The site of La Quina, located about 1.5km southwest of the village of Le Pontaroux in Charente, France, was first discovered in 1872. Organized excavation began a few decades later in 1905 and was led by Dr. Henri-Martin. He began his investigations at a section of the site he called the “station amont”, which was also known as “Trench A”. Subsequent trenches expanded to the east and were labeled alphabetically. La Quina has continued to be excavated intermittently since 1905, and it is known for the numerous neanderthal remains that have been found there.
La Quina played a critical role in the formation of the ASPR. After the first world war, Dr. Henri-Martin and his collaborator Charles Peabody wanted to reserve a part of the site for American Students, and George Grant McCurdy, after being contacted by Charles Peabody, was willing to lead this endeavor. The importance of La Quina to the foundation of the ASPR is reflected in the history of the ASPR’s name changes; when the organization was founded, it was called the “American School in France for Prehistoric Studies”. The school was given access to Trench M, but it turned out to be “less rich in specimens” (Peabody 1923, 116) than the earlier tranches, and the excavations there were therefore not as fruitful as the founders had hoped. They did, however, find bone fragments of fauna including horse, bison, ox, and reindeer, and Charles Peabody reported in his recount of the school’s second season that some of these bones had cut marks (Peabody 1923, 117).
References cited
Peabody, C. (1923). Annual Report of the American School in France of Prehistoric Studies, 1922-23. Bulletin of the Archaeological Institute of America, 14, 115-118.