Relationships between reindeer and man in southwestern France during the Magdalenian

• Main Authors: Kuntz, Delphine, Costamagno, Sandrine
• Other Authors: Travaux et recherches archéologiques sur les cultures, les espaces et les sociétés (TRACES), Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication (MCC)-École des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS)-Université Toulouse - Jean Jaurès (UT2J)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2011
• Subjects: Renne; Magdalénien; subsistance; mobilité; Sud-Ouest de la France; archeo; geo; Rangifer tarandus; renne
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00593516

International audience French Late Glacial deposits, mostly discovered at the end of the 19th century, contain abundant reindeer bones (Rangifer tarandus). This species, which disappeared from France ca. 12000 BP, during the Allerød climatic oscillation, constituted the main game of Magdalenian groups of several geographical zones. This paper presents the results regarding modalities of acquisition and treatment of reindeer carcasses by Magdalenian groups in southwestern France. The Reindeer mass kills hypotheses proposed for the Parisian Basin cannot be applied to the South of France. The factors responsible for this difference are considered, notably seasons of hunt and extent of reindeer migrations.