Grotta Romanelli has long been recognised as one of the most important prehistoric sites in the Mediterranean, preserving a rich assemblage of lithic artefacts, faunal remains, and parietal and mobiliary art, mostly dating to the late Middle and Late Pleistocene. In contrast, human remains recovered from the cave have remained poorly understood, particularly because the chronology of the three best-preserved individuals, excavated between 1900 and 1904, has never been directly radiocarbon dated. Based on stratigraphic evidence, P.E. Stasi referred them to prehistoric times, but this attribution has been questioned by several scholars. Here, we present new AMS radiocarbon dates obtained from these individuals, one adult and two infants. Our results demonstrate that the three burials belong to previously unrecognised phases of medieval reuse of the site. The adult individual dates to the fourteenth to early fifteenth century AD (1302- 1369 and 1379-1411 cal AD, 95.4% probability), whereas the two infants date to the fifteenth century AD (1423-1455 and 1435-1489 cal AD, 95.4% probability). This finding highlights the importance of reassessing old archaeological collections using modern analytical approaches. The chronological ranges broadly overlap with periods of recurrent plague outbreaks in southern Italy, but any specific association between the burials and epidemic mortality needs further investigation.
This conference paper synthesizes selected perspectives from the interdisciplinary lecture series "Il Cibo Siamo Noi: biologia, società, evoluzione" ("Food Is Who We Are: Biology, Society, Evolution"; April-May 2025), organized by the Istituto Italiano di Antropologia. Its aim is to examine human diet as a biocultural phenomenon, shaped by the long-term interaction between biological evolution, cultural practices, subsistence strategies, and changing food environments. Adopting a diachronic perspective, the paper considers how major dietary transitions have influenced human physiology, genetic adaptation, and the gut microbiota, while also contributing to contemporary forms of biological and cultural mismatch. It then discusses the Mediterranean diet as a historically rooted dietary model in which health, cultural heritage, and environmental sustainability remain closely connected, despite growing pressures from urbanization, convenience foods, and industrialized dietary patterns. Selected contemporary dietary models, including therapeutic and popular diets, are considered to illustrate how scientific evidence, adherence, cultural appeal, and sustainability interact in current nutrition debates. Finally, the paper addresses the circulation of nutrition misinformation and the role of open access and the "third mission" of academia in improving public engagement with nutrition science. By integrating evolutionary, cultural, biomedical, and environmental perspectives, the paper argues for dietary approaches that reconnect health promotion with biological history, cultural meaning, and sustainability.
Since its appearance at the terminal Pleistocene, intentional cranial modification ("ICM") and its implications have generated considerable scientific debate regarding how or why such a tradition arose. Here, we report on newly discovered human ICM crania from the Songhuajiang area in Northeast China, dating to the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. The materials include three partially damaged cranial specimens - PA1688 (11,641 - 11,270 cal BP), TPA2401 (11,825 - 11,601 cal BP) and TPA2402 (11,245 - 11,179 cal BP). Geometric morphometric analyses effectively distinguished modified and unmodified individuals, in addition to partially identifying variation in different modification types. PA1688 presents a typical tabular type, while TPA2401 and TPA2402 display traits of the annular type, a type not previously reported in this region. During the Early Holocene two types of ICM coexisted in the Songhuajiang region; a tradition that persisted for nearly 1,000 years. Further, there was no significant difference in the strontium isotope ratios between individuals with the different ICM. These results are consistent with two different ICM methods being practiced by local individuals in the Harbin region during the terminal Pleistocene-Holocene period, with no evidence linking either type to individuals of non-local origin.
This article aims to examine the complex and ambivalent conception of Africa and its peoples in the work of Italian anthropologist Giuseppe Sergi (1848-1936), placing it in the context of the birth of Italian colonialism and the scientific debates of the time. On the one hand, based on his new method of recognizing ethnic groups, Sergi developed an original vision that included the peoples of East and North Africa in the Mediterranean stock and affirmed a closeness and interconnection between Europe and Africa. On the other hand, his vision remained anchored in the "racial" hierarchies typical of positivism: Sergi considered the "black" peoples of sub-Saharan Africa to be physically, intellectually, and morally "inferior", placing them in a "barbaric" stage of human evolution. Despite this hierarchical view, Sergi was a fierce critic of Italian colonialism and imperialism, which he considered economically disadvantageous, politically short-sighted, and morally anachronistic. Inspired by socialist and pacifist ideals, he condemned colonial violence and promoted the emancipation of peoples through international cooperation. Giuseppe Sergi's work thus embodies the contradictions of the anthropological thinking of his time, characterized by a constant oscillation between progressive openness and deeply rooted prejudices.
Lactase persistence (LP), the genetically determined capacity to digest lactose beyond infancy, stands as a prime example of rapid, recent human adaptation and gene-culture coevolution. Across Africa, the distribution of genetic variants associated with LP reveals intricate patterns reflecting a complex interplay between the cultural innovation of dairying, intense positive selection, adaptation to varied environments, and diverse, continent-spanning migratory events. This review synthesizes current knowledge from genetics (including ancient DNA), anthropology, and archaeology (including lipid residue analysis of pottery and paleo proteomics of ancient dental calculus) to explore how LP variants function as powerful bioarcheological tracers of African demographic history, dietary shifts, and cultural transitions within the African continent. By integrating evidence from these multiple disciplines, I aim to illustrate how the evolution and dispersal of LP alleles mirror significant demographic events and cultural innovations throughout Africa's prehistory, highlighting one of the strongest examples of recent human adaptation.
The development of protocols integrating 3D geometric morphometric data into cladistic analyses offers powerful tools to reassess previously established phylogenies. We examine evolutionary relationships within the genus Homo by comparing results from recently developed cladistic protocols using 3D data with an approach based on morphological characters. We applied both to 78 hominid calvaria - comprising 9 great apes, 45 Homo sapiens, and 24 fossil specimens (2 australopithecines and 22 Homo) - grouped into 23 operational taxonomic units. The sample is described using 347 landmarks and 59 discrete characters, from which three datasets were generated. The first uses Procrustes-aligned 3D landmark coordinates. The second uses principal component coordinates from a Principal Component Analysis run on the aligned landmarks. The third dataset includes coded morphological features. Phylogenetic trees were constructed using TNT software following a three-step protocol. Firstly, a phylogenetic search using the heuristic algorithm under equal weight was performed. Secondly, the consistency and rescaled consistency indices for each character were extracted. Finally, a second phylogenetic search using the heuristic algorithm after reweighting of the characters was performed. The cladistic analyses of 3D data and discrete morphological traits yield different yet mostly congruent results, highlighting the strengths and limitations of each approach, and bringing new insight on long standing discussions in palaeoanthropology.
Despite ample evidence that Paleolithic humans hunted large and dangerous carnivores, such as lions, leopards, and bears, skeletal evidence of negative interactions with wild fauna is extremely rare in the Homo sapiens paleobiological record. To date, the only individual for whom an animal attack has been hypothesized based on their pattern of traumatic lesions is the Gravettian adolescent buried at Arene Candide Cave in Liguria (northwestern Italy; 27,900-27,300 cal BP) nicknamed "Il Principe" (The Prince) due to the rich grave goods placed in the burial. Since its excavation in 1942, it was noted that this individual was missing part of the mandible and half of the left clavicle, leading to the hypothesis of an attack by a large animal, likely a bear. However, this claim was never fully investigated. We reanalyzed these lesions and systematically examined the skeleton for additional evidence to reconstruct the manner and circumstances of death. Our analysis confirmed the perimortem nature of the mandibular and shoulder lesions and identified other possible fractures related to the violent event in the cranium, dentition, and possibly the cervical spine. Additional perimortem trauma, including a linear marking on the left parietal and a puncture mark in the fibula, supports the hypothesis of animal mauling. Given the overall traumatic pattern, a bear attack - Ursus arctos or Ursus spelaeus - remains the most plausible explanation. The study also revealed that the Principe had sustained traumatic injuries to his feet - a fracture of the left little toe and osteochondritis dissecans in the right talus - which support the hypothesis that prehistoric foragers experienced limited survival following lower limb injuries. Despite the thoraco-facial trauma and disfiguring wounds, the microscopic analysis suggests that the Principe survived for a few days. The violent event and the long agony may have been reflected in the elaborate burial, following the presumed Gravettian use of formally burying exceptional individuals and exceptional events.
The primary aim of this pilot study is not to provide definitive statements on Neanderthal kinematics, but rather to illustrate the potential of Procrustes Motion Analysis (PMA) combined with predictive modelling as a robust tool for addressing questions of functional morphology in the fossil record. We use this novel approach to model and compare the potential upper cervical spine (UCS) flexion-extension kinematics of the La Ferrassie 1 Neanderthal and modern humans. The study material comprised the 3D virtual morphology of the occipital base, atlas (C1), and axis (C2) of La Ferrassie 1 and the corresponding kinematic and morphological data from seven unembalmed modern human cadaveric specimens. We first used the PMA framework to analyze the shape-motion relationship in the modern human sample. This relationship was then used to build a predictive model. We applied this model to the UCS morphology of La Ferrassie 1-inferring its potential motion trajectory rather than measuring direct fossil kinematics-and statistically compared the results to the modern human mean. Contrary to previous hypotheses based solely on morphological inference, our model-based results challenge the assumption of reduced Neanderthal neck mobility. The inferred trajectory of flexion-extension for La Ferrassie 1 were statistically comparable to that of the modern human sample, suggesting no significant difference in this specific movement. This study demonstrates the utility of integrating empirical motion data, geometric morphometrics, and predictive modelling in paleoanthropology, offering a significant advance over traditional morphological inference. By successfully illustrating the application of PMA, this research provides a new framework for investigating hominin kinematics, while simultaneously emphasizing that the kinematics presented for the Neanderthal specimen were predicted and modelled, not directly measured.
This review article explores the concept of de-generacy as a fundamental yet underutilised principle in evolutionary anthropology. De-generacy, defined as structurally distinct elements performing overlapping functions, is widely recognised in genetics, neurobiology, and immunology but remains overlooked in cultural evolution. Distinguishing de-generacy from redundancy-where identical structures fulfill the same role-is crucial for understanding adaptability, resilience, and innovation in both biological and cultural systems. Despite its explanatory potential, de-generacy has been largely absent from anthropological discourse due to historical baggage and terminological confusion. The misuse of "degeneracy" in colonial and eugenic narratives has hindered its application, even as contemporary evolutionary theory-particularly the Extended Evolutionary Synthesis-highlights structural variation as a driver of adaptive complexity. Consequently, an opportunity to refine methodologies in anthropological research, particularly in modelling cultural transmission, has been overlooked. De-generacy is a distributed property of complex adaptive systems that, in many circles of science, has been hidden in plain sight, overlooked because of a reductionist bias, and ignored because the term itself is misleading. This article clarifies the distinction between de-generacy and redundancy and demonstrates its significance in biological anthropology. Empirical examples illustrate degeneracy across multiple domains, including linguistic variation, kinship terminologies, and ritual practices. A comparative case study of Indonesian Silek and Brazilian Capoeira provides a snapshot of how structurally distinct yet functionally similar cultural formations emerge across diverse contexts. These examples reinforce de-generacy as a key explanatory principle in cultural resilience and transformation. By integrating degeneracy into evolutionary anthropology, this article advances a more nuanced understanding of cultural transmission and transformation. Recognising structurally diverse yet functionally coherent practices enhances models of cultural evolution, moving beyond strictly adaptationist explanations. Ultimately, degeneracy provides a robust conceptual tool for analysing variation, complexity, and persistence in human evolutionary systems, warranting greater attention in interdisciplinary research.
