G L F Berruti
Biographic Data
| ID | 31241 |
|---|---|
| NAME | G L F Berruti |
| GIVEN NAMES | G L F |
| FAMILY NAME | Berruti |
| SIGNATURE | BERRUTI G L F |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Ferrara |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-8637-4585 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 25 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 150 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 25 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2014 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Italy before the Neanderthals: Cultural pathways of early humans
Technology and taphonomy of the Middle Paleolithic assemblage from the Uzun Mera site in Macedonia
The open-air site of Uzun Mera in eastern North Macedonia provides new insights into Middle Paleolithic Neanderthal behavior and site formation processes in the understudied Balkan Peninsula. Discovered in 2017, the site spans over 1.5 km2 and contains lithic artefacts affected by both cultural and post-depositional processes. Technological analysis of 33 selected artefacts reveals a Middle Paleolithic industry featuring opportunistic, Levallois,…
Early humans and the sea in Europe: Evidence of shellfish exploitation ca. 300,000 years ago
Research on early hominin subsistence has been increasingly concerned with the exploitation of diverse food resources in prehistory, including coastal resources, and its implications on the evolution of technological, behavioural, and ecological adaptations. This paper presents related findings from the MIS 9–8.5 site of Quarto delle Cinfonare (Lazio, Italy). Experimentation and microscopic lithic analysis revealed use-wear traces related to shel…
Ugly stones sharpen the wits: The Middle Palaeolithic of Piedmont in the context of Western Europe
This study examines Middle Palaeolithic lithic technology in Piedmont, with a focus on the use of quartz as the primary raw material. Due to the scarcity of local chert, the region’s lithic industries are dominated by quartz, which is mainly available in secondary deposits along watercourses. The stratified reference site is the Ciota Ciara cave, but surface lithic assemblages from Trino, Vaude Canavesane, and Baragge Biellesi were also considere…
From excavation to analysis: Experimental insights on the impact of wet sieving processes on lithic use-wear traces
Lithic microscopic use-wear analysis plays a crucial role in reconstructing past human behaviour, offering insights into tool use, site function, and subsistence strategies. However, its reliability depends greatly on the identification of genuine use traces and is therefore continuously challenged by contamination, either in post-depositional conditions or in handling post-recovery. This study aims to investigate the impact of a common procedure…
First evidence of a Palaeolithic frequentation of the Po plain in Piedmont: The case of Trino (north-western Italy)
The Trino hill is an isolated relief located in north-western Italy, close to Trino municipality. The hill was subject of multidisciplinary studies during the 1970s, when, because of quarrying and agricultural activities, five concentrations of lithic artefacts were recognized and referred to a Palaeolithic occupation of the area. During the 1980s and the 1990s, surface collections continued, but the lithic finds have never been subject of specif…
Through Time: Reconstructing Palaeolithic Occupations Through Use-Wear Analysis in the Middle Palaeolithic Site of Ciota Ciara (Borgosesia, Italy)
Lithic use-wear analysis, through defining site function and allowing reconstructing of patterns of human occupation, can contribute to our understanding of archaeological palimpsests. The Ciota Ciara cave represents an excellent case study for this methodology. Multidisciplinary research so far conducted on the materials recovered from the atrial sector of the cave distinguishes three archaeological units from a Middle Palaeolithic occupation of…
Planning a trip during Middle Palaeolithic. The mobile toolkit debate and some considerations about expedient vs curated technologies in the light of new data from the Ciota Ciara cave (NW Italy)
Techno-economy of lithic raw materials in Piedmont (north-western Italy): A first life-like scenario
Data about Palaeolithic peopling, settlement dynamics and techno-economy of the south-western margin of the Alpine region are sketchy. In this area, the lack of systematic research and the scarcity of lithic raw materials, spread the idea that Piedmont was not inhabited during Palaeolithic. In 2009, the re-starting of the excavations at the Ciota Ciara cave, gave rise to new questions and to the development of research projects at a regional scal…
Brief interviews with hideous stone: A glimpse into the butchery site of Isernia La Pineta - a combined technological and use-wear approach on the lithic tools to evaluate the function of a Lower Pala…
The onset of the Middle Pleistocene (780 ka) in the European continent is associated with significant environmental variations (Middle Pleistocene Revolution), innovative behavioural strategies (bifacial productions, land-use patterns, raw material management) and a global increase in the archaeological evidence from 600 ka onward. Whether these changes are related to the rise of the Acheulean, the informative potential carried by these contexts …
A myth debunked. The Porosphaera globularis beads and their relation to the onset of symbolic thinking in prehistory
Because of their inherent symbolic significance, personal ornaments gained a key role in the scientific debate regarding the emergence and evolution of symbolic behaviour; the presumed Acheulean beads discovered in the nineteenth century in northern Europe's sites are considered crucial evidence of this. The fossils of the sponge Porosphaera globularis, because of their morphological characteristics, have been interpreted by some archaeologists a…
New evidence about the Palaeolithic peopling of the southern margin of the western Alps. The Colline novaresi area
Expedient behaviour and predetermination at the Ciota Ciara cave (north-western Italy) during Middle Palaeolithic
Use-Wear Analysis of the Lithic Industry of the Lower Palaeolithic Site of Guado San Nicola (Isernia, Central Italy)
Expedient behaviour and predetermination at the Ciota Ciara cave (north-western Italy) during Middle Palaeolithic
The Ciota Ciara cave is a Middle Palaeolithic site located in Piedmont (north-western Italy) and it is the only one systematically investigated in the region. It opens at 670 m a.s.l. on the west side of Monte Fenera and its archaeological deposit has a stratigraphic sequence documenting several and repeated human frequentations. Four archaeological layers have been identified (13, 14, 15 and 103) and are characterized by lithic assemblages where…
Talking stones: Taphonomy of the lithic assemblage of Pirro Nord 13 (Apricena, FG, Italy). A new approach to the study of the post depositional alterations on lithics tools
The use of blades and pointed tools during middle palaeolithic, the example of Riparo Tagliente (VR)
Early Levallois core technology between Marine Isotope Stage 12 and 9 in Western Europe
New Insights on the Oldest Lithic Assemblages of the Tibitó and El Abra Sites (Sabana de Bogotá, Eastern Cordillera, Colombia)
In this paper we present a review of the oldest lithic assemblages of Tibitó 1, El Abra 2, and El Abra 3 (Sabana de Bogotá, Eastern Cordillera), among the oldest and most significant sites in Colombia. The contribution of use-wear analysis on a controlled sample of materials confirms and adds new data to our previous technological review Muttillo et al. (2017. “Revisiting the Oldest Known Lithic Assemblages of Colombia: A Review of Data from El A…
Raw materials procurement strategies at the Ciota Ciara cave: New insight on land mobility in north-western Italy during Middle Palaeolithic
Use of a GIS predictive model for the identification of high altitude prehistoric human frequentations. Results of the Sessera valley project (Piedmont, Italy)
New insights on the Monte Fenera Palaeolithic, Italy: Geoarchaeology of the Ciota Ciara cave
Monte Fenera is a mostly carbonate hill at the southern border of the Western Alps. It hosts several archaeological sites, among them karstic caves bearing evidence of Palaeolithic occupation. These sites have a long history within Alpine archaeology—having been explored since the 19th century—but information on their stratigraphy, chronology, and formation remains incomplete. They are among the few cave‐sites occupied before the Alpine Last Glac…
Use wear analysis of quartzite lithic implements from the Middle Palaeolithic site of Lagoa do Bando (Central Portugal)
The Middle Palaeolithic site of Lagoa do Bando is an open air site in a lacustrian context located at 570 m a.s.l. in the municipality of Mação in the center of Portugal. The site was discovered in 2011, during an emergency excavation, and resulted on the recovery of a Middle Palaeolithic lithic assemblage mainly composed of fine grained quartzite implements of expedient, discoid and Levallois technology. Use wear analysis was conducted on 41 art…
New evidence of human frequentations in the western Alps: The project “Survey Alta Valsessera (Piedmont–Italy)”
The Mousterian lithic assemblage of the Ciota Ciara cave (Piedmont, Northern Italy): Exploitation and conditioning of raw materials
The Ciota Ciara cave is situated in Monte Fenera’s karst (Borgosesia – Vercelli), at 670 metres above sea level. It is the most important evidence of a Middle Palaeolithic settlement in Piedmont: the cave was used by Homo neanderthalensis during the OIS 5, in a mild-humid period, as proven by faunal remains. The environment was characterized by deciduous woodland and glades. The intersection between different habitats, the presence of lithic raw …
Early Levallois core technology between Marine Isotope Stage 12 and 9 in Western Europe
The Mousterian lithic assemblage of the Ciota Ciara cave (Piedmont, Northern Italy): Exploitation and conditioning of raw materials
The Ciota Ciara cave is situated in Monte Fenera’s karst (Borgosesia – Vercelli), at 670 metres above sea level. It is the most important evidence of a Middle Palaeolithic settlement in Piedmont: the cave was used by Homo neanderthalensis during the OIS 5, in a mild-humid period, as proven by faunal remains. The environment was characterized by deciduous woodland and glades. The intersection between different habitats, the presence of lithic raw …
The use of blades and pointed tools during middle palaeolithic, the example of Riparo Tagliente (VR)
Expedient behaviour and predetermination at the Ciota Ciara cave (north-western Italy) during Middle Palaeolithic
Raw materials procurement strategies at the Ciota Ciara cave: New insight on land mobility in north-western Italy during Middle Palaeolithic
Talking stones: Taphonomy of the lithic assemblage of Pirro Nord 13 (Apricena, FG, Italy). A new approach to the study of the post depositional alterations on lithics tools
Brief interviews with hideous stone: A glimpse into the butchery site of Isernia La Pineta - a combined technological and use-wear approach on the lithic tools to evaluate the function of a Lower Pala…
The onset of the Middle Pleistocene (780 ka) in the European continent is associated with significant environmental variations (Middle Pleistocene Revolution), innovative behavioural strategies (bifacial productions, land-use patterns, raw material management) and a global increase in the archaeological evidence from 600 ka onward. Whether these changes are related to the rise of the Acheulean, the informative potential carried by these contexts …
A myth debunked. The Porosphaera globularis beads and their relation to the onset of symbolic thinking in prehistory
Because of their inherent symbolic significance, personal ornaments gained a key role in the scientific debate regarding the emergence and evolution of symbolic behaviour; the presumed Acheulean beads discovered in the nineteenth century in northern Europe's sites are considered crucial evidence of this. The fossils of the sponge Porosphaera globularis, because of their morphological characteristics, have been interpreted by some archaeologists a…
Techno-economy of lithic raw materials in Piedmont (north-western Italy): A first life-like scenario
Data about Palaeolithic peopling, settlement dynamics and techno-economy of the south-western margin of the Alpine region are sketchy. In this area, the lack of systematic research and the scarcity of lithic raw materials, spread the idea that Piedmont was not inhabited during Palaeolithic. In 2009, the re-starting of the excavations at the Ciota Ciara cave, gave rise to new questions and to the development of research projects at a regional scal…
New insights on the Monte Fenera Palaeolithic, Italy: Geoarchaeology of the Ciota Ciara cave
Monte Fenera is a mostly carbonate hill at the southern border of the Western Alps. It hosts several archaeological sites, among them karstic caves bearing evidence of Palaeolithic occupation. These sites have a long history within Alpine archaeology—having been explored since the 19th century—but information on their stratigraphy, chronology, and formation remains incomplete. They are among the few cave‐sites occupied before the Alpine Last Glac…
Through Time: Reconstructing Palaeolithic Occupations Through Use-Wear Analysis in the Middle Palaeolithic Site of Ciota Ciara (Borgosesia, Italy)
Lithic use-wear analysis, through defining site function and allowing reconstructing of patterns of human occupation, can contribute to our understanding of archaeological palimpsests. The Ciota Ciara cave represents an excellent case study for this methodology. Multidisciplinary research so far conducted on the materials recovered from the atrial sector of the cave distinguishes three archaeological units from a Middle Palaeolithic occupation of…
First evidence of a Palaeolithic frequentation of the Po plain in Piedmont: The case of Trino (north-western Italy)
The Trino hill is an isolated relief located in north-western Italy, close to Trino municipality. The hill was subject of multidisciplinary studies during the 1970s, when, because of quarrying and agricultural activities, five concentrations of lithic artefacts were recognized and referred to a Palaeolithic occupation of the area. During the 1980s and the 1990s, surface collections continued, but the lithic finds have never been subject of specif…
New evidence about the Palaeolithic peopling of the southern margin of the western Alps. The Colline novaresi area
Use-Wear Analysis of the Lithic Industry of the Lower Palaeolithic Site of Guado San Nicola (Isernia, Central Italy)
Expedient behaviour and predetermination at the Ciota Ciara cave (north-western Italy) during Middle Palaeolithic
The Ciota Ciara cave is a Middle Palaeolithic site located in Piedmont (north-western Italy) and it is the only one systematically investigated in the region. It opens at 670 m a.s.l. on the west side of Monte Fenera and its archaeological deposit has a stratigraphic sequence documenting several and repeated human frequentations. Four archaeological layers have been identified (13, 14, 15 and 103) and are characterized by lithic assemblages where…
The Mousterian lithic assemblage of the Ciota Ciara cave (Piedmont, Northern Italy): Exploitation and conditioning of raw materials
The Ciota Ciara cave is situated in Monte Fenera’s karst (Borgosesia – Vercelli), at 670 metres above sea level. It is the most important evidence of a Middle Palaeolithic settlement in Piedmont: the cave was used by Homo neanderthalensis during the OIS 5, in a mild-humid period, as proven by faunal remains. The environment was characterized by deciduous woodland and glades. The intersection between different habitats, the presence of lithic raw …
Use wear analysis of quartzite lithic implements from the Middle Palaeolithic site of Lagoa do Bando (Central Portugal)
The Middle Palaeolithic site of Lagoa do Bando is an open air site in a lacustrian context located at 570 m a.s.l. in the municipality of Mação in the center of Portugal. The site was discovered in 2011, during an emergency excavation, and resulted on the recovery of a Middle Palaeolithic lithic assemblage mainly composed of fine grained quartzite implements of expedient, discoid and Levallois technology. Use wear analysis was conducted on 41 art…
New evidence of human frequentations in the western Alps: The project “Survey Alta Valsessera (Piedmont–Italy)”
Use of a GIS predictive model for the identification of high altitude prehistoric human frequentations. Results of the Sessera valley project (Piedmont, Italy)
New insights on the Monte Fenera Palaeolithic, Italy: Geoarchaeology of the Ciota Ciara cave
Monte Fenera is a mostly carbonate hill at the southern border of the Western Alps. It hosts several archaeological sites, among them karstic caves bearing evidence of Palaeolithic occupation. These sites have a long history within Alpine archaeology—having been explored since the 19th century—but information on their stratigraphy, chronology, and formation remains incomplete. They are among the few cave‐sites occupied before the Alpine Last Glac…
New Insights on the Oldest Lithic Assemblages of the Tibitó and El Abra Sites (Sabana de Bogotá, Eastern Cordillera, Colombia)
In this paper we present a review of the oldest lithic assemblages of Tibitó 1, El Abra 2, and El Abra 3 (Sabana de Bogotá, Eastern Cordillera), among the oldest and most significant sites in Colombia. The contribution of use-wear analysis on a controlled sample of materials confirms and adds new data to our previous technological review Muttillo et al. (2017. “Revisiting the Oldest Known Lithic Assemblages of Colombia: A Review of Data from El A…
Raw materials procurement strategies at the Ciota Ciara cave: New insight on land mobility in north-western Italy during Middle Palaeolithic
Use-Wear Analysis of the Lithic Industry of the Lower Palaeolithic Site of Guado San Nicola (Isernia, Central Italy)
Expedient behaviour and predetermination at the Ciota Ciara cave (north-western Italy) during Middle Palaeolithic
The Ciota Ciara cave is a Middle Palaeolithic site located in Piedmont (north-western Italy) and it is the only one systematically investigated in the region. It opens at 670 m a.s.l. on the west side of Monte Fenera and its archaeological deposit has a stratigraphic sequence documenting several and repeated human frequentations. Four archaeological layers have been identified (13, 14, 15 and 103) and are characterized by lithic assemblages where…
Talking stones: Taphonomy of the lithic assemblage of Pirro Nord 13 (Apricena, FG, Italy). A new approach to the study of the post depositional alterations on lithics tools
The use of blades and pointed tools during middle palaeolithic, the example of Riparo Tagliente (VR)
Early Levallois core technology between Marine Isotope Stage 12 and 9 in Western Europe
New evidence about the Palaeolithic peopling of the southern margin of the western Alps. The Colline novaresi area
Expedient behaviour and predetermination at the Ciota Ciara cave (north-western Italy) during Middle Palaeolithic
A myth debunked. The Porosphaera globularis beads and their relation to the onset of symbolic thinking in prehistory
Because of their inherent symbolic significance, personal ornaments gained a key role in the scientific debate regarding the emergence and evolution of symbolic behaviour; the presumed Acheulean beads discovered in the nineteenth century in northern Europe's sites are considered crucial evidence of this. The fossils of the sponge Porosphaera globularis, because of their morphological characteristics, have been interpreted by some archaeologists a…
Planning a trip during Middle Palaeolithic. The mobile toolkit debate and some considerations about expedient vs curated technologies in the light of new data from the Ciota Ciara cave (NW Italy)
Techno-economy of lithic raw materials in Piedmont (north-western Italy): A first life-like scenario
Data about Palaeolithic peopling, settlement dynamics and techno-economy of the south-western margin of the Alpine region are sketchy. In this area, the lack of systematic research and the scarcity of lithic raw materials, spread the idea that Piedmont was not inhabited during Palaeolithic. In 2009, the re-starting of the excavations at the Ciota Ciara cave, gave rise to new questions and to the development of research projects at a regional scal…
Brief interviews with hideous stone: A glimpse into the butchery site of Isernia La Pineta - a combined technological and use-wear approach on the lithic tools to evaluate the function of a Lower Pala…
The onset of the Middle Pleistocene (780 ka) in the European continent is associated with significant environmental variations (Middle Pleistocene Revolution), innovative behavioural strategies (bifacial productions, land-use patterns, raw material management) and a global increase in the archaeological evidence from 600 ka onward. Whether these changes are related to the rise of the Acheulean, the informative potential carried by these contexts …
First evidence of a Palaeolithic frequentation of the Po plain in Piedmont: The case of Trino (north-western Italy)
The Trino hill is an isolated relief located in north-western Italy, close to Trino municipality. The hill was subject of multidisciplinary studies during the 1970s, when, because of quarrying and agricultural activities, five concentrations of lithic artefacts were recognized and referred to a Palaeolithic occupation of the area. During the 1980s and the 1990s, surface collections continued, but the lithic finds have never been subject of specif…
Through Time: Reconstructing Palaeolithic Occupations Through Use-Wear Analysis in the Middle Palaeolithic Site of Ciota Ciara (Borgosesia, Italy)
Lithic use-wear analysis, through defining site function and allowing reconstructing of patterns of human occupation, can contribute to our understanding of archaeological palimpsests. The Ciota Ciara cave represents an excellent case study for this methodology. Multidisciplinary research so far conducted on the materials recovered from the atrial sector of the cave distinguishes three archaeological units from a Middle Palaeolithic occupation of…
Technology and taphonomy of the Middle Paleolithic assemblage from the Uzun Mera site in Macedonia
The open-air site of Uzun Mera in eastern North Macedonia provides new insights into Middle Paleolithic Neanderthal behavior and site formation processes in the understudied Balkan Peninsula. Discovered in 2017, the site spans over 1.5 km2 and contains lithic artefacts affected by both cultural and post-depositional processes. Technological analysis of 33 selected artefacts reveals a Middle Paleolithic industry featuring opportunistic, Levallois,…
Early humans and the sea in Europe: Evidence of shellfish exploitation ca. 300,000 years ago
Research on early hominin subsistence has been increasingly concerned with the exploitation of diverse food resources in prehistory, including coastal resources, and its implications on the evolution of technological, behavioural, and ecological adaptations. This paper presents related findings from the MIS 9–8.5 site of Quarto delle Cinfonare (Lazio, Italy). Experimentation and microscopic lithic analysis revealed use-wear traces related to shel…
Ugly stones sharpen the wits: The Middle Palaeolithic of Piedmont in the context of Western Europe
This study examines Middle Palaeolithic lithic technology in Piedmont, with a focus on the use of quartz as the primary raw material. Due to the scarcity of local chert, the region’s lithic industries are dominated by quartz, which is mainly available in secondary deposits along watercourses. The stratified reference site is the Ciota Ciara cave, but surface lithic assemblages from Trino, Vaude Canavesane, and Baragge Biellesi were also considere…
From excavation to analysis: Experimental insights on the impact of wet sieving processes on lithic use-wear traces
Lithic microscopic use-wear analysis plays a crucial role in reconstructing past human behaviour, offering insights into tool use, site function, and subsistence strategies. However, its reliability depends greatly on the identification of genuine use traces and is therefore continuously challenged by contamination, either in post-depositional conditions or in handling post-recovery. This study aims to investigate the impact of a common procedure…
Italy before the Neanderthals: Cultural pathways of early humans
Archaeology (24 works) · Geography (23 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (22 works) · Geology (21 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (15 works) · Archaeological and Geological Studies (12 works) · Paleontology (11 works) · Lithic technology (9 works) · Assemblage (archaeology (8 works) · Cave (8 works)