Geoarchaeology and micromorphology of Abric de la Cativera (Catalonia, Spain)

This paper presents the preliminary results of the geoarchaeological study of Abric de la Cativera (el Catllar, Tarragona), a rock-shelter containing late glacial and early Holocene stratification spanning between c. 11.3 and 7.9 ka 14C BP. te is located in the Gaià River Valley, on the southern Catalonian coast. The shelter, situated at the foot of a low limestone wall, was discovered in 1994. Preliminary fieldwork was performed in 1995, comprising excavation of the early Holocene layers and the sampling of the stratigraphic succession. oarchaeological study was undertaken using a descriptive approach and so far has included a geomorphological survey of the surroundings, the stratigraphic study of the site and micromorphological analysis. High priority goals are a diachronic reconstruction of environmental change at the Pleistocene–Holocene boundary and an understanding of the relationships between anthropic and non-anthropic dynamics, paying special attention to site formation processes. teʹs archaeological record represents human occupations affiliated to the microlaminar Epipalaeolithic (complex C and unit B) and to early Holocene macrolithic technocomplexes (unit A), according to the lithic assemblages recovered. Artefacts, by-products, ecofacts, manuports and art objects were collected during excavations and archaeological features were detected. sults of the micromorphological study show that the abrupt climate changes around the Pleistocene–Holocene (PH) limit are well recognisable at the site. The beginning of the Younger Dryas (YD) and the PH limit are both represented by erosional surfaces and by the inwash of slope sediments cutting the late glacial pre-YD alluvial succession deposited by the Gaià River. The shift from alluvial to a gravity-driven sedimentary system is the result of an overall modification of the valleyʹs morphodynamics. The early Holocene units record the transition to a Mediterranean environment and the stabilisation of the slope. inputs are abundant in the entire stratigraphic succession, except in the YD layers, where a sudden decrease is observed. Anthropic activities determined the accumulation and modification of various components and the formation of anthropogenic microfacies and features. The observation of micromorphological samples from layer A, which contains occasional potsherds, suggests its in situ position, which is in contrast with the existing models on the regional processes of neolithisation. arison between the pedo-sedimentary and archaeological records indicates that the timing of environmental and cultural change at Abric de la Cativera is differential, suggesting that the latter results from behavioural and cultural dynamics, rather from environmental factors.