezromero assessmentofaccumulationprocessesatthemiddlepleistocenesiteofambronasoriaspaindensityandorientationpatternsinspatialdatasetsderivedfromexcavationsconductedfromthe1960stothepresent AT alfonsobenitocalvo assessmentofaccumulationprocessesatthemiddlepleistocenesiteofambronasoriaspaindensityandorientationpatternsinspatialdatasetsderivedfromexcavationsconductedfromthe1960stothepresent AT alfredoperezgonzalez assessmentofaccumulationprocessesatthemiddlepleistocenesiteofambronasoriaspaindensityandorientationpatternsinspatialdatasetsderivedfromexcavationsconductedfromthe1960stothepresent AT manuelsantonja assessmentofaccumulationprocessesatthemiddlepleistocenesiteofambronasoriaspaindensityandorientationpatternsinspatialdatasetsderivedfromexcavationsconductedfromthe1960stothepresent |
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