La Garma A is the name of part of an extensive cave system located within the Monte de la Garma hill in the Cantabrian region of northern Spain.
La Garma A is a small (4x2 meters) cave in the system, with evidence for extensive human occupation, including most of the Upper Paleolithic sequence, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze Age and Medieval remains in evidence. La Garma A also exhibits cave paintings and animal bones, and three occupation areas dated to the Middle Magdalenian period. Cave paintings at La Garma are thought to represent at least three separately dated events, Gravettian, Solutrean, and Magdalenian.
Layer F in La Garma A is dated to the Late Gravettian period, and within its layers are three pieces of local amber. The lithic assemblage includes a few Gravettian points, some portable art, and ibex, red deer and horse bones.
Sources
Pictures of the cave paintings and additional information on La Garma can be found at the Arte Paleolitico site (in English and Spanish): Cueva de la Garma.
Peñalver, E., et al. 2007 Local amber in a Palaeolithic context in Cantabrian Spain: the case of La Garma A. Journal of Archaeological Science 34:843-849.
This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology.
