The Solutréen is one of the last phases of the Paléolithique superior. Its name was created by G. of Mortillet starting from the site prehistoric éponyme, located at the foot of the Roche of Solutré, close to Mâcon (Saône-et-Loire), and discovered and studied in 1866 by Henry Testot-Ferry and Adrien Arcelin.

Chronology and climate

The dates available for Solutréen lie between approximately 22.000 and 17.000 years BP, that is to say a period extremely cold and dry of the Last Glaciation, called Glacial Maximum Dernier. The sites solutréens are primarily known besides in the South-west of France (Laugerie-High western, Laussel, Combe-Capelle in the Dordogne, the Wall cupboard, Rock-of-Be useful in Charente, Isturitz, Brassempouy in the Yrénées-Atlantiques) but also in the valley of the Rhone (Chabot cave, Baume of Oullins in Ardeche, Grotte of Salpêtrière in Gard), in Portugal and also in Spain (Parpallo, Cueva de Ambrosio), the climate in North being too rigorous so that the Man could survive it. The Ossement S animals discovered in the sites solutréens are those of horses, Renne S, Mammouth S, lions of the caves, Rhinocéros, Ours and Aurochs.

Techniques

The men of Solutréen showed a great control of the techniques of size and in particular of the Façonnage of very fine parts bifaciales to the tender Percuteur. The completion of the flint tools was ensured by the technique of the covering final improvement by pressure: the glares of final improvement are not detached by striking flint but by pressing very strongly its edge with a tool in bone, which authorizes a highher degree of accuracy and a larger smoothness of the result. In certain case, the Silex were intentionally heated before being improved in order to improve their mechanical properties.

These techniques allowed the clothes industry of different Outil S: points with face planes in old Solutréen, parts bifaciales of a large smoothness, called “sheets of bay-tree” in average Solutréen, “sheets of willow” and points with notch in final Solutréen. The remainder of the tools corresponds to the pool of the Paleolithic superior: Scraper S, graver S, Borer S, plates with back.

The animal hard matters (bone, wood of reindeers) are also usually used in Solutréen (Lissoir S, Percuteur S, reinforcements of Sagaie S, etc). Two major inventions appear at the end of Solutréen, the Aiguille with eye and the Propulseur.

Art solutréen

The parietal Art solutréen is known in particular by the carved plank Rock-of-Are useful and part of paintings of the Grotte Cosquer. Part of paintings of Lascaux could be solutréenne (scene of the well in particular). The rupestral Art of the Vallée of Coâ in Portugal is also attached to Solutréen.

Assumption of diffusion

Recently, some Archéologue S Anglo-Saxon found similarities between industry solutréenne and the late tools of the Site of Clovis (New Mexico, the United States). They then suggested that the solutréens had crossed the Atlantic Ocean during the diluvial period while skirting its shores frozen by Cabotage, using Techniques of survival similar to those of the people current Inuit. Research on DNA mitochondrial of the " type; Haplogroupe X" present in Europe and among certain people of Amerindians would indicate the presence of a European line; moreover, the resemblances found by certain linguists between the pre-indoeuropéennes languages that are the Basque and the algonquin would go in the direction of this thesis. However, this assumption remains very discussed and it seems more probable than the similarities between parts bifaciales solutréennes and Amerindian result from morphological convergences.

Sources

This article was in the beginning a translation of the English article, containing texts of the Encyclopædia Britannica of 1911 , ( Public domain), but it since considerably was altered and enriched.

References

• F. Djindjian, J. Koslowski, Mr. Otte: the Paleolithic superior in Europe , A. Colin (1999) ISBN 2-200-25107-6
• A. Leroi-Gourhan (to dir.): Dictionary of Prehistory , PUF (1988).

See too

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