Aurignacian Culture

an archaeological culture of the early stage of the Upper Paleolithic. It is named after Aurignac Cave (in the department of Haute-Garonne, France), where excavations were conducted.

The Aurignacian culture, in the narrow sense of the term, was widespread in France, where it is dated by the radiocarbon method at 33,000–19,000 years B.C. It replaced the Mousterian culture, with which it has no genetic ties (the Aurignacian culture most likely did not originate in Western Europe but was introduced from elsewhere); was contemporaneous with the Périgordian culture; and preceded the Solutrean culture. In the broader sense of the term, the Aurignacian culture was represented in a number of Western and Central European countries.

The Aurignacian culture is characterized by flint blades with retouching and fluting along the edges, end scrapers, core tools, rather well-developed bone working (in particular, split-base bone lance points), remains of dwellings, and relatively well-developed art.