Le site du pléistocène inférieur de Lunery-Rosières, la Terre-des-Sablons

Abstract

The prehistoric site of “la Terre-des-Sablons” is located near by the palaeontological Site of Rosières at Lunery (Cher department, France). During 1980’s, about 50 prehistoric artifacts were discovered in a quarry at the base of a sandy fossil fluvial formation. The lithic assemblage show similar techno-typological characters as Early Palaeolithic European industries (Mode 1). Since 2003, multidisciplinary studies were coordinate in the prehistoric Site. Three stepped fossil fluvial formations were recognized and their dating by ESR method applied on fluvial grain quartz indicated that they were deposited at the end of Early Pleistocene since 1.1 to 0.8 Ma. During sampling for these geochronological studies, prehistoric artifacts were recovered again at the bottom of the oldest fluvial formation (1.166 ± 0.140 Ma), 12 m deep under the initial topographical surface.Between 2006 and 2012, excavations revealed presence of four archaeological levels with cores and flakes associated with a stratified layers of pebbles and cobbles (Unit a, layers 1 and 2) deposited on the incision floor and laid under this lower sandy formation. The technics used for flaking take place in the technics variability describe for the assemblages present in the European Early Pleistocene Sites. Geoarchaeological studies of this gravelly unit a permit to determine the source and phases of the deposits of raw materials gathered by Hominins, especially Jurassic silicifications (“chailles”) and millstone. The prehistoric artifacts were observed in secondary position in the polygons or in the stone clusters (level 3) and on the eroded surfaces of layers 1 and 2 (levels 1 and 2).