Table Of ContentSTRAUS
AND
MORALES
El Mirón Cave,
C
Cantabrian Spain
a
E
n
l
t
M
a
The Site and Its Holocene Archaeological Record
b
i
rr
ió
a
n
n
C
S
a
p
v EDITED BY
a
e
LAWRENCE GUY STRAUS
AND
i
,
n
MANUEL R. GONZÁLEZ MORALES
Please place barcode sticker
here.
El Mirón Cave,
Cantabrian Spain
El Mirón Cave,
Cantabrian Spain
The Site and Its Holocene Archaeological Record
EDITED BY
LawrEncE GuY STrauS
anD
ManuEL r. GonzáLEz MoraLES
University of New Mexico Press | Albuquerque
© 2012 by the University of New Mexico Press
All rights reserved. Published 2012
Printed in the United States of America
17 16 15 14 13 12 1 2 3 4 5 6
Library of Congress CataLoging-in-PubLiCation Data
El Mirón Cave, Cantabrian Spain : the site and its Holocene archaeological record /
edited by Lawrence Guy Straus and Manuel R. González Morales.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-8263-5148-7 (cloth : alk. paper) — isbn 978-0-8263-5150-0 (electronic)
1. Mirón Cave (Spain) 2. Neolithic period—Spain—Cantabria. 3. Mesolithic period—
Spain—Cantabria. 4. Excavations (Archaeology)—Spain—Cantabria. 5. Geology,
Stratigraphic—Holocene. 6. Paleobotany—Holocene. 7. Cantabria (Spain)—Antiquities.
I. Straus, Lawrence Guy. II. González Morales, Manuel R. III. Title: Mirón Cave,
Cantabrian Spain.
gn776.22.s7e5 2012
936.6´351—dc23
2011043902
Design anD Layout: MELISSA TANdySH
Composed in 10.3/14 Minion Pro
display type is Cronos Pro
Financing of color plates was provided by The Fund for Stone Age Research
(UNM Foundation) whose principal donors are Jean and Ray Auel.
Contents Author Page no.
Figures, Color Plates, and Tables vii
Acknowledgments xvii
Preamble: La Cueva del Mirón: A Grand Cave Site
Lawrence Guy Straus xxv
in the Cantabrian Cordillera of Northern Spain
Chapter One: The Excavation of El Mirón Cave Lawrence Guy Straus 1
Chapter Two: The Río Asón drainage in Eastern
Lawrence Guy Straus 7
Cantabria
Chapter Three: El Mirón Cave Lawrence Guy Straus 16
Chapter Four: Stratigraphy of El Mirón Cave Lawrence Guy Straus and
23
(1996–2007) Manuel R. González Morales
Chapter Five: Sedimentology of El Mirón Cave William R. Farrand 60
Lawrence Guy Straus and
Chapter Six: El Mirón Cave Radiocarbon dates 95
Manuel R. González Morales
Chapter Seven: Preliminary Archaeomagnetic
Ángel Carrancho and
and Rock-Magnetic Results from the Holocene 103
Juan José Villalaín
Fire Lenses in El Mirón Cave
Chapter Eight: The Vegetational Contexts of El Mirón
Cave throughout the Early to Middle Holocene: María José Iriarte Chiapusso 119
Contributions from the Palynological Study
Chapter Nine: Analysis of Phytoliths from Holocene
Débora Zurro 143
Levels of El Mirón Cave
Chapter Ten: Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and Bronze Age
Plant Remains from El Mirón Cave: Evidence on the Leonor Peña-Chocarro 148
First Farming Communities in the Cantabrian Region
Chapter Eleven: Holocene Wood Charcoal from
Lydia Zapata 174
El Mirón Cave: Vegetation and Wood Use
Chapter Twelve: Holocene Biostratigraphy and
Gloria Cuenca Bescós and
Climatic Change in Cantabria: The Micromammalian 205
Juan Carlos García Pimienta
Faunas of El Mirón Cave
Chapter Thirteen: Bird Remains from the Post-Azilian
Mikelo Elorza 243
Levels of El Mirón Cave
Chapter Fourteen: The Holocene Herpetofauna of Borja Sanchiz, Jorge M. Lobo,
250
El Mirón Cave and Salvador Bailon
| v |
Contents Author Page no.
Chapter Fifteen: Taphonomic Study of the Large
Manuel Pérez Ripoll and
and Medium Mammals from the Post-Paleolithic 262
María Dolores López Gila
Occupations in El Mirón Cave
Chapter Sixteen: Macromammalian Remains from Jesús Altuna and Koro
288
the Holocene Levels of El Mirón Cave Mariezkurrena
Chapter Seventeen: descriptions of the Post- Lawrence Guy Straus and
319
Paleolithic Pit and Hearth Features of El Mirón Cave Manuel R. González Morales
Lawrence Guy Straus,
Chapter Eighteen: The Post-Paleolithic Stone
Manuel R. González Morales, 332
Industries of El Mirón Cave
and John D. Rissetto
Chapter Nineteen: The Ceramics of El Mirón Cave:
Cristina Vega Maeso 372
Production, Morphology, and discard
Chapter Twenty: Conclusions: Preliminary
Lawrence Guy Straus and
Overview and Focus on the Post-Paleolithic 426
Manuel R. González Morales
Occupations of El Mirón Cave
Contributors 443
Color Plates to Follow Page 196
Index 445
| vi |
Figures, Color PlAtes, And tAbles
page page
Figure no. no.
2.1. Map of Vasco-Cantabria 8 4.8. South and east sections of the Mid- 33
Vestibule Trench (N–K/5–4, N–O/5)
2.2. Map of the Río Asón valley, with
11 4.9. West and north sections of the
major prehistoric archaeological sites
Mid-Vestibule Trench, central part 34
2.3. Photo of the lower Asón valley
12 (N–O/6, O–P/6–7)
(present-day tidewater sector)
4.10. East and south sections of the Mid-
2.4. Photo of menhir of Las Hayas 12 Vestibule Trench, central part 35
2.5. Photo of the upper-middle Asón (P–Q/6, O–P/5–6)
14
valley (Ruesga Valley) 4.11. North and east sections of the Mid-
Vestibule Trench, eastern end (Q–S/7, 37
3.1. Photo of Cullalvera Cave mouth 17
R–S/7, and S–T/7)
3.2. Photo of El Mirón Cave mouth from
18 4.12. Southeast corner and south sections
the west
of the Corral excavation area 39
3.3. Plan of the accessible parts of El
19 (V–W/8–7, V–T/7)
Mirón Cave
4.13. West section of the Corral excavation
40
3.4. Photo of the Inner Cave Trench 20 area (T–S/7–10)
3.5. Photo of pistol clip hidden in an 4.14. North section of the Corral excavation
20 41
alcove of the cave vestibule area (T–X/10–11)
4.15. South section of the Corral area
4.1. Plan of El Mirón Cave vestibule 24
pothole under the engraved block 42
4.2. East section of the Cabin excavation (W–X/8)
25
area (J–K/1–4) 4.16. North, east, and south sections of W10
sondage at base of pothole (W/10–11, 45
4.3. North section of the Cabin excavation
26 W–X/10, W/9–10)
area (H–J/4–5)
4.4. North section of the Cabin excavation 27 4.17. East section of X10 sondage at base of 46
area sondage (I–J/3–4) pothole (X–y/10)
4.18. Correlation of the V7 and W10
4.5. West section of the Cabin excavation 47
28 sections
area (H–G/1–4)
4.19. East and north sections of the Inner
4.6. North section of the Mid-Vestibule 49
31 Cave Trench (9–12/S, S12/13)
Trench, western end (K–N/5–6)
4.20. West section of the Inner Cave Trench
4.7. West section of the Mid-Vestibule 50
32 (9–12/Q)
Trench (L–K/5)
| vii |
Figures, Color PlAtes, And tAbles
page page
Figure no. no.
4.21. North and east sections of the inner 5.15. Comparison of El Mirón Cave
50
cave 11R sondage (11–12R, 11/R–S) stratigraphy and suggested climatic
87
conditions with sequences in other
5.1. Stratigraphic correlation chart 63
Cantabrian caves
5.2. Granulometric histograms for the
66 7.1. Plan of El Mirón Cave vestibule,
Cabin area 105
showing excavation areas
5.3. Granulometric histograms for the
68 7.2. Orthogonal NRM demagnetization
Mid-Vestibule Trench
plots for representative ashes and 107
5.4. Granulometric histograms for the
70 rubefactions
Corral area
7.3. NRM intensity (A/m) plotted versus
109
5.5. Granulometric histograms for bulk magnetic susceptibility
Cuevamur and the El Mirón Cave 73
7.4. High-temperature variations of low-
colluvial-alluvial ramp deposit
field magnetic susceptibility for
109
5.6. Granulometric histograms for the three representative ashes and three
Inner Cave Trench and interior wall 73 rubefactions
deposit
7.5. Hysteresis loops for two characteristic
5.7. decalcification histograms 75 samples from the outer vestibule
Neolithic Level 9.8 and M /M vs.
rs s 110
5.8. distribution of limestone vs. non- B /B for representative ashes and
cr c
limestone (foreign) rock fragments rubefactions from different Holocene
76
(8–32 mm size class) vs. composite burnt levels
stratigraphy
7.6. directions of the ChRM determined
5.9. Comparison of Roundness Index, per sample, mean direction, and error
111
percentage of CaCO3, and number 77 circle calculated for structures in
of non-limestone rocks vs. composite table 7.3
stratigraphy
7.7. Equal-area projection showing mean
5.10. Percentage of organic matter and directions, confidence circles, and
112
cultural debris and pH vs. composite 78 temporal interval considered for
stratigraphy structures in table 7.3
5.11. Approximate abundances of minerals 8.1. Location of El Mirón Cave 120
in the clay-size fraction of selected
79 8.2. Pollen diagram from the Cabin
samples from the Cabin and Corral 121
excavation area
excavation areas and the W10 sondage
8.3. Pollen diagram from the Mid-
5.12. Photo of recent travertine 121
Vestibule Trench
accumulation draped on south 81
8.4. Archaeological sites and geological
bedrock wall of vestibule
loci with palynological records in
5.13. Schematic sagittal profile in El Mirón 129
Cantabria and the coastal Basque
Cave illustrating the three excavation 84
provinces (Vizcaya and Guipúzcoa)
areas and key strata as of 2000
9.1. Relationship between identified
5.14. Time-depth curves for the three 145
phytoliths and unidentified ones
excavation areas, showing the
86 9.2. Spectrum of phytolithic morphotypes
approximate rates of sediment
among the analyzed samples (Levels 145
accumulation
302 and 304)
| viii |
Figures, Color PlAtes, And tAbles
page page
Figure no. no.
11.1. distribution of identified wood 12.21. Pliomys lenki (Heller, 1930) 225
charcoal fragments from the
Mesolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, 176 12.22. Stratigraphic distribution of
and Bronze Age levels in El Mirón micromammal species in the 227
Cabin excavation area Holocene levels of El Mirón Cave
11.2. Breakdown of identified wood 14.1. Observed presence of Bufo bufo in the
charcoal samples from subdivisions 176 study area and zones for which its
253
of Neolithic Stratum 9 habitat suitability model predicts its
potential presence
11.3. Wood charcoal comparison of
176
Neolithic Levels 9, 303, and 303.1 14.2. Observed presence of Rana
12.1. Location of El Mirón Cave on the temporaria in the study area and
205 253
Iberian Peninsula zones for which its habitat suitability
model predicts its potential presence
12.2. Location of El Mirón Cave and other
206
Paleolithic sites in the Río Asón valley 14.3. Observed presence of Anguis fragilis in
12.3. West section of the Cabin area the study area and zones for which its
208 254
excavation (G–H/1–4) habitat suitability model predicts its
potential presence
12.4. North section of the Cabin area
209
excavation (H–J/4–5) 15.1. Unidentifiable bone fragments by
263
length
12.5. Arvicola terrestris (Linnaeus, 1758) 213
15.2. Lengths of identified vs. unidentified
263
12.6. Arvicola sapidus (Miller, 1908) 214 bones from Level 8
15.3. Lengths of unidentifiable Bos bones
12.7. Microtus agrestis (Linnaeus, 1761) 214
compared to those of Ovis, Capra, 264
and Sus
12.8. Microtus arvalis (Pallas, 1779) 215
15.4. Photo of Bronze Age Bos rib with cut
265
12.9. Microtus oeconomus (Pallas, 1776) 215 marks from the use of a metal tool
15.5. Photo of Bos vertebrae split open
12.10. Chionomys nivalis (Martins, 1842) 216
with metal tools, possibly axes, from
266
12.11. Clethrionomys glareolus (Schreiber, Bronze Age Level 3 and Chalcolithic
217
1780) Levels 4 and 5
12.12. Terricola lusitanicus (Gerbe, 1879) 218 15.6. Photo of Bronze Age and Chalcolithic
267
first phalanges of Bos
12.13. Apodemus sylvaticus or A. flavicollis 219 15.7. Red deer bones from Bronze Age
268
levels
12.14. Myoxus (Glis) glis (Linnaeus, 1766) 219
15.8. Fragments of first and second
12.15. Eliomys quercinus (Linnaeus, 1766) 220 phalanges from early Neolithic–age 269
red deer
12.16. Talpa europaea (Linnaeus, 1758) 221 15.9. Sheep and goat long bone diaphyses
271
gnawed by dogs
12.17. Sorex coronatus-araneus 221
16.1. Ungulate faunal spectra for the
12.18. Neomys sp. 222 Mesolithic and Neolithic levels in the 289
outer vestibule (Cabin) area
12.19. Crocidura russula (Hermann, 1780) 223
16.2. Ungulate faunal spectra for the
Neolithic levels in the Mid-Vestibule 289
12.20. Mustela nivalis (Linnaeus, 1766) 223
Trench
| ix |
