Early aurignacian adaptations to climatic disturbances c. 40000 BP
Faculty Mentor
Andrew Mitchel
Presentation Type
Poster
Start Date
4-14-2026 9:00 AM
End Date
4-14-2026 11:00 AM
Location
PUB NCR
Primary Discipline of Presentation
Anthropology
Abstract
Widely considered the first homo sapiens population to persist in Europe, the Early Aurignacian culture of the Upper Paleolithic adapted to and interacted with a changing late-Pleistocene environment. Temperatures trending cooler with frequent fluctuations across Europe resulted in large expanses of tundra c. 40,000 years BP. One such fluctuation during this time was brought about by the coincidence of both Heinrich Event 4 and the Campanian Ignimbrite eruption of the Phlegrean Fields volcano in Italy. Average July temperatures at this time near modern-day Paris were 41 degrees F/5 degrees C. In this cooling and fluctuating environment, we find the Early Aurignacian culture characterized by distinctive split-based bone and antler projectile points. This project reviews and analyzes the literature on the late-Pleistocene climate and Early Aurignacian culture c. 40,000 years BP, demonstrating that Aurignacian production of split-based bone points was deeply related to environmental and climatic factors.
Recommended Citation
Robinson, Kenneth, "Early aurignacian adaptations to climatic disturbances c. 40000 BP" (2026). 2026 Symposium. 12.
https://dc.ewu.edu/srcw_2026/ps_2026/p1_2026/12
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Early aurignacian adaptations to climatic disturbances c. 40000 BP
PUB NCR
Widely considered the first homo sapiens population to persist in Europe, the Early Aurignacian culture of the Upper Paleolithic adapted to and interacted with a changing late-Pleistocene environment. Temperatures trending cooler with frequent fluctuations across Europe resulted in large expanses of tundra c. 40,000 years BP. One such fluctuation during this time was brought about by the coincidence of both Heinrich Event 4 and the Campanian Ignimbrite eruption of the Phlegrean Fields volcano in Italy. Average July temperatures at this time near modern-day Paris were 41 degrees F/5 degrees C. In this cooling and fluctuating environment, we find the Early Aurignacian culture characterized by distinctive split-based bone and antler projectile points. This project reviews and analyzes the literature on the late-Pleistocene climate and Early Aurignacian culture c. 40,000 years BP, demonstrating that Aurignacian production of split-based bone points was deeply related to environmental and climatic factors.
