A Neanderthal partial femoral diaphysis from the "grotte de la Tour", La Chaise-de-Vouthon (Charente, France): Outer morphology and endostructural organization

Laurent Puymerail (1, 2) , Virginie Volpato (2) , André Debénath (3) , Arnaud Mazurier (4) , Jean-François Tournepiche (5) , Roberto Macchiarelli (4)

1 ADES - Anthropologie bio-culturelle, Droit, Ethique et Santé
2 HNHP - Histoire naturelle de l'Homme préhistorique
3 UPVD - Université de Perpignan Via Domitia
4 IC2MP [Poitiers] - Institut de chimie des milieux et matériaux de Poitiers [UMR 7285]
5 PACEA - De la Préhistoire à l'Actuel : Culture, Environnement et Anthropologie

We describe a human partial femoral shaft discovered during speleological exploration of the "grotte de la Tour", near the prehistoric site of La Chaise-de-Vouthon (Charente, France). The context of discovery is compatible with a hyena den deposit; the associated mammal assemblage suggests a preliminary chronological attribution to MIS 3. Combined information from its outer morphology, cross-sectional geometric properties, and from the high-resolution 3D imaging and quantitative analysis of its inner structural organization shows that this specimen (CDV-Tour 1) is from an adult Neanderthal individual, more likely a male.

Mots clés: Grotte de la Tour; La Chaise-de-Vouthon; Femoral shaft; Neanderthal; France

Domaines: Anthropologie biologique

Laurent Puymerail, Virginie Volpato, André Debénath, Arnaud Mazurier, Jean-François Tournepiche, et al.. A Neanderthal partial femoral diaphysis from the "grotte de la Tour", La Chaise-de-Vouthon (Charente, France): Outer morphology and endostructural organization. Comptes Rendus. Palevol, 2012, pp.00. ⟨10.1016/j.crpv.2012.07.001⟩. ⟨halshs-00749156⟩