Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) has been widely used for taxonomic identification of fragmented bones, yet most direct comparisons with morphological identifications originate from European Palaeolithic contexts. This study provides a general assessment of the two taxonomic identification approaches of one Late Upper Palaeolithic and three Early Neolithic bone assemblages, all located in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula. The results confirm previously reported patterns where large-bodied taxa, especially Bos sp., were either more abundant in the ZooMS component or showed close similarity between identification methods regardless of local subsistence economy. These trends were broadly consistent across temporal, cultural, and environmental contexts, as well as in comparison with 27 other contexts from previously published studies comparing ZooMS and morphological data. However, variation among cervid taxa suggests that finer taxonomic subdivisions may prove important for further comparisons between identification methods. Although broad taxon- and body-size-related patterns are evident across bone assemblages, their expression within individual assemblages remains dependent on context specific taphonomic histories. Such trends should therefore not be interpreted as intrinsic properties of particular taxa, but as the outcome of taphonomic events that differentially influence taxonomic identifiability within fragment size classes.

The extraordinary preservation of Cueva de Los Murciélagos (Albuñol, Spain) provides a unique opportunity to identify the materials and the techniques involved in archery during the Early Neolithic period. Arrows with preserved feathers, tied fibres, adhesive substance, and two probable bowstrings have been studied trough an unprecedented multi-proxy investigation, including microscopy and biomolecular methods, to unravel archery techniques. The study has identified the oldest known sinew bowstrings, the first evidence for the use of olive tree (Olea europaea) and reed (Phragmites sp.) to produce arrow shafts in prehistoric European archery, and the identification of birch bark tar as a coating on the shafts. The results of this study provide insights into ancient craft, technological solutions, and adaptations to local resources in the production of these reed-shafted hardwood tipped arrows and bowstrings. Their deposition in a burial cave sheds new light on the role of these artefacts in a Neolithic farming community.

Organic containers are rarely preserved in archaeological contexts. As a result, the work involved in their production and their functions remains invisible unlike other containers commonly better represented, such as pottery. The early Neolithic site of La Draga (5300–4900 cal BC), located on the shore of the Lake Banyoles (Spain), has provided several containers made of wood and plant fibres besides a significant amount of ceramic remains. The aim of this study is to provide an overview of the vessels at La Draga to assess the importance of organic containers in a context where pottery technology is well known and employed for several functions. The importance of the different types of containers in the context of this farming society is assessed through the analysis of the number of remains, their sizes and shapes, and their spatial distribution. The exceptional preservation of the organic vessels allows comparisons to generate hypotheses about their function. Wooden containers are associated with consumption, while baskets may have been used to transport or store foodstuff, and ceramic vessels also for cooking. The spatial distribution of basketry remains tends to show an area that could be linked to the storage of cereals.

It is suggested that woodland management (e.g. pollarding, pruning, or coppicing) was practiced from at least the Neolithic onwards. The goal of this work is to discuss woodland management practices in the Early Neolithic waterlogged site of La Draga (5300–4700 cal BC , Banyoles, Spain). To date, different methods and techniques (dendrochronology, roundwood age and diameter, dendrology, etc.) have been applied to address this issue, and some preliminary results have been obtained. However, recent excavations have yielded new wooden archaeological materials which help to approach this issue from another point of view: the presence of scars on the wood surface. For the first time at La Draga, it was possible to identify scars on the wood surface of piles caused by tool marks and partially or totally covered by wound wood ribs, indicating that the trees were marked before being cut down. The marked piles have been identified as laurel ( Laurus nobilis ) or bay tree, which is well documented at the site (firewood, instruments, and piles), although it played a secondary role after the oak. However, laurel was rarely exploited during the Neolithic in Europe, which poses the question of the intentional selection of this wood at La Draga. This paper presents the results of a morphological, technological, and dendrological study of laurel piles in the context of the wooden remains of the La Draga site. The results of the different approaches are summarised and contrasted to provide new insights into Neolithic woodland management in Europe. Moreover, the role of laurel trees in the context of the Neolithic is discussed.

Plant material culture can offer unique insights into the ways of life of prehistoric societies; however, its perishable nature has prevented a thorough understanding of its diverse and complex uses. Sites with exceptional preservation of organic materials provide a unique opportunity for further research. The burial site of Cueva de los Murciélagos in southern Iberia, uncovered during 19th-century mining activities, contained the best-preserved hunter-gatherer basketry in southern Europe, together with other unique organic artifacts associated with the first farming communities, such as sandals and a wooden hammer. We present 14 14C dates for the perishable artifacts (N = 76), situating the assemblage between the Early and Middle Holocene (c. 7500 to 4200 cal BCE). Our integrated analysis includes raw material determination and technological and chrono-cultural contextualization of this unique and important set of materials.

Situé dans une doline sur le Causse Noir, à une dizaine de kilomètres au nord-est de Millau, le petit abri de Combe-Grèze a d'abord été fouillé dans la seconde moitié du xxe siècle, puis a fait l'objet d'un récent retour sur le terrain par les auteurs du présent article. Ce site, occupé à différents moments de l'Holocène, a été largement mobilisé dans les scénarios de néolithisation des arrière-pays. Cependant, les travaux de terrain conduits depuis quelques années à l'extérieur de l'abri et un retour sur les collections anciennes permettent de nuancer nettement les interprétations anciennes, mettant notamment en évidence l'existence de nombreux problèmes de mélanges d'occupations. Ainsi, nous proposons ici une réactualisation des données disponibles concernant ce gisement, notamment pour ce qui concerne la nature des occupations, la chronologie, les productions matérielles issues des différentes occupations, les ressources exploitées et la précision du cadre paléo-environnemental.

The small shelter of Combe-Grèze, located in a dolina of the Causse Noir plateau about ten kilometres northeast of Millau in Southwestern France, was first excavated in the second half of the 20th century, and more recently has been subject to new investigations by the authors of this contribution. The site was repeatedly occupied during the Holocene and has been widely referred to in neolithisation scenarios regarding the Mediterranean hinterlands. However, fieldwork carried out over the last few years in the area outside the shelter and the reevaluation of ancient collections stemming from the site have largely modified previous interpretations and evidenced that the site reveals a palimpsest of occupations. We therefore propose here an updating of the available data concerning the site, more particularly with regard to the nature of its occupational stages, its chronology, and the material production associated with the different occupations, the exploited resources, and the palaeoenvironmental reconstructions.

Actors of the construction sector are facing the challenge of reducing their carbon footprint and ideally reaching carbon neutrality. Reuse of structural elements made of concrete is of particular interest, given the large use of this material worldwide and its high environmental impact. Reusing constructive concrete elements is however challenging, particularly because connections between concrete structural elements are difficult to disassemble. It is then worth designing reuse techniques for concrete load-bearing elements and to verify their environmental performance using comprehensive methods such as Life Cycle Assessment. Based on the Design for Reuse concept, this article assesses the environmental impacts of a reusable structural portal frame constitutive of a concrete building and compares it to a traditional design with new materials. It relies on data collected through an experimental protocol of reinforced concrete structures construction/deconstruction/reconstruction using hydrodemolition. Impact scores are significantly reduced for all environmental categories after a first reuse cycle, both at the scale of a portal frame or a building. Concrete, and particularly high performance concrete, has durability qualities allowing to undergo several usage cycles. The effectiveness of environmental benefits however depends on functional downgrading and material losses. Guidance should then be provided to insure that future reuse practices will actually provide the expected benefits. This has to be conducted in parallel to full-scale experiments of load-bearing elements disassembly to estimate the realistic rates that can be obtained when deconstructing a building.

Dans un contexte de pression environnementale intense où le secteur de la construction dans le monde a le plus grand impact sur plusieurs indicateurs, le réemploi des éléments porteurs est le plus prometteur pour éviter significativement la production de déchets, préserver les ressources naturelles et réduire les émissions de gaz à effet de serre par la diminution de l'énergie grise. Cette thèse porte donc sur trois principaux axes de recherches : 1. l’amélioration de la conception structurale par des typologies favorables en définissant le DfReu (Design for Reuse) afin d’anticiper la mise en œuvre d’éléments porteurs (verticaux et horizontaux) démontables et réemployables en fin de vie, d’allonger leur durée de vie, in fine en augmentant le stock d’éléments disponibles au réemploi 2. le développement d’une méthodologie pour la mise en place d’une traçabilité renforcée et pérenne autour d’une banque de matériaux et du BIM afin de disposer de toutes les caractéristiques, notamment physico-mécaniques, des éléments porteurs et de faciliter les processus de réemploi et l’engagement d’une nouvelle responsabilité pour l’ingénieur réemployeur 3. L’identification des paramètres clés influençant les impacts environnementaux propres au réemploi et le développement d’analyses de sensibilité, permettant une meilleure compréhension des conséquences de ce processus et de sa prise en compte lors de la conception, appuyant l’aide à la décision. Une expérimentation fondée sur des portiques démonstrateurs en béton armé a permis de corroborer ces trois axes en générant des données manquantes dans la littérature. Cette analyse pratique de l’assemblage poteau-poutre a produit des données techniques sur le comportement structural après réemploi, mais aussi des données environnementales de mise en œuvre et déconstruction. Ce travail propose alors une méthodologie fondée sur une chaîne d'outils pour permettre aux ingénieurs de concevoir des assemblages réversibles au sein d’une structure réemployable, de pérenniser les informations nécessaires dans la maquette BIM doublées d’une traçabilité physique, de mettre en place une banque de matériaux et d’optimiser la conception à partir d’un stock d’éléments porteurs. L’étude distingue ainsi la "conception avec un stock" qui vise à intégrer le plus grand nombre possible d'éléments disponibles, de la "conception à partir d'un stock" qui conduit au réemploi de 100% des éléments et propose ainsi un nouveau paradigme pour le concepteur. Parallèlement, les impacts environnementaux du processus de réemploi sont étudiés à partir d’une analyse du cycle de vie (ACV). Une analyse de sensibilité déclinant, entre autres, le nombre d’usages et la durée de vie, en comparaison de constructions neuves équivalentes, permet de mieux appréhender les domaines d'intérêt du DfReu. La prise en compte de critères spécifiques à l’économie circulaire dans le bâtiment complète la définition des critères de réemployabilité. L’étude environnementale montre finalement dans quelles conditions le réemploi diminue l’impact d’un bâtiment, et identifie les paramètres clés. Les résultats obtenus s’adressent en premier lieu aux ingénieurs structure mais plus largement aux concepteurs membres de la maîtrise d’œuvre : architectes, ingénieurs et bureaux d’études spécialisés en environnement, afin de proposer et d’inciter l’étude de variantes anticipant la réemployabilité des bâtiments nouvellement conçus. Les résultats sont, par extension, également exploitables dans les projets intervenant sur l’existant.

In a context of intense environmental pressure where the construction sector has the greatest impact on several indicators, the reuse of load-bearing elements is the most promising by avoiding the production of waste, preserving natural resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by decreasing embodied energy. This study proposes a methodology based on a chain of tools to enable structural engineers to anticipate future reuse. This methodology describes the design of reversible assemblies, the addition of complementary information in the building information modeling (BIM), reinforced traceability, and the development of a material bank. At the same time, controlling the environmental impacts of reuse is planned by carrying out a life cycle assessment (LCA) at all stages of the project. Two scenarios for reuse design are applied with the toolchain proposed. A. “design from a stock” scenario, which leads to 100% of elements being reused, using only elements from stock. B. “design with a stock” scenario, which seeks to integrate as many reused elements available in the stock as possible. The case study of a high-rise building deconstructed to rebuild a medium-rise building demonstrated that the developed toolchain allowed the inclusion of all reuse elements in a new structural calculation model.

The research work presented aims at setting up an infinite cycle of use of materials by their reuse and answering in particular to the problems of circular economy. Structural work and foundations represent the majority of the embodied energy of a building. The research effort is therefore focused on the structural elements. Reuse is here defined as the reuse of an element without transformation, unlike recycling which induces a new industrial cycle. It is therefore about reducing the consumption of materials and lowering GHG emissions. Today, it is impossible in France to reuse structures because of responsibilities, insurance and lack of traceability. How to make possible the reuse of structural components in order to reach a low carbon building? The challenge of this work is to find the best structural configuration making the components reuse easier at the EOL. The methodology we are implementing aims to design the structural elements by increasing the BIM parameters (6D, LCA), to attach the mechanical information, material durability, ageing to each object of the digital mock-up. A digital and physical traceability makes it possible to follow the evolution of the element over the years and to feed a database. At the end of its life the database is accessible and searchable for the design of a future building. A development of tools and gateways will then allow from a model of calculation to go to query the database to find an element resulting from the deconstruction that can be reused in the future structure.

The construction and building industry is the principal emitter of GHG in France with 116 million tons of CO2 equivalent, i.e. 33% of total GHG, according to CITEPA, 2015; and the biggest consumer of material. These emissions have two distinct causes: energy consumption or functional energy (electricity, heating, ventilation, etc.) and energy used during its construction, known as embodied energy (production of materials, transport, site, etc.). The research work presented aims at setting up an infinite cycle of use of materials by their reuse and answering in particular to the problems of circular economy. Structural work and foundations represent the majority of the embodied energy of a building. The research effort is therefore focused on the structural elements. Reuse is here defined as the reuse of an element without transformation, unlike recycling which induces a new industrial cycle of transformation of matter. It is therefore about reducing the consumption of materials and lowering GHG emissions. Reuse is not sufficiently taken into account in environmental assessments and requires new indicators in LCA methodologies. Several considerations are needed to evaluate reuse including: (1) calling the lifespan of buildings fixed at 50 years for the life cycle into question, in order to take into account the different cycles; (2) distinguish the LCA of the building from that of the products; (3) adapt D module from EN 15804 to the very new and not yet professional sector of reuse; (4) new allocation system for both initial deconstructed building and reconstructed second building to benefit from the positive impacts of reuse; (5) integrate the several possible scenarios of second lives for an initial product (same function / downgrading / redirecting, need to be evaluated differently). The missing data identified have to be generated by the relevant stakeholders. In order to reuse these elements to the fullest of their initial capacity, it is important to transfer the necessary characteristics to the future “reuse designer”. The design for rebuild methodology we are implementing aims to design the structural elements by increasing the BIM parameters (6D, LCA), to attach the environmental impact, the mechanical information, material durability, ageing to each object of the digital mock-up. We envisioned to install digital and physical traceability (like RFID chips in the material) that makes it possible to follow the evolution of the element over the years and to feed a database in parallel. At the end of its life the database is accessible and searchable for the design of a future building. A development of tools and gateways will then allow from a model of calculation to go to query the database. The objective is to find an element resulting from the deconstruction that can be reused in the future construction. The challenge of this work is to ensure that the element of the database has all the characteristics to meet it