ESR/U-series dating of palaontological remains from the Neandertalian site of Mutzig-Rain (Alsace, France) – a 1994-2021 overview

Résumé En

The Middle Paleolithic site of Mutzig, discovered in 1992, has been since then the focus of several pits and excavation since 2010, delivering numerous well preserved paleontological remains and more than 3000 lithic arti¬facts. It corresponds to several rock shelters now collapsed (called “M1” to “M12”), each containing several levels of Middle Paleolithic occupations. The faunal assemblage of the main archaeological levels (5 and 7) from the actual excavation (M2) includes woolly mammoth, reindeer, horse, bison and woolly rhinoceros, reflecting a cold steppe context, while microfauna from the lower levels (7D and 10) indicate the presence of forests and could correspond to a more temperate climate. An OSL dating study places the archaeological sequence as coeval of the onset of the last glacial stage, the Weichselian, during MIS 5, between 105 and 80 ka. The good state of preservation of the abundant faunal remains at Mutzig has allowed their use as analytical supports of ESR and U-series dating method. The first results obtained in 1995 on bones (from “M1” site) by U-series were not very encouraging, with ages ranging from 46 ± 2 (level 6) to 174 +12/-11 ka (Level 4) not following the stratigraphic order. A first set of teeth (from “M2” site), considered today as better material for ESR/U-series analyses, were then analyzed in 2013-2015, providing ages around 96-100 ka for levels 5-7, in agreement with the OSL data. These analyses indicated quite systematic U-leaching from the dental tissues and the age calculation was only possible with the then newly proposed “Accelerated Uptake (AU) model”. Analyses of a second set of teeth from “M2” and “M8” sites are currently in progress. The whole set of ESR/U-series dates obtained on Mutzig paleontological remains will be presented and discussed on this poster.