Commission 8 ‘Upper Palaeolithic of Eurasia’ serves as a catalyst for explorations into the technological, cultural, environmental, and indirectly biological evolution during the Upper Palaeolithic in Eurasia. During this period of human evolution, the accelerated shifts in stone and osseous technologies coincide with the replacement of populations at a time of dynamic climatic fluctuations. Research into behavioural and chronological markers is pivotal for the reconstruction of Homo sapiens dispersals alongside extinct human species such as Neanderthals and Denisovans. Our commitment extends to organizing pertinent up-to-date conferences and publishing our results, contributing to the collective understanding of Upper Palaeolithic dynamics.
The commission is dedicated to the study of Upper Palaeolithic archaeological assemblages, including the transition from the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic and the replacement of Levallois technology by blade technology (Initial Upper Palaeolithic) and bladelet technologies (Early Upper Palaeolithic). Concerning evolving definitions of the various Upper Palaeolithic entities over the last two decades, the commission aims to bring together research-active specialists from different parts of Eurasia, to develop contacts and collaborations between teams working in diverse fields and to foster more interdisciplinary research.
The commission aims to gather research from high-resolution archaeological contexts, to critically evaluate the contexts from which the data originate and to contribute to adjusting interpretations and definitions of Upper Palaeolithic techno-cultural entities. Analysis of the interplay between chronometric and environmental data can reveal changes in subsistence and technological strategies of the human groups of the Upper Palaeolithic.
Through its activities, the commission strives to investigate the variability of Upper Palaeolithic cultural traditions across diverse spatial and temporal scales, with an additional focus on the transitions between techno-complexes (e.g., Initial to Early Upper Palaeolithic, or Aurignacian to Gravettian). It aims to understand how human groups reacted and adapted to climatic or environmental conditions, by analysing the complex dynamics of technological and cultural evolution.
