title: The lithic industry of Sima del Elefante (Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain) in the context of Early and Middle Pleistocene technology in Europe.
abstract: This paper presents the lithic assemblages documented at Sima del Elefante (TE) and their importance in the context of the Early and Middle Pleistocene human occupation of Europe. We also study changes in human behaviour within the context of the palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Sierra de Atapuerca. This site has characteristics that are of great value for the study of human evolution. The lower levels of TE (Units TE7-TE14) are an essential reference for understanding the early stages of the colonization of Europe. The TE9c level has provided stone tools (Mode 1), faunal remains, and human fossils dated to 1.22 Ma (millions of years ago). Moreover, this is one of the few European sites with a stratigraphic sequence that includes remains of human occupations predating the Jaramillo subchron (Early Pleistocene) and from the Late Middle Pleistocene (Units TE18-TE19). Despite this, the presence of archaeologically sterile units (TE15-17) prevents us from establishing a continuous relationship between the Early and Middle Pleistocene human settlements and, consequently, between their technological and behavioural differences. We can, however compare the technological and palaeoeconomic strategies adopted by different species of hominins during two key phases of the occupation of Europe.
authors.affiliation: IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; Grupo de Estudos para a Prehistoria do Noroeste (GEPN), Dpto Historia I, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela (USC), Pz. Universidade n°1, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
authors.forename: Arturo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: de Lombera-Hermida
authors.affiliation: IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain.
authors.forename: Amèlia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bargalló
authors.affiliation: Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales, Universidad Internacional Isabel I de Castilla, C/ Fernán González, n° 76, 09003 Burgos, Spain.
authors.forename: Marcos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Terradillos-Bernal
authors.affiliation: IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; Unit associated to Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Departamento de Paleobiología, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Huguet
authors.affiliation: IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; Unit associated to Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Departamento de Paleobiología, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vallverdú
authors.affiliation: Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
authors.forename: Maria-Dolores
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: García-Antón
authors.affiliation: Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mosquera
authors.affiliation: IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain.
authors.forename: Andreu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ollé
authors.affiliation: Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sala
authors.affiliation: IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; Unit associated to Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Departamento de Paleobiología, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Eudald
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Carbonell
authors.affiliation: Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain; IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo s/n, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain. Electronic address: xprodriguez@iphes.cat.
authors.forename: Xosé-Pedro
authors.initials: XP
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Álvarez
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D019015:Geologic Sediments; D049690:History, Ancient; D015186:Hominidae; D009790:Occupations / Q000266:history*; D010163:Paleontology; D013030:Spain; D013672:Technology / Q000266:history* / Q000295:instrumentation*
keywords: Lithic technology; Mode 1; Mode 2