EXETER, ENGLAND—According to a statement released by the University of Exeter, hunter-gatherers who lived during the Late Gravettian era some 27,000 years ago did not follow herds of migrating reindeer, but traveled long distances every autumn in order to target sedentary herds. Archaeologist Alex Pryor of the University of Exeter and his colleagues examined stone tools, bones, and two hearths from Lubná VI, a kill-butchery site in the Czech Republic. The remains of at least seven reindeer were identified among the animal bones. Analysis of the strontium, oxygen, and carbon isotopes in their teeth indicates that the deer lived primarily in the region, in the foothills of the Bohemian-Moravian highlands and the flat Bohemian Cretaceous plains. Meanwhile, the contents of the reindeers’ dental plaque suggests that they died during the autumn or early winter. Analysis of the stone tools at the site indicates that they originated some 75 miles to the east, and so were likely carried by the hunters who traveled to the region in search of rich food and winter clothing. “The quality of these varied according to the season, particularly regarding the hide, where fur length would dictate how warm and portable the clothes would be,” Pryor explained. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences. To read about nearly 10,000-year-old hunting grounds in North America, go to “Where the Ice Age Caribou Ranged.”
