Modern humans took detours on their way to Europe

Date:
October 14, 2020
Source:
University of Cologne
Summary:
Favourable climatic conditions influenced the sequence of settlement
movements of Homo sapiens in the Levant on their way from Africa
to Europe. In a first step, modern humans settled along the coast
of the Mediterranean Sea. Only then did they spread out into the
Sinai desert and the eastern Jordanian Rift Valley.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Favourable climatic conditions influenced the sequence of settlement
movements of Homo sapiens in the Levant on their way from Africa to
Europe. In a first step, modern humans settled along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Only then did they spread out into the Sinai desert and
the eastern Jordanian Rift Valley. This is the result of archaeological research conducted by Collaborative Research Centre 'Our Way to Europe'
(CRC 806) at the universities of Cologne, Bonn, and Aachen. The article 'Al-Ansab and the Dead Sea: mid-MIS 3 Archaeology and Environment of
the Early Ahmarian Population of the Levantine Corridor' was published
in PLOS ONE.


==========================================================================
For more than ten years, the team has been analysing sediments,
pollen, and archaeological artefacts around the site of Al-Ansab 1
near the ancient ruin- city of Petra (Jordan). The goal was to gain an understanding of the environmental conditions that prevailed at the time
of human expansion. 'Human presence consolidated in the region under
favourable climate conditions', said Professor Dr Ju"rgen Richter,
lead author of the study.

The success story of anatomically modern humans outside of Africa began
about 100,000 years ago with well-known sites such as Qafzeh and Skhul
in Israel.

However, these early records only reveal a brief, temporary expansion
of the territory into the Levant. Permanent settlement of the region
only dates back to about 43,000 years ago, scientists believe. During
the epoch of the so- called 'Early Ahmarian', modern humans gradually
had been spreading throughout the Levant -- a first step on their way
to Asia and Europe.

Favourable climatic conditions were preconditions for permanent human settlement. On a large scale, this is illustrated by the presence of
the so- called Lake Lisan. This freshwater lake was located where the
Dead Sea is today. However, it was of a much larger extent and carried
greater water volume. Most of the water evaporated only with the end of
the last ice age, leaving behind the hypersaline Dead Sea known today.

Even on a small scale, the scientists were able to recognise the
favourable environmental conditions: geo-archaeological teams from the University of Cologne and RWTH Aachen University examined the site
of Al-Ansab 1. Whereas today, the Wadi Sabra, in which the site is
located, is strongly shaped by seasonal flash floods, geomorphological
and archaeological investigations showed that at the time of settlement,
the conditions were less erosive and continuously wet, permitting the
presence of humans.

'This enabled the spread of humans from the coastal Mediterranean area
to the formerly drier regions of the Negev desert and the eastern slopes
of the Jordan Rift Valley. They hunted gazelles in the open landscape
-- a prey we found in many sites in the region from this period', says
Richter. 'Humans did not come by steady expansion out of Africa through
the Levant and further to Europe and Asia. Rather, they first settled
in a coastal strip along the Mediterranean Sea.' The region around the
site of Al-Ansab 1 therefore was a stepping stone on Homo sapiens' way --
a journey that did not take a straight path to the European continent, but
was guided by complex interactions between humans and their environment.


========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Cologne. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Ju"rgen Richter, Thomas Litt, Frank Lehmkuhl, Andreas Hense,
Thomas C.

Hauck, Dirk F. Leder, Andrea Miebach, Hannah Parow-Souchon,
Florian Sauer, Jonathan Schoenenberg, Maysoon Al-Nahar, Shumon
T. Hussain. Al- Ansab and the Dead Sea: Mid-MIS 3 archaeology
and environment of the early Ahmarian population of the
Levantine corridor. PLOS ONE, 2020; 15 (10): e0239968 DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0239968 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201014114619.htm

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