Dany Coutinho Nogueira

Can you identify this fossil? #fossilfriday

The bony labyrinth of Qafzeh 25 Homo sapiens from Israel - Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences The bony labyrinth has received growing attention in the field of human evolution as it is a useful phylogenetic indicator in hominins and is particularly useful for distinguishing anatomically modern humans and Neanderthals. The partial adult skeleton of Qafzeh 25 dated to 92 ± 5 ka B.P. suffers from serious post-mortem taphonomic damage that has limited its anatomical description and metrical analysis. However, the two petrosal bones are preserved and the bony labyrinths are not affected by post-mortem deformations. In this study, the methodology developed by Spoor (1993) is used to analyze and compare the morphometric data from Qafzeh 25 semi-circular canals and cochlea to that of other fossils from the site and more generally to the published hominin sample (Middle and Late Pleistocene hominins). While this analysis reveals that the Qafzeh 25 bony labyrinth resembles that of other Qafzeh individuals, it extends the range of variation within the sample for some variables.

It was Qafzeh 25! More info: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

For #fossilfriday let's play a game, guess the fossil!

Would you like to see more “guess the fossil” games on Fridays? 🧐

For #fossilfriday let's play a game, guess the fossil!

Just found out I didn’t get another grant I applied for. Disappointed, but still motivated to keep pushing forward. If anyone knows of opportunities (grants, contracts, collaborations, preferably in Portugal/Spain), I’d be very grateful for any leads. #Funding #Research

#FossilFriday Qafzeh 9 skull. Right side of the frontal bone with notable bone changes above the orbital region. From Coutinho-Nogueira, Coqueugniot & Tillier (2025)

Just found out I didn’t get another grant I applied for. Disappointed, but still motivated to keep pushing forward. If anyone knows of opportunities (grants, contracts, collaborations, preferably in Portugal/Spain), I’d be very grateful for any leads. #Funding #Research

How did Europe’s last hunter-gatherer-fisher communities bury their dead?
New excavations at the #Mesolithic site of Cabeço da Amoreira (Portugal) uncover 3 non-adult burials, shedding light on funerary practices, childhood, and life 8,000 years ago.
🔗 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Child burials of last hunter-gatherers offer insights into Mesolithic funerary behaviors In a recent study by Dany Coutinho-Nogueira and his colleagues, the remains of three non-adults from Cabeço da Amoreira were analyzed.

Analysis of child burials at Cabeço da Amoreira highlights diverse Mesolithic funerary practices and offers new perspectives on social and cultural dynamics during the hunter-gatherer to farmer transition. doi.org/g92zmr

CAM 2023-7 shows that Mesolithic communities invested time, care, and symbolism in their burials, even for children.
A rare window into the humanity of 8,000 years ago.
#FossilFriday #Mesolithic #Archaeology

This was no ordinary burial.
It points to special treatment not commonly described at Muge.
But why? 🧐
• Social status?
• A different group?
• Chronological differences?

The child lay on their back (dorsal decubitus), head to the northeast.
Arms flexed across the chest, legs drawn up tight (hyperflexed).
This position suggests careful placement, maybe even wrapping in perishable material.

Associated elements included:
• Wild boar bones (hemi-mandibles & a tooth) 🐗
• Turtle shells 🐢
• Closed cockle shells (Cerastoderma edule) 🐚
• Charcoal & ochre 🎨

The child was laid in a shallow depression, carefully prepared with:
• Shells (Scrobicularia plana) under the head 🐚
• Clay with plant impressions 🌿
• A thin layer of sand
It was a constructed structure.

In 2023, excavations at Cabeço da Amoreira uncovered a child, ~8.5 years old.
Unlike most burials at the site, this one was prepared with care and symbolism.

The Muge region (central Portugal) is famous for its Mesolithic shell mounds.
These were used, among other things, as necropolis for the last hunter-gatherer-fishers of Western Europe (~8200–7100 years ago).

For #FossilFriday: Meet CAM 2023-7, a Mesolithic child buried ~8,000 years ago in Portugal.
Their burial is one of the most elaborate ever found in the Muge shell mounds. What made it so special? 🐚🧵
#Mesolithic #Funerary #Paleoanthropology www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Oh nice! I’ll make sure he sees this 😅 Thanks

Together, these discoveries expand our understanding of how Mesolithic communities in Iberia cared for their non-adult dead and open new avenues for research on childhood, and funerary practices in prehistory.

The complex burial of CAM 2023-7 shows parallels with some adult graves at the site (see Umbelino et al. 2016). This suggests that elaborate treatment in funerary contexts was not limited to adults.

The differences observed in these burials—such as body position, presence/absence of material associated, and type of structure—point to variability in funerary practices among Mesolithic groups in the Tagus Valley.

These burials reveal striking variability:
➡️ Different body orientations
➡️ With/without associated material
➡️ Simple vs. complex structure (e.g., CAM 2023-7 laid in prepared layers of clay & shells)

Since 2019, 3 new non-adult burials were found:
• CAM 2019-5: ~9 yo, buried in a tightly flexed position
• CAM 2022-6: perinate, possibly stillborn
• CAM 2023-7: ~8 yo, buried with shells, ochre, and faunal remains

Cabeço da Amoreira is one of 15 Mesolithic shell mounds/middens in the Tagus Valley. Excavations started in the 19th century, but early records were limited. Recent research, using modern methods, provides more detailed information on the site and its funerary practices.

How did Europe’s last hunter-gatherer-fisher communities bury their dead?
New excavations at the #Mesolithic site of Cabeço da Amoreira (Portugal) uncover 3 non-adult burials, shedding light on funerary practices, childhood, and life 8,000 years ago.
🔗 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

The Non-Adult Burials of Cabeço da Amoreira, Muge (Portugal): Recent Discoveries and New Insights into Mesolithic Funerary Practices Cabeço da Amoreira, a key Mesolithic shell mound in the Muge region (central Portugal) provides critical insights into the funerary and socio-cultural practices of Western Europe’s last hunter-gath...

New article out!
🦴 The Non-Adult Burials of Cabeço da Amoreira, Muge (Portugal): Recent Discoveries and New Insights into Mesolithic Funerary Practices!
🔗 Read here: tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#archaeology #Mesolithic #bioarchaeology

The Non-Adult Burials of Cabeço da Amoreira, Muge (Portugal): Recent Discoveries and New Insights into Mesolithic Funerary Practices Cabeço da Amoreira, a key Mesolithic shell mound in the Muge region (central Portugal) provides critical insights into the funerary and socio-cultural practices of Western Europe’s last hunter-gath...

New article out!
🦴 The Non-Adult Burials of Cabeço da Amoreira, Muge (Portugal): Recent Discoveries and New Insights into Mesolithic Funerary Practices!
🔗 Read here: tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#archaeology #Mesolithic #bioarchaeology

Dorothy Garrod (1892-1968) who led excavations at Tabun, Skhul and in Gibraltar was Cambridge's first female professor. Born #OTD in 1892.

Understanding the Origin of Superficial Bone Changes in Qafzeh 9 Skull (Middle Paleolithic, Southwestern Asia): Contribution of Three‐Dimensional Imaging Micro-CT slices of the Qafzeh 9 frontal bone showing the surface grooves, and the underlying structures (A: osteo-condensation; B vascular and/or nervous canals).

Is Qafzeh 9 a good representative of the Qafzeh site fossils and early Anatomically Modern Humans?
Short answer: NO
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
#SundayScience