Quinson

Quinson
The fountain in Quinson
Coat of arms
Quinson
Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region  Quinson
Coordinates: 43°42′11″N 6°02′26″E / 43.7031°N 6.0406°E / 43.7031; 6.0406Coordinates: 43°42′11″N 6°02′26″E / 43.7031°N 6.0406°E / 43.7031; 6.0406
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Arrondissement	Digne-les-Bains
Canton	Valensole
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Jean-Michel Reymond
Area1	28.11 km2 (10.85 sq mi)
Population (2008)2	440
• Density	16/km2 (41/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code	04158 /04500
Elevation	353–584 m (1,158–1,916 ft) (avg. 380 m or 1,250 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Quinson is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.

In the nearby Gorges du Verdon, there are a number of caves (known as "baumes"), which were occupied intermittently for over 400,000 years. The most significant of these caves is the "Baume Bonne", which has been studied by various archaeologists, including Henry de Lumley.

The Baume Bonne was occupied first during the end of the Lower Paleolithic, 400,000 years ago. It was occupied again 150-300,000 years ago. Tools made using the Levallois technique have been found dating from this era. Neanderthals inhabited the caves later, around 130,000 years ago. Remains of cave bears dating from this period have been found. The Neanderthals were eventually succeeded by Cro-Magnon men, who occupied the cave during the Upper Paleolithic. Finally, modern humans lived in the cave during Neolithic.