Denise Ferembach On the Origin of the Iberomaurusians

(Upper Palaeolithic: North Africa). A New

Laboratoire d'Anthropologie Biologique,
Hypothesis
de l'Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes,
1, rue Reng Panhard, 75013 Paris,
France The Iberomaurusians did not originate in the Near East nor the Egyptian
Keywords: North Africa, Upper Sudan. Neither did they comefrom Spain via the Strait of Gibraltar. They
a r e probably Italian Epigravettians, who landed in Tunisia 24,000 y e a r s
Palaeolithic, Iberomaurusian,
Cromagno'ids, origin. ago. From there, they spread towards the west (Morocco)and the east (the
Egyptian Sudan), taking the place of the Aterian aborigines. Their
a n c e s t o r s were Aterians who, ca 50,000years ago, possiblyalso making u s e
of a marine regression, had reached the northern shores of the
Mediterranean and had gradually replaced the original Neanderthal
population of that area.

Journal of Human Evolution (1985) 14, 393-397

The Iberomaurusian is an Upper Palaeolithic industry, found in the Maghreb inland

depressions, in the valleys and on the high table-land of the Atlas range, at the sea coast
and, to the east, in Egypt as far as the Egyptian Sudan.
The oldest 14C dating on this industry has been obtained from the site of Taforalt
(Oriental Morocco): Gif258, 21,900+400 B.P. (levels X V - X V I ) (Roche, 1976). However,
we do not know the age of the lower level X V I I I , under which rests the Aterian. The
appearance of the Iberomaurusian in that area can be estimated at 23,000 B.P. Taforalt
would then have continuously been occupied until ca 10,800 B.P. From Taforalt the
Western Atlantic coast was reached ca seven or eight millennia later (Temara, Gif-2579
14,460 + 200 B.P.) (Roche, 1976). Toward the east, in Algeria, the Iberomaurusian site of
T a m a r Hat dates back by 14C to Mc-822 20,600 + 500 B.P. (Camps et al., 1973). The 14C
date on Columnata (Algeria), Mc-154 7,300 + 200 years B.P. (Camps et al., 1973), seems
to indicate the upper boundary of the Iberomaurusian in northwestern Africa. Upper
Egypt was reached at ca 18,000 years B.P. at Deir el Fakhuri (i4C date: 1-3416 18,020 +
330 B.P. (from Unio shells); Lubell, 1974) and at ca 15,000 years B.P. at Gebel Silsila (14C
dates: Y-1376 15,310 + 200 B.P. and Y-1375 13,070 + 160 B.P.; Reed, 1965). On Wadi
Halfa no reliable 14C dates have been obtained. However, the range for the comparable
Q u a d a n industry (11,950 to 6400; 14C dates, no laboratory numbers presented) (Green &
Armelagos, 1972) gives a rough indication of the end of the Iberomaurusian in the more
eastern areas.
Stratigraphically, the Iberomaurusian clearly takes the place of the Aterian which, itself,
occupied a large territory from the Atlantic and the Mediterranean sea to the southern
Saharian border, the Lybian desert forming the eastern boundary.
Although the Iberomaurusian succeeds the Aterian, prehistorians agree that no affinities
between these two cultures can be recognized. The Aterian appears as a
Levalloiso-Mousterian facies, while the Iberomaurusian consists essentially of small
retouched blades of various shapes, few geometric pieces, few bone implements and some
big stone implements of an archaic nature (Roche, 1963).
The current 14C dates for the Aterian seem to indicate the existence of a gap of ca 10
millennia with the Iberomaurusian, which is hard to explain. At Taforalt the
Aterian-Iberomaurusian border is dated at Gif 2276 32,370 + 1890 B.P. (from Helix
0o47-2484/85/04o393 + 05 $03.00/0 (~) 1985AcademicPress Inc. (London) Limited
394 D. FERE~BACH

shells); at Temara, the Aterian level 11 dates from Gif2582 24,500 ___600 B.P. (from bone)
Roche, 1976). Is that due to contestable aterian dates derived from shells or bones?
Many Iberomaurusian skeletons have been exhumed, particularly at Mechta el-Arbi
Balout & Briggs, 1951), Afalou bou Rhummel (Arambourg et al., 1934), Taforalt
Ferembach et al., 1962) and Columnata (Chamla, 1970). These people are also called
Mechta-Afalou men. They are Cromagnoids, distinguishing themselves from their
European homologues only by a few features, such as the appearance of some brachycrania
in the population, a somewhat higher cranial vault, a more chamaerhinian nose, etc. The
Aterians differ by the stronger accentuation of some of their morphological and metrical
traits: brow ridge, mastoid, transversal dimensions of the face, spino-alveolar height, while
the height of the nose is smaller (Ferembach, 1976b). The few archaic, Homo erectus-like
characteristics of the Dar-es-Soltane Aterian skull are also found scattered over some of the
Taforalt specimens (Ferembach, 1976b). Therefore morphological affinities exist between
the populations connected with the two industries, the Aterians, the oldest, showing the
more archaic features.
Concerning the origin of the Iberomaurusians several hypotheses have been forwarded,
which are listed below.
(a) Coming from the Near East, to waves of Cromagno~ds would have appeared, one of
these moving along the north of the Mediterranean Basin, the other along its
southern fringe (Balout, 1954; Briggs, 1955; Hooton, 1949; Vallois, 1969;
Vandermeersch, 1978). However, the Upper Palaeolithic men of the Near East are
not Cromagnoids. They are of the Combe Capelle type, whose evolution can be
followed through the Natoufians towards the Protomediterraneans and the
Mediterraneans (Arensburg, 1981; Ferembach, 1976c, 1979a). The main
conspicuous differences between these two fossil races are described elsewhere
(Ferembach, 1976c).
Moreover, according to Besangon et al. (1975-77), the Iberomaurusian industries
and chronology do not indicate a Near-Eastern origin either.
(b) The origin of the Iberomaurusians would be in the Egyptian Sudan (Ferembach,
1976b; Tixier, 1971). To this hypothesis serious objections also exist. Neither the
Cromagnoid skeletons discovered in that region, nor the industries of the Sebilian
(15,000-11,000 B.C., Hassan, 1980, p. 433) and of the Halfan (20,000-17,000 B.P.,
Hassan, 1980, p. 434) can be at the origin of the Iberomaurusians, which are more
ancient, both in Morocco and in Algeria. The above also pertains to other sites in
tha t region: Wada Halfa, Gebel Sitsila and Deir el Fakhuri.
(c) TheiIberomaurusians would have come from Spain, crossing the Strait of Gibraltar
(Vallois, 1969; Verneau, 1934). However, as Vallois pointed out "one finds in the
Palaeolithic of Southwestern France, i.e. on the way towards Spain, only already
very attenuated Cromagnons" (Vallois, 1969, p. 108). Later, Cromagno'ids and
Protomediterraneans have been described for the Upper Palaeolithic of the Iberian
Peninsula (Garralda, 1975). However, these remains are very few, fragmentary and
of questionable date. The chief objection to this third hypothesis is that we have seen
the Iberomaurusians expanding in Morocco from the east to the west and not in the
opposite direction (Roche, 1976).
(d) Our own hypothesis has, until now, not yet been proposed. The Iberomaurusians,
bearers of an industry to which Camps (1974) gives the name "African
 ON THE ORIGIN OF THE IBEROMAURUSIANS 395

Epigravettian" would have come from Italy, via Sicily. Around 23,000 or 24,000
years ago, the probable date of their arrival in Africa, the sea was at a - 1 1 0 m
elevation. The corresponding map of the Mediterranean coast shows that
navigation between Sicily and Tunisia fi'om island to island, without losing sight of
the shore, was possible (Capart & Carpart, in press). As Camps points out, "the
Strait of S i c i l y . . . has been crossed at a relatively early date thanks to the islands
spread between Africa and Sicily, as so many relays for the first navigators" (Camps,
1976, p. 170).
Two other pieces of evidence, the one archaeological, the other anthropological, strengthen
this hypothesis.
The first argument is that the Gravettian, originating from the Mediterranean culture
zone (Onoratini, 1983) is widely represented in Italy. In the Paglicci Cave that level has
been dated by laC to 24,720 -- 420 B.P. and to 20,200 -+ 305 B.P. (Palma di Cesnola &
Bietti, 1983; no laboratory numbers presented). In the caves of Cala and Calanca (Salerne)
it is dated to 28,000 +_ 2400 B.P., i.e. with a wide range of uncertainty (ibid.: no laboratory
numbers presented). These dates do not contradict our hypothesis.
The second argument is that Cromagnoids were present in Italy in the Upper
Palaeolithic period and that several Italian Epipalaeolithic skulls show similarities with
those of the Iberomaurusians (Bianchi et al., 1980).
The human occupation of North Africa can be summarized in the following way. Man,
present in that area at least as early as H o m o erectus (Ternifine, Salt, etc.), evolves towards
the Mousterian Protosapiens forms ofDjebel Irhoud (Ferembach 1979b). Aterians, archaic
Cromagno'ids, develop from these last ones.
Incontestably, the Iberomaurusian morphology can be characterized as Cromagnoid.
Compared to the Aterians, of whom they have preserved a certain quantity of features, they
are further evolved (Ferembach, 1976b). These affinities can be explained as follows:
50,000 years ago during a period in which a strong marine regression facilitated the
navigation between the northern and the southern shores of the Mediterranean, some
Aterians left North Africa to land in Europe. No evidence is available concerning their first
settlement and their diffusion on that coast, that region being presently submerged. Their
descendants would be the European Cromagnoids. This would account for the sudden
appearance of the Cromagnoids in Europe.
After a period of settlement on the shore of several millennia, the descendants of the
Aterians spread in a northern direction, urged by the marine transgression and perhaps
also by demographic pressure. During that time, Aterians also remained in North Africa;
these have evolved there, but less rapidly than those in Europe. This hypothesis is
supported by Thoma (1978), who also proposes a common origin for the African and
European Cromagnoids, both deriving from an older North African form. The evolution of
the Aterians was counteracted by the arrival of the more evolved Italian Cromagno'ids,
bearers of the Epigravettian industries.
Landing in Tunisia they gradually replaced the African Aterians progressively towards
the west; the latter were forced to take refuge on the sea shores by the increasing aridity in
Central and Western Morocco (Debenath et al., in press). Towards 17,000 B.P. the whole
bulk of the Northern Atlantic glaciers landed in the ocean. The sea level, previously ca - 90 m,
suddenly reached ca - 5 5 m and remained so during several millenia (Capart & Capart,
in press). These events may have accelerated the disappearance of the Aterians which were
396 D. FEREMBACH

i m p a i r e d a l r e a d y by their struggle with the I b e r o m a u r u s i a n s a n d b y the c h a n g e of their

biotope. F r o m the fossils it can be d e r i v e d that a n o t h e r p a r t of the Aterians, u p o n their
a r r i v a l in T u n i s i a , m u s t h a v e p r o c e e d e d t o w a r d s the east, u l t i m a t e l y reaching E g y p t a n d
the E g y p t i a n S u d a n .
At the b e g i n n i n g of the V I I I t h m i l l e n n i u m a new w a v e of invaders, i.e. Proto-
m e d i t e r r a n e a n s from the N e a r East, r e a c h e d N o r t h Africa, c a r r y i n g the C a p s i a n culture.
Some I b e r o m a u r u s i a n s will have a s s i m i l a t e d to that civilization. But d u r i n g the Neolithic
a n d m e t a l ages their m a j o r i t y has p r o b a b l y been dislodged; t o w a r d s the m o u n t a i n o u s
areas, where they m a i n t a i n e d themselves, a n d towards the A t l a n t i c coast ( C a p J u b y ) .
F r o m there they r e t r e a t e d s o u t h w a r d s . P e t i t - M a i r e (1983) points o u t their presence d u r i n g
the early H o l o c e n e in the M a l i n e s e S a h a r a , p a r t i c u l a r l y in its n o r t h e a s t e r n part. O t h e r s at
last e m b a r k e d for the C a n a r y I s l a n d s , where their d e s c e n d a n t s are p r o b a b l y still present
today.

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