Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

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Quaternary International
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/quaint

The evolution of Magdalenian societies in South-West France between 18,000

and 14,000 calBP: Changing environments, changing tool kits
Mathieu Langlais a, *, Sandrine Costamagno b, Vronique Laroulandie a, Jean-Marc Ptillon b,
Emmanuel Discamps a, Jean-Baptiste Mallye a, David Cochard a, Delphine Kuntz a
a
b

CNRS PACEA UMR 5199, Univ. Bordeaux, Avenue des facults btiment B18, 33405 Talence cedex, France
CNRS TRACES UMR 5608, Univ. Toulouse Le Mirail, Maison de la Recherche, 5 alles A. Machado, 31058 Toulouse cedex 9, France

a r t i c l e i n f o

a b s t r a c t

Article history:
Available online 2 March 2012

In south-western France, between 18,000 and 14,000 calBP, socio-economic changes are evident in
several spheres of Magdalenian hunter-gatherer activities which brought with them an array of transformations in osseous and lithic tools. Targeted prey species, although still dominated by ungulates, also
show an evolution during a period that was marked by signicant climatic and environmental changes
that can be correlated with cultural developments. Changes in procurement strategies and new patterns
in osseous and lithic weaponry are accompanied by the maintenance of social networks across large
regions, while at the same time there appears to be a geographic contraction of groups within regional
procurement networks. Ungulates remain the primary prey species but are supplemented by small game.
While it is important to evaluate the forces driving behind technological and socio-economic processes
through time, cultural evolution within each techno-complex ought to be accounted for as well. In order
to evaluate these internal developments, a more precise radiometric framework is necessary, which
integrates studies of osseous and lithic technology with available archaeozoological data. This contribution presents the rst results of such an undertaking based on a higher-resolution seriation of technological innovations and their implications in hunting activities. The rhythm of change appears to be
complex and nonlinear, and it highlights the innovative nature of Magdalenian weaponry. These rapid
changes, with respect to the Upper Paleolithic as a whole, provide insight into the impact of social
interactions as cultural stimulation, as well as how resource availability and human demography functioned as factors of changes.
2012 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The variable Late Glacial environments of Western Europe witnessed signicant, sometimes irreversible, changes in huntergather technology, mobility patterns and hunting strategies.
Ecologically induced changes or recongurations in the structure
and distribution of available animal biomass brought with them
innovations in material culture, particularly hunting weaponry. The
diffusion of technical know-how through expanded communication networks allowed human groups to respond to sometimes
rapid climatic changes and uctuations with dynamic solutions.

* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: m.langlais@pacea.u-bordeaux1.fr (M. Langlais), costamag@
univ-tlse2.fr
(S.
Costamagno),
v.laroulandie@pacea.u-bordeaux1.fr
(V. Laroulandie), petillon@univ-tlse2.fr (J.-M. Ptillon), ediscamps@gmail.com
(E. Discamps), jb.mallye@pacea.u-bordeaux1.fr (J.-B. Mallye), david.cochard@
ubordeaux1.fr (D. Cochard), delphine.kuntz@pacea.u-bordeaux1.fr (D. Kuntz).
1040-6182/$ e see front matter 2012 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2012.02.053

The archeological record of the Magdalenian in south-western

France provides insights into several elements of these changes.
While several studies have provided in-depth and often sitespecic analyses of Magdalenian technological patterns (Pigeot,
1987), subsistence economies (Enloe, 2010; Kuntz and
Costamagno, 2011) or on-site spatial organization (Audouze,
2010; Bodu, 2010), integrative approaches uniting diverse lines of
evidence concerning Late Glacial human adaptations which
consider their environmental or climatic context are slightly less
common (although see Straus et al., 2002 for Cantabrian Spain and
Langlais, 2011 for the Pyrenean isthmus). With this in mind, this
study moves beyond the scale of the site by bringing together
a regional synthesis of the rhythms and forces driving changes
observed in technical systems and socio-economic strategies of
Magdalenian societies in south-western France. The signicant
cultural transformations and changing social dynamics which mark
the internal evolution of the classic Magdalenian (i.e. Middle and
Upper) are considered against their proper environmental context.

M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

139

Furthermore, a series of new radiocarbon dates on taxonomically

identiable faunal material and osseous artifacts securely attributable to the Magdalenian has enabled a more precise chronology
for this period to be constructed. This revised radiocarbon chronology also allows the most important technological, socioeconomic, and subsistence trends of the Middle and Upper phases of this techno-complex to be more accurately compared with
recently established marine and terrestrial climate records for the
Late Glacial. Finally, transformations in particular elements of
Magdalenian hunting weaponry serve as the basis for a new model
of the evolutionary trajectory of these hunter-gatherer societies.
This synthesis incorporates new research and data concerning no
less than 30 archeological collections comprised of both osseous
and lithic tools (Figs. 1 and 2).

2. Contrasting spatio-temporal frameworks rich in diverse

resources
South-western France presents an environmental mosaic
extending from the plains of the Aquitaine and Languedoc up to the
foothills of the Pyrenees, incorporating the limits of the Poitou
region to the north, the limestone plateaus of the Massif Central to
the east, and is bound to the west by the Sands of the Landes
(Figs. 1 and 2). However, the actual space that would have been
available to Late Glacial hunter-gatherers is today signicantly
truncated to both the west and south-east, as a direct consequence
of raised sea levels associated with the retreat of the coastline
(Fairbanks, 1989). Apart from the Sands of the Landes, which
seemed to have been a marginal geographic zone (Bertran et al., in
press), the region is found at the southernmost extension of the
European permafrost zones (Texier and Bertran, 1993; Van VlietLanoe and Hallegouet, 2001). Available archeological sequences,
coupled with the corpus of associated radiocarbon dates, indicate
that the region was continuously occupied throughout the Late
Glacial and therefore presents an ideal scenario for a diachronic
evaluation of the Magdalenian.

Fig. 2. List of sites depicted in Fig. 1.

The proles of several ice, marine and terrestrial cores provide

a detailed record of paleoenvironmental change during this period,
however in order for these calendar scale events to be accurately
compared with the archeological radiocarbon chronology, the latter

Fig. 1. Location of principal Magdalenian sites in South-western France and its margins (coastlines at 120 and 110 m below modern sea level; dotted line: limit of the sands of Les
Landes), map created with ArcGIS 9.3, WGS 84 projection and MNT. After Amante and Eakins, 2009.

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M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

must be calibrated using the IntCal09 curve (Reimer et al., 2009).

This new calibration curve presents numerous radiocarbon
plateaus and fuzzy episodes, particularly between 16,200 and
15,700 calBP (or ca. 13,000 BP), that were not detected by the earlier
IntCal 04 version.
The period between 18,000 and 14,000 calBP witnessed signicant climatic variability (Fig. 3) with conditions uctuating between
cold and humid conditions during its early phase, followed by drier
environments later on (Naughton et al., 2009). The climatic deterioration of the nal Heinrich stadial or HS1 (dated to between 15.1
and 13.4 ka BP according to Elliot et al., 2002; and calibrated to
between 18.3 and 16.3 ka calBP based on the IntCal09 curve or
between 18 and 15.6 ka calBP by Sanchez-Goi and Harrison, 2010)
sees a return of nearly glacial conditions including increased ice-ow

and the cooling of sea surface temperatures. Chronologically, it

corresponds to the Oldest Dryas in the continental record. The
warming event of Greenland interstadial 1 (GS1 or the BllingAllerd), whose ofcial limit is dated to 14,692
186 (before 2000
AD) according to the GICC05 isotopic curve (Fig. 3), follows HS1 by
several hundred years, taking into account problems of calibration.
These contrasting climatic conditions would have had inevitable
repercussions on both terrestrial animal and plant communities.
Paleovegetation records provided by marine cores drilled off the
Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of the Iberian Peninsula
(Sanchez-Goi, 2006; Beaudoin et al., 2007; Naughton et al., 2007,
2009) together with continental samples (Jalut et al., 1998; Jalut
and Turu, 2009) indicate that with the onset of HS1 there is
a clear tendency for a reduction in forested environments and the

Fig. 3. Climatic contexts between 20 and 15 ka calBP according to glacial data (Langlais, 2007b after data from; Andersen et al., 2006; Svensson et al., 2006; NGRIP dating group,
2006; Rasmussen et al., 2006), marine data (Heinrich Stage 1 limits after data from Elliot et al. (2002); surface sea temperatures (SST) after data from Cacho et al. (2001), 2006;
Pailler and Bard, 2002; Bard, 2003) and continental data. Blling-Allerd (BeA), Younger Dryas (YD), Holocene (H).

M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

141

Fig. 4. Direct radiocarbon dates on reindeer remains (light grey: Jura and Alps; dark grey: South-western France). After Costamagno et al., 2009; Costamagno, unpublished data;
Laroulandie, unpublished data; Bgouen et al., 2009; Oberlin and Pion, 2009; Bridault and Chaix, 2009; Szmidt et al., 2009a.

expansion of steppe biomes consisting of grasses and Artemisia

shrubs. This trend is progressively reversed from the end of HS1
and throughout GS1, however open landscapes persisted until at
least GSc 1c (Allerd).

Faunal remains preserved in archeological sites represent the

principal source of information for reconstructing the composition
of Late Glacial animal communities. Across France, large ungulate
herds preferring cold open landscapes gave way to more temperate

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M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

species at the Blling/Allerd transition or approximately

14,000 calBP (Delpech, 1999; Bridault and Chaix, 2002). The lack of
precise modern analogues for these animal communities, coupled
with the fact that their composition is largely a function of
ecological tolerance and the size and structure of available biomes,
renders it difcult to estimate the rate in which these populations
reestablished themselves. HS1 environmental conditions favored
the development of steppe ungulates such as reindeer, saiga antelope, horse and bison on the Aquitaine plain (Delpech, 1983;
Costamagno, 2003; Costamagno et al., 2008, 2009). Saiga antelope
played a particular economic role in the northern margins of the
sands of Les Landes, as well as in the Gironde and Charente
(Delpech, 1989; Costamagno, 2001), however their numbers
diminished signicantly towards 16,500 calBP, in other words,
during the course of the Oldest Dryas or HS1.
Reindeer and horse were available throughout the Magdalenian
(Costamagno, 2003). Several recently obtained dates on reindeer
remains from nal Late Glacial assemblages, with the exception of
a questionable date from Faurlie c.4 (11,850 /70 BP, Ly5366SacA-12059), considered physicochemically unreliable by the
dating laboratory, indicate an age earlier than ca. 14,000 calBP
(Szmidt et al., 2009a; Costamagno et al., 2009; Costamagno,
unpublished data, Laroulandie, unpublished data, Fig. 4). These new
results do not argue in favor of reindeer populations persisting in
the Aquitaine region beyond the Blling interstadial and is similar
to the case suggested for the northern Alps and the southern Jura
(Bridault and Chaix, 2009; Oberlin and Pion, 2009). However,
whether or not they denitely disappeared from the South-west of
France during this period depends largely upon a critical taphonomic reevaluation of assemblages containing reindeer, in
conjunction with new direct dates on remains associated with
chronologically ensuing techno-complexes such as the Azilian. This
is especially the case with samples from the Laborian and Azilian
levels of Morin (A1/2) and Dufaure c.3 that have produced dates
older than 14,000 calBP (Fig. 4). Attempts to directly date reindeer
remains from these more recent contexts (e.g. Arancou A, Gazel
c.5e6) have been unsuccessful due to insufcient collagen preservation. On the other hand, new direct dates on red deer remains
from Morin and Bourrouilla demonstrate that red deer populations
persisted and played a more prominent role in Magdalenian
subsistence strategies after 15,500 calBP (Szmidt et al., 2009a;
Sommer et al., 2008, Fig. 5).

The development of steppe environments during the Oldest

Dryas may have favored a near tenfold increase in ungulate biomass
which would have subsequently diminished with the return of
more forested landscapes (Delpech, 1999). The growth of heliophilous shrublands composed of junipers, birch, willow or sea
buckthorn, especially in the Pyrenees (Jalut et al., 1998; Jalut and
Turu, 2009), presented ideal conditions for small animals such as
grouse (Lagopus) and mountain hares (Lepus timidus) that feed
upon the fruits of these shrubs (Laroulandie, 2009). The interplay
between varying accessibility to certain geographic spaces and
resources, the occupation of different territories, economy, technical traditions and the demography represents one of the central
areas of research.
3. Key socio-economic elements and hunting patterns of the
Late Glacial Magdalenian
Between broadly 18,000 and 16,000 calBP or the beginning of
HS1, the cultural landscape of a major portion of Western Europe
was dominated by the Middle Magdalenian. Around 16,000 calBP
the Upper Magdalenian emerged and was replaced by the Azilian
around 14,000 calBP (Ptillon, 2006; Langlais, 2010). This paper will
not address the issue of the Azilianisation (Barbaza, 2011) of these
societies, or the emergence of the Magdalenian. Instead, the focus is
on its Middle and Upper phases which developed several hundred
years before the Blling interstadial (or GS1e).
Middle Magdalenian hunting practices essentially focused on
large ungulate herds. Saiga antelope dominate faunal assemblages
from the Gironde, where they are also associated with bovids, while
in the Prigord, Quercy, Languedoc and western Pyrenean regions
reindeer dominate faunal assemblages (Fontana, 1999;
Costamagno, 2001, 2003; Castel et al., 2007; Fig. 6, Table 1). Horse
and large bovids are frequently found together and sometimes even
dominate the prey signal (Costamagno, 2003, 2004). In the foothills
of the western Pyrenees, faunal assemblages are more diversied,
most notably in the presence of deer. Small game were only rarely
captured in large numbers with the exception of grouse and
mountain hare as at Gazel c.7, dated to between 17,000 and
16,000 calBP (Fontana, 2003; Laroulandie and Vilette, in press) and
only the latter at La Madeleine between 16,000 and 15,000 calBP
(Fontana and Chauvire, 2007). As seen above, increased ungulate
biomass during this period created ideal conditions for the

Fig. 5. Direct radiocarbon dates on red deer remains (light grey: Jura and Alps; dark grey: South-western France). After Costamagno et al., 2009; Costamagno, unpublished data;
Laroulandie, unpublished data; Oberlin and Pion, 2009; Bridault and Chaix, 2009; Szmidt et al., 2009a.

M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

Fig. 6. Distribution of sites with quantied faunal lists for the Middle (a) and Upper
Magdalenian (b). Pie-charts represent NISP percentages of main herbivore species (of
the total number of identied ungulate remains) for each assemblage. Only assemblages with a total ungulate NISP greater than 50 have been included. Stratied
assemblages are represented by a white bar according to their position. The grey lines
placed offshore represent the past coastline for each period based on sea level estimations by Lambeck and Chappell (2001).

demographic growth of hunter-gatherer groups (Delpech, 1999).

The documented increase in the density and geographic distribution of Middle Magdalenian sites lends further support to this
expansion (Bocquet-Appel and Demars, 2000; Bocquet-Appel et al.,
2005; Langlais, 2010).
Middle Magdalenian bone and antler tools are extremely
abundant, varied, often decorated and were mass produced from
the same block of raw material by a more productive multiple
longitudinal groove technique (Averbouh et al., 1999; Ptillon,
2006). Access to reindeer antler varied seasonally, and evidence
exists for the transport of prepared blocks of raw material or
already prepared blanks (Averbouh, 2005; Ptillon, 2006; Rigaud,
2006; Chauvire and Rigaud, 2009). Amongst rarer elements,

143

whale bone, presumably from the Atlantic Ocean, is represented by

some fty objects recovered from the site of Isturitz in the Basque
Country (Ptillon, 2008a). This material was transported as nished
products over several hundred kilometers, as demonstrated by the
presence of whale bone projectile points at Mas dAzil in the Ariege
(Ptillon, unpublished data).
This anticipation of future needs in terms of procurement strategies for osseous materials parallels patterns seen with lithic raw
materials. However, a clear distinction can be made between the
manufacture of blades for domestic tools and bladelets for hunting
armatures (Langlais, 2010). This division is also evident in associated
chanes opratoires, as well as in the circulation and geographic
distribution of these types of artifacts. Demand for large standardized blades for tool manufacture required a system of apprenticeship
and the transmission of high levels of technical know-how (savoirfaire), as well as excellent quality raw materials (Lacombe, 1998;
Bundgen, 2002; Simonnet, 2007; Langlais, 2007a; Angevin and
Langlais, 2009). These requirements were met through the creation of extensive networks of exchange and circulation, as can be
seen by the example of Gazel, where certain raw materials were
introduced from sources several hundred kilometers from the site
(Langlais and Sacchi, 2006; Langlais, 2010). Domestic activities
therefore underlie strong social interactions within and between
groups. Despite the fact that the production of bladelets for equipping composite hunting weapons was less constrained by raw
materials, their distribution shows a clear territoriality when
compared with the pattern seen with blades (Langlais, 2008).
Certain aspects of Middle Magdalenian material culture
demonstrate the signicant anticipation of material needs
evidently supported by extended social networks that developed in
open, largely steppe, environments rich in ungulate biomass. This
enhanced socio-economic character is seen in the optimization of
lithic and osseous debitage strategies and by a tendency for more
elongated and standardized blanks. These choices did however
entail certain constraints in terms of both the transmission of
know-how (by apprenticeship for example) and the quality of
available raw materials.
The maintenance of previously established long distance social
relations during the Upper Magdalenian can be seen in the panEuropean diffusion of barbed points (Julien, 1982; Ptillon, 2008b)
and schematic feminine representations on mobiliary art (Fritz et al.,
2007). Differences do however exist in the treatment of certain
materials and the types of resources exploited, which become
increasingly local during this period (cf. infra). Ungulates continue to
be the dominant prey. Although reindeer and horse remains are still
present in numerous sites in the northern Aquitaine, the representation of deer in faunal assemblages increases signicantly and even
surpasses other ungulates in the western Pyrenees, as at Arancou
and Troubat (Costamagno, 2005, 2006; Fig. 6, Table 1). The
replacement of reindeer by deer in Upper Magdalenian subsistence
practices is therefore quite progressive and may have been only
seasonal at rst (Costamagno et al., 2008, 2009).
The deglaciation of the Pyrenees opened its valleys to new
species, such as ibex which was heavily exploited at Belvis, La Vache
and Les Eglises (Delpech and Villa, 1993; Fontana, 1999; Pailhaugue,
2003; Delmas et al., 2008). In parallel with the exploitation of
ungulates, small vertebrates come to occupy a more important
place in the prey spectrum; this is evident not only in the number of
Upper Magdalenian sites with small fauna, but also in the sheer
quantities of remains present in the assemblages (e.g. Cochard,
2004; Cochard and Brugal, 2004; Costamagno and Laroulandie,
2004). However, intensication in the consumption of small
fauna during the Upper Magdalenian (ca. 16,000 calBP) should not
be confused with the diversication of hunting practices after
14,500 calBP (i.e. Fontana and Brochier, 2009).

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M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

Table 1
List of sites providing data for Fig. 6 (NR UNG: Number of Ungulate Remains).
Culture

Code

Site

Level

NR UNG

References

MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
MM
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP

Aur
Bra
Can
Com4
Com5
Com8-13
Dur5
Enl4
Enl5
Esp
Fla
Gan
Gaz7
Gaz8
Laa1
Lab
Lau2
Mou
Peyru
Roc1
Roc2
Roc3
Sai3
StG
TucA
TucB
AraB1
AraB2
AraB3
Bel
Biz
Boi
Duf
Dur3
Dur4
Egl
Faur
Faus
Fon
Gar
Ist
Laa2
Lau1
Mad1
Mad2
MorA
MorB
Mur5
Mur6
Pey1
Sai1
Trou
Vac

Aurensan
Brassempouy
Canecaude
Combe-Cullier
Combe-Cullier
Combe-Cullier
Duruthy
Enlne
Enlne
Esplugues
Flageolet II
Gandil
Gazel
Gazel
Laa 2
Labastide
Laugerie-Haute
Moulin Neuf
Peyrugues
Roc de Marcamps
Roc de Marcamps
Roc de Marcamps
Sainte Eulalie
St-Germain-la Rivire
Tuc dAudoubert
Tuc dAudoubert
Arancou
Arancou
Arancou
Belvis
Bize
Bois-Ragot
Dufaure
Duruthy
Duruthy
Les Eglises
La Faurlie II
Faustin
Fontanet
La Gare de Couze
Isturitz
Laa 2
Laugerie-Haute
La Madeleine
La Madeleine
Morin
Morin
Murat
Murat
Peyrazet
Sainte Eulalie
Troubat
La Vache

?
1
CII
41 et 42
5
8,9,11,12.13A, 13C
5
4
5

159
66
5799
117
82
1926
322
351
59
322
734
816
7358
295
244
156
1647
1905
746
163
237
96
92
2221
294
196
80
293
71
1286
6057
1561
4011
2851
348
9097
594
94
91
5332
274
373
2892
5570
2260
2800
364
395
91
52
92
1012
81603

Clot, 1983
Patou-Mathis and Boukhima, 1996
Fontana, 1998
Delpech, 1975
Delpech, 1975
Delpech, 1975
Delpech, 1983
Fosse, 1992
Fosse, 1992
Clot, 1985
Delpech, 1983; Deplano, 1994
Griggo, 1997
Fontana, 1998
Fontana, 1998
Kuntz unpublished data
Clot in Omns (1982)
Delpech, 1983
Costamagno, 1999
Allard 1992
Slott-Moller, 1988
Slott-Moller, 1988
Slott-Moller, 1988
Delpech, 1983
Costamagno, 1999
Fosse in Bgouen et al. (2009)
Fosse in Bgouen et al 2010
Costamagno unpublished data
Fosse, 2000
Fosse, 2000
Fontana, 1998
Patou-Mathis et al., 1999
Griggo, 2005
Altuna and Mariezkurrena, 1995
Costamagno, 2006
Costamagno, 2006
Delpech and Le Gall, 1983
Berthet, 1999
Delpech, 1971
Clottes, 1979
Delpech, 1983
Letourneux in Ptillon (2006)
Kuntz unpublished data
Delpech, 1983
Delpech, 1975
Delpech, 1975
Delpech, 1983
Delpech, 1983
Costamagno unpublished data
Costamagno unpublished data
Costamagno unpublished data
Delpech, 1983
Costamagno, 2005
Pailhaugue, 1995, 1998

IX
2 to 14
7
8
US 4003-4009
secteur II
20 to 9 (sect. EAST)
2
3
3/3b 4/4b
4C
4D/5
III
1
Salle du Cheval Rouge
Galerie Bouquetin, Balcon 1
B1
B2
B3
1 to 4
G
56
4
3
4
all
C.5
all
?
B C D E F GO G G1 H
1 and F1
US 4010-4012
8 to 2 (sect. EAST)
2 to 12
13 to 17
A (AI AIV)
B (BI et BII)
V, Vn
VI
6
I
7a
Salle monique

Amongst bird species exploited, Ptarmigan (Lagopus) was hunted in mountainous zones and, at least in the Pyrenees, was sought
alongside Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus). While available archeological evidence denitely indicates that these two species formed
part of Upper Magdalenian subsistence strategies, it remains difcult to determine the precise role of other avian resources. In the
Aquitaine Basin, Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) was hunted not only
for its meat and bones, but probably also for its feathers and claws
(Eastham, 1998; Laroulandie, 2003, 2005, 2009). Several direct
dates on cut-marked Snowy Owl bones indicate that this subsistence behavior began at the very latest sometime between 16,000
and 14,000 calBP (Szmidt et al., 2009a). Available information
concerning shing practices also demonstrates a more intense
exploitation of aquatic resources during this period (Le Gall, 1999,
2003). In addition to these taxa, the consumption of smaller
animals such as ground squirrel is attested to at Rochereil,

Bois-Ragot and Morin (Jude, 1960; Marquet, 2005; Mallye, unpublished data). Furthermore, the recent re-examination of several
collections (Mallye, in prep.) has shown that small carnivores were
almost systematically exploited not only for their teeth (for the
manufacture of ornaments), but for their meat as well. However,
the deliberate extraction of pelts or feathers remains difcult to
establish from the archeological record alone (Mallye, 2007;
Laroulandie, 2009).
Upper Magdalenian techno-economic systems remain based
around blades and bladelets, although their technical roles evolved.
Blade tools continue to be transported over long distances, however
their production is freed from technical and economic constraints
(Langlais, 2010). This is most evident in the greater optimization of
locally available raw material sources, however this entailed
notable consequences in terms of size and quality, especially in the
Pyrenees (Simonnet, 2003; Lacombe, 2005; Langlais, 2010). The

M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

145

Fig. 7. Diagram illustrating the changing trajectories of Magdalenian osseous and lithic weaponry between 18 and 14,000 calBP in the South-West of France (RTI: regional
technological innovation).

integrated production of blades and bladelets broadened the

spectrum of blank choice and permitted the production of small
blades to be transformed into points. While lithic armatures
demonstrate an appreciable regional diversication of morphotypes (Langlais, 2008), Upper Magdalenian osseous tool traditions
continue those of the earlier phase (Averbouh, 2000). Nonetheless,
certain innovations, such as fork-based antler points and the spread
of barbed points bear witness to regional idiosyncrasies (Ptillon,
2008b).

This evolution of both lithic and osseous tool kits during the
Upper Magdalenian also implies new hunting practices and it is
tempting to draw parallels between this evolution and the access to
(and selective choices of) new species. For example, the exploitation of small game, from a technological and subsistence standpoint, necessarily implies the acquisition and development of new
knowledge for their capture and processing. Questions can be
posed as to the function of shouldered, tanged, or foliate points in
addition to certain barbed points made of antler. Concurrently, but

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M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

at another interpretive level, nothing prevents envisaging a reorganization of the social division of tasks or certain ways of
viewing the world.
In attempting to rene the complex interaction between resource
availability and technical or socio-economic traditions and in order
to consider different forces driving these changes, the focus is on
a particular aspect of the archeological record: lithic and osseous
weapons. These artifact classes have the two-fold advantage of being
practically ubiquitous across the period and are directly related to
the acquisition of animal resources. Furthermore, they portray rapid
temporal and spatial variations and are therefore sound indicators of
chrono-cultural change (Ptillon, 2006; Langlais, 2010).
4. Changing trajectories: the example of magdalenian lithic
and bone weaponry
Direct radiocarbon dates recently procured from either prey
remains (cf. supra) or antler weaponry, for example from the site of
Isturitz (Szmidt et al., 2009b), provide better chronological resolution for discussing the evolution of Magdalenian hunting weaponry between 18 and 14 ka calBP. Bearing in mind the state of
research as well as limits of chronological precisions, four key
moments can be distinguished (Fig. 7).
At the beginning of the Middle Magdalenian (ca. 18,000 calBP),
an initial reconguration of antler weaponry can be observed
across the entire Magdalenian cultural sphere, especially in the
experimentation with new hafting methods. This is evident in the
development of Lussac-Angles points (Bertrand et al., 2003) and
the appearance of the rst undecorated spearthrower hooks
(Cattelain, 2004). Concerning lithic armatures, this period is noteworthy for the development of new morphotypes, especially
scalene bladelets in South-west France (upper levels of Saint-Germain-La-Rivire, Peyrugues c.3., Gandil, etc. Langlais, 2007b) and
pointed backed bladelets with truncated bases in the Poitou region,
as at Le Taillis des Coteaux, La Marche and Le Roc-aux-Sorciers
(Primault et al., 2007; Chehmana and Beyries, 2010; Langlais,
2010). Lussac-Angles points diffuse over signicantly larger territories between the south of the Paris Basin and the Iberian Peninsula (Bertrand et al., 2003), in parallel with a regionalization of
lithic morphotypes on either side of the Poitou region (Langlais,
2008).
Around 17,000 calBP was marked by the development of whale
bone points (Ptillon, 2008a), bivalve points (composed of two halfround rods) (Feruglio and Buisson, 1999; Rigaud, 2006) and the rst
barbed points (previously referred to as proto-harpoons). Decorated
antler points and spearthrower hooks appear, some of which
portray veritable regional idiosyncrasies (Cattelain, 2005; Fritz
et al., 2007), while others signal more extensive cultural units
(Braun, 2005). In terms of lithic armatures, the development of
small pointed backed bladelets in the Pyrenees (Tuc dAudoubert,
Isturitz, etc.) were produced from the edges of laterally prepared
cores which are markedly different from the scalene bladelets of
the Aquitaine region (Langlais in Bgouen et al., 2009; Langlais,
2010).
The beginning of the Upper Magdalenian in the Pyrenees and
Cantabrian Spain, ca. 16,000 calBP, sees yet another reconguration
of antler weapons including the development of barbed points and
new hafting methods such as forked bases, double-beveled bases
and foreshafts (Ptillon, 2006, 2007). In terms of lithic weaponry,
changes include the development of long shouldered points in the
Aquitaine region as at Duruthy (c.3, Arambourou et al., 1978;
Dachary, 2006) or Morin (c.B, Langlais, in prep.). A number of sites
in the Pyrenees are noteworthy for the presence of scalene triangles
made from bladelets, which are at times microlithic, such as at
Belvis or Parco (Langlais, 2008).

Finally, towards 15,000 calBP, barbed points become more

standardized and the development of double-beveled points
coincides with the abandonment of fork-based points, half-round
rods and whale bone projectile heads. Lithic points also change,
most notably with the addition of tanged Teyjat points and
Laugerie-Basse type foliate points (Demars and Laurent, 1989) as at
Bois-Ragot (c.5, Le Licon-Julien, 2005) and Crozo Bastido
(Lorblanchet, 1972), while further south, up to the eastern Iberian
coast, scalene triangles seem to persist (Langlais, 2010).
These four moments probably represent the coalescence of
a bundle of innovations forming part of an evolutionary
continuum whose ner aspects unfortunately still require further
documentation. Furthermore, spatial and temporal differences,
representing either episodes of cultural unication or regionalization, are observable in both osseous and lithic weaponry. These
changing trajectories shed new light on Late Glacial huntergatherer technical ingenuity inherent in the continual renovation
of a specic element of their tool-kit e hunting weaponry.
5. Conclusion
During the Late Glacial period between 18,000 and 14,000 calBP,
the archeological record of several different aspects of huntergatherer activities attest to an internal evolution between the
Middle and Upper phases of the Magdalenian in the South-west of
France. Throughout these four millennia, rapid changes are
perceptible in hunting weaponry, which may be tied to the
syncopation of techno-economic choices outlined above. Dynamic
technical solutions, evident in these various forms of hunting
weaponry, highlight the signicant technological creativity and
innovation inherent in these objects vital to hunter-gather groups.
Understanding of the forces driving these changing trajectories still
remains limited and can only be further advanced by integrating
non-environmental factors such as personal ornamentation,
mobiliary and parietal art, or funerary practices, all of which were
undoubtedly instrumental to these hunter-gatherer groups.
The difculty in evaluating the different temporal factors
inuencing these changes is compounded by problems connected
to different dating methods (conventional 14C dates versus AMS
dates, differences in dates produced by different laboratories,
continental versus marine 14C including reservoir effects, glacial
chronologies, etc.). Nevertheless, it would be imprudent to deny
that changes in landscape structure and resource availability did
not, in some way or another, inuence the subsistence strategies
and imagination of the hunter-gather groups that depended upon
them. The inevitable consequences of demographic growth during
the Middle Magdalenian, most likely made possible by an
augmentation of ungulate biomass (cf. Delpech, 1999), must also be
taken into consideration. Such an expansion of biomass would have
undoubtedly supported the establishment and maintenance of
large-scale social networks involving the long distance diffusion of
technological innovations. The propagation of new ideas and
technological savoir-faire would have stimulated or inuenced the
development of Magdalenian material culture and the adaptive
choices of Late Glacial hunter-gather groups.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the organizers of workshop 26 at
INQUA-2011 in Bern, as well as Denise Leesch, Lawrence Guy Straus
and Thomas Terberger for having accepted our contribution as part
of their session and the constructive comments of three anonymous reviewers. We would also like to thank the Treilles Foundation, the PREHISTOPYR Project of the Communaut de Travail des
Pyrnes and the MAGDATIS Project (ANR 2011 BSH3 005 02) for

M. Langlais et al. / Quaternary International 272-273 (2012) 138e149

funding this research. Finally, we would like to thank Brad Gravina

and Marie-Claire Dawson for helping with the translation and
formating of the text.
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