GROTTA DEL CERVO: AN ADDITIONAL STRATIFIED MOUSTERIAN SITE IN NORTH-WESTERN TUSCANY (LUCCA, ITALY)

The Grotta del Cervo site, located in Piano di Mommio (NW Tuscany), provides insights into the late Neanderthal occupation of the region. Excavated in the early 1990s, it yielded Mousterian lithic artefacts and Pleistocene faunal remains from sediment layers partially reworked by post-depositional processes. This study presents a techno- economic analysis of the 70 lithic artefacts recovered from the site, comparing them with findings from the nearby Buca della Iena. The results suggest short-term visits by Neanderthal groups equipped with finished artefacts and roughed-out cores, leaving knapping products on site. Raw material sourcing indicates mobility primarily within the coastal areas of north-western Tuscany. In addition to the dominant Mousterian component, a few artefacts attest to Late Upper Palaeolithic occupations. The raw materials of these artefacts are comparable to those from the Garfagnana area, where numerous Late Upper Palaeolithic sites have been identified. Grotta del Cervo (Piano di Mommio) contributes to the growing evidence of late Neanderthal presence in north-western Tuscany.