Nouvel examen des ossements humains de Moulin Quignon (Somme, France). Étude anthropologique, taphonomique et première datation par le radiocarbone

During years 1863 and 1864, Jacques Boucher de Perthes (1788-1868) drove the discovery of a series of human remains from the Moulin Quignon stone pit, near Abbeville (Somme, France), site known for a while for its Acheulean lithic industry regarded as an official evidence for the great antiquity of Man. These anthropological remains, instead of supporting the previous findings, have casted doubt on the site as a whole. We tried to understand the issue in investigating these anthropological pieces and putting them back in their scientific and historic context. Twenty-eight remains have been identified in the anthropological collections of the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, which seem to correspond to only a part of the discovered bones as listed in written descriptions. Whereas we attributed them to Homo sapiens, their position in the Acheulean levels of Moulin Quignon appeared inconsistent. To remove doubt about their antiquity, two bones (skull and tibia fragments) were dated by radiocarbon method. Resulting dates, from recent historical period, confirmed their intrusive position in the site. Results of bio-archaeological and taphonomical studies point to nearby cemeteries as likely “providing sources”.