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'Pfeifer SJ, 2020: Next stop: Kniegrotte? On the possibility of a Magdalenian à navettes in eastern Germany. Anthropologie (Brno) 58, 2-3: 199-214'. |
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| Abstract | | Kniegrotte cave site in eastern Germany is one of the most important Magdalenian sites in Central
Europe. From a red-colored Pleistocene sediment package, a rich assemblage of lithic and osseous artefacts was
recovered. In the faunal record, the presence of mammoth and saiga bones is noteworthy. The weighted average of
nine 14C dates is 15,900 calBP, and thus the main occupation of the site pre-dates the Upper Magdalenian in Central
Europe. This is in accordance with the presence of lithic triangles and the absence of osseous barbed points at
Kniegrotte. However, despite the absolute dates the thickness of the find-bearing layer strongly suggests repeated
occupation during a considerable time span which was not recognized in the early days of its excavation. Certain
osseous artifacts and artisan craft works from Kniegrotte are without any parallels in the numerous Late Middle and
Upper Magdalenian assemblages from Central Europe, but they display strong similarities to the distinct facies
Magdalénien à navettes attested from around 18,500–18,000 calBP in France and at Maszycka cave in southern
Poland. It is therefore possible that Kniegrotte was occupied already during the Early Middle Magdalenian. In that
context, the oldest AMS date of 17,600 calBP from Kniegrotte obtained on mammoth bone could relate to human
activity. | | | | Keywords | | Central Europe – Magdalénien à navettes – Kniegrotte – Osseous industry – Projectiles | | | | DOI | | https://doi.org/10.26720/anthro.20.03.26.1 | | |
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