吉林省和龙西沟发现的旧石器

2006年6月发现,该地点位于和龙市龙城镇西沟村西南,距西沟村约800米的Ⅳ级侵蚀阶地上。在地表采集石器102件,包括石核、石片、石叶、断片、断块、废片、1类工具、2类工具和3类工具。原料以黑曜岩为主,占69.61%,其次是石英、石英岩、凝灰岩、板岩等。属于以小石器为主体的工业向以细石器为主体的工业过渡的类型。推测该地点年代为旧石器时代晚期。     

The Paleolithic of Dzungaria (Xinjiang,Northwest China) Based on Materials from the Luotuoshi Site

The paper reports the results of an analysis of surface collections of artifacts made at the Luotuoshi site in Dzungaria, Xinjiang, northwest China. The site was discovered in 2004 by a joint Chinese-Russian-American archaeological expedition. A techno-typological analysis of the artifacts was carried out noting aeolian abrasion of the artifacts’ surfaces. This technocomplex is quite homogenous and is characterized by a combination of Levallois-like and subprismatic blade-based reduction techniques. Analogs of the Luotuoshi assemblage have been identified within the lithic industries of the Altai, the Orkhon-1 and Tolbor-4 sites in Mongolia, and at Shuidonggou in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in China, all of which have been attributed to the Early Upper Paleolithic. Luotuoshi is the first site associated with the blade-based Early Upper Paleolithic discovered in northwest China and its particular features make it possible to correlate this technocomplex with those from southern Siberia and northern Central Asia.     

内蒙古鄂尔多斯市乌兰木伦旧石器时代中期遗址

乌兰木伦遗址由邻近的第1、第2和第3地点组成。其中在第1地点获得了石制品2780件、动物化石3423件,并发现用火遗迹。遗址年代为距今7～3万年,属旧石器时代中期。遗址为原地埋藏,其石制品类型及工业组合与欧洲旧石器时代中期文化近似,动物化石则属于华北晚更新世的萨拉乌苏动物群。     

Excavations at the Bairaki Lower Paleolithic Site,Trans-Dniesteria,in 2011

Early Paleolithic deposits of the left-bank high seventh fluvial terrace of the Dniester were excavated at Bairaki, Trans-Dniestria. The assemblage is comprised of 28 artifacts including distinct flakes, cores, and Lower Paleolithic tools. Based on the 2011 geological and archaeological study, tools from the riverbed alluvium, paralleled by those of the Middle Oldowan, date to the earliest Lower Pleistocene. Bairaki, then, should be classified among the most ancient Paleolithic sites in Eastern Europe.     

Flake selection and scraper retouch probability: an alternative model for explaining Middle Paleolithic assemblage retouch variability

It has been proposed that the relative abundance of retouched objects in Paleolithic assemblages can serve as a measure for artifact transport and by extension a proxy for site occupation duration. This approach is based on the assumption that retouch represents curatory effort for extending the service time of transported artifacts when raw material access is uncertain or limited, a condition that could arise when groups move frequently over long distances across the landscape. This paper proposes an alternative model that explains retouch as a probabilistic outcome of an expedient, on-site flake selection process. A simulation illustrates that the model is capable of producing assemblage retouch configurations akin to those commonly observed in Paleolithic settings. The simulation also indicates that the threshold applied by past individuals for selecting particular artifacts is an important parameter for explaining assemblage retouch variability. Using artifact weight as a proxy for flake selection criteria, several Middle Paleolithic assemblages exhibit patterns that support predictions made from the model simulation. Findings suggest that variation in scraper frequency among the studied assemblages can be accounted for by an interaction between the abundance of artifact production events and shifting artifact selection criteria, without appealing to higher-level behaviors of technological and mobility strategies.     

湖北丹江口市毛家洼旧石器遗址调查

湖北丹江口市石鼓一带的旧石器遗存非常丰富,在约2平方千米的区域内发现旧石器时代晚期遗址5处,毛家洼是其中之一。该遗址发现于上世纪80年代,后又发现石制品200余件。这批石制品可分为石核、石片、刮削器、砍砸器、尖状器五大类。其原料均为燧石,石核的利用率高,石器的素材多石片,石器中以刮削器为主。     

Edge damage distribution at the assemblage level on Middle Stone Age lithics: an image-based GIS approach

Lithic artifacts represent the most abundant cultural remains from Middle Stone Age sites in southern Africa. Of these, pointed forms (under a variety of names), blades, and flakes have long been recognized as the three most abundant general types, and retouch on all three is rare relative to similar forms of equivalent age elsewhere. Here we offer a new technique for documenting concentrations of edge damage on an assemblage level to infer taphonomic processes and to record usewear and retouch. This approach is specifically aimed at patterning on the assemblage scale, rather than on individual artifacts. We use points from a Middle Stone Age assemblage from Pinnacle Point Cave 13B, near Mossel Bay, South Africa, to illustrate the technique. Combining GIS, rose diagrams, and polar statistics, we were able to visually and statistically summarize lithic artifacts for patterns of edge damage. For the points made on quartzite in this assemblage, edge damage was found to be significantly patterned and taphonomic causes of the damage were rejected. The technique also opens avenues for many other quantitative analyses that are either impossible or difficult with current non-visual systems of recording, such as measurements of distance, angle, and area of edge damage.     

New Archaeological Books and Journals

Abstract

As part of a research program aimed at clarifying the date of the Middle Paleolithic in Greece and its relationship with contemporary industries in the Balkans, a survey of the Larisa area of Thessaly for Paleolithic remains was undertaken in 1987. The results of this survey are reported, along with a reinterpretation of the available evidence in Greece for the date of the Middle Paleolithic. The banks and terrace system of the Peneios River were systematically searched along with those parts of Thessaly with deposits old enough to contain prehistoric artifacts. In 1987, we discovered 32 find spots and collected211 lithic artifacts. The lithic artifacts are Middle and Upper Paleolithic types, and are dated by their association with the fluviatile deposits exposed by downcutting of the river. Radiometric dates for the fluviatile deposits indicate an age of 45–27 KYA (thousands of years ago) for the Paleolithic finds. Other dates for the Middle Paleolithic in Greece are on the same order. The Thessalian Paleolithic industry is a Levallois-Mousterian facies with bifacial leafpoints, side Scrapers, Mousterian points, denticulates, andAurignacian-type end scrapers, burins, retouched Blades, and bifacial leafpoints with rounded bases. The Thessalian industry with its mixture of Middle and Upper Paleolithic types, is similar to other assemblages in Greece. The Greek Levallois-Mousterian resembles the Szeletian of Hungary and is of approximately the same age. It was perhaps produced by late Neanderthals in contact with an anatomically-modern human population. Late Upper Paleolithic Epigravettian and Mesolithic industries were not identified in Thessaly and are rare in Greece. Some areas may have been uninhabited or little used until 9 KYA when the first Neolithic settlements appear in Thessaly.     

A late Middle Stone Age artifact assemblage from Sibudu (KwaZulu-Natal): comparisons with the European Middle Paleolithic

It has been suggested that many behavioral innovations, said to appear during the late Middle Stone Age in sub-Saharan Africa, facilitated the expansion of anatomically modern humans from Africa and the Near East into Europe at about 50 kyr; the process eventually led to the replacement of Neanderthals by modern humans and the emergence of the Upper Paleolithic. However, assemblages in this time range are little known in South Africa. In fact, the transition from Middle to the Later Stone Age in Southern Africa is controversial. The early appearance in South Africa of many innovations, such as sophisticated knapping techniques (e.g. the use of soft hammer or indirect percussion in blade production, of composite tools, of microlithic and bladelet technologies) remains to be established through technological analysis.We present here the first results of a project designed to carry out detailed technological studies of several lithic assemblages in South Africa and France dated to the transition period. At this time we have completed the study of a post-Howiesons Poort assemblage from the rock shelter site of Sibudu.The >2 m deep stratigraphic sequence of Sibudu extends from Howiesons Poort at its base to final Middle Stone Age, directly under Iron Age layers. We have analyzed in detail layer RSP (ca. 53 kyr, 1 m above the Howiesons Poort levels) which has provided a large assemblage of several thousand stone artifacts. Compared to published MSA assemblages this industry is unusual for the very high proportions of retouched pieces (15%). The technology is not very elaborate and there is no strong standardization of the end-products. There are no flakes of predetermined shapes; retouch is used to modify irregular flakes to obtain desired edges. Knapping of flakes and blades is done by hard hammer; soft hammer is used only for retouching tools. Interestingly the older Howiesons Poort blades were produced on the same raw materials by soft hammer. Raw material (hornfels and dolerite) was procured from distances of less than 20 km. Unifacial points are the dominant type and there is strong evidence of hafting and use as spear armatures. Detailed comparisons with Middle Paleolithic assemblages of Western Europe show that the late Middle Stone Age technology in South Africa is very similar to that of the Middle Paleolithic; in fact we see no fundamental differences between the two entities, as far as lithic technology is concerned. Implications for the Out of Africa hypothesis are discussed.     

Temporal nature and recycling of Upper Paleolithic artifacts: the burned tools from the Molí del Salt site (Vimbodí i Poblet,northeastern Spain)

Recent research in Paleolithic archeology has stressed the importance of temporal issues in assemblage interpretation. Archeological assemblages are temporal constructs, formed by the addition of an unknown number of depositional events. This temporal dimension is also evident at the artifactual level, since single artifacts may undergo different events of modification and/or uses over time. The recycling of previously discarded blanks for tool production is one of the best examples of the temporal nature of artifacts. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the importance of recycling in a Late Upper Paleolithic site, examining a type of artifact – burned tools – that has up to now been little used to approach this issue. Our results suggest that recycling was probably a significant component of Upper Paleolithic provisioning behavior, with important implications in site formation processes and the typological variability of assemblages. The expedient or curated character of recycling is also discussed.     

湖南道县玉蟾岩遗址早期陶器及其地层堆积的碳十四年代研究

位于湖南道县的玉蟾岩遗址包含大量灰烬,丰富的动物遗存,砾石和石片石器以及骨角器。从出土遗物,特别是人工制品来看,该洞穴应是一处旧石器晚期狩猎采集者的营地。洞穴堆积反映出人类的一系列短期活动或栖居,其间穿插着遗址被废弃的时期。微形态学研究显示堆积中的红色粘土条带是当时人类从洞外搬进来的。该遗址还出土了若干陶片,可以复原成2件或更多的陶器。多数陶片出自于1993和1995年的发掘。另有10多件陶片在2004和2005年的发掘中被发现。我们将在本文介绍该洞穴堆积的年代研究过程和结果,包括样品的采集、预筛选和前处理过程,以及最后对保存好的炭屑和骨头样品的测年。玉蟾岩遗址的年代为距今21000～13800年(校正后,后同),年代数据表明下层堆积中存在人类栖居的间断,陶片的年代为距今17,000～18,000年。这些陶片是在中国发现的制造陶器的最早证据之一。     

High Desert Paleolithic Survey at Abydos,Egypt

Abstract

In the winters of 2000 and 2002–2003 we surveyed a portion of the high desert immediately adjacent to the Nile Valley at Abydos, Egypt. The initial field season assessed the area's potential to contribute to the existing database of Paleolithic landscapes. Limited work done prior to our initial survey indicated that such Paleolithic sites in this region, while present, were relatively infrequent. Contrary to this expectation, we found the desert landscape densely littered with Paleolithic artifacts. Our subsequent work documented the extent of the distribution and the nature of Paleolithic artifacts. The goal of this work is to develop models of desert landscape use, particularly during the Middle Paleolithic, which can be integrated into those existing for the Nile Valley. In doing this, we provide a more complete picture of hominid adaptations in a place and time period critical to our understanding of the origins of modern human behaviors.     

The Upper Paleolithic period in the Levant

The classic Upper Paleolithic sequence in the Levant was based on a series of stratified assemblages with culture-specific type fossils. Research in the last two decades has revealed numerous assemblages that cannot be accommodated within the classic sequence. The recently discovered assemblages are now regarded as representing two large entities that differ in both technology and typology. The locally developed Ahmarian is dominated by blades and bladelets, while the Levantine Aurignacian (probably an intrusive from the north) is dominated by flakes and by endscrapers or burins. The nature and contents of the sites suggest that Levantine Upper Paleolithic people were organized as small bands of mobile foragers, whose important resources were ungulate meat and plant foods. This subsistence economy and the associated settlement patterns lasted till about 13,000 B.P. and was succeeded by the Natufian culture with an entirely new socioeconomic organization.     

Paleolithic occupations of the Göllü Dağ, Central Anatolia,Turkey

Abstract

Systematic archaeological surface reconnaissance of the Göllü Da? volcanic complex from 2007 to 2012 documented more than 230 findspots with Paleolithic artifacts, ranging from isolated finds to extensive and dense scatters of artifacts. Most of the activities represented relate to exploitation of the rich obsidian resources in the region. Paleolithic artifacts are attributed mainly to the Middle Paleolithic based on the presence of Levallois technology but there is a substantial Lower Paleolithic component represented by handaxes and other large bifacial tools. Upper and Epipaleolithic sites and artifacts are scarce or absent in the survey sample. The distributions of handaxes and Levallois elements differ substantially, reflecting differences in site preservation and exposure as well as organization of prehistoric activities. Multiple variants of Levallois are represented but centripetal preferential and unipolar flake production dominate. The frequent co-occurrence of different Levallois forms suggests flexible reduction strategies. Distributions of different classes of artifact across the survey area indicate that the Middle Paleolithic occupations of Göllü Da? were not entirely oriented toward workshop activities.     

Increasing data (INAA) on Ecuadorian obsidian artifacts: preliminary provenance and a clue for pre-Columbian eastward trade

In this work we carried out INAA major (Na, K, Ca and Fe %) and trace (ppm) elements (plus Mn by FAAS analysis) of 15 obsidian samples (waste flakes) coming from an unknown archaeological site (¹⁴C-AMS age of 1425 AD) located on the south-eastern flank of the back-arc Sumaco volcano (to the east of the Cordillera Real) and from two already known pre-Columbian archaeological localities: La Florida (Quito) and Milan (Cayambe). Literature compositional data of the Ecuadorian obsidian outcrops provide some constraints on the provenance of the analyzed waste flakes, even though different methods of analyses make comparisons a difficult task. Concerning the obsidian artifacts of La Florida and Milan, they come from the well known Sierra de Guamanì obsidian sources (Cordillera Real). By contrast, the obsidian fragments of the Sumaco settlement show some compositional characters compatible with obsidian erratic pebbles recently discovered in some river banks of the Amazonian foothills draining the easternmost flanks of the Antisana volcano in the Cordillera Real as well. In this way, the obsidian artifacts found at the Sumaco site reinforce the opinion that Ecuadorian source inventory is not yet exhaustive. Although the Antisana volcano seems to be the best candidate to find out additional primary outcrops of obsidian sources, it cannot be also excluded that sub-Andean and Amazonian people directly took advantage from obsidian secondary sources (e.g. river banks), rather than procurements from primary outcrops in the Cordillera Real. The new archaeological findings at the Sumaco volcano are really of paramount importance in tracing the ancient routes of a possible obsidian eastward trade toward the Amazonian region.     

Exploitation of Lithic Raw Material in The Northwestern Caucasus Upper Paleolithic

Sources of lithic raw material discovered by the authors are described with special regard to methods of transporting stone to Upper Paleolithic sites in the northwestern Caucasus. The analysis of obsidian artifacts suggests that materials were imported from remote regions such as the central and South Caucasus, evidencing mobility patterns in the Upper Paleolithic.     

Experimental production of bending and radial flake fractures and implications for lithic technologies

Bend and radially broken flake tools have been identified in Paleolithic and Paleoindian assemblages, and their presence raises important questions. Were these breaks intentionally produced to serve as tool edges or were broken flakes simply scavenged? More importantly, can we distinguish between intentionally produced breaks and those produced incidentally? Experimental archaeology can help answer these questions. In this paper, three sets of experimentally produced bend and radial flake breaks were compared. Flakes were intentionally broken by percussion, and these breaks were compared to those produced during bifacial core reduction and by flake trampling. The presence of point of impact markers, near ninety degree break angles, and an assemblage with high percentages of bend and radial breaks distinguish intentional fracture from incidental fractures produced during bifacial reduction. High percentages of radial breaks distinguish intentional fracture from trampling. Finally, it may not be possible to identify intentional breaks in a bifacial reduction assemblage severely affected by flake-on-flake trampling.     

西藏旧石器时代的再认识——以阿里日土县夏达错东北岸地点为中心

一、引言面对险恶的生存环境,初上西藏高原的人们在体会了缺氧、寒冷、资源缺乏后,都不仅要问人类何时拓殖这一片广袤的高原[1]。西藏高原有无旧石器时代遗存,是21世纪     

Bairaki–a lower paleolithic site on the lower dniester

Findings of excavations at a Lower Paleolithic site, discovered in 2010 near Dubasari on the Lower Dniester, are described. Earlier, two sites with Lower Paleolithic fl int tools – Dubasari-1 (Bolshoi Fontan) and Pogrebya – were found nearby. The cultural layer, located in the top of the lower buried soil overlying the alluvial deposits of the sixth or seventh terrace of the Dniester, included a few stone artifacts and a fragment of an animal bone. The likely age of this buried soil is estimated at ca 500 ka by geological methods. In the alluvium gravel of the same terrace downstream, three pebble tools including two choppers made of a strong Cos?u?i sandstone, and four fl int pieces were found. Geological observations suggest that this alluvium is more than 800 ka old. So far these are the earliest stone tools discovered in a stratified context in the Russian, Moldavian, and Ukrainian parts of the Russian Plain.     

河南境内古人类及旧石器遗存的发现及其问题

河南省自1954年发现第一块旧石器时代人工制品以来,境内已发现众多古人类-旧石器遗址或地点,尤其是近十年来在许昌灵井发现了距今约10万年前的古人类头骨化石和数万件人工制品,在新密李家沟发现了新旧石器时代的地层及文化遗物,以及在栾川、登封和淅川等地发现了古人类化石或石叶技术,使之成为研究现代人类起源、新旧石器时代过渡等的热点地区。