ESR dating of the Donggutuo Palaeolithic site in the Nihewan Basin, northern China

The fluvio-lacustrine sequences in the Nihewan Basin, northern China, provide important terrestrial archives about Palaeolithic settlements and, therefore, about early human occupation in high northern latitude in East Asia. Here we present detailed ESR dating of the Donggutuo Palaeolithic site, located in this basin. Four levels A, B, C and E of the Donggutuo archaeological layer yield ESR ages ranging from 1060±129 ka to 1171±132 ka with a mean of 1119±132 ka. The ages are consistent with the paleomagnetic data, which show that the Donggutuo Palaeolithic site lies just below the onset of the Jaramillo normal subchron (0.99–1.07 Ma). Furthermore, our results indicate that the reliable ESR dating range of bleached quartz using Ti-Li centre can be effectively extended to 1100 ka and the Ti-Li centre was zeroed before the last deposition, which requires improvement of the understanding of the bleaching mechanism conditions.     

Reconnaissance survey for Palaeolithic sites in the Debed River Valley,northern Armenia

Abstract

The southern Caucasus is a critical region for those interested in Palaeolithic research because of its varied topography and location at the crossroads of Europe, Africa, and Asia. Modern Armenia sits at the heart of this area, but has until now played a small role in broader debates, largely because of its paucity of well-excavated and well-dated sites. To improve this situation, a survey was conducted for Palaeolithic sites along the valley of the Debed River (Lori Depression, northeastern Armenia). Twenty-three open-air sites, spanning the Lower through the Upper Palaeolithic periods, were identified. Most of the lithic material is of Middle Palaeolithic manufacture. Upper Palaeolithic material is also well represented, but only a handful of Lower Palaeolithic artifacts have been identified. Test excavations at several sites suggest that they preserve in situ deposits that may help us to understand the role of the southern Caucasus in the Palaeolithic occupation of Eurasia.     

New research on the Holocene settlement and environment of the Chad Basin in Nigeria

Recent investigations of three archaeological sites in the Nigerian part of the Chad Basin during the Holocene reveal key stages in the cultural development and environmental history of that region. At Dufuna, a dugout boat was dated to around 6000 BC, making it the oldest known boat in Africa and one of the oldest in the world. Boats may thus have contributed to the mobility of the population of the southern edge of the Sahara 8000 years ago and, thereby, to the cultural homogeneity of this period. The pottery site at Konduga is around a thousand years younger than Dufuna but still belongs to the time of Mega-Chad. The site is on the Bama Ridge, an old shoreline. Its pottery, decorated in the Saharan tradition, belongs to the earliest ceramic phase of the West African Later Stone Age, long before the beginnings of food production. Although this site was probably settled by pioneers advancing into a largely flooded landscape along the slightly raised shoreline, the human occupation of the area previously covered by Mega-Chad began along a broad front around 2000 BC. Archaeological and palaeoecological finds from two settlement mounds at Gajiganna are described as case studies for this phase, which predates the well-known site of Daima.

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Résumé Les résultats présentés proviennent de recherches récentes sur trois sites archéologiques, dont chacun représente un épisode clé du développement culturel et de l'histoire environnementale du Bassin nigérian du Tchad au cours de l'Holocène. A Dufuna, la découverte d'une pirogue monoxyle, datée d'environ 6000 ans BC, constitue le témoignage le plus ancien d'une embarcation en Afrique et l'un des plus ancien dans le monde. Ce moyen de transport indique la mobilité des populations de la marge sud du Sahara à l'Holocène inférieur et moyen; ce qui a dû contribuer à l'homogénéité culturelle de cette période. Le site à poterie de Konduga est le plus jeune d'un millénaire que Dufuna, mais appartient à l'époque du Méga-Tchad. Le site est installé sur une ancienne ligne de rivage, la Bama Ridge. Sa poterie, décorée selon la tradition saharienne, appartient à la plus ancienne phase à céramique du Later Stone Age ouest-africain, bien avant le début d'une production alimentaire. Vu que ce site ne devait étre occupé que par des pionniers aventurés dans un paysage largement amphibie à la faveur d'un mince cordon émergé, la colonisation de l'espace antérieurement couvert par le Méga-Tchad, débute le long d'un large front vers 2000 ans BC.Les trouvailles archéologiques et paléoécologiques de deux tertres anthropiques à Gajiganna sont décrites commes études de cas illustrant cette phase, qui précède celle du célèbre site de Daima.

     

The Palaeolithic of the Bosphorus Region NW Turkey

Abstract

A survey of open-air sites in NW Turkey identified 16 Palaeolithic sites. Analysis of nearly 2000 lithics identified Lower, Middle, and Early Upper Palaeolithic (EUP) components. The Lower Palaeolithic is represented by a core-chopper/flake assemblage at one site and an assemblage with small bifaces at another. Middle Palaeolithic assemblages similar to the typical Balkan Mousterian were found at most sites, and an EUP assemblage similar to the Balkan Aurignacian was found on the Black Sea coast. Later Upper Palaeolithic cultures, e.g., Gravettian or Epigravettian, were not found. Palaeolithic sites were also not found in Turkish Thrace west of Büyük Çekmece, and a palaeoenvironmental barrier, perhaps a channel connecting the Marmara and Black Seas, may have existed before the Bosphorus was opened in the Holocene. A difference in the distribution of Lower-Middle Palaeolithic sites and EUP sites was also noted. EUP sites are clustered on the Black Sea coast while earlier sites are found in the interior and on the shores of the Sea of Marmara. This change in settlement pattern may support a hypothesis of cultural change between the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic and perhaps the replacement hypothesis for the peopling of Europe by early modern humans.     

长春地区(99)发现的动物化石和旧石器

本文对所发现的九处动物化石地点 (其中包括旧石器地点一处 )、37件动物化石以及石器和骨器进行分析研究。所发现的动物种类均属于东北地区晚更新世猛犸象—披毛犀动物群成员。石制工具具有细、小石器共有的特征 ,为东北地区细、小石器的深入研究提供了重要资料。依据石、骨器的性质分析 ,其年代应属于旧石器时代的晚期之末 ;又根据动物化石种属判断 ,其生存的地质时代为晚更新世的晚期。     

Demography and the Palaeolithic Archaeological Record

Demographic change has recently re-emerged as a key explanation for socio-cultural changes documented in the prehistoric archaeological record. While the majority of studies of Pleistocene demography have been conducted by geneticists, the archaeological records of the Palaeolithic should not be ignored as a source of data on past population trends. This paper forms both a comprehensive synthesis and the first critical review of current archaeological research into Palaeolithic demography. Within prevailing archaeological frameworks of dual inheritance theory and human behavioural ecology, I review the ways in which demographic change has been used as an explanatory concept within Palaeolithic archaeology. I identify and discuss three main research areas which have benefitted from a demographic approach to socio-cultural change: (1) technological stasis in the Lower Palaeolithic, (2) the Neanderthal-Homo sapiens transition in Europe and (3) the emergence of behavioural modernity. I then address the ways in which palaeodemographic methods have been applied to Palaeolithic datasets, considering both general methodological concerns and the challenges specific to this time period. Finally, I discuss the ability of ethnographic analogy to aid research into Palaeolithic demography.     

Palaeolithic archaeology and the evolution of mind

This paper reviews recent archaeological studies concerning the evolution of mind. It is structured around four themes: language, intelligence, symbolism, and social learning. It includes reference to recent work in other disciplines that is either having, or likely to have, considerable impact on archaeological thought. The evolution of mind is a highly contentious subject, plagued by problems of definition and lacking an explicit methodology. This paper argues that the two most positive trends of recent work have been greater attempts at interdisciplinary studies and the integration of the study of cognition with that of hominid lifestyles.     

加大柴达木盆地生态建设和环境保护力度

柴达木盆地脆弱的生态环境是制约经济开发的重要因素之一,实施生态环境保护和绿色发展战略,是地区社会经济可持续发展的必然选择。为此,要以科学发展观为指导,不断加强对公民的生态意识教育,合理利用自然资源,建立资源节约型社会,统筹人与自然的和谐发展,加大资源和环境保护的行政管理和治理力度,使生态建设和环境保护走上法制化的轨道。     

OSL dating using quartz fine grains extracted from loess in Upper Palaeolithic sites of Nihewan Basin, northern China

Although radiocarbon (¹⁴C) dating, uranium-series dating, and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating have been conducted for Upper Palaeolithic sites in the Nihewan Basin, northern China, there is room for constructing a detailed chronological framework. In this study, loess sediments collected from two Upper Palaeolithic sites, Youfang site and Hutouliang site, were dated using the single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) OSL protocol. OSL measurements for palaeodoses estimation used fine-grained quartz samples extracted from loess. OSL dating results were obtained as 10–17 ka. These OSL ages were consistent with the related stratigraphy of Palaeolithic sites, archaeological evidence and independent ¹⁴C ages.     

The spatial distribution of Palaeolithic human settlements and its influence on palaeoecological studies: a case from Northern Iberia

The aim of this study is to assess the influence of human site location choice on biogeographical and paleoecological studies based on archaeological remains, through a case study in north-western Spain. Data from an exhaustive literature survey and field trips were managed with GIS and subjected to statistical analyses. The results show that the influence of the different variables shifted through the Palaeolithic, although certain general preferences can be seen: low altitudes (median: 151 m a.s.l.), South-facing surfaces, generally gentle slopes (median: 13°) and moderate distances to water courses (median: 297 m). These choices were conditioned by geomorphological factors, with LGM glacier extent imposing an upper limit in the range of occupied altitudes and marine and fluvial terraces conditioning site location patterns. The results suggest that human site location patterns during the Palaeolithic were not random, conditioning the information available from archaeological remains. Our results allow us to identify some key areas where information on past faunal distributions, and more generally on biocoenoses, will be scarce or missing.     

中国旧石器时代考古反思

近年来,在中国旧石器时代考古学界屡屡爆出重大新闻,亦真亦幻,令人扑朔迷离。谢飞指出：“目前,解决上述重大学术问题显得非常乏力的原因,不是旧石器考古队伍的问题,而是文物管理部门和学术权威单位关注不够、组织不力的问题”。…此话切中要害．非常值得深思。     

The Upper Palaeolithic Sculptured ibex of Angles-sur-l'Angkin, France

This article reviews Magdalenian depictions of ibex in a cave in central France, and examines both the natural history of this animal and its meanings for the artists.     

The effect of ethnicity and economy upon intergenerational coresidence: northern Norway during the last part of the nineteenth century

During the last part of the nineteenth century, Finnmark province and the northern part of Troms experienced a decline in intergenerational coresidence. This article discusses what impact ethnic affiliation and economic activity had on the living arrangements of the elderly, and what contributed to the change. Logistic regression shows that ethnicity played a role but its effect disappears after controlling for economic activity. Intergenerational coresidence was positively associated with being a married Sámi male with an occupation in farming or combined fishing and farming. As such a person grew older, he was increasingly likely to live separately from an own adult child. This pattern changed toward the end of nineteenth century. By the close of the century, ethnic differences had disappeared, and headship position, irrespective of marital status, was strongly related to coresidence.     

Research on the Palaeolithic and Neolithic of Hadramaut and Mahra

This paper presents some of the results of exploration and excavation by the Soviet-Yemeni expedition carried out between 1983 and 1990 in Hadramaut and Mahra. Oldowan, Acheulean, Middle Palaeolithic, Upper Palaeolithic, and'Neolithic'stone tool industries are attested, providing what is probably the most detailed sequence covering these periods in the entire Arabian peninsula.     

The Upper Palaeolithic Lithic Industry of Nazlet Khater 4 (Egypt): Implications for the Stone Age/Palaeolithic of Northeastern Africa

Between Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 4 and 2, Northeast Africa witnessed migrations of Homo sapiens into Eurasia. Within the context of the aridification of the Sahara, the Nile Valley probably offered a very attractive corridor into Eurasia. This region and this period are therefore central for the (pre)history of the out-of-Africa peopling of modern humans. However, there are very few sites from the beginning of the Upper Palaeolithic that document these migration events. In Egypt, the site of Nazlet Khater 4 (NK4), which is related to ancient H. sapiens quarrying activities, is one of them. Its lithic assemblage shows an important laminar component, and this, associated with its chronological position (ca. 33 ka), means that the site is the most ancient Upper Palaeolithic sites of this region. The detailed study of the Nazlet Khater 4 lithic material shows that blade production (volumetric reduction) is also associated with flake production (surface reduction). This technological duality addresses the issue of direct attribution of NK4 to the Upper Palaeolithic.     

西安府文庙的择址及其对周围环境的塑造

西安府文庙的择址巧妙结合传统文化、地理条件等方面的因素,力求达到自然和人文融合的"天人合一"的境界。同时府文庙的存在也对周围自然、人文环境产生了深远的影响。     

Recent Research on the Upper Palaeolithic Phase in India

Abstract

Recent discoveries of artifactual assemblages based on blade-tool technology, occurring in post-Middle Palaeolithic and pre-Mesolithic contexts in different parts of India, are filling the gap in the Indian Stone Age sequence. These lithic industries, along with the bone tools obtained from the Kurnool caves, the faunal associations at some sites, and the available radiocarbon dates, are now seen beyond doubt to represent the Upper Palaeolithic period.     

The Neronian and the historical structure of cultural shifts from Middle to Upper Palaeolithic in Mediterranean France

The end of the Middle Palaeolithic period can be considered a key moment in the history of humanity, characterized by profound changes in traditional Palaeolithic societies. Whatever the reasons for this historical change, it seems well established that it took place within a particularly dynamic phase of these societies, when Upper Palaeolithic technical processes were already emerging. The analysis of recent Mousterian industries in Mediterranean France highlights certain points of inflection, which presage new ways of life. The analysis of key sites demonstrates important transformations within the last Neanderthal societies, with a gradual rearticulation of Mousterian technical systems around the production of blades and points and with profound changes in the relationship of the craftsman with his tools. Even if they are typical of the late Mousterian more generally, these technically distinctive industries have such distinct chronological, territorial and cultural characteristics that they can be referred to by a specific name, the “Néronien” (Neronian). Stratigraphically speaking, this group of assemblages – at the crossroads of the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic – appears in some important regional sequences just before the appearance of the first “true” Upper Palaeolithic industries (the Protoaurignacian). However, this Neronian doesn't represent the end of the Middle Palaeolithic period in the Rhône valley. The final Moustérien of this region is actually marked by deep breakdowns of the traditional balances in the human groups. This second point of inflection could characterize a true destabilization of Mousterian societies. There is an interesting parallelism between the historical paths of the Castelperronian in the arch of the Massif Central and the Neronian in the Rhône valley. It also highlights the mosaic nature of the profound cultural changes that occurred at the end of the Middle Palaeolithic.