Comments on Mezmaiskaya (north Caucasus)

The recent publication of the upper levels at Mezmaiskaya has made it possible to better understand the Early Upper Paleolithic in this cave and, more generally, for area in the Caucasus region (Golovanova eta!. , 2006, specifically Eur-asian Prehistory Vol. 4: 2: 2006: 43-78). In particular , the early dates (36,100 ± 2,300 BP) demonstrate the importance of this site in the study of exchanges between the Zagros and the Crimea. The abundant figures clearly show the technological and typological affinities of these assemblages. The authors insist on the abrupt nature of the appearance of these industries that break from In effect, evidence of Mousterian techniques is rarely documented on the plates (Golovanova et a!., 2006: Fig. 23: 12-13) and the assemblage suggests a rapid change, apparently due to a wave of migration of anatomically modem humans across Europe (crania from Oase, in Romania; Trinkaus, 2007; Rougier eta!., 2007). At Mezmaiskaya, the lithic techniques employed first demonstrate the preparation of short blades, extracted from multidirectional cores with