Table 1.
Cultural Traits. This Table includes the 103 cultural traits considered in this study, divided into categories. For each cultural trait the table provides the abbreviation, the age of first consolidate appearance, and the appropriate time period for statistical analysis. S1 Table adds, for each trait, a brief definition and key references for the date of first consolidate appearance in the archaeological record.
Fig 1.
Relevance and timeline of transmission modes for cultural traits.
Matrix plot visually representing with a color-code the contribution of different modes of cultural transmission (see Methods for the definition of transmission modes and labels) in the maintenance of 103 cultural traits that emerged during the Paleolithic (see also Table 1 and S1 Table). The cultural traits are organized chronologically based on the time of their first consolidated appearance in the archaeological record. The gesture molding modes in the spatial dimension and the reciprocal modes in the social dimension are not shown. Short definitions of cultural traits in alphabetic order by label (for longer definitions see S1 Table): AMScomplexFingCou: Complex finger counting; AMSfingCount: Simple finger counting; AMSMorphSpat: Notation based on marks morphology, spatial distribution, and accumulation; AMSnotaAccum: Notation through the accumulation of marks; AMSnumberSy: Use of number symbols; AMSverbalCou: Verbal counting; ARTcarvingAbstr: Abstract carvings; ARTcarvingDepic: Depictional carvings; ARTincAbstmultipleTech: Abstract incisions using multiple techniques; ARTincAbstrSingleTech: Abstract incisions using a single technique; ARTincDepicMultTech: Depictional incisions using multiple techniques; ARTincDepicSingleTech: Depictional incisions using a single technique; ARTmultimode: Art production involving multiple modes (e.g., painting and carving); ARTpaintAbstrmonochrome: Abstract monochromatic paintings; ARTPaintDepicMonochrome: Depictional monochromatic paintings; ARTPaintDepicPolyChrome: Depictional polychromatic paintings; ARTpolychrome: Abstract polychromatic paintings; BEADblack: Ornaments blackened by heating; BEADcolour: Artificially colored ornaments; BEADmultiple: Complex beadwork combining different kinds of items; BEADnatural: Natural items used as ornaments; BEADperf: Ornaments artificially perforated or grooved; BEADshaped: Fully shaped beads; BEADvalue: Modified rare or exotic ornaments, emphasizing their value; BOTOOFOLarrow: Bone arrow points; BOTOOLFOawl: Bone awls; BOTOOLFObarb: Barbed bone points; BOTOOLFOhandle: Bone handles; BOTOOLFOharp: Bone harpoons; BOTOOLFOneelds: Eyed bone needles; BOTOOLFOspear: Bone spear points; BOTOOLFOwedge: Bone wedges; BOTOOLknapped: Knapped bone tools; BOTOOLRetoucher: Bone retouchers or hammers; BOTOOLused: Used bones; FIREdrill: Fire control using a drill; FIREpyro: Pyrotechnology; FIREstriking: Fire control using striking techniques; FISHhand: Hand-catching fish; FISHhook: Fish hooks; FISHspear: Fish spearing; FISHtrap: Fishing traps; HAFTmultiElement: Complex multi-element hafting; HAFTsimple: Simple hafting; Liacheulean: Acheulean tools; Libopolar: Bipolar knapping; LIclactonFlake: Clactonian knapping (flake production); LIclactonRetNotch: Clactonian retouching (notches); LIcomplBifaShape: Complex bifacial shaping; Lidiscoidal: Discoidal knapping; LIHardRetouch: Hard hammer retouching; LIlevalloisFlake: Levallois preferential flaking (flake production); LIlevalloisPoint: Levallois preferential flaking (point production); LIlevalloisRecFlake: Levallois recurrent flaking; LIlowerGrind: Lower grindstone; LILowerUpperGrind: Lower and upper grindstones; LIMicroBladeSoft: Microblade production with a soft hammer; LIMode1: Mode 1 (Oldowan); LIMode1Loka: Mode 1 (Lokalalei); LIpressRetouch: Pressure retouching; LIPressureKnap: Pressure blade production; LIprismaticBlade: Prismatic blade production; LIQuinaRetouch: Quina retouching; LIshapedMicroliths: Shaped microliths; LIsoftRetouch: Soft hammer retouching; LIstoneHammer: Stone hammers; LONDIexotics: Long-distance exchange of exotic goods; LONDIspecialOb: Long-distance exchange of special functional objects; LONGDIrawmat: Long-distance exchange of raw materials; MASTICcompound: Mastics made by combining substances; MASTICpigment: Mastics made with pigment; MASTICPyro: Mastics made with pyrotechnology; MASTICsimple: Mastics made without pyrotechnology; MORTabandon: Abandonment; MORTburial: Formal burial or inhumation; MORTcairnCover: Cairn covering; MORTcemetery: Cemetery use; MORTcommemo: Commemoration; MORTcronos: Cronos compulsions (ritual timing); MORTcuration: Curation; MORTdetach: Detachment; MORTfuneraryCach: Funerary caching; MORTmorb: Morbidity practices; MORTmultiburial: Places with multiple burials; MORTstructAbandonment: Structured abandonment; PHAcompound: Combination of pharmaceutical substances; PHAprepa: Preparation of a single pharmaceutical substance; PHAsimple: Use of simple pharmaceutical substances; PIGbinder: Use of a binder in pigments; PIGheated: Thermal treatment of pigments; PIGMultiGrain: Preparation of pigments with specific textures; PIGmultiProcess: Multiple strategies for pigment preparation; PIGselected: Selected raw materials for pigment preparation; POIcompound: Compounded poisons; POIsingle: Single-ingredient poisons; SEAcostal: Coastal navigation; SEAnotSeeDestination: Early hominin crossings to non-visible landmasses; SEAseeDestination: Unintentional or opportunistic island crossing (with visible land); SEAunknownDestination: Ocean exploration; WOODbowArrow: Bows and arrows; WOODhandle: Wooden handles; WOODmodif: Modified wooden tools (e.g., chimp brushes or spades); WOODshaped: Shaped wooden tools.
Fig 2.
Correlations among transmission modes.
Correlation analysis of the 19 modes of cultural transmission considered in this study (see Methods for the definitions of these variables). The size of blue and red dots indicates different degrees of positive and negative correlation, respectively (p > 0,05 boxed). Green bars help visualizing the modes of cultural transmission pertaining to the spatial, the temporal and the social dimensions. Correlation values are presented in S1 Fig.
Fig 3.
Evolution of cultural transmission modes in the spatial dimension.
Variation through time in the mean value and standard error of scores attributed to the modes of cultural transmission in the spatial dimension. The spatial dimension concerns the spatial relationships between practitioner and learner during transmission events. These relationships might be merely spatial (physical distance) or also encompass specific classes of actions the practitioner put in practice to facilitate the novice’s learning (see Methods for the definition of transmission modes and labels). Mean values and standard errors are calculated considering all the scores given to a transmission mode within each time period (S3 File).
Fig 4.
Evolution of cultural transmission modes in the temporal dimension.
Variation through time in the mean value and standard error of scores attributed to the modes of cultural transmission in the temporal dimension. The temporal dimension concerns the frequency, order and/or structuration of transmission events to transmit a cultural trait to a learner (see Methods for the definition of transmission modes and labels). Mean values and standard errors are calculated considering all the scores attributed to a transmission mode within each time period (S3 File).
Fig 5.
Evolution of cultural transmission modes in the social dimension.
Variation through time in the mean value and standard error of scores attributed to the modes of cultural transmission in the social dimension. The social dimension concerns the social “directions” in which information flows, i.e., who learns from whom (see Methods for the definition of transmission modes and labels). Mean values and standard errors are calculated considering all the scores attributed to a transmission mode within each time period (S3 File).
Fig 6.
Discriminant analysis of cultural traits by transmission modes.
Discriminant analysis of all (except the reciprocal social ones) the considered modes of cultural transmission (thin blue lines) and cultural traits (dots), with the latter color-coded by time periods and grouped in convex hulls (see Methods for the definition of transmission modes and labels). See Table 1, S1 Table and legend of Fig 1 for a definition of the cultural traits.
Fig 7.
Centroids of time periods in discriminant analysis.
This figure shows the centroids of the nine convex hulls sorting the considered cultural traits into time periods. The group centroid represents the mean value of the discriminant scores for a given category. The centroids are calculated by averaging the discriminant scores of all the individuals (i.e., the cultural traits) within a particular group (i.e., a time period).
Fig 8.
Seriation of cultural traits by transmission modes.
Unconstrained seriation ordering cultural traits color-coded by time periods according to their similarity in terms of modes of cultural transmission (see Methods for the definition of transmission modes and labels). To obtain the seriation, the database was transformed into a presence/absence (0/1) matrix (S4 File), where original scores ranging from 0 to 3 were converted into 0, and original scores of 4 converted into 1. Thus, the figure highlights, for each dimension, which mode of cultural transmission has played the main role in the transmission of a cultural trait. See Table 1, S1 Table and legend of Fig 1 for a definition of the cultural traits.