January 1, 2022

The Controversial Context of Discovery of Some Palaeolithic Figurines. Gravettian Venuses – a Too Easily Accepted Postulate

Key Points

Many Palaeolithic Venus figurines are without archaeological context, raising questions about their cultural significance.
The findings challenge the assumption that these figurines are predominantly from the Gravettian culture, highlighting the need for rigorous dating.
A significant Epigravettian figurine from Piatra Neamț 1 provides a robust cultural context, urging reconsideration of older attributive claims.
The lack of stratigraphic evidence calls for a critical reevaluation of how these figurines are classified and understood.

Abstract

A number of Palaeolithic Venus figurines, which have become famous, are actually devoid of archaeological context. This aspect is often forgotten and many of them are even considered as representative such artefacts. Furthermore, including them mainly in the Gravettian culture has not been justified by stratigraphic arguments or information related to absolute or cultural dating. In the absence of such evidence, false postulate has been formulated by attributing them, in an exaggerated manner, to the Gravettian culture. The discovery of the Epigravettian figurine from Piatra Neamț 1, with a cultural stratigraphic context and coherent dates, should trigger a re-evaluation of older finds.

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