THE END OF THE MIDDLE PALAEOLITHIC IN NORTHERN FRANCE

The end of the Middle Palaeolithic remains a poorly known period in Northern France. This region is further characterized by the absence of a "transitional" industry identified elsewhere in Europe. The discovery of occupation levels contemporary of marine isotope stage 3 remains rare, and their chronology is difficult to specify. A similar situation is also described for England and Belgium. The situation is different in Germany, where many levels of occupation are attested, but the Middle Palaeolithic seems to end there a little earlier. Examination of stratigraphic, environmental and archaeological data indicates that preservation conditions are far from optimal for Palaeolithic levels and that Neandertal paleodemography was weak, which explains the low number of sites. The end of the Middle Palaeolithic in northern France appears to be around 40 ka, during Greenland Interstadial 9, or just after, during Heinrich event 4.