The Mousterian site of Zafarraya (Andalucia, Spain) : dating and implications on the palaeolithic peopling processes of Western Europe

The site of Zafarraya, near the NE boundary of the province of Malaga (Spain), yielded a typical Mousterian assemblage with extended Levallois debitage and little or no Upper Palaeolithic influence. The human remains unearthed from the lower deposits display an indisputable Neandertal morphology. Reliable 14 C and Th/U dating of the site indicate the persistence of Neandertals at least after 35 ka BP and of Mousterian industries after 30 ka BP in the south-western extremity of Europe.