The Paris basin played a key role in the discovery of humanity's antiquity, in particular thanks to the revolutionary work of J. Boucher de Perthes during the second third of the nineteenth century. Since then our understanding of Neanderthal prehistory has continued to be enriched and refined though novel archaeological discoveries. The north-western plains of France and Europe in general have recently benefitted from the discovery of several new sites, notably through the work of preventive archaeology. These new datasets have led to a clear desire to reflect collectively upon the role of north-western Europe and its peripheral areas in the fluctuation of Neanderthal populations.
This book brings together articles stemming from a workshop organized by the French Prehistoric Society (Société Préhistorique Française) in Amiens in 2008. The seven-year delay between the meeting and its publication is apparent in some cases where subjects have been treated by more recent publications, making the volume feel sometimes a bit out of date. Important syntheses were published in the year following the release of this volume (Hérisson et al., Reference Hérisson, Brenet, Cliquet, Moncel, Richter, Scott, Van Baelen, Di Modica, De Loecker, Ashton, Bourguignon, Delagnes, Faivre, Folgado-Lopez, Locht, Pope, Raynal, Roebroeks, Santagata, Turq and Van Peer2016; Locht et al., Reference Locht, Hérisson, Goval, Cliquet, Huet, Coutard, Antoine and Feray2016), which helps us understand the significance of the works presented in this volume in terms of ‘gestated’ reflection, ultimately resulting in those more recent syntheses. It is nevertheless regrettable that, in the end, certain presentations were not included in the volume, notably those by L. Bourguignon, J.-J. Hublin, J. Jaubert, and A. Tuffreau (mentioned in the foreword). The objectives of the volume were to gather the available data regarding the occupation of the north-western European plain and the ways in which these occupations functioned, and to understand the role this space had in the diffusion of Palaeolithic cultures. As underlined by Sylvain Soriano in the Introduction, the idea of a ‘crossroads’ in an area with a discontinuous occupational history may seem counterintuitive. Yet, it is exactly this discontinuity that may have favoured a multiplicity of cultural influences in an area where different phases of depopulation and territorial expansion occurred through variable climatic contexts. But, as mentioned by Soriano, taphonomic issues, possibly resulting in a rarefied archaeological record during certain climatic phases, should also be taken into account when assessing the occupational history of the whole region.
After two chapters pertaining to the general context (Chs 1 & 2), the contributions are organized according to different geographical areas. The first geographic theme concerns the characterization of the Middle Palaeolithic in northern France and the Paris basin (Chs 3–5). The study of a site at the periphery of this zone, and therefore under multiple influences, along with its extra-regional comparisons, serves as a transition chapter (Ch. 6) towards two contributions regarding sites of the Armorican Massif (Chs 8 & 9). Several succeeding chapters cover different regions of north-western Europe, including Britain, Belgium, and Germany (Chs 10–15). Finally, Chapter 16, by Roebroeks, serves as a synthesis of the entire volume, attempting to provide a ruling on the notion of a Middle Palaeolithic crossroads in north-western Europe. The sum of the contributions forms a coherent whole that pushes the reader to reflect with the authors on the central question asked. It should also be noted that the inclusion of transcripts from the debates that took place during the workshop at the end of the publication (Ch. 17) is a very welcome addition. While this practice is becoming ever rarer, these collective discussions often contribute significantly to the elaboration of extremely fruitful ideas.
The first two chapters of the volume aim to underline the homogeneity of the chronostratigraphic context of the north-western plains (Ch. 1, by Antoine & Locht) and the variability in subsistence strategies adopted by Neanderthal populations (Ch. 2, by Patou-Mathis). Antoine and Locht show the homogeneity of loess deposits in the face of major climatic variations from Normandy to central Europe, while also identifying reference levels permitting the establishment of a relatively fine-grained chronology. This work highlights the discontinuous nature of occupation in northern Europe. In contrast, Patou-Mathis brings to light the diversity of subsistence activities in response to different local environmental contexts and proposes that the seeming variability in site function is a reflection of a logistically oriented mobility strategy. However, her considerations of the Middle Palaeolithic in Crimea and Croatia fall outside of the main geographical subject matter treated in this volume. This focused synthesis could have otherwise provided a specific appraisal of the north-western European plains.
The four following chapters describe the Middle Palaeolithic in the Paris basin. In Chapter 3 Hérisson and colleagues characterize the Saalien lithic industries between Oxygen Isotope Stages (OIS) 8–6 in the north of France. They then compare these with industries in southern France, in terms of the presence/absence of certain technological concepts. This chapter seems to be an earlier version of a more polished piece published more recently (Hérisson et al., Reference Hérisson, Brenet, Cliquet, Moncel, Richter, Scott, Van Baelen, Di Modica, De Loecker, Ashton, Bourguignon, Delagnes, Faivre, Folgado-Lopez, Locht, Pope, Raynal, Roebroeks, Santagata, Turq and Van Peer2016). Locht and Depaepe (Ch. 4) follow chronologically with recent Middle Palaeolithic industries, beginning with the Eemian. Correlations between climatic variation and lithic industry changes are proposed between OIS 5‒3. A particular emphasis is placed on the discontinuous nature of occupation in the region under study. The abandonment of northern territories during OIS 4 opens the door to interpretations regarding the recolonization of these areas by groups with distinct technical traditions during OIS 3. These ideas are also evoked in a recent synthesis article (Locht et al., Reference Locht, Hérisson, Goval, Cliquet, Huet, Coutard, Antoine and Feray2016). In Chapter 5 Sellier-Segard provides a first appraisal of occupations dated to the Weichselian in the Aisne department, and demonstrates a human presence with coherent technological modalities at a regional scale. Koelher (Ch. 7) offers a classification of tool thinning processes during OIS 5. The different identified prehension systems never occur together on a single site, the implication being that these objects could have value for chronocultural discrimination.
The presentation of the site of Angé (Ch. 6, by Locht et al.) serves as a transition to the chapters that follow. The typo-technological characteristics of Angé evoke the possibility of the presence of influences from central Europe, northern France, and also south-western France during OIS 5. Its geographical position, sitting at the southern margin of the Paris basin (Loire-et-Cher), seems to underline its location at the intersection between multiple areas of influence.
Two chapters then address the Armorican Massif, firstly through a regional synthesis provided by Cliquet (Ch. 8) that encompasses both old and new data. According to this author, the west is under similar types of influences as the north-west, in addition to phenomena from the south-west interpreted as the result of human migration. However, a problem remains in organizing the existing data into a coherent chronological framework. The particular mineral resources of the Armorican Massif also lead to questions regarding the weight of environmental determinism, as proposed by Huet (Ch. 9). The absence of specific management strategies for different raw materials leads Huet to propose an economic ‘supplementarity’ for these productions.
The Middle Palaeolithic of Britain and comparisons with the continent are also covered. Ashton and Scott (Ch. 10) discuss the diversity of access routes to Britain, a diversity that could explain differences between east and west from OIS 8 to 6. The absence of sites siting at the OIS 7/6 frontier could be linked to palaeogeographic changes that influenced the permeability of the Channel.
In Chapter 14, Flas approaches the transition to the Upper Palaeolithic by focusing on the question of the origins of the Lincombien-Ranisien-Jerzmanowicien (LRJ). While sites attributable to the LRJ are principally located in Britain, the origins of this techno-complex may be found in the local evolution of hunting techniques in Neanderthals of the north-west of the European continent. This contribution was also recently published in another form (Flas, Reference Flas, Toussaint, Di Modica and Pirson2011) well before the release of this volume. With the exception of this contribution, the final phases of the Middle Palaeolithic are not further explored in this volume.
Belgium is dicussed in three chapters, where Otte (Ch. 11) reminds us of the fundamental role that discoveries made by Belgian prehistorians played in the construction of the discipline. Di Modica and colleagues (Ch. 12) explore the relationship between the spatial distribution of mineral resources and technical behaviors. The environmental mosaic that characterizes Belgium allows the authors to reflect upon the factors contributing to variability in Mousterian industries. Finally, Van Baelen and colleagues (Ch. 13) present the industry from Kesselt-Op de Schans (Limburg), attributed to the limit between OIS 9 and 8; the complex nature of production methods documented at the site have implications for our understanding of the transition between the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic and show a particular evolutionary sequence in north-western Europe.
Additionally, a diachronic synthesis concerning the zone bordering the Rhineland between OIS 8 and 3 is presented by Holzkämper and colleagues (Ch. 15), who demonstrate a continuous occupation of the area, qualifying the hypothesis of an absence of occupation in the region during the coldest phases (OIS 4) and underlining the adaptive qualities of populations in response to the environments in which they evolve (Richter, Reference Richter, Demarsin and Otte2006).
The last chapter (Ch. 16, by Roebroeks) is presented as a synthesis of the contents of the volume, finally broaching the question of the possible ‘crossroads’ role played by north-western Europe during the Middle Palaeolithic by mobilizing both archaeological and palaeogenetic data. The hypotheses of the southern migration of populations (i.e. for ‘habitat tracking’) and local extinctions are developed and contrasted as possible responses to colder climatic phases. As has already been proposed (Ambrose, Reference Ambrose1998; Jöris, Reference Jöris, Goren-Inbar and Sharon2006), climatic variations could have had a bottleneck effect on populations. This seems to be the position defended by Roebroeks in this paper, ultimately proposing that north-western Europe could be construed as a dead-end rather than a crossroads.
The term ‘crossroads’ (carrefour) has become slightly overused in prehistoric archaeology. Yet in the context of north-western Europe it is a truly applicable concept as the discontinuous occupational history of the region facilitates the identification of different influences, and their respective origins, in play. Ultimately, this edited volume provides an important synthesis of research on the Middle Palaeolithic in north-western Europe, and the excellent quality of the contributions provides a clear and coherent vision of the questions this region poses in terms of technological traditions, demography, and migratory flux.
