Thirteen permanent fully erupted teeth were excavated at the Paleolithic site of La Cotte de St Brelade in Jersey in 1910 and 1911. These were all found in the same location, on a ledge behind a hearth in a Mousterian occupation level. They were originally identified as being Neanderthal. A fragment of occipital bone was found in a separate locality in a later season. Recent dating of adjacent sediments gives a probable age of <48 ka. The purpose of this article is to provide an updated description of the morphology of this material and consider its likely taxonomic assignment from comparison with Neanderthal and Homo sapiens samples. One of the original teeth has been lost, and we identify one as nonhominin. At least two adult individuals are represented. Cervix shape and the absence of common Neanderthal traits in several teeth suggest affinities with H. sapiens in both individuals, while crown and root dimensions and root morphology of all the teeth are entirely consistent with a Neanderthal attribution, pointing toward a possible shared Neanderthal and H. sapiens ancestry (the likely date of this material corresponds with the time in which both Neanderthals and H. sapiens were present in Europe). The occipital fragment is stratigraphically more recent and does not exhibit any diagnostic Neanderthal features.

Early Levallois core technology is usually dated in Europe to the end of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 9 and particularly from the beginning of MIS 8 to MIS 6. This technology is considered as one of the markers of the transition from lower to Middle Paleolithic or from Mode 2 to Mode 3. Recent discoveries show that some lithic innovations actually appeared earlier in western Europe, from MIS 12 to MIS 9, contemporaneous with changes in subsistence strategies and the first appearance of early Neanderthal anatomical features. Among these discoveries, there is the iconic Levallois core technology. A selection of well-dated assemblages in the United Kingdom, France, and Italy dated from MIS 12 to 9, which include both cores and flakes with Levallois features, has been described and compared with the aim of characterizing this technology. The conclusion supports the interpretation that several technical features may be attributed to a Levallois technology similar to those observed in younger Middle Paleolithic sites, distinct from the main associated core technologies in each level. Some features in the sample of sites suggest a gradual transformation of existing core technologies. The small evidence of Levallois could indicate occasional local innovations from different technological backgrounds and would explain the diversity of Levallois methods that is observed from MIS 12. The technological roots of Levallois technology in the Middle Pleistocene would suggest a multiregional origin and diffusion in Europe and early evidence of regionalization of local traditions through Europe from MIS 12 to 9. The relationships of Levallois technology with new needs and behaviors are discussed, such as flake preference, functional reasons related to hunting and hafting, an increase in the use of mental templates in European populations, and changes in the structure of hominin groups adapting to climatic and environmental changes.

The Upper Palaeolithic is characterised by the appearance of iconographic expressions most often depicting animals, including anthropomorphic forms, and geometric signs. The Late Upper Palaeolithic Magdalenian saw a flourishing of such depictions, encompassing cave art, engraving of stone, bone and antler blanks and decoration of tools and weapons. Though Magdalenian settlement exists as far northwest as Britain, there is a limited range of art known from this region, possibly associated with only fleeting occupation of Britain during this period. Stone plaquettes, flat fragments of stone engraved on at least one surface, have been found in large quantities at numerous sites spanning the temporal and geographical spread of the Magdalenian, but they have been absent so far from the archaeological record of the British Isles. Between 2015 and 2018, ten fragments of stone plaquettes extensively engraved with abstract designs were uncovered at the Magdalenian site of Les Varines, Jersey, Channel Islands. In this paper, we report detailed analyses of these finds, which provide new evidence for technologies of abstract mark-making, and their significance within the lives of people on the edge of the Magdalenian world. These engraved stone fragments represent important, rare evidence of artistic expression in what is the far northern and western range of the Magdalenian and add new insight to the wider significance of dynamic practices of artistic expression during the Upper Palaeolithic.

The Early Middle Palaeolithic of southern Britain is best represented by the record recovered from within the terraces of the Thames, within which some attempt has been made to correlate particular sites to substage level within MIS 7. It has been suggested that there are particular features of the British record which suggest both shared features – and differences – to the record in Northern France: firstly, an under-representation of sites in Britain dated to late MIS7/early MIS 6 (unlike Northern France), and secondly, an apparent geographical split in the manufacture of handaxes versus Levallois debitage between the east and west. We here present the key features of the British record, but suggest that taking a “compare and contrast” approach to Britain could artificially create an impression of difference. We need to understand how our records are formed before assuming human behaviour to be the primary driver. It is necessary to work towards a seamless characterisation of northwest European landscapes, taking account the regional filters created by, for instance, local conditions of preservation and release, and research tradition, before addressing such apparent differences. British research has tended to focus on La Manche as a barrier, and the timing and impact of the creation of the channel upon human access to Britain. We here suggest ways in which we can start looking at this area, not as a barrier, but an inhabited landscape, concentrating on what we can learn from sites located around the margins of this now inaccessible, submerged place. The site of La Cotte de St. Brelade, Jersey provides us with an important window into the landscapes of La Manche. This site preserves the longest Middle Palaeolithic archaeological sequence in north-west Europe, spanning from at least 240,000 BP through to MIS3. The Saalian sequence is some 5m thick, and divided into 10 major units, all rich in artefacts. New work enables changing Neanderthal behaviour throughout the sequence to be explored in relation to changes in regional climate and environment, as well as starting to repopulate the space between Britain and the continent. Building on these observations, we can begin to reflect of how space was used by Neanderthals between Great Britain and the rest of the European continent.

The Acheulean record of northern France and southern Britain has long been acknowledged as internationally important, having played an important historical role in the development of the discipline. Abundant artefacts have been recovered, primarily from fluvial gravel archives, allowing the responses of Middle Pleistocene human populations on the edge of their geographical distribution to be interrogated. The richness of the record from such deposits can most simply be read as reflecting absolute population numbers – and changes in this over time. However, factors such as regional super-abundance of high quality flint (related to solid geology) and intensity of aggregate exploitation also played their part in generating the apparently regionally dense record of finds. This paper investigates the inter-related patterns of human behaviour, preservation, artefact release and research tradition which underpin these basic distribution maps. We here present a framework for understanding the processes which have created the current distribution map – in terms of where we find material, and which periods are best represented within it. We term this the Unified Palaeolithic Landscape Approach and outline ways in which the spatial and temporal range of the Acheulean record can be addressed through the archaeological record of its heartland.

Excavations at the Middle Pleistocene site of La Cotte de St Brelade, on the island of Jersey in the English Channel, have revealed a long sequence of occupation. The continued use of the site by Neanderthals throughout an extended period of changing climate and environment reveals how, despite changes in the types of behaviour recorded at the site, La Cotte emerged as a persistent place in the memory and landscape of its early hominin inhabitants. The site's status as a persistent place for these people suggests a level of social and cognitive development permitting reference to and knowledge of places distant in time and space as long ago as at least MIS 7.

This work provides new insights into human responses to and perceptions of sea-level rise at a time when the landscapes of north-west Europe were radically changing. These issues are investigated through a case study focused on the Channel Islands. We report on the excavation of two sites, Canal du Squez in Jersey and Lihou (GU582) in Guernsey, and the study of museum collections across the Channel Islands. We argue that people were drawn to this area as a result of the dynamic environmental processes occurring and the opportunities these created. The evidence suggests that the area was a particular focus during the Middle Mesolithic, when Guernsey and Alderney were already islands and while Jersey was a peninsula of northern France. Insularisation does not appear to have created a barrier to occupation during either the Middle or Final Mesolithic, indicating the appearance of lifeways increasingly focused on maritime voyaging and marine resources from the second half of the 9th millenniumBConwards.

The nature of the Lower-Middle Palaeolithic transition has been one of the most debated questions in early Prehistory since the mid-20th century. The root of these debates lies primarily in how early prehistorians constructed chronological models, relying heavily upon index fossils. Such models have "artificial boundaries designed to provide structure to a complex record and, rather than being conceived of as permanent or real, should be frequently examined and revised (Corbey and Roebroeks, 2001)" (Monnier, 2006). In this paper, we will not focus our efforts on issues relating to nomenclature and systems of classification. Instead, we will focus on a time frame within which rapid behavioural and technological changes have been documented: the period between MIS 9 to 6.Working on a large scale, and taking account of all of north-western Europe and its southern fringes, a group of researchers working on the main sites from this period propose an assessment of current research on the emergence of the "Middle Palaeolithic". Using a rich corpus of archaeological sites, we discuss how humans occupied north-western Europe and its southern margins between MIS 9 to 6, focusing particularly on questions of taphonomy, conservation, chronology and environment, as well as reviewing the pattern of technological change within lithic assemblages. This overview of current research into the emergence of the Middle Palaeolithic will help to define future research paths and advance our understanding of this key period of human evolution. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.

The British Middle Palaeolithic record can be divided between an early period of occupation (EMP) mainly from late MIS 8 to early MIS 7 characterised by Levallois technology and a late phase of occupation (LMP) in early MIS 3 generally characterised by discoidal technology with flat-butted cordate and bout coupé handaxes. This paper discusses the major sites for these periods and the evidence for scarcity or absence of humans from MIS 6 through to late MIS 4. The differences in the early and late phases are discussed with the conclusion that the EMP shows permanent, but short-lived occupation during temperate conditions on open mammoth steppe. In contrast the evidence from LMP sites suggests only seasonal occupation during summer and overwintering in mainland Europe. The latter shows more sophisticated use of landscape over wider territories by late Neanderthals.

“This volume is nothing if not long-awaited; the discoveries at Lynford Quarry, in 2002, and subsequent excavations by Norfolk Archaeology, caused something of a splash in the British Palaeolithic world. The previously meagre British late Middle Palaeolithic (cf. White & Jacobi 2002) was expanded exponentially by the discoveries, previously being represented by a handful of small sites containing few artefacts, and a plethora of stray individual handaxe (bout coupe) finds. Not only did Lynford provide a wealth of lithic material, but also well-preserved faunal remains, and an exceptional palaeo- environmental record. The gestation period for British Palaeolithic monographs, however, is somewhat protracted, leading to a 10 year delay between the end of excavation and publication. . . .”

Since the early 1990’s, the occurrence of Lower and Middle Palaeolithic artefacts as surface finds from superficial deposits capping the chalk of the North Downs has become increasingly widely recognised. These finds have primarily been made and published by members of Dover Archaeological Group, and are frequently associated with sub-surface chalk solution processes forming capture points (solution hollows and fissures) for Pleistocene sediments, as is common in Northern France. This paper presents a new find from the Alkham Valley, of likely late Middle Palaeolithic date. Full reference. Halliwell, G. and Scott, B. 2011 A late Middle Palaeolithic-type handaxe from East Kent. Lithics: the Journal of the Lithic Studies Society 32: 63–65. Keywords: Middle Palaeolithic, Mousterian, handaxe, high level surface finds.