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{{short description|Archaeological site in northern Spain, rich in human fossils}}
{{Short description|Mountain range in northern Spain}}
{{Infobox ancient site
{{Infobox ancient site
| name = Atapuerca Mountains
| name = Atapuerca Mountains
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| caption = Atapuerca Mountains panorama
| caption = Atapuerca Mountains panorama
| image_size = 240 px
| image_size = 240 px
| map_type = Spain Castile and León#Spain
| map_type = Spain Province of Burgos#Spain Castile and León#Spain
| map_alt = Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
| map_alt = Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
| map_caption = Location in Spain
| map_caption = Location in Spain
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| cultures =
| cultures =
| dependency_of =
| dependency_of =
| occupants = ''[[Homo antecessor]]'', ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'', ''[[Homo neanderthalensis]]
| occupants = ''[[Homo antecessor]]'', ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'', ''[[Homo neanderthalensis]]''
| event =
| event =
| excavations = since 1964
| excavations = since 1964
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}}
}}
}}
}}

The '''Atapuerca Mountains''' ({{lang-es|Sierra de Atapuerca}}) is a [[karst topography|karstic]] hill formation near the village of [[Atapuerca (town)|Atapuerca]], in the [[Province of Burgos]] ([[Autonomous communities of Spain|autonomous community]] of [[Castile and Leon]]), northern Spain. In a still ongoing excavation campaign, rich [[fossil]] deposits and stone tool [[Assemblage (archaeology)|assemblages]] were discovered which are attributed to the earliest known [[Hominina|hominin]] residents in [[Western Europe]].<ref name=Smithsonian>{{cite web|url=http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-fossils/species/homo-heidelbergensis|publisher=Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History|title=''Homo heidelbergensis'': Evolutionary Tree information|accessdate=January 26, 2017}}</ref> This "exceptional reserve of data" has been deposited during extensive [[Lower Paleolithic]] presence, as the Atapuerca Mountains served as the preferred occupation site of ''[[Homo erectus]]'', ''[[Homo antecessor]]'' (or ''Homo erectus antecessor''), ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'' and ''[[Homo neanderthalensis]]''<ref>https://www.nature.com/news/oldest-ancient-human-dna-details-dawn-of-neanderthals-1.19557</ref> communities. The earliest specimen so far unearthed and reliably dated confirm an age between 1.2 Million and 630,000 years. Some finds are exhibited in the nearby [[Museum of Human Evolution]], in [[Burgos]]. The site was designated a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]], under the name, ''Archaeological Site of Atapuerca''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/989 |title=Archaeological Site of Atapuerca - UNESCO World Heritage Centre |publisher=Whc.unesco.org |date= |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref><ref name="MyUser_Geomorfologia.es_January_27_2017c">{{cite web |url=http://www.geomorfologia.es/sites/default/files/C8%20Duero%20Basin.pdf |title=Landforms And Geomorphological Processes In The Duero Basin. Pleistocene Geoarcheology Of Ambrona And Atapuerca Sites |publisher=Geomorfologia.es |date= |author= |accessdate= January 27, 2017}}</ref>
The '''Atapuerca Mountains''' ({{langx|es|Sierra de Atapuerca}}) is a [[karst topography|karstic]] hill formation near the village of [[Atapuerca, Province of Burgos|Atapuerca]] in the [[province of Burgos]] ([[Autonomous communities of Spain|autonomous community]] of [[Castile and Leon]]), northern Spain.

In a still ongoing excavation campaign, rich [[fossil]] deposits and stone tool [[Assemblage (archaeology)|assemblages]] have been discovered which are attributed to the earliest known [[Hominina|hominin]] residents in [[Western Europe]].<ref name=Smithsonian>{{cite web|url=http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-fossils/species/homo-heidelbergensis|publisher=Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History|title=''Homo heidelbergensis'': Evolutionary Tree information|access-date=January 26, 2017}}</ref> This "exceptional reserve of data" has been deposited during extensive [[Lower Paleolithic]] presence, as the Atapuerca Mountains served as the preferred occupation site of ''[[Homo erectus]]'', ''[[Homo antecessor]]'', ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'' and ''[[Homo neanderthalensis]]''<ref>{{Cite journal|doi = 10.1038/531286a|title = Oldest ancient-human DNA details dawn of Neanderthals|year = 2016|last1 = Callaway|first1 = Ewen|journal = Nature|volume = 531|issue = 7594|page = 286|pmid = 26983523|bibcode = 2016Natur.531..296C|s2cid = 4459329|doi-access = free}}</ref> communities. The earliest specimen so far unearthed and reliably dated confirm an age between 1.2 million and 630,000 years.

The [[Archaeological site of Atapuerca]] is a World Heritage Site. Some finds are exhibited in the nearby [[Museum of Human Evolution]], in [[Burgos]].


==Regional geography==
==Regional geography==


Encompassing {{convert|284119|ha|abbr=on}} or over 1000 square miles, the Atapuerca Mountains are a [[Altitudinal zonation|mid-altitude]] [[karst]]ic range of small foothills around {{convert|1080|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level. They are located at the north-east corner of the [[Douro]] basin, to the south of the [[Cantabrian Mountains]] that run across northern Spain,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/?id=IBYXBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA145&lpg=PA145&dq=Bureba+Pass#v=onepage&q=Bureba%20Pass&f=false |title=The Neanderthal's Necklace: In Search of the First Thinkers - Juan Arsuaga - Google Books |date= 2004-03-25|accessdate= January 26, 2017|isbn=9781568583037 |last1=Arsuaga |first1=Juan }}</ref> and stretch alongside the ''[[Bureba corridor]]'', a mountain pass that connects the [[Ebro]] river valley with the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and the [[Duero]] basin. This conjunction{{clarify|date=December 2017}} constitutes an [[ecotone]], which is rich in species of both [[ecosystem]]s. The mountain pass was part of a [[causeway]] built by the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]], as well as part of the [[pilgrimage]] route of [[Way of Saint James|Saint James]]; it is now traversed by the [[N-I]] and [[Autopista AP-1|AP-1]] highways. The mountains are strategically located between two major [[drainage divide]]s and near the mountain pass; this location is assumed to have been a factor in the area's successful and prolonged hominid habitation.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/288630315_fig1_Fig-1-Geographic-setting-of-the-Sierra-de-Atapuerca-and-map-of-the-Trinchera-del |title=. Geographic setting of the Sierra de Atapuerca and map of the... - Figure 1 of 14 |publisher=researchgate.net |date= |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://uh.edu/engines/epi2516.htm |title=No. 2516: Atapuerca |publisher=Uh.edu |date= |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref>
Encompassing {{convert|284119|ha}}, the Atapuerca Mountains are a [[Altitudinal zonation|mid-altitude]] [[karst]]ic range of small foothills around {{cvt|1080|m|ft}} above sea level. They are located at the north-east corner of the [[Douro]] basin, to the south of the [[Cantabrian Mountains]] that run across northern Spain,<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=zCunKjqcJAEC&pg=PA145 |title=The Neanderthal's Necklace: In Search of the First Thinkers |year=2009 |isbn=9780786740734 |last1=Arsuaga |first1=Juan |publisher=Basic Books}}</ref> and stretch alongside the ''[[Bureba corridor]]'', a mountain pass that connects the [[Ebro]] river valley with the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and the [[Duero]] basin. This conjunction{{clarify|date=December 2017}} constitutes an [[ecotone]], which is rich in species of both [[ecosystem]]s. The mountain pass was part of a [[causeway]] built by the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]], as well as part of the [[pilgrimage]] route of [[Way of Saint James|Saint James]]; it is now traversed by the [[N-1 road (Spain)|N-1 road]] and [[Autopista AP-1|AP-1]] highways. The mountains are strategically located between two major [[drainage divide]]s and near the mountain pass; this location is assumed to have been a factor in the area's successful and prolonged hominid habitation.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/288630315_fig1_Fig-1-Geographic-setting-of-the-Sierra-de-Atapuerca-and-map-of-the-Trinchera-del |title=. Geographic setting of the Sierra de Atapuerca and map of the... - Figure 1 of 14 |access-date= January 26, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://uh.edu/engines/epi2516.htm |title=No. 2516: Atapuerca |publisher=Uh.edu |access-date= January 26, 2017}}</ref>


==Fauna==
==Fauna==
In 2008 scholars identified a new ''[[genus]]'' and species of [[red-toothed shrew]] from the [[Pleistocene]] layers of the Gran Dolina cave. Until this discovery, researchers had believed that the fossils found in this area were of the ''[[Beremendia fissidens]]'' type, but recent research has been published to support an Asiatic type called ''[[Dolinasorex]] glyphodon'' that might be endemic and is the earliest known type of [[soricid]] in the Iberian peninsula.<ref>ROFES, J. and CUENCA‐BESCÓS, G. (2009), A new genus of red‐toothed shrew (Mammalia, Soricidae) from the Early Pleistocene of Gran Dolina (Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain), and a phylogenetic approach to the Eurasiatic Soricinae. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 155: 904-925. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2008.00470.x</ref>
In 2008 scholars identified a new ''[[genus]]'' and species of [[red-toothed shrew]] from the [[Pleistocene]] layers of the Gran Dolina cave. Until this discovery, researchers had believed that the fossils found in this area were of the ''[[Beremendia fissidens]]'' type, but recent research has been published to support an Asiatic type called ''[[Dolinasorex]] glyphodon'' that might be endemic and is the earliest known type of [[soricid]] in the Iberian peninsula.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Rofes | first1 = J. | last2 = Cuenca-Bescós | first2 = G. | year = 2009 | title = A new genus of red-toothed shrew (Mammalia, Soricidae) from the Early Pleistocene of Gran Dolina (Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain), and a phylogenetic approach to the Eurasiatic Soricinae | journal = Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society | volume = 155 | issue = 4| pages = 904–925 | doi = 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2008.00470.x | doi-access = free }}</ref>


==Archaeological site==
==Archaeological site==
{{Main|Archaeological site of Atapuerca}}
[[File:Plano-de-Atapuerca.gif|thumb|upright=1.35|Map of the railway trench with discovery sites]]
⚫
[[File:Trinchera Atapuerca2.jpg|thumb|upright=2.4|none|Location of the excavation sites along a [[railway cutting]] (after the visible protective roofs): (1) Entrance to the cutting; (2) Sima del Elefante; (3) Galería; (4) Gran Dolina]]
The archaeological significance of the area became increasingly apparent during the construction of a [[railway]] line as deep trenches were cut through the rocks and sediments of the ''Gran Dolina'' site, the ''Galería Elefante'' and at ''Sima de los Huesos''. The subsequent excavation of 1964 under the direction of Francisco Jordá Cerdá succeeded with the discovery of anthropogenic artifacts and human fossils from a broad time range of early humans, hunter-gatherer groups to [[Bronze Age]] occupants and [[Anatomically modern human|modern human]] settlers. Further campaigns expanded and interdisciplinary work has been undertaken by several teams, led by [[Emiliano Aguirre]] from 1978 to 1990 and later jointly by [[Eudald Carbonell]], José María Bermúdez de Castro and [[Juan Luis Arsuaga]].
The [[archaeological site]] was designated a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]] in 2000.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/989 |title=Archaeological Site of Atapuerca - UNESCO World Heritage Centre |publisher=Whc.unesco.org |access-date= January 26, 2017}}</ref><ref name="MyUser_Geomorfologia.es_January_27_2017c">{{cite web |url=http://www.geomorfologia.es/sites/default/files/C8%20Duero%20Basin.pdf |title=Landforms And Geomorphological Processes In The Duero Basin. Pleistocene Geoarcheology Of Ambrona And Atapuerca Sites |publisher=Geomorfologia.es |access-date=January 27, 2017 |archive-date=September 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912225208/http://geomorfologia.es/sites/default/files/C8%20Duero%20Basin.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The [[President of the Junta of Castile and León|government]] of [[Castile and León]] has designated the site an ''Espacio cultural'' and under the title ''Zona Arqueológica sierra de Atapuerca'' the site is protected under Spanish law as it was induced into the [[Bien de Interés Cultural]] heritage register.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jcyl.es/jcyl/patrimoniocultural/atapuerca/AnexoMemoria.pdf |title=MEMORIA del Espacio Cultural "Sierra de Atapuerca" |publisher=Jcyl.es |date= |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref>

⚫
[[File:Trinchera Atapuerca2.jpg|thumb|upright=2.4|none|Location of the excavation sites in the railway ditch (after the visible protective roofs): (1) Entrance to the ditch; (2) Sima del Elefante; (3) Galería; (4) Gran Dolina]]
[[File:Dolina-Pano-3.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|[[karst]] cave in Atapuerca.]]
[[File:Zarpazos.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Trinchera Zarpazos, part of the Galería system in 2006]]
[[File:Homo heidelbergensis-Cranium -5.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2| The ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'' ''Cranium 5'', one of the most important discoveries; its nearly complete [[mandible]] was only found years later]]

===Portalón (1910 to present)===

The combined work of [[archaeologist]]s [[Jesús Carballo]] (1910 to 1911), Geoffrey Clark (1971), José María Apellániz (1973 to 1983) and the current team of [[Juan Luis Arsuaga]] account for the documentation of the excavation sequence of ceramic objects from all relevant sediment layers since the [[Neolithic]].

===Galería de la Eduarda y el Kolora (1972)===

The Galería de la Eduarda y el Kolora is a local cave that contains parietal [[Cave painting|rock paintings]], only discovered in 1972 by a group of local [[speleology|speleologists]].

===Galería (1978 to present)===
Among numerous [[faunal]] and [[floral]] fossils a [[mandible|jaw fragment]] was found during the 1970s and a skull fragment in 1995, which both belong to ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]''. They date to between 600,000 and 400,000 years BP.

===Trinchera Dolina (1981 to present)===
The ''Gran Dolina'' (also Trinchera Dolina, En: Dolina trench) site is a huge cavern, which is being excavated since September 1981. Its sediments were divided into eleven stratae (TD-1 to TD-11)
* TD-11: [[Mousterian]] tools found
* Level TD-10 presumed to have been a ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'' camp with tools and [[bison]] fossils.
* Level TD-8, accessible since 1994, it contained remarkable [[carnivore]] fossils.
* In level TD-7, a [[bovine]] leg in anatomical position was recovered in 1994
* TD-6 (Aurora stratum): In 1994 and 1995, over 80 bone fragments of five or six [[hominid]]s found, between 850,000 and 780,000 years old, being at least 250,000 years older than any other hominid yet discovered in western [[Europe]]. About 25% of the bones have manipulation marks that suggest [[cannibalism]]. Classification of these remains is still being debated, suggestions range from ''[[Homo erectus]]'' to ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'' and ''[[Homo antecessor]]''. Some researchers, who are familiar with the stratigraphic material of Gran Dolina argue that ''[[Homo antecessor]]'' may be the ancestor of ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]'', who in turn gave rise to ''[[Homo neandertalensis]]''. The ''Homo erectus''-like fossils were also found with retouched flake and core stone tools.
* Level TD-5 is assumed to have been a carnivore den.
* In TD-4 (dated to 780,000 BP), four [[Stone tool|lithic]] pieces were found during the 1991 excavation and several remnants of ''[[Ursus dolinensis]]'', a sparsely described bear species.
* At the lowest levels (TD-1 and TD-2) no fossils

===Sima de los Huesos (1983 to present){{anchor|Sima de los Huesos}}===

''Sima de los Huesos'' (Pit of Bones) accounts for the greatest number of valuable scientific discoveries and knowledge acquired with far-reaching implications. This site is located at the bottom of a {{convert|13|m|ft|abbr=on}} deep shaft, or "chimney" accessible via the narrow corridors of the ''Cueva Mayor''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/prehistoric-skull-with-puncture-wounds-could-be-worlds-first-murder-mystery/ar-BBkjj9A |title=Prehistoric skull with puncture wounds could be world's first murder mystery |newspaper=Msn.com |date= |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref>

Since 1997 the excavators have located more than 5,500 human skeletal remains deposited during the Middle [[Pleistocene]] period, at least 350,000 years old, which represent 28 individuals of ''[[Homo heidelbergensis]]''.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/?id=7Q3nOqkJQwoC&pg=PA158&dq=archaic+H.+sapiens+burial+symbols#PPA159,M1 |title=How Symbols, Language, and Intelligence Evolved from Early Primates to Modern Human|authorlink=Stanley Greenspan|last=Greenspan|first=Stanley|isbn=978-0-306-81449-5|date=2006-02-07}}</ref> Associated finds include ''[[Ursus deningeri]]'' fossils and a [[biface|hand axe]] called ''Excalibur''. Having received a surprisingly high degree of attention, a number of experts support the hypothesis that this particular [[Acheulean]] tool made of red [[quartzite]] seems to have served as a ritual offering, most likely for a funeral. The idea sparked a renewal of the disputed evolutionary progress and the stages of human cognitive, intellectual and conceptual development.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2003/jan/09/research.highereducation |title=Excalibur, the rock that may mark a new dawn for man |newspaper=The Guardian |date=January 9, 2003 |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref> Ninety percent of the known ''Homo heidelbergensis'' fossil record have been obtained at the site. The fossil bone pit includes:
* The complete cranium, ''Skull 5'', nicknamed ''[[Miguelón]]'', the fragmented cranial remains of ''Skull 4'', nicknamed ''Agamenón'' and ''Skull 6'', nicknamed ''Rui'' (a reference to the medieval military leader [[El Cid]]).
* A complete [[pelvis]] (''Pelvis 1''), humorously nicknamed ''Elvis''
* Mandibles, teeth, a lot of postcranial bones ([[femur|femora]], hand and foot bones, [[vertebral column|vertebrae]], ribs, etc.)
* Remains of a child with [[craniosynostosis]] were found and dated to 530,000 [[Before Present|BP]]. The find was considered to provide evidence for food sharing in early human populations.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pnas.org/content/106/16/6573.full |title=Craniosynostosis in the Middle Pleistocene human Cranium 14 from the Sima de los Huesos, Atapuerca, Spain |publisher=Pnas.org |date= |author= |accessdate= January 26, 2017}}</ref>
* [[Mitochondrial DNA]] (mtDNA) from a 400,000 year old [[femur]] has been sequenced, the oldest hominin mtDNA recovered as of 2013. The mtDNA was found to be closer to the mtDNA of [[Denisova hominin]]s than to the mtDNA of Neanderthals.<ref>{{cite web|last=Callaway|first=Ewen|title=Hominin DNA baffles experts|url=http://www.nature.com/news/hominin-dna-baffles-experts-1.14294|publisher=Nature.com|accessdate=8 December 2013}}</ref>
* In 2016, [[nuclear DNA]] analysis results determined the Sima hominins to be Neanderthals and not Denisova hominins, and the divergence between Neanderthals and Denisovans predates 430,000 years.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/oldest-ancient-human-dna-details-dawn-of-neandertals/|title = Oldest Ancient-Human DNA Details Dawn of Neandertals|last = magazine|first = Ewen Callaway,Nature|website = Scientific American|access-date = 2016-03-14}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last = Meyer|first = Matthias|last2 = Arsuaga|first2 = Juan-Luis|last3 = de Filippo|first3 = Cesare|last4 = Nagel|first4 = Sarah|last5 = Aximu-Petri|first5 = Ayinuer|last6 = Nickel|first6 = Birgit|last7 = Martínez|first7 = Ignacio|last8 = Gracia|first8 = Ana|last9 = de Castro|first9 = José María Bermúdez|date = 2016-03-14|title = Nuclear DNA sequences from the Middle Pleistocene Sima de los Huesos hominins|url = http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature17405.html|journal = Nature|language = en|volume = 531|issue = 7595|doi = 10.1038/nature17405|issn = 1476-4687|pages=504–507|pmid=26976447}}</ref>

Some excavators have stated that the concentration of bones in the pit allows the suggestion of a traditional [[burial]] culture among the cave's inhabitants. A competing theory cites the lack of small bones in the assemblage and suggests that the fossils were washed into the pit by non-human agents.

===Sima del Elefante (1996 to present)===
According to José María Bermúdez de Castro, co-director of research at Atapuerca, the Sima del Elefante findings support "anatomical evidence of the hominids that fabricated [[tool]]s more than one million years ago", which may have been the earliest among Western European hominids. The first discovery in June 2007 was a tooth<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6256356.stm |title='First west Europe tooth' found |date=2007-06-30 |publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> followed by a fragment of a jawbone and a [[proximal phalanges|proximal phalanx]] in 2008.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080326/full/news.2008.691.html |title='Fossil find is oldest European yet' |date=2008-03-26 |publisher=[[Nature News]]}}</ref>

===Cueva del Mirador (1999 to present)===

This site provides information on earliest local farmers and herders of the late [[Neolithic]] and [[Bronze Age]].

===Orchids Valley (2000 to 2001) and Hundidero (2004 to 2005)===
Stone tools of the [[Upper Paleolithic]] have been extracted from this locality.


== Recorded history ==
== Recorded history ==
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== Economic and demographic development ==
== Economic and demographic development ==
Apart from the typical dryland farming of the region, the municipality has grown significantly in economic, demographic and social level with the impact generated by the presence of the archaeological site and its associated services. 15% of the active population owns a job related to tourism. This "tertiarization" of their economy has reversed depopulation by growing and rejuvenating it (with the average age at 42 years).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00411|title=Creation of economic and demographic development [Social Impact]. ATAPUERCA project|last=|first=|date=|website=SIOR. Social Impact Open Repository|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=}}</ref>
Apart from the typical [[dryland farming]] of the region, the municipality has grown significantly in economic, demographic and social level with the impact generated by the presence of the [[archaeological site of Atapuerca|archaeological site]] and its associated services. 15% of the active population owns a job related to tourism. This "tertiarization" of their economy has reversed depopulation by growing and rejuvenating it (with the average age at 42 years).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00411|title=Creation of economic and demographic development [Social Impact]. ATAPUERCA project|website=SIOR. Social Impact Open Repository|access-date=2017-09-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905141112/http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00411|archive-date=2017-09-05|url-status=dead}}</ref>


== Gallery ==
== Gallery ==
{{wide image|Sierra de Atapuerca.jpg|1000px|align-cap=center|'''panoramic view of the Atapuerca site'''}}
{{wide image|Sierra de Atapuerca.jpg|1000px|align-cap=center|'''panoramic view of the Atapuerca site'''}}
<gallery mode="packed-hover" heights="150">
<gallery mode="packed-hover" heights="150">
File:Homo antecessor female.jpg|Model of a female ''[[Homo antecessor]]'' of Atapuerca mountains practicing cannibalism (Ibeas Museum, Burgos, Spain)
File:Núcleo Atapuerca TD11.jpg|Lithic core in flint, section TD-11 of "Galería", Atapuerca
File:Núcleo Atapuerca TD11.jpg|Lithic core in flint, section TD-11 of "Galería", Atapuerca
File:Homo antecessor.jpg|''[[Homo antecessor]]'', incomplete skull found in "Gran Dolina", Atapuerca
File:Homo antecessor.jpg|''[[Homo antecessor]]'', incomplete skull found in "Gran Dolina", Atapuerca
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* [[Devil's Tower (Gibraltar)]]
* [[Devil's Tower (Gibraltar)]]
* [[Forbes' Quarry]]
* [[Forbes' Quarry]]
* [[Template:Human timeline|Human timeline]]
* [[List of fossil sites]] ''(with link directory)''
* [[List of fossil sites]] ''(with link directory)''
* [[List of human evolution fossils]]
* [[List of human evolution fossils]]
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==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons|Atapuerca}}
{{Commons}}
⚫
* [http://www.atapuerca.tv/ Official Web Page of the Atapuerca UCM-ISCIII Research Group] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141008085645/http://www.atapuerca.tv/ |date=2014-10-08 }}
* [http://www.geomorfologia.es/sites/default/files/C8%20Duero%20Basin.pdf Landforms And Geomorphological Processes In The Duero Basin. Pleistocene Geoarcheology Of Ambrona And Atapuerca Sites]
⚫
* [http://www.atapuerca.tv/ Official Web Page of the Atapuerca UCM-ISCIII Research Group]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050728081214/http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/atapuerca/ American Museum of Natural History-Atapuerca]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050728081214/http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/atapuerca/ American Museum of Natural History-Atapuerca]
* [http://www.atapuerca.com/ www.atapuerca.com]
* [http://www.atapuerca.com/ www.atapuerca.com]
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{{Municipalities in Burgos}}
{{Municipalities in Burgos}}
{{Prehistoric technology| state=expanded}}
{{Prehistoric technology| state=expanded}}
{{portal bar|Anthropology|Evolutionary biology|Paleontology}}
{{portal bar|Evolutionary biology|Paleontology}}
{{Navbox prehistoric caves}}
{{Navbox prehistoric caves}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Spain]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Spain]]

Latest revision as of 19:12, 25 October 2024

Atapuerca Mountains
Sierra de Atapuerca
Atapuerca Mountains panorama
Atapuerca Mountains panorama
Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
Location in Spain
Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
Atapuerca Mountains (Castile and León)
Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
Atapuerca Mountains in Spain
Atapuerca Mountains (Spain)
Locationnear Atapuerca, Ibeas de Juarros
RegionBurgos, Castile and León
Coordinates42°22′0″N 3°31′20″W / 42.36667°N 3.52222°W / 42.36667; -3.52222
History
PeriodsPaleolithic
Associated withHomo antecessor, Homo heidelbergensis, Homo neanderthalensis
Site notes
Excavation datessince 1964
ArchaeologistsFrancisco Jordá Cerdá
Websitehttp://www.atapuerca.org/
Official nameArchaeological Site of Atapuerca
CriteriaCultural: (iii)(v)
Reference989
Inscription2000 (24th Session)
Area284.119 ha (702.07 acres)

The Atapuerca Mountains (Spanish: Sierra de Atapuerca) is a karstic hill formation near the village of Atapuerca in the province of Burgos (autonomous community of Castile and Leon), northern Spain.

In a still ongoing excavation campaign, rich fossil deposits and stone tool assemblages have been discovered which are attributed to the earliest known hominin residents in Western Europe.[1] This "exceptional reserve of data" has been deposited during extensive Lower Paleolithic presence, as the Atapuerca Mountains served as the preferred occupation site of Homo erectus, Homo antecessor, Homo heidelbergensis and Homo neanderthalensis[2] communities. The earliest specimen so far unearthed and reliably dated confirm an age between 1.2 million and 630,000 years.

The Archaeological site of Atapuerca is a World Heritage Site. Some finds are exhibited in the nearby Museum of Human Evolution, in Burgos.

Regional geography

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Encompassing 284,119 hectares (702,070 acres), the Atapuerca Mountains are a mid-altitude karstic range of small foothills around 1,080 m (3,540 ft) above sea level. They are located at the north-east corner of the Douro basin, to the south of the Cantabrian Mountains that run across northern Spain,[3] and stretch alongside the Bureba corridor, a mountain pass that connects the Ebro river valley with the Mediterranean Sea and the Duero basin. This conjunction[clarification needed] constitutes an ecotone, which is rich in species of both ecosystems. The mountain pass was part of a causeway built by the Romans, as well as part of the pilgrimage route of Saint James; it is now traversed by the N-1 road and AP-1 highways. The mountains are strategically located between two major drainage divides and near the mountain pass; this location is assumed to have been a factor in the area's successful and prolonged hominid habitation.[4][5]

Fauna

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In 2008 scholars identified a new genus and species of red-toothed shrew from the Pleistocene layers of the Gran Dolina cave. Until this discovery, researchers had believed that the fossils found in this area were of the Beremendia fissidens type, but recent research has been published to support an Asiatic type called Dolinasorex glyphodon that might be endemic and is the earliest known type of soricid in the Iberian peninsula.[6]

Archaeological site

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Main article: Archaeological site of Atapuerca
Location of the excavation sites along a railway cutting (after the visible protective roofs): (1) Entrance to the cutting; (2) Sima del Elefante; (3) Galería; (4) Gran Dolina

The archaeological site was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000.[7][8]

Recorded history

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Piedrahita ("standing stone") in the Atapuerca valley is according to records site of the Battle of Atapuerca, which took place in 1054 between the forces of Ferdinand I of Castile and his brother García V of Navarre.

Economic and demographic development

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Apart from the typical dryland farming of the region, the municipality has grown significantly in economic, demographic and social level with the impact generated by the presence of the archaeological site and its associated services. 15% of the active population owns a job related to tourism. This "tertiarization" of their economy has reversed depopulation by growing and rejuvenating it (with the average age at 42 years).[9]

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panoramic view of the Atapuerca site
  • Lithic core in flint, section TD-11 of "Galería", Atapuerca
    Lithic core in flint, section TD-11 of "Galería", Atapuerca
  • Homo antecessor, incomplete skull found in "Gran Dolina", Atapuerca
    Homo antecessor, incomplete skull found in "Gran Dolina", Atapuerca
  • Carnivore skull
    Carnivore skull
  • The railroad trench in which the first discoveries were made
    The railroad trench in which the first discoveries were made

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Homo heidelbergensis: Evolutionary Tree information". Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Retrieved January 26, 2017.
  2. ^ Callaway, Ewen (2016). "Oldest ancient-human DNA details dawn of Neanderthals". Nature. 531 (7594): 286. Bibcode:2016Natur.531..296C. doi:10.1038/531286a. PMID 26983523. S2CID 4459329.
  3. ^ Arsuaga, Juan (2009). The Neanderthal's Necklace: In Search of the First Thinkers. Basic Books. ISBN 9780786740734.
  4. ^ ". Geographic setting of the Sierra de Atapuerca and map of the... - Figure 1 of 14". Retrieved January 26, 2017.
  5. ^ "No. 2516: Atapuerca". Uh.edu. Retrieved January 26, 2017.
  6. ^ Rofes, J.; Cuenca-Bescós, G. (2009). "A new genus of red-toothed shrew (Mammalia, Soricidae) from the Early Pleistocene of Gran Dolina (Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain), and a phylogenetic approach to the Eurasiatic Soricinae". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 155 (4): 904–925. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2008.00470.x.
  7. ^ "Archaeological Site of Atapuerca - UNESCO World Heritage Centre". Whc.unesco.org. Retrieved January 26, 2017.
  8. ^ "Landforms And Geomorphological Processes In The Duero Basin. Pleistocene Geoarcheology Of Ambrona And Atapuerca Sites" (PDF). Geomorfologia.es. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 12, 2016. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  9. ^ "Creation of economic and demographic development [Social Impact]. ATAPUERCA project". SIOR. Social Impact Open Repository. Archived from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2017-09-05.
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