Lower and Middle Pleistocene human settlements recorded in fluvial deposits of the middle Loire...

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Quaternary International 223-224 (2010) 345–359

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Quaternary International

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Lower and middle Pleistocene human settlements in the Middle LoireRiver Basin, Centre Region, France

Jackie Despriee a, Pierre Voinchet a,*, Helene Tissoux a, Marie-Helene Moncel a, Marta Arzarello b,Sophie Robin a, Jean-Jacques Bahain a, Christophe Falgueres a, Gilles Courcimault c, Jean Depont d,Robert Gageonnet a, Laurent Marquer a, Erwan Messager a, Salah Abdessadok a, Simon Puaud a

a Departement de Prehistoire, UMR 7194 CNRS, Museum national d’Histoire naturelle, 1 rue Rene Panhard, 75013 Paris, Franceb Dipartimento delle Risorse Naturali e Culturali, Universita di Ferrara, C.so Ercole I d’Este, 32, 44100 Ferrara, Italyc Centre regional de Recherches Archeologiques, 41000 Blois, Franced Societe d’Archeologie et d’Histoire du Berry, 18000 Bourges, France

a r t i c l e i n f o

Article history:Available online 6 August 2009

* Corresponding author.E-mail addresses: [email protected] (J. D

(P. Voinchet).

1040-6182/$ – see front matter � 2009 Elsevier Ltd adoi:10.1016/j.quaint.2009.07.019

a b s t r a c t

Evidence of earliest human settlements observed in the alluvial formations of the Middle Loire Basinduring systematic surveys organised since 1981. Many stepped fluvial terraces deposited during thesuccessive interglacial–glacial Quaternary cycles have been identified in three tributary valleys ofthe Loire River: the Creuse, Cher and Loir Valleys. These alluvial remnants were systematically dated bythe Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) method applied on optically bleached quartz, in order to constructa chronostratigraphical framework for the fluvial systems and the associated archaeological localities.

Four localities containing Early Palaeolithic industries with Mode 1 technology, occupied during theLower Pleistocene, and ten sites characterized by assemblages with handaxes, discovered in the MiddlePleistocene alluvial formations, are described in this paper. These two sets of localities are characterizedby lithic industries with many differences in supply of raw materials and in technical behaviours.

The results indicate that this area was reached by two separate phases of human settlement (one inrelation to Mode 1, the other to Mode 2) with an interval around 400 ka, at the end of the LowerPleistocene, during a period characterized by major climatic degradations.

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1. Introduction

The Middle Loire River Basin, in France, corresponds roughly tothe administrative limits of the Centre Region (Fig. 1). Since 1981,systematic archaeological surveys have inventoried the fossil allu-vial formations of the main tributaries of the Loire River andcharacterized them. Prehistoric sites were located and excavated,involving multi-disciplinary studies, in order to locate them in thechronological and palaeoenvironmental framework of the Quater-nary. This research was carried out in collaboration with theMinistry of Culture (Regional Direction of the Prehistoric Antiqui-ties; then Regional Service of Archaeology) and the Department ofPrehistory of the National Museum of Natural History of Paris, withthe assistance of the District Council of the Centre Region and of theIndre and Loir-et-Cher Departements.

espriee), [email protected]

nd INQUA. All rights reserved.

This article presents the results of work undertaken in thevalleys of three tributaries of the Loire River in Centre Region: theCreuse, Cher and Loir Rivers. Each valley was studied alongapproximately 100 km and was subdivided in several sectorsaccording to the geological characteristics of the different bedrock.

During Lower and Middle Pleistocene times, the general uplift ofthe Paris Basin and the succession of the glacial–interglacial cycleshave allowed the continuation of valley incision and the deposit ofalluvial formations, of which many remnants are preserved on theslopes. According to the defined sectors, the surveys made possibleto inventory the remnants from five to eleven alluvial formationsdeposited successively (Despriee et al., 2003, 2004). Archaeologicalsediments with industries related to Mode 1 or with handaxeindustries (Mode 2) were discovered in some of these alluvialformations, locally preserved on the slopes of the present-dayvalleys.

The main part of these formations contains artifacts typologi-cally ascribable to Early, Lower, and Middle Palaeolithic. To date, 80prehistoric sites are thus inventoried in these various sectors of thethree valleys. Their geological or archaeological situations were

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Fig. 1. Geologic map of the Centre Region (France) which recover the Middle Loire Basin where its main tributaries are joining the Loire River .The circles indicate the prehistoricsites in each middle valley studied in this paper. Creuse River Valley: 1. Crozant, ‘‘la Chaudronniere’’; 2. Eguzon-Chantome, ‘‘le Pont-de-Lavaud’’; 3. Ciron, ‘‘les-Champs-de-Chaume’’.Cher River Valley: 4. Lunery-Rosieres, ‘‘la Terre-des-Sablons’’; 5. Brinay-Les Fougeres, ‘‘la Noira’’; 6. Villefranche-Gievres, ‘‘la Genetiere’’; 7. Gievres, ‘‘la Morandiere’’; 8. Gievres, ‘‘laPlaine-de-la-Morandiere’’. Loir River Valley: 9. Artins, ‘‘la Jarretiere’’; 10. Saint-Firmin-des-Pres, «la Garenne»; 11. Pezou, ‘‘les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’; 12. Lignieres, ‘‘Courcelles’’;13. Moree, ‘‘Villeprovert’’; 14. Saint-Hilaire-la-Gravelle, ‘‘le Pont-de-la-Hulauderie’’.

J. Despriee et al. / Quaternary International 223-224 (2010) 345–359346

commonly specified during field surveys or excavations. Suchmulti-field excavations and multi-proxy studies are in process infourteen sites (Fig. 1) (see for example Sun et al., in press; Marquer,2009). One of the priorities was to locate these fluvial formationswithin the chronological Quaternary framework, despite the lack orthe rarity of suitable materials such as carbonate or paleontologicalremains. The Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) dating method wasdeveloped and systematically applied on optically bleached quartz(Voinchet, 2002; Voinchet et al., in press). Approximately 300samples were taken from the various observed remnants,frequently on specific new sections from the substratum to the topof the alluvial formations.

2. Early Paleolithic sites

Evidence of the presence of Mode 1 lithic assemblages wererecognized in the remnants of alluvial formations preserved in thevalleys of the Creuse River (sector ‘‘Massif Central’’), the Cher River(Sector ‘‘Berry’’) and the Loir River (sector ‘‘Haut-Vendomois’’)(Despriee et al., 2009).

2.1. Creuse River Valley

On the northern edge of the Massif Central, in the area betweenEguzon-Chantome (Indre) and Crozant (Creuse), the Creuse River

Valley cross through the crystalline Aigurande Plateau followinga series of very narrow grabens (Fig. 2A). The incision is 140 m.

Five fossil alluvial formations were recognized (Fig. 2B). Inconstant relationship with remnants of Sheet D, also named ‘‘leCerisier/Pont-de-Lavaud’’ formation and deposited between þ90and þ105 m of relative altitude, about 15 prehistoric Early Palae-olithic sites with Mode 1 industries on pebbles were located at thetop of the slope of the valley (Fig. 2A) (Despriee and Alilaire, 1991;Despriee and Gageonnet, 2003; Despriee et al., 2004). The mainremnants of this formation (‘‘le Cerisier’’, ‘‘Montcocu’’, ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’, ‘‘Fressignes’’) were sampled for dating by ESR. The data,coherent and reproducible, give an average age of about 1.1 Ma forthe formation (Despriee et al., 2006).

Two prehistoric sites directly associated with the coarse alluviaof the base of this formation were studied: ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’, in theEguzon-Chantome district, Indre, and ‘‘la Chaudronniere’’, districtof Crozant, Creuse.

2.1.1. ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’, Eguzon-Chantome, IndreThe ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’ locality was discovered in 1982 during

road construction. It is located on the western side of the interfluveformed by the Creuse River and one of its small tributaries, theClaviere River. The base of the alluvial formation is only preservedin irregularities of the crystalline bedrock. The preserved coarsealluvia consist of quartz cobbles and pebbles and of large blocks of

Fig. 2. Creuse River Valley, Indre. A: Map location of prehistoric sites in relation withthe sheet D in the Crozant and Eguzon-Chanrome area. B: Schematic cross-section inthe ‘‘Massif Central sector’’ with position of the site of ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’ in alluvialsheet D.

J. Despriee et al. / Quaternary International 223-224 (2010) 345–359 347

fluvially eroded quartz (15� 30 cm) directly in contact with thesubstratum.

The detailed spatial record of the archaeological material carriedout at the time of the excavations of the site, between 1984 and1994, showed that the lithic industry was closely associated withthe coarse alluvial deposits. It was found at the base of the fluvialgravels and on surfaces arranged by Hominids. Later fine sandyalluvia have ‘‘fossilized’’ the gravels and the associated prehistoriclevels. A small series of artifacts was discovered in the basal part ofthe coarse alluvia, at the contact with the weathered substratum(Fig. 3) (Despriee and Gageonnet, 2003; Despriee et al., 2006).

The prehistoric occupation soil is perfectly integrated in the top ofthe coarse alluvia (Fig. 3B). It lies on the various components of thebasement: the weathered mica schist of the fossil river bank,a horizon of fluvial well rounded small pebbles (5� 3 cm), anddeposits deformed by periglacial cryoturbation phenomena. Twopavements built by the Hominids, on surfaces of approximately25 m2 each, were discovered on this occupation sediment (Fig. 3C).These two pavements, 9 m long and from 2.50 to 3.50 m wide, werebuilt with quartz pebbles and blocks of vein quartz rolled by the river.The length of the bulky blocks ranges between 10 and 25 cm, and ismuch greater than the size of the stones available into the underlyingsediment, between 2 and 6 cm. Blocks were also collected in the baseof the alluvial deposits. They were carefully gathered, and thepavements show very clear limits underlined by large pebbles anda series of regularly spaced holes (Despriee et al., 2006, 2009).

Accumulation of artifacts, inside and along these limits (walleffect), reinforces the assumption of an artificial cover maintainedby stakes (Fig. 3D). The possibility of a vegetation hood protectingthe pavements was tested by reconstitutions, which permittedobservation of the protective qualities of this construction and thecapacities of the pavements to restore the heat stored by quartzblocks.

The raw material exploited by Hominids is exclusively quartzfound directly on the site. Pebbles and rolled blocks were directlysampled into the alluvia, and vein quartz blocks were collected inthe slope deposits or directly extracted from the local substratum.About 8000 flakes, chunks and pieces with clear evidence of humanmanufacture were discovered during the excavations. This assem-blage is completed by a few hammerstones, two anvils and one‘‘passive hammerstone’’.

To date, 1321 pieces of chipped stone made on alluvial materialshave been systematically analyzed. The morphology of the rawmaterial is rather variable, ranging from pebbles with spherical/oval cross-sections to rolled blocks with quadrangular cross-sections, and it is clear that pebble morphology was a strongdeterminant of whether direct hard hammer direct percussion orbipolar percussion on anvil (the two reduction methods docu-mented in the assemblage) was used. Regardless of the type ofpebble use or the reduction method employed, the ‘‘chaıne oper-atoire’’ is always complete, as shown by refits.

2.1.1.1. Pebbles. Of the pebbles found in the site, 39% were reducedthrough bipolar percussion that produced a variety of productswith a relatively limited range of morphologies (Fig. 4). When thepebble was struck perpendicularly to its longest axis, as wasthe case for most rounded pebbles, the resulting morphology of theflakes is typical of split fractures, and the two parts of the originalpebble were not modified further. Most of the products comingfrom flat rounded pebbles have a pointed end resulting from theconvergence of fractures or removals.

The remaining 61% of the pebbles were reduced through directhard hammer percussion. In the reduction stage, this methodseems to have been geared towards the production of flakes thatcould be shaped to bear pointed edges. The ‘‘chaıne operatoire’’ israther short, produced using unidirectional reduction of one tothree orthogonal striking platforms. The resulting flakes have ovalor quadrangular outlines, and they are almost always cortical tosome degree.

Single flakes were also removed from about 4% of pebbles(hammers?). The same method was also used as part of shaping(‘‘façonnage’’), although various methods were employed to createa point or, more rarely, an edge: 1) ‘‘chopper type’’ shaping,whereby a single surface was used to detach two or three parallelflakes to create a more or less straight edge, or to create a pointededge; 2) using a break as a striking platform to detach a flake,

Fig. 3. Creuse River Valley, Indre. ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’ prehistoric site at Eguzon-Chantome. a: partial view of the pavement n�1. b: Stratigraphic position of the anthropic soil andpavements on the top of the basic gravels of sheet D; c: plan of the prehistoric pavements, d: cross-section of pavement n�1 and distribution of quartz artifacts with wall effect abovepost-holes and wedgings of pegs.


thereby creating a pointed edge; 3) unifacial shaping aimed atcreating a pointed tool.

2.1.1.2. Rolled blocks. Blocks of quartz were used as cores in 35% ofthe cases, and they also were reduced through both direct andbipolar percussions. In contrast to pebbles, however, the endproducts of both reduction strategies are typologically undis-tinguishable. A total of 19% of quadrangular rolled blocks wereworked using bipolar reduction on anvil which was almost exclu-sively unidirectional and yielded up to four cortical flakes.

A total of 48% of used blocks bear unprepared and orthogonalknapping surfaces that were exploited using direct percussion(cf. S.S.D.A: Forestier, 1993). This reduction strategy producedmainly various types of cortex-bearing flakes, as well as some non-

cortical flakes bearing unidirectionally or orthogonally organisedscars on their dorsal surface. Overstruck flakes are common. Thereare also rare centripetal flakes that tend to be thinner than thetypes described above.

It was not possible to identify the reduction strategies used oncores whose original morphology cannot be recognized. However,the associated end products fit definitively within the categories.

Overall, the Pont-de-Lavaud lithic assemblage is characterizedby short ‘‘chaınes operatoires’’ aimed at producing ‘‘pointed’’ endproducts and flakes. The methods and techniques involved in theirproduction were strongly conditioned by the raw material used fortheir production – quartz – which is hard to flake, especially whenusing direct percussion. This likely accounts for the high frequencyof reduction on anvils in this assemblage.

Fig. 4. Types of quartz artifacts issues from pebbles and rolled blocks at ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’. 1) broken pebble, 2) pebble with a point made by bifacial flake scars,3) pebble with a single flake scar, 4) pebble with a point made by unifacial flake scars,5, 9) pebbles broken by bipolar percussion, 6, 8) flakes, 7) pointed tool made by uni-facial flake scars.

Fig. 5. Prehistoric industry on quartz pebbles from ‘‘la Chaudronniere’’ at Crozant(Creuse).


Quartz raw material was never reduced very extensively. Quartzwas very abundant on the site, either as pebbles or rolled blocks.Retouched flakes are rare (3.9%), mainly lightly retouched side-scrapers, notches or denticulates, always modified on their longestedge. Most blanks are flakes or points produced using the tech-niques described above.

2.1.2. ‘‘La Chaudronniere’’, Crozant, CreuseAt Crozant, some artifacts were found into the basal coarse

alluvia of sheet D. Pits showed that the preserved remnant isextremely thin, and it is difficult to assure that the pieces were reallyrecovered from the alluvial formation. The supports of the artifactsare well rounded quartz pebbles, perhaps recovered from the allu-vial formation after its erosion (Fig. 5). The ‘‘choppers’’ show uni-facial and abrupt scars. A pyramidal core with peripheral removalsfrom a striking plan obtained by two adjacent removals indicatesa recurrent knapping. Thick pebble fragments with peripheral scarscould be described as large planes (Despriee and Alilaire, 1991).

2.2. Cher River Valley

The Cher River flows between Chateauneuf-sur-Cher and Vierzon,followingtectonic structures, through the ‘‘Champagne berrichonne’’Jurassic limestone Plateau. In this ‘‘Berry sector’’, the incision betweenthe surface of the plateau and the floor of the present-day alluvial

plain is approximately 50 m. Nine stepped terraces were recognized,all on the left slope of the modern valley. One, the ‘‘Rosieres Sands’’formation, has Lower Pleistocene mammal fossil remains (Fig. 6A, B)(Guerin et al., 2003; Despriee et al., 2007).

Some archaeological levels have been discovered into thisformation in the locality of ‘‘la Terre-des-Sablons’’ at Rosieres,Lunery district, Cher. (Fig. 6A). Between Lunery and Rosieres, sevenalluvial remnants of the ‘‘Rosieres Sands’’ formation, a few hundredmetres in diameter, are visible on the surface of the westernlimestone slope, at a relative altitude ofþ34 m. These remnants arealigned in an area characterized by the presence of two major faults(Voinchet et al., 2007). Located 600 m southward of the paleonto-logical site of ‘‘Rosieres-Usine’’, in the alignment of the meridianfault of Rosieres, one of these remnants of approximately 250 ha, in‘‘la Terre-des-Sablons’’ locality, was exploited in sand pit to a depthof 25 m between 1950 and 1990. Recently, several sections weremechanically exposed to a depth of 12 m. Three sedimentary unitsdeposited on limestone stepped compartments were observedfrom the top to the bottom (Fig. 6C):

- Unit 1 is composed of two sequences of very clayey coarsefluvial sands, including quartz, feldspar and mica grains, directlyrelated to the in situ decomposition of granitic boulders. Thebase of the alluvial deposit and the limestone floor are deeplycryoturbated. The ESR age of the sandy deposit is 800� 70 ka.

- Unit 2, 4.25 m thick, is composed of horizontal beds of coarsesands, dated by ESR at 930�100 ka. A lithic assemblage (cores,flakes, ‘‘choppers’’) was located in 1984 in contact with thecalcareous floor of this unit (Fig. 6C).

- Unit 3 is only preserved in the central part of the site (Fig. 6D).The 2.20 m thick deposits are characteristic of a channel bar,with obliquely stratified sands (1.70 m) covering a basic cobblelevel (0.50 m thick) of Massif Central endogenous materials(granite and quartz) mixed with sedimentary rocks (oolithicsilicified limestone, millstone, flint and sandstone), present in

Fig. 6. Cher River Valley, ‘‘Berry Sector’’, Lunery-Rosieres, ‘‘la Terre-des-Sablons’’ site. a : location of outcrops of the ‘‘Sables de Rosieres’’ formation ; b : cross-section of the CherValley and ESR ages of the stepped alluvial formations; c: stratigraphic logs of the three sandy units and position of the prehistoric levels (black triangles); d: stratigraphy of thecobbly channel bar and position of the artifacts; and e: distribution of the artifacts above the limestone floor.


the older and Tertiary formations cut by the Cher graben. Thesurface of all these materials has acquired a typical red brownpatina from the very clayey matrix which contains highquantities of iron pisoliths. The ESR age of the sandy depositscovering the basic cobble level is 1.1�0.18 Ma. Archaeologicalremains have been recovered in three levels, included in thecoarse base of Unit 3 (Despriee et al., 2007).

2.2.1. Prehistoric industry of Unit 2In Unit 2, the lithic industry is made on a variety of flints and,

very rarely, on oolithic silicified limestone (Fig. 6C). It includes bothcortical and non-cortical flakes mainly produced using unidirec-tional production strategies. The average length of the flakes rangesbetween 20 and 80 mm. Striking platforms are plain, with a singleinstance of a facetted platform.

Fig. 7. Lithic assemblage from the layer 3 at Lunery-Rosieres. 1: debitage with twoorthogonal surfaces in oolithic limestone (level 1); 2, 3: flint and millstone unre-touched non-cortical flakes (levels 1 and 3); 4: ‘‘Pointe dejetee’’ on a flint flake.


Quadrangular blocks 80–120 mm long were also recovered inthe assemblage. They are made on oolithic silicified limestone,millstone slabs and flint nodules. The most frequent reductionstrategy is unidirectional and unifacial. In some cases, a bifacialstrategy with unipolar or bipolar removals was observed. It ispossible that some of these artifacts were actually shaped tools, asopposed to simply serving as cores.

2.2.2. Prehistoric industry of Unit 3In Unit 3, more than 500 artifacts have been recovered from

three distinct levels (Fig. 6E). About one hundred of these artifactsdisplay unambiguous traces of human manufacture.

Level 3, at the base of the coarse sequence, is the richest one,especially concerning flakes. Blocks are rare in all levels. Flint andmillstone are the two most common raw materials, except forblocks which are commonly on fine-grained oolithic silicifiedlimestone (Fig. 7). All of these materials can be found in the site, andthere are no significant differences in the raw material selectionbetween the three levels. The assemblages discovered into thesethree levels cannot really be differentiated.

The assemblages from the three levels of Unit 3 share a numberof common features:

- Flint, millstone and oolithic silicified limestone are the onlyraw materials used. A few unmodified flint nodules in theassemblages suggest that quadrangular and polyhedral blockswere deliberately selected for reduction.

- The state of preservation and the presence of crushing markssuggest that these assemblages were subjected to a range ofpre-, peri- and/or postdepositional taphonomic processes. Formillstone, the large size of some flakes compared to that of theblocks suggest that large slabs were worked elsewhere,perhaps in parts of the site not yet investigated or notpreserved or in other sites, possibly located on older terraces.

- A few reduction strategies were employed to work blocks:unidirectional flaking parallel to the length of the piece oracross the edge; crossed unidirectional (and occasionallyconvergent) flaking; and bidirectional (opposed platform)flaking, with or without a bisecting mid-ridge. The length ofthe blocks usually ranges from 50 to 110 mm, and their flakescars are generally smaller than the flakes found in the sameassemblages. Striking platforms are usually unprepared,although some instances of platform preparation were docu-mented. The edges of the blocks were also used as strikingplatforms, as shown by the presence of cortical and partiallycorticated flakes. The blocks only clearly reflect unidirectionalflaking and, unlike the flakes, no block bears flake scarsindicative of bidirectional/bipolar, crossed or centripetalreduction.

- Flakes are of variable dimension, but usually 20–70 mm long,and some are elongated. Platforms are usually flat, with raredihedral or facetted examples, and the exterior platform angleranges from 40� to 90�, which agrees with those documentedon blocks. Hinge fractures are rare, both on the terminationsand dorsal flake surfaces, and on the flake scars found onblocks. Flake scars are usually unidirectional, and the fewpieces evidencing bidirectional, crossed or centripetal reduc-tion strategies are consistent with the variability in reductionmethods documented in contemporary lithic assemblages.

- Retouched flakes are very rare, with only two cases showingclear evidence of having been intentionally modified: one isa ‘‘pointe dejetee’’ (Fig. 7), the other is a sidescraper. Both aresmall flint flakes produced using a unidirectional or centripetalreduction strategy. Retouch is short in length and regular,although it can be marginal or scalar in nature. The edges of

these tools do not show any evidence of postdepositionalcrushing or abrasion.

2.3. Loir River Valley

The studied part of the Loir River Valley is centred on VendomeTown, Loir-et-Cher. In the upstream sector, named ‘‘Haut-Ven-domois’’, the difference between the floor of the present-day allu-vial plain and the late Tertiary erosion surface sector of the plateauis 70 m. The valley is incised into the Eocene sandy–clayey forma-tion and the Cretaceous strata rich in flint. Ten stepped fluvialformations were defined and dated (Fig. 8A) (Despriee et al., 2003).At ‘‘Pont-de-la-Hulauderie’’ locality, a remnant of the highestformation (sheet J, þ59 m), is preserved on approximately onehectare in irregularities of the Eocene substratum. The observedstratigraphy includes a basal gravel layer overlaid by sands andloessic silts (Fig. 8B). This site has yielded two series of Mode 1artifacts. In the basal gravel, the artifacts are affected by alterations,also observed on the coarse alluvia from where they come: redpurplish colouring, ferruginous encrusting and frost cracks. Two‘‘choppers’’, a ‘‘chopping-tool’’ and a large thick flake, do not showremoval marks of fluvial transportation (Fig. 8B). Six pebble-toolswere also found in the base of the loess level. They show anexceptional freshness which could be explained by rapid burialunder the silty sediment (Monnier and Despriee, 1989).

In the Middle Loir River Valley, the highest dated formation isSheet H (þ40 m) for which ESR ages of 965�145 ka and903�140 ka were obtained. Two terraces, sheet I (þ52 m) andSheet J (þ59 m) would be older and the alluvial formation of the‘‘Pont-de-la-Hulauderie’’ is dated to the Lower Pleistocene (Voin-chet, 2002; Despriee et al., 2003).

3. Prehistoric sites with Handaxes (Mode 2)

Since the middle of the XIX century, handaxes have beendescribed in the Middle Loire River Basin in relation with alluvialdeposits of the Loir River (Bourgeois, 1865), Cher River

Fig. 8. River Loir Valley. A: Schematic cross-section of the ‘‘Haut-Vendomois sector’’.B: Flint pebble industry from ‘‘le Pont-de-la-Hulauderie’’ site and stratigraphic positionof the two prehistoric levels.

Fig. 9. Creuse River Valley, ‘‘Paris Basin’’ sector, Ciron ‘‘les-Champs-de-Chaume’’ site.Stratigraphic section of the formation and position of the artifacts.


(Saint-Venant, 1889) and Creuse River (Hubert, 1905). At thebeginning of the XX century, these tools were locally the subject ofsystematic inventories in some districts (Florance, 1922). Thenumber of artifacts collected is locally large, but the stratigraphicalconditions of their discoveries are very imprecise, without anyrelative dating elements.

Recent surveys confirmed that sites with handaxes are veryfrequently associated with alluvial formations. The stratigraphicallocations of the artifacts and of the archaeological occupation levelsinto the alluvia have been confirmed. Criteria of primary positionfor the artifacts have been also defined, together with the charac-terization of the marks related to various types of transportation(Despriee et al., 2005).

3.1. Creuse River Valley

In the Middle Creuse River Valley, a single site with handaxes ispresently known, in the ‘‘Paris Basin Sector’’ (Fig. 1). In this sector,the incision of the Creuse Valley ranges from about 70 m down-stream (Argenton-sur-Creuse) to 60 m upstream (Le Blanc). Eightstepped alluvial formations were recognized and their depositswere dated between 800 and 130 ka (Despriee et al., 2004). In Sheet3, named ‘‘les-Champs-de-Chaume’’ formation (þ10 m relativealtitude), at Ciron, Indre, three archaeological levels were defined(Fig. 9). Coarse gravels deposited on the calcareous floor were usedas the raw material source. Nodules of Jurassic flint were exploited:cores and many both cortical and non-cortical flakes were found.Quartz pebbles were also cut. A level with bifacial tools, both onflint and quartz, and Levallois flakes was located at the top of the

lower sandy sequence dated 278� 32 ka. No marks of trans-portation were observed on these artifacts.

3.2. Middle Cher River Valley

In the ‘‘Berry sector’’, study of the prehistoric locality named ‘‘laNoira’’, included in the ‘‘Brinay-Les Fougeres’’ formation(þ13/þ21 m), is in progress. In the ‘‘Sologne sector’’, between Vil-lefranche-sur-Cher and Gievres, Loir-et-Cher, several prehistoricsites are included in the ‘‘la Genetiere’’ formation (þ14/þ22 m) andthe ‘‘la Morandiere’’ formation (þ7/þ13 m) (Fig. 10).

3.2.1. ‘‘La Noira ‘‘, Brinay, CherThe alluvial formation of Brinay (þ13/þ21) is 2 km long and

0.5 km wide. It was more than 8 m thick at ‘‘la Noira’’. In thislocality, the section of the terrace is constituted from bottom to topby: bedrock lacustrine limestone (Unit I); a very strongly weatheredclay layer covered by a very thick sequence of sands and gravels(Unit II); a very coarse sandy and clayey deposit includingnumerous endogeneous pebbles and millstone slabs (Unit III). Thisunit is dated at 680� 30 ka at the bottom and 630� 23 ka in themedian part of the sequence; a coarse sand unit with weatheredgranite pebbles (Unit IV); a thick sequence with numerous hori-zontal and oblique layers of coarse and medium rubified sands(Unit V); a fine and middle-sized gravel unit with many iron piso-liths, millstone slabs and well rounded quartz pebbles (Unit VI);and a sandy brown silt layer including rare flint cobbles withorange patina (Unit VII) (Despriee et al., 2007) (Fig. 10).

The handaxe industries are associated with four of these units:III, V, VI, and VII (Figs. 10 and 11). Three levels of artifacts weredistinguished in unit VI (VIa, VIb and VIc). Levels VIb and VIc

Fig. 10. Cher River Valley, ‘‘Berry’’ and ‘‘Sologne’’ Sectors. Stratigraphic logs of thealluvial formations deposited between þ13 and þ22 m of relative altitude and posi-tions of the prehistoric industries with bifaces.

Fig. 11. Examples of bifacial tools in the archaeological levels at Brinay-Les fougeres-’’la Noira ’’. Level VIc: Bifaces in flint (2, 3, 4) and millstone (1). The convergent cuttingedges show thin removals (2, 3, 4) and retouches (1, 2, 3, 4). The tool end are pointed(1, 2, 4) or round (3). The tools are asymmetric (1) thinner at the end (2, 3, 4). The baseare cortical (3), with a cortical back (2) or non-cortical (1, 4). Level VIb : Bifaces in flint(6, 8) and millstone (5, 7).with a large size. The shaping covers a large part of theperiphery (5, 7, 8) with thin and invasive removals and retouches on the cutting edges.The shape is elongated (5, 6, 7) and some tools have a transversal edge (cleaver type)(6). Level VIa : Bifaces in flint (9, 10, 11, 12) with a small size. The end is pointed (10, 11,12), sometimes broken (10), or round (9). Several removals cover the tool withretouches on the entire periphery (10, 11, 12) or partially with a cortical base (9). Thetools are asymmetric (10, 11, 12). Bed III: Bifaces in millstone (13, 14, 15, 16) and of largesize (13). The shaping is partial on one edge (15) or on the entire periphery (13, 15, 16).The morphology are diverse, with regular edges (14, 15), sometimes with a transversalcutting edge (14), or convex edges (13, 16). Several removals and retouches areobserved without changing the shape of the blank. These tools can be described asunfinished bifaces.


yielded evidence of archaeological occupations. The lithic assem-blage yielded more than 1000 artifacts.

In Unit III, the assemblage (n¼ 263) is composed of flakes, coresand large bifacial tools made from millstone slabs. Millstone isavailable in this bed as thick slabs. The shapes of the slabs havebeen used without preparation. The tools and the cores are mainlycortical and indicate the initial morphology of the available blanks.Some handaxes and cores were determined as unfinished pieces,and suggest that the deposit was a knapping and a shaping place,although no flakes resulting from the shaping of handaxes havebeen discovered. The shaping of handaxes was made by largeremovals, and then covered by thin and invasive removals. Finally,

retouches finished the work on the cutting edges of unsymmetricaltools. The shapes of the tools are diverse and some of them showa transversal cutting edge obtained by removals or a fracture(cleaver type?). The cores show a diversity of knapping, froma simple flaking on one face to discoidal method. This coarse allu-vial level was cryoturbated, as Units I and II, after the humanoccupations and artifacts have been displaced with the sediment.Industries of Unit V are poor, mainly composed of large flakes.

In Unit VI, level VIa, the bifaces, mainly made on flint, arethinner and smaller than those of Unit III. They are largely shaped,with a pointed or a round end and a cortical base. The cores indicatea knapping on orthogonal or secant surfaces. These artifacts wereslightly transported with the alluvia as in Unit V.

In Unit VI, levels VIb and VIc, the industry (n¼ 451) is composedof cores, flakes and handaxes. Most of the bifacial tools were

Fig. 12. Cher River Valley, ‘‘Sologne’’ Sector, þ13/þ22 m alluvial formation. Example of industries with handaxes found in the (A) ‘‘la Genetiere’’ and (B) ‘‘la Plaine-de-la-Mor-andiere’’ sites. 1, 2: Bifacial cleavers (B); 3: ‘‘Clactonian’’ flake (A); 4: Trihedral peak (A); 5: Bi-pyramidal core with centripetal and bifacial flaking (A).


produced from local millstone slabs and are shaped by thin andinvasive removals, with a pointed extremity. Some flint sources arealso distant from 20 to 130 km to the site. Some pieces are lessworked like for the level III. Among the cores, mainly discoidal orwith a single flaking surface, 6 cores show evidence of knapping ona flat surface which can be related to the Levallois concept. Theseartifacts are observed in archaeological sediment. In Unit VII, twopossible levels were perturbed by erosion and agriculturaldisturbance.

3.2.2. Sologne sectorIn the ‘‘Sologne sector’’, two distinct alluvial formations were

studied (Fig. 10). The first one, ‘‘La Genetiere’’ formation, constitutestwo vast terraces on the right side of the Cher River valley, in Vil-lefranche-sur-Cher and the Gievres area, on approximately 8 kmlong and 2–3 km wide. The surface is located at the same elevationas the adjacent substratum, here constituted by the Burdigaliansands of the Sologne Basin, in which the terraces are embedded. Therelative altitudes of the base and the top of this formation are þ14and þ22 m respectively. The second formation, named ‘‘La Mor-andiere’’ (þ7/þ13 m), is known only at one small outcrop preservedon the slope under the ‘‘la Genetiere’’ (Despriee et al., 2007).

3.2.2.1. Prehistoric sites of the ‘‘la Genetiere’’ formation. Largelyexploited in sand pits, the ‘‘la Genetiere’’ formation was observed at‘‘la Genetiere’’ site, Villefranche-sur-Cher, and at ‘‘la Plaine-de-la-Morandiere’’ site, Gievres. The sandy deposits, approximately 5 mthick, yielded abundant series, including handaxes, cores andflakes, associated with discontinuous gravel lenses or beds (Fig. 12).

In these levels, artifacts show evidence of fluvial transportation:blunted angles, ground and sometimes broken edges, waxy orfrosten surfaces. Frost cups and cracks are frequent, with sometimesvery windworn surfaces. The artifacts display red brown colouringdifferent to the deposit, indicating transport with older alluvialsediment. On the other hand, the surfaces of the artifacts, aban-doned in the higher sandy levels, have a remarkable freshnessindicating rapid burial.

The sandy deposits are capped by a thick cobbly and gravellylevel with podzolical polyphases. It contains endogeneous cobbles

and blocks and many flint nodules brought from the slopes, withwhite altered surfaces (‘‘cacholong’’). These flint nodules wereexploited by Hominids for knapping and preparation. Residues ofdehusking dominate. The flakes were produced from polyedric,prismatic, bi-pyramidal or unifacial cores. They have a flat, wideand thick striking platform, commonly with prominent typical‘‘Clactonian’’ bulb and radial marks. Many handaxes and cleavertype bifacial tools were discovered in the top of these gravels, atapproximately 1 m depth. White and ivory colouring cacholongsand a chemical corrosion of the angles werer observed on the uppersurfaces of these artifacts (Fig. 12). Some handaxes are lightlyburned (Gievres, ‘‘Plaine-de-la-Morandiere’’ site).

ESR dates obtained for ‘‘la Genetiere‘‘ are between 610�140 and730� 70 ka. At ‘‘la Plaine-de-la-Morandiere’’, they range between610� 90 and 690� 40 ka (Despriee et al., 2007).

3.2.2.2. The site of ‘‘la Morandiere’’ at Gievres, Loir-et-Cher. ‘‘LaMorandiere’’ formation (þ7/þ13 m) was mechanically cored to4.25 m depth. The thick basal pebble layer is overlain by fine andobliquely stratified sands, capped by horizontally bedded sands.Several series of industries with bifaces were recovered in thesequence (Fig. 13):

In the basal gravels, artifacts display glossed surfaces, bluntedangles and crushed edges. They have the same brown orange colouras the alluvia. The cores are polyedric with orthogonal surfaces, orattest a centripetal flaking. Cortical products (52%) and non-corticalflakes (40%) dominate. Two Levallois flakes and three Levalloispoints, two of them retouched, were recognized. Only one brokenhandaxe (‘‘limande type’’) was found.

A series was collected in a sandy glossic level located atapproximately 1.50 m depth. It includes a triedric peak, a cleaver,a bifacial scraper, a Levallois core, elements of flaking and a thickelongated handaxe in black flint with a very rare ‘‘ocellus’’ deco-ration. This black flint, characteristic of Upper Turonian sandychalk, is only available 15 km downstream and was thus brought tothe site by humans. The freshness and the complete absence ofdeterioration of these artifacts seem to indicate rapid burial underthe fine sands which cover the archaeological level. The ESR age ofthis level is 370�110 ka.

Fig. 13. Cher River Valley, ‘‘Sologne’’ Sector, ‘‘la Morandiere site’’ þ6/þ13 m of relativealtitude. Stratigraphic log and position of the prehistoric industries with handaxes.

Fig. 14. Handaxe industries from the Loir River Valley around Vendome. a: sheet F,Saint-Firmin-des-Pres, ‘‘Monce’’; b,c,d: sheet E, Lignieres, ‘‘Courcelles’’, lower gravels;e, f, g: sheet D, Pezou, ‘‘les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’’ under the base of the sheet (e),upper gravels (f), upper clay (g); h: sheet C, Thore-la-Rochette, ‘‘la Cunaille’’; i, j, k, l, m,n: sheet B, Moree, ‘‘Villeprovert’’, upper gravels (i, j, k), base of the cover silt (l), Naveil,‘‘Varennes’’ (m, n); o: sheet A, Lunay, ‘‘le Grand-Ris’’.


In the higher podzolised gravel, the artifacts show a lightwhitish alteration on one face, clear evidence of aeolian reworkingon the exposed surfaces and edges, but no marks of fluvial trans-portation. Many flakes correspond to the first phases of the pro-cessing reduction system of the flint nodules. Cores and flake-toolsare practically absent from the series, except for several beautifulknives with cortical backs or partially retouched backs.

3.3. Loir River Valley

In the ‘‘Haut-Vendomois’’ Sector, four alluvial formations, sheetsF, E, D and B, have industries with handaxes (Fig. 1). Formation F ismainly constituted of sandy deposits, capped by a coarse gravellayer, covered by a loessic deposit. Formations E, D and B show verysimilar stratigraphies with 5 m thick soliflucted coarse graveldeposits. They include pebbles, cobbles, flint nodules and breccias(Fig. 8). The artifacts were recovered on archaeological occupationlevels located on the top of the chalky bedrock exposed by theincision of the river. The human occupations are also included inthe top of the terraces with the flint nodules required for knapping.In the coarse deposits, the artifacts are in ‘‘geological’’ positions:they were transported with the alluvia and show the marks offluvial transportation: grinding ratio, roundness grade, cryoclasticscars, and specific colourings and patinas (Despriee et al., 2003,2005).

3.3.1. Saint-Firmin-des-PresA good example of such an artefact is the handaxe of Saint-

Firmin-des-Pres (Fig. 14A). This artefact was found in the coarsegravels of the top of sheet F (þ22 m/þ28 m), in the ‘‘La Garenne’’formation at Saint-Firmin-des-Pres, Loir-et-Cher (Fig. 13). Thisformation is dated by ESR at 482� 77 and 491�75 ka (Voinchet,2002). The cutting edges of the tool are very rounded. The edgesshow several series of grinding marks with different colourations,indicating that this tool underwent several periods of fluvialtransportation and could come from older alluvial deposits.

3.3.2. Lignieres ‘‘Courcelles’’ SiteAt this site in Loir-et-Cher, three levels of industries with bifacial

tools and pebble-tools were observed in sheet E (þ16/þ21 m)(Fig. 14B, C and D). In the basal gravel sequence, one chopping-tooland four handaxes were discovered. They show grinding marks andintensive rounding. The reddening is important both for flint andsediment of this level. Freeze–thaw cracks led to theirfragmentation.

In the top of the alluvial formation, soliflucted flint nodules wereexploited by Hominids. Cores, various kinds of flakes, sometimesretouched, broken flakes and unfinished handaxes have beendiscovered. Absence of residues of knapping or retouch confirmsthe probability of workshops. A very light brown and yellow

Fig. 15. Loir River Valley, ‘‘Haut-Vendomois’’ Sector. Stratigraphics logs of alluvial formations at (A) Pezou, ‘‘les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’ and (B) at Moree, ‘‘Villeprovert’’; and locationof the prehistoric levels with bifaces or Levallois cutting.


colouring is occasionally visible on one of the faces of these artifactswith fresh edges.

In the base of the silty cover, an abundant industry includesnumerous ‘‘Micoquian’’ type handaxes in association with abun-dant flakes, mainly Levallois. The upper face of some artefactsshows a characteristic white-bluish colouring observed on theartifacts in sediment. The ESR age of 130 ka obtained for the sheet E(þ16/þ21 m) is aberrant, probably in relation with recent distur-bance due to agricultural drainage (Voinchet, 2002).

3.3.3. Pezou ‘‘Les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’At Pezou ‘‘Les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’, Loir-et-Cher, six archae-

ological levels were described in the ‘‘Grouais-de-Chicheray’’formation deposited between þ12 m and þ17 m relative altitude(sheet D). It includes from the bottom to the top of the sequence:

- 70 pebble-tools, one partial handaxe (Figs. 14E and 15A) andtwelve flakes, positioned at the upper contact of the chalkybedrock or its overlying alteration clays. This industry wasdeposited on the chalk after its incision by the river and beforethe deposit of the sheet D alluvia. The artefact edges showgrindings about one millimetre in dimension. Narrowed roundangles of the tools result from the deposit of the overlying sands(Despriee and Lorain, 1972; Despriee, 1985). This sandy level isdated to 410� 65 ka (Voinchet, 2002; Despriee et al., 2004).

- In the overlying gravel formation, several series of assemblageswith handaxes are distributed. Various grinding colourationsseem to indicate several phases of transportation, as is alsoshowed by natural scars, caused by shocks and pressures.Rounding is extensive and the frost cracks are very frequent(Figs. 14F and 15A). The ESR age of the upper part of this gravelformation is 398� 60 ka (Voinchet, 2002)

- Flint nodules, introduced by solifluction into the top of thecoarse gravels under the final overbank clays, were exploitedby Hominids. Cores, cortical and non-cortical flakes, broken ornot, are associated with a single handaxe (Fig.14G and 15A) andtriedric peaks. Grouped together in the level, they show

remarkable freshness. Observed frost cracks are older than theknapping. (Despriee, 1985).

3.3.4. Villeprovert formationIn the ‘‘Villeprovert formation’’ at Moree (sheet B, þ6/þ11 m),

the base of the coarse pebble unit has yielded some rare pieces:pebble-tools, flakes, notches, scrapers and Levallois cores. A sandylevel included in this unit was dated by ESR at 241�42 ka(Despriee, 1979; Voinchet, 2002).

At the top of the terrace, in a fine gravel layer, industry wasmainly discovered in two levels. The Levallois flaking is dominant,with cores, large flakes and points (Fig. 15B). Many flakes issuingfrom knapping or shaping were retouched; some probably comefrom the same flint nodule (Despriee et al., 2005). The base of thecover silts also contains a typical Levallois series, with cores, flakes,points and a handaxe fragment. The upper faces of the artifacts arecovered by a regular ‘‘cacholong’’.

4. Discussion

In the various studied sectors, the fluvial systems include 5–11alluvial stepped formations. The periglacial characters of thesedeposits are apparent. After the incision, soliflucted deposits arealmost constantly present. Raw materials come from the geologicallevels of the bedrock or from older alluvial formations. Both alluviaand bedrock are frequently cryoturbated. In the terraces depositedbetween 400 and 600 ka, the hiati of sedimentation are underlinedby ice wedges or polygonal cells. Stones often show frost crackingand/or aeolian modification. At the top, materials deposited bysolifluction are also observed. The loessic cover is poorly preserved.

4.1. Early Paleolithic industries (Mode 1)

In the Creuse, Cher and Loir Valleys, the excavations showa close association between the prehistoric levels and the coarsebasal deposits of the oldest alluvial sheets. The raw material used

Fig. 16. Main Early Palaeolithic sites western Eurasia between 40 and 45�N.


for these archaic industries differs from one valley to another, but itis mainly constituted by pebbles and blocks collected in the basalgravels. In each site, the artifacts are not erratic but correspond tosediments with clear stratigraphic locations. They do not show anymarks of fluvial transportation.

On the site of ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’ in the Creuse Valley, only quartzwas used. Anthropic pavements are interpreted as an attempt toisolate the habitat from the sediment and to restore heat (Desprieeand Gageonnet, 2003; Despriee et al., 2006).

In the Cher Valley, the raw material of the three excavated levelsin ‘‘Lunery-Rosiere’’ site was also taken from the basal coarsedeposits. Siliceous materials, including blocks of oolithic silicifiedlimestone, millstone slabstones and flint nodules, were selected fortheir size and were knapped in situ.

In these two sites, Hominids were present on the river bank at theend of the incision, during the beginning of a glacial stage, as indi-cated by flakes, debris and cores directly recovered on the limestonebedrock. These archaeological deposits and the limestone floor arestrongly cryoturbated, and the presence of Hominids occurredduring short climatic improvements during the glacial stages.

4.2. A human settlement in central Franceduring the Lower Pleistocene

The oldest evidence of human settlements in the Middle LoireRiver Basin is dated to the Lower Pleistocene. ESR analyses gaveages of approximately 1.1 Ma for ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’ and ‘‘Lunery-Rosieres’’ sites (Voinchet et al., 2005). In Crozant, Creuse Valley,artifacts from the ‘‘la Chaudronniere’’ locality are also associatedwith outcrops belonging to the ‘‘le Cerisier/le Pont-de-Lavaud’’formation, and so have the same age. In the Loir River Valley, at ‘‘lePont-de-la-Hulauderie’’, the Mode 1 industry is included in thebase of a fluvial terrace deposited before 980 ka (Voinchet, 2002;Despriee et al., 2003). Together with the Vallonnet Cave in south-eastern France (Lumley et al., 1988), these four sites shows evidenceof the presence of Hominids in France during the Lower Pleisto-cene. ‘‘Le Pont-de-Lavaud’’ and ‘‘Lunery-Rosieres’’ sites have yiel-ded sufficiently abundant lithic assemblages to clearly attest tohuman occupation of Western Europe northof 45�N by ca. 1.1 Ma,allowing comparison with other European coeval sites.

The earliest human settlement of Europe began ca. 1.8 Ma on thecontinent’s eastern edge, in the southern Caucasus (Lordkipanidzeet al., 2007; Mgeladze, 2008), before spreading along the southernlimit of the continent between 1.4 and 1.0 Ma, as attested by

Spanish and Italian localities including Orce-Fuente Nueva III andBarranco Leon, Atapuerca-Elefante and Gran Dolina, Pirro Nord,Ceprano or Monte Poggiolo (Bermudez de Castro et al., 1995;Martinez-Navarro et al., 1997; Peretto et al., 1998; Carbonell et al.,1999, 2008; Toro et al., 2003a,b; Arzarello et al., 2006, 2009; Duval,2009) (Fig. 16). Up to now, more northerly evidence is scare anddoubtful, often limited to a few artifacts (Bosinski, 2006). At ‘‘Pont-de-Lavaud’’ and ‘‘Lunery-Rosieres’’, the number of attested artefactsis significant, and assemblages display coherent sets of technolog-ical strategies, although paleoenvironmental data show thatHominids occupied the region only during relatively temperateperiods, which suggests a discontinuous human presence largelydetermined by climate conditions.

Considering the evidence of the centre region sites in France, itseems probable that Hominids hadsettled northwestern Europequite extensively by ca. 1.1 Ma. It is also possible to connect theLower Pleistocene localities of Western Europe with eastward moredistant sites located at the same latitude, such as Bogatyri andKurdan Cimbal in Crimea (Bosinski et al., 2003) and the Datong-Nihewan Basin in China (Zhu et al., 2001, 2004).

4.3. Industries with handaxes

About eighty sites containing industries with bifaces wereinventoried in the alluvial formations of the Middle Loire Basinvalleys (Despriee et al., 2009). In these sites, flint and millstonewere systematically used as raw material. The preliminary petro-graphic determinations of flints employed to manufacture bifacesand scrapers indicate various origins, mainly local. The flint wasgenerally selected from the alluvia or the slope.

The flint sources can also be distant. For example, the flint usedfor some bifaces discovered in ‘‘la Noira’’ comes from a Cretaceouscuesta located 35 km downstream from the archaeological locality.Other handaxes were knapped using a typical flint from Turoniandeposits of ‘‘Le Grand-Pressigny’’ in Touraine Region, 130 km south-east, which indicates displacements from one valley to another.

4.4. Permanent human installation during Middle Pleistocene?

During the Middle Pleistocene, the presence of Hominids inCentral France is attested. In the Loir River Valley, at ‘‘les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’, they were present directly on the river bank at thebeginning of a glacial stage, at the end of the river incision. Duringthe next glaciations, the camps were located higher on the slope, on


older terraces or directly on the plateau edges, and Hominids usedmaterials brought from the slopes (Despriee, 1987). In pleniglacialsediments, artefacts coming from older prehistoric localities inprevious terraces are often reworked. In such cases, lithic piecesshow marks of fluvial transportation (Despriee et al., 2005). Whenhalts in sedimentation occurred, Hominids remained on the erodedsurfaces of alluvial terraces, affected by cryoturbation or by icewedges (Brinay, ‘‘la Noira’’). During late glacial periods, humanoccupation was important, even systematic: in most of the studiedsites, the uppermost alluvial deposit was used as a raw materialsource, as it contains abundant siliceous materials. The archaeo-logical levels have been covered by silts and colluvium and areoften mixed with more recent erosional debris and agriculturalmaterials.

4.5. A second stage of settlement duringthe early Middle Pleistocene?

In the Creuse, Cher and Loir River valleys, alluvial formationshave industries with abundant handaxes, stratigraphically located.The formations were systematically dated by ESR.

In the Cher valley, according to the ESR data, the first handaxeevidence is associated with fluvial formations dated between680� 30 ka and 630� 23 ka at ‘‘la Noira’’; between 690� 40 kaand 610� 90 ka at ‘‘la Plaine-de-la-Morandiere’’, and between730� 70 ka and 610�140 ka at ‘‘la Genetiere’’. These ages, verysimilar, indicate a significant development of the handaxe indus-tries between 700 and 600 ka in this valley. Approximately 100 kmnorthwards, in the Loir valley, the oldest known handaxe werediscovered at Saint-Firmin-des-Pres, in a terrace dated to491�75 ka. Its rolled and abraded aspect indicates a probableorigin from an older alluvial formation (Despriee et al., 2003).

The abundance of handaxes in sheets E and D of the Loir Valleyconfirms a strong development of these tools around 400 ka, even if‘‘choppers’’ and ‘‘chopping-tools’’ are still present and sometimesabundant as in ‘‘les Grouais-de-Chicheray’’. This age is in goodagreement with the data available for the Seine and Somme valleys,in Northern France, concerning the appearance of Acheulean sites(Antoine et al., 2010; Limondin-Lozouet et al., 2010). In the Chervalley, bifaces were associated with Levallois industry in severallevels of the ‘‘la Morandiere’’ formation, dated at Gievres at370�110 ka. This formation would thus be contemporaneous withthe Acheulean sites of Orgnac 3, near the Rhone valley (Moncelet al., 2005), and la Micoque (Falgueres et al., 1997). Levalloisindustry is also present in the Loir valley, in a more recent terrace,dated approximately to 240 ka (Moree ‘‘Villeprovert’’).

4.6. A discontinuous settlement of the Centre Region?

A gap of about 400 ka is observed between the formationsassociated with Mode 1 industries and the formations containinghandaxes. Except for Lunery’s Unit 2 (930�100 ka), no archaeo-logical level has been discovered in intermediate formations. Today,there is no typological or technical argument to establish a linkbetween the two sets of industries. Indeed, they indicate verydifferent strategies in the choice of raw materials, in technologicalstrategies, and in resulting products. The proposed assumption istwo separate phases of settlement, during which Hominids,perhaps at different stages of evolution, reached the Middle LoireRiver Basin, separated by several hundredthousand years.

5. Conclusion

Numerous alluvial formations with periglacial characters wererecognized in the valleys of three tributaries of the Middle Loire

Basin, the Creuse, Cher and Loir Rivers. During the Quaternary,these rivers flowed into grabens induced by tectonics. In the rarepreserved outcrops of the highest formations, some prehistoriclocalities of Early Palaeolithic (¼Mode 1 industry) were discovered.ESR ages of these fluvial remnants are coherent with the geologicalobservations and confirm the presence of Hominids in thesevalleys, northwards to 47�N, during the Lower Pleistocene, ca.1.1 Ma.

The preservation of the formations deposited after 700–600 kais better. Hominids were constantly present and controlled thebifacial manufacture. Since about 400 ka, the Acheulean culturehad a generalized diffusion in the Middle Loire Basin. Levalloisflaking largely developed in Region Centre since about 370 ka.

In conclusion, industries and prehistoric occupations dating toearly Palaeolithic were discovered in the Centre Region asa contribution of research carried out since 1981. Artifacts andprehistoric levels are stratigraphically located in outcrops of theoldest alluvial formations deposited at the top of slopes, before themain incision of the valleys. The systematic dating by ESR, appliedto optically bleached fluvial quartz, gave reproducible and coherentages for these alluvial deposits, allowing the establishment ofregional chronological frameworks for Early and Lower Palaeolithicindustries (Mode 1 and Mode 2). These results are in agreementwith the data obtained for the various comparable sites studiedcurrently in Eurasia.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to: 1) Professor François Semah, Director of theDepartment of Prehistory of the national Museum of NaturalHistory Paris, and Professor Henry de Lumley, Director of theInstitute of Human Palaeontology Paris, for their continuoussupport to the various research projects carried out on the Palae-olithic settlements in Centre Region; 2) Ministry for Culture, sub-direction of Archaeology, Direction of the Prehistoric antiquitiesand regional Department of the Archaeology of the Centre Region,for the authorizations and the financial support for the researchoperations on the Palaeolithic settlements. 3) District council of theCentre Region since 1999, for financial support for research,researchers and students, and for the acquisition of a mobilespectrometer for measurements and dating. 4) The Indre depart-ment for its support for research in the Creuse Valley since 1986; 5)The Loir-et-Cher department for its support for research in the LoirValley since 1968; 6) the Landre Company at Saint-Julien-sur-Cher(L.-et-C.), Jacquier Creste Company at Lunery (Cher) and privateowners or communal councils that authorized us to prospect ontheir grounds, and to all the researchers who announced theirdiscoveries and authorized us to study them. 7) The Ile-de-FranceRegion Council for the help in the purchase of the ESR spectrometerof the Department of Prehistory, National Museum of NaturalHistory, Paris, used to study the 300 fluvial sediments sampled inthe Middle Loire Basin since 1994.

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Lower and Middle Pleistocene human settlements recorded in fluvial deposits of the middle Loire...

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