The Middle Palaeolithic living floor of Unit 15 (55 kyrs BP) from the Oscurusciuto Shelter, Ginosa, Taranto, Southern Italy

The Middle Palaeolithic Oscurusciuto rock shelter opens in the Pleistocene calcarenites in the ravine of Ginosa, about 20 km from the Ionic coast. The research that the University of Siena has been carrying out since 1998 has brought to light a stratigraphic sequence about 6 meters thick, made out of sub-horizontal layers with a dominant sandy-silty matrix [lJ [2J [3J. The collapse of the shelter's vault (large blocks can be observed along the stratigraphy) resulted in the erosion of some of the deposit. As a consequence, this is narrower in the upper layers, whereas in the lower ones the exposed surface reaches an extension of 60 square meters. The upper part of the stratigraphy (base ofSU 1) yielded a 14C date 008.500 ± 900 BP (AMS, Beta 181165; cal 42.975 ± 788 BP). A further post quem chronological marker is represented by a thick layer of tefra (SU14) attributed to the Mount Epomeo Green Tufffrom Ischia (R. Sulpizio pers. comment), dated to about 55 kyrs BP. This volcanic layer seals a palaeosurface (SU15) placed at a depth of about 3 meters from the top of the deposit. The specific interest of this palaeo surface, exposed over an area of 18 square meters, is given by the presence of stone alignments referable to two possible structures, alongside large quantities of lithic and faunal remains. The first structure comprises a 2 meters wide semicircle standing against the north wall of the shelter and formed by small clusters made of 3-4 stones each. The archaeological remains are more abundant between the stones, along the perimeter of the structure, and outside it. In correspondence with the stones, the palaeosurface is characterized by a slight but clear relief. The second structure is by the side of the previous one and has similar dimensions. Its perimeter is raised and encloses a depressed area with few anthropic remains. The external area is characterized by abundant fragments of long bones from large ungulates, lithic remains and some stones which do not appear to be structured. The preliminary study of bones, mostly fragments of diaphysis and portions of mandibles and maxillaries, has allowed to determine the presence of at least one fallow deer and a minimum number of 5 individuals of aurochs of different ages. The lithic industry, like in the other levels of the sequence, shows an exploitation of local raw materials (jasper, flint and quarzarenite pebbles of different dimension and shapes) for the production of mostly elongated blanks through a unipolar Levallois modality. Apparently there is not any relevant technical investment for the transformation of the blanks by means of retouch. A 3D modelling of the surface has been made with a digital photogrammetric technique. 120 pictures have been taken around the selected area. From these, a three-dimensional model with high resolution texture has been elaborated. The resulting digital surface can be used for many analyses, among which the automatic generation of orthophotos, crossing sections, DEM and areas computation. A geo-database for the management and analysis of spatial data (both at the macro and micro levels) was also created. In the context of the micro-level, the vectorial mapping of the archaeological remains and of the structures through photogrammetry is ongoing. The gathering of the quantitative data (in relation to the lithic industries and to the faunal remains) and data elaboration through the geo-database, will allow to obtain important information for the understanding of the wide behavioural variability expressed by Neanderthal groups in relation to territory management, technology and, particularly, to the organization and use of the living space. The SU 15 of Oscurusciuto is a highly interesting archaeological evidence to grasp the cultural complexity of Neanderthals.