Wooly mammoth mass accumulation next to the Paleolithic Yana RHS site,Arctic Siberia: its geology,age, and relation to past human activity

In 2001, the Yana RHS archaeological site was discovered in the lower Yana river valley, Arctic Siberia. Its radiocarbon age is about 28 000 BP. While enormous amount of Pleistocene mammal bones was excavated from the site, the mammoth bones occurred at an unexpectedly low frequency. That was interpreted as an indication of the limited role of mammoths in the subsistence economy of the Pleistocene Yana people. In 2008, next to the excavation local ivory miners opened a mass accumulation of mammoth accompanied by the artifacts. About one thousand mammoth bones from at least 26 individuals, and few wooly rhinoceros, bison, horse, reindeer, and bear bones have been unearthed there. Stratigraphy and radiocarbon dating provide evidence for cultural layer of Yana RHS and the mass accumulation of mammoth to be coeval. The geology and taphonomy of Yana mass accumulation of mammoth indicate its anthropogenic nature. Discovery of the anthropogenic mass accumulation of mammoth next to the Yana site suggests a greater role of mammoth in the subsistence practices of the Pleistocene Yana people than previously thought.     

Man and woolly mammoth at the Kraków Spadzista Street (B) – taphonomy of the site

Excavations at the Kraków Spadzista Street (B) site, Poland were conducted over 16 years in which approximately 150 m² of the site was studied. The radiocarbon dates clustered around 23–24 ky BP, placing the site in the Gravettian cultural complex. In this paper, results from a detailed taphonomic study of faunal remains are discussed in conjunction with previous analyses of stone artefacts and site structure in order to address questions regarding site formation and Gravettian occupation. Up to 1994, ∼9000 bone remains were recovered and it was possible to identify the species and skeletal element for 5860 remains. The site contained bones of seven animal species associated with Pleistocene steppe–tundra habitats. At Kraków Spadzista Street (B), 99% of the faunal remains belong to the woolly mammoth, with other large mammal taxa represented by only isolated bones and teeth. This site yielded the largest number of mammoth bones and most individuals (MNI = 86) ever found in one place in Poland. Kraków Spadzista Street (B) represents a mammoth butchering locality and probably a mammoth hunting site as well. However, it is not yet possible to distinguish the mammoths killed by Gravettian hunters from those that died naturally and then were scavenged by people.     

Siberia and neighboring regions in the Last Glacial Maximum: did people occupy northern Eurasia at that time?

An updated analysis of Paleolithic sites in Siberia and the Urals ¹⁴C-dated to the coldest phase of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), with its timespan currently determined as ca. 23,000–19,000 BP (ca. 27,300–22,900 cal BP), is presented. It is demonstrated that people continuously occupied the southern and central parts of Siberia and the Russian Far East (up to 58° N latitude), and perhaps sporadically settled regions located even further north, up to 70° N, throughout the LGM. This is in accord with our previous data, but is now based on a larger dataset, and also on a paleoecological analysis of the major pre-LGM archaeological sites in Siberia and the Urals north of 58° N. It is clear that Paleolithic people in northern Eurasia were able to cope with the treeless tundra environment well in advance of the LGM, at least at ca. 34,000–26,000 BP (ca. 38,500–30,000 cal BP). Therefore, a high degree of adaptation to cold conditions allowed people to survive in Siberia during the LGM.     

On the Supposedly Young age of Angara Alluvial Sediments Based on the Findings of Salvage Excavations in the Flooding Area of the Boguchany Hydroelectric Plant

Based on the stratigraphy of Paleolithic sites on the northern Angara, the Upper Pleistocene and Holocene history of the region is reconstructed. Findings of recent salvage excavations in the Boguchany flooding zone as well as the evidence of Quaternary geology, geomorphology, neotectonics, and archaeology jointly disprove the “young Angara” model proposed by G.I. Medvedev and other “geoarchaeologists.” The principal event postulated by that model – the alleged disastrous outburst of the Angara along the Baikal channel 12–7 ka BP is supported neither by the relief nor by the Upper Pleistocene and Holocene sedimentation record nor by the stratigraphy of the Paleolithic sites on the northern Angara.     

Single carcass of Mammuthus primigenius with lithic artifacts in the Upper Pleistocene of northern Italy

This paper presents the find of a Mammuthus primigenius carcass and associated Mousterian implements from the Last Glacial site of Asolo, in north-eastern Italy. We review the exploitation of proboscidean carcasses at Lower and Middle Paleolithic sites of Africa, Europe and the Levant, including evidence of elephant killing, and summarize recent research on hafting and use of Mousterian points as spearheads already before the end of the Middle Pleistocene. The bones and implements from Asolo are described in detail; we provide information on other Italian sites with mammoth remains and on the Mousterian record of the north-eastern quadrant of the peninsula. A possible impact fracture has been detected on a Levallois point from Asolo; its interpretation is based on comparisons to similar scars found on spear points of verified function from archaeological sites of later age, and on experimental material. We conclude that the evidence of Asolo is consistent with information from a number of Western European sites supporting a picture of Neanderthals as capable hunters of large game, such as woolly mammoth.     

The ESR geochronology and geology of the open‐air Palaeolithic deposits in Bollschweil,Germany*

This paper presents ESR (electron spin resonance) ages of rhinoceros and equine tooth enamel from the open‐air Palaeolithic site of Bollschweil on the western edge of the Black Forest near Freiburg, Germany. Bollschweil is one of very few archaeological sites in southern Germany to yield Lower or Middle Palaeolithic faunal and lithic materials from a buried, open‐air context. The geological context of the archaeological remains indicates that the loessic sediments have been reworked. Excavation at this site yielded a cold‐period fauna characterized by bones of mammoth, horse, large bovids and wooly rhinoceros. In the absence of any clear chronostratigraphic marker horizons, the age of the finds could not be determined without the use of a chronometric dating method. Lithic artefacts from the site, including a handaxe and a side scraper, suggest either a Middle Pleistocene or early Late Pleistocene age. The ESR dating results indicate that the deposit enclosing the archaeological finds should be assigned to oxygen isotope stage (OIS) 6, although there exists some possibility that some teeth were deposited later, in OIS 5.     

Meta-analysis of zooarchaeological data from SW Asia and SE Europe provides insight into the origins and spread of animal husbandry

Identifying spatial and temporal variation in animal exploitation patterns is essential for building our understanding of the transition from hunting to stock-keeping. Quantitative analysis of the published records of over 400,000 animal bones recovered from 114 archaeological sites from SW Asia and SE Europe from c12 ka to c7.5 ka cal BP (thousands of calibrated radiocarbon years before present) demonstrates significant spatiotemporal variability in faunal exploitation patterns. Sites in the Euphrates region show adoption of domestic taxa by c10.5 ka cal BP, although on average these taxa contribute less than 10% to total assemblage size. This rises to a median of about 40% by c9.5 ka cal BP, and then to about 45% of total NISP by c8.5 ka cal BP. By c10.5 ka in the Tigris and Zagros region domesticates contribute less than 5% to faunal assemblages, but then rise to a median of about 20% by c9.5 ka and 40% by c8.4 ka cal BP. In contrast, Levantine sites have low numbers of domestic taxa (<1%) until c8.8 ka cal BP, when the proportion dramatically increases to a median of about 35%. This apparent delayed-adoption pattern also holds true for the southern Levant, which shows, on average, low levels (<1%) of domestic taxa until 8.8 ka cal BP, at which point domesticates contribute a median of about 10% to assemblages. In the northern parts of SW Asia, the mid- to late-10th millennium cal BP is pivotal, as proportions of domestic taxa show a dramatic increase in frequency during this time, and the ‘package’ of domestic sheep, goat, cattle and pig becomes more firmly established. This sets the trend for sites of the 9th millennium and the appearance of Neolithic communities in SE Europe from the 8th millennium cal BP onwards, from which point domestic animals are ubiquitous in faunal assemblages.     

Mesopleistocene loess deposits in the Mamalyha 2 profile of Ukraine — interlaboratory comparison of the thermoluminescence dating results

The history of the interlaboratory comparison of TL dating results in Poland started in the 1980s. At that time the Lublin, Warsaw and Silesian laboratories made the first attempts at TL dating of the same loess samples from the Odonów profile. However, the cooperation ceased for many years due to great differences in the obtained TL age estimates. The next interlaboratory comparisons were made in the years 2000–2009 for the loess samples from several Polish (Dybawka, Tarnawce, Dankowice, Biały Kościół) and Ukrainian (Boyanychi, Halych, Velykyj Hlybochok, Yezupil) profiles. Most of the compared dates, obtained for the loess deposits from the Upper Pleistocene and younger part of the Middle Pleistocene, were consistent. This encouraged us to undertake the Gdańsk-Lublin interlaboratory cooperation in dating of 200-700 ka old loess deposits. Nine samples were taken from the Ukrainian profile Mamalyha 2 in 2009 for this purpose. The TL dating results indicate that comparable dates are obtained in two laboratories for loess deposits younger than 300 ka BP. The TL signal obtained in the Gdańsk laboratory for the samples older than 300 ka BP was saturated so such samples should not be dated by the multi-aliquot regeneration method. The results obtained in the Lublin laboratory for these deposits (489–682 ka) confirm that it is possible to date loess deposits older than 500 ka. It probably results from the use of total-bleach method with preheating at 160°C for the equivalent dose determination.     

Evidence from the Yana Palaeolithic site,Arctic Siberia,yields clues to the riddle of mammoth hunting

It has become commonplace to talk about humans hunting mammoths, and overhunting is thought to have been one of the causes of the mammoth extinction. However, definite evidence of mammoth kills by humans remains surprisingly scarce. Here we show convincing evidence of mammoth hunting in the Siberian Arctic between 29 000 and 27 000 ¹⁴C years BP. Our data set, from the Yana Upper Palaeolithic site (Siberian Arctic), includes the following: fragments of lithic points and ivory shaft embedded in two mammoth scapulae; two identical holes made by projectiles in a mammoth scapula and a pelvic bone; mammoth tongue bones found in the cultural layer far away from the main mammoth bone accumulation, indicating the consumption of fresh mammoth meat; and a narrow mammoth bone size distribution, implying hunting selection based on animal size. The data suggest that Palaeolithic Yana humans hunted mammoths sporadically, presumably when ivory was needed for making tools. Such non-intensive hunting practiced by humans over millennia would not be fatal to a sustainable mammoth population.     

Waterfowl and Lunate Crescents in Western North America: The Archaeology of the Pacific Flyway

California and Great Basin archaeologists have long discussed and debated the function of chipped stone crescents found in Terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene sites in the Far West of North America. Because they are found over a vast area, in sites occupied over a period spanning at least 4,000 years (~12,000–8,000 cal BP), it may be that crescents were used for a variety of purposes. Here we focus on lunate crescents and their strong association with wetland localities (lakes, marshes, estuaries, and islands). We reconsider whether crescents could have been used as transverse projectile points to hunt waterfowl. We also assess the biogeographical legacies of migrating birds to propose that as many as four species of large anatids (tundra swan, greater white-fronted goose, snow goose, Ross’s goose) that now breed in the Canadian High Arctic once bred in the Great Basin and adjacent regions during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene. We propose that crescents were used primarily in the taking or processing of geese and swans, some of which may have bred and molted in what are now temperate latitudes. After the Laurentide ice sheet retreated, these four species established High Arctic breeding grounds and no longer bred in the Great Basin. In this scenario, the absence of some populations of molting geese and swans helps explain why crescents fell out of the archaeological record after ~8,000 cal. BP. When crescents were used, Native Americans in the Far West may have had access to millions of large waterfowl.     

Evidence for kill-butchery events of early Upper Paleolithic age at Kostenki,Russia

At least 10 early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) open-air sites are found at Kostenki on the west bank of the Don River in Russia. During the 1950s, A.N. Rogachev excavated concentrations of horse bones and teeth from EUP layers at Kostenki 14 and 15 exhibiting the characteristics of kill-butchery assemblages. Excavations at Kostenki 12 in 2002–2003 uncovered a large quantity of reindeer and horse bones in EUP Layer III that also might be related to kill-butchery events, and the partial skeleton of a sub-adult mammoth excavated during 2004–2007 in EUP Layer V at Kostenki 1 yields traces of butchery. The character of these large mammal assemblages – combined with the analysis of artifacts and features – suggests that both habitation areas and kill-butchery locations are represented in a “EUP landscape” at Kostenki.     

Colonization of Northern Eurasia by Modern Humans: Radiocarbon Chronology and Environment

The distribution of frequencies of radiocarbon-dated Palaeolithic sites in northern Eurasia shows three peaks of 40–30, 24–18 and 17–1 ka bp. We argue that these peaks reflect the waves in the colonization of that area by Anatomically Modern Humans stemming from Central and Eastern Europe and caused by environmental stress.     

中国新石器时代文化演变动力分析

对多年来积累的气候资料的综合分析表明:在全新世期间有两个比较明显的温暖期。它们的时间分别为8～6kaBP(校正成日历年龄大约为9～7calkaBP)和5～3kaBP(日历年龄大约为5.5～3.2calkaBP)。文化的发展很大程度上受到了环境条件的制约。在前一个温暖期的后半段(8～7calkaBP),北方旱作农业(磁山文化、大地湾文化、兴隆洼文化)发展起来。南方稻作农业要在7.0～6.0calkaBP才初具规模。而6.0～5.5calkaBP的气候冷干事件使得南北方文化均有不同程度的衰退,但是南方受到的影响要小于北方。在后一个温暖期到来之后(5.5～3.2calkaBP),分别以龙山文化和良渚文化为代表的南北方新石器文化几乎同时进入发展史上的另一个黄金时代。尽管南北方文化体系对于气候变化的响应有所差异,并且不同时期不同地域文化发展动力也不尽相同,但是从大的时空尺度上来看,我国的新石器时代发展经历了如下阶段:最早期文化萌芽阶段(10calkaBP)——早中新石器时代之间的文化相对衰退期(10～8calkaBP)——新石器时代中期的北方农业文明崛起(8～7calkaBP)——7.0～6.0calkaBP的南方稻作农业的极大发展期——6.0～5.5calkaBP的文化衰退期——新石器时代晚期(5.5～4.0calkaBP)文化的极大繁荣。其间一些大的文化演替或者转型事件的时间在各地也大致相同。说明这种大的文化演进过程还是受到了同一个信号的支配,而只有环境气候因素才可能影响到如此大的范围。     

Taxonomic reassignment of the Paleolithic human navicular from Cueva de los Torrejones (Guadalajara,Spain)

Evidence of human activity and hominin remains are very scarce inland on the Iberian Peninsula. This fact raises the issue of the scarcity of evidence that Paleolithic Homo sapiens occupied this area outside of the littoral margins (Atlantic, Cantabrian, and Mediterranean coasts). Here, we comparatively describe a human right adult navicular bone recovered in the Cueva de los Torrejones site, located in the village of Tamajón (Guadalajara, Spain). This fossil was preliminarily established as belonging to Homo cf. neanderthalensis, due to the late Pleistocene faunal association, mainly because of the presence of Crocuta crocuta and Panthera pardus. The metrical and morphological study of the navicular T93-S3.27 from Cueva de los Torrejones clearly differentiates it from Neandertals and their ancestors, the hominins from Sima de los Huesos, allowing for this fossil to be taxonomically assigned with confidence as H. sapiens. The navicular from the Cueva de los Torrejones is absolutely and relatively medio-laterally narrow with a low wedging index as those of fossil and modern H. sapiens, and clearly different of Neandertals. The increased discoveries and publications of new naviculars belonging to genus Homo, together with the findings of P. pardus and C. crocuta in more recent chronologies in the Iberian Peninsula, are compatible with this reevaluation. We propose a probable chronology for this fossil between 12 and 15 ka and ca. 25 ka, based on the biostratigraphy and the oldest presence of H. sapiens in the Iberian Peninsula. This work confirms the human presence within the Iberian Peninsula during the Upper Paleolithic and reopens the question of the peopling of the inner Peninsula during this period.     

Luminescence dating of prehistoric hearths in Northeast Qinghai Lake and its paleoclimatic implication

Archeological research has been trying to provide evidence relevant to understanding both the timing of and processes responsible for human colonization of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP). Hearth is one of the most extensive, important, and typical prehistoric humanity activity evidence on the QTP. However, there are a number of hearths lacking charcoal material because of the wind and water erosion. Fortunately, most of these hearths can be dated by luminescence dating on the remnant sediments around the hearth. In this study, 18 optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) samples from 14 hearths in Yandongtai site (YDT) and Bronze Wire site (BW) in the northeast of Qinghai Lake area were systematically dated. The OSL ages range from 6.8 ± 0.7 to 14.4 ± 1.2 ka. There is a good agreement between OSL dating results and charcoal ages during the last deglaciation period, which indicates that OSL method has great potential in dating hearth on QTP. Combined with the previous dating results from other hearths, the age of hearths concentrates in 11–13 ka BP, i.e., the Younger Dryas (YD) chronozone. The increased number of hearths indicates reinforced colonization in the Qinghai Lake area during YD cold event, implying that the cold climate during YD event was not severe enough to hinder the inhabitation of prehistoric humanity at an elevation of 3.2 km.     

History,Chronology and Techno-Typology of the Upper Paleolithic Sequence in the Shuidonggou Area,Northern China

The timing and behavioral markers of the Upper Paleolithic in different parts of the world are of great importance to research on modern human dispersals. The pattern of behavioral developments in the Upper Paleolithic in northern China differs in important ways from the patterns observed in West Eurasia, Africa, and South Asia. Shuidonggou (SDG), a cluster of Paleolithic sites in northern China, contains several of the most important Upper Paleolithic sites in the region. Various localities yield evidence of three major cultural components dated by ¹⁴C, uranium-series, and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) methods to between roughly 46 ka and 10 ka. The oldest component, blade assemblages with western Eurasian early Upper Paleolithic characteristics, appears to be intrusive from Siberia and/or Mongolia, beginning at least 41 ka (e.g., SDG 1 and SDG 9). Advanced core and flake assemblages may mark the appearance of an indigenous Late Paleolithic of North China beginning at around 33 ka (e.g., SDG 2 and SDG 8). Finally, around 10.5 ka, microblade technology arrived in the area (SDG 12), although we are not sure of its origins at present. Other typical Upper Paleolithic cultural remains, such as bone tools and body decorations, have been found at various localities in the SDG area as well (e.g., ostrich eggshell beads from SDG 2, 7, and 8). Information from this cluster of occupations increases our understanding of cultural variability, adaptation, and demographic dynamics of modern humans in Late Pleistocene northern Asia.

     

Problems of TL dating of the Mesopleistocene loess deposits in the Podillya and Pokuttya regions (Ukraine)

In many papers different authors was described problem of systematic underestimation of TL ages for sediments older then 100 ka. We presented the results which probably are not significantly rejuvenated. This is another example of the TL dates made in Lublin laboratory which are likely in agreement with the stratigraphic interpretation. In 2002 Kusiak et al. published the TL ages ranging from 200 to 800 ka for the Zahvizdja loess profile in Ukraine. These first promising results of TL dating of so old deposits encouraged us to undertake further studies. In next years were discovered other Ukrainian loess profiles with the Middle and Lower Pleistocene deposits, among others in the Skala Podils’ka, Mamalyha and Vendychany sites. The thermoluminescence dating made for these profiles in the Lublin laboratory gave the next, after Zahvizdja, series of 15 TL ages ranging from 200 to 700 ka. This way we confirmed the possibility of TL dating of the deposits older than 400 ka BP.     

New age constraints for hominid footprints found on Jeju Island,South Korea

In 2004 numerous hominid footprints, along with diverse animal footprints, were found in the Late Quaternary strata of Jeju Island, South Korea. However, the age of the sediments in which the footprints were found is still controversial. Previous age estimates included radiocarbon ages of ca. 15,000 yr BP (Late Pleistocene) and quartz optically stimulated luminescence ages of ca. 7000 yr BP (mid-Holocene). In this study we report on 11 AMS ¹⁴C dating results from a new set of samples collected from the footprint-bearing strata and from associated sediments. Despite some variations and age reversal, all samples collected from the footprint-bearing strata yielded ¹⁴C ages of late Pleistocene. These ages are comparable with previous radiocarbon dating results. Furthermore, the presence of the proboscidean footprints attributable to woolly mammoths in the footprint-bearing strata supports the radiocarbon dating results. Based on the new radiocarbon dates and the presence of the alleged mammoth footprints, the age of the hominid footprints found at Jeju Island is thought to be late Pleistocene (about 19,000–25,000 cal yr BP). Therefore, this is the second discovery of hominid footprints dated to the Pleistocene age in Asia, and the first to be discovered in Korea.     

Mitochondrial DNA haplotypes of Devensian hyaenas from Creswell Crags,England

Spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) remains have been recovered from British Middle and Upper Pleistocene sites at intervals within the period 700–730 ka BP. Morphological studies have suggested that hyaenas of the Last Interglacial sensu stricto (Ipswichian: Marine Isotope Stage [MIS] 5e, 130–115 ka BP) and Last Glacial (Devensian: MIS 3, 61–24 ka BP) were two distinct populations, the Ipswichian hyaenas becoming extinct in Britain during MIS 5 and the Devensian ones arriving via a subsequent migration from continental Europe. However, the apparent presence of hyaenas in later MIS 5 deposits has led to the alternative suggestion that there was a southern relict population from which the Devensian hyaenas originated. We obtained ancient DNA (aDNA) sequences from four Devensian hyaena specimens from Creswell Crags, Derbyshire, dated to around 45 ka ¹⁴C BP. Each of these four specimens belonged to the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) clade A. This clade is not thought to have been present in Europe until ~360 ka BP, after the initial arrival of hyaenas in Britain. The DNA results, therefore, suggest that there were at least two waves of hyaena dispersals into Britain. The results are consistent with the repeated dispersals into Britain of another Pleistocene social carnivore, Homo sapiens.     

INTIMATE (Integration of Ice-core,Marine and Terrestrial Records) 20 Years on: Retrospect and Prospect

The INTIMATE (Integration of ice-core, marine and terrestrial records) project, the successor to the North Atlantic Seaboard Programme of International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP-253) ‘Termination of the Pleistocene’, began in 1995 with the aim of integrating proxy climate records from around the North Atlantic during the Last Termination (18–8?ka BP). The INTIMATE remit has since expanded geographically to include the entire Atlantic basin and Australasia, while an extended temporal framework now covers the early Holocene and the Last Glacial cycle. This short paper outlines the principal achievements of the INTIMATE research community, which include the development of an event stratigraphy for the North Atlantic region; the establishment of protocols for ice–land–ocean correlation; important contributions to geochronology, most notably to tephrochronology, and to palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic reconstructions; and the designation of the Greenland ice-core record as the global stratotype for the Pleistocene–Holocene boundary. Future directions of the INTIMATE programme are also briefly considered.