Abstract: ANDSU project was presented inside the Taphen roundtable: Bone & Lithic refits in site formation analysis: method, research, and application. The event was co-organised to discuss different aspects linked to the use of refits in prehistoric sites, like the state-of-the art in academic research, the application and importance of this method applied to the archaeo-spatial analysis, the types of methods used according to the field (lithic and bone); the new challenges emerged from recent studies and the future approaches and prospect in this field of application. It has been an opportunity to share experiences, discuss specific problems and methodology related to the topic, to review the most critical developments and impasses in this field of study.

The meet, planned both virtual and in presence, was organised at the Institut d'Archéologie Méditerranéenne ARKAIA, Aix-en-Provence. It was opened to all researchers who could contribute to this issue with their studies and observations, independently from chronological periods or specific sites.

Abstract: one of the primary tasks and interests of archaeological and palaeoanthropological research is to depict past human behaviour. From an archaeological point of view, the reject of remains allows to reconstruct human activities and type of occupations. In the case of faunal studies, once the nutritional, raw material and/or ornamental value is exploited, bones are thrown. This produces a set of palimpsests that, together with other human artefacts, especially lithics, and consequently to biostratinomic and diagenetic processes, lead to a deposit(s) and site formation.

One of the main problems is that palimpsests are usually formed by multiple human and non-human occupations, which disrupt processes that occur over time. Refits allow the study of static archaeological objects as part of a dynamic spatiotemporal, dealing with the problem of contemporaneity-diachrony between archaeological events. Bone and lithic refits offer a glimpse at the temporal scale to better define the units and levels forming homogenous archaeological assemblages. The study of the complete spatial analysis of remains, compared with intra-site spatial distribution of refitted elements, and the analysis of taphonomy and post-depositional agents, allows for identifying anthropic distribution of remains between different domestic units, and to differentiate accumulations in particular between carnivores and humans. Their application is still not systematic, and data is lacking.

This roundtable wants to be an opportunity to share experiences, discuss specific problems and methodology related to the topic, to review the most critical developments and impasses in this field of study. The meet is aimed at all researchers who can contribute with their studies and observations to this issue, independently from chronological periods or specific sites. Also, interdisciplinary contributions are invited. The aim is to debate the current research situation to learn about the efficiency of this approach s.l. and inspire participants to make creative proposals on how to tackle and conceptualise bone refits.

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Abstract: the invited seminars were organized in the course "Archaeozoology and Taphonomy of animal hard tissues" by Prof. Ursula Thun Hohenstein of Unife. In the May seminar, some issues related to European programming were addressed, with a particular focus on MSCA actions (funding programme, aim of the MSCA-IF, eligibility, mobility and opportunities to create an international network among researchers, communication & dissemination of results). My MSCA project was presented as a study case in its fundamental parts and the preliminary results obtained. In the November seminar, greater emphasis was placed on the scientific content of the project, with the presentation of results obtained from the faunal material study of Fumane Cave. Space was also given to an exhibition of refitted bones, documented during the study of the two archaeological levels chosen for this project.

The seminar was a formative occasion, both for Bachelor's and Master's international students, not only as course practice but also as a moment of discussion and reflection for their professional future.

Abstract: participation in the international virtual tour addressed to an adult target. The event, organized on the Zoom platform, had the aim of providing an immersion in the Paleolithic, offering the opportunity to get to know the Creswell Crags Museum & Heritage Center (UK), Grotta di Fumane and the Neanderthal Museum, Mettmann (Germany) in a single live online event. Emphasis has also been placed on how research works and what we can learn about ourselves by looking at the past. The occasion helped present my Marie Curie project and the methodology applied to the study of the faunal remains of Grotta di Fumane.

Abstract: in recent years, new perspectives in archaeozoological studies have been possible thank to the refinement of existing techniques, the development of new methodologies and the adoption of scientific approaches from other disciplines.

This contribution form part of a larger project entitled “Attesting Neanderthal Dwelling Space Use: effects of human occupations in the Middle Palaeo­lithic record of Fumane cave” (ANDSU). It will address the spatiotemporal features that mark out the Ne­anderthal space use from units A9 (47.6-45.0 Ky Cal BP) and A6-A5 (44.8-42.2 Ky Cal B.P.) of Fumane cave. This well-known site, located at 350 m asl in the Western Monti Lessini, north of Italy, is a European key site for the comprehension of Neanderthal lifeways.

An integrated multidisciplinary research methodology has been harnessed to address specific objectives: identify the Neanderthal spatial organisation and site function; calculate the durability and number of occupation(s)/event(s) and their temporality (or not). Although many scientific contributions have attempted to identify spatial patterns and activity areas within sites, to re­construct and explain human behaviours, ANDSU is original in its multidisciplinary and innovative approach. Faunal refits have hitherto been poorly applied in archaeological sites, whereas lithic refits have been used as a key tool to identify connections between areas and observe preferential directions of tool movements. ANDSU will, for the first time, integrates faunal refits, geostatistical methods, and 3D modelling. Through a pioneer­ing application, never carried out before, units A9, A6-A5 of Fumane cave will be analysed, trying to offer new insights into this field of research.

Abstract: Neanderthals’ spatial organization reflects different types of adaptive modes in response to internal and external constraints. A multidisciplinary study of the archaeological record, spatial analysis, and bone refits, compared with ethnographic data, is used to identify relevant aspects of space management, which constitutes a formal tool for interpreting the Palaeolithic record. The arrangements of artefacts and features within archaeological sites have often been employed to isolate activity areas and draw inferences about site function; this assumes that objects found in proximity were used for the same task and that artefacts were usually discarded where they were used. In this regard, refitting studies provide valuable data to achieve topics like assemblage formation processes, post-depositional dynamics, settlement patterns, definition, and integrity of stratigraphic units. The distribution of remains and documented connection lines allows understanding the space use and, consequently, human behaviour. Although these premises, faunal refits have hitherto been poorly applied in archaeological sites.

This paper aims to present the application of an innovative methodology applicated to the Middle Palaeolithic units A9 (47.6-45.0 Ky Cal BP) and A6-A5 (44.8-42.2 Ky Cal B.P.) of Fumane cave (Verona, Italy) that will include refits, spatial archaeology, multivariate statistic techniques and 3D model reconstructions. This latter will be an excellent way to record and transfer scientific information, and the possibility to automate or semi-automate refits of large faunal assemblages would offer new insights into zooarchaeological research methods.

Abstract: participation in the international virtual tour addressed to families. The event, organized on the Zoom platform for the ICOM International Museum Day 2021, provided a guided tour of the Palaeolithic. The MUSE (Science Museum of Trento), Grotta di Fumane and Mettmann's Neanderthal Museum offer a trip between Germany and Italy to get to know our prehistoric ancestors up close with a guided tour of the rooms of the two museums and the archaeological site in Valpolicella. Some aspects of art, technology, culture and ways of life were presented, thanks to an innovative way to visit museums or universities. The occasion was useful for presenting a live virtual tour inside the labs of the University of Ferrara, where faunal material is collected, presenting some aspects of my Marie Curie project and methods applied.

Abstract: the debate over Neanderthal subsistence patterns and behavioural aspects is a source of many discussions and scientific contributions. Research over the last ten years has produced new data on mobility, economic strategies and life-aspects of these ancestors, changing and enriching the comprehension of their material record. This project will address the identification of changes in Neanderthal subsistence patterns, across the late Mousterian sequence of Fumane cave (44-47.6 ka cal BP), one of the most important European key-sites (Verona, Italy). ANDSU will attempt to overcome some of the current scientific limitations, by focusing on specific objectives: the identification of Neanderthal's spatial alteration patterns; the durability of their occupations; the site function; the temporality (or not) of site space and the lengths and number of occupation(s)/event(s). An integrated multidisciplinary research methodology will be harnessed to address these objectives and enhance the state-of-the-art. The project's innovative methodology will include bone refits, spatial archaeology, multivariate statistic techniques (k-mean cluster analysis; hierarchical classification methods; discriminant and point pattern analysis) and 3D model reconstructions. The experimentation of bones' 3D scan will be an excellent way to record and transfer scientific information. The ability to automate or semi-automate refits of large faunal assemblages would add new perspectives to zooarchaeological research methods. According to current literature and the growing evidence emerging from many European sites, this project could provide useful data on the late Neanderthal groups. Moreover, it focuses on the crucial need to extend our knowledge on Neanderthal's behaviour and settlement patterns i.e., Fumane inhabitants' life-ways and their cultural relationships. ANDSU will serve as a foundation for further studies, enabling a collection of data that can be applied to the construction of populations models and eco-cultural niches of other European regions.