Determination of lithic raw materials in Cantabrian Spain during Greenland Stadial 2: The Magdalenian of Tito Bustillo Cave (Ribadesella, Asturias)

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 Available online 25 October 2022 2352-409X/© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/). Determination of lithic raw materials in Cantabrian Spain during Greenland Stadial 2: The Magdalenian of Tito Bustillo Cave (Ribadesella, Asturias) Sergio Martín-Jarque a , b , * , Diego Herrero-Alonso c , Antonio Tarri˜ no b , d , e , Cristina L´ opez-Tasc´ on f , Alejandro Prieto d , e , Juli´ an B´ ecares a , b , Esteban ´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez a , b a Departamento de Prehistoria, Historia Antigua y Arqueología, Facultad de Geografía e Historia, Universidad de Salamanca (https://ror.org/02f40zc51), Calle Cervantes s/n, E-37002 Salamanca, Spain b Grupo de Investigaci´ on Reconocido PREHUSAL-Universidad de Salamanca, Spain c Museo Arqueol´ ogico de Cacabelos, Calle las Angustias 24, E-24540 Cacabelos (Le´ on), Spain d Departamento de Geografía, Prehistoria y Arqueología, Facultad de Letras, Universidad del País Vasco UPV/EHU, Campus de ´ Alava, Paseo de la Universidad 5, E01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain e Grupo Consolidado de Investigaci´ on del Gobierno Vasco en Prehistoria: evoluci´ on humana, cambio clim´ atico y adaptaci´ on cultural en las sociedades preindustriales (GIZAPRE), IT-1435-22, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain f ´ Area de Prehistoria, Departamento de Historia, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Oviedo, Calle Amparo Pedregal s/n, E-33011 Oviedo, Spain ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Magdalenian Sella valley Raw material supply Lithic reduction Use-wear ABSTRACT The lithic assemblage studied here comes from the space known as the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave (Ribadesella, Asturias, Spain), a representative Magdalenian site. The remains were found in Sub-level 1c2 in the Lower Complex (1LC), which was excavated by J.A. Moure Romanillo from 1981 to 1983 and is associated with abundant evidence of osseous industry, fauna, portable art, etc. The present study is especially innovative because it introduces a holistic approach to the understanding of the management of lithic resources by huntergatherer groups in the late Pleistocene. It establishes the two main groups of raw materials in the assemblage (flint and quartzite) and the different types through a petrographic description, and the different procurement strategies that were employed. Some preliminary results about the functionality of these tools are also offered. The occupants of this cave during the Greenland Stadial 2 traced a diversified and complex dynamic of exploitation of lithic resources that combined both the most immediate, easily available and in greater volume (for example, quartzite and Pilo˜ na flint), and the most distant, of good knapping quality (Flysch flint, fundamentally). This circulation of raw materials is parallel to the patterns detected in other deposits in the region with a similar chronology. Significant differences are observed in the knapping schemes between raw materials based on the production of blanks for the manufacture of tools, whose typological classification and analysis of use-wear makes us propose a specialized and little diversified functionality, which is usually related to that of temporary occupations. 1. Introduction The development and systematization of research on the petrological determination and provenance of lithic raw materials found in archaeological deposits expanded significantly in the Iberian Peninsula at the turn of the century, when several doctoral theses on the topic were submitted (e.g., Terradas, 1997; Sarabia, 1999; Tarri˜ no, 2001; Mangado, 2002). Since then, further results of prehistoric research programmes in Cantabrian Spain have been published, applying the methodological proposal based on the petrological characterization of the rocks. Over time, this has enabled a more detailed knowledge of the outcrops that could potentially have been used as sources of raw materials for huntergather groups in the Cantabrian Zone (Herrero-Alonso, 2018; Prieto, 2018), in the Vasco-Cantabrian basin (Tarri˜ no, 2006; Rissetto, 2009; García-Rojas, 2014; Fontes, 2016a) and the Western Pyrenees (Elorrieta, * Corresponding author at: Departamento de Prehistoria, Historia Antigua y Arqueología, Facultad de Geografía e Historia, Universidad de Salamanca (https://ror. org/02f40zc51), Calle Cervantes s/n, E-37002 Salamanca, Spain. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (S. Martín-Jarque), [email protected] (D. Herrero-Alonso), [email protected] (A. Tarri˜ no), [email protected] (C. L´ opez-Tasc´ on), [email protected] (A. Prieto), [email protected] (J. B´ ecares), [email protected] (E. ´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jasrep https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2022.103678 Received 28 April 2022; Received in revised form 13 September 2022; Accepted 6 October 2022 Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 2 2016; Calvo, 2019). Many of these studies have focused on occupations dated in the Lower Magdalenian (ca. 19.0–18.2 ka cal BP), above all in the eastern sector of Cantabrian Spain (Fig. 1). The sites attributed to this period whose raw materials, especially the different flint types, have been studied are El Linar (Level 3), Las Aguas (Level B), Cualventi (Level E) (Tarri˜ no, 2016), Altamira (Level 2 and Obermaier Collection) (Tarri˜ no et al., 2013a; Fontes et al., 2016), El Juyo (Level 6), El Rasca˜ no (Level 4b) (Fontes et al., 2016) and El Mir´ on (Level 17 of the Outer Vestibule or “Cabin” and Level 504 of the Vestibule Rear or “Corral”) (Fontes et al., 2016, 2018) in Cantabria; and Santimami˜ ne (Level Csn-Camr) (Tarri˜ no, 2011), Antoli˜ nako koba (Level Lgc inf) (Tarri˜ no and Aguirre, 2002), Praileaitz I (Level IV) (Tarri˜ no, 2017) and Urtiaga (Level F) (Fontes, 2016b) in the Basque Country. In the central sector, fewer studies have been carried out on archaeological lithic raw materials, even though in that geographic area the study of La Riera Cave (Asturias) was a pioneer in its approach to the classification of lithic resources into types based on their petrographic description and analysis (Straus et al., 1986). Other sites in Asturias where raw materials analysis, also focused on the identification of the different flint types, have been applied to Middle Magdalenian at Las Caldas – Chamber II (Levels IX, VIII and VII) (Corch´ on et al., 2009), and to Lower Magdalenian at El Cierro (Level F) (´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2016) and Cova Rosa (Layer 4 =CR2) (´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2020, 2021), although in those cases with quite limited samples (Fig. 1). To date, the geoarchaeological studies carried out in this region to identify quartzite resources have concentrated on Middle Palaeolithic occupations, basically because of the greater quantitative importance of that raw material (Prieto, 2018; Prieto et al., 2019, 2020, 2021). The situation regarding functional studies is similar. This type of research has been applied to very few Lower Magdalenian sites in Cantabrian Spain: the nucleiform endscrapers from Level F in El Cierro Cave (´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2016), Levels 4 and 5 in El Rasca˜ no Cave (Domingo et al., 2012), Level 17 in the Outer Vestibule or “Cabin” at El Mir´ on (Straus et al., 2016), and finally the chipped lithic remains in Level IV in the cave of Praileaitz I (Clemente-Conte et al., 2017). The first results regarding the management and provenance of the raw materials in the lithic assemblage from Sub-level 1c2 in the Lower Complex (1LC) in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave (Ribadesella, Asturias) are presented here, as well as a first approach to the function of those implements at the site. These archaeological materials were found in the excavations performed by J.A. Moure Romanillo from 1981 to 1983. They are currently deposited in the Department of Prehistory, Ancient History and Archaeology at the University of Salamanca and in Asturias Archaeological Museum (Oviedo). The radiocarbon dates for Sub-level 1c2 situate this occupation in Greenland Stadial 2. 2. Tito Bustillo Cave 2.1. Fieldwork in Tito Bustillo Tito Bustillo Cave is located at the western end of the Cantabrian Range (Lat. 43◦27′35′′ N. – Long. 5◦23′10′′ W.), barely 200 m from the estuary of the River Sella and about 1 km from the modern coastline. The cave follows a linear passage on an east–west direction approximately 550 m in length. The Cave was made known to the scientific community in 1968, the date on which the Torreblanca Caving Club discovered its cave paintings and engravings (Díaz García and Mallo Viesca, 2018). In 1970, M.A. García Guinea carried out a series of trial excavations in the so-called Conjunto XI, near what was thought to be the original entrance hall of the cave, which was blocked by a collapse (García Guinea, 1975). These excavations succeeded in documenting several occupations ascribed to the Magdalenian. J.A. Moure Romanillo continued the fieldwork in the same part of the cave, today called the ´ Area de Estancia, from 1972 to 1986. In an excavation covering a surface area of about 27 m 2 (Moure Romanillo, 1975, 1990, 1997; Moure Romanillo and Cano, 1976), were differentiated in Level 1 and Level 2. In 2020 and 2022, the sections left by the excavations in the ´ Area de Estancia in the 1970s and 80s were cleaned and straightened, and samples were collected to obtain more information about the occupations in that part of the cave (´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2022). Apart from these investigations in the inner area near the prehistoric entrance to the cave, excavations have been carried out in other parts of the cave: In the outer part of said entrance (Díaz García and Mallo Viesca, 2018; ´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2022) and in the Sala del Gran Panel Polícromo or Conjunto X (García Guinea, 1975; Moure Romanillo, 1990). More recent excavations have been carried out in the Galería de los Antropomorfos, in Conjunto XI, in El Coxu and Interior (Balbín Behrmann et al., 2022). Fig. 1. Archaeological sites dated during Greenland Stadial 2 (Lower and Middle Magdalenian) in Cantabrian Spain with petrological determination of lithic raw materials. 1. Tito Bustillo; 2. Las Caldas; 3. El Cierro; 4. Cova Rosa; 5. La Riera; 6. Las Aguas; 7. El Linar; 8. Cualventi; 9. Altamira; 10. El Juyo; 11. El Rasca˜ no; 12. El Mir´ on; 13. Santimami˜ ne; 14. Antoli˜ nako koba; 15. Praileaitz I; 16. Urtiaga. The sea level contours are after Zickel et al. (2016). S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 3 2.2. Stratigraphy at ´ Area de Estancia The stratigraphy defined in the study by Moure Romanillo (1990) after his excavation in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave consisted of two archaeological levels. The upper Level 1 provided evidence of intense anthropic activity (Fig. 2). Several combustion structures formed by burnt quartzite and limestone cobbles and charcoal remains were documented. The faunal remains are very abundant and indicate what type of subsistence activities the Magdalenian groups practiced: hunting (a specialization in deer is noted), fishing for salmonids and the gathering of marine invertebrates, mainly limpets (Patella vulgata) and periwinkles (Littorina littorea). The lithic artifacts (scrapers, armatures, etc.) were made mainly in flint and quartzite. The bone industry is characterized by a wide variety of tools (assegais, punches, spatulae, needles, etc.) made of cervid antlers and bones. These two materials, but also different rocks (schist, jet, etc.), teeth of herbivores and carnivores and seashells served as a support for the creation of a large number of personal ornaments and beads. Portable art has been elaborated on organic (bone and antler) and inorganic (sandstone plates) supports. They represent engraved figures of naturalistic animals, but also schematic, in addition to various signs (Moure Romanillo, 1990; ´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez, 2006, 2013; ´ AlvarezFern´ andez et al., 2018, 2022). The pollen analyzes of Level 1 indicate its formation in a cold phase of the steppe type, with an abundance of heather and the predominance of grasses over ericaceas (Boyer-Klein and Leroi-Gourhan, 1987; Moure Romanillo, 1990). Level 1 reached a maximum thickness of about 50 cm. It was divided into different sub-levels or layers based on a series of industrial and sedimentological characteristics, and these were later grouped into two complexes. The Upper Complex (1UC), from 30 to 32 cm thick, included Sublevels 1a, 1b and 1c1. Sub-level 1a was the surface layer and Sub-level 1b was formed by limestone rocks in the form of a ‘pavement’. These sub-levels were not always continuous, so the contacts between them were called Sub-levels 1a-b and 1b-c. The Lower Complex (1LC), 18 to 20 cm thick, grouped Sub-levels 1c2, 1c3 and 1c4. These sub-levels that formed Level 1 were not found in all the squares that were excavated. Sub-level 1c2, studied here, was only documented in Squares XI.B, XI.C, XII.C and XIII.C. Level 2 was a sedimentary layer formed by natural processes in the cave and possibly by occasional human presence, and contained very few archaeological remains, above all fauna (cervid bones and marine shells) and some osseous and lithic artefacts. Pollen data indicate a humid phase with a forest environment (pine, alder, birch and thermophilic trees) (Boyer-Klein and Leroi-Gourhan, 1987; Moure Romanillo, 1990). The information available for Level 2 is much scarcer since this level was only excavated in depth in squares XII.E and XIII.E. 2.2.1. AMS radiocarbon dating A total of 15 radiocarbon dates have been obtained for the different sub-levels forming Level 1 in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave (Moure Romanillo, 1997; ´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2015). They date the deposit between 19.0 and 16.7 ka cal. BP. Bayesian modelling has determined more precisely the time of occupations between 18.5 and 17.6 ka cal. BP and it was not possible to discriminate the Upper and Lower Complexes statistically (´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al., 2018). Sub-level 1c2, in the Lower Complex, has been dated three times by the AMS 14C method (Table 1). Bayesian modelling dates this sub-level to between 18.3 and 17.7 ka cal. BP with 68.3 % probability (´ AlvarezFern´ andez et al., 2018). 3. Methodology 3.1. Raw materials The analytical protocol designed to characterise the flint types found in Tito Bustillo Cave is based on the proposals previously put forward for the study of raw materials (Tarri˜ no and Aguirre, 2002; Tarri˜ no, 2006, 2011, 2016, 2017; Tarri˜ no et al., 2007a, 2007b,2013a, 2013b, 2015, 2016; Tarri˜ no and Terradas, 2013; Herrero-Alonso, 2018; HerreroAlonso et al., 2021b). The first step is the de visu observation of the colour, gloss, transparency, feel and cortex (primary, secondary and degree of rounding). Second, the texture and different inclusions, which may be mineral (detritic quartz, carbonates, sulphates and oxides) and organic (bioclasts), are observed with a stereomicroscope. Third, analysis of thin sections using a petrographic microscope can determine, following the proposal of Folk (1980): 1) orthochemical components: definition of the type of quartz and organisation of the crystals; 2) allochemical components: contents of bioclasts, intraclasts, peloids, ooids, cortoids, etc.; 3) relict minerals: carbonates, oxides, sulphates, silicates, etc.; 4) authigenic minerals: phosphates, carbonates, silicates, sulphurs, oxides, etc.; 5) volatile elements: water and organic matter; 6) alterations; and 7) porosity. The methodology applied to the quartzite remains from Tito Bustillo is based on stereomicroscopic observation following the proposal of Prieto et al. (2020). Although the observations were not validated through direct inspection of artefact thin sections, the data acquired were applied to classify each artefact into the seven petrogenetic types as proposed by Prieto et al. (2019a): clastic fabric with matrix or nonquartz cement quartz-arenite (MA), clastic quartz-arenite (CA), syntaxially overgrown orthoquartzite (OO), sutured grain orthoquartzite (SO), bulging recrystallized quartzite (BQ), subgrain rotation recrystallized quartzite (RQ) and grain boundary migration recrystallized quartzite (MQ). The association of most features classified each quartzite into the Fig. 2. Stratigraphic section (squares XIV.D-XI.D) of the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave (modified by Moure Romanillo, 1997). UC: Upper Complex; LC: Lower Complex. S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 4 aforementioned petrogenetic types, but also characterised the grain-size mean value and the non-quartz minerals. A reference collection was used based on 106 thin sections from quartzite artefacts and rock obtained in geological surveys in the Deva-Cares Valley (Prieto, 2018) and an on-going project in the proximity to Tito Bustillo Cave. The cortical areas were characterized by adapting the proposal made by Fernandes et al. (2007) to the quartzites in the area, following Prieto et al. (2021). These data were applied to relate the features with specific and potential raw material sources but, especially, to identify different raw material units. Lithic raw materials can be classified based on the distance between the outcrops or potential supply areas and the archaeological sites being studied. In this way, three management models have been proposed (Tarri˜ no et al., 2015, 2016): 1) local resources, those located inside a radius which it is estimated that a person can travel in half a day, under 30 km. This model is sub-divided into proximate local (<15 km) and distant local (15–30 km); 2) regional resources: in turn sub-divided into proximate regional for distances equivalent to what a person can travel in a day and a half (30–60 km) and distant regional, for distances that can be covered in less than three days’ walking (60–120 km); and 3) tracer resources: those that were transported over a distance that a person can walk in a time of between three days and a week (120–250 km). Resources that come from sources more than a week’s trek away (>250 km) are called super-tracers. 3.2. Technological study The technological study has been based on groups, like other previous studies of chipped lithic assemblages (Fuertes-Prieto, 2010; Herrero-Alonso, 2018; Herrero-Alonso et al., 2020, 2021a): – Group 0: unknapped nodules or blocks of raw materials. This group is representative of the procurement phase and implies the transport of materials that have not been worked. – Group 1: flakes with (Group 1a) or without cortex (Group 1b): It includes both the objectives of reduction in the flake operative chains (flakes without cortex or marginal cortex) and the initial steps of the use of cores in flake and blade operative chains. – Group 2: blades and bladelets produced by laminar reduction, as well as products related to the maintenance and self-maintenance of laminar reduction, such as blades with flank. – Group 3: shaping products (arrises, crests and semi-crests, core flanks, etc.) representing the preparation sequences in the production phase. –Group 4: cores. The study of the technical forms of the cores (diacritical interpretation) is a key indicator of the organisation of the reduction and is able to determine the objectives of production. – Group 5: indeterminate pieces and broken elements generally larger than a centimetre. These are pieces that are difficult to interpret technically and may derive from different phases of both the preparation sequences and maintenance. –Group 6: debris, knapping flakes and fragments smaller than a centimetre. They may derive from the reduction and shaping sequences in any phase (from preparation to production and correction) as well as the retouching phase. The fragments may also have been produced by post-depositional processes (such as trampling) affecting the assemblage. Nonetheless, a high percentage of debris is a good indicator of the intensity of the reduction of a material. – Group 7: it includes the remains related to retouching, especially burin spalls but also fragments of retouched objects. The management of lithic raw materials used in Tito Bustillo Cave have been classified depending on the degree of completeness of their operational chain: complete, incomplete or broken. 3.3. Typological study The typological study has followed the classic criteria established in the type-lists of Sonneville-Bordes and Perrot, 1954, 1955, 1956a, 1956b. Retouched artefacts have been studied in terms of the length, angle, morphology, orientation, location, distribution and delineation of the removals from the edges. 3.4. Use-wear analysis The methodology used in the functional study is based on a long tradition of previous studies aimed at identifying the use-wear on flint implements (Semenov, 1964; Keeley, 1980; Mazo, 1989; Gonz´ alezUrquijo and Ib´ a˜ nez Est´ evez, 1994, among others). In addition to the specialised literature, the observed use-wear on the remains from Tito Bustillo has been compared with the experimental collection of one of the authors (CL) (L´ opez-Tasc´ on et al., 2018; L´ opez-Tasc´ on, 2022). The microscopic analysis of siliceous surfaces aims to determine what the tools were used for and with. Traces related to technological and post-depositional processes are also identified. The equipment employed has been a stereomicroscope with 6.6 to 40×magnification to study macroscopic use-wear, such as micro-flaking and rounding. An optical microscope at 40–500×magnification was used to identify micropolish and striations, to determine the substance worked with the tools. The objects were cleaned by applying a gentle cleaning protocol, using water, neutral pH soap and pure acetone. However, the identification codes have not been removed from their surfaces, which has caused some problems. The presence of these codes has hindered the microscopic analysis of many of the bladelets. 4. Results 2,178 lithic objects were recovered from Sub-level 1c2 in the ´ Area de Table 1 AMS 14C dates for Sub-level 1c2 in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave. The AMS 14C results have been calibrated with OxCal 4.4 (Bronk Ramsey, 2009) using the IntCal20 (Reimer et al., 2020) and Marine20 calibration curves (Heaton et al., 2020). Level Complex Sublevel Sample Lab. Ref. 14 C St. Dev. Reference 1 1CI 1c2 Indet. Bone with cut marks OxA-6262 14,680 110 Moure Romanillo (1997) 1 1CI 1c2 Indet. Charcoal GrN-12753 14,930 70 Moure Romanillo (1997) 1 1CI 1c2 Marine Shell (L. littorea) OxA-29117 15,570 55 ´ Alvarez-Fern´ andez et al. (2015) Calibrated (BP) 68.3 % 95.4 % from to from to OxA-6262 18,171 17,868 18,231 17,560 OxA-29117 18,156 17,927 18,234 17,792 GrN-12753 18,277 18,184 18,610 18,100 S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 5 Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave. Two groups of raw materials in the lithic assemblage have been differentiated: quartzite and flint. In addition, the assemblage contains a few objects in quartz. 4.1. Raw materials: Flint The study of the flint in the lithic assemblage from Sub-level 1c2 was performed on 1,102 remains from Squares XI.B, XI.C, XII.C and XIII.C (Figs. 3 and 4). 4.1.1. Local resources 4.1.1.1. Alba radiolarite. Its wide geographic distribution makes Alba radiolarite a well-represented material (6.62 %) but, equally, a very poor marker of territorial mobility. It is a variety formed in the Visean (Lower Carboniferous), which outcrops in the middle and upper members of the Alba Formations (Wagner et al., 1971). The presence of this siliceous variety has been known since the late 20th century and it has been identified at several archaeological sites in northern Spain. However, it had not been described from the petrological, mineralogical and geochemical points of view until recently (Tarri˜ no et al., 2015; HerreroAlonso, 2018; Herrero-Alonso et al., 2021b). All the Alba radiolarite at Tito Bustillo comes from the middle member, characterised by very regular parallel lamination and the presence of radiolarians. The joint extinction of the phyllosilicates can also be appreciated in thin sections. 4.1.1.2. Pilo˜ na flint. This is one of the main raw materials used in the assemblages (19.15 %). The capacity of this variety as a market of territorial mobility is weak. It outcrops in the Santonian limestone (Upper Cretaceous) in environments of the outer marine platform, in the valley of the River Pilo˜ na, a tributary of the Sella, but is also found in derived position in the Eocene-Oligocene continental conglomerates in the ‘Posada pudding-stone’ in the Oviedo Tertiary basin (Asturias). This flint, whose texture, mineralogy and geochemistry have been described (Tarri˜ no et al., 2013b), is characterised by its contents of terrigenous minerals (mainly, quartz and muscovite) and bioclasts of miliolids (Lacazina genus). It is often found at archaeological sites in Asturias (Tarri˜ no et al., 2015; Duarte et al., 2016). 4.1.1.3. Fito chert. Fito chert is generally used less, due to a more restricted geographical distribution than in the case of radiolarite, and appears in token proportions (0.18 %). However, this makes it a better marker of territorial mobility. The chert in the Fito Formation outcrops at the head of the River Ponga, another tributary of the Sella, in carbonate facies of the Podolskian / Myachkovian (Upper Carboniferous) formed in a transition from a prograding delta to a subsiding platform. References to silicifications in this geological formation are very scarce and only appear in a report (Bahamonde, 1989), while the first textural, mineralogical and geochemical description has been very recent (Herrero-Alonso, 2018; Herrero-Alonso et al., 2021b). The most important characteristic of this variety is a lenticular lamination with frequent bioclasts and dolomite idiomorph crystals, creating a variety with a distinct brownish and blackish hue. 4.1.2. Regional resources 4.1.2.1. Las Portillas chert. Las Portillas chert is a poorly represented raw material (0.18 %) because of its small distribution area. This resource outcrops in a very specific place in northern Spain, near Espinama (Cantabria) and is therefore an excellent marker of territorial mobility. It formed in a shallow marine platform in the transition from the Famennian (Devonian) to the Tournaisian (Lower Carboniferous). As in the case of Fito chert, references to this variety of siliceous rock are limited, apart from a study by Raven (1983) with a description that is no longer used. It is characterised by a very homogeneous matrix, with a very intense vitreous gloss and frequent presence of detritic accessory minerals (quartz, tourmaline, zircon, etc.) (Herrero-Alonso, 2018; Herrero-Alonso et al., 2021b). 4.1.2.2. Monte Picota flint. Monte Picota flint is one of the most abundant raw material types (16.52 %). It outcrops mainly in the San Rom´ an syncline, near Mt. Picota on the coast to the west of Santander Bay (Cantabria). These silicifications are associated with an internal marine platform in the Maastrichtian (Upper Cretaceous). The most important characteristic of this flint is its chalcedonitic composition with abundant fissures and cementation of fibrous quartz and mega-quartz in addition to the usual idiomorph crystals of dolomite. This flint is found in significant percentages at several archaeological sites relatively close to the main outcrop (Tarri˜ no et al., 2013a; Tarri˜ no, 2016) and has been described in recent years (Herrero-Alonso, 2018). 4.1.2.3. Urgonian flint. The frequency of Urgonian flint is quite significant (5.99 %). This raw material outcrops in the carbonate Urgonian complex that is widely distributed across the central and eastern sectors of northern Spain, which means that it is a very poor marker of territorial mobility. It is associated with Upper Aptian – Lower Albian reef Fig. 3. Percentages of the flint types represented in the lithic assemblage from Sub-level 1c2 in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave (n =1,102). S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 6 platforms (Lower Cretaceous) (Bustillo et al., 2017). It is characterised by the presence of rudists and both massive and branching corals, among many other identifiable fossils. Although its use as a raw material has generally been considered testimonial, in recent years it has been detected in significant proportions at some Cantabrian sites (Fontes et al., 2016). 4.1.3. Tracer resources 4.1.3.1. Flysch flint. Flysch flint is the best represented siliceous raw material (33.30 %) and the Kurtzia Flysch variety has been identified with certainty. This resource comes from turbiditic geological formations deposited in deep environments at the foot of the slopes connecting the marine platforms with the pelagic ocean depths. Several varieties have been defined, corresponding to outcrops on both sides of the Pyrenees (Tarri˜ no et al., 2015). They share a series of microscopic characteristics such as the high bioclast content (mainly the large number of sponge spicules), abundant detritic quartz of sand grain size and frequent idiomorph dolomite crystals. The Kurtzia variety comes from the Cenomanian-Santonian (Upper Cretaceous) in a very specific area near the coastal town of Barrika (Bizkaia) (Tarri˜ no, 2006), which makes it one of the best markers of territorial mobility in Cantabrian Spain. It displays a characteristic turbiditic lamination with a generally translucent matrix affected by the stigmas of severe marine abrasion and is found in nearly all the sites that have been studied in northern Spain (Tarri˜ no et al., 2016). 4.1.3.2. Trevi˜ no flint. Trevi˜ no flint appears in a quite significant proportion (5.72 %) and its four micro-facies have been identified. The nodular micrite with bioclasts is the most common variety in the archaeological deposit. This resource, which is a good marker of territorial mobility, outcrops in lacustrine-palustrine environments in the Miranda-Trevi˜ no basin, associated with the Miocene. It appears in the hills of the Sierra de Araico and its prolongation towards the north in the Cucho-Busto Hills (Tarri˜ no, 2006). The variability in the context of the formation of these silicifications means that different micro-facies can be identified (Tarri˜ no et al., 2015). At a microscopic scale, characteristic fossils of continental environments predominate (gastropods, ostracods, pedotubules, etc.). This resource has been documented at many archaeological sites in northern Spain (Tarri˜ no et al., 2016). 4.1.3.3. Urbasa flint. Urbasa flint is represented with a testimonial percentage (0.73 %). Nonetheless, its value as a marker of territorial mobility is outstanding. This resource outcrops in the karst in the Sierra de Urbasa in Navarre (Tarri˜ no, 2006). It is found with a nodular morphology. It formed in an outer marine platform and has been dated in the middle Thanetian (Palaeocene) by foraminifera: discocyclinids (D. seunesi) and nummulitids (N. herberti) (Baceta, 1996). It has been described from the petrological, mineralogical and geochemical points of view (Tarri˜ no et al., 2007b). In addition to the high content of foraminifera and other bioclasts, such as the remains of echinoderms, one fundamental characteristic of this variety is its incipient microdolomitisation. Together with the Flysch and Trevi˜ no types, this flint was one of the main sources of raw materials on the southern side of the Western Pyrenees (Tarri˜ no et al., 2007a). Fig. 4. Petrographic characteristics of some of flint types determined from the Sub-level 1c2 of Tito Bustillo. A. Detail of a possible benthonic foraminifera (genus Nummulites) with opalised internal chambers, crossed nicols. B. Detail of a planktonic foraminifera (family Globigerinidae) with opalised chambers and fibrous quartz walls, and ferruginised idiomorph crystals (rhomboids) of dolomite with a size of 20 µm, parallel nicols. C. General aspect of the texture characterised by a very bioclastic siliceous matrix with long-sections of sponge spicules, crossed nicols. D. Detail of siliceous matrix with cementations of fibrous quartz and a microgeode with fibrous quartz walls and nucleus of mega-quartz crystals, crossed nicols. E. General aspect of the texture characterised by an interface between the siliceous matrix and the carbonate matrix, crossed nicols. F. Detail of a planktonic foraminifera (family Globigerinidae) in the carbonate matrix, with its internal chamber semi-opalised, parallel nicols. S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 7 4.1.3.4. Salies-de-B´ earn flint. Although the appearance of Salies-deB´ earn flint is testimonial (0.09 %), like the previous case, it is an important marker of territorial mobility. This raw material outcrops in a Campanian carbonate series (Upper Cretaceous) exposed in the Peyrehorade anticline, associated with a deep marine basin, in the French Department of Pyr´ en´ ees-Atlantiques (Tarri˜ no et al., 2007a). It is a dark, fine-grained flint with bioturbations rich in relict carbonates that create a banded outer appearance in light greyish hues. Planktonic foraminifera are also usually present (Normand, 2002). This variety is mostly found at sites north of the Pyrenees, but has also been identified at several places on the southern side (Tarri˜ no et al., 2015). 4.1.4. Indeterminate resources Some flint artefacts could not be assigned a more or less exact provenance owing to several causes impeding their determination, either because of an alteration to the outer appearance of the matrix (fire, white patinas, etc.) resulting in micro-fissures, colour change and porosity, or difficulty in identifying the discriminant criteria or the lack of them. These objects were classified in the present study in the category of Indeterminate. These indeterminate flint remains represent an important percentage at Tito Bustillo (11.52 %). In those cases when it was possible to make an approximate but not definitive identification, their possible places of provenance were noted. One small group of indeterminate remains might belong to the types known at the site, such as the Flysch and Urbasa flint types. However, most of the indeterminate remains possibly correspond to types whose presence could not be confirmed, such as Piedramuelle, Loza, Tercis and Chalosse flint. 4.2. Raw materials: Quartzite The study of the quartzite was performed on a sample of 89 objects out of a total of 1,071 documented remains. They all come from Square XI.B. The quartzite is quite variable and the seven petrogenetic types identified in other contexts were determined here by stereomicroscopic inspection. Several varieties were also identified. Orthoquartzites (OO and SO) are predominant, followed by metamorphic quartzites, mainly the BQ type and a few MQ and RQ artefacts. Quartz-arenites are similarly represented to metamorphic quartzites and they consist of MA (more abundant) and CA types. In general, the artefacts in the MA type are extremely variable in quartz grain size, colour (brown, grey, black or white), non-quartz mineral content (micas, black and heavy non-identified minerals, manganese and iron oxides and feldspars) and the nature and the amount of cement and matrix. Moreover, this variability is also observable in MA individuals, emphasising the intrinsic heterogeneity of this type. However, a frequent variety with fine quartz grains and abundant clayey and ferruginous cement between grains was detected. Different colour and mineral varieties in CA quartz-arenites were also detected, all of them with heterogeneous quartz grain-size distributions. In this case, the small relicts of cement and matrix do not display differences although the absence of thin sections could have impeded their discrimination. Regarding the orthoquartzites, there are two varieties of OO type according to the colour/mineral characterisation: grey-white (more common) and black (less common). The latter is associated with pyrites and manganese oxides. One of the quartzites of this type differs from previous varieties due to its red colouring and the presence of circular structures associated with pyrites, iron and manganese oxides. In general, all OO orthoquartzites have medium grain sizes with heterogeneous distributions and they can be related to the increase in grain size motivated by the syntaxial quartz overgrowths, as observed in thin sections of rocks formed in similar genetic conditions (Bastida, 1982; Thiry and Milnes, 2017; Prieto et al., 2019b). In the white variety, some grains show ruffled, irregular and thin limits on flat reliefs, originated as a consequence of an increase in the deformation processes that promotes sutures between quartz grains, favouring knapping properties. In the SO type, there are two varieties, the light-grey one, with fine quartz grains (more common); and another with foliated structures, dark blue-grey colour and coarser quartz grains homogeneously distributed. Pyrites and dense iron oxides are frequent in the inner and cortical quartzite surfaces of the second type but they are less frequent in the inner part of the first variety. Again two BQ quartzite varieties were identified: a black one, with pyrites, iron, manganese oxides and fine quartz grain sizes and a white one, associated with medium quartz grain sizes. Both have foliation structures. The last feature is also common to the RQ and MQ type, but, probably due to their small numbers, no specific varieties were observed. Cortex is preserved on half of the artefacts, generally on surfaces smaller than 33.0 %. Iron oxide precipitates (also pyrites) in voids or above the alluvial neocortex derived from the clayey sediments of the site hinder the identification of cortical surfaces because these precipitates constitute a relevant marker to determine the conglomerate neocortex (Fernandes et al., 2007; Prieto et al., 2021, 2022). This causes a high quantity of non-identified surfaces (≈40.0 %) and also forces us to nuance the conclusions given. Two-thirds of identified cortex is derived from fluvial deposits, few quartzite artefacts have neocortex derived from conglomerates and only one derived from a massive exposed quartzite outcrop. Neocortex from conglomerates was characterised in orthoquartzites and quartzites. Preliminary data suggest that all these quartzite types could be procured in 30 km radius conglomerate formations and in fluvial deposits. 4.3. Lithic technology The technological study of the lithic assemblage was carried out for a total of 1,102 flint objects (Table 2). It should be noted that this study of the artefacts has not quantified either the quartzite or quartz remains, which are currently being studied in greater detail by one of the present authors (AP). For the flint artefacts, a number of differences have been observed in the management of the various types and their reduction process (Fig. 5). A complete operational chain has only been identified in Alba radiolarite, in which flakes (50.68 %) are more numerous than blades (13.70 %) in a significantly higher proportion than in the other flint types. The high percentage of Group 3 remains, consisting of preparation and debitage maintenance products (15.07 %) is also noteworthy. Most of the maintenance products are blade core flanks aimed at maintaining the car´ enage and cintrage, as well as restoring the flaking surface in the case of knapping defects (reflections, natural planes, etc.). Cortical flakes and first order flakes have also been documented and two natural cortical arrises have been identified. They were removed as a way to begin reduction, as seen previously in other assemblages with radiolarite (Herrero-Alonso et al., 2021a). Lastly, some bladelets with a crest or neo-crest linked to laminar production have also been identified. These are usually extracted to correct the central arris and facilitate reduction. Only one core used to produce bladelets has been documented; it displays a well-delimited flank and bipolar extractions from two platforms. Table 2 Technological inventory of the flint assemblage from Sub-level 1c2 in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave. Group Retouched Non retouched Total 0 – Nodules 0 0 0 1 – Flakes 31 250 281 2 – Laminar blanks 170 480 650 3 – By-products 1 28 29 4 – Cores 1 12 13 5 – Indeterminate pieces 1 59 60 6 – Debris 0 60 60 7 – Burin spalls 0 9 9 Total 204 898 1102 S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 8 Incomplete operational chains have been observed in the flint types: Pilo˜ na (local), Monte Picota (regional), Urgonian (regional), Flysch (tracer) and Trevi˜ no (tracer). Their characteristics are very similar. Laminar blanks are more abundant than flakes and very few elements are linked to the initial reduction phases. Although some flakes with cortex are found, they are not abundant and no other elements are associated with initiating reduction. This practical absence of remains suggests that the cores reached the site in a more or less advanced stage of debitage. However, elements linked to maintenance of the technical process in later reduction phases, such as crests aimed at correcting the central arris and a semi-tablet, have been identified. Knapping waste is relatively scarce, albeit more common in the local and regional materials. The cores that have been identified, a total of 13, were used to produce flakes with discoid methods (Fig. 6: 2), and blades and bladelets (Fig. 6: 1). The latter cores are mostly prismatic with a single percussion platform and method of semi-surrounding and unipolar extractions. It should be stressed that whereas flake cores have been observed in the local and regional raw materials, in the tracer Flysch and Trevi˜ no flint types, production focused only on blade blanks and no flake cores have been identified. Fig. 5. Percentages of the technological groups represented in the flint assemblage from Sub-level 1c2 in the ´ Area de Estancia at Tito Bustillo Cave (n =1,102). Fig. 6. 1: Pyramidal Flysch flint and 2: Discoid Urgonian flint cores from Sub-level 1c2 in the ´ Area de Estancia in Tito Bustillo Cave. S. Martín-Jarque et al. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46 (2022) 103678 9 The broken operational chains appear in four flint types: two of Palaeozoic chert (Fito, local; and Portillas, regional) and two of flint (Urbasa, tracer; and Salies-de-B´ earn, tracer). In these cases, only prepared blanks are found (mainly blades and bladelets) and a few indeterminate objects, generally without cortex. This would suggest that these materials arrived as finished products or as cores shaped away from the site, ready for the occasional removal of blanks. The size of the lithic objects has been studied with 252 whole remains, mainly flakes and blades. In general, certain homogeneity is seen in the assemblage, whatever the flint type, and most pieces are between 2.2 and 2.8 cm in length (Fig. 7). The exceptions are two blades in Urgonian flint that are much larger than the others, over 10 cm in length. The difference in size may be connected with the presence of other operational chains and reduction sequences, of which no other remains have been found in the sub-level, either because they were made outside the site or away from the area of the excavation. The technological analysis of the sample of 89 quartzite objects only from Square XI.B shows interesting patterns, especially when this information is related to the geological features commented above. In the selected square metre, there is only one core, discoid or bi-pyramidal, displaying an intense degree of exploitation. One crest is configured in this core and it cannot be ruled out that the core was abandoned due to its small size before removing the crest. This core is made on the BQ type (black and small grain size variety) and has a small remnant of the cortex and a visible crack that hinders knapping activities. Besides, there are three core preparation/rejuvenation products (two crests and one flank) in the three main varieties of OO type, suggesting that knapping activities were (occasionally?) performed at the site using other petrogenetic types and varieties rather than the BQ type. Blanks mainly consist of flakes and some elongated flakes and only a few differences are observable in the products on different petrogenetic types. In this regard, more complex exploitation systems based on direct and longitudinal schemes are observable in all varieties of BQ and SO types, whereas most of the quartz-arenites were exploited less and based on expedient behaviour. The only exception is the MA type with fine grain and clayey/ferruginous cement which shows a more complex exploitation system. 4.4. Lithic typology A total of 204 retouched artefacts in flint have been studied. After their individual observation and classification in the type-list, they have been grouped into different categories of artefacts (Table 3). The backed group is the most numerous and makes up over half the retouched assemblage (55.39 %). Objects with continuous retouching on one or two sides make up the second most frequent group (23.01 %) and burins represent the third most abundant category (8.82 %). Perforators and the group of notches and denticulates appear with the same percentages (4.41 %). The retouched assemblage is then completed by truncated objects (1.96 %), a simple endscraper, an endscraper-burin and another two artefacts in the Various category (Fig. 8). The backed group (n =113) (Fig. 9: 6, 7, 8 and 9) consists of a denticulated backed bladelet, made in Trevi˜ no flint, and a total of 112 backed bladelets: 41 in Flysch flint, 35 in Pilo˜ na flint, 17 in Monte Picota flint, six in Trevi˜ no flint, one in Urgonian flint and 13 in indeterminate types. The group of objects with continuous retouching (n =47) (Fig. 9: 3 and 4) is formed by five blades retouched on two sides (two in Flysch flint, two in Pilo˜ na flint, and one in Urgonian flint) and 42 objects retouched on one side. Six of these are flakes and the other 36 are blades. Of the flakes, four are in Pilo˜ na flint, one in Flysch flint and one in an indeterminate type. In turn, 17 blades are in Flysch flint, six in Pilo˜ na flint, four in Urgonian flint, three in Monte Picota flint, three in Trevi˜ no flint and the other three in indeterminate types. The burin group (n =18) (Fig. 9: 1 and 2) consists of seven straight dihedral burins on flakes (four in Flysch flint, one in Pilo˜ na flint, one in Urgonian flint and one in Trevi˜ no flint); two angled dihedral burins (one on a blade in Pilo˜ na flint and the other on a flake in Urbasa flint); four Fig. 7. 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