Connecting bones at Schöningen 13II-4 “Spear Horizon”: an analysis of site formation and human activity through faunal refitting

The Middle Pleistocene site of Schöningen 13II-4 “Spear Horizon” is well known not only for the presence of a series of wooden spears, but also for the excellent preservation and richness of its faunal assemblage, the high resolution of its stratigraphical sequence and the large expanse of the excavated surface. These characteristics offer excellent conditions for developing refitting analyses. In this paper, we present the spatial analysis of the first refitting analysis of the faunal assemblage. Results from the refitting spatial analysis suggest that post-depositional processes had little influence on the displacement of the faunal assemblage, supporting previous studies that confirm the integrity of the site. In contrast, the movement of bones, bone fragments and bone tools throughout the site is due to biotic agents, mostly the result of hominin activity along with a limited carnivore activity. Refitting analysis allows distinguishing two major depositional zones—the main shoreline and the lake basin—not immediately connected to each other, each one showing distinct spatial patternings, and provides a detailed reconstruction of butchering activities at the “Spear Horizon”, including prey distribution, butchery processes and tool use. These results offer new insight on hominins use of space, group size and work organization during the Middle Pleistocene.