Palaeogenomics of Upper Palaeolithic to Neolithic European hunter-gatherers

2023/03/01 by Cosimo Posth, Yu He, Ayshin Ghalichi +97 · 1 voice · 6 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Arts and Humanities · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Forensic and Genetic Research #Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies #Archaeology and ancient environmental studies

paper · pdf · doi:10.1038/s41586-023-05726-0

openalex publication_date 2023/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04

Abstract

Abstract Modern humans have populated Europe for more than 45,000 years 1,2 . Our knowledge of the genetic relatedness and structure of ancient hunter-gatherers is however limited, owing to the scarceness and poor molecular preservation of human remains from that period 3 . Here we analyse 356 ancient hunter-gatherer genomes, including new genomic data for 116 individuals from 14 countries in western and central Eurasia, spanning between 35,000 and 5,000 years ago. We identify a genetic ancestry profile in individuals associated with Upper Palaeolithic Gravettian assemblages from western Europe that is distinct from contemporaneous groups related to this archaeological culture in central and southern Europe 4 , but resembles that of preceding individuals associated with the Aurignacian culture. This ancestry profile survived during the Last Glacial Maximum (25,000 to 19,000 years ago) in human populations from southwestern Europe associated with the Solutrean culture, and with the following Magdalenian culture that re-expanded northeastward after the Last Glacial Maximum. Conversely, we reveal a genetic turnover in southern Europe suggesting a local replacement of human groups around the time of the Last Glacial Maximum, accompanied by a north-to-south dispersal of populations associated with the Epigravettian culture. From at least 14,000 years ago, an ancestry related to this culture spread from the south across the rest of Europe, largely replacing the Magdalenian-associated gene pool. After a period of limited admixture that spanned the beginning of the Mesolithic, we find genetic interactions between western and eastern European hunter-gatherers, who were also characterized by marked differences in phenotypically relevant variants.

Citations

• Upper Palaeolithic Siberian genome reveals dual ancestry of Native Americans
• Bayesian Analysis of Radiocarbon Dates
• The IntCal20 Northern Hemisphere Radiocarbon Age Calibration Curve (0–55 cal kBP)
• Ancient genomes from present-day France unveil 7,000 years of its demographic history
• Initial Upper Palaeolithic humans in Europe had recent Neanderthal ancestry

Cited by

• The genetic history of Portugal over the past 5,000 years
• Archaeogenetics reconstructs demography and extreme parental consanguinity in a Bronze Age community from Southern Italy
• The genetic history of the Southern Caucasus from the Bronze Age to the Early Middle Ages: 5,000 years of genetic continuity despite high mobility
• Population genomics of post-glacial western Eurasia
• The Genetic Origin of the Indo-Europeans
• Homo sapiens reached the higher latitudes of Europe by 45,000 years ago

Discussions

• Original study: C. Posth et al., #Palaeogenomics of Upper #Palaeolithic to #Neolithic European hunter-gatherers, @Nature 615, 117–126 (2023). 🔓 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-05726-0 [bsky, 0 points, 0 comments]